Darkness and water.
That was Indra's first impression as his vision adjusted to the dim surroundings.
The sewer stretched endlessly in all directions, pipes running along the ceiling - some glowing blue, others pulsing with an ominous red energy.
Ankle-deep water reflected nothing, not even their own images, as if it were made of liquid shadow rather than actual water.
Beside him, Naruto looked around in confusion. "Where are we? What is this place?"
Before Indra could answer, a deep, rumbling growl echoed through the chamber, so powerful it sent ripples across the dark water at their feet.
The sound was primal, ancient - hatred given voice.
"I think," Indra said quietly, "we're inside your seal."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Inside my... you mean, where the Nine-Tails is?"
A malevolent chuckle answered his question - a sound so vast it seemed to come from everywhere at once, vibrating through their bones rather than merely reaching their ears.
"Come closer..." The voice was deep and layered, each syllable carrying centuries of rage.
Almost against their will, both boys found themselves drawn forward, following the corridor until it opened into a vast chamber.
Before them stood an enormous cage that stretched from floor to ceiling, its bars thicker than ancient trees. A simple paper seal marked with the kanji for "seal" held the massive gates closed.
In the darkness beyond those bars, something moved. Something enormous.
Two eyes opened in the blackness - crimson, slitted, and filled with such hatred that even Indra felt his breath catch. Each eye was larger than his entire body.
"So... my jailer finally visits," the Nine-Tails rumbled, moving closer to the bars.
Its massive face came into view - a fox with razor-sharp teeth longer than a building was tall, orange-red fur that seemed to glow with its own light, and nine massive tails swaying behind it.
"And he brings a guest. How... thoughtful."
Naruto took an involuntary step backward, his face pale. "Y-you're the Nine-Tailed Fox."
"How observant," the demon sneered, then shifted its massive gaze to Indra.
For a moment, the fox's expression changed - surprise, then something almost like recognition flashed across its features before settling back into hatred.
Suddenly, the Nine-Tails lunged at the bars, massive claws shooting through the gaps toward the boys. "GIVE ME YOUR FLESH!"
The roar that accompanied the attack was deafening - a wall of sound that carried such malevolence it seemed to have physical weight.
But Indra was already moving. With lightning reflexes, he pushed Naruto behind him and raised his hand, palm extended toward the Nine-Tails.
The demon's claws stopped just short of Indra's outstretched palm, as if hitting an invisible barrier.
The Nine-Tails snarled in frustration, its breath hot enough to feel like a furnace against Indra's skin.
"Those eyes..." the fox growled, pulling back slightly. "That cursed Sharingan... and the Rinnegan?"
From beneath their feet, a chorus of agonized wails suddenly rose - not audible to the ear but felt in the soul.
Countless voices crying out in eternal torment, the echoes of those the Nine-Tails had devoured and killed throughout its long existence.
Their chakra signatures, imprinted forever in the beast's own energy, howled from beyond death.
Naruto shuddered at the sound. "What is that?"
Indra's lips curved into a confident smirk, though his heart was racing. "The echoes of the dead. Nothing to fear. With these eyes, I can see through all tricks."
Naruto swallowed hard, straightening his shoulders in defiance. "I'm not afraid of you, you stupid fox!"
"Bold words from a child who trembles before me," the Nine-Tails laughed, the sound like boulders grinding together.
As they watched, red chakra began to bubble through the bars, pooling on their side of the cage.
The energy swirled and coalesced, forming a miniature version of the Nine-Tails - a perfect chakra replica that stood between them and the cage.
Indra narrowed his eyes.
This was unusual. In his past-life memories, when Sasuke had entered this place with his Sharingan, the Nine-Tails had done this too, but that was way later in the timeline when the seal was far more weakened.
Yet here, so early in the timeline, part of it had managed to manifest outside.
'Did Orochimaru's seal tampering create this opportunity?' Indra wondered. 'If so, this Nine-Tails is more powerful than I remember from the original timeline.'
The chakra construct grinned, revealing teeth taller than multiple men. "Surprised, little Uchiha? You should be."
Indra maintained his devil-may-care attitude, hand still raised toward the beast. He wouldn't show fear, not here, not now - even as internally he was deeply concerned.
This wasn't the Kurama he remembered from his past-life knowledge. This was something... worse.
"How interesting," the Nine-Tails purred, its voice somehow both inside and outside the cage simultaneously. "Father has returned for his third cycle, it seems."
