Naruto: I Am Uzumaki Naruto!?

Naruto paused in his steps, but his consciousness was already deep within his mindscape.

The dark, sewer-like space stretched endlessly before him. He had been here countless times.

Walking down the damp corridor toward the massive cage, he looked up at the towering Nine-Tails, its nine tails swaying like an ominous storm.

Naruto grinned. "Yo, Kurama. Looks like I might really need your help this time."

He had never used the Nine-Tails' chakra on a large scale before, but he believed he could handle at least a Four-Tails state with his willpower and his Adamantine Sealing Chains.

Kurama let out a deep, rumbling chuckle. "So, you're finally ready to use my power?"

The beast remembered the first time it had seen Naruto—just a tiny baby, barely a year old.

At the time, it had wanted nothing more than to break free, to kill the child and escape the seal. But the little brat hadn't been afraid. Instead, he had come here over and over, sitting outside the cage and talking to him.

Kurama had ignored him at first, letting the boy ramble on. But Naruto never stopped coming back.

The fox recalled the day Naruto was four years old—when a villager had hit him with a rock, and he had stumbled into the seal unconscious.

That was the first time Kurama had offered him power, whispering temptations of revenge against the people of Konoha.

But Naruto had refused.

Even after all the pain, the loneliness, the abuse… Naruto had never once asked for power to take revenge.

Kurama had told him the truth long ago—that he was the son of Konoha's Hokage, that he had been lied to, abandoned, and made a scapegoat.

But even then, Naruto had just smiled and said, "I already know."

Kurama never understood him. How could a human endure so much and still keep smiling?

That smile hid something deeper—something colder.

Now, for the first time, Naruto was asking for his power.

"Good," Kurama growled, eyes gleaming. "Take my chakra, Naruto. Unleash your hatred. Kill the ones who hurt you. Destroy this rotten village. I won't even try to take control—just let your darkness out."

Naruto's smile widened.

Then he shook his head. "Not yet."

Kurama blinked. "What?"

"It's too soon to take all of your chakra. After all…" Naruto's blue eyes met Kurama's slitted ones. "You don't fully acknowledge me yet, do you?"

Kurama fell silent.

Naruto was right. The fox didn't truly recognize him—not because he distrusted him, but because, as a tailed beast, it could never fully respect the weak.

Naruto turned away. "Guess we'll have to fight someday, huh?"

Kurama smirked. "Hah! You think you can defeat me? You're a hundred years too early, brat!"

Naruto disappeared into the darkness, his voice echoing in the sealed space.

"Kurama… one day, I'll make this world burn."

Kurama's expression darkened.

For the first time, he felt a chill—not of fear, but of curiosity.

What was Naruto truly after?

The Hyuga Clan's Darkness

Back in the real world, Naruto stopped in front of the Hyuga compound, his expression unreadable.

"System," he whispered, his voice carrying an eerie calm. "How much money do I have?"

[Host has 7.42 million ryo.]

"Use it all to buy detection ninjutsu."

A surge of knowledge flooded his mind. Naruto closed his eyes for a moment—when he opened them, his sensory range expanded beyond sight, sweeping through the entire Hyuga estate.

Finally, he found what he was looking for.

Hinata.

Inside a traditional training hall, Hinata stood, her small hands swollen red, striking a wooden post over and over.

A group of Hyuga elders watched coldly.

"Again!"

A middle-aged man sneered. "Why can't you be like your sister? You disgrace the Hyuga name."

A wooden staff cracked against Hinata's arm. She winced but remained silent, her fists trembling as she continued practicing her Gentle Fist.

Naruto's hands clenched into fists.

The others around him—Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, even Sasuke—felt the sheer pressure radiating from him.

This wasn't anger.

It was rage.

"Shikamaru," Sasuke muttered, swallowing hard. "You think your dad can get here in time?"

Shikamaru wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I don't know."

Another half hour passed.

Hinata finally collapsed, her body exhausted beyond its limit.

But even as she lay on the floor, her violet eyes stared up at the man above her.

"Master Setsuna… can I go back to school now?" she asked weakly.

The elder scoffed. "School? You just want to see that fox demon brat, don't you?"

Naruto's pupils turned red.

Setsuna's voice dripped with disdain. "You're the future head of the Hyuga Clan. Do you think we'll let you disgrace us by associating with that thing?"

Hinata's fingers twitched. "Naruto… isn't… a demon…"

Setsuna's foot slammed into her stomach, sending her rolling across the training hall.

The elder smiled coldly. "You'll keep training until you forget about him. Or until you're stronger than your sister. A clan head must never be weak."

Naruto exhaled.

His breath came out slow. Controlled.

The next moment—

A shockwave of pure chakra erupted from him.

The ground beneath his feet cracked. The air itself seemed to distort.

Every head in the Hyuga compound turned in his direction.

Inside the training hall, Setsuna Hyuga narrowed his eyes. "What was—"

Then the main doors exploded.

Naruto stood at the entrance, his blood-red eyes locked onto the man before him.

He stepped forward. The very air around him vibrated.

Hinata lifted her head weakly, her eyes widening. "Na… ru… to…?"

Naruto's voice was calm. Too calm.

"You shouldn't have done that."

And then—

He moved.

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