Must Protect Her Forever

Naruto felt helpless; perhaps he should just ask a passerby?

"Mister?"

In front of a bookstore, Naruto spotted a man dressed as a ninja. A ninja of Konoha should certainly know many people.

The "mister" Naruto addressed had ash-gray hair, with a forehead protector and a mask obscuring his face, leaving only his right eye visible; his complexion was fair.

The man was hunched over, squinting at the manga books in the bookstore's display case.

"Are you a ninja, mister? Do you know someone named Might Guy?" Naruto asked loudly. "If you tell me, I can help introduce you to the Fourth Hokage. I'll ensure you rise through the ranks and become a major figure in Konoha."

The man turned around, saw Naruto, and immediately recognized his identity. "The Might Guy you're looking for might just appear very soon."

No sooner had he spoken than the words were fulfilled.

A man with a bowl cut and a green spandex suit appeared, spinning into view. "Kakashi! Let's have a contest!"

"Look! That is Might Guy." Kakashi had served as a guard during the birth of Kushina Uzumaki and was one of the few who had seen Naruto born. Moreover, as a student of Minato Namikaze, Kakashi knew exactly what Naruto looked like.

Kakashi couldn't fathom why Naruto would want to find Might Guy.

They didn't even know each other!

Naruto felt an instant connection with Might Guy. "Guy-sensei, I want to learn from you. Please take me as your disciple!"

Kakashi was stunned, taken aback by Naruto's highly unconventional behavior.

Might Guy raised his right hand and gave a thumbs-up. "This is youth! I am so moved! Little one, what is your name?"

"Naruto Uzumaki."

"Good, Naruto Uzumaki! From today on, you are my disciple! Diligent training is what youth is all about!" Might Guy was straightforward; he would never turn away a child with a thirst for learning.

Naruto hadn't expected it to be this easy, so he ran up to Might Guy. "Guy-sensei, I want to learn the most powerful techniques."

Of course, he couldn't just start teaching the Eight Inner Gates right away; that would cause unnecessary trouble.

"Naruto, training must be done one step at a time. Today, we start by running a lap around the village on our hands." Might Guy began running himself, feeling incredibly excited to have become Naruto's teacher.

The fact that even a child would choose him as a teacher over Kakashi made Might Guy feel he had won this round completely.

Naruto stood frozen in place.

Strange people do strange things; he supposed that was understandable.

Deciding to catch up and see what happened, Naruto started running.

Kakashi watched Naruto's retreating back and offered a silent blessing, but at the thought of Minato Namikaze's own son becoming Might Guy's disciple, a smile naturally tugged at the corners of his mouth.

By the time Naruto reached the gates of Konoha, Might Guy had already finished running a lap on his hands.

"Guy-sensei, please stop for a moment," Naruto called out. "I have a few questions for you."

Might Guy suddenly froze in place.

"Guy-sensei, can you tell me why this place is called Konoha? What is this world like? And why can you run like the wind?"

Might Guy flipped over to stand upright. "Naruto, since you are so eager to learn, your teacher will certainly answer your questions."

Might Guy began to explain the worldview and the philosophy of the ninja as he understood them.

Through this strange encounter, Naruto finally gained his first basic understanding of the world of the Hokage.

"Guy-sensei, how do I refine and sense the chakra within my own body?"

Might Guy went back into a handstand. "Come, let's start by standing on our hands."

Naruto awkwardly tried to mimic him.

"Close your eyes, focus your mind. Can you feel a kind of power flowing inside your body?" Might Guy said slowly. "That is chakra."

"Everyone has a fixed amount of chakra. A ninja's training is meant to control that chakra and induce nature transformations. But beyond that, we must also study ninjutsu, taijutsu, sealing jutsu, and summoning jutsu."

"Once you have mastered all this knowledge, through persistence and effort, we can become the most youthful of ninjas."

Naruto closed his eyes, his head feeling a bit dizzy, but after focusing his mind, he seemed to feel a ball of fire dancing within him, the light emitted by the flames circulating through his body.

System Prompt.
Host: Naruto Uzumaki.
Ninjutsu: None.
Taijutsu: Eight Inner Gates (Damage-free version).
Sealing Jutsu: None.
Summoning Jutsu: None.
Chakra Nature: Wind, Fire, Lightning, Earth, Water, Yang.
Chakra Remaining: 100%.
Chakra Control: 0%.
Chakra Nature Transformation: None.
Surprise.

Naruto believed he had made a very correct choice; Might Guy was truly a great teacher.

"Guy-sensei, I've already sensed my chakra. How do I use it?"

Naruto didn't think walking on his hands was a difficult task.

Not far from the gate, Kakashi, who was reading Icha Icha Paradise, secretly observed Might Guy's ninja instruction of Naruto.

Might Guy demonstrated, "Using chakra in taijutsu is very simple: concentrate, flow, and release."

"For example, concentrate it in your palm to shatter stone with a single strike, let it flow to the soles of your feet to walk on water, or release it outside your body for both offense and defense."

"Guy-sensei, I understand." Images of Goku training his ki in Dragon Ball appeared in Naruto's mind; the principles were the same. For someone like Naruto, who had been tempered through countless hardships, once the point was made clear, everything could progress at lightning speed.

Ten minutes later.

Naruto was already using chakra to sprint at high speeds, his palm strikes sounding like thunder as he scaled trees and crossed water.

Host: Naruto Uzumaki.
Ninjutsu: None.
Taijutsu: Eight Inner Gates (Damage-free version).
Fuinjutsu: None.
Summoning Jutsu: None.
Chakra Nature: Wind, Fire, Lightning, Earth, Water, Yang.
Chakra Remaining: 50%.
Chakra Control: 0%.
Chakra Nature Transformation: None.

"Guy-sensei, what happens when chakra runs out?" Naruto asked.

Might Guy felt a twinge of regret for taking Naruto as his student. He only had achievements in taijutsu; if Naruto wanted to learn ninjutsu, he really didn't have many good techniques to teach him.

"Naruto, when chakra is nearly depleted, our bodies become extremely exhausted. They will instinctively stop you from consuming more chakra because if chakra runs out, a ninja dies," Might Guy said. "Chakra recovers constantly, and the ability to recover chakra can be improved through arduous training."

Naruto said excitedly, "Please arrange a daily training schedule for me, Guy-sensei. I know you can't teach me every day, so I need to learn to train on my own and then shock everyone."

Might Guy picked Naruto up. "This is what youth is all about!"

Naruto spent a pleasant afternoon following Might Guy.

When Might Guy dropped Naruto off at home, he learned that Naruto was the biological son of the Fourth Hokage. As he left, Might Guy's expression was even more stirred, and he felt a greater sense of responsibility in his heart.

Naruto, Guy-sensei will make you a ninja who surpasses the Hokage.

Inside the house.

Kushina Uzumaki had Naruto stand obediently on the floor. "How did you meet Guy?"

Naruto's clothes were soaked with sweat. "Mom, I'm already Guy-sensei's student. From now on, I'll be training with him."

The day had finally come.

Hearing that Naruto wanted to become a ninja and begin his training, Kushina Uzumaki felt both happy and worried.

"Naruto, what kind of ninja do you want to become?" Kushina Uzumaki took Naruto's hand. "Can you tell Mom?"

Naruto's eyes were clear and penetrating. "I will become a ninja who can always protect Mom from harm."