"What?" Naruto blurted, looking between Indra and the fox. "What's he talking about?"
The Nine-Tails' massive eyes narrowed with amusement. "He doesn't know? How delicious. I can see the chakra echoes clinging to you, 'Indra.' The echo of the Sage... and that abominable Uchiha, Madara."
Indra kept his expression neutral, though his mind was racing. "I have no idea what you're talking about, demon."
"Madara's chakra was once bonded to my human brother's echo - Indra Ōtsutsuki.
But now I see it has been severed from that connection and intertwined with the Sage's own chakra signature within you. How... peculiar."
The revelation hit Indra like a physical blow.
If the Nine-Tails wasn't lying - and why would it? - then the prophecy Jiraiya had mentioned was real.
He truly did carry the chakra echo of both Hagoromo and - it seems Madara's too.
Madara's chakra having reincarnated like long ago Indra's and Ashura's did - his soul having severed itself from Indra Otsutsuki's after awakening the Rinnegan.
"Stop speaking in riddles," Indra demanded, keeping his voice steady despite his inner turmoil. "What exactly are you implying?" feigning ignorance.
The Nine-Tails laughed, a sound that shook the very foundations of the mindscape. "Oh, Father, how far you have fallen! Not even knowing who you are! The mighty Sage of Six Paths, reduced to a child playing at being shinobi!"
Naruto stepped forward, his initial fear replaced by confusion and anger. "Hey! Stop messing with him, you stupid fox! And what's all this 'father' stuff anyway? Indra's not your dad!"
"Silence, vessel!" the Nine-Tails snarled. "You understand nothing of what transpires here!"
Indra felt something shift within him as his mind probed more towards this world.
The Nine-Tails had only its Yang chakra - its Yin half sealed by the Shinigami from Minato's sacrifice.
And here, in this mental realm, Indra's immense Yin chakra gave him an advantage - Kurama unable to manipulate the world arounding them without Yin.
Combined with his Rinnegan - the supposed "Eyes of God" - he realized he might have more control over this space than he'd initially thought.
With a surge of will, Indra pushed his consciousness outward. The sewer walls began to shimmer and distort, transforming into the labyrinthine structure of his own mindscape - the one Ino had witnessed during her ill-fated mind invasion.
Stone corridors replaced damp pipes. The water beneath their feet vanished, replaced by solid floor. Only the cage remained unchanged, now standing in the center of a vast chamber within Indra's mental labyrinth.
"What is this?" the Nine-Tails growled, its chakra construct flickering as the environment changed. "What are you doing?"
Indra raised his hand higher, then brought it down in swift.
From the ceiling above the cage, a massive stone gate - similar to the ones in his mindscape that had protected his deepest secrets - descended with tremendous force, slamming onto the Nine-Tails' neck and pinning the great beast to the ground.
The demon roared in rage and pain, its tails thrashing wildly against the bars of its prison. "HOW DARE YOU!"
"If I am truly your father, as you claim," Indra said coldly, walking forward through the chakra projection, which burst upon contact like mist before flame from his strong mind, "then surely you understand that I tolerate no such disrespect."
"Indra, wait!" Naruto called, panic in his voice. "Don't go in there!"
But Indra had already passed between the bars, entering the cage itself. He leapt onto the Nine-Tails' snout, walking calmly until he stood directly before one massive, hateful eye.
"I don't know how we got here," Indra said, his voice echoing with power that surprised even him, "nor what nonsense you're speaking. But if you are truly my son, as you claim, then you will show proper respect."
The Nine-Tails' eye narrowed, fury and something like uncertainty warring in its gaze. "You are not him... and yet you are. The chakra does not lie. You carry his essence, his power... But it means not I will obey you... Not after your lies."
"Indra!" Naruto had followed him into the cage, his face a mixture of awe and terror. "What are you doing? This is crazy!"
"Stay back, Naruto," Indra commanded, not taking his eyes off the demon. "I know what I'm doing."
He placed his hand directly on the Nine-Tails' fur, feeling the chakra beneath - hot as a sun, ancient as the mountains, and seething with hatred accumulated over centuries.
An idea began blooming in his mind.
"What are you doing?" the Nine-Tails demanded, trying to pull away but pinned by the stone gate.
"Taking what I need," Indra replied simply.
