What made the children of the Shinobi World different from us?
It was simple. Though they looked more or less the same on the outside, they weren't even the same species.
The Shinobi World was a Transcendent World. Every living thing there had an extraordinary energy called Chakra in its body. A thousand years ago, the Otsutsuki Clan had planted a Divine Tree, causing Chakra to seep into and assimilate the entire world. Not just the cells, but even the soul, was affected.
To be precise, the human body in the Shinobi World could have up to 130 trillion cells, while the human body on Earth had around 30 to 60 trillion.
That was a difference of two to four times.
As for the difference in childhood, Li Sen had plenty to say about it. After all, he had been reborn here and given a new name: Higashino Makoto.
From Higashino Makoto's observations, the children of the Shinobi World were much like those in the world he'd once lived in until they turned two. After that, though, it was as if they'd shifted into a higher gear.
After the age of two, their physical abilities and intelligence both had a small growth spurt, as if they were in a hurry to grow up. It felt as though some invisible force was maturing them prematurely.
This was especially obvious among the larger Ninja Clans and in families that had produced Ninja for two or three generations in a row.
Higashino Makoto thought that Chakra was just like Jin Kela fertilizer.
Perhaps it was the result of a thousand years of warfare in the Shinobi World. After all, in those chaotic times, Ninja had to go to the battlefield and kill from a very young age. Those who weren't mentally prepared or physically capable were probably weeded out.
Even after the One Country One Village system was established, and the Five Great Nations enjoyed plenty of peace aside from a few Shinobi World Wars, precocious children remained common.
Here, there was no need to worry that anyone would get suspicious if a child acted as solemn as an adult. At most, people would think you were talented and mature for your age, and that your potential might surpass theirs one day.
Whitey, Sakata Gintoki—no, that was wrong. Kakashi Hatake had worn the same prematurely world-weary expression since childhood. He graduated from the Ninja Academy at five and became a Chunin at six, heading out to cut people down. He caused a sensation and was hailed as Konoha's genius, an example for all the children to follow.
The future Filial Son, Itachi Uchiha, had drawn first blood on the battlefield at four. At six, he was already thinking about his clan, his village, and peace in the Shinobi World. Did anyone say a word about that?
His father not only failed to guide him properly, but was even proud of him. Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had praised him for possessing the mind of a Hokage.
Now Higashino Makoto had become a precocious child like them. The difference was that his maturity came from being reborn, and he'd brought his memories from his previous life with him.
Compared with those other two precocious children, though, Higashino Makoto was merely steady in his actions, not as rambunctious and childish as his peers. He would never think about grand social issues and then go ask some strange older man for advice.
He didn't want to attract the attention of anyone with ulterior motives. The Naruto World wasn't all hot-blooded passion; behind it lay far more darkness.
Higashino Makoto didn't care about peace in the Shinobi World. After being reborn, he only wanted to live for himself and make his life a little more exciting.
As for dying in a war someday? That would only mean he hadn't been strong enough, or hadn't put in enough effort and thought.
If that was the case, then so be it. It wasn't as though he hadn't died before.
Compared with death, he was far more afraid of being as ordinary as an ant and as insignificant as dust, like he had been in his previous life.
The Land of Fire, Konoha.
The sun had yet to rise, and the eastern sky was growing pale.
Outside the bustling commercial and administrative center in the village's heart, forests covered the surrounding area, dotted with scattered buildings and numerous training grounds.
To the northwest, in a small training ground near a residential area, a little figure was sweating profusely as he worked through the most basic physical exercises.
He was a little boy with tousled dark brown hair, rosy lips, pearly teeth, and a handsome, delicate face. He looked about three or four years old.
He was Li Sen—or rather, that name belonged to the past. Now he was Higashino Makoto.
At that moment, Higashino Makoto was running laps around the training ground.
The training grounds inside the village were all small, so a lap didn't take long.
Higashino Makoto ran at a fairly quick pace, keeping his breathing even and rhythmic as he counted his laps in his head.
