Naruto's vision blurred as he regained consciousness, his mind struggling to piece together what had just happened.
He remembered chasing after Sasuke, their fight, the heat of battle... and then nothing.
Now, he stood amid a battlefield, surrounded by massive craters and scorched earth.
His gaze snapped upward, locking onto Kazekage Mufasa, who hovered in the sky, lightning crackling around him.
Electricity arced between towering pillars, illuminating the battlefield with flashes of blue and white.
"Old man Mufasa, why are you here?" Naruto asked, suspicion creeping into his voice. "What happened?"
The deep, gruff voice of Kurama, the Nine-Tails, rumbled in his mind.
"What do you mean 'what happened'? You got your butt kicked! Now stop talking and fight back!"
Naruto winced.
"Wait, I lost?"
He looked at Mufasa, who rested his heavy black mace against his shoulder, his expression unreadable.
"Oh? You're finally awake," Mufasa said with a smirk.
Naruto instinctively shrank back at the sight of the massive weapon. His body ached all over, the pain deep in his bones.
He glanced around at the battlefield, noticing the deep craters carved into the ground.
"I... I did all this?"
Kurama scoffed.
"What do you mean you did this? You got beat down. That deep pit over there? That was from your Tailed Beast Bomb—completely off target, by the way. The entire audience fled because of you. You went into a rampage, half-transformed, and lost control. Don't you remember?"
Naruto's heart sank. He had let the power get the better of him again.
"Kyubi... is that true?"
The giant fox chuckled, tilting his head.
"Don't look at me. You're the one who can't control my power. Not my problem. Now, quit whining and fight back!"
Naruto hesitated.
"We already messed up. I can't just attack again. Besides, Old man Mufasa is way too strong."
Kurama growled impatiently. "Don't be stupid. If you use my full power, you can beat him!"
Naruto sighed, rubbing his sore arms. "We should apologize first."
He turned to Mufasa and bowed slightly. "I'm sorry, Old man Mufasa. I lost control. I didn't mean to ruin everything."
Mufasa raised an eyebrow.
"No need to apologize to me. Your village can pay for the damages." His expression darkened slightly.
"But it looks like the beast inside you still isn't convinced."
Before Naruto could respond, Mufasa gripped his mace tighter. "We continue your education."
Naruto's stomach dropped. "Wait, can we not—"
Mufasa vanished.
Lightning crackled in the sky as he accelerated, his presence flickering in and out of sight.
The air hummed with electricity.
"Naruto! Move!" Kurama roared.
Naruto forced his aching body to move, forming a shadow clone in an instant.
The clone spun a glowing blue sphere of compressed chakra into existence.
"Big Ball Rasengan!"
The spiraling mass of chakra hummed violently in Naruto's palm.
This was a technique that only he, with his near-infinite chakra reserves, could wield with such raw power.
If it landed, it would hit like a falling meteorite.
A sharp gleam flashed in Naruto's eyes. "Here he comes!"
Kurama's growl echoed in his mind. "Good! Now hit him with everything you've got!"
"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
With a loud bang, a swarm of Naruto clones filled the battlefield, charging toward the streaks of lightning that marked Mufasa's movements.
But they were too slow.
Mufasa weaved through them with ease, his speed unmatched.
The clones barely had time to react before they were struck down, one by one, disappearing in bursts of smoke.
Naruto's pupils shrank. "He's too fast!"
"Naruto! A real man fights head-on!" Mufasa's voice boomed. "Bring it on! Eat my mace!"
A split second later, Mufasa's form appeared directly in front of Naruto, his black mace swinging downward.
Naruto had no time to dodge.
Acting on instinct, he thrust his Big Ball Rasengan forward to intercept the blow.
The moment they collided, an explosion of chakra erupted between them.
But Mufasa's weapon didn't shatter. Instead, it vibrated violently, disrupting the chakra flow.
"Boom!"
The Rasengan unraveled, the energy scattering harmlessly.
The force of the impact sent Naruto skidding backward, barely staying on his feet.
Mufasa smirked. "Home run."
Naruto looked up just in time to see his own jutsu spiraling into the sky, completely deflected.
His breath hitched. "No way..."
Before he could react, the cold tip of Mufasa's mace hovered inches from his nose.
The sheer force of its swing had stirred the wind, stinging his face.
But Mufasa didn't strike.
"Naruto, you're still not strong enough," Mufasa said, his voice calm but firm.
"You have potential, but potential alone isn't enough. Train harder. Become stronger. If you ever want to become the Hokage, someone of my equal standing, you'll need more than brute force."
Naruto swallowed hard and nodded numbly. "Yeah... I understand."
Mufasa studied him for a moment before sighing.
"The Tailed Beast within you has fully awakened. You two will be able to communicate better in the future. Remember this: You must become a true shinobi. You must push yourself beyond your limits."
He turned away.
"Keep training, Naruto. One day, you'll need to be strong enough to protect everything you care about."
Naruto clenched his fists, determination sparking in his eyes.
"I will."
Mufasa had no intention of making Naruto his disciple.
The boy's heart burned with the Will of Fire, his dream of becoming Hokage unshakable.
It would be nearly impossible to mold him into anything else.
And killing him? No. That would be far too boring.
Naruto needed to grow stronger.
Only then would the real fun begin.