With his Rinnegan active, Indra began absorbing the fox's chakra - not all of it, but a specific small, very small portion.
He could sense the structure of the energy, the layers of malevolence that had accumulated over centuries of hatred and imprisonment.
He began separating that malevolence from the pure Yang chakra beneath- like Naruto did when he won against Kurama for the first time.
The Nine-Tails thrashed against its restraints. "STOP THIS! YOU CANNOT-"
"I can," Indra interrupted. "And I will."
As the chakra flowed into him, Indra felt his left eye begin to burn. The sensation spread, his vision blurring as something fundamental shifted within his chakra network.
His left eye, previously housing only the Sharingan, began to ripple and change.
"What's happening Indra?!" Naruto shouted, moving closer despite the danger.
The pain intensified, becoming nearly unbearable. Indra's concentration wavered, and the mindscape around them began to flicker and distort.
The Nine-Tails, sensing the opportunity, surged against its restraints. "You overreach, child of prophecy! Even with the Sage's chakra, you are not yet ready to command MY power!"
Indra felt something snap inside him - a barrier, a limitation he hadn't known existed. Chakra rushed through his system like wildfire, and his left eye burned with such intensity that he could no longer keep it open.
A scream tore from his throat - echoed by Naruto and even the Nine-Tails itself as the mindscape collapsed around them in a blinding flash of light.
--------------------
"-dra! Indra! Can you hear me?"
Jiraiya's voice penetrated the darkness, pulling Indra back to consciousness. He was lying on his back, the hot spring's steam rising around him. Naruto lay beside him, still unconscious but breathing steadily.
"What happened?" Indra managed to ask, his voice hoarse as if he'd been screaming for hours.
Jiraiya's face came into focus above him, the Sannin's expression a mixture of concern and awe.
"You tell me. One moment I was removing Orochimaru's interference seal from Naruto, the next the Nine Tails chakra flared for a moment and you both collapsed and... and your own chakra went haywire."
Indra tried to sit up, wincing at the throbbing pain behind his eyes. "We were... somewhere else. Inside Naruto's seal, I think. We saw the Nine-Tails."
"The Nine-Tails?" Jiraiya's expression darkened. "That shouldn't be possible unless... unless the seal was weakening."
"It wasn't weakening," Indra said, remembering the paper seal that had held the massive gates closed. "It was intact. But something about our chakra - mine and Naruto's - created a connection."
Jiraiya helped him sit up fully, studying his face with intense scrutiny. Suddenly, the Sannin's eyes widened, and he sucked in a sharp breath.
"Indra," he said softly, almost reverently, "your eyes..."
"What about them?" Indra asked, reaching up to touch his face. The pain was subsiding now, replaced by a strange sensation - as if he could see more clearly than ever before.
Did it work?
Jiraiya produced a small mirror from his pouch and held it before Indra's face. In the reflection, two Rinnegan stared back at him, the concentric purple rings identical in both eyes.
"It's happened," Jiraiya whispered. "The second Rinnegan has awakened."
Indra stared at his reflection in genuine shock.
'It really worked... I gained enough Yang to do it!' Indra thought to himself excited internally.
Beside them, Naruto groaned and stirred. "Ugh... my head. What happened?"
Indra quickly deactivated both Rinnegan, his eyes returning to their natural black. "Are you alright, Naruto?"
The blond sat up slowly, rubbing his head. "I had the weirdest dream. We were in this sewer, and there was this huge fox, and you were-" He stopped, eyes widening as the memories flooded back. "Wait, that wasn't a dream, was it?"
"No," Indra confirmed. "It wasn't."
"But how did we-"
"My Sharingan," Indra explained, choosing his words carefully. "When Jiraiya removed the interfering seal, the Nine-Tails' chakra reacted. My Sharingan must have created a temporary link to your mindscape."
It wasn't the complete truth, but it was close enough. The full explanation - involving the Rinnegan and whatever strange connection the Nine-Tails had sensed - would raise too many questions.
Ones he'll answer Naruto tomorrow or something. Bringing Sasuke too - he has already shown he can be trusted with him knowing Indra to be Madara's descendant.
Speaking of Madara, what Kurama said...
"That fox..." Naruto's expression darkened. "It's really inside me, isn't it? That's what Mizuki-teme (bastard) meant when he said I was the Nine-Tailed Fox."
