As the light faded away, the last trace of warmth vanished along with it.
Naruto stood in place, quietly gazing at his empty palm, as if the warmth of his mother still lingered in its center.
A moment of silence passed.
Then, he slowly turned around and looked at the Nine-Tails, which was being firmly pinned to the ground by Minato and Kushina.
The tenderness on Naruto's face faded, replaced by cold rationality and resolve.
"Alright, the chat is over."
Naruto raised his hands and slammed them together.
Behind him, the sixteen Adamantine Sealing Chains belonging to him—thicker and marked with Cursed Seals—shot into the sky like raging dragons.
"To fulfill that promise—Nine-Tails, hand over everything you have!"
Naruto pressed his hands to the ground, and a surge of Cursed Seals erupted from his palms, spreading toward the Nine-Tails.
A new Jutsu Seal descended.
Already immobilized by the residual power of Minato and Kushina, the Nine-Tails didn't even have the strength to struggle.
The sixteen chains precisely pierced its limbs, tails, and spine, pinning it to the ground.
Then, smaller, intricate chains split from the larger ones, tightly binding and coiling around its massive form.
The Nine-Tails let out a reluctant cry of despair, but the sound was soon drowned out by the clatter of the chains.
Numerous Jutsu Seals on the ground began siphoning the Nine-Tails' energy, transferring it along the chains into the Hōgyoku floating in the air.
The Nine-Tails was completely subdued.
Outside, by the river.
The storm of red chakra that had erupted with Naruto at its center began to converge at an astonishing speed.
All the terrifying aura was sucked into Naruto's body in the blink of an eye, vanishing without a trace.
The riverside returned to tranquility.
Naruto remained seated cross-legged on the large rock, his expression calm.
It was as if everything that had just happened was merely an illusion to the onlookers.
"Whew."
Orochimaru, who had been tense the entire time, finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"Has the Nine-Tails been completely controlled?"
He looked at Naruto, his golden pupils flickering with complex emotions.
If that immense chakra had fully erupted just now, it would have been enough to instantly destroy a hidden village.
Yet, Naruto had forcibly suppressed it at the brink of losing control and thoroughly tamed it.
"Truly worthy of Naruto-kun."
Orochimaru licked his lips, his reverence deepening.
Originally, he thought that after being completely controlled, he would become like a fanatical believer.
But to his surprise, after his soul was bound, he was no longer as fanatical as before.
His rationality returned to normal, and aside from his absolute loyalty to Naruto, he was almost no different from his original self.
This made him privately feel even more that he had made a wise choice.
Nearby, Yakushi Kabuto and Karin were already drenched in cold sweat.
In the face of such power, they felt as insignificant as ants.
Just as everyone thought it was all over...
Suddenly, an even more heart-palpitating fluctuation emanated from within Naruto's body.
From the location of the Hōgyoku in Naruto's chest, a faint blue light began to glow.
A massive amount of Nine-Tails' chakra was greedily devoured by the Hōgyoku, transformed into an alternative energy, and began assaulting the shackles within Naruto's body.
[Gene Lock · First Stage]
The assault began.
Naruto's skin began to turn red, and his body temperature rose sharply.
In his perception, the world slowed down.
The flow of the wind, the trembling of leaves, even the wingbeat frequency of distant insects—everything became clear and visible.
An instinct originating from ancient times was awakening.
He could feel that as long as he pushed open that door, his combat intuition and reaction speed would reach an unimaginable level.
The thrill of evolution was tempting him to press forward.
However, a faint cracking sound echoed.
The skin on Naruto's arm suddenly split open, and a spray of blood shot out.
Then, his cheeks and neck—tiny droplets of blood began seeping from his pores.
His muscles trembled all over, as if groaning under an unbearable burden.
Naruto frowned slightly.
He could clearly sense that if he forcibly broke the Gene Lock now, he would gain power, but his body might also suffer irreversible damage.
The intensity of the genetic restructuring was too great to withstand.
Or even—he might collapse.
This wasn't because he wasn't strong enough; on the contrary, it was because his physique was too robust, making the shackles on his genes even more secure than an ordinary person's.
If he were an ordinary person, the breakthrough would actually be easier.
Now, his success rate was only a mere seventy percent.
There was a twenty percent chance of suffering damage, and a ten percent chance of death.
Even with Karin's help, the success rate might not reach eighty percent.
This was an instantaneous collapse at the cellular level, not something simple wound healing could solve.
"Stop."
Just as he was about to break through that threshold, Naruto decisively cut off the energy supply.
All the anomalies vanished, and his split skin rapidly healed under his powerful regenerative abilities.
Naruto opened his eyes and adjusted his glasses, his gaze as calm as ever.
He took out a handkerchief from his chest and meticulously wiped away the bloodstains on his body.
He acted as if the person who had just been gushing blood wasn't him.
"Naruto-kun?"
Orochimaru instantly appeared beside him, looking at the blood on Naruto with a hint of concern in his eyes.
"What happened? That just now was—"
"It's nothing."
Naruto casually incinerated the blood-stained handkerchief.
"I wanted to take the next step, but I'm still missing something."
"Orochimaru, is Tsunade the strongest medical ninjutsu user in this world?"
"That's correct," Orochimaru chuckled hoarsely.
"Although that woman has many issues, when it comes to medical ninjutsu, she is indeed number one in the Ninja World."
Naruto stood up, his tone carrying an indisputable resolve.
"What I lack right now is medical security that can pull me back from the brink of life and death."
"For a more perfect evolution, I need some insurance."
"An absolute safety net that can forcibly help me survive the evolution period when I'm on the verge of genetic collapse."
Naruto's gaze swept over Orochimaru, Karin, and Yakushi Kabuto.
Orochimaru was proficient in forbidden jutsu and human body modification; although he also knew medical ninjutsu, he wasn't top-tier in delicate tasks like maintaining life vitality.
Although Karin possessed immense life force, her current physical constitution was still too weak to provide the surge Naruto required, and Naruto didn't want to take that risk.
As for Yakushi Kabuto, although he was a medical genius, his skill and experience were clearly no match for Tsunade's.
Therefore, there was only one target.
Naruto turned and looked at Yakushi Kabuto, who was standing by.
"Investigate."
"Your subordinate is here," Yakushi Kabuto immediately stepped forward and knelt on one knee.
"Go check on that woman's whereabouts."
"Konoha might need her now too, so make haste."
"Report to me once you find her. I will personally go to invite her."
"Yes."
Yakushi Kabuto accepted the order and left.
Karin asked softly from the side, "What if she's unwilling?"
Naruto's lips curled slightly.
"Then we'll see if she prefers to be dignified on her own, or if she needs me to help her be dignified."