44.The Legend of Nine Tails

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These past few days, the members of the Root were somewhat puzzled.

Their leader, Danzo, had assigned them some strange tasks, such as spreading various true and false legends about tailed beasts and Yōkai.

The loyalty of the Root members was extremely high. Although they were baffled, they diligently carried out these tasks.

Fortunately, they could confirm that the tasks were indeed assigned by Danzo himself. Anyone unaware might think that the leader of the Root had changed.

In fact, these were actions taken by Kaito in order to support the revival plan for the Yōkai.

For him, since he temporarily had control over the Root organization, he might as well make good use of it, so his efforts wouldn't be in vain.

The Yōkai specifically sent from Oeyama also began to arrive in the ninja world, starting their activities in the shadows.

For a while, rumors about demons and ghosts began to circulate within the ninja world, and games like Hyakumonogatari became popular. It was said that some people even claimed to have seen Yōkai at the end of the Hyakumonogatari game.

This undercurrent of rumors, of course, was noticed by those with intentions.

In a subterranean base in the northern part of the Frost Country, White Zetsu was endlessly talking to Black Zetsu about his recent discoveries.

"It seems those Yōkai have really started to become restless," Black Zetsu said ominously, "A while ago, they even dared to invade my psychic space, interrupting my communication with my mother."

"Last time, you mentioned Kaito was accompanied by Izuna and a female Yōkai, right?" White Zetsu chuckled, "The ability to enter the dream world is truly fascinating! Could they also have appeared in my dreams? Like when I dreamt I was defecating, hehehe…"

"They are obtaining information through that Yōkai's ability, it's possible they already know too much that they shouldn't," Black Zetsu exuded a chilling killing intent, "White Zetsu, send out more white beings, keep a close watch on Kaito and his group's movements."

"Hehe, are you planning to get rid of them? I'll try my best," White Zetsu clenched his fists in encouragement, then scratched his head, "But where are they hiding exactly? They're really good at playing hide and seek!"

Black Zetsu completely ignored White Zetsu's antics and commanded, "In any case, report back to me as soon as you find their whereabouts."

"Fine..." White Zetsu sighed.

In the Land of Hot Water, Jiraiya was walking down the bustling streets with Naruto.

For Naruto, who had only left Konoha a few times, everything was new and exciting, and he couldn't help looking around, slowing down his pace.

Feeling Naruto falling behind, Jiraiya turned around, grabbed Naruto by the collar, and dragged him forward.

"Stop acting like you've never seen the world before! Hurry up, I'm taking you to the best hot spring inn here, show some enthusiasm, you idiot!"

"Let me go!"

After struggling for a while and realizing he couldn't break free, Naruto let himself be dragged along.

He glared at Jiraiya's tall figure with contempt and shouted, "Hmph, I'm not interested in any hot spring! It's you, the perverted hermit, who wants to go peeping!"

"You idiot!" Jiraiya suddenly released Naruto, causing him to unexpectedly fall on his buttocks. Bending down, he knocked on Naruto's head harshly and scolded in a lowered voice, "Call me the Toad Sage!"

"No, that's wrong!" He knocked again and whispered fiercely, "I've told you before, it's for research! Research! Don't talk about peeping in public, you fool!"

"Hmph." Naruto simply sat on the ground, crossed his arms, and turned his head away.

"What a clueless brat." Jiraiya covered his forehead with his hand, helplessly saying, "Alright, I'll treat you to the Land of Hot Water's specialty ramen later, so just keep quiet for now."

"Yay!" Naruto immediately cheered and jumped up, "Let's go, let's go, ramen, ramen!"

At the ramen shop.

Naruto devoured a large bowl of ramen, lifting the bowl to gulp down the soup until it was all gone. Then, slamming the bowl down, he raised his hand and shouted, "Owner, another bowl!"

"What a glutton!" Jiraiya sat idly by, picking his nose.

"Hmph!" Naruto didn't even give him a glance. When the owner brought over another bowl, he began slurping it down again.

"Owner, two servings of pork bone ramen!"

At that moment, two young ninjas wearing the forehead protector of the Land of Hot Water walked in. They sat next to Jiraiya and his apprentice, chatting away as if no one else was there.

"Yamada, have you heard any new stories lately?"

"Ah, I recently heard an interesting story."

As ninjas of the Land of Hot Water, their duties weren't many, leading a rather leisurely life. Yamada, an unremarkable ninja, besides training, was most keen on collecting interesting stories and legends.

He was somewhat proud at the moment because he loved the engrossed expressions of people listening to his stories.

"What story? Let's hear it." Morikuchi couldn't help but pat Yamada's shoulder encouragingly, expressing his anticipation for the story.

Yamada spoke in a cautious whisper, "Do you know about the Nine-Tailed Fox?"

The Nine-Tailed Fox?

Jiraiya, who was boredly listening from the side, and Naruto, who was eating his ramen, instantly perked up their ears.

"The Nine-Tailed Fox? Of course, I know." Morikuchi smiled bitterly, "It's said to be the strongest of the nine tailed beasts, it's just a pity our village doesn't have such power."

"You wish. Our small village wouldn't be able to utilize such a thing even if we had it." Yamada also became somber for a moment.

However, he quickly cheered up again and continued in a lower voice, "I was on a mission a few days ago, and I participated in a Hyakumonogatari game with the merchant caravan I was protecting. There, I heard a story about the Nine-Tailed Fox."

Morikuchi looked skeptical, "Fake, right? How could those who aren't even ninjas know about the tailed beasts?"

"Do I look that easy to deceive?" A smug look appeared on Yamada's face, "There was a samurai in the caravan who claimed his ancestors were of notable standing, from a legitimate warrior family."

"Really? What's the story?" Morikuchi became curious.

"It's said that a thousand years ago, all the daimyos of these countries were under the rule of the Emperor," Yamada's voice became even lower, almost a whisper, "The Nine-Tailed Fox once transformed into an incredibly beautiful woman, who was not only intelligent but also of unparalleled beauty. She entered the imperial court and won the Emperor's favor and trust."

"Pfft…"

Hearing this, Naruto couldn't help but spray the ramen from his mouth.

Jiraiya, sitting next to him, was full of black lines, nearly falling off his chair.

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A/N: Tier update: from now on, the only tier that I have is "ANBU," and the price is $7. What you get from being my patron will be the early 40 chapters of "Naruto: Shikigami Aizen," the 30 chapters of "I am Uchiha Sasuke Uncle," and the 20 chapters of "Uchiha With Glasses."