Another year had passed, and the Ninja Academy beneath Kage Rock had reached its busiest season.
Shimura Danzō, known as the Darkness of the Shinobi, didn't like such lively scenes. In the past, he had never attended.
But this year was different. Since the founding of the Shimura Clan, no one had surpassed the clan's newest genius—or, rather, monster. Today was his first day at school, so Danzō, as clan head, had naturally come to accompany him.
In Danzō's opinion, a genius like this shouldn't waste time at the Ninja Academy, which was little more than a place to play house. He should enter Root, receive the strictest and most refined training, and become Danzō's sharpest weapon—one who could help him claim the Hokage Position in the future, or whom he could support in claiming it himself.
If not for the old fossils in the clan, Danzō would never have agreed to send such a genius to the Ninja Academy.
"Shimura Kizaru!"
"Uchiha Inabi!"
At the instructor's calls from the practice field, Danzō gathered his thoughts and turned his attention to the field below.
A "child" standing 1.7 meters tall, dressed distinctively in a yellow suit and wearing a pair of tea-colored sunglasses, stepped out from among the crowd of children.
The teachers, parents accompanying the applicants, and village leaders had already seen this tall, lanky six-year-old during the physical examination. Even so, they couldn't help exclaiming and murmuring among themselves.
Was this damn kid really six?
That wasn't just one person's thought. It was what most of the people there were thinking.
Standing beside Danzō, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep drag on his pipe and glanced at his old comrade.
Already guessing what Hiruzen was about to say, Danzō cut him off coldly. "Six years old. We verified his bloodline. He's from the Shimura Clan, my younger brother's son."
"Cough, cough!" Hiruzen gave an awkward couple of coughs, then choked and spewed pungent smoke from his nose and mouth, sending it straight at Danzō.
Danzō frowned slightly and silently shifted his feet, putting some distance between himself and Hiruzen, that old smoke fiend.
Hiruzen hadn't missed Danzō's little move. Awkwardly turning his head back with an expression that suggested nothing had happened, the Third Hokage shifted his gaze to the training ground.
On the practice field, the Chunin instructor in charge of the examination stood to one side. Shimura Kizaru and Uchiha Inabi, the two clans' respective geniuses, stood on either side of him.
"Shimura Kizaru, I've heard of you. I'll prove that, in front of the Uchiha, every genius is a joke." A true Uchiha, Uchiha Inabi put on a stern little face and struck a cool pose, looking down his nose at Kizaru.
Kizaru pulled his right hand from his pocket and scratched his head. Looking at the proud little brat from the Uchiha Clan, he smiled.
As a transmigrator—and one with a cheat, no less—Shimura Kizaru wasn't the least bit worried about some six-year-old Uchiha extra.
Shimura Kizaru's name in his previous life had been Li Yuan. He had been in the Naruto World for six years. From the day he was born, he had awakened his cheat: Admiral Kizaru's character template card from One Piece.
But the character template card didn't directly grant him Admiral Kizaru's peak strength. Instead, it came with a synchronization rate.
The higher the synchronization rate, the more of Admiral Kizaru's power he could obtain.
There were two ways to raise the rate: train constantly, or imitate Admiral Kizaru's way of doing things and gain the corresponding reputation.
As it happened, Li Yuan's personality in his previous life had already been somewhat like Admiral Kizaru's. His greatest ambition had been to land a secure job with decent benefits and live an ordinary life: working nine to five, taking a two-hour lunch break, and having weekends off.
He had made that plan for himself back in elementary school and had worked hard toward it ever since.
After twenty years of striving, Li Yuan had finally landed that secure job. On the very day his dream came true, he transmigrated—to the "wonderful" Naruto World, where children could graduate, start working, and go to war as early as twelve.
You could start working at twelve, and the job assignment was guaranteed. What a "wonderful" place!
At the thought, Kizaru's smile turned a little wistful.
What a cruel joke!
"The Uchiha, huh? How scary!"
Kizaru pulled his thoughts back and, still smiling, spoke with complete sincerity.
"Damn you!"
Hearing Kizaru's answer and that infuriating tone, six-year-old Uchiha Inabi flushed bright red.
It wasn't just Inabi. Everyone there could sense the thick undercurrent of mockery coming from Kizaru.
"Bastard, I'll show you just how strong the Uchiha are!"
Shouting as he went, Inabi charged straight at Kizaru.
Having received only the basics of his clan's training, Inabi didn't have much variety in his attacks. He rushed straight forward, raised his right hand, drew it back with all his might, and punched at Kizaru's upper body.
Kizaru lowered his right hand from his head and slipped it back into his pocket. He didn't move his feet as Inabi attacked. He simply leaned to one side, easily evading the blow.
"That was a close one!"
Kizaru's sincere-sounding exclamation only made Inabi angrier.
Steadying himself and adjusting his stance, Inabi threw a side kick at Kizaru's waist, the blow cutting through the air with a sharp whoosh.
Kizaru still didn't move his feet. He simply twisted his waist to the left and dodged Inabi's attack again.
"How scary! The Uchiha!"
After dodging the attack, Kizaru let out yet another sigh.
"You bastard!"
With a shout, Inabi abandoned all restraint. As soon as his feet touched down, he bent his knees, drove off with his legs, and sprang into the air, hurling himself at Kizaru in a reckless attack.
At last, Kizaru moved. He shifted his right foot half a step and leaned aside, evading the attack with ease.
"How terrifying!"
After dodging, Kizaru didn't take advantage of Inabi's midair position to attack while he couldn't adjust his stance. Instead, he spoke with a faint smile.
As Inabi came down, he heard Kizaru's words and grew wary. The moment his feet touched the ground, he leaped backward, trying to put some distance between himself and Kizaru.
Kizaru remained still with his hands in his pockets. He waited until Inabi had put several meters between them before making a move.
His long, powerful legs pushed off the ground, leaving an afterimage behind. Kizaru appeared before Inabi as if he had teleported.
"Do you know? Speed is power!"
Kizaru was moving so fast that Inabi couldn't react at all. He stood there dumbfounded, startled and afraid as he heard Kizaru's question.
Before his brain could even send a command to his body, Inabi felt a tremendous force hit him. A kick sent him flying into the air. He traveled several meters before crashing to the ground.
Bang!
A cloud of dust rose from the practice field, and silence fell all around.
Everyone there had been stunned by the speed and strength Kizaru had displayed—both on par with a Jonin's.
On the high platform, Danzō, who had kept his face stern throughout, couldn't help letting the corners of his mouth curl upward.
Beside him, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi turned to look at Danzō.
"Shimura Kizaru? He's just my good-for-nothing nephew." Danzō put on a dissatisfied expression as he spoke, shamelessly showing off.
Hiruzen silently turned his gaze away. He couldn't help reminiscing about the days when he would bring his three students to complain in front of Danzō.