"Next, Uzumaki Naruto."
Most of the students looked frightened. The villagers all said the little blond boy was a man-eating monster—and that he ate people every day, three times a day.
They were in the same class now. Would he eat them?
Nooo...
Ignoring the anger and fear of those around him, Naruto had long since gotten used to it. He walked to the podium without hurrying.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. My hobby is sculpting, and my dream is..."
Naruto paused. What was his dream again?
To become Hokage?
Not a chance!
That bunch of ungrateful fools didn't deserve someone as outstanding as him for their Hokage.
To earn everyone's recognition?
Even less likely!
He didn't care what those fools thought of him in the first place.
Naruto thought for a long while and realized he had no great ambitions. He just wanted a peaceful life without anyone bothering him, and no brain-dead fools bubbling around nearby.
So...my dream was actually to move away. And if I took it a step further, to escape Konoha, that giant prison.
No, that idea was a bit dangerous. He definitely shouldn't say that out loud.
So Naruto said casually, "My dream is to bring my sculptures to life."
And then have them be my wives.
Watching through the Crystal Ball, the Third Hokage couldn't help sighing. The boy must have been so lonely that he'd started making friends with people in his imagination.
"I hope the Ninja Academy can help Naruto change..."
They gave their self-introductions in the morning and handed out textbooks in the afternoon. Classes officially began the next day.
Iruka spoke at length.
"As everyone knows, the human body contains one hundred and thirty trillion cells... The physical and mental energy produced by these cells are mixed in equal measure to create Chakra."
"Chakra is the foundation of being a ninja. I don't need to tell you how important it is..."
"Now I'll explain the process of extracting Chakra in detail."
"Pay attention. I know many of you already know how, but there's no harm in reviewing it. Those who don't know need to listen especially carefully. This will determine whether you can become ninjas in the future..."
Naruto was one of the students who needed to pay close attention.
Although he had several kards' worth of Chakra inside him, it belonged to the Nine-Tails and he couldn't use it. He hadn't extracted any of his own Chakra yet.
Still, he wasn't worried.
As a member of the Uzumaki Clan—even if only half—extracting Chakra would be a piece of cake.
There were no specific requirements for posture when extracting Chakra, but it was best to choose a comfortable, relaxed position. What worked best varied from person to person.
After school, Naruto went home, quickly finished dinner, then lay down on his bed.
For him, lying down was the most comfortable position.
He gathered the physical and mental energy inside his body and mixed them together...
Fifteen minutes later.
A strange sensation came over him as an unusual energy coursed through his entire body.
"Success."
Naruto sat up and looked at his hands. A faint blue Chakra appeared in his palms.
The next second, everything changed.
The seed buried deep within his soul was stimulated by Naruto's Chakra. It began constantly drawing in Chakra and broke through its seal.
A stabbing pain shot through his eyes.
"What happened?! My eyes hurt so much... Wait, could this be..."
The cheat that had been six years late had finally arrived!
Excited at the possibility, Naruto jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom to look in the mirror.
"Right, I can't let the Anbu find out."
He shut the bathroom door and windows, then looked at himself in the mirror.
His blue eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by golden eyes patterned with the shape of the Rinnegan.
"Golden Rinnegan. It actually looks pretty good, but...it seems I've got the same look as Momoshiki Otsutsuki..."
Matching outfits weren't a problem. But whoever was weaker would be the one left embarrassed. When it came to the struggle for the Way, there could be no backing down.
Naruto understood that one of them would have to die: either him or Momoshiki.
Just then, a massive wave of information flooded into his mind, leaving him a little dizzy.
It took a while for him to recover. He rubbed his temples and sorted through the information in his head.
"Rinnegan Skill Pack..."
Shinra Tensei, Banshō Ten'in, Chibaku Tensei, Chakra Absorption, Fūjutsu Kyūin, Samsara Heavenly Life...
Besides the standard Rinnegan techniques, there were also two exclusive abilities.
The left-eye technique, Ukanomitama, governed souls. It absorbed Soul Energy from the world around him and turned it into Soul Essence, replenishing souls.
He could use it himself, use it on others, or even use it on inanimate objects to give them souls.
The right-eye technique, Kamimusubi, governed life. It absorbed Life Energy from the world around him and turned it into Life Essence, replenishing life.
He could use it on himself or others, and even use it on inanimate objects to give them life.
There was no denying it: the two techniques were ridiculously powerful. Perhaps some unknown god had enhanced them.
"Life and souls...giving inanimate objects..."
Naruto couldn't help widening his eyes.
What a huge loss! Wasn't this exactly the dream he'd mentioned offhandedly yesterday?
If he'd known, he would've wished for his imagination to become reality.
Too bad...
Sigh, there was no point lamenting it now.
"Brat! What are you doing? Why is my Chakra constantly draining?"
The amount of Chakra being lost was tiny, no more than a drop in the ocean for the Nine-Tails. But the Nine-Tails sensed a familiar presence.
"Kurama."
Naruto entered the Sealing Space and called the Nine-Tails by his real name. Smiling, he said, "Let me introduce myself again. My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I'd like to be your friend."
He admitted that his earlier attempt to befriend the Nine-Tails had been insincere. Beneath his outward sincerity had been nothing but schemes to get his hands on the Nine-Tails' power.
Now that he'd awakened the Rinnegan and had the means to protect himself, Naruto could confidently say, I don't care how strong my friends are. None of them are stronger than me anyway.
That might be getting ahead of himself. He had only just awakened the Rinnegan, and he was still a long way from mastering it completely.
Besides, his body limited him to maintaining the Rinnegan for just a few minutes. He might be able to handle a Jonin, but fighting someone at Kage Level would probably be difficult.
But it didn't matter. He was only six. He had plenty of time to grow.
The moment Naruto appeared in the Sealing Space and called the Nine-Tails by his real name, the Nine-Tails was stunned. His huge body sprang upright as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Y-You're the old man?! You've come back to life!"
Only the Sage of Six Paths had the Rinnegan, and only the Sage of Six Paths knew his name.
There was no mistake. Uzumaki Naruto was the Sage of Six Paths reincarnated.
The Nine-Tails thought he'd figured out the truth, and his eyes began to well up.
Old man, it's been over a thousand years. Little Nine's been bullied so badly...
"No!"
Naruto firmly denied it, cutting off the Nine-Tails' wild speculation. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, not some old man. Take a good look."
The Nine-Tails didn't believe him. "I've taken a good look. You're the old man! Otherwise, how would you have the Rinnegan? How would you know my real name? I get it! Old man, you haven't recovered your memories yet, have you? Your name is Hagoromo. The world calls you the Sage of Six Paths. Do you remember now?"
Naruto didn't want to be anyone's replacement, so he objected again. "I told you, I'm not—"
"You still haven't recovered your memories? Then let me explain in more detail..."
"Shut the hell up!"
Before you continue