Houka

"Hey, Houka, wake up! It was just one kick, your spirit shouldn't be this crushed!"

"If you don't wake up, I'm leaving!"

"If I leave, there won't be anyone left to take care of you, you jerk."

"Damn it, I'm going to go help an old lady cross the street, I'm done with you!"

The nagging voice finally faded away, and on the Japanese-style tatami mat, a pale six-year-old boy slowly opened his eyes.

"I... am Uchiha Houka?"

A stream of unfamiliar memories surged from the deepest part of his mind, frantically stimulating a specific area of his brain. In an instant, his eyes felt intensely sore and painful, as if countless ants were crawling around inside them—it was excruciating.

Houka rolled around on the tatami in agony, knocking over a mirror.

He hurriedly grabbed the mirror and looked, his face instantly filled with bewilderment; reflected in the glass was a pair of pupils filled with blood and an ominous aura.

"This isn't... the Sharingan?"

Within the blood-red pupils, a single black tomoe was slowly rotating, looking incredibly bewitching!

"I really have become Uchiha Houka, and this place... is the world of Naruto?!"

Houka wore a dazed expression, unable to believe what he was seeing. Naruto, wasn't that just an anime? What on earth was going on?

It took a full five minutes for Houka to helplessly yet readily accept this reality.

"In my past life, I was just a child from an ordinary family, with no background and no support. After graduation, I worked in a factory, pulling overtime until nine-thirty every day, wasting years and achieving nothing... the only thing I regret is letting my parents down."

Houka sighed. Without him realizing it, his Sharingan slowly faded away; after all, he had just awakened it, and given his young age, he couldn't sustain it for long.

Finally, exhausted, Houka fell back into a deep sleep.

The next day, when he opened his eyes again, he had fully recovered.

Yesterday, the Ninja Academy held its graduation exam. Five-year-old Kakashi had graduated with excellent results, breaking the record for the youngest graduate in the history of the Ninja Academy. He had become a super genius of Konoha, admired by countless people.

As a member of the Uchiha clan, Uchiha Houka was arrogant and proud, so naturally, he couldn't stand such showboating. He had resolutely challenged Kakashi in public, only to be kicked away, becoming the laughingstock of the entire school.

"Kakashi graduating from the Ninja Academy—this timeframe should be right between the Second Shinobi World War and the Third Shinobi World War. I remember the catalyst for the Third Shinobi World War was the disappearance of the Third Kazekage from Sunagakure..."

Houka didn't care about the challenge to Kakashi; it wasn't him who did it anyway. He was currently recalling the plot of Naruto, though after so many years, he couldn't remember many of the details.

"The Third Shinobi World War, and then the Fourth Shinobi World War—they're all meat grinders. Each one is more terrifying than the last. Without strength, you're just cannon fodder; you wouldn't even know how you died!"

"Uchiha Madara, Uchiha Obito, and the Akatsuki organization—these guys are all inhuman existences!"

"Right, Kakashi's father is the White Fang of Konoha, a super existence that even the Legendary Sannin had to avoid. If I could get his guidance... uh, I'm from the Uchiha clan, and our relationship with the Hatake clan seems pretty stiff."

With a thousand thoughts racing through his mind, Houka felt his head throbbing with unbearable discomfort.

Just then, the sound of a door opening came from outside.

"Houka, I'm coming in."

A moment later, a little boy wearing goggles walked in; it was the very person who had taken care of Houka yesterday.

"...U, Uchiha O, Obito?!" Houka almost jumped up to perform a 360-degree backflip and kneel before this super villain boss. It took him a moment to remember that this kid was the same age as him, still studying at the Ninja Academy, a total dead-last who was even more pathetic than he was in the school rankings.

"Huh? Are you surprised to see me, Houka?" Uchiha Obito walked over with familiar ease, knelt on the tatami beside him, touched Houka's forehead, and muttered to himself, "No fever."

"Jerk, I'm perfectly fine!" Houka's face flushed with embarrassment. As an adult, being scared like this by a little brat made him want to find a hole to crawl into.

"That's good. By the way, Houka, you shouldn't go out alone lately." Uchiha Obito said to himself, "Your challenge to Kakashi yesterday has already spread through the clan. Everyone thinks you embarrassed the Uchiha clan, and a lot of people are clamoring to beat you up."

"Can you be a bit more serious when you say that?" Houka's mouth twitched.

"I'm happy for you!" Uchiha Obito laughed heartily, "Haven't you always wanted to be famous in Konoha? Now, your dream has come true. I'm genuinely happy for you."

"You jerk!"

In his memories, Houka and Uchiha Obito were neighbors who grew up playing together, and their relationship was quite good. However, Uchiha Obito had a kind personality, while Houka had inherited the stubbornness and arrogance unique to the Uchiha clan, though that didn't hinder their friendship.

"Oh, shoot. I made you breakfast, but I ran into an old lady crossing the street on the way here, so I gave your breakfast to her instead." Uchiha Obito slapped his forehead with an annoyed expression.

Houka's eye twitched: "Big brother, you live right next door to me. Do you really need to cross the street to get from your house to mine?"

Uchiha Obito tilted his head and looked at him, saying shamelessly: "Because I went to see Rin first, haha."

Houka was completely speechless.

Rin—this girl was the goddess Uchiha Obito had been secretly in love with for years. It was also because of her that Uchiha Obito eventually fell into Uchiha Madara's trap and became a puppet.

But... Houka looked at Uchiha Obito. This guy was the same age as him, only six years old this year. He was only six, you jerk!

A six-year-old brat, and he's already learned how to have a crush?

How precocious are you? Did you start developing while you were still in your mother's womb?

Houka sighed and covered his forehead.

"Houka, don't be disappointed. That guy Kakashi is just relying on having a genius dad to guide him. If we work hard, we can graduate next year too!" Uchiha Obito looked inspired. He seemed to be picturing the wonderful scene of himself graduating next year, getting his ninja headband, and appearing in front of his goddess Rin. He chuckled, and a bit of drool even leaked out—the scene was incredibly awkward.

Gurgle...

Houka hadn't eaten all day, and his stomach finally couldn't help but protest.

"Ah, Houka, let's go out and get something to eat. I'll treat you to ramen!" Uchiha Obito jumped up from the tatami, his movements agile.

Houka moved and realized his head didn't hurt as much anymore, so he nodded and put on his clothes.

"You're so slow, Houka." Uchiha Obito complained from the side.

What could Houka do? He was helpless too. The clothes in his hands were different from those in his past life, and he couldn't exactly ask how to put them on, so he could only try to dress himself slowly.

Finally, ten minutes later, Houka finished dressing and left the house with Uchiha Obito, feeling slightly exhausted. (To be continued)