Chapter 1: Fox Spirit
Three knocks echoed from wooden clappers, and Kael Dawn opened his eyes.
Konoha's main street, inside a cramped apartment.
Darkness filled his vision. A wind chime swayed in the night breeze, its lonely sound ringing out. A foreign soul had descended upon Konoha, taking over Naruto's body.
[Ding! Lying Flat System loading.....]
[7%]
A stabbing pain tore through Kael Dawn's head, his vision awash in a haze of blood-red.
Am I going blind?
It hurts! Damn it!
He had just been playing a game—was that worth dropping dead over? What about work tomorrow?
He was about to finish his internship, on the verge of becoming a full-time employee...
The pain gradually ebbed. Kael Dawn opened his eyes again, and through the dim light, he saw an unfamiliar, cluttered room.
The air carried a faint stench. The walls were covered in old, mold-stained yellow wallpaper. Clothes and books were strewn across the warped wooden floor.
A realization struck Kael Dawn. He glanced down at his own hand.
With a yelp, he toppled backward.
His hand had shrunk?!
[System loading progress: 13%]
As the synthetic mechanical voice sounded in his mind, fragments of memories stabbed into Kael Dawn's brain, making him howl and writhe on the bed in agony.
That kid? So disgusting!
Told you not to play with him! Who knows what that freak might do?!
I heard he killed the Fourth Hokage.
Naruto, do you have the Will of Fire? Call me "teacher," you brat!
The Hokage is the strongest in the village, our protector. Naruto, you should work hard to become Hokage too!
Get lost, you monster!
Not selling to you! Get out!
Why don't you just die already? How do you even have the guts to live? Dead last!
The cold hostility and pain surged into his chest, suffocating him. Kael Dawn flipped over, gritting his teeth and pounding his chest with all his might, finally managing to draw a ragged breath.
[System loading progress: 17%]
Lying on the bed, Kael Dawn watched a panel slowly appear before him. Having read plenty of novels and played countless games, he more or less understood what was going on.
He had transmigrated—become Uzumaki Naruto in the world of Naruto. Judging by the situation, he was still at the Ninja Academy, soon to face the Genin graduation exam.
At least there was some comfort in knowing that while he had crossed over, he'd been granted a system as well—the classic perk for any otherworlder. It seemed to still be loading... What kind of system again?
Whatever. Having one was better than none.
Gazing out at the night beyond the window, Kael Dawn felt no urge to sleep. He climbed out of bed and groped for the light switch.
"From now on, I'm Uzumaki Naruto."
He ignored the messy room and the stinking desk. Who could blame an unloved orphan for not tidying up? There wasn't even anyone to scold him for it.
Naruto sat at the desk, pulled out pen and paper, and began organizing his situation.
The words he wrote automatically transformed into Sakura-language script, yet he could still understand them. He tried speaking aloud and found that he could switch between two spoken languages—and even three or four if he wished. Not that it mattered here; all he needed was Sakura-language.
Pulling up his shirt, he looked at the seal on his stomach—the Nine Tails' seal. What a pain. Double Four Symbols Seal, layered seal, Eight Trigrams Seal.
The tiny leaks in the seal let Nine-Tails chakra seep into his chakra pathways, eventually converting into normal blue chakra.
He could use the Nine-Tails' chakra for now, but that wouldn't last forever.
After some thought, Naruto jotted down a training plan. In this world, only the strong had a voice.
The stronger, the better—for his future and survival.
Next came day-to-day living. Naruto scratched his head, then went over to the full-length mirror. Staring at the young face reflected back at him, he bared his teeth in a huge grin.
To hell with the Hokage!
Who'd want to become something like that? Protect those who despise me? Dream on. They can all go die for all I care! Bastards, trash!
He let all the pent-up negativity pour out, and suddenly felt lighter. Looking at his reflection again, Naruto broke into a different kind of smile.
Forget becoming Hokage. Making his own life better—that was what mattered.
To hell with comrades, the village, and the Will of Fire. He'd live for himself. Once the system fully loaded, he'd be unstoppable in this village.
Humming to himself, Naruto wrote down his ambition.
"To become the flashiest guy in the village!"
[System loading progress: 34%]
Seated at the desk, Naruto went from frowning deeply to grinning like a fool. If an Anbu operative had seen him, they'd probably think he'd lost his mind.
The next day, dawn broke.
The first thing Naruto did upon waking was summon the panel to check the system's progress. The sluggish speed was like a 2G connection, frustrating beyond belief.
[System loading progress: 79%]
Yawning, Naruto got out of bed. He hadn't slept much at all. With morning here, he dragged himself up for a quick wash.
There'd be a few theory classes at the academy this morning—he could nap through those. Everyone expected nothing better of him anyway, which worked to his advantage.
After washing up, he spent an hour cleaning his room.
When it came time to pick his outfit, Naruto hesitated. His usual getup screamed "wannabe thug," and that oversized jacket was unbearable in summer...
After a moment's thought, he chose a plain black T-shirt with brown shorts, leaving the "cool" goggles on the desk.
He wasn't a Genin yet—no Konoha forehead protector for him.
"I'm heading out!" he called. The empty room gave no reply. He didn't care. With a bang, he shut the door behind him.
He lived in an old apartment building on Konoha's main street, and to get out he had to wind through seven or eight narrow alleys. Stepping into the sunlight, Naruto's footsteps faltered briefly.
The looks people gave him—unfriendly, disapproving—made him shrug indifferently and continue through the crowd without a word.
Their faces darkened as though they'd glimpsed something filthy.
[System loading progress: 87%]
At the Ninja Academy, Shikamaru scanned the crowd with his usual bored gaze. Then his eyes caught on something. He nudged Chōji beside him, pointing.
"Isn't that Naruto?" Chōji paused mid-chip, surprised. "Did he get beat up again on the way here?"
"What a drag." Shikamaru's dead-fish eyes narrowed. "Let's go check it out."
Chōji mock-rolled up his short sleeves, and the two strolled over to the gathered crowd like saviors descending.
People had always picked on Naruto. Though mischievous, he never went too far.
"That idiot. He should just beat them senseless—then they'd stop bullying him," Shikamaru muttered in annoyance.
"He gets hit, and still ends up getting blamed."