This was not a particularly spacious room. Judging by the furnishings, it seemed to be a hospital ward. In the center stood a single bed covered with white sheets, upon which lay a delicate, handsome boy of about eight or nine years old.
The boy's eyes were closed, and he remained motionless, clearly in a state of unconsciousness.
Several people stood on either side of the bed. Among them was a tall young woman in a white coat. She rested her hands lightly on the boy's forehead, and a greenish-blue light flickered continuously at her fingertips.
Her eyes were unusual—the pupils were so pale they almost blended with the whites. The corners of her eyes faintly bulged with veins, as though those white eyes were straining with great effort to see.
After a while, the glow at her hands and the veins at her temples gradually faded. A trace of puzzlement surfaced on her face.
"How is he?" asked a slightly chubby young man wearing a forehead protector.
"No abnormalities found," the young woman sighed and shook her head.
The young man frowned, thought for a moment, then turned to the two boys standing beside him.
"Guy, are you sure Genma fell during speed training?"
The boy in a green bodysuit, with thick brows and big eyes, nodded.
"That's right. Just now in taijutsu class, Ebisu, I, and many others saw it happen."
The other, a thinner boy, also nodded.
"Before that, Genma's foot had been struck, so when he was running, his posture was a little off. He accidentally tripped and fell."
"His foot was hit?" The moment Ebisu finished, the young woman in the coat frowned again, her gaze returning to the boy on the bed.
"But his body clearly shows no injuries at all… At least, with my Byakugan, I can't see a single trace of bruising on his foot."
Ebisu froze, blinking.
"That… can't be, right?"
"Should we take him to the hospital?" the chubby youth asked again.
"Probably best," the young woman nodded. "The infirmary here can't find anything. If it's really something serious, then…"
"Mm…"
Just then, the boy on the bed let out a faint groan. He slowly opened his blurry eyes, glanced around in a daze, and his right hand instinctively groped beside the bed.
"You're awake, Genma?" The chubby youth was startled and quickly leaned in to support him.
But the boy ignored him, sitting up slightly as his right hand continued fumbling around the edge of the bed. His mouth mumbled vaguely:
"Strange… where's my phone?"
"What did you say?" the young man asked, startled.
"My phone…"
The boy was about to continue when suddenly his expression froze. His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at his own hands, shock flooding them.
He hurriedly flung off the thin blanket and examined his body over and over again, as though seeing it for the first time.
"Genma? Genma? Shiranui Genma?" The chubby youth, alarmed at his near-hysterical behavior, gripped his shoulders and shook him, calling his name repeatedly.
Shiranui Genma?
Hearing the name, the boy seemed struck by something. His body trembled slightly.
Then, raising his head, he looked at the man before him—the chubby youth in a ninja vest and forehead protector. Slowly, clarity began to surface in his dazed eyes.
"Daikoku… Funeno-sensei?" he said hesitantly.
At those words, relief visibly washed over Funeno Daikoku's face.
"Genma, are you alright?"
Shiranui Genma dumbly nodded, then collapsed back onto the bed like a wooden puppet, losing consciousness once more.
"Genma! Genma!"
…
…
"Finish this lap—then one more!"
On the training field, a group of children ran in neat formation. At the side, a short-haired female chunin barked commands, her expression stern.
Meanwhile, in a far corner of the field, a lone boy of eight or nine sat apart. He watched his classmates running in the distance, his eyes filled with emotions others could hardly understand.
There was confusion in his eyes, a sense of being lost, and yet—beneath it all—a faint trace of anticipation and excitement.
Even though a whole day had passed, he still found it difficult to accept the truth:
He had been reborn.
On the outside, nothing had changed, but in reality, the current Shiranui Genma was no longer the same eight-year-old boy from before.
To be precise—he came from another world.
Just yesterday, he had been a student at a third-rate technical university in China. He had spent the entire night playing PUBG until dawn, planning only to rest a little before taking his final exam in two hours.
Yet, when he next opened his eyes, he had inexplicably become a second-year student at Konoha's Ninja Academy in the Land of Fire—Shiranui Genma.
