Regardless of how the night unfolded for Naruto, Shiro's own gains were already ridiculously exaggerated.
Focusing his consciousness, Shiro projected his mind directly into the seal on Naruto's stomach, entering the boy's mental landscape.
*Drip... Drip...*
He found himself standing ankle-deep in stagnant water, within a massive, dimly lit subterranean chamber.
"So this is where the Nine-Tails lives. It's certainly massive," Shiro muttered, his voice echoing off the damp, stone walls.
He took a moment to survey the gloomy environment before turning his gaze toward the gargantuan iron cage dominating the center of the room. A thick strip of paper bearing the kanji for 'Seal' held the heavy gates shut.
To be brutally honest, the Nine-Tails' living conditions behind bars were exceptionally dismal. It felt more like a forgotten sewer than a mystic prison.
"Huh?"
Deep within the darkness of the cage, a pair of slitted, blood-red eyes snapped open. The Nine-Tails, having just been roused from its slumber, was utterly bewildered.
*How did someone just waltz in here?!* the beast thought, confusion rapidly giving way to intense hostility as it recognized the familiar, hated scent of the intruder's chakra.
"Get out! Get out of here, human!"
The Nine-Tails roared madly, its thunderous voice shaking the very foundations of the mental space. It lunged forward, slamming its massive claws against the iron bars, venting decades of pent-up fury at the tiny figure standing before it.
The demon fox's crimson eyes glared fixedly at Shiro, burning with absolute malice and a sudden, primal terror.
"Why do you possess the power of the Wood Style?! Get out!"
The moment it had fully awakened, the Nine-Tails sensed the distinct, suffocating aura radiating from the boy. It was the exact same, terrifying power wielded by Hashirama Senju, the man who had originally treated the mighty Tailed Beasts like mere house pets to be distributed.
Who in their right mind wouldn't be terrified of that power returning?!
"Hey now, stop yelling, will you? You're giving me a headache. I'm actually here to help you," Shiro said, offering what he believed to be a relatively friendly, placating smile.
But to the traumatized Nine-Tails, Shiro's calm smile looked exactly like the sinister grin of a demon preparing to torture it.
"Sigh. I suppose there's no other way then. We have to establish the pecking order," Shiro muttered, shaking his head.
The next second, Shiro bypassed the iron bars entirely, materializing directly inside the cage.
Before the Nine-Tails could even react to the intrusion, Shiro channeled a massive surge of dense, emerald Wood Style chakra into his right hand and ruthlessly slapped his palm squarely onto the giant fox's snout.
*BANG!*
The sheer, concussive force of the Wood Style—a chakra nature specifically designed to suppress and dominate Tailed Beasts—sent the Nine-Tails' mountainous form flying backward. The beast slammed violently into the far wall of the cage, the impact echoing like thunder.
*Sure enough,* Shiro thought, casually shaking out his hand. *When dealing with the Nine-Tails, nothing beats a good dose of Wood Style diplomacy.*
Slumped against the wall, the Nine-Tails was stunned silent. It neither cursed nor yelled. The terrifying suppression of the Wood Style had instantly drained its physical strength and quelled its raging chakra.
"See? I knew you could calm down if you really tried," Shiro said cheerfully, walking closer.
Under the crushing weight of the Wood Style, all beings were truly equal.
"What... what do you want?!" the Nine-Tails growled weakly, panting heavily.
Even though the great beast was still filled with a burning, humiliated rage, it had absolutely nowhere to vent it. It fundamentally understood that it could not defeat the monster standing in front of it.
Seeing the Nine-Tails' deeply aggrieved, almost pitiful expression, Shiro decided not to press the issue further. He had made his point.
"Listen closely. From now on, whenever Naruto attempts to practice his ninjutsu or mold his chakra, do not interfere. Keep your chaotic energy to yourself," Shiro commanded, his tone brokering no argument.
Shiro had only acted to intimidate the beast into submission, not to kill or permanently seal it further. He knew from the original timeline that if he didn't establish dominance now, the arrogant fox would simply keep blabbering and intentionally sabotage Naruto's training out of spite.
"That's it?" The Nine-Tails blinked its massive eyes, feeling incredibly wronged.
*Did this psychotic human really just break into my prison and hit me with the force of a mountain over such a trivial request?!* the fox thought bitterly. *Do you have any idea how much psychological damage a slap like that does to a majestic beast who just woke up from a nap?!*
"Understood," the Nine-Tails grumbled, its face darkening as it reluctantly agreed. It wasn't about to risk another Wood Style beating.
