Ninja Academy Enrollment

What was it like to be feared and ostracized by the villagers?

Naruto felt he had every right to speak on that subject.

With his admission notice in hand, Naruto stepped through the gates of the Ninja Academy and received special treatment at the registration desk.

Neither students nor parents dared stand in front of Naruto in line. Even the Chunin instructor at registration acted exceptionally "friendly," quickly helping him complete the necessary procedures.

"Isn't that the village's Demon Fox? How could the Third Lord allow him to enroll?"

"It was one thing for him to wander around the streets all day, but my child attends the Ninja Academy. What if something happens?"

"Even with ninja instructors at the academy, it's still unacceptable! That's the incarnation of the Demon Fox!"

"And he's an orphan, yet he's dressed so nicely. Could he have stolen those clothes?"

After Naruto successfully enrolled, before the Chunin instructor could even complain, the civilian parents had already erupted.

They could not accept the Demon Fox, which threatened the village, entering the Ninja Academy as well. What if the Demon Fox went berserk? What would happen to the children's safety?

Faced with the parents' complaints, the Chunin instructor, who knew some of the truth, had no way to explain.

Naruto was not the Demon Fox. He was the village's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, and that was a village secret.

Even though the rumors about the Demon Fox were already known by everyone, rules were rules. Ninja could never casually reveal classified information.

In the end, only after the Third Hokage stepped in and used both carrot and stick did those parents stop making trouble.

Even so, they repeatedly warned their children not to provoke Uzumaki Naruto, to always keep a sufficient distance from the Demon Fox, and to report to the ninja instructors immediately if they encountered any danger.

Naturally, the instigator behind all this, Naruto, saw the entire scene. He stood in the distance, watching the parents put on their performance.

Waiting until no one was around before quietly going to register alone was not his style.

As Malice Perception issued warning after warning, the Nine-Tails opened his eyes and said to Naruto, "Kid, you really do have a twisted sense of humor. You know they don't like you, yet you deliberately show yourself off in front of them."

Naruto said indifferently, "That isn't twisted humor. They just seem to have forgotten that this is the Ninja Academy. The ninja it trains are mercenaries who live with blades at their throats."

The Nine-Tails glanced at Naruto. "Kid, ever since you said you wanted to leave Konoha that day, you seem to have grown much more confident."

Naruto stared at the Nine-Tails and slowly said, "Maybe it's because I found a goal. Once I have a direction, I only need to work hard. Their mockery and hateful words have instead become motivation."

The Nine-Tails smiled without speaking, then continued lying in the cage and snoring away.

After registration came the speech by the honorary principal, the Third Hokage. Its topic was the Will of Fire.

In Naruto's view, the Will of Fire described by the Third Hokage was thirty percent doctrine and seventy percent self-serving nonsense. It was fine as some inspirational soup for the soul, but otherwise had little use.

Beyond that, it was simply boring and wasted his precious training time.

"Didn't you say you wanted to perform in front of the Hokage? Why aren't you acting more enthusiastic now?"

The fox adviser had awakened at some point and offered his suggestion.

Naruto reluctantly roused himself and said to the Nine-Tails inside him, "The more I perform, the easier it is to expose flaws. Not deliberately disguising myself is the best disguise."

"But Big Fox, you could listen to some inspirational soup too. What that old Third Hokage says does make some sense."

"Advocating mutual understanding and support between people, burning one's youth for the next generation—those are all decent words of encouragement."

"It's just that even the old Third Hokage himself believes in that rhetoric. He's fooled himself."

The Nine-Tails snorted coldly and stopped paying attention to Naruto.

It was not that he disagreed with Naruto mocking the Will of Fire. Rather, it reminded him of memories from the past.

The Sage of Six Paths, who had created the tailed beasts, seemed to have said something similar to the Will of Fire.

Only, what the Sage of Six Paths had said was that Chakra was a bridge connecting people's hearts. With the help of Chakra, one day people would be able to understand and help one another.

Back then, he had regarded the Sage of Six Paths's words as truth. But more than a thousand years of experience had gradually made him doubt them.

If people could not even understand one another, could humans truly understand tailed beasts? Especially after Jinchuriki appeared, ninja had directly treated tailed beasts as tools of war.

Over the past thousand years, Naruto seemed to be the only kid who had tried to understand him and treated him as a friend.

The speech lasted a full hour, and Naruto daydreamed for a full hour. The other elementary students, meanwhile, could no longer sit still and began groaning in misery one after another.

The Third Hokage merely smiled, said a few more simple words, and ended the speech.

After leaving the assembly hall, Naruto stretched lazily, then heard a crisp notification.

Kurama's favorability toward you has reached Trust. Your compatibility with "Tailed Beast Chakra" has greatly increased. You may freely use Nine-Tails Chakra. Though the tsundere Nine-Tails will not say it aloud, he has long regarded you as a friend.

Upon hearing it, Naruto entered the Sealing Space. Looking at the fox inside the cage, the corners of his mouth curled upward.

He was not surprised that the Nine-Tails's favorability toward him had increased. After all, they depended on each other for survival and had endured very similar circumstances, allowing them to understand one another.

But the system granting him compatibility with "Tailed Beast Chakra" still surprised him somewhat.

This did not merely mean that he could freely use Nine-Tails Chakra. It also gave him an enormous advantage when facing other Jinchuriki.

In a sense, he could already be considered a perfect Jinchuriki. However, aside from his massive Chakra reserves, every other aspect of him was extremely lacking.

Naruto did not disturb the Nine-Tails's sleep. After leaving behind some food, he quietly departed the Sealing Space.

The Nine-Tails opened his eyes, swallowed the offered food in one bite, and stared into the void with some curiosity. Why had Naruto worn that kind of smile? Could that brat have come up with some crooked idea to prank me again?

After gaining compatibility with "Tailed Beast Chakra," Naruto was in an excellent mood as he headed toward the classroom.

After pushing open the door, Naruto realized he was the last student to arrive. The instant he entered, he drew the entire class's attention, and everyone turned to look at him.

Did I dress badly?

Naruto wondered to himself. Though his red robe with gold trim was not as imposing as a Hokage Robe, it suited his tall, slender figure perfectly. Combined with the masculine air he had developed through regular training, he could be considered a rare, sunny young man.

In the class, only Sasuke, the cold-faced pretty boy seated in the corner, surpassed him.

Could it be because of my identity as the Demon Fox?

Ignoring those gazes, Naruto found his seat and casually took out a textbook to read. Rather than making pointless small talk with the others, he might as well properly preview the material.