From that day forward, Danzo shifted his focus, prioritizing Naruto's Taijutsu training.
Naruto still felt a pang of regret about it. After all, casting Ninjutsu looked so damn cool.
"Hahaha, you damn brat! Didn't I tell you you can't learn Ninjutsu anyway? What's the point of learning that stuff?" Inside Naruto, Kurama was practically howling from laughter. He clutched his stomach with one hand and pounded the floor with the other, laughing uncontrollably.
It wasn't until Naruto landed a few punches to his gut that Kurama quieted down, still clutching his stomach and now rolling on the floor.
Honestly, Naruto just thought Ninjutsu looked cool. Whether he could actually learn it didn't really matter.
Apparently the Hyuga Clan also has similar weakness, their elemental affinities are negligible, so maybe it was just a case of gaining something and losing something.
Anyway, no matter how tough someone was, one punch from him would settle it.
If a single punch wasn't enough, well, he'd just step back and fire a beam.
Kurama, who had just managed to recover, sprang up in anger, pointing at Naruto. "You damn brat! Today, I will have my revenge and teach you a good lesson!"
"Bring it on, old man!" Naruto rolled up his sleeves and dashed towards the sealing gate.
After a series of *clangs* and *thuds*, Kurama lay sprawled on the ground, covered in bruises, his enormous eyes blackened.
He looked at Naruto, who was also lying down but on his stomach, and grumbled, "Damn brat, why bother learning Ninjutsu? I'll lend you my power. If you don't like someone, just blast 'em! Wouldn't that be way easier?"
"Why go through all that effort, making complicated hand seals, learning such weak stuff? That's just something only humans do, overcomplicate simple things."
Naruto rolled over onto Kurama's soft belly, getting into comfortable position. "I am human."
"You're kidding." Under the effect of Chakra, the bruises on Kurama's face slowly faded. "You're stronger than even us Tailed Beasts."
"How about we team up? If we do, nobody in this world will be a match for us. We'll be invin-."
Kurama tried to tempt Naruto with his usual clumsy approach.
"Invincible?" Naruto interrupted him as he raised an eyebrow and tentatively named a figure. "Madara Uchiha?"
--**--**
Kurama was silent for a moment. "...With that strange flash move of yours... I think you called it 'Solar Flare' maybe there's a chance."
'Only a chance, even teaming up?' It seemed Madara had left a very deep impression on Kurama.
"Then," Naruto thought for a moment and named another, "What about Hashirama Senju?"
Kurama was just about to brag, puffing himself up and declaring Hashirama was nothing. But then he remembered... himself, in his full glory, being grabbed one-handed like a little rabbit.
'Nine Tails, your power is too dangerous.' Hashirama had said that back then. Not long after, Kurama had found himself sealed away. 'Yeah, being tailed beasts is so dangerous, so why not capture all and then distribute them among warmongers!? Ofcourse things will go well... What an idiot!'
Kurama fell silent again.
His boasting shut down, Kurama felt like throwing things in frustration but sadly the only thing nearby is the being who can easily beat him up and won't respond well to being thrown away.
He quickly rolled his eyes again and tried a different angle. "How about we destroy that annoying village outside and kill all those annoying humans?"
"You hate 'em enough anyways."
"You're so barbaric," Naruto said, rolling his eyes without a second thought. "Kill everyone, then what? Just wait around for someone to come capture you?"
Patting Kurama's stomach, he said, "Kurama, look, we're still really weak... especially me. I'm still really weak."
'You're weak?' Kurama blinked, dumbfounded. 'Are you serious?!'
'One punch from you can leave me sore for half a day. Hit a normal human, and they'd probably turn into a chunks instantly.'
"You must never get carried away before you have the ability to protect yourself," Naruto continued.
"There are lots and lots of people in this world who are stronger than you."
"So how strong do you think is strong enough?" Kurama asked, playing along.
Naruto thought for a moment, then said, completely seriously, "At least strong enough to flatten you with one punch."
'Don't I deserve some dignity, as the strongest Tailed Beast?!' Kurama was utterly distraught.