"Good. Now that's a good fox," Shiro said, nodding with a satisfied smile.
He then took another look around the bleak, dripping cage. The place where the Nine-Tails was forced to live really was far too rundown and depressing.
With a wave of his hand, Shiro began to forcibly alter the structure of the seal's internal environment.
The sudden influx of manipulating chakra almost made the Nine-Tails panic, thinking the boy was actually going to execute it after all.
But it overthought the situation. Shiro merely expanded the internal dimensions of the cage significantly, pushing the bars further back and drying up the stagnant water, replacing it with a soft, grassy floor created through his Wood Style.
He figured if the fox wasn't living in such a stifled, miserable environment, it might be slightly less cranky in the future.
"Nine-Tails, just stay here quietly and behave yourself from now on," Shiro instructed.
His classic 'carrot and stick' approach—first wielding the overwhelming club of the Wood Style, then offering the sweet date of a better living environment—proved highly effective in securing the beast's compliance.
---
Back in the physical world, within the secluded forest clearing.
"Eh? Where am I?"
Naruto slowly blinked his eyes open, groaning as he sat up on the grass.
"Shiro!" Naruto exclaimed, his grogginess vanishing instantly upon seeing his friend standing nearby. "Did we do it?!"
"We did," Shiro replied, pointing to the massive, rolled-up parchment resting against a tree stump. "This is the Scroll of Seals. I can only give you about two hours with it. By then, Mizuki will undoubtedly track you down to this location to claim his prize."
Shiro had meticulously calculated the entire timeline of the canon events.
"Wait... what about you?" Naruto asked, his initial excitement fading into confusion as he looked at the heavy scroll.
Naruto was at a complete loss. Shiro had done all the dangerous planning, bypassed the guards, and secured the ultimate prize, yet he was simply handing it over. Naruto felt like he hadn't contributed anything at all to his own success.
For a moment, Naruto's bright blue eyes welled up with genuine tears of overwhelming gratitude.
"I understand!" Naruto sniffled, wiping his eyes fiercely, secretly making up his mind. "I won't tell anyone you were involved! I'll go turn myself in to the Hokage later and take all the blame!"
To this heartfelt declaration, Shiro merely offered a faint, enigmatic smile and remained silent.
He wasn't worried about Naruto snitching in the slightest. Even if Naruto cracked under interrogation and explicitly named him as the mastermind, Shiro wouldn't be concerned.
The body currently interacting with Naruto was nothing more than an *External Incarnation*.
Shiro's true, original body was currently miles away, enjoying a lavish, multi-course dinner as an honored guest at the Yamanaka compound. With Uncle Inoichi, his wife, and Ino serving as his unimpeachable alibis, he had legally never left their dining room all evening.
Even if Naruto screamed his name from the rooftops, Shiro had an absolutely ironclad alibi!
"Alright then, Naruto. Study hard. I'll take my leave now," Shiro said, waving a casual goodbye.
Having set the stage perfectly, Shiro didn't linger in the forest a second longer. With a soft *poof*, he voluntarily dispersed the *External Incarnation*, sending its accumulated memories back to the original body.
---
Meanwhile, in the dining room of the Yamanaka Estate.
"Huh!"
Shiro suddenly flinched slightly in his seat, his chopsticks pausing halfway to his mouth.
"Lord Shiro? Is everything alright? Is the dinner not to your taste?" Ino asked nervously, leaning forward from across the table.
It was incredibly rare for Shiro to accept a formal invitation to her home, and she was absolutely desperate to present her best 'virtuous wife and loving mother' persona to impress him.
"Not at all, Ino. The food is absolutely delicious. You and your mother did a wonderful job," Shiro replied smoothly, recovering instantly with a charming smile.
The sudden, massive influx of memories from his dispersed *External Incarnation*—the infiltration, the scroll copying, and the mental spar with the Nine-Tails—had caused him to pause momentarily as his brain processed the data. But he was fully acclimated now.
"Really?!" Ino beamed, her entire face flushing a deep, happy crimson upon hearing his direct praise. *He likes my cooking!*
"By the way, Shiro," Inoichi Yamanaka interjected smoothly, casting a fond, slightly exasperated look at his hopelessly smitten daughter. She really needed to learn how to focus on the bigger picture.
