Satoru picked up the Scroll of Seals, shifted his position, and hid in the tall grass nearby.
Untying the ropes wrapped around the scroll, he laid it flat and carefully began reading the forbidden techniques recorded inside.
Far away, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, sighed in relief as he watched through his crystal ball.
Finally opened it… good.
Whatever he learns from it is up to fate now. If nothing comes of it—so be it.
As the saying goes: even the most flawless plan has its gaps.
The Third Hokage's idea was to secretly give Naruto a chance for "special training." But he was well aware that Naruto's academic performance was bottom of the barrel. It wasn't even certain he could learn anything from the scroll.
Initially, the Hokage only wanted to unlock the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, but recalling Naruto's awful performance with basic clone jutsu at the Academy… he hesitated.
In the end, he decided to unlock everything in the scroll.
With that much content, even a blind cat might catch a dead mouse. So many forbidden techniques—surely one of them would stick. He wasn't worried about Naruto mastering all of them. If he really had that kind of talent, he wouldn't be last in the class every year.
Truthfully, what the Third most wanted Naruto to learn was Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu. It was practically made for him. As a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, Naruto had massive chakra reserves, and this jutsu relied precisely on that. It was a perfect match.
Unfortunately… Naruto was terrible at clones. Every time he attempted one, the result was either a limp pile of failure or a janky mess with lopsided eyes and a crooked smile. It was just… painful to watch.
Satoru widened his eyes as he scanned the scroll's contents.
Holy crap, this really is the Scroll of Seals!
Every single jutsu in here could flip the ninja world upside down!
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu... Flying Thunder God... Impure World Reincarnation... Explosive Tag Multiplication... Eight Inner Gates... Four Symbols Seal... Reaper Death Seal..."
This is INSANE!
The most legendary techniques in all of Naruto were right here. But strangely… no Rasengan?
Guess that makes sense. The Rasengan, as iconic as it is, doesn't technically qualify as a forbidden jutsu. If he wanted to learn it, he'd probably have to go beg Jiraiya.
Satoru was stuck.
So many techniques… where to even begin?
Learning just one of these forbidden jutsu could make someone a top-tier ninja. But all of them?
"Somebody bring Madara over here! I SAID, GET ME UCHIHA MADARA!!"
Of course, going by the original story, he was supposed to learn Multiple Shadow Clones first—beat up Mizuki, impress the old man peeping through his crystal ball... you know the drill.
But Satoru wasn't having it.
I'm not here to cosplay Naruto!
I am the plot now.
Why stick to the rails when you're the one writing the story?
In the original, Naruto only learned one jutsu.
Me? I'll learn them all.
Back in third grade, I was even top of my class! Got third in the midterms too!
Satoru focused on the hand seals for Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, a grin spreading across his face.
No wonder Naruto learned this so fast—it's just one hand seal?!
Seriously, the basic Clone Jutsu needed three: Ram, Boar, and Snake. But this one? Just a single Ram seal.
Anyone could learn this!
He studied the notes further and quickly got the gist: the mechanics were the same as the regular Shadow Clone Technique, but Multiple Shadow Clones placed a massive strain on chakra. Without massive reserves, users could end up injured—or dead. The mental shock of hundreds of clones' memories feeding back into the user's brain? Not something just anyone could handle.
It's like—some things are just genetically gifted, okay? There are roles only certain people can play, and limits others can't cross.
Satoru got it instantly.
The Uzumaki clan was built for this.
No wonder Naruto could only learn that one jutsu at first. It was practically made for him.
After locking in the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu, Satoru's eyes darted across the scroll.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Once he gave the scroll back, he knew he'd never see it again—just like in canon. He had to make the most of it now.
Eight Inner Gates?
Looked cool, sure. But it required insane physical training and ended with you blowing yourself up.
Pass.
Reaper Death Seal?
Same issue. Mutual destruction. No thanks.
Four Symbols Seal?
Eh… even Danzo used it once and it didn't do much. Skip!
Flying Thunder God?
Now that got his attention. Minato's signature move.
But damn, the learning curve looked steep.
Too time-consuming for now…
Satoru clenched his fists.
He had started with a plan… but now that he was here?
He was rewriting everything.
Looking further down the scroll—Impure World Reincarnation?
Now that's a jutsu.
Sure, it's kind of nasty—digging up graves and harvesting cells like a ghoul—but the results? Top-tier. Even if the reanimated target gets blasted to bits, they can auto-reassemble like they're made of Play-Doh and hatred. Practically invincible!
Alright. Decision made. I'm learning this one.
Once everything was over, Satoru planned to head straight to the Konoha cemetery and dig up a few high-level corpses. If he managed to find the First or Second Hokage?
Boom. Instant domination of the ninja world.
Better yet, dig up hundreds of notable shinobi. Create an army of undead legends. Who the hell would dare oppose him then?
"Oh? You're Orochimaru? Think the Sannin title makes you special?"
"Madara, handle my light work—go slap him around a bit."
"Third Hokage, still holding onto the pension my family never got?"
"Hashirama, Tobirama—do me a favor and go double-slap him into early retirement."
Satoru scanned the instructions.
Only four seals for Impure World Reincarnation:Ram – Snake – Tiger – Monkey, then form the final hand seal with both palms.
Simple. Effective. Necromantic.
He could already hear himself shouting:
"Rise from the grave, my beloved!"
Honestly, it wasn't even hard to learn. Sure, it's ranked S-class, but the real difficulty wasn't the jutsu itself—it was robbing graves without getting caught. That's where the challenge began.
He kept reading.
If he was going to master Summoning Jutsu and Impure World Reincarnation, he'd also need to learn how to release the reanimation. Orochimaru had already mastered the Impure World Reincarnation technique—if they ever clashed, Satoru needed a failsafe. He couldn't risk getting steamrolled by his own zombies.
The hand seals for the release method were: Rat – Ox – Monkey – Ram – Dragon – Boar.
Six in total. Two more than basic summoning, but nothing too complex.
Satoru read through the method again, slowly, carefully, making sure to commit it all to memory. No gaps. No mistakes.
He mentally rehearsed the steps for Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu, Impure World Reincarnation, and the Release Technique two more times—checking every detail until he was sure he had them locked in.
Then, without missing a beat, he scratched his head dramatically and twisted his face into an expression of deep confusion, frustration, and intense concentration.
After all, the old man—the Third Hokage—was still spying on him through that damn crystal ball.
Gotta put on a show.
Couldn't let him realize Satoru had already memorized everything. Not when Naruto had supposedly been dead last for the past twelve years. That kind of sudden progress would blow the cover.
Keep the act going.
Don't let the old geezer see the genius.
...
TN:
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