Once he'd reached his planned target, he switched to frog jumps and kept going. After that, he ran laps on his hands, upside down.
When he'd finished all that, he moved on to push-ups, pull-ups, and other exercises.
Afterward, he would practice throwing Kunai and Shuriken.
Targets were tied to branches in every direction among the trees in the training ground. Now and then, a "thunk, thunk" sounded out: the noise of sharp weapons hitting wooden targets.
Of course, none of his training sessions were very intense. Higashino Makoto hadn't yet learned to refine or use Chakra, and his not-quite-four-year-old body couldn't handle that much exercise.
If he trained himself to death like Might Duy and his son, or Rock Lee later on, he'd only end up crippled.
The ability to refine and use Chakra divided ordinary people and Ninja into two different kinds of beings.
Higashino Makoto worked so hard now to prepare himself for refining Chakra later. Although everyone in the Shinobi World had it, that didn't mean you could refine it just because you wanted to.
Unless you were exceptionally gifted, you needed to put in the hard work beforehand, building a strong body and a focused mind. Otherwise, you could sit there until you died and still fail to refine Chakra.
Ninja were Ninja because they could endure hardship that ordinary people couldn't stick with.
Even simple-minded Dreamer and Naruto, aside from their powerful bloodlines, had worked hard in private since childhood.
After completing one round of training, Higashino Makoto would take a short break. Following the method his father had taught him, he would carefully picture and sense every corner of his body with his mind.
It was a very tedious exercise, but an essential step that he had to keep at.
After about five minutes, he would start the next round of training.
He kept going until the sun rose and his strength was spent, at which point he'd completed his daily training goals.
By then, a few older people had also arrived at the training ground.
From the look of them, they were probably students from the Ninja Academy.
It was spring break, and they all lived near this small training ground. Places like this had been built for them.
Ninja from the clans had their own dedicated training grounds. Ninja took the protection of information very seriously, especially when it came to inherited techniques and secret arts.
One of the girls, about eight or nine years old, saw Higashino Makoto sitting to the side, drenched in sweat and drinking water. Curious, she ran over.
"Oh? You're here early, little guy!"
"Yeah, big sister. I've already finished today's training." Higashino Makoto looked up and answered with an innocent smile, deliberately laying the flattery on thick when he called her "big sister."
The girl beamed at being called that and ruffled Higashino Makoto's hair. "You're working hard at such a young age. Tell me, do you have some amazing dream?"
Here it comes. In the Shinobi World, whenever people saw a hardworking child, they had to ask about his dream. If you skipped that step, you'd feel awkward greeting anyone.
"Of course. I want to become strong so I can protect the village and my comrades."
Higashino Makoto gave her a standard answer. Other common dreams included becoming Hokage. The village children were always talking about things like that.
Protecting one's comrades and becoming Hokage were the most politically correct dreams in Konoha. Say something like that, and you'd show off your pure Will of Fire.
"What a dependable junior!" The girl tousled Higashino Makoto's hair, then waved to him. "Seeing how hard you're working makes me want to go train, too!"
"Okay, big sister! Good luck!"
The Ninja Academy students' training was much more impressive than Higashino Makoto's.
Whether they were practicing with Shuriken and Kunai or training by fighting each other, their strength and speed were beyond anything Higashino Makoto could match. It felt like watching a Kung Fu Blockbuster.
They were only Ninja Academy students, yet they were already so impressive. So how spectacular would a real Ninja fight be—especially a Jonin?
Surely they wouldn't just be tossing pots and pans around.
At the very least, it had to be like a special-effects blockbuster. That was a completely different experience from watching anime in his previous life.
Sure enough, the ability to refine and use Chakra was the key distinction between Ninja and ordinary people.
After watching for a while, Higashino Makoto dragged his tired body toward home, admiring the bustle of Konoha in the morning as he went.
Every so often, he looked up and saw the faces of the three Hokage on the distant Kage Rock, seemingly gilded by the sunlight.
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