The primary political purpose of Inoichi inviting Shiro to dinner tonight wasn't just to entertain a crush; it was to delicately inquire about the boy's future career trajectory.
"Do you have any specific thoughts or preferences regarding the upcoming Genin team assignments tomorrow?" Inoichi asked, pouring Shiro another cup of tea.
"About that... I do have a few thoughts, yes," Shiro answered after taking a slow sip, his expression turning thoughtful.
---
"Really? Then, Shiro, what do you think of me?" Ino blurted out eagerly, unable to contain herself. "Do you think there's any chance we could be assigned to the same team?!"
Whenever the topic of squad assignments arose, Ino desperately clung to the hope of being placed in the same three-man cell as Shiro. That way, she would have a valid, daily excuse to spend all her time with him.
"Uh..."
Both Shiro and Inoichi winced slightly, exchanging an awkward glance over the tea table.
They both understood the harsh political reality. Given the rigid, generational tradition of the Ino-Shika-Cho formation, it was practically guaranteed that Ino would be teamed up with Shikamaru and Choji. There was a zero percent chance the Hokage would break up that core alliance to accommodate a schoolgirl crush.
"Now, now, Ino. No matter what teams you are placed on, you will both still be fellow shinobi of Konoha. It's not as if you won't see each other around the village," Inoichi chuckled smoothly, expertly changing the subject to spare Shiro the awkwardness of rejecting her directly.
Internally, however, Inoichi was growing increasingly satisfied with Shiro's composed and mature demeanor.
"Thank you, Uncle Inoichi," Shiro replied politely, accepting the out.
Naturally, Shiro didn't mention that his own plans for the future were far more complex than simple team dynamics. With the existence of his overpowered system, being tethered to a standard Genin squad with a Jonin instructor breathing down his neck would actually be a massive hindrance to his growth and freedom.
---
Later that evening, the warm, family-like dinner with the Yamanaka clan finally concluded.
As Shiro walked leisurely back toward his apartment through the dimly lit streets, his enhanced hearing picked up the frantic, hushed discussions of the villagers and passing shinobi patrols.
"Hey, did you hear the emergency broadcast? That demon fox kid actually broke into the Hokage Tower and stole the Scroll of Seals!"
"I knew it! He's evil to the core! I've been saying for years that the monster should be locked up or executed!"
"This time, he's gone too far. Lord Hokage has to punish him severely!"
Shiro didn't even spare a glance at the panicked villagers. He kept his head down and quickly returned to the quiet sanctuary of his home.
*Time to take stock of tonight's harvest,* Shiro thought, locking his door and sitting cross-legged on his bed.
He closed his eyes and mentally reviewed the immense catalog of S-rank kinjutsu and forbidden techniques he had archived from the scroll. In total, he had secured the foundational theories and hand seals for several dozen world-altering jutsu.
*Not bad at all,* he mused, highly satisfied with his night's work.
Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, he noted that midnight had just passed. It was officially the day of the Genin assignments.
"System, initiate daily sign-in."
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for successfully signing in. You have obtained the Purple Entry: 'Piercing Vision'.]
[Description: Piercing Vision - A passive ocular enhancement. Any illusion-type ninjutsu (Genjutsu) or mist/environmental-obscuring ninjutsu cannot block or distort the Host's true line of sight.]
"Piercing Vision?" Shiro frowned, analyzing the description.
"System, are you kidding me right now? If this entry makes me completely immune to genjutsu, how on earth is it only classified as a Purple-tier reward?" Shiro argued, genuinely perplexed.
After all, in the brutal world of shinobi, those who specialized in genjutsu—like the Uchiha clan—were some of the most dangerous, terrifying opponents alive. If this single entry granted absolute immunity to all visual illusions, it should easily be a Gold-tier, or even a mythical-tier reward!
[Ding! The Host is advised to read the description carefully. This entry merely prevents illusion-type jutsu from *blocking* or *distorting* your line of sight. It does not grant absolute immunity to the internal, neurological effects of high-level Genjutsu.]
The system clarified with its usual mechanical precision.
'Piercing Vision' was not a comprehensive anti-genjutsu shield. Its primary function leaned heavily toward countering environmental obstruction. It allowed the user to see perfectly clearly even when completely shrouded in thick, chakra-infused mist or basic visual distortion barriers.
"Ah, I see," Shiro nodded, understanding dawning on him. "So it's not the ultimate bane of the Uchiha... it's the ultimate bane of the Hidden Mist Village."
__________________________
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