The seal is crumbling. We dispose of it. Those words fell quietly into the underground night. --- Late night. The Hidden Leaf Village, northeast district. On the surface, it's a dilapidated warehouse closed ten years ago. But three floors underground, six figures stand in the darkness. The walls are covered in moss, the air cold and damp. Only the flames of torches flicker. Everyone wears black garments and white masks. No one can see each other's faces. That is the rule of this organization. A man standing in the center places a small stone on a pedestal. The stone begins to glow red-black. In the next moment, that light spreads across the space. A swirling wave of energy. Red and black intertwine, releasing a pressure that makes the air tremble. Someone gasps. "[scared]Is this... really something that came from a human child?" The voice trembles. The man in the center—Murakumo—doesn't answer. He simply stares intently at the swirling light. No one knows what color his eyes are behind the mask. This is data that Kodachi recorded at the Valley of the End. A record burned into a sensing stone—a special stone that can record chakra waves—the record from that day. A scale that shook a 50km radius. Kodachi himself stands against the wall. Short black hair with red streaks. Pale gray eyes fixed on the projected light vortex. Tall frame, lean build. Former chunin. Sensing-type. Once a leaf village shinobi. Twelve years ago, he lost his family. All of it in the Nine-Tails attack. (That's why I'm here) Kodachi tells himself this. Over and over, he's done this. Pushing down doubt like a weight. Murakumo slowly opens his mouth. "[cold]During the battle at the Valley of the End, the seal developed cracks. This data is proof of that." His voice is low, quiet. Not a shout. That's what makes it terrifying. "[cold]You know of the tragedy twelve years ago. Approximately 800 died. A third of the village was destroyed. Even the Fourth Hokage could only seal it away at the cost of his own life." The torch flame flickers. "[cold]That seal is now crumbling. If emotions waver even slightly, that power leaks out. We cannot allow a repeat." A brief silence. "[serious]We dispose of it." Those words fall into the underground chamber. Some of the members twist their expressions beneath their masks. Fear, hatred, and then—something more complex. Kodachi says nothing. Moonlight filters thinly through a small window. Looking outside, the Hokage Rock is visible beyond the village's outer wall. The faces of successive Hokages carved into that stone. The Fourth's face is there too. (You sealed it. At the cost of your life) Kodachi retrieves the stone. His movements are precise, efficient. All emotion is pushed down inside. Murakumo turns away. The meeting is over. The night the Kage-Nui—the Shadow-Sewing Corps—began to move. --- Morning came. Sunlight streams into a hospital room in the Leaf Village Hospital. Naruto opens his eyes. The ceiling is white. The smell of disinfectant. His body is heavy. Actually, it hurts. Bandages wrap his entire body, and a splint is on his right arm. Apparently it was fractured. Moving it sends a dull pain through him. "[serious]……" Staring at the ceiling, Naruto remembers. The Valley of the End. The battle with Sasuke. That waterfall. The place where the stone statues of the First Hokage and Uchiha Madara face each other, where the two of them clashed with all their power. Naruto released the Nine-Tails' power that day. Red-black chakra overflowing from the seal in his belly. A power he'd always feared. But without it, he couldn't reach Sasuke. The result—he lost. Sasuke's back grew distant. He couldn't stop him. Slowly, Naruto lifts his right hand from under the blanket. His fingertips glow faintly red. Thump. Heat deep in his belly. Around the seal. Not pain—more like a throb. Just thinking of Sasuke makes this heat intensify. The moment frustration wells up, the red glow in his fingertips strengthens. (This is... the Nine-Tails' chakra) Naruto stares at his hand. A jinchuriki. One with a tailed beast sealed within their body. The village's ultimate weapon. Something the adults of the village have always viewed with fear. He's known that for twelve years. But now there's a different kind of fear. It's his own body, yet it doesn't feel like his body. Every time his emotions waver, the Nine-Tails moves. He's not controlling it—his body reacts on its own. That terrifies him. Through the window, the sky is visible. Blue. A morning in the Leaf Village. Naruto closes his eyes. --- Knock, knock. The door is knocked. "[gentle]...Are you awake?" Cherry-blossom-pink hair enters the hospital room. It's Sakura. She wears a white medical assistant's coat. He heard recently that she started training in medical jutsu. Her forehead protector is properly in place, and she carries a small notepad in her hands. Sakura sees Naruto's face and furrows her brows slightly. Then immediately, she begins checking the bandages' placement. "[serious]Your complexion is a bit better. The fracture in your right arm is healing smoothly." "[excited]Wow, Sakura-chan, you really know your stuff!" "[sarcastic]Of course. I'm learning while getting yelled at by the teacher every day." Her tone is matter-of-fact. But her eyes properly assess Naruto's condition. Naruto looks at Sakura's face. His chest tightens. Sasuke