Enrollment

The deathly silence in the alley was filled by Qianyu's heavy, trembling breaths. He sat collapsed beneath a tree, still clutching the kunai that reflected his blood-red pupils, while White Zetsu's casual explanation echoed over and over in his mind.

His father was Madara Uchiha, his mother was Hashirama Senju, and he himself was a creation of Yin-Yang Release... The sheer amount of information was more explosive than having the Nine-Tails right in his face. His head buzzed from the shock, and he had even forgotten the pain of his wounds.

The twisted White Zetsu was still squatting beside him, its beady eyes unblinking as it watched, seemingly enjoying the full process of his system crashing and rebooting.

After a long while, Qianyu slowly turned his stiff neck to look at White Zetsu. His voice was hoarse and dry. "So... were those masked men arranged by you? Or... by Madara?" He recalled the feeling of being watched during the attack, as well as White Zetsu's perfectly timed appearance.

"Nope." White Zetsu shook its head, making its wild grass-like white hair sway along with it. "They were someone else. Old Madara is dead as dead can be. Other than me, no one knows where you came from."

It pointed at Qianyu's eyes. "They were probably... trying to confirm something? But once they saw those, they probably got their answer. They ran faster than startled rabbits."

Confirm something? Confirm this face of mine, or these eyes? Qianyu's heart sank.

Fugaku Uchiha's strange behavior and the midnight assassination attempt both pointed to the same source—his face, which looked far too much like Madara Uchiha's.

"What should I do?" The words nearly slipped out on their own, carrying the helplessness a six-year-old child should have felt when facing such a massive conspiracy, even if the soul inside him had survived the brutal ordeal of college entrance exams.

White Zetsu bared its teeth in a smile that could only be described as horrifying. "Stay alive, obviously. Old Madara said you should live an interesting life. Aren't you pretty interesting already? You just moved house and awakened your Sharingan. That's impressive!" It patted Qianyu on the shoulder. "Don't worry. Until you become truly interesting, I'll keep an eye on you. After all... you're Old Madara's only 'inheritance.' It wouldn't do to break you."

What kind of comfort was that?! Qianyu's mouth twitched. Yet strangely enough, he calmed down.

Was being afraid useful? No. Since he had been thrown onto this chessboard, and he held two fairly decent cards in the Sharingan and what was likely a Sage Body, he couldn't let this absurd background go to waste.

Supporting himself against the tree trunk, he slowly stood. The wound on his left arm had already formed a dark, hard scab, and the twisting pain in his abdomen had eased considerably. He picked up the things scattered across the ground, including the standard-issue kunai left behind by the masked men, then silently walked back to that cold little house.

That night, he lay on the hard wooden bed with his eyes open until dawn. Fragments of memories from his previous life churned endlessly through his mind: the Nine-Tails' roar, White Zetsu's eerie face, Fugaku's shocked gaze, the cold gleam of a kunai, and those blood-red eyes marked with tomoe.

For the first time, he felt just how cannibalistic this world was.

The next day was the Ninja Academy entrance ceremony.

The sun was bright, and the training grounds were packed with chattering new students and parents. Qianyu stood alone in his class's line. His black hair was still tied with an old strip of cloth, and his face was somewhat pale, but his gaze had returned to its former calmness, now carrying an indescribable gravity. He deliberately stood somewhere inconspicuous and quietly observed his surroundings.

Iruka stood at the front, giving the new students an encouraging speech. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had also attended the ceremony. Dressed in his Hokage robes and smoking a pipe, he wore a kindly expression as he spoke to the children.

As the Third Hokage's gaze slowly swept across the entire group of new students, it seemed to pause ever so slightly when it passed over the area where Qianyu stood.

Smoke drifting from his pipe obscured his expression, but Qianyu could clearly feel that the seemingly gentle gaze lingered on his face for a fraction of a second longer, carrying a trace of imperceptible scrutiny and?

After the ceremony ended, Qianyu was about to leave when Iruka called out to him. "Cangshu Qianyu, right? The principal's office needs to verify your address information again. Come with me."

Inside the principal's office, there was not only an administrative teacher but also an ANBU in a mask, standing silently in the corner. The questions were all ordinary: confirmation of his change of address, emergency contact person (none). But Qianyu could sense that behind them lay a subtle investigation.

