"Hmm?"
Naruto looked up at Kurama.
"Wait… so Kokuō can reverse-sync information from its own Jinchūriki?"
Kurama propped himself up on his claws and sat upright.
"You could put it that way. But it only works if the Tailed Beast willingly gives a portion of its chakra to someone—and that chakra must include a piece of its consciousness. Of course, we Tailed Beasts can all do that."
Naruto turned toward Kokuō, who stood about the same height as him inside the seal.
"Kurama, didn't you say you could contact Kokuō's true body through the part of it that's here with me? Looks like that's not exactly true."
Kurama lay back down and grinned.
"Heh. Isn't it easier this way? Saves me the trouble. Besides, I told you—the Tailed Beasts don't forget a favor. You still don't get it? The moment you and Kokuō formed a chakra link, you already earned his goodwill."
Naruto's expression turned serious.
"Goodwill?"
Kokuō casually swished its tail.
"Naruto, you'll understand once you release Kurama's seal. For now, you're not strong enough to handle what I gave you."
"Also…"
Kokuō leaned in.
"I want to see for myself whether you really can live up to the promise you made to Kurama."
Naruto had a strong guess what that "goodwill" really was.
After all, he had read the original canon—and he'd already suspected the true reason Kurama had encouraged Kokuō to give him chakra. So it wasn't that surprising.
After a brief pause, Naruto remembered what he had been about to say earlier.
Turning back to Kokuō, he continued:
"Oh right. I just finished syncing with your Jinchūriki's training experience regarding Boil Release."
Kokuō lifted its head proudly.
"That guy developed his Boil Release through me. His methods were slow and clumsy. Took him over ten years to get it working, and even then it was average at best. Now, compare him to the Four-Tails' Jinchūriki, Rōshi. That old man just left the village for a few years, came back, and said he had figured out Lava Release from Son Gokū."
"But it's all the same," Kokuō added dismissively.
"They're just mimicking what we Tailed Beasts were born with."
Naruto smiled slightly.
"True. But after fusing his chakra nature into Boil Release, your Jinchūriki's overall power spiked considerably. At the very least, his Boil Release can be considered overwhelming brute force—even by Shinobi World standards."
A flash of disdain passed through Kokuō's eyes.
"Once you release Kurama's seal, I'll show you what real overwhelming power looks like!"
Naruto nodded calmly.
"I'm looking forward to it. But since we're on the subject… Kurama, I'm curious—what exactly are your abilities? Is it just wide-range sensory and the ability to distinguish malice in others?"
Kokuō lifted a front leg, about to answer:
"Kurama's ability is—"
"Shut it!" Kurama's blood-red eyes snapped open, his chakra flaring. He raised a paw and aimed it at Naruto.
"I'll tell him myself."
Kokuō's eyes clearly glinted with amusement as he trotted off to a corner of the seal space, swaying his tail playfully.
Naruto raised his fist and bumped it lightly against Kurama's, then withdrew it with a curious expression.
Kurama didn't say much—just told him to wait.
Wait until the day he fulfills his promise. That's when Naruto will truly understand Kurama's power.
In the original timeline, Naruto had never developed any Kekkei Genkai from Kurama.
But after syncing, their partnership did unlock several impressive abilities:
He could sense malice across the entire Shinobi World.
He could share chakra with others.
And, of course, he had access to Kurama's massive chakra reserves.
Besides those… there wasn't much else.
Kurama, still sitting on the ground, became visibly irritated—especially after seeing the doubtful look on Naruto's face. With a huff, he extended a paw toward Kokuō.
"Kurama, this isn't necessary. We're both Tailed Beasts, after all."
"Just get on."
With a resigned sigh, Kokuō kicked off the ground and jumped into Kurama's palm.
A moment later, Naruto watched as Kokuō's body began to expand like an inflating balloon—growing in size until it matched Kurama's massive paw.
Kokuō hopped off, walked up to Naruto, and lowered his head.
"Mhm. This perspective is much better than before."
Naruto tilted his head.
"So what's the difference between this and when you gave my father chakra?"
Kurama's tone grew serious.
"Completely different. Unless I willingly allow it, no human can hold onto my chakra without a sealing technique. The chakra I gave Kokuō is permanent."
"Besides, Kokuō and I share a common origin. He can naturally absorb and grow stronger from my chakra. Humans can't do that."
Naruto immediately countered:
"But Kurama, you told me years ago—when Kumogakure visited Konoha—that the Gold and Silver Brothers were able to freely use your chakra after being inside your stomach."
Kurama's face changed instantly.
"Tch! Who knows what kind of freaks those two were—claiming to be descendants of the Sage of Six Paths, no less! They're not normal people!"
Kokuō leaned down to comment:
"Those two really were… odd. Even over in Iwagakure, we've heard of that incident. Supposedly, others from Kumo tried to replicate it by eating bits of Gyūki, the Eight-Tails—but they died on the spot."
Naruto's expression turned thoughtful.
"So… can all Tailed Beasts share chakra with each other like this? And over the centuries, has anyone else tried eating Tailed Beast flesh?"
Before either could answer, Kurama interrupted sharply:
"You should head back. That Uchiha brat already destroyed all your clones."
Naruto took the hint.
After a moment of quiet reflection—and a head full of new questions—he exited the seal.
Outside the Seal
As soon as Naruto came to, he saw Sasuke standing in front of him, his expression tense.
"What do you want?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke's tone was cold.
"I went to the underground chamber beneath the Naka Shrine last night."
Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? So you believe what was written on that stone tablet?"
Sasuke's eyes widened.
"You know what was on it?!"
He was shocked—Naruto hadn't used that strange insight ability of his to spy on him, and yet he clearly knew what was written there.
But… that masked man had said only Sharingan could read the tablet.
Was he lying to me?
Sasuke stared at Naruto like he'd seen a ghost.
Naruto's voice was calm.
"Don't overthink it. I'll just tell you straight—the stone tablet's content has already been tampered with. It's basically a fake."
Upon hearing this, Sasuke felt a strange sense of relief.
He wanted to believe Naruto. He needed to believe him.
Because what was written on that stone tablet… was something he didn't want to accept.
Especially the part about how that man had awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Just thinking about it gave Sasuke chills.
But Naruto suddenly added with a smirk:
"However…"
Sasuke's heart immediately tensed again.
"However what?"
Naruto smiled.
"Nothing much. Just that—while the content may be fake, the method to evolve the Sharingan? That part is real. In fact, you could say it was designed specifically for your Uchiha clan."
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