comes to mind. Sakura liked Sasuke. Naruto promised he'd absolutely bring Sasuke back. But— "Sakura-chan, I..." Thump. Heat suddenly surges from deep in his belly. Red chakra seeps from his right hand. Apologies, frustration, shame—emotions spike all at once, and the seal responds. Naruto hurriedly pulls his right hand back under the blanket. "[surprised]What?" Sakura tilts her head. "[laughing]Nothing! Just thinking with all these bandages, how am I supposed to use the bathroom!" "[sarcastic]...That's your own fault." The corner of Sakura's mouth relaxes slightly. Naruto sees it and feels a little relief wash over him. He made her smile. Just that is enough to feel a bit saved. Just a little bit. Sakura writes something in her notepad and says "[serious]Well, I'll come again tomorrow," then leaves. The door closes quietly. The hospital room is silent again. Naruto pulls out the right hand he'd hidden under the blanket. The red glow is gone now. But the heat deep in his belly still lingers faintly. (Emotions move, and this comes out) Before the Valley of the End, it wasn't like this. Since that battle, since he drew out massive amounts of the Nine-Tails' chakra, something changed. Something inside his body loosened, as if the seal had come undone. Naruto looks at the ceiling. The smell of disinfectant still drifts through the air. --- Some time after Sakura leaves, the hospital room door opens again. This time—it's big. Long golden hair tied in two bunches, a white coat worn over shinobi garments. Impressive build. Tall, commanding presence. Normally she'd throw the door open more roughly, but today she enters unusually quietly. The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade. (She's got a serious face) Naruto thinks. Tsunade, usually so bold and cheerful and fond of sake, rarely wears an expression like this. "[serious]How's your body feeling?" "[excited]Well, I'm alive, at least." "I see." Tsunade stands beside the bed and places her hand on Naruto's abdomen. Her palm glows pale green. Medical chakra. She slowly flows it into Naruto's body, checking something. Naruto stays still. (What is she examining?) Tsunade's expression hardens slightly. A thin wrinkle forms between her brows. After a while, she removes her hand. "[serious]Naruto. I'll be direct." "[serious]Your seal has developed cracks." Naruto falls silent. "[serious]At the Valley of the End, you drew out massive amounts of the Nine-Tails' chakra. Because of that, the seal the Fourth Hokage applied—the Eight Trigrams Seal—has been partially damaged." The Eight Trigrams Seal. The seal the Fourth Hokage applied at the cost of his own life. Naruto knows only the name. "[serious]If left as is, there's a possibility it will reach critical point within half a year to a year." "Critical point...?" "[serious]The Nine-Tails' chakra becomes uncontrollable. In the worst case... you lose yourself." Naruto can't speak. His mind goes completely white. Lose yourself. That means—becoming a monster? That thing the Fourth Hokage sealed? The Nine-Tails that destroyed the village and killed 800 people twelve years ago? "[serious]We don't currently know a repair method. We're searching." "[serious]Also, the threshold at which your emotions cause the seal to react has dropped significantly. You've noticed it yourself." "...Yeah." He remembers the moment he saw Sakura's face. Just emotions like frustration and shame moving through him, and immediately red chakra started leaking out. He'd noticed. All along. But he didn't want to admit it. He wants to chase Sasuke. Go to the Sound Village and bring him back from Orochimaru. That's all he's been thinking about. But now—he might become a monster. Two feelings clash inside Naruto, and neither becomes words. "[gentle]First, focus on healing your body." Her voice is unusually soft. But her face isn't one meant to reassure. She keeps that difficult expression, looking at Naruto. Naruto looks out the window. The Leaf Village landscape spreads out. The Hokage Rock. The shopping district. The direction of the Third Training Ground. Even the roof of Ichiraku Ramen is visible in the distance. Everything is as usual. Nothing has changed. (It feels distant) That's what he feels. It's supposed to be a place where he belongs, yet it's like he's viewing it through glass. Beyond the village's outer wall, morning light spreads. Tsunade stands up. "[serious]If anything happens, call. I'll come immediately." "...Yes." The door closes quietly. Naruto is alone again. He looks at his right hand. His right hand resting on the blanket. No red chakra shows now. But the heat deep in his belly remains, faint but persistent. (Nine-Tails) That's what Naruto calls it in his mind. That voice that lent him power at the Valley of the End. The one that said: Are you giving up, brat? The one he's treated as a nuisance all this time, yet reached out to him in that moment. Now it's silent. Says nothing. But it's there. Naruto sighs. Beyond the window, a bird's cry sounds. The village moves as it always does. There are missions, training. The old man at Ichiraku is making ramen today. At the Academy, Iruka-sensei is teaching students something. All ordinary sights. But inside Naruto's body, the seal slowly cracks. And somewhere—though Naruto doesn't yet know it—the Shadow-Sewing Corps quietly begins to move.