Years slipped by like water through fingers, silent and inevitable. Time didn't wait, didn't care. The world moved forward, the village kept turning, but Sasuke… Sasuke never came back from that night.
Before, he had been distant, but now he was something else entirely. Cold. Hollow. Like a blade sharpened too thin, cutting without meaning to. He didn't talk much, didn't engage. Every interaction was short, clipped, functional. There was no room for warmth. He trained harder than anyone, took every lesson, every spar, every test as a challenge, a fight he had to win. Not for glory. Not for praise. Just because. Because losing wasn't an option. Because weakness wasn't allowed. Because there was something in him that refused to rest.
He had no friends.
Naruto didn't either.
Not that he really cared. It wasn't anything new. No one in their class wanted to be around him. He was too weird, too quiet, too unpredictable. If he wasn't being scolded by the teachers, he was ignored. If he wasn't ignored, he was whispered about. He was creepy. Strange. Unnerving. He sat alone at lunch, worked alone during class. That was fine. He didn't need them. He had always been alone. He was used to it.
He still had the Forest of Death.
He still had himself.
He still had his past lives, their echoes in his skin, their instincts in his bones.
So he trained.
He honed himself in ways no one else could understand. His body adapted, shifted, changed in ways that weren't visible but were undeniably there. His grip became stronger, his balance perfect. His senses expanded beyond human limits. He moved like no one else, ran like the wind, saw in the dark like an owl, heard like a wolf. He didn't need jutsu. He didn't need tricks. He had something else. Something deeper. Something older.
The Academy felt smaller now. Constricting. A cage made of rules and expectations he didn't care about.
Graduation was coming soon.
Finally.
—ToT—
The space around him rippled like disturbed water, shifting between red and black. The scent of damp stone, thick iron, and something deeper—something old—filled his senses. It was cold here, colder than it should be, and yet the air was thick, almost suffocating. A massive cage loomed before him, stretching higher than any building he had ever seen. The bars, thick as tree trunks, pulsed with an eerie glow, humming with power. And behind them…
The Fox.
A being of raw hatred, coiled muscle, and seething malice.
It moved like a storm given flesh, tails flicking lazily, each one a force of destruction on its own. Its fur bristled, thick and wild, and its eyes—massive, burning—locked onto him like he was prey. Then it lunged.
Claws swiped, teeth snapped, the ground shook with its movements—but the bars held. The barrier did not waver. Naruto did not move.
The Kyuubi sneered, stepping back, tails lashing behind it. "You don't flinch, brat. Are you not afraid?"
Naruto tilted his head, expression unreadable. "Why would I be afraid?"
The Fox narrowed its eyes.
"You are caged," Naruto continued, voice quiet, calm. "You cannot harm me."
The beast snarled, fangs bared. "Tch. You're an arrogant little pest, aren't you?"
Naruto did not answer. His gaze never wavered, sharp and unwavering as he studied the creature before him.
Then, finally, he spoke. "Why did you kill my parents?"
A slow silence settled.
Then laughter—deep, guttural, filled with something dark and heavy. It rolled through the chamber, vibrating through the very air.
"Why?" the Kyuubi mused, voice thick with cruel amusement. "Because I hated them, of course."
Naruto watched. He didn't react. Didn't blink.
"I despised your father. I despised your mother. Their arrogance, their chains, their wretched existence. They thought they could control me. Tame me." The beast snarled, voice dripping with venom. "I am the Kyuubi no Kitsune! The strongest of the Tailed Beasts! I bow to no one! And so… I killed them."
The words hung in the air, heavy and absolute.
Naruto's expression did not change. He only blinked once. Slowly. Then, as if considering something, he asked, "So… you killed them because you liked it?"
Silence.
Then the Kyuubi grinned.
"Liked it? No, you misunderstand, brat. I loved it." It leaned forward, a cruel glint in its eyes. "I loved the feeling of my claws piercing their flesh. I loved the scent of their blood in the air. I loved watching their faces contort in pain as their lives drained away. It was delicious."
Naruto listened. His face remained blank.
"You are evil, then?" he asked, tone as calm as if he were discussing the weather.
The Kyuubi barked a laugh. "Evil? No, foolish child. I am the devil!" It grinned, sharp and terrible, its laughter echoing off the walls like distant thunder. "I am hate! I am destruction! I am—"
"I see," Naruto interrupted.
The Fox paused.
Naruto nodded once. "Well then. Farewell."
And with that, he was gone.