After saying goodbye to the Third Hokage, Naruto entered the Ninja Academy. Seeing many children being sent off by their parents, the warm and joyful scenes around him made Naruto's heart ache.
They seemed to have forgotten how their peaceful lives came to be.
It was his father who had paid for it—with his life.
When the villagers saw Naruto, they didn't even bother to hide their disgust. They whispered to the children around them, "Be careful of that boy, he's the demon fox!"
Naruto ignored the whispers and the glares. His eyes were filled with indifference as he walked alone to a corner of the schoolyard.
"Shikaku, is that the child?"
A large figure next to him spoke. It was Chōza Akimichi, the father of Akimichi Chōji—one of the future Twelve Young Guardians of Konoha.
The man he was speaking to was Nara Shikaku, the father of Nara Shikamaru, another one of the Twelve.
"Yeah... The Third Hokage has gone too far."
A soft sigh followed.
With Shikaku's intelligence, how could he not guess Naruto's identity? That blonde hair, those deep blue eyes, and his age—all lined up with the new Nine-Tails Jinchūriki. If he couldn't connect the dots, then he didn't deserve to be called Konoha's think tank.
Even though the Third Hokage had blocked information, they knew Minato's wife, Uzumaki Kushina, had been pregnant. And even if the official story claimed she and her unborn child died during the Nine-Tails' attack… how could Naruto's existence be explained?
Still, there was nothing he could do. All he could do was let things unfold naturally.
Soon, following the Third Hokage's opening speech, the entrance ceremony concluded and class assignments began.
The Third Hokage truly knew how to win hearts.
He personally served as the head of the Ninja Academy and preached Sarutobi Hiruzen's Will of Fire every year.
What Naruto found most embarrassing was that the Third had even altered the textbooks—claiming to be the "strongest Hokage."
Even if he hadn't written them himself, they were clearly made under his direction.
Now, even during children's ninja games, they'd shout that the Third Hokage was the strongest.
The brainwashing clearly started young.
Thankfully, Naruto's soul carried an adult mind. Otherwise, like the original Naruto, he might have fallen for the Third's image and devoted himself to dying for Konoha.
According to the Great Toad Sage, Naruto was the Child of Prophecy destined to save the ninja world. But Naruto believed that to truly change it, he had to reform it from the ground up—starting with its class structure.
There was a saying from his past life: When the country prospers, the people suffer. When the country perishes, the people suffer.
In the shinobi world's endless wars, it was the civilians and lower-ranking ninjas who suffered most—thrown onto battlefields as cannon fodder.
Meanwhile, the elite and powerful continued to live in luxury. And people never realized—the ones ruling this world were just ordinary humans.
The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, had established the one-country-one-village system, believing it would bring peace. But that had just been wishful thinking.
It merely expanded wars from small clans and tribes into massive, large-scale conflicts.
Most wars in the shinobi world boiled down to one thing: resources.
Take Sunagakure, for example.
Why did they always seek to conquer the Land of Fire? Because it was rich in resources. The Land of Wind, by contrast, was a desert wasteland—its resources scarce.
What was abundant in the Fire Country—like water—was a luxury in the Wind Country.
The same applied to the other great ninja villages. But unfortunately for them, Konoha had always produced too many geniuses.
After Senju Hashirama's death, Konoha still had no shortage of powerful protectors.
Naruto, however, found himself agreeing more with Uchiha Madara's approach—to conquer and unify the shinobi world. But Madara had failed to build a shared interest with others, so no one followed him. His attempts disrupted the illusion of peace but never ended it.
Still, now wasn't the time to dwell on that. Naruto needed strength first—only with power could he one day change this corrupted world.
Suddenly, a voice pulled him back to reality.
"Class assignments will now begin! If you hear your name, head to your class and wait for your instructor!"
"Ono Jirō! Class C! Shiranui ! Class B!"
"..."
"Uchiha Takashi! Class B! Inuzuka Kiba! Class A! Haruno Sakura! Class A!"
One name after another was read aloud. Naruto heard many familiar ones. Class A wasn't necessarily the best, but it was definitely the most special.
Nearly all the children from Konoha's elite clans were assigned to Class A. Of course, there were a few civilian-born children who managed to slip in—like Haruno Sakura and some background characters.
"Uchiha Sasuke! Class A! Uzumaki Naruto! Class A!"
Naruto heard his name too. As expected, he was placed in Class A.
When the name "Uchiha Sasuke" was called, Naruto looked over and saw him—wearing the Uchiha crest, his face full of pride.
What a little kid!
Before the Uchiha clan massacre, "Nijira" was actually quite cute. Now he just looked like a child trying to act calm and composed.
Still, there was no denying the Uchiha clan had strong genes. Even as a child, Sasuke had good looks. No wonder girls fawned over him later on.
Sasuke also glanced at Naruto when he heard his name. He found Naruto strange.
Why do people call him a demon fox? He doesn't seem any different from the rest of us…
Well, I'm different. I'm from the Uchiha clan.
Raised with clan pride, young Sasuke naturally held his head high.
Though not yet arrogant or domineering like some of his kin, he had inherited their confidence.
Everyone went to their assigned classrooms and waited for their teacher. Still, some kids couldn't sit still—curiously looking around the room.
Naruto looked at his future classmates—people he would be with for the next six years. One boy had red fang-like markings on his cheeks—Inuzuka Kiba, most likely. He was still young, and his companion hadn't arrived yet.
If I remember correctly, his partner is Akamaru.
Another boy—chubby and chewing on potato chips—looked like nothing mattered in the world besides his snack.
Beside him was a sleepy-looking kid with a pineapple-shaped hairstyle—probably Shikamaru. He lay lazily on his desk, lost in thought.
Next to them was a cute little blonde girl—likely Yamanaka Ino—staring at Uchiha Sasuke along with the other little girls.
You couldn't help but think: kids in the Naruto world really are precocious. Most girls already knew what they wanted. Back in his past life, Naruto himself didn't know anything about love at that age.
Naruto's eyes found Hinata. He walked over and sat beside her, greeting her cheerfully.
"Naruto-kun… it's been… a while…"
Naruto responded softly and smiled as he saw Hinata's face slowly turn red.
End of the Chapter.
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