"Konoha really is a wonderful place. Trees surround you everywhere," Yu remarked. In the manga, Konoha had the best natural environment by far. The other villages couldn't compare, especially Sunagakure, that miserable place with nothing but sand.
He'd originally planned to head back to his class, but a glance toward the woods revealed a swing.
Yu's playful side immediately took over. He sat on the swing and began to pump his legs. This was a rare chance to have some fun. Even though he no longer had things like phones and computers, he felt that his life now suited him better.
"If only I didn't know what was coming."
Knowing the future made it impossible to be content with the present.
He knew all too well that, in the world of Naruto, only strength could protect him. He didn't want to become cannon fodder for people who got carried away and decided they wanted to change the world.
Whatever happened, he wanted to control his own destiny. Why should other people get to do whatever they wanted?
And to control his destiny, he needed strength. Only strength could break through every obstacle and restriction.
The higher he swung, the better Yu felt. He'd found a way to deal with his Chakra reserves today, bringing him one step closer to becoming invincible.
"Naruto, no matter how much you run, it won't do any good. I'm going to get my hands on your bloodline," Yu thought.
The students were still training in ninjutsu, so Yu was the only one in the woods. He was having a great time, but to someone watching, the scene looked very different.
After Yu left, Naruto thought for a while, then quietly followed him.
Naruto was hiding at the edge of the woods, peeking at Yu.
The silent woods held only Yu, swinging back and forth. Naruto knew this scene all too well: lonely and desolate, with no one but himself to pass the time.
Seeing it, Naruto believed that Yu had meant what he'd said. He really had misunderstood Yu's sincere intentions.
After a fierce inner struggle, Naruto decided to leave his hiding place. He didn't want to miss out on having a friend.
"I'm sorry!"
Naruto apologized to Yu.
Yu was naturally delighted. He'd thought he'd failed today, but Naruto had come right to him on his own.
You never turned down something that came to you.
So Yu asked, "Would you be willing to be my friend?"
This time, Naruto nodded without hesitation.
"Yeah!"
A smile spread across Naruto's face. This was his first friend.
"Yuyou Uchiha."
"Naruto Uzumaki."
Their little hands clasped together.
Of course, Naruto didn't know that Yu had other plans. But that didn't stop them from becoming friends. Yu did have ulterior motives, but he was also happy to be friends with Naruto. After all, Naruto was a valuable ally.
The two spent the rest of their time playing on the swing in the woods. It might have looked childish, but what else could two eight-year-olds do? They wouldn't have known what to talk about even if they'd tried to have a heart-to-heart.
Yu treated it as spending time with a little brother. As a child with an adult's soul, he should have the fine virtues of respecting his elders and caring for the young.
The happy moments passed quickly, and Yu and Naruto grew much closer.
"See you tomorrow!"
"See you tomorrow!"
Yu and Naruto parted ways on the playground, both smiling.
Naruto was smiling because he'd found a friend and was no longer alone. Yu's smile, on the other hand, had many causes, which didn't need to be listed one by one.
After school, Sasuke waited for Yu so they could walk home together. During dinner, Sasuke noticed how cheerful Yu seemed and asked, "Did something good happen today?"
Yu thought for a moment, then said, "I saw you fighting today, Sasuke. That older student will be a Genin next year, and you were amazing."
Everyone liked being praised, especially by someone they cared about.
But Sasuke's smile lasted only a few seconds before fading. He'd thought of Itachi. The gap between his strength and Itachi's was still vast. He had a long way to go before he could fulfill his ambition, and he couldn't let himself get happy over a little progress.
Yu naturally noticed the change in Sasuke. Uchiha Itachi was Sasuke's greatest torment, and even he couldn't change that.
So he quickly changed the subject.
"I made a new friend today. He's in your class, too—Naruto Uzumaki."
"Naruto Uzumaki? How'd you meet that guy?" Sasuke knew the class's dead-last student. The two students everyone paid attention to were the one in first place and the one in last.
"We met on the playground. I feel like he's a lot like me..." Yu lowered his head as he spoke.
The atmosphere grew tense.
"That guy's a bit of a goof, but he's not bad as a friend. Just don't go running around with him and neglect your training. You can't slack off. Come practice the Three Body Technique with me later," Sasuke said.
Yu smiled and replied, "Okay."
Yu looked at Sasuke. He was becoming more and more like an older brother, and it felt pretty nice to have someone who cared about him.
"Does this count as a bond?"
The word "bond" gave Yu goosebumps. In his previous world, he'd often made fun of the "bonds" between "Naruto" and "Sasuke."
After training, their butler, Yunshang Jinwei, brought the brothers medicinal soup. Intense training required all kinds of energy replenishment; otherwise, it was easy to suffer hidden injuries. The specially prepared soup could restore their stamina and heal muscle and bone injuries.
Back in his room, Yu sat cross-legged on his bed and began to refine Chakra. Mental energy and physical strength blended together to form Chakra. Each session only increased his reserves a little, but at least he could see hope.
He had less than one-fifth the Chakra of an average Genin, while Sasuke already had more Chakra than most Genin. Yu was in a real hurry, because without Chakra, he couldn't do anything.
A little after one in the morning, Yu stopped refining Chakra and checked his progress. It had increased by about one percent.
Lying in bed, he began thinking about the second problem: how to increase his physical strength. His body had a kind of immunity to physical damage, but it was too weak. If he fought someone, he might end up as a ball of flesh after the first round.
"First, I can't think in terms of methods from the Naruto world. Those are too far out of reach for me right now."
He needed to think beyond the world of Naruto and combine his abilities with other knowledge.
By "knowledge," he didn't mean academic subjects. He meant what he'd seen in various anime and movies. Now that he could travel to the world of Naruto, there was no reason things from anime and movies couldn't become real, too.
Soon, he thought of a movie character—Wolverine.
Wolverine was a lot like him, with powerful healing and an immortal body. Of course, Yu's immortality couldn't compare to Logan's. His was only a low-grade version.
Wolverine wasn't all that strong at first in the movies. He was about as strong as a superhuman, and a Chunin skilled in Taijutsu might even have been his equal.
But after the Adamantium transformation, Wolverine could be called a terrestrial immortal.
"Adamantium bones gave Wolverine an indestructible body. Could I get myself a metal skeleton, too?" Yu thought.
The more he considered it, the more he felt the idea could work. A metal skeleton could support his body and naturally make it stronger. It could also increase his strength and speed. It was the perfect solution.
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