Preparing to Train

Chakra was the energy that ninjas used when performing ninjutsu. This energy came from two sources: the physical energy contained in every cell of the body, and the spiritual energy accumulated through training and experience. Chakra was made up of energy from these two sources.

Ninjutsu involved drawing these two kinds of energy from within the body and refining them into chakra, then performing Hand Seals to activate a technique.

Ye Wuji and Minato Namikaze returned one after the other to the place where they had been staying. Ye Wuji had been in such a hurry to leave earlier that he had only now noticed the house stood deep in the forest, with a mountain behind it. There were two wooden huts: one was a bedroom, where people slept, and the other looked like a main hall. It was full of all sorts of odds and ends and various tools. More importantly, it seemed to serve as the kitchen, too.

Ye Wuji couldn't understand why there was a house like this deep in the forest, but he didn't dare ask Minato. Maybe houses like this were perfectly ordinary in this world. If he asked, Minato might notice something was off. After all, Ye Wuji remembered that the Fourth Hokage was supposed to be a very observant person.

It was only later that Ye Wuji learned that houses like this really were a feature of this world. Most of it was covered in forests, and many people went into the woods to cut timber, hunt game, and gather medicinal herbs. Most of them were ordinary people living near the forests. Sometimes they ventured deep into the woods and couldn't make it back, so they spent the night there. If they happened to run into something dangerous in the forest, it could cause a lot of trouble.

Over time, people began building houses like this in safe spots around the forest, to shelter from the wind and rain. They were usually for public use, with tools and cooking utensils kept inside ahead of time. Anyone who stayed there would generally restock whatever they used before leaving.

So, finding a house in some remote part of this world was perfectly normal. It didn't mean some reclusive master was about to show up.

After they went inside, Minato said, "You must be tired today. Get some rest. I'll make us something to eat."

Ye Wuji glanced outside. It looked to be around four or five in the afternoon. He nodded and went into the room with the bed. Honestly, Ye Wuji was exhausted. His body was still very young, and on top of that, crying at the graves had worn out his young heart. Before long, he was lying on the bed, fast asleep.

When Minato woke him, Ye Wuji looked outside and saw that it had grown dark. "All right, have something to eat, then go back to sleep. We'll talk about anything else tomorrow." As he spoke, Minato brought him a bowl of the same kind of porridge as before.

After he finished eating, Ye Wuji asked, "Where are you going to sleep tonight? The bed here is big. Why don't we sleep together?"

Minato smiled faintly. "No need. I'll doze outside for a while. You get a good rest. We still have to travel tomorrow."

Hearing that, Ye Wuji didn't insist. He nodded and went back to lie down.

Lying on the bed, Ye Wuji wasn't sleepy yet. Instead, he wondered what he should do from here. From what Minato said, we're leaving tomorrow. From his words and what I've been through so far, it seems like we're in either the Second or Third Shinobi World War. Judging by Minato's age, this is probably the late Second Shinobi World War or the early Third Shinobi World War. Either way, it's wartime, so Minato can't stay with me for long. Maybe tomorrow he'll take me somewhere populated. Judging by the story I remember, he'll probably find someone to adopt me.

Whether it's the Second Shinobi World War or the Third Shinobi World War, Konoha seems to win. That means everywhere but Konoha is probably unsafe right now. Of course, there must be safe places, or everyone in the Naruto World would have died by now. But which places are safe is pretty much a matter of luck. What if I'm unlucky and run into some wandering ninja or a missing-nin? Then I'm done for.

But it also wouldn't make sense to ask Minato to take me to Konoha. I'm just an ordinary kid, and Konoha might as well be a foreign name to me. This isn't after the Third Shinobi World War, when Konoha's name became famous throughout the Naruto World. Even then, there were still places where people hadn't heard of Konoha.

This world isn't like Earth, with its advanced internet where you can look up anything you want. It seems very closed off, much like an old feudal society. And with wars breaking out so often, who has time to care about what's happening elsewhere? Just like in feudal times, some people don't even know when a dynasty has changed.

If I can't go to Konoha, then I'll need the ability to protect myself wherever I end up. Thinking about it, tomorrow I should look for a chance to get Minato to teach me how to cultivate chakra.

From Naruto, it's clear that the method of cultivating chakra is incredibly valuable. You might think that if the Five Great Nations and the other smaller countries all have villages full of ninjas, and so many of them start training as children, then chakra cultivation must be common as cabbage, something you can get anywhere.

But that would be wrong. Ye Wuji remembered that in Naruto there were a few episodes about a country whose Daimyo didn't have a single ninja. A few wandering ninjas nearly staged a coup, and in the end, it seemed Naruto and the others had to be called in to defeat them. If a country doesn't have even one ninja, isn't it completely at the mercy of others? That country's Daimyo couldn't have been stupid. Wouldn't he have thought of training his own forces? Yet he still had no ninjas. Maybe he did have some, but...

The number of ninjas in the world could be compared to the nuclear weapons on Earth. Which country without nuclear weapons didn't want to develop its own? Yet most of them still didn't have any.

