Konoha Year 44

"Get lost!"

"Before I decide to kill you."

Facing Itachi, who had been scared to the point of wetting his pants, Yu curled his lip in annoyance.

Although he detested such people, he wasn't impulsive enough to go around killing people in the village.

Even in times of war, the ANBU's eyes and ears, along with the Konoha Military Police Force manned by the Uchiha clan, were not to be trifled with.

"M... monster."

Casting a look of utter terror at Yu, Inazu hurriedly helped his brother Itachi to his feet.

Taking the other brats from the village with them, they scrambled away as if fleeing for their lives.

"Urushi."

"Your injuries aren't serious."

"I'm going to train now; I'll treat you all when I get back tonight."

Watching the backs of Inazu, Itachi, and the rest of the brats as they scurried away in a panic, Yu remained silent. He turned to Urushi, Mayuna, Momoka, and the others, who were still completely stunned, and spoke to them.

He brushed the wrinkles off his clothes and walked into the nearby woods on his own.

"Yu..."

"Without realizing it..."

Staring blankly at the spot where Yu had disappeared into the woods, Urushi muttered to himself, "So you've already become so much stronger than me..."

In Urushi's eyes, Yu's thin back now seemed impossibly out of reach.

A year ago, when they had just been picked up from the battlefield by Yakushi Nonō, Yu's strength was about the same as Urushi's, if not even weaker.

But a year had passed, and the exceptionally gifted Yu had begun to reveal his talent and aptitude.

Kekkei Genkai—as an ordinary orphan, Urushi might not have understood the concept that held such profound significance in the ninja world.

However, the strength Yu had just displayed, along with his monstrous performance, had begun to make the average-talented Urushi realize that he and Yu had been people from two different worlds from the very beginning.

Konoha.

A bustling street.

Although the outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War had brought about a tense, guarded atmosphere, it did not affect the prosperity and glory of the strongest ninja village in the ninja world.

"What a bunch of clueless idiots."

Walking down the street, watching the endless stream of people coming and going, Yu's initially irritable mood was gradually diluted by the morning sunlight.

Indeed, Yu had every reason to be angry.

Yakushi Nonō—this woman had sacrificed so much for the village, risking her life to travel to other ninja villages to gather intelligence for Konoha.

Now, she had given up everything, willingly staying at the orphanage on the very edge of Konoha to serve as its director.

But those who were protected by her, yet remained ignorant of it, not only failed to say thank you but were also so aggressive—by what right?

What a load of crap the Will of Fire was.

What "true ninjas sacrifice themselves in the shadows to maintain peace."

Sorry, as a transmigrator, Yu couldn't agree with that.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth—that was Yu's ninja way.

"Forget it, I won't think about it."

After composing himself, he looked at the vast and prosperous Konoha Ninja Village before him and couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. "It really is a two-dimensional world..."

"The scale of this village is no less than an international metropolis from my past life."

This wasn't an exaggeration on Yu's part.

It was exactly as it appeared in the anime.

The prosperous Konoha Ninja Village spanned vast stretches of land.

The entire village was filled with ninjas, villagers, and merchants coming and going.

To the left and right lay vast, boundless dense forests, while ahead and behind stood two towering mountains of yellow earth.

On the cliff face far behind the village were carved three majestic and solemn heads—the Konoha Face Rock.

The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama; the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama; and the current Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Of course, Yu knew.

Within a few years, another iconic statue would be added there—the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage of Konoha.

But that was a matter for the future; it was currently the 44th year of the Konoha era.

Just last year, the Third Kazekage of the Sunagakure ninja village in the Land of Wind had mysteriously disappeared.

The disappearance of the strongest Kazekage had triggered a series of incidents, serving as the fuse that finally ignited the prelude to the Third Shinobi World War.

And it was one year ago that Yu had been taken in by Konoha after being found by Yakushi Nonō on the battlefield of the Battle of Kikyo Pass during the Third Shinobi World War.

This year, Itachi-god was only a year or two old.

This year, Might Guy had not yet been promoted to Chunin.

This year, Hatake Kakashi had not yet become the "Copy Ninja."

This year, in the "Village of the Bloody Mist," the Kirigakure ninja village, Momochi Zabuza, known as the "Demon," had made waves across the ninja world.

During the ninja graduation exam, which forced students to kill one another, he had single-handedly slaughtered every other student in his class.

Because of him, the graduation exam format of Kirigakure was changed.

Lost in thought, he walked along the bustling main street.

Many passersby cast their gazes upon Yu's delicate little face.

Whether it was his hair, pale as moonlight, or his handsome, youthful features, he captured the attention of many.

Yu could even faintly hear a few young girls and middle-aged women nearby whispering "kawaii."

Yu lowered his head slightly and silently quickened his pace.

With the soul of an adult, he still couldn't quite get used to being treated like a little boy.

"Boss."

"Please give me two pieces of chakra paper."

Ten minutes later, Yu walked into an ordinary ninja tool shop.

There were many such shops in Konoha.

Aside from ninjas on missions, they were often frequented by kids who spent their days dreaming of becoming ninjas.

"That will be two ryo, thank you for your patronage."

Seeing Yu enter, the shopkeeper, dressed in Chinese-style martial arts attire, immediately brightened.

As he handed Yu the two pieces of chakra paper, he took the two ryo note from Yu's small hand.

Ryo was the currency unit of the Naruto world; one ryo was roughly equivalent to ten yen.

Generally, a ninja could earn anywhere from five thousand to fifty thousand ryo for completing a D-rank mission.

This shop...

Could it be the very same ninja tool shop owned by Tenten's family in the future?

After taking the chakra paper, he looked at the shopkeeper in the Chinese-style outfit before him.

Yu thought that the man in front of him was very likely the father of Tenten, one of the future Konoha 11.

After leaving the ninja tool shop, Yu pushed through the bustling crowd, heading in the opposite direction of the Konoha Face Rock.

Opposite the iconic Hokage Rock and the Fire Temple lay an entire leveled mountain behind the village.

The area around the back mountain was filled with dense forests and canyons, where Yu found a suitable place for his training.