If Hagoromo had to describe how he felt at the moment, he could only sigh and say:
Today, the wind is really noisy…
It was a first meeting that was both faintly amusing and undeniably unpleasant. No matter what, Mirai was clearly very conscious of her red hair.
After all, vivid crimson hair was rare. Even if Hagoromo said it was something to be proud of, how could a child like her truly ignore the way others looked at her?
So honestly, Naruto getting beaten up for it was completely justified.
And in the future—and for many, many years to come—Uzumaki Naruto, with his strictly straight-line way of thinking, would eventually come to understand a profound truth:
Impulsiveness is the devil. Some things should never be said out loud.
The last time Naruto had been electrocuted was already a year and a half ago. There was no way he still remembered it. He didn't even have the slightest impression of Hagoromo.
That was perfectly normal.
If Naruto did remember Hagoromo at this age, then Hagoromo would have had to seriously question whether the kid had transmigrated from somewhere else.
Three years old and already retaining memories? What are you—Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo?
That said… Hagoromo was actually rather relieved by Naruto's current state.
He didn't quite understand how Naruto's personality had developed under such circumstances, but this slightly foolish, overly energetic version was far better than a gloomy, withdrawn child.
Blond hair, blue eyes—exactly like Minato.
But his face was rounder, clearly inherited from Kushina. Unfortunately, his face and clothes were both filthy.
The kid looked busy.
Had he gotten into a fight early in the morning?
No—this wasn't the case at all. As a good child aspiring to become a ninja, Naruto had gone out at dawn to "train."
"What's wrong?! You damn thief—why aren't you saying anything?!"
Seeing Hagoromo remain silent, Naruto started jumping around again, yelling at full volume.
…Emotionally volatile.
Hagoromo pressed a hand to his forehead.
This kid was noisy.
Silently offering three seconds of mourning for Naruto's future, Hagoromo then raised a finger and pointed at him.
"Mirai. Catch him."
In Naruto's eyes, Mirai's red hair suddenly seemed to sway even though there was no wind.
Like living tendrils.
It was… terrifying.
For some reason, the moment Naruto met her gaze—and saw his own reflection clearly mirrored in her pupils—the courage he'd charged in with vanished completely.
Then he turned and ran.
Naruto didn't know why. He just knew that running felt right.
At times like this, trusting one's instincts was absolutely the correct choice.
Naruto bolted out the door.
Mirai, however, didn't move.
Hagoromo looked down at her.
Wasn't she supposed to capture him alive?
Mirai looked up calmly and answered his unspoken question.
"I have a forty-meter-long blade. I'll let him run thirty-nine meters first."
Hagoromo: "..."
This was what happened when you told too many fairy tales.
There was a basic rule Hagoromo lived by:
Someone who's been electrocuted for three and a half years can't beat someone who's been electrocuted for five.
Not to mention that Mirai had already mastered many ninjutsu—most of them high-level.
In short, by the time Naruto ran from his apartment building down to the street and realized no one had chased him yet, he finally relaxed.
But he shouldn't have looked back.
He really, really shouldn't have looked back.
The moment he did, a horrifying scene entered his vision.
Mirai vaulted straight out of his window.
She leapt down effortlessly, rebounding lightly off the building's exterior, and in just a few steps landed gracefully on the ground—
Right in front of him.
At last, Naruto understood the truth.
No matter how he ran, he wasn't getting away.
A tragic reality.
Mirai grabbed him by the collar. And as if deliberately trying to scare him, instead of taking the stairs like a normal person, she bounded right back up the building exterior with him in tow.
She moved like a swallow gliding through clouds.
Naruto, experiencing "wall-running" for the first time, nearly had his soul leave his body.
Ninja weren't afraid of heights—but no one had ever taken Naruto for a ride like this before!
"Brought him back, Hagoromo. What next?"
Hagoromo blinked.
Mirai's mood felt… off.
Wasn't this supposed to be a touching reunion?
"…Anyway," Hagoromo said, "let's start by loosening things up."
Whether it was touching or not, there was work to do first.
"W-Wait! What are you doing?!"
The word "loosen" instantly snapped Naruto out of his shock.
Every time that word appeared, it was always at the beginning of a tragedy.
Always.
In any time, any place—this word was cursed.
Don't strip me!!
Unfortunately, the victim's opinion was clearly not under consideration.
Mirai showed no hesitation whatsoever.
"All of it? Even the bottom half?"
Hagoromo: "..."
Ahem.
Attention, villagers of Konohagakure. Emergency broadcast.
A big sister is about to strip her little brother—
"Upper body only. The shirt is enough."
What kind of crime had this kid committed to nearly get censored on-screen?
"W-Wait—wait—wai—HELP!!"
By the end, Naruto was screaming like a pig being slaughtered.
Was it really that serious?
Yes. It absolutely was.
Naruto struggled violently.
And then—
He lost control of his body.
He couldn't move.
He couldn't speak.
Naruto realized this with horror.
Which made things very convenient for Mirai.
Two minutes later, in the middle of winter, Naruto was half-naked.
Naturally, Hagoromo hadn't come here to bully a child. He crouched down and pressed a hand against Naruto's abdomen.
The Eight Diagrams Sealing Formula slowly surfaced.
Mirai moved to face Naruto directly.
She knew exactly what was sealed inside her "little brother."
"Well?" Hagoromo asked.
"There is abnormal chakra leaking out through the gaps in the seal," Mirai replied.
Between the layers of the Four Symbols Seal, the Nine-Tails' chakra continuously seeped outward.
This was something the Fourth Hokage had intentionally left behind—preparation for Naruto's future control of the tailed beast.
However—
"…Forgive me, Fourth Hokage."
This was not Hagoromo's plan.
The actions of the dead were always altered by the living.
Naruto stared at the two solemn faces in front of him, panic flooding his chest.
He wanted to say something—anything—but he couldn't.
Hagoromo began inscribing a new formula over Naruto's abdomen.
Outside the Fourth Hokage's seal, he added another Four Symbols Seal, completely blocking the Nine-Tails' chakra.
Naruto couldn't lower his head. He couldn't see what Hagoromo was doing.
But the sensation on his stomach made everything feel very wrong.
Human experimentation?
Every terrifying story he'd ever heard resurfaced in his mind.
In his eyes, Hagoromo and Mirai had transformed into demons happily conducting some dreadful operation.
But—
Why didn't they have horns?
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