Clearly, knowing how to cultivate chakra wasn't enough. There had to be more to it. Otherwise, with so many wandering ninjas around, why couldn't a country with money hire a few and train them for decades? After all, they'd serve the country. Even if one generation fell short, the next would have a force to rely on.

Back when he watched Naruto, Ye Wuji had wondered the same thing: if you were rich and powerful enough to hire ninjas from the Five Great Nations, wouldn't it be better to train a few of your own?

While things were still on good terms between him and Minato—though Ye Wuji knew they weren't exactly close, since Minato had saved his life—at least they knew each other. He should try to get the ninja training method from him. Otherwise, was he really going to become an ordinary person? And then there was the even more terrifying Fourth Shinobi World War. Without some strength, he could die at any moment.

As Ye Wuji's thoughts wandered, he gradually fell asleep. He was only a six-year-old brat, after all. How could he have that much energy?

As he drifted toward sleep, Ye Wuji was still thinking that the children in this world were terrifying. On Earth, even seventeen- and eighteen-year-olds were considered kids, and six-year-olds were still nursing. But in this world, from what he remembered of Naruto, Minato, Itachi Uchiha, and Kakashi had all been killing people across the world before they were ten. The others weren't much better. Itachi had apparently been appointed Anbu Captain of Konoha at just thirteen. Konoha's Anbu were a terrifying force. Sure, in Naruto they were all extras who got instantly killed, but that depended on who they were up against. Their opponents were even more absurd. And Itachi had been an Anbu Captain at just thirteen.

"What was I doing at thirteen? I think I was scavenging for junk."

"Everyone in this world is fucking insane," Ye Wuji mumbled drowsily. Then he fell asleep.

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Ye Wuji was sleeping soundly when Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, woke him. Seeing Minato's smiling face, Ye Wuji swallowed the curse that had been on the tip of his tongue. He'd thought someone back on Earth had woken him up.

"Get up. Let's eat first, then we'll get moving and leave this place."

Ye Wuji nodded and went straight to eat without saying anything. As for washing up—give him a break. There was no way to do that here. The water they had came from rain collected on leaves. How could they have enough for him to use?

Once everything was ready, he saw Minato waiting for him at the door, apparently ready to set off together.

Ye Wuji thought that if he didn't speak up soon, he might not get the chance once Minato found someone to adopt him. It wasn't that finding adoptive parents was difficult. With life so hard because of the war, Minato could probably settle the matter easily by handing over some money. And since he was a ninja, the family that adopted Ye Wuji wouldn't dare mistreat him. Ninjas held a lot of power in this world. Of course, Ye Wuji didn't know any of this. TV rarely showed how ordinary people lived.

Going over to Minato, Ye Wuji asked directly, "Um, Minato, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead. I'll tell you what I know," Minato replied.

"Um, Minato, are you a ninja?" Ye Wuji asked outright.

Minato paused, then nodded. "Yes, I'm a ninja. A ninja from Konoha." As he spoke, he took Konoha's Forehead Protector out of his pocket.

Looking at the familiar symbol—like a bird's head, with one end raised like the rings of a tree—Ye Wuji realized this really was Konoha's Forehead Protector. It was the first time he had seen one in person.

"Um, could you teach me how to... become a ninja?" Damn, Ye Wuji cursed inwardly. He'd almost blurted out "chakra."

At Ye Wuji's request, the smile that usually rested on Minato's face disappeared. Seeing him without a smile, Ye Wuji felt the atmosphere suddenly turn serious.

Ye Wuji didn't say anything aloud, but inside he was shouting, Does he really have to look like that? Would it kill him to smile? He just stopped smiling, so why does the whole mood have to change? No wonder he became Hokage. With that stern, commanding face, he was born to be a leader. After venting to himself, Ye Wuji calmed down. Honestly, sometimes he thought he had the same talent as Sakura from Naruto—a split personality. Ye Wuji had almost no friends, so he hardly spoke. For years, he'd kept his personality intact on Earth by letting his emotions out in his head. It was a little like Ah Q's philosophy, though Ye Wuji didn't see it that way. At most, he thought he was a little crazy.

"Are you sure you want to become a ninja? You should know that being a ninja isn't as wonderful as people say." After about ten minutes, Minato finally spoke.

"Yes, I want to become a ninja. I want to protect them." As he said this, Ye Wuji thought of the couple who had died, and tears came to his eyes again.

Minato hadn't wanted to teach him ninjutsu. But seeing Ye Wuji start crying again, he assumed the boy had remembered his deceased parents. He also remembered that Ye Wuji had no family left. His heart softened, and he thought he could teach him some basic knowledge and how to refine chakra. It was common knowledge, after all. But that meant staying here for a few more days. So be it—he'd stay for a few days, teach Ye Wuji, then let him train on his own. Having made up his mind, Minato smiled again. "All right. If that's what you want, I'll teach you."

"Really?" Ye Wuji was excited to hear that and couldn't help asking again to make sure.

Seeing how happy Ye Wuji was, Minato nodded. "Of course. But in that case, we'll stay here for a few more days. I'll teach you some things about being a ninja."

"That's great!" Ye Wuji couldn't help cheering. In both his past life and this one, he'd been unusually fascinated by ninjutsu.