The Person Who Shouldn't Have Appeared

"Hah..."

In a forest somewhere, shouts echoed among the trees. A small, thin figure stood before a large, leafy tree, sweeping his legs out again and again. His kicks swung like iron whips, striking the deeply furrowed trunk with gusts of wind and heavy thuds.

Specks of light slipped through gaps in the dense canopy and fell on the green grass, as though covering the ground in yellow spots.

A closer look revealed a boy of only about ten. He wore a thin set of clothes, and the strenuous exercise had left his head and body drenched in sweat. His clothes were soaked through.

The boy panted heavily, but he didn't stop. His legs swept out without pause, his powerful kicks lashing the trunk like iron whips. Wood chips flew with each thud. The furrowed trunk was already covered in marks from his kicks, exposing the dark yellow fibers beneath.

Suddenly, without warning, the boy spun around and delivered a flying sweep kick. With a tremendous bang, violent force surged out like a tide. The trunk, as thick as the mouth of a bowl, let out a grating series of cracks like cloth tearing. Another bang followed, and the ground trembled as the sturdy tree crashed down, kicking up a great cloud of dust.

"Looks like the power unleashed when using Chakra is on a whole different level. The difference is enormous," the boy muttered to himself as he stopped.

Who am I? And where am I now?

It was probably about half a year ago that I came to this world for no reason. That's right, I wasn't originally from this world. As for why I came here, I'm not really sure. I just somehow ended up here.

At first, I was completely bewildered too. I'd inexplicably arrived in another world, and there were no words to describe how I felt. But when I saw the almost fantastical Ninjutsu and heard people talking about Chakra, I knew what kind of world I'd come to: the world of Naruto, a world of shinobi.

I was lucky, though. I hadn't possessed someone from a noble or wealthy family, but I hadn't possessed someone from an ordinary family either. I'd possessed a member of a great clan that was quite famous in this world.

Not long afterward, though, I came to Konoha for certain reasons. It was the greatest power in the world of Naruto.

It was founded by Hashirama Senju, the God of Shinobi. After the First Hokage and the Second Hokage came the current Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, known as the Professor of Ninjutsu. His three disciples were famous throughout the Shinobi World and were known as the Sannin. There were also a number of powerful Jonin. No other shinobi village could match its strength.

That great strength brought prosperity with it. After years of recuperation, Konoha had recovered from the pain of the Second Shinobi World War.

After all that, I suppose you still don't know my name. I'm Yemo Uzumaki. That's right, the person I possessed was from the Uzumaki Clan, a clan famous throughout the Shinobi World for its sealing techniques.

The Uzumaki Clan has been on good terms with Konoha for generations. It often sends some of its younger members to Konoha to learn and grow, and I'm one of them. But for certain reasons, fewer and fewer have come to Konoha over the years. This year, for example, I'm the only one. Fortunately, though, as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, I'm not alone in Konoha.

Back to the point. After spending half a year in the world of Naruto, I've gradually settled into this world, both in my daily habits and in regard to the profession of shinobi.

Of course, I don't really count as a shinobi yet. I can only use Chakra in simple ways and perform a few minor Ninjutsu. I haven't had any systematic training or instruction, so at most, I've only begun to dabble in the ways of a shinobi.

At some point, the sun had risen high in the sky. Drops of crystalline morning dew slid slowly off the green leaves. Some fell to the earth, while others dropped into a stream, making the lovely dripping sounds of nature.

With his morning training complete, Yemo flickered and vanished into thin air. He reappeared beside a tree stump more than ten meters away. It was a very simple Body Flicker Technique, and the first Ninjutsu Yemo had learned. After using it for a long time, he had become highly proficient.

Gurgle.

His morning training had only just ended when Yemo's stomach began to rumble. He rubbed it and said to himself, "I should find somewhere to fill my stomach."

With that, Yemo put on his jacket and followed the narrow forest path toward Konoha. After passing through a small patch of woods, he saw a bustling town before him.

Konoha was the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages and possessed the best resources. Naturally, its prosperity was beyond that of the other shinobi villages.

Shops lined both sides of the broad streets, which were crowded with people. The morning sun fell gently on the streets and houses, as though clothing them in pale yellow. Vendors' cries rang out constantly. Compared with Konoha, the place where the Uzumaki Clan lived was like the countryside next to a town.

Whoosh, whoosh.

Suddenly, several sounds of rushing air came from overhead. Yemo looked up and saw several shinobi wearing Konoha Forehead Protectors leaping swiftly across the rooftops. They were moving so fast that something urgent had clearly come up. With a few bounds, they disappeared among the tall buildings.

People glanced up, then went back to what they were doing. For the people of Konoha, even if they didn't see something like this more than ten times a day, they saw it seven or eight times. Everyone was long accustomed to it.

"Four Chunin and one Jonin. What happened?" Yemo muttered to himself. Anything that required a Jonin to be sent out surely couldn't be a small matter, much less when four Chunin were accompanying him.

"Hey, Yemo!"

Hearing the call behind him, Yemo stopped and turned around. Although he hadn't seen the person yet, he already knew who it was from the voice. Who else could it be but Akimichi Chōza of the Akimichi Clan?

As Yemo had expected, the large-built Akimichi Chōza stood behind him, holding several skewers of fragrant grilled meat in each hand. Yemo smiled and greeted him. "Chōza, where are you headed?"

As he spoke, Yemo walked over to Chōza.

Chōza waved the grilled meat in his hands. "I just finished morning training with Shikaku, and I'm about to get breakfast. What do you say? Want to come?"

Speaking of morning training, that was how Yemo had met Chōza. Yemo had just arrived in Konoha at the time and hadn't known anyone. He spent most of each day training. Once, he happened to train in the same place as Shikaku Nara, Akimichi Chōza, and Inoichi Yamanaka. Yemo had a deep impression of Konoha's Ino-Shika-Cho and had wanted to make their acquaintance, so that was how the four met. As they spent time together, they became good friends.

At Chōza's invitation, the corner of Yemo's mouth twitched slightly. He smiled and declined. "Forget it, maybe another day. I told my sister I'd be home for a meal today. If she finds out I went out with you, you know what'll happen. I'm afraid I can forget about going out for the next couple of days."

When Yemo mentioned his sister, Chōza's body trembled slightly, and a trace of fear flashed across his face. Chōza was clearly wary of Yemo's sister and her fearsome reputation.

"In that case, for your own safety, I'd better go alone. What a shame, though. I got two coupons for that grilled meat restaurant yesterday." Chōza shook his head as he spoke, muttering to himself in disappointment.

That was another reason Yemo had turned down Chōza's breakfast invitation. Chōza basically ate grilled meat for all three meals. Yemo hadn't known that at first; he'd only found out that Chōza ate grilled meat for breakfast too after Chōza had invited him out one morning.

Yemo didn't mind eating grilled meat in the evening, but eating something as spicy as grilled meat right after an early morning workout was more than his appetite could handle. He really didn't know why Chōza liked grilled meat so much. Didn't it ever make him sick? Yemo sometimes wondered.

That was also why Shikaku and Inoichi, who usually trained with Chōza, never ate breakfast with him.

Since Yemo wasn't going, Chōza didn't linger. He still had to hurry to the grilled meat restaurant for his meal. It was getting late, and if he arrived any later, he wouldn't have much time to eat.

Watching Chōza's retreating figure hurry away, Yemo shook his head with a smile. He folded his hands behind his head and strolled down the street in the morning light, humming a tune, utterly relaxed and at ease.