Eternity

"I just need to get some sleep."

With that, he closed his eyes.

Hinata still looked worried, but seeing that Naruto wanted to sleep, she didn't want to disturb him.

When the class bell rang, Iruka walked into the classroom and saw Naruto sleeping with his head on his desk. He couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

"What a problem student..."

Although his relationships with his classmates had improved, his attitude toward studying was still terrible.

But because of Naruto's special circumstances, Iruka couldn't bring himself to discipline him too harshly.

sigh!

After sleeping until noon, Naruto left the Ninja Academy, went home and cooked a couple of dishes, then sat down at the dining table for lunch.

"Naruto, can you take me outside this afternoon?"

A calm voice sounded in Naruto's mind.

It was Shadow communicating telepathically.

The reason she could do this wasn't that Shadow had any special ability. As one of Naruto's creations, she could naturally communicate with him mentally as long as she was within a hundred meters of him.

The Shogun could do the same, and her voice soon sounded in Naruto's mind as well.

"I had the same idea."

"I can take you both out, but we'll need to agree on some rules beforehand. Don't move, or people might realize you're alive."

Naruto stood up and went over to the sofa, picking up the wooden Raiden Shogun figurine and placing it on the dining table.

As he ate, he asked them in his mind, "Were you bored staying at home all morning?"

The Shogun replied, "Bored? I don't experience that emotion. I merely wish to understand the environment in which I live."

Shadow said, "What a foolish question. With nothing to do and nowhere to go, of course it's unbearably dull."

"Uh... I'm really sorry. Because of my circumstances, I can't let you reveal yourselves yet."

If Naruto were a Sand Ninja, the Raiden Shogun could appear openly, and others would simply consider her a special kind of puppet.

Even if Naruto had still been born in Konoha, but wasn't a Jinchuriki and wasn't being watched, the Shogun would have had plenty of room to move around.

But things weren't like that now. He was under constant surveillance, and even the slightest movement was difficult.

That afternoon, Naruto didn't train. Wearing a mask, he wandered around Konoha.

The Raiden Shogun stayed in Naruto's pocket, with only her head poking out. She didn't move, pretending to be an ordinary figurine, while taking in everything around her and communicating with Naruto in his mind.

Curious, Shadow asked, "The style is a little like Inazuma... Is this the Inazuma in this world that we need to protect?"

"No. Konoha isn't Inazuma, and this world doesn't have an Inazuma. There's no need for us to protect it."

Respect others' fates and let go of the urge to help. Naruto didn't care what became of Konoha or the Ninja World.

"There's no Inazuma?"

Shadow felt strangely empty. In her memories, Inazuma was a very important part of her. Without it, her life felt incomplete.

"There's nothing I can do about that. If it doesn't exist, it doesn't exist. It's not like I can make one appear for you... Wait, make one? Is it really impossible?"

Naruto stopped and thought it over carefully.

Making an exact replica of Inazuma was impossible, but creating a nation that bore the name Inazuma wasn't beyond his capabilities.

"Shadow, just wait. I'll create an Inazuma for you within ten years."

"Mm. Thank you, Naruto."

Just then, the Shogun suddenly said, "Naruto, I wish to pursue eternity."

Naruto froze, but quickly understood what she meant. He couldn't help laughing helplessly. I'm not Doraemon. There's no point making wishes to me... And why do you want to pursue eternity?

"Progress brings loss. Only eternity can make all things stand still and keep Inazuma from perishing for a long time."

"That's just your character setting. Don't take it seriously."

"It may be a setting, but it is also the meaning of my existence."

"But I remember that you changed in the end."

"But I'm based on an earlier version."

Naruto was at a loss for words. You actually have several versions? Even I, your creator, didn't know that.

"...Why didn't you choose the final version?"

The Shogun's detached voice sounded in Naruto's mind.

"The final version is only a small part of my setting. The version of me that pursued eternity before that is who I was for most of the time."

Well, that's quite a compelling reason.

"Do your best, then. I hope you achieve eternity soon. I'll support you in every way except by helping you."

Time flew by, and a year passed. Naruto was seven years old.

His life had been very orderly that year.

He went to school in the mornings, occasionally chatting with his classmates, but often zoning out during lessons.

With his head on his desk, he would sink his mind into the Sealing Space and play mahjong with the Nine-Tails, along with Shadow and the Shogun, whom he had pulled inside—three people and one fox in all.

The mahjong tiles weren't real objects. Real matter couldn't be brought into the Sealing Space.

The mahjong tiles in the Sealing Space were made from pure Chakra provided by the Nine-Tails, Life Energy supplied by Naruto's Rinnegan, and a little Soul Energy.

The Soul Energy contained the knowledge of mahjong and the Transformation Technique.

The five elements came together to make mahjong tiles.

"Chakra, obey my command and transform!"

At his command, the Nine-Tails' Chakra automatically changed into a set of mahjong tiles.

After that, as long as they replenished the Chakra in time, they could play to their hearts' content.

Oh, and they couldn't use too much force. If they did, the tiles would revert to their original form and turn back into a mass of Chakra.

That's right. The Nine-Tails had fallen in love with mahjong.

More accurately, the Nine-Tails had fallen in love with the atmosphere of playing mahjong.

It was lively, everyone treated one another as equals, and they regarded him as a friend. They neither coveted his power nor feared it.

This moved the Nine-Tails, who had been lonely for a thousand years and tormented by humanity's malice.

This was so rare!

So although the Nine-Tails stubbornly refused to say it, he had already come to regard Naruto, Shadow, and the Shogun as friends.

If Naruto asked to borrow the Nine-Tails' power in a fight, the Nine-Tails would most likely put up a token show of reluctance before lending it to him.

The afternoon training sessions continued, including running for exercise. As for throwing weapons... Naruto had felt he'd practiced enough half a year ago, so he'd stopped.

As long as he passed, that was enough. He could practice more when he had time later; there was no need to set aside time for it specifically.

After all, even if he mastered weapon throwing, he'd only reach Uchiha level. It looked flashy, but wasn't all that useful.

Naruto spent more time training in Taijutsu, ninjutsu, and Chakra.

For Taijutsu... Naruto had stopped chopping trees and started punching them instead.

With the life force from his Rinnegan as a safety net, along with the nourishment of the Nine-Tails' Yang Chakra, Naruto could push himself as hard as he wanted. No matter how badly he injured his hands, he would usually recover completely after a night's sleep.

As for ninjutsu... He had naturally mastered the Three Basic Jutsu. Without the Nine-Tails interfering, Naruto had learned them with ease.

He had also learned the Rasengan. The original story explained it so clearly that Naruto had copied the method and secretly learned it in the Sealing Space.

As for Chakra...

Chakra control—walking on water and climbing trees—had taken Naruto only two days to master.

Chakra Nature Transformation—there was no need to practice at all. The Rinnegan naturally came with mastery of all seven elements.