Once everyone had finished their introductions, Iruka began the lesson. As Kagami expected, the first class was all about the basics—things like "Why do we go to school?" and "What will we learn here?" Nothing remotely practical. Kagami had no patience for it, so his mind drifted elsewhere.
He turned his gaze to the window. A tall tree stood outside, and beneath it hung a swing. That must be the very swing Naruto sat on at the beginning of the story—the image of his loneliness etched deeply in Kagami's memory.
"Hey, that kid."
"Yeah, that one."
"Looks like he's the only one who failed."
"Serves him right."
"If someone like him became a ninja, it'd be a disaster."
"After all, that kid is—"
"Shh! Don't say it."
The disdainful whispers of two women from that scene resurfaced in Kagami's mind. Had Naruto heard them back then? If he had, what must he have felt?
Kagami withdrew his gaze from the window and glanced toward Naruto, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"Petty nonsense."
The Fourth Hokage gave his life to protect the village. Naruto gave up his entire childhood, carrying the Nine-Tails within him, living as Konoha's trump card. And what did he receive in return? Glares of contempt and venomous words.
Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, had indeed handled this poorly. Officially, it was to protect Naruto—preventing the Fourth's enemies or those seeking the Nine-Tails from targeting him. The reasoning sounded noble. But in truth, it was cowardice.
Konoha, the strongest village in the shinobi world, couldn't even guarantee the safety of a single child?
In the First Hokage's era, Mito Uzumaki bore the Nine-Tails. Hashirama had killed countless enemies during the Warring States Period—yet who dared touch Mito in Konoha? No one.
The same was true under the Second and even the Fourth. But once the Fourth died and the Third returned to power, he became overly cautious. He prioritized safety above all:
To "protect" Naruto, he allowed the boy to endure scorn as the "demon fox."
To "protect" Konoha, he allowed the Uchiha clan to be nearly exterminated.
To "protect" political stability, he tolerated Danzo's assassination attempt with nothing more than a warning.
To "protect" the village's reputation, he let Orochimaru escape even after discovering his human experiments.
In his youth, Hiruzen had been bold, feared as the Professor for his mastery of countless jutsu, praised as the strongest Hokage. But in his old age, though his strength remained, his will had withered. He sought not achievement, but the avoidance of mistakes.
"...Hah."
Kagami sighed inwardly. Thinking about this was pointless. What mattered was surviving the massacre, half a year to a year away, if his memory was correct.
He turned back to the window. Birds chirped sweetly outside. Inside the classroom, students read aloud under Iruka's guidance. A soft breeze drifted through the window, brushing Kagami's cheek.
If only life could remain this peaceful.
But it couldn't. Not for the Uchiha. Why did it have to be the Uchiha clan?
"Uchiha Kagami," Iruka suddenly called out, "I hear you're regarded as a genius of your clan. Why don't you answer Naruto's question?"
"Huh?"
Kagami blinked, confused. He'd been daydreaming the whole time and hadn't heard the question.
Iruka, of course, had noticed him spacing out. That was exactly why he'd called on him; was this so-called genius ignoring the lesson because he already understood it, or because he didn't care?
"Repeat your question for him, Naruto."
Naruto scratched his head sheepishly.
"Oh, I just asked Iruka-sensei… what exactly is chakra?"
Iruka gestured for Kagami to answer.
After a moment's thought, Kagami stood.
"Chakra is the energy required to perform jutsu. It's produced by combining a ninja's spiritual energy with the physical energy within their body."
Naruto just stared blankly. He hadn't understood a word. He'd only asked because his curiosity was piqued when Iruka mentioned chakra, but Kagami's explanation was far too advanced for him.
Iruka, however, nodded with satisfaction and told Kagami to sit down before continuing the lesson.
Around the room, the other kids whispered among themselves:
"As expected of a Uchiha genius."
"Glad he didn't call on me. What a pain."
"Hmph, that was an easy question. I could've answered it too."
Kagami ignored them, but cast a curious glance at Iruka. Had he just provoked the teacher?
Chakra theory wasn't something first-years were meant to learn. In fact, in the original story, Naruto and his classmates were nearly graduating before Sakura explained the basics of chakra to them. It wasn't something meant for day one.
Kagami was certain: aside from Iruka and himself, none of the kids in this classroom truly understood his explanation. Anyone pretending otherwise was bluffing.
So why had such a question come up, and why had Iruka singled him out to answer? Likely, Iruka wanted to test him, to see if the "genius" title was hollow or real.
Kagami sighed inwardly. That was the curse of being called a prodigy: admiration on one side, suspicion on the other.
"Tch."
Clicking his tongue at the nuisance, he turned his gaze back toward the window.
But this time, the tree was gone. The birdsong had vanished. In their place stretched a vast, silent starry sky.
And across that sky, words appeared:
Codename: TBD
World: Naruto
Identity: Uchiha Kagami
World Suppression: Medium
Mission: Survive the Uchiha Massacre!
Author's Note:
Itachi was born on June 9th, Year 43 of Konoha's calendar. He carried out the massacre at age 13. That means the Uchiha massacre took place around June 9th, Year 56. The story here begins in Year 54, September, so it's actually just under two years before the event.
However, the protagonist misremembers and believes it will happen in Year 55. This detail isn't crucial, only a reminder that the protagonist can't possibly recall every date perfectly. He may well misjudge other events in the future.