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But he was decisively refused.

Having Karin by his side was enough.

He returned to the inn.

At dawn, the red-haired girl was still sound asleep in bed.

Naruto dismissed his shadow clone.

He sat on the windowsill, gazing at the distant sunrise.

The news he received from Jiraiya could be considered good news from a certain perspective.

His feelings toward the Nine-Tails had always been complicated.

Apart from its bad temper and harsh words, the fox wasn\'t all that bad. To be honest, Naruto actually liked it quite a bit.

But on the other hand, until today,

In his mind, the Nine-Tails was the culprit responsible for killing his parents.

And after today,

He learned a truth: the one who forced the Nine-Tails to kill his parents was not the Nine-Tails itself but someone else.

That man, who possessed the Sharingan and was suspected to be "Uchiha Madara."

"Nine-Tails," Naruto softly called its name.

In his inner world, the fox responded sullenly, "What\'s up, kid?"

"When I find my parents, I will ask them what they think of you," Naruto said slowly.

The Nine-Tails was taken aback.

Naruto leaned against the window, "The true culprit is that Uchiha."

"But you also played a part."

"I am not qualified to speak on behalf of my parents, nor do I want to."

"If they are willing to forgive you,"

"Then I will do my best to find a way to safely release you from my body."

"If they are not willing..."

"Then before I die, I will release you and grant you freedom."

A jinchūriki is a prison for a tailed beast.

But isn\'t a tailed beast also imprisoned by a jinchūriki? When a tailed beast completely separates from the jinchūriki\'s body, severing their symbiotic relationship, the jinchūriki will die as a result.

The Nine-Tails bared its teeth in surprise, "Until you die?"

"Naru– Are you kidding me? Who knows how many more years you have left to live? Isn\'t it said that old man Yamamoto lived for over two thousand years?"

"You\'re still from the Uzumaki clan..."

It was certain that if there were no accidents, this kid Naruto would live for millennia, much longer than Yamamoto Genryūsai.

"That\'s the punishment if my parents don\'t forgive you," Naruto chuckled.

The Nine-Tails let out a grumbling noise in displeasure.

"Let\'s make another promise," Naruto tilted his head, his voice gentle. "I know you don\'t like being forced."

The Nine-Tails bared its teeth again.

It recalled the unpleasant days under the "Adamantine Sealing Chains."

"It\'s just that I used to think you were the one who killed my parents," Naruto continued, "so I didn\'t care about your feelings."

"But things are different now."

"Let me apologize for my previous stubbornness."

"In the future, I won\'t use the Adamantine Sealing Chains or any other sealing techniques on you."

"But when I need to borrow your power, could you please not resist so much?"

Faced with Naruto\'s direct approach,

The Nine-Tails was a bit at a loss.

It could sense that Naruto\'s emotions were straightforward and sincere, without the deceitful lies.

But this bluntness made it hard to handle.

"Let me think about it," it finally responded softly, flicking its tail.

"So that means you\'ll agree?" Naruto smiled.

The Nine-Tails felt embarrassed and angry, "Shut up, Naruto!"

"I said I need to think about it."

"Then tell me your name," Naruto continued.

"Don\'t speak for me," the Nine-Tails raised its voice, "I said I need to think about it."

A peculiar light flickered in its eyes.

A long, long time ago, when it had just been born,

The father who had created them, the "tailed beasts,"

That man named "Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo," revered as the "Sage of Six Paths" by the world,

Had told them to cherish "the bonds with people."

But...

Humans had greatly disappointed it.

Especially those with red eyes.

The ones with red hair aren\'t easy to get along with either.

Will Naruto be the exception?

The Nine-Tails remained silent.

There was still plenty of time—Naruto had a lifespan of over a thousand years, and as a Tailed Beast, it was eternal. There was more than enough time to get along and slowly observe.

However, it would be nice if those annoying golden chains weren\'t used on it.

That was good news indeed.

As the sunlight fully entered the room, Karin woke up.

"Naruto," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. "I just dreamed that you suddenly ran off."

Naruto smiled. "I went back to save someone."

"And I had a little chat with Jiraiya-sensei."

Karin paused in her movements. "So that wasn\'t a dream."

"Did you sleep well?" Naruto jumped down from the windowsill.

Karin nodded.

She tilted her head, scrutinizing Naruto.

She had only slept for a while, but it felt... like Naruto had changed a lot.

He seemed even more reliable now.

"Then let\'s go buy some things together," Naruto said, waving his hand. "Is there anything you want?"

Karin\'s eyes sparkled, and she nodded quickly.

Back in the Grass Village, she hadn\'t had this kind of freedom.

She had long wanted to try living like a normal girl.

The economy in this town was decent, with a good variety of shops and a wide selection of goods.

Naruto ordered two custom outfits for himself: the Shinigami\'s Robe and the Captain\'s Haori. He had been wearing these for over ten years and was already very accustomed to this style.

Karin stared at her own dusty gray coat, which was paired with the standard ninja fishnet top underneath.

It was hard to look at, and she started doubting herself for a moment.

This...

Naruto is better at fashion than I am?

She tried on a few outfits for herself.

Perhaps due to her long-term life in the Grass Village, where her sense of aesthetics had been suppressed, the clothes she picked out were always strange.

Either they didn\'t look good.

Or they looked fine individually, but when paired with her red hair, it was a disaster.

Naruto stepped in to help.

He picked out an outfit for Karin: a navy blue fitted blouse paired with khaki ankle-length pants and a pair of low-top sneakers.

She looked at herself in the mirror.

"Naruto, you\'ve got a good eye," Karin said as she turned left and right, unable to look away.

The girl in the mirror looked great.

Red hair was already a bright color, but with the deep, yet not "oppressive" colors as a contrast, she appeared cheerful and lively.

However...

She almost didn\'t look like a "ninja" anymore.

Naruto smiled.

After picking out a few more outfits for her, they left the town and headed towards the Land of Whirlpools.

In Konoha,

Two men wearing black cloaks with red clouds walked down the street.

Kisame lowered his voice, "Just barging in like this—might that be a bit inappropriate?"

"At the very least, we should have disguised ourselves."

"Even though the Third Hokage is dead, this is still... Konoha, after all."

Uchiha Itachi\'s tone remained unchanged. "If you think there\'s a problem... then just hurry up and find that boy."

"Talking about this is meaningless."

As he spoke, his steps suddenly halted.

Two Konoha ninjas blocked their path.

One had a neatly trimmed beard and a serious expression—it was the Third Hokage\'s son, Sarutobi Asuma.

The other had black hair and red eyes—it was the Jōnin, Yūhi Kurenai.

"You two... aren\'t from Konoha, are you?" Sarutobi Asuma said softly, his tone cautious. "Why have you come to the village?"

These two had strong auras—they were both powerful.

Appearing at this particular moment...

Set off alarm bells in his mind.