He practically sprang out of his seat, his whole face lighting up.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki!! I like eating ramen! I absolutely love Ichiraku Ramen!! I want to be a ninja because—I'm going to become Hokage! Then everyone in the village will acknowledge me!!"
The more he spoke, the more excited he got. He threw both hands high in the air, his voice nearly lifting the roof.
"And! And I'm going to prove I'm not some fox monster!!"
When he finished, he stood there panting, his eyes shining fiercely. He made a point of looking at Manji, as if waiting for his approval.
The classroom fell briefly silent again.
Some students secretly rolled their eyes, while others covered their mouths to hide their laughter. Shikamaru buried his face in his arms and muttered, "Same as ever..."
Manji looked at Naruto, the faint smile in his Byakugan deepening.
"Good. Let's begin class."
One year later.
The night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre.
With Obito, Hiruzen, and the others playing their parts, the massacre began right on schedule.
The moon was the color of blood.
Firelight stained Konoha's night sky dark red. From within the Uchiha Compound came brief screams and the metallic clash of blades.
At the edge of the compound, the soul of a Uchiha Branch Family member—one Itachi should have killed amid the chaos—suddenly twisted violently.
The next instant, his eyes snapped open.
The crimson Three-Tomoe Sharingan turned in the darkness, but the look in his eyes had changed completely.
The original man's fear and despair were gone, replaced by the calculating excitement of someone from the modern world.
"This is... the night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre?"
The man spoke under his breath, then slowly smiled.
"I've transmigrated? And I'm an Uchiha?"
A mechanical voice suddenly sounded in