What Naruto was actually thinking about were threats like Six Paths Obito, Six Paths Madara, the Sage of Six Paths, Kaguya Otsutsuki... and aliens from outer space, the Otsutsuki Clan. They were kind of like that Frieza Force, always invading planets. Until he could protect himself against that kind of threat, it was smarter to stay low-key and quietly get stronger.
Naruto had completely derailed Kurama, who now sulked, pouting and looking thoroughly annoyed.
He didn't notice that Naruto never actually said he disagreed with Kurama's suggestion at the end.
Kurama's temper came and went quickly. After a while, he spoke to Naruto again. "Then let's take care of that bandaged old man. You really hate him, right? His malice towards you is pretty much the highest in the whole village." 'I am bored! As the great Kurama I deserve some entertainment! Today I am going to raise some hell!'
"Kurama," Naruto said, rubbing the softest spot on the fox's belly and settling down. "As a civilized fox, don't always talk about fighting and killing."
"Destroying things physically is just too basic and simple."
"Do you know what it means to destroy someone... It is by breaking their heart in such a way that they don't want to even live anymore!"
Kurama was about to say he didn't, but Naruto's next sentence instantly made him explode in anger.
"Just looking at you, I can tell you wouldn't understand."
Before Kurama could erupt, Naruto went on, "He wants to become Hokage, right? How about I help him become Hokage?"
"Why? He's your enemy." Kurama asked slightly confused but intrigued. He didn't quite get it, but the idea did sound kind of interesting.
"Becoming Hokage is his lifelong obsession... something he dreams of... something he wants more than anything. If we help him get the Hokage's seat... and then all at once... um... What do you think his condition will be like?"
"All at once what... tell me!" Seeing Naruto pause right at the crucial moment, Kurama grew curious, scratching his ear.
Instead of answering, Naruto said,
"The most effective way to strike someone down isn't just defeating them or intimidating them. It's when they think they're finally about to win... to deliver the most ruthless, most direct blow, shattering their dreams and crushing their confidence."
Kurama thought for a long moment, utterly lost, then asked blankly, "So... you're gonna punch him?"
"..." Naruto stared at Kurama for a moment, then sighed. "Forget it. You wouldn't get it anyway."
Seeing the look of profound disappointment on Naruto's face, even a dense Tailed Beast like Kurama understood he was being looked down upon.
He instantly bristled.
'Naruto, what's with that look?!' He instantly sprang up from the ground and pounced on Naruto.
*Smash! Bang! Thud!* The sound of fierce, solid punches echoed through the sealing space once more.
The bruised and battered Kurama made another glorious appearance.
"Damn brat, this was the last time I'll ever talk to you! I would rather consider Shukaku greater than me than talk to you!"
Not long after saying that, Kurama sheepishly shuffled back over to Naruto.
Turns out, the at their core of Tailed Beasts wasn't so different from humans after all, saying one thing and doing the complete opposite.
From outside the seal, the Minato watched the Naruto and Kurama bickering and fighting inside. He wanted to join, but felt completely unable to fit in.
He could only touch his cheek with his index finger, a small sense of loss lingering, and sigh outside the seal. "Naruto and Kurama have such a good relationship..."
Naruto and Kurama's relationship was indeed good, but it was built through fighting. As for why that was the case? Everything came down to a certain night a few years ago.
"Hey, Kurama, how do you guys, Tailed Beasts, usually show affection?"
Kurama let out a lazy yawn and muttered something without thinking... something he'd regret for the rest of his life.
"By fighting..."
Narrator:
A brat with fists like meteors! A fox with the pride of a demigod! And a plan so petty, even Orochimaru would say, "That's a bit much."
As Danzo trains his own future downfall, Naruto trains his fists on emotional trauma!
Will Kurama ever understand the fine art of psychological warfare?
Can a tailed beast learn that breaking hearts is far more satisfying than breaking bones?
And will Minato ever be emotionally strong enough to third-wheel a fox fight without sighing like a lonely dad at prom?
Tune in next time for: "Minato's Lonely Dad Watch: Just Two Demigods and No Room for Papa!"
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