"A dragon… he turned into a dragon!"
Naruto stared at Kaido, who had transformed into a colossal dragon, his eyes wide with shock.
In his dragon form, Kaido coiled through the sky, his massive body blotting out the sun itself. The sheer visual impact made Naruto feel breathless. The idea that a person could turn into a giant dragon was completely beyond his understanding.
"That's Kaido's ability."
Yamato stood protectively in front of Naruto, staring up at the dragon with blazing fighting spirit. Even so, he didn't forget to explain.
"Kaido is a Devil Fruit user. He can transform into a giant dragon and control wind, fire, lightning, and thunder. It's an extremely rare Mythical Zoan…"
She clenched her fists."Damn it, I really want one too!"
"Devil Fruit?" Naruto asked immediately, curiosity overpowering his fear. "What's that?"
"It's a fruit that gives people special powers when they eat it," Yamato replied after thinking for a moment. "But the price is that you'll never be able to swim again."
"You get superpowers just by eating a fruit?!"
Naruto's eyes lit up.
If he could get power like that—power strong enough to turn into a dragon—then surely everyone in the Village would finally acknowledge him.
As for not being able to swim? Compared to becoming that strong, it didn't matter at all.
"Worororo!~"
Kaido's thunderous laughter echoed from the sky as he looked down at them.
"You little brats… are you ignoring me?"His voice rumbled like a storm."You've got guts. But if you can't satisfy me, then even if I kill you, I won't hold back!"
"I won't be killed, you bastard!"
Yamato shouted back without fear, leaping upward and swinging his fist straight at Kaido.
Bam!~
With a casual flick of his dragon tail, Yamato was sent crashing back down—his body falling several times faster than when he jumped—slamming violently into the ground.
"Yamato!~"
Naruto felt a surge of anger explode in his chest. He jumped instinctively, trying to attack Kaido—
But his jump didn't even come close to reaching the dragon circling high above.
"Hmm?"
Kaido stared down at Naruto, momentarily puzzled.
"Brat… you should be a user like me, shouldn't you?"He tilted his head."Then why aren't you using your ability?"
From the moment Kaido had first seen Naruto, he had sensed something powerful hidden within the boy's body—something that felt similar to his own Devil Fruit, perhaps even more dangerous.
That was why Naruto had caught his interest.
"My… ability?"
Naruto froze, then shook his head in confusion.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not a user—I'm a ninja!"
Even if he wasn't officially one yet.
"Ninja?""Worororo!~"
Kaido burst into laughter.
"I don't care what you call yourself," he said, lowering his massive head."But if you dare hide your strength in front of me—be prepared to die!"
"Heat Breath!"
Kaido opened his enormous jaws. Scorching energy condensed instantly, then erupted downward in a blazing torrent aimed straight at Naruto.
"!!!"
Naruto froze.
The overwhelming pressure robbed him of even the thought of running.
Using something like that on a kid… that's not fair!He really wants to kill me!
Just as the Heat Breath was about to swallow Naruto—
A figure flashed in front of him.
"Yamato—!"
Yamato stood between Naruto and the attack, taking the full force of the Heat Breath head-on.
"Wah—yah—yah!~"
His small body stood firm, like a mountain shielding everything behind it.
By the time Naruto snapped out of his shock, Yamato had already been scorched black and collapsed.
"Yamato!~"
Naruto's scream tore from his throat.
Something clicked inside him.
His pupils twisted into orange vertical slits as an overwhelming power erupted from his body. Chakra surged violently, forming a tail that lashed out and forcibly scattered the remaining Heat Breath.
Grrr!~
Bathed in blazing orange chakra, Naruto held Yamato in his arms, teeth clenched so tightly they ground together—whether in rage or in a desperate struggle to stay conscious, even he didn't know.
After confirming that Yamato was still alive, Naruto gently set him down.
Then he slowly lifted his head.
Vertical pupils locked onto Kaido, killing intent blazing.
"I'll kill you."
Boom!~
Naruto's small body shot into the sky. The orange chakra around him condensed into a sharp claw, tearing toward Kaido.
"Worororo!~ That's more like it!"
Kaido twisted in the air, laughing wildly.
"Brat, hiding your strength is something only the weak do!""The strong prove their worth by unleashing their power!"
"Only strength rules everything!"
With a casual swipe of his claw, Kaido smashed Naruto back down.
Roar!~
Naruto roared as he fell. Even more chakra poured from his body, forming a second tail behind him.
At this point, there was no rationality left in Naruto's eyes—only wild, uncontrollable fury.
"This state…"
Kaido frowned slightly.
His massive dragon body shrank rapidly, returning to human form. In a flash, he appeared before Naruto and reached out.
Roar!~
Naruto's chakra tail lashed out—but Kaido caught it barehanded.
"This power…"
Kaido's expression shifted. This didn't feel like a Devil Fruit at all.
Noticing Naruto's complete loss of sanity, Kaido braced his spiked club against the ground with one hand and reached out again.
Splat!~
A second tail erupted from Naruto's back and snapped forward, slapping Kaido across the face.
"…Interesting."
Kaido wiped his cheek and grinned.
"But at this level, it's not even enough to scratch my itch."
His Observation Haki spread outward.
Instantly, his vision shifted.
He saw a massive iron gate.
And behind it—
A gigantic Nine-Tailed Fox, its enormous body curled in the darkness, nine tails swaying lazily.
The fox sensed the intrusion.
Its eyes snapped open—sharp, ancient, and filled with malice.
In Kaido's perception, the Nine-Tailed Fox gazed upward and saw a colossal dragon circling above.
Dragon and Fox stared at each other across the void.
A silent confrontation was born.