Chapter 5: Mindscape

When Naruto opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dark sewer, surrounded by muddy water that clung to his legs. His entire lower body was drenched in the waste, from foot to thigh. If it wasn't for the light coming from behind the ginormous pillars, he wouldn't even be able to see.

"Is this a dream? Where am I?" Naruto was in disbelief for a few seconds, before unparalleled shock took over his body as he fell knee first into the water. He knew where he was. The place he had hoped he wouldn't have to encounter for a long time to come. Even from here, he could feel the overwhelming presence of the beast.

Naruto lifted his head and stared up at the giant pillars, no, prison bars, as a thunderous voice boomed across him, splitting open his skin and rattling his brain. "Tell me little brat." The voice said. "Who are you?" Naruto involuntarily trembled as the demon inside him came into view. It's dark orange coat of fur stood tall for hundreds of feet, appearing before him like an evil god come to raze humanity.

Then he saw them. Those eyes. They shone over him with contempt, radiating such powerful energy that just looking at them made Naruto's own eyes burn. Kurama was certainly worthy of his reputation. The giant demonic fox smiled at the effect his mere presence brought apon Naruto, revealing a set of hundreds, possibly thousands of teeth, each being multiple times Naruto's height.

While his body didn't respond to his wishes, Naruto still kept a rational head. He had to defuse this situation, he thought. Kurama must have felt that Naruto was not the same person as before. He had to make up an excuse that would satisfy the demon fox. Otherwise he would have to live in constant fear that the demon would appear every time he went to sleep. The seal placed on him to stop the fox obviously wasn't working anymore so this was the only option.

Naruto took in deep deep breaths forcing his body to calm down. "My previous name doesn't matter. I have adopted the name Naruto Uzumaki, as well as his body. I presume you've noticed this as well?" Kurama moved his large slender head forward, his nose almost touching the metal bars just a few meters in front of Naruto. But he didn't flinch or lower his head. His initial fear had already dissipated. A demon would not frighten him. Especially not a caged one.

"Interesting. You are not my previous host. Your chakra...it looks different compared to before." Kurama eyes rolled over his body. Carefully examining him to compare the changes. "You are clearly a different person, yet your image in your mindscape is the same as before. Curious. I have never seen anything like this before. If it wasn't for your chakra changing, then there would be no difference between you and that brat."

Kurama's excitement was a bit disturbing, but what he said deeply interested Naruto. If a being of Kurama's calibre couldn't detect any difference aside from chakra, would anyone be able to tell the difference?

"Tell me. How exactly did you manage to take over this boy's body?" Naruto smiled. If Kurama was actually a demon, then there would be no chance of conversation. Fortunately Kurama wasn't a beast. He had thoughts, emotions and motivations that drove him. Kurama wasn't any less human that he was. And while there was a major power gap between them, it was the demon that sat behind the cage.

Naruto got off from his knees, looking up at the looming monster thousands of times stronger than him with a confident smile. "I'm afraid I have no reason to tell you. But take this change of hosts as a new chance for you. I'm sure it must be annoying to be trapped here, blind to the happenings of the world. If I you comply with my wishes, I might just let you out once in a while."

The excitement Kurama had turned into savage anger that exploded in a fury of red chakra. "I am no one's pet. I am the demon fox that has roamed the land of fire for millennia. A mortal like you has no room to talk in front of a god." Naruto laughed. "A god? Did you finally turn to insanity? Even your father Hagoromo wouldn't call himself a god."

Kurama's dark red pupils narrowed into slits. His voice came out as a deep growl, like metal scrapping against itself. "How do you know his name? Only traces of his existence remain. Who are you?" Naruto's smile couldn't have grown wider. "It doesn't matter who I am. What matters is what I represent. Tell me fox, do you remember the man that controlled you the day you attacked the village?"

"Yes...the Uchiha who claimed to be Madara." The fox's lips curled into a vicious smile. "But his chakra wasn't pure. It was contaminated by another human." Kurama's long claws scratched against the floor as he spoke. "Don't tell me, are you saying that what my father foretold will come to pass?"

"Your correct. One of your brothers, the four tails, has already been tampered with by the same man who controlled you to attack Konoha. Soon, the day of reckoning will come and the world will bleed. Ancient monsters older than both you and I will wake, and destruction will follow." Naruto got up and walked directly towards the cage, passing through the bars and arriving at Kurama's feet. He held up a single fist, and raised it to the air.

"Join me in protecting the world Hagoromo left behind. If we band together, we might still be able to quell the reemergence of the Otsutsuki." Kurama stayed silent for a moment, before he extended his paw out, forming a fist that connected with Naruto's. "Very well. But I want my questions answered, brother."

Naruto was a bit surprised, but at the end he could only smile. Naruto knew he had successfully fooled Kurama.