At last, the administrative teacher handed him a new copy of his file. Under the parents section, it clearly read: Presumed deceased during the Nine-Tails Attack in Konoha's fifty-first year. No claimants. Identities unverifiable. Designated a war orphan.

"Child, from now on, Konoha is your home," the administrative teacher said gently.

Qianyu accepted the file and thanked him respectfully, but inwardly, he understood perfectly. Presumed dead? Identities unverifiable? This was probably the most reasonable and safest explanation they could provide after their investigation.

The class assignment list was posted on the bulletin board. Qianyu squeezed through the crowd and found his name.

Class 1, Year 1: Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Choji Akimichi, Hinata Hyuga, Cangshu Qianyu,...

In the same class as the prince? This lineup... Qianyu raised an eyebrow, unsure whether it was fortunate or unfortunate. At least it wasn't a cannon fodder class.

Upon entering the classroom, Qianyu chose a corner by the window in the last row. It was an inconspicuous spot that gave him a full view of the room and made it easy to observe outside at any time—or check whether a white face might suddenly emerge from the window frame's shadow.

Naruto sat in the center of the front row, seemingly trying to draw everyone's attention. Shikamaru sat diagonally in front of him, already half-slumped in his chair. Choji and Ino sat in the middle.

Iruka began explaining chakra extraction. Qianyu lowered his eyes and looked as though he were listening attentively, but his mind had long since turned inward. After last night's brush with death, actively sensing the energy inside his body now came unusually smoothly.

Sure enough, two "sources" of distinctly different textures lay quietly dormant within him. One was dark ice-blue, sharp and condensed, lurking around his eyes and heart. The other was bright warm gold, vigorous and diffuse, especially active as it flowed through his injured left arm. He tried touching and guiding them with his mind.

Almost the moment the thought arose, the two faint energies moved like awakened streams, naturally gathering toward a small point and intertwining. There was no conflict, no delay, as though they had always shared the same origin but had been invisibly separated, only now finally reuniting.

A gentle sense of power quickly filled him, circulating through his meridians and dispelling all the lingering exhaustion and dull pain from the previous night. His spirits lifted as well.

He could clearly feel the stable flow of pale golden energy within him after the two had merged. Its quantity was not immense, but it was certainly far beyond the mere trace Iruka had described, and it was exceptionally pure.

He immediately stopped the obvious circulation of energy, retaining only the most basic inward perception and allowing that energy to slowly circulate on its own without actively driving it. His face maintained the same slightly confused yet diligent expression as the other children.

After finishing his explanation, Iruka had the children try it themselves. All sorts of faint sounds rose in the classroom—furrowed brows, held breaths, quiet muttering. Naruto scratched his head in frustration, while Shikamaru sighed. The children from clan families had started extracting chakra at three or four years old.

The lesson quickly passed. Most of the children had gained nothing. Naruto loudly complained, "I couldn't feel anything at all!" while Ino and Sakura exchanged their thoughts.

"Chakra extraction isn't something you master overnight. You can all try sitting quietly and sensing it every day after you go home," Iruka concluded. "Now, let's get to know our classmates..."

The self-introduction segment began.

"Alright, next up, Naruto Uzumaki!"

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I'm going to become Hokage someday! I love ramen! And I hate waiting three minutes for instant noodles!" Naruto jumped up, his voice ringing out loudly.

Laughter and whispers rose throughout the classroom. As Qianyu watched Naruto's bright side profile, the gloom brought by his origins and the attack seemed to fade a little. At least this world was not entirely conspiracies and killing intent.

When it was Qianyu's turn, he stood and said briefly, "Cangshu Qianyu. I like... quiet. I dislike trouble. My dream is world peace." His calm gaze swept over the classroom, lingering briefly on Naruto's lively smile before he sat back down.

The dismissal bell rang, and the children streamed out of the classroom. Qianyu packed his things at an unhurried pace.

"Qianyu!" Naruto charged over like a cannonball, his eyes sparkling. "You were so quiet just now! Didn't you feel any chakra either? It's okay! I didn't either! Let's go eat ramen together! My treat!"

"Not today, Naruto." Qianyu shook his head and pointed to himself. "I just moved, and I still have a lot of things to sort out." He paused, then saw Naruto's face fall slightly and added, "Next time. I'll treat you next time."

"Really? It's a promise!" Naruto immediately perked back up and held out his little finger. "Pinky swear!"

Qianyu froze for a moment, then held out his little finger and hooked it with Naruto's. Naruto's finger was warm.