Naruto

In Konoha's fifty-first year, the setting sun dyed Konoha Village a warm orange-red. The sound of ninja footsteps gradually grew denser on the stone-paved streets. Ninjas returning from missions headed toward the izakayas in twos and threes, while the scent of grilled meat drifted from the shops, mingling with shouts and laughter and making the entire village feel lively yet peaceful.

Hokage Rock stood out especially clearly in the twilight, the faces of the four Hokage gazing down upon the village. The Fourth Hokage's features looked particularly gentle beneath the sunset. Though his era had long ended, after the Nine-Tails' attack, the Third Hokage had resumed control of the position. The legend of the Yellow Flash had been frozen in the past and upon the rock wall.

Yet the protagonist of this story was not among that prosperity.

The scene shifted to the forest on the outskirts of the village.

Sweat dripped from his blond hair as three-year-old Naruto panted and flung out a kunai—"Whoosh!"

The cold gleam of metal sliced through the air and embedded itself precisely in the center of the target on the tree trunk, without the slightest deviation.

At an age when a three-year-old should not even have been able to hold a kunai steadily, he could already make such an accurate throw. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, a smile curling at his lips.

"What incredible talent. As expected of the Child of Destiny... Looks like the original story wasted quite a bit of time, dattebayo."

His voice was childish and carried that distinctive strange verbal tic, yet his tone held an unusual maturity, as though the body did not contain an ignorant young child.

That was right. Naruto possessed memories of another life.

In a world called Blue Star, he had merely been an ordinary office worker, living the same repetitive life every day. Then, one day after work, an out-of-control truck had sent him out of that world in the most clichéd way possible.

...What a completely unoriginal way to transmigrate.

His memories from infancy were muddled, as though covered by a thick fog. He was not even sure whether he had truly "transmigrated" into this world, or whether the original Naruto had simply "awakened" memories of a past life.

The only thing he could be certain of was that once his consciousness had become clear, all the plotlines and characters from Naruto had been engraved into his mind.

Even stranger was—"dattebayo."

No one had taught him that verbal tic, yet it naturally slipped from his mouth, as though it were an instinct of this body.

It had taken Naruto several whole days to barely accept reality. Not only had he arrived in the world of Naruto, he had also become Uzumaki Naruto, the "Child of Prophecy" from the original story.

The current Konoha was in a brief period of peace.

Uchiha Madara's corpse had already begun to rot, while his pawn, Obito Uchiha, had already put on his mask and begun Kamui, plotting the Eye of the Moon Plan in the darkness.

Black Zetsu, the Ninja World's Number One Filial Son, still lurked in the shadows, patiently waiting for the best opportunity to stab someone in the back and resurrect Kaguya.

Yahiko of the Rain Village had already died, and Nagato had completely fallen into the extremism of "Make the World Feel Pain."

Jiraiya was still traveling through the Ninja World, searching for the so-called "Child of Prophecy" and material for his dirty little novels, unaware that the person he sought was currently practicing shuriken in Konoha's forest.

Tsunade had long since left the village, traveling between gambling houses with Shizune. She had become the legendary Big Sucker, numbing herself with alcohol and dice.

The only major recent event was that Orochimaru's human experiments had been exposed. The Third Hokage had personally ordered his capture, and one of the former "Three Sannin" had now become Konoha's S-rank missing-nin.

There were still several years before the plot officially began, and even longer before Naruto entered the Ninja Academy.

At the request of many readers, we now offer an ad-free VIP membership feature.

Click to view.

Mm... He remembered the major events quite clearly, but as for the details... After he had finished Naruto back then, what had made him pay attention to it again was a mobile game adaptation with the same name.

Though he had long known that his parents in this life, the Fourth Hokage and Uzumaki Kushina, were no longer in this world, every time he passed Hokage Rock and saw Minato Namikaze's statue, Naruto still felt a little stifled inside.

Still, having grown up in the Tomato Orphanage in his previous life, he could endure this bit of loneliness. After all, he had long been used to living alone in his previous life. At least in this life, he had a free little apartment, plus the living expenses that the old man, the Third Hokage, paid out on time every month.

Though Naruto still really wanted to ask that old man where his cheap dad's inheritance had gone...

It was not as though Naruto had failed to notice the cold looks from the adults and the distance kept by the children in the village, but he had long gotten over it—after all, he was not money. How could everyone possibly like him?

Besides, the Konoha Twelve Ninja he would become close with in the future were basically all children of major clans. Shikamaru, Choji, Hinata, Uchiha Sasuke, and the others had elders who knew the truth about the Jinchuriki, so they would not point fingers at him like ordinary villagers did.

Actually, Naruto did not need to work so hard. If he simply followed the original route, he could marry the Hyuga Clan's young lady, become Hokage, and reach the pinnacle of life... But unfortunately, there was Boruto: Naruto Next Generations!

Naruto had not watched Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, but he had occasionally seen spoilers while browsing forums—Otsutsuki aliens, Naruto and Sasuke nerfed, scientific ninja tools... In short, it was nothing but a whole pile of trouble.

...If he had known he would transmigrate, he should have caught up on Boruto: Naruto Next Generations too!

Still, there was no point thinking about that now. There were several years left before the plot began anyway. Since he had nothing better to do, training was better than spacing out... Besides, if he really ran into aliens in the future, he could not exactly win by talking them to death, could he?

"Alright, next, I'll try this!"

Naruto took a deep breath and prepared to increase the difficulty. Several kunai were held between his fingers as his eyes locked onto targets at different positions on the tree trunk ahead. The next second, he violently flicked his wrist, and the kunai shot through the air, tracing several paths.

Clang! Clang!

The metallic collisions rang out sharply as several kunai struck one another precisely in midair, changing their trajectories at tricky angles. What had initially seemed like a chaotic barrage of throws strangely adjusted direction after the collisions, until finally—

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

Every kunai embedded itself firmly in a target at a different location. Not a single one missed.

"...Tsk, isn't that a little too ridiculous?"

Even Naruto himself was somewhat startled. He knew this body had good talent, with the bloodlines of the Fourth Hokage and the Uzumaki Clan, but he had not expected even his throwing techniques to reach this level. Naruto in the original story had never possessed such precise skill. Could it be that being a transmigrator had affected his body's potential?

Could this be the legendary "transmigrator's benefit"?

He scratched his head and was just about to retrieve the kunai when suddenly—

"That was amazing!"

A childish, crisp voice came from the woods, startling Naruto. He turned his head and saw the bushes sway slightly. Then a tiny figure emerged somewhat nervously. Perhaps because she had been unable to hold back her praise just now, she was now standing there red-faced and at a loss.

So cute...

That was Naruto's first thought.

She was a little girl who looked about his age. Her long black hair fell smoothly over her shoulders, making her skin appear as fair as snow. Her eyes were large, dark, and bright, and they were currently looking at him with a hint of timidity and curiosity. Her delicate features looked as though they had been carefully sculpted, her rosy lips lightly pressed together. Her entire being radiated a lovable, pitiful charm.

Who was she? Was there such an adorable background character in the original story?

If you think this book is good, please remember to add it to your bookshelf so you can find it next time.