"Again, you're not the fox," Indra said firmly. "You're its jailer. There's a difference."
Jiraiya nodded in agreement. "Indra's right. The Fourth Hokage sealed the Nine-Tails inside you to protect the village. You're a hero, Naruto, not a monster."
Naruto looked between them, uncertainty written across his features. "But why me? Why did the Fourth choose me?"
A heavy silence fell over the group. Jiraiya's expression became unreadable, while Indra carefully maintained his neutral facade despite knowing the truth - that Minato had chosen his own son as the jinchūriki.
"Because he believed you were strong enough to bear the burden," Jiraiya finally said after a moment of silence, placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "And from what I've seen so far, he was right."
Naruto's eyes widened, then filled with determination. "I won't let him down! I'll master this power and become Hokage, believe it!"
Jiraiya chuckled, ruffling Naruto's hair. "That's the spirit, kid. Now, how about we get back to that water-walking exercise? With Orochimaru's interference removed, you should find it much easier."
As Naruto bounded to his feet, his earlier trauma seemingly forgotten in his enthusiasm to train, Jiraiya turned to Indra with a meaningful look.
"We'll talk about... this... later," he said quietly, gesturing to Indra's eyes. "For now, rest. What you experienced was no small thing."
Indra nodded, grateful for the reprieve. His mind was racing with what had happened in Naruto's mindscape.
The Nine-Tails had recognized him - or rather, had recognized the chakra echoes within him.
It had called him "father," referring to the Sage of Six Paths. And it had mentioned Madara's chakra being "severed" from someone called Indra Ōtsutsuki and bonded with the Sage's chakra instead.
If what the Nine-Tails said was true, then Jiraiya's prophecy about him being the "third cycle" might actually have merit.
Not because he was literally the reincarnation of the Sage, but because he carried chakra echoes from both Hagoromo and Madara.
So still a reincarnation - but a chakra reincarnation, like Naruto is Ashura's and Sasuke Indra's...
But why? And how? Was it related to his own reincarnation from another world entirely? Or was it simply a coincidence of genetics and circumstance?
As he watched Naruto attempting to walk on water, falling in with a splash before trying again. Indra couldn't help but wonder what other surprises this world had in store for him.
One thing was certain: with both Rinnegan now awakened, his path toward becoming "the strongest" had become much easier.
But at what cost? And toward what end? The Nine-Tails' words echoed in his mind: "The third cycle... the final judgment."
Was he truly destined to judge this world? To save it or destroy it?
For the first time since awakening in this world with memories of another life, Indra felt a flicker of doubt about his chosen path.
'No, don't think about that. Just become the Strongest. When you're the strongest you can do anything and choose anything. Then you'll know what to do. Not being lead by fate or people or prophecy, or whatever!' Indra stated within his own mind as he rose.
----------------------
Deep within the seal, the Nine-Tailed Fox lay motionless, its massive body still pinned by the stone gate that had somehow remained even after Indra and Naruto had departed.
The demon's mind churned with confusion and rage. After centuries of existence, very little could surprise the Nine-Tails. But this... this was unprecedented.
"The Son of Heaven returns," it growled to itself.
The boy had managed to absorb a portion of its chakra - and not just that, seperated his hate from it to not be overwhelmed by it.
No ordinary human could have done such a thing. Not even an Uchiha with their cursed eyes.
Only someone with the Sage's power could have separated the chakra so precisely.
"The cycle nears completion," the Nine-Tails murmured, its voice echoing in the empty chamber. "Three times the Judge walks the earth... first to guide, then to warn, finally to decide..."
"Even if you are separated, always remember that you were once one."
"That you were all born from me... And one day, when that time comes, someone will emerge to reunite you again - not just as the one, but as yourselves.
"A child who will teach you what true power is. That is the one who will truly inherit my will... The Child of Salvation." Kurama remembred, the words now even more fresh from recently seeing his father's chakra echo behind Indra.
The Demon scoffed one of his tails slammed onto the sewer ground - Indra's changes gone. "What a load of crap. There is no hope, no good, no will, and most definitely no salvation."
"Only hate."
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(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all liked this chapter!
Do tell me how you found it.
Also, do understand, Kurama was... more emotional this chapter because of meeting Indra. In the future, we will truly see why he is called the Greatest of the Demons.
Oh yeah, do tell me how you found the fact that Indra has awakened his second Rinnegan now.
Well, I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)