Mufasa's overwhelming strength was something even the Nine Tails couldn't handle.
He was right.
Naruto was still not strong enough.
Kurama let out a deep sigh. "Naruto, you need to keep training hard. Don't slack off."
With that, Mufasa turned to leave.
But before Naruto could relax, another mentor-like figure, one who had been watching him closely, stepped forward.
The pressure was suffocating.
This wasn't a fight worth continuing.
Naruto deactivated his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
"Old man, when I get stronger, I swear I'll challenge you again!"
Mufasa smirked. "You're welcome anytime."
Then his expression changed. "But before that… we need to talk about the damage fees."
Naruto blinked. "Huh?"
Mufasa remained serious.
"Even though you only wrecked the desert, the Hidden Sand had to mobilize a large number of ninja to contain you. Some got injured. That means medical expenses, labor costs... all of it falls on you."
Naruto's face paled. "I—I don't have any money..."
He scratched his head. "I spent everything I had on a tricycle."
He glanced around awkwardly. "And... the tricycle is gone."
The only thing left from it was an engine and a single wheel.
Mufasa laughed. "Don't worry. I'll be collecting from your guardians instead."
Meanwhile, Orochimaru and his group started to retreat, satisfied with the Nine-Tails Chakra they had acquired.
For Mufasa, this battle was productive.
He managed to collect a significant amount of Nine-Tails Chakra.
Now, he possessed three different Tailed Beast Chakras.
A third of his goal was complete.
Gaara led his ninja forces in escorting the remaining audience members back to the village.
Mufasa sealed away the Four-Pillar Barrier.
"Alright, let's go." He glanced at Naruto. "I'll take you to the hospital. You must be sore all over."
Naruto, still dazed from the realization of his financial ruin, barely reacted.
Then—
"Ow… my body really does hurt."
Mufasa patted him on the back and took off, carrying Naruto as they flew toward the village.
On their way, they spotted Kurotsuchi struggling to fly, her body wobbling through the air, legs flailing.
Mufasa sighed and flew up beside her, steadying her movements.
"Haha, my bad. I forgot to give you the instruction manual earlier."
Kurotsuchi wasn't mad. "Lord Kazekage, this thing is fun!"
Mufasa grinned. "If you like it so much, keep it. It's yours."
Her eyes lit up with excitement. She eagerly followed Mufasa back to the village.
Arriving at the hospital, Mufasa found the medical staff overwhelmed.
Many people had suffered injuries during the commotion—sprains, bruises, and panic-related incidents.
Mufasa handed Naruto over to Hanfang. "Check him over."
Naruto suddenly snapped to attention. "Old man! What about Sasuke?"
He vaguely remembered sending Sasuke flying during their fight.
Mufasa smirked. "Oh, now you remember."
"Don't worry. He's fine."
Still, Naruto insisted on seeing him.
Mufasa led the way.
As soon as they entered the hospital room, Naruto froze.
Sasuke was lying in bed, looking rather comfortable.
Karin and Sakura were at his bedside, doting on him—bringing him water, fixing his pillows, treating him like royalty.
Sakura turned and glared. "Naruto! Look what you did to Sasuke!"
Karin crossed her arms, frowning. "You really overdid it."
Naruto wilted under their glares.
Mufasa walked over. "Sasuke, you good?"
Sasuke gave a slight nod. "Yeah, I'll live."
With Karin's healing abilities, there wasn't much to worry about.
Mufasa chuckled. "Good."
Naruto had gotten a boost in power, but Sasuke needed to step up his game, too.
Mufasa made a mental note—he'd help Sasuke unlock his Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Get some rest," Mufasa told him.
Naruto sighed as they left the room, shoulders slumped.
"Why is it so hard being single?"
Mufasa continued down the hospital corridors and found Yoruya, the captain of the security team, now conscious.
The man was lying in bed, looking pale. That last attack—God's Feather—had drained him completely.
"Lord Kazekage," Yoruya tried to sit up.
Mufasa pressed him back down. "No need to get up. You did great today."
He gave a rare, genuine nod of appreciation. "On behalf of the Hidden Sand, I thank you for your bravery."
Yoruya exhaled. "Lord Kazekage, our team may have weapons like guns and artillery, but we still struggle against enemies of this caliber."
Mufasa agreed. "I know."
"I'll get you a new set of equipment to improve your odds."
He had already decided—he'd supply them with high-tech exoskeleton armor and high-frequency blades.
Gundams and other large-scale mechs were still beyond budget. Maybe someday, when he had enough funding, he'd consider it.
Thinking about money made Mufasa sigh.
"The struggles of leadership," he muttered. "I wake up every morning with thousands of people depending on me, yet somehow, I barely get a taste of the profits."
Running the village required resources. Lots of them.
Mufasa had to be strategic with every decision.
Step by step.
As he pondered his financial burdens, he ran into Kakashi and Yamato in the hallway.
They looked worried.
They had heard about Naruto's latest rampage.
"Lord Kazekage," Kakashi said with a sigh. "We're really sorry for the trouble."
Mufasa kept a straight face. "Hmph."
Then he smirked. "You can apologize by covering the damages."
Both Kakashi and Yamato stiffened.
Mufasa chuckled to himself.
"You guys don't have money? Well, too bad. Because you two won't get away from here without paying for the damages."
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Word count: 1805
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