The Nine-Tails nodded. "That's right. It really was that powerful."
"That was the kind of power capable of destroying the world."
Orion fell silent for a long moment before nodding in agreement.
"If that's true, then it makes sense for the Ten-Tails to possess the power to destroy the world. But is it really possible?"
"A single Tailed Beast Bomb wiping out everything across thousands of kilometers… no matter how I think about it, it sounds too unbelievable."
The Nine-Tails sighed.
"It's true."
"Then if the Ten-Tails was that powerful, how did the Sage of Six Paths seal it inside himself?"
The Nine-Tails thought for a moment before answering.
"The Ten-Tails was originally sealed inside the Sage of Six Paths' mother, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki."
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki?"
The Nine-Tails nodded solemnly.
"That's right. Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. She was a god-like being, and she possessed power capable of suppressing the Ten-Tails."
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki was the Ten-Tails' first jinchūriki. Legend says she stole and consumed the fruit of a Divine Tree, gaining the power to control the Ten-Tails."
"And Kaguya Ōtsutsuki was the progenitor of chakra itself. She was the one who spread chakra throughout the ninja world."
Although Orion already knew some of this, hearing it directly from the Nine-Tails was still shocking.
What surprised him even more was that the Nine-Tails actually knew all of this—and was willing to tell him.
"The progenitor of chakra… she really sounds like a figure out of mythology."
The Nine-Tails thought Orion didn't believe him and continued.
"Legend says Kaguya Ōtsutsuki came from beyond the heavens. She was believed to be a divine messenger sent to the mortal world."
Inside, Orion muttered to himself:
Divine messenger? She was just a member of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
Still, people always tended to mystify things they couldn't understand.
"But Kaguya Ōtsutsuki was eventually consumed by power and intended to reclaim all chakra in the world. Countless people died because of it. In order to stop her, the Sage of Six Paths joined forces with his younger brother and sealed their mother on the moon."
The Nine-Tails continued speaking.
Orion looked shocked.
"The Sage of Six Paths was actually that powerful?"
The Nine-Tails answered,
"The Sage and his brother inherited their mother's power. Using that power, they sealed Kaguya Ōtsutsuki away."
"After sealing her, the Sage extracted the Ten-Tails from her body and sealed it inside himself, becoming the Ten-Tails' second jinchūriki."
Orion frowned slightly.
The Nine-Tails glanced at him.
"So? Do you finally understand just how powerful the Sage of Six Paths was?"
Orion nodded slowly.
"If what you're saying is true, then the Sage of Six Paths really did possess the power to destroy the world, just like the legends say."
"But… is all of this really true?"
He looked at the Nine-Tails with obvious suspicion.
The Nine-Tails almost laughed from irritation.
"Why would I bother lying to you?"
Orion thought about it for a moment before replying honestly,
"You're right. There's no reason for you to lie. It's just that everything you're saying is far beyond my imagination, so it's hard to process immediately."
The Nine-Tails rested its head on the ground and said calmly,
"That's why the only person I truly acknowledge is someone like the Sage of Six Paths. That brat Naruto? I will never acknowledge him."
"He's not worthy of making me submit."
Orion had no intention of leaving the seal space yet. He sat down cross-legged opposite the Nine-Tails and asked,
"You seem to know a lot about the past. Besides the Sage of Six Paths, you probably know many things about the powerful shinobi of ancient times too, right?"
The Nine-Tails glanced at him. It knew exactly what Orion was trying to do.
Still, it closed its eyes arrogantly.
"I've already told you enough. You still want to pry into everything I know?"
"Still, kid, I'll give you one piece of advice. The people of Konoha aren't as easy to deal with as they seem. You don't have enough power to protect yourself yet, so it's better to stay low-profile. Hiding your strength won't hurt you."
Orion smiled faintly.
"You don't need to remind me. I already know that."
"Then let me give you a piece of advice too. You'd better cooperate with Naruto properly. It'll benefit you as well."
"Hmph. In your dreams."
The Nine-Tails glared at Orion coldly.
Orion shrugged.
"You're really stubborn. No wonder your life has been so miserable for all these years."
"Fine, then let me lower the bar. At the very least, stop causing trouble for him in the future, alright?"
"Just stay inside him quietly and watch him grow. I believe there'll come a day when you acknowledge him."
"After all, he has Uzumaki blood flowing through him, and he's also the Fourth Hokage's son. I have high expectations for him."
"I think someday he'll surpass both of his parents. He might even surpass the First Hokage."
The moment Orion finished speaking, the Nine-Tails burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Kid, are you dreaming?"
