"If only I'd time-traveled earlier… Even without a cheat ability, at least I wouldn't be living on borrowed time like this."
Most transmigrators got the Ōtsutsuki bloodline or at least reincarnated as a fresh-faced academy brat with plenty of time to grow.
But him?
Half a year ago, he woke up in this world—a 20-year-old cannon-fodder chūnin on the verge of death.
At first glance, twenty seemed like a sweet deal—extra years added to his lifespan.
But in a world where the average ninja lifespan barely hit the teens? He was practically a senior citizen.
And with the Second Shinobi World War raging in the frontlines of the Land of Rivers?
Old age and high risk.
One foot in the grave at all times.
When he first heard someone call him "Yoru," he'd almost thought he'd hit the jackpot—Uchiha Yoru!
…Until he realized no one around him answered to "Naruto."
Turns out, his name was "Yoru" alright—Hayate Yoru.
Hayate. A surname tied to Iruka, Konoha's resident "mom-friend," and his parents—the late chūnin Hayate Ikaku and Hayate Sharin, who died during the Nine-Tails' attack.
Same surname, so maybe he was related? A hidden clan, low-key but decently strong?
No Ōtsutsuki bloodline, but a minor ninja clan would've been nice.
Konoha clans might not be born in Rome, but they at least started miles ahead of civilian mules.
Reality check:
Konoha had no Hayate clan.
No ties to Ikaku or Sharin, either.
His real connection? The Sarutobi clan.
His family? Three generations of peasants—tenant farmers bound to the Sarutobi.
The Sarutobi weren't top-tier like the Senju or Uchiha, but they were still a major clan with a fire-style battalion and sprawling business holdings.
His grandfather, Hayate Dairō, got promoted to manage Sarutobi fisheries and mines—barely a step above dirt-poor farmers, but enough to avoid starvation.
When Konoha expanded under the Third Hokage, the Hayate family migrated as loyal retainers, swapping tenant farmer for urban poor.
No cushy Sarutobi jobs, though. Just struggling to survive in a village where even ramen cost 50 ryō.
Konoha called itself a village, but it was a metropolis—over 100,000 people, insane rents, and prices that made civilian life a grind.
The Hayate family barely scraped by selling fish, eating unsold stock to cut costs.
Their one hope?
Yoru.
Not the Uchiha—the name honored Sarutobi Yoru, the Third's father and a peer of Hashirama Senju.
All their resources poured into making him a ninja.
And it worked.
At 10, he graduated (barely) during peacetime, avoiding the First War.
Six grueling years later—chūnin.
The perks?
Salary spike Mission rewards (ninjutsu scrolls!) Low-interest home loans
He paid off a Sarutobi-built apartment in two years, even bought his family a fish-market stall.
No wonder everyone in Konoha wanted to be a ninja.
Forget *"Will of Fire"*—this was pure profit.