Although he had always considered himself an agnostic, faced with something like transmigration and rebirth, he couldn't possibly remain calm.
Especially now, watching with his own eyes as a group of children on the training field ran dozens of laps without collapsing from exhaustion, his understanding of reality was shaken to its core. The sight almost made his head spin again.
Perhaps as a side effect of the transmigration, when he first woke up in this new body, his mind had been in complete chaos.
But after a day of adjustment, the soul of the original eight-year-old boy seemed to have fused with him seamlessly. Memories of himself and of this world had clearly taken root in his mind.
By now, he could basically confirm it—this was the world of Naruto: a world of ninjas and jutsu, a world where humans could wield supernatural powers.
And his current identity, Shiranui Genma, was indeed a character who appeared in the original Naruto story—the proctor in the Chunin Exams, the one always chewing on a toothpick.
This character had very little screen time, practically a third-rate side character. It even took him a while to recall who it was.
Aside from being an examiner in the Chunin Exams, Shiranui Genma also held a special position: he was one of the guards of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato.
Together with the other two guards, he had even used Minato's signature technique—the Flying Thunder God.
Of course, right now, Shiranui Genma was only eight years old, still in the Ninja Academy learning the most basic lessons. He was far from becoming the Hokage's guard or a Chunin Exam proctor.
The current time was his second year at the academy, September 24th, Year 639 of the Fire Country calendar (Note 1)—just a little over a year after the end of the Second Shinobi World War.
Two months ago, he had spent his eighth birthday alone. Like many of his peers, his parents had died on the battlefield during the war.
His father, Shiranui Yukima, had once been an outstanding graduate of the academy, ranking second in his year, with impressive ability.
Unfortunately, during a mission, Shiranui Yukima lost his right arm, limiting his strength to that of a chunin. In the end, he too perished in the Second Shinobi World War.
Though both of Genma's parents had only been chunin—not especially powerful—their bond was deep, and they loved their son dearly.
Their deaths left a profound mark on Shiranui Genma, one that could even be said to have directly shaped his original portrayal in the series: always chewing a toothpick, appearing careless and detached.
Fortunately, his natural talent was decent, and while his parents had been alive, they had given him some early education. So although his personality leaned toward the lazy side, his grades at the academy weren't bad—always slightly above average. Otherwise, it would have been unlikely for him to one day be chosen as one of the Fourth Hokage's guards.
Sitting alone in the corner of the training field for a while, Shiranui Genma instinctively reached into his pocket again, trying to find the cellphone that no longer existed.
The motion lasted only a few seconds before coming to an abrupt halt.
He sighed, shaking his head with a hint of melancholy.
It seemed… from this moment on, he truly could only be Shiranui Genma—Konoha's Shiranui Genma.
…
Notes:
This book uses the "Fire Country Calendar" to record time. After all, Konoha is part of the Land of Fire, so this system makes the most sense. Here, "Fire Country Year 639, September" refers to just over a year after the Second Shinobi World War ended. It can be regarded as equivalent to the fan-made "Konoha Year 39," but "can be regarded as" ≠ "is exactly the same."
PS:
A quick clarification: this novel is a Naruto manga canon fanfic. It is not based on Boruto, not on Naruto games, not on Naruto forum posts, and not on other fanfics.
Non-canon elements may be referenced, but please don't use Boruto, games, online posts, or other fanfics to challenge the settings in this story.
The reference materials for this novel are mainly Kishimoto's original Naruto manga (all 700 chapters), the official databooks (Rin, Byō, Tō, etc.), and some parts of the anime-original content (though since the anime has many inconsistencies, it won't be treated as canon, just as reference where reasonable). The goal is to stay as faithful to canon as possible under reasonable assumptions.
Of course, oversights are inevitable. If readers find conflicts with canon (mainly the manga) that I haven't explicitly addressed, you are welcome to point them out—but please provide a clear source (e.g., "in manga chapter XXX"), so I can verify. The Naruto manga is available on Qidian, and many of you probably have manga coupons lying around—better to use them than let them go to waste.