Naruto was six when he tried meditation for the first time. The old man recommended it to help Naruto cope with loneliness better, although that was never said to the poor child. From the outside, it seemed as if he had taken to the mental state like a fish to water; he seemed incredibly serene and unmoving. On the inside of his mind however… he was baffled. Almost as soon as he began to relax, he was shoved into a dank hallway filled knee-deep with water, that also smelled strongly of wet dog. Ever the curious child, Naruto decided he wanted to find the source of the wet-dog smell. He was hoping it was a puppy, since those are adorable.
The lighting was abysmal, but somehow he knew this was a sewer, even without the scent of human he navigated each turn, drawing closer to the scent's origin, a feeling of inexplicable dread started to wash over him. The stronger the smell became, the more dread he felt. Still, Naruto wandered onwards out of sheer curiosity. Soon he saw much more light at the end of the hall, and so he sprinted forward in anticipation.
The sewer opened into a massive atrium, with the kanji covered skylights emitting a soft blue light. Where the skylights stopped, there was a wall of rusty iron bars, starkly contrasting with the serenity of the atrium. Each bar was covered in kanji as well. As Naruto tentatively approached the cage, a clawed paw covered in orange fur shot out and slammed into the bars. As the paw retracted slightly, a wicked, predatory grin slowly faded into view. Along with the fanged snout's unsettling smile, Naruto was deeply fearful of the crimson glow pouring from those hungry eyes. The slitted pupils were like black holes, completely swallowing up rational thought with their gravity alone.
It was this terrifying visage that asked the thoroughly shaken Naruto: "How ya doin' kiddo?" Naruto was gobsmacked. Unsure of how to respond, but impulsively doing so anyway, Naruto replied, "I'm uh... I'm ok. How come you're being nice if you're so scary lookin'?" At this, the "scary lookin'" creature began chuckling lightly. Such raw innocence was refreshing to a creature of the dark. With the initial tension partially dissolved, the beast went on to introduce itself, "Alright kiddo, let's get this out of the way. People call me the Kyuubi no Yoko." Naruto impulsively asked, "You mean the one that tore up the village on my birthday?" With a short sigh, the Kyuubi continued, "Yes Naruto, that one. When you were born I was sealed inside your mother, and due to certain… complications, the seal housing me broke, and my mental state was compromised. The Fourth Hokage used you, the closest available newborn, to seal me again." Naruto wasn't used to all the big words being thrown around... "Mental state? Com-pro-mized? I dunno quite what you're saying." The Kyuubi thought to himself: hopefully I can utilize proper vocabulary with him in a few years… but responded aloud with, "because I got yanked out of the seal my head got messed up for a bit." A short nod of comprehension from Naruto prompted the Kyuubi to continue, "because I got sealed in you, the villagers hate you."
Naruto angrily objected, "But you're nice! I've only known you for a little but you haven't done anything bad!" The Kyuubi started howling with the kind of laughter that only a child's ignorance can prompt. "Kiddo, I've done a lot of stuff to make people hate me. What makes me so annoyed is that people hate you too. It isn't your fault that your birthday sucks." Naruto adorably attempted one of the old man's sage nods of agreement, "Yeah, I didn't do nothin' wrong!" Seeing that Naruto was in full agreement, the Kyuubi continued, "Of course you didn't. I've been locked up inside people for a long time, but you've for sure had it the worst. I want to help you get out of this village and make some friends that aren't me." Naruto was dumbstruck, "You're my friend now?" The Kyuubi grinned knowingly, "Of course I am. Somebody has to be. And I'll teach you cool jutsu to help you make new friends!" As Naruto whooped in joy at the prospect of having a new friend and teacher, the Kyuubi's internal smirk intensified. It would take a while, but the Kyuubi would finally have a shot at revenge.