"He'll be lucky if he ever reaches his mother's level in the future. As for reaching the Fourth Hokage's level, what qualifications does he have?"
"That brat doesn't possess the same talent as the Fourth Hokage."
"And surpassing Hashirama Senju? That's even more ridiculous."
"Do you even know how powerful Hashirama Senju really was?"
"Even though I hated that bastard, I have to admit he was absolutely the strongest shinobi of the past several hundred years."
"The God of Shinobi was no exaggeration at all."
"If you said you might surpass Hashirama someday, I'd actually believe you. In fact, I think there's a very high possibility."
"But Naruto? Forget it. Don't make me laugh."
Orion muttered softly,
"That's only because you don't know his true potential."
Thinking about Naruto's performance during the Fourth Great Ninja War and how he and Sasuke sealed Kaguya Ōtsutsuki together, Orion knew the Nine-Tails was severely underestimating Naruto.
Forget Hashirama.
Future Naruto would possess Six Paths-level power and help seal away a monster like Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
After the Fourth Great Ninja War, Naruto would become one of the strongest shinobi in existence—someone who truly held the power to destroy the world.
Because Orion knew Naruto's future, he naturally couldn't agree with the Nine-Tails' judgment.
Looking at the Nine-Tails, Orion said,
"No matter what, I still hope you won't cause him trouble in the future. Even if you don't acknowledge him, at least don't let him lose control so easily."
The Nine-Tails answered calmly,
"That's not entirely something I can control. That brat is a jinchūriki. He naturally has the ability to draw upon a portion of my chakra. Once he loses emotional control, rampaging becomes highly likely."
Orion already understood that.
Under the influence of the Eight Trigrams Seal, the Nine-Tails could only limit the amount of chakra Naruto received.
Once Naruto went berserk, a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra would still be extracted by the seal and supplied to him.
Although it was only a tiny fraction of the Nine-Tails' true chakra, the sheer scale of its chakra was so enormous that it was still enough to overwhelm Naruto's consciousness.
"Then stop giving him large amounts of chakra so casually. Constant rampages will damage his life force."
"Let's make a deal. Stop causing me trouble, and in the future, once I learn better sealing techniques, maybe I can even give you a more comfortable environment."
The Nine-Tails looked at Orion speechlessly.
Aside from the Sage of Six Paths, Orion was the only person who had ever spoken to it like this.
Was this really something that could be negotiated?
Well… considering it was Orion saying it, the Nine-Tails actually was willing to think about it.
"I can consider it," the Nine-Tails replied arrogantly.
Orion waved his hand dismissively.
"What's there to consider? It's not like you have a choice."
The Nine-Tails' mouth twitched.
Inside, it thought:
I really want to claw this bastard a few times.
Still, it coldly replied,
"Then why bother discussing it with me? Why not just decide everything yourself?"
After speaking, it snorted proudly, clearly unhappy with Orion.
Orion knew the Nine-Tails was resentful, so he casually painted it a hopeful picture.
"If you cooperate with Naruto properly before he fully matures, then maybe in the future, once I become strong enough, I might let you out."
The Nine-Tails frowned.
"Why should I believe you?"
"Because I'm confident in my own future strength. By the time Naruto grows up, even if he fails to reach the level I mentioned earlier, I believe my own power will still be enough to release you from his body."
The Nine-Tails stared at Orion for a long time.
"Yeah right. As if I'd believe you. Hmph."
It rolled its eyes at him.
It wasn't that the Nine-Tails doubted Orion would become powerful in the future.
What it doubted was whether Orion would actually release it.
After all, extracting a tailed beast from a jinchūriki meant the jinchūriki would die.
The Nine-Tails didn't believe Orion would sacrifice Naruto's life.
Orion naturally understood what the Nine-Tails was thinking and replied,
"There are many forbidden techniques in the ninja world. Since you've existed since the Sage of Six Paths' era, you should know there are techniques capable of reviving the dead, right?"
The Nine-Tails thought for a moment before asking,
"And what makes you think you'll ever possess that kind of power?"
The Nine-Tails naturally knew resurrection techniques existed.
But could Orion really obtain such power?
It was doubtful.
Still, the fact that the Nine-Tails even asked that question meant it was already somewhat tempted.
More importantly, it genuinely acknowledged Orion now.
After talking with him for so long, the Nine-Tails even found itself thinking—
If only I had been sealed inside this kid back then instead.
Of course, if Orion ever learned that thought, he would immediately feel disgusted.
He had absolutely no desire to become a jinchūriki.
It wasn't that he couldn't handle the lifestyle.
He simply hated the idea of another living being residing inside his body, constantly peeking into his thoughts.
Just imagining it was already annoying.
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