After the fiasco, Jiraiya simply shook his head and sighed.
"There's nothing more I can teach you," he said, his voice unusually quiet.
He wasn't angry—just… overwhelmed. If someone was capable of summoning what appeared to be a nine-tailed fox and suppressing it with a mere fraction of their power, then they had already stepped beyond the boundaries of what Jiraiya could offer.
Kuro said nothing. He simply gave a respectful bow, then turned to leave.
As he disappeared into the distance, Jiraiya glanced toward the horizon, his thoughts clouded.
"I need to tell the old man about this," he muttered under his breath. "We can't afford to make an enemy out of someone I can't even see through."
He sighed. "I just hope the old man can keep Danzo away from the kid…"
Because if he tries to get his hands on Kuro…
Jiraiya didn't finish the thought.
Instead, he went back to supervising Minato, Mikoto, and Nawaki.
***
Kuro got back home and dropped onto the couch, sinking into the cushions with a quiet sigh.
Both of his parents were out shopping with Kisara again, leaving him to wonder if he was really their kid.
However, what most troubled him was that the system had not responded to him ever since he got back from the Tower of Heavens.
No updates.
No missions.
No feedback.
Nothing.
Not when he went on the mission.
Not when he killed the Sand shinobi.
Not even when he summoned the little nine-tailed fox.
"Status," he said out loud for the Nth time.
Still nothing.
No holographic display. No cold mechanical voice. No flicker of the HUD. It was like it never existed.
Even though the system disappeared, the power he gained through it was still there.
He raised his hand slowly as power surged from it before condensing into a black ball of shadows.
Had he outgrown it?
Was it broken?
He had questions, but no answers.
Even Kisara had said she could no longer access her status screen. (A/N: In case some have forgotten, Kisara also gains the status screen when she signs the Eternal Contract with Kuro.)
Whatever had happened, it hadn't just affected him. The system—whatever it truly was—had gone silent for both of them.
Kuro exhaled softly, a long, tired breath as he lay back on the couch, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Sigh… Even if the system isn't there anymore," he murmured, "I can still feel it. I'm growing. Stronger. It's just… not quantified anymore."
"It reminds me of the situation Sung Jin-woo faced after his confrontation with the architect." Kuro thought.
Back then, Jin-Woo's system had gone silent too, because it had fulfilled its purpose. Because he had outgrown it.
Was that what was happening to him now?
Had he reached the point where the system was no longer needed?
He closed his eyes, letting the silence of the house settle in around him.
Somewhere deep inside, he told himself that this felt right.
***
After training and guiding Minato and his team, Jiraiya made his way back toward the Hokage Office.
Without bothering to knock, he pushed open the door.
"Old man, we need to—"
He paused mid-step.
A mountain of paperwork sat on the desk like a siege weapon. Hidden somewhere behind it, barely visible, was the top of the Third Hokage's hat.
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up slowly, his face weary, a pipe in one hand and a pen in the other.
"If it's about you sneaking out of the village again, Jiraiya," he said without looking up, "you're not getting out of paperwork duty this time."
"I wish it were about that," Jiraiya muttered, stepping in and closing the door behind him.
The seriousness in his tone made Hiruzen finally look up.
Jiraiya didn't sit. He stood with arms crossed, eyes sharp.
"It's about Kuro."
That got the Hokage's full attention.
"What happened?"
Jiraiya hesitated, something rare for him. "I saw him summon a fox. Not just any fox—a nine-tailed one. Small, maybe the size of a child, but the chakra it gave off… it wasn't normal."
Hiruzen's eyes narrowed. "You're certain?"
"I had seen and witnessed the power of the tailed beasts before," Kiraiya said. "That little fox gave off the same vibe as all the tailed beasts."
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair, taking a big puff of smoke.
"There's more," Jiraiya added, glancing toward the window as if to check for ears beyond the paper-covered walls. "The fox spoke."
Hiruzen stiffened. "It spoke?"
"In perfect human speech. Not telepathy—actual words."
Jiraiya stared at Hiruzen before continuing.
"It stated that Kyuubi that we know is its brother. Hard to believe, right?"
Hiruzen wasn't able to say anything for a moment. He just stared at Jiraiya. "You know there is only one of each tailed beast, right?"
"I know, Old Man," Jiraiya said, his voice low. "But I heard it with my own ears. That fox claimed to be the brother of the Kyuubi—the very one sealed in Kushina."
"This is... troubling," Jiruzen said. "The fox's words raise more questions than they answer."
Jiraiya nodded before dropping the bomb. "It said it was born because the Sage of Six Paths couldn't control himself and slept with a woman named Kaguya."
Hiruzen's pipe froze halfway to his lips.
***
Danzo, who was spying on Hiruzen, heard everything.
***
Elsewhere, Madara was talking with Zetsu.
"How is the preparation going?" He asks.
"The Land of Water is under our control," Black Zetsu confirmed. "The Kage is now completely under Genjutsu."
White Zetsu, ever gleeful in his madness, chimed in. "Can we have them kill each other then? All those petty villages, tearing themselves apart... It'll be such fun!"
"Sure." Black Zetsu nodded. Madara did not even glance at White Zetsu.
White Zetsu, undeterred by Madara's silence, bounced slightly on his heels. "Oh, I'm so excited! Watching them fight each other for power... It'll be a beautiful chaos!"