There weren't many customers at the convenience store downstairs. His father was still reading a magazine, though Kirito didn't know what he was reading, as he couldn't recognize the words yet and hadn't started school.
"I'm home!"
"Come back earlier next time, it's almost dinner." His mother poked her head out from upstairs, glanced at him, and then went back to prepare dinner.
"Mm." His father replied, feigning sternness, but his eyes kept an eye on his son.
Thump, thump, thump—Kirito quickly went upstairs.
The aroma of fried fish fillets wafted over. Kirito stood on tiptoe, peeking into the pot. Liya picked up a small piece and put it into her son's mouth.
Perhaps due to his young body, Kirito often unconsciously made gestures appropriate for his current age.
For example, sometimes when he was bored, he would watch ants in the corner, throw them a small piece of candy, and then observe them for a long time. That afternoon, he watched Uchiha Itachi train and found it fascinating.
After dinner, Kirito went up to the third floor, washed his face and brushed his teeth, then sat on his small bed.
He placed his right leg over his left, crossing them. This was called the 'Ruyi Sit,' a meditation posture from his previous life. Although there were more complex meditation methods, they weren't necessary. The meditation posture was never the main point; calming the mind was.
He brought his hands together between his legs, with his right thumb hooking the tip of his middle finger, his left hand holding his right, and his thumb and ring finger gently pinching the base of his right ring finger.
This was called the 'Rat, Horse,Seal.'
He closed his eyes, slowed his breathing, and calmed his mind.
Kirito didn't know how much time had passed when he opened his eyes and sighed inwardly. As expected, it had no effect at all, even after almost half a year of meditation. His body was still too young. The old masters in his previous life were right when they said it's too early to practice martial arts when young and too late when old.
For some reason, his parents didn't want Kirito to become a ninja, and he couldn't change their decision now. He was also clueless about how to extract chakra. He had read in the original work about the mixture of physical and spiritual energy, but after closing his eyes and sensing his body for a long time, he couldn't find either spiritual or physical energy.
He had watched Naruto intermittently before, so he knew the general plot but couldn't recall the details. He might recognize famous characters from the original work, like Kakashi, if he encountered them. Although the anime art style and real people are different, Kakashi's white hair and mask were quite distinctive—but he had never met him. He wondered if Kakashi would answer if he went up and asked for guidance.
Oh, and there's Might Guy. He's also quite unique. If he deliberately tried to meet him, there's a good chance he would. Might Guy would probably answer his questions.
As for other characters, he'd rather not. The Twelve Ninja Genin were basically his age, and he might not recognize older ones.
Since he knew Uchiha Itachi, he would try to find a way through him first. If that didn't work, he would think of other methods. Uchiha Itachi at this time was still very approachable, as he was dedicated to improving the relationship between his clan and the village.
Amidst his wild thoughts, Kirito fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, right after breakfast, Kirito ran early to the edge of yesterday's forest, waiting for Uchiha Itachi to appear.
Unfortunately, no one appeared until noon. After all, not everyone was as idle as he was. Kirito had no choice but to go home for lunch and then return to stake out the spot.
Around three or four in the afternoon, three figures emerged through a light snowfall, walking from a distance.
Among them, the large and small figures were Uchiha Itachi and Sasuke. The extra person looked thirteen or fourteen, with a gentle face, wearing traditional Uchiha long clothes, and carrying a long sword on his back.
Kirito stood up, stretching his somewhat numb legs from squatting, and waved vigorously.
"Brother Itachi, Sasuke!"
Uchiha Itachi looked at the child in front of him, who was already covered in a thick layer of white snow, yet didn't seem cold. He quickly tried to recall his name.
"Kirito, good afternoon. Aren't you cold?"
Sasuke glared at the child opposite him, as if facing a formidable enemy.
"Itachi, you know him?"
"A little friend I met yesterday."
The older boy quickly walked up to Kirito, reached out to brush the snowflakes off him, and then took his freezing cold small hands, rubbing them back and forth.
Kirito didn't feel very cold. Inside his small body, the internal heat was much more abundant than expected.
"No, I'm not cold. My name is Kirito, what's your name, big brother?"
"My name is Uchiha Shisui." Uchiha Shisui's smile was like a warm spring breeze. He reached out and ruffled Kirito's hair.
I swear I will never let anyone touch my head again!
Kirito looked up and asked timidly.
"Are you here to train? Can I watch?"
"Yes, we've had fewer missions these past two days, so we have time to train." Shisui bent down and playfully tapped Kirito's nose. "Of course you can watch, little brother Kirito."
Sasuke huffed and turned his head away.
Uchiha Itachi helped Sasuke wrap his towel and poked his forehead.
"Don't get too close."
The two Uchiha youths exchanged glances and moved aside to form the Confrontation Seal.
"Itachi, I'm going in."
"Alright."
Shisui took two kunai from the pouch on his waist, held them horizontally in his hands, and charged at Uchiha Itachi.
With a clang, Uchiha Itachi blocked the kunai and kicked at Shisui, who dodged sideways.
For a moment, the two exchanged blows. The sound of shuriken clashing echoed continuously.
Kirito watched, dazzled.
This was his first time witnessing a ninja battle, and he could only say that they were truly ninjas—especially these two top-tier Uchiha. In his previous life, at their age, he would have struggled to kill a chicken, but in Naruto, they were already qualified fighting machines.
The two fought entirely with taijutsu, from kunai to long swords. Perhaps out of consideration for the two children nearby, they didn't use ninjutsu throughout, dashing Kirito's hope of seeing ninjutsu.
They fought and paused, and after about an hour, they finally stopped and came to rest beside the two young ones.
Sasuke again pulled out a handkerchief and stood on tiptoe to wipe his brother's sweat.
Shisui was clearly in better condition, his breathing less noticeable, with only a light sheen of sweat on his face.
"So amazing, you're so amazing!" Kirito clapped his small hands. "Brother Shisui."
"What is it, Kirito?" Shisui looked at his new little fan and suddenly thought that improving the relationship between the clan and the village, starting with children, wasn't a bad idea.
"Just now, when you stepped on the tree without falling, was that because of chakra?" Kirito's small face was full of curiosity, secretly despising his lack of principles.
"Yes, you can do it by attaching chakra to your feet." Shisui smiled as he brushed the accumulated snow off Kirito.
"But how do I refine chakra? I haven't started Ninja School yet, so I don't know the answer to this question."
"Ah? Kirito, do you want to be a ninja in the future?" Shisui placed his hand on Kirito's shoulder, looking down at his eyes with a smile.
"Yes, I want to be a ninja in the future—and even a Hokage!"
"Ah, I see. But being a ninja is very dangerous. We can protect you too."
"I want to be a ninja, to be Hokage, so I can protect my father and mother, and the people in the village." Perhaps being Hokage was every Konoha child's dream. In Konoha, saying you wanted to be Hokage might earn you a laugh for being overconfident—but not for having the wrong dream.
"What a good child!" Shisui's expression became serious. "The Ninja School would teach you all this, but if you want to know in advance, there's no harm."
"Chakra is a mixture of physical and spiritual energy. You just need to find the physical and spiritual energy in your body and combine them." Shisui smiled.
Ah? I already know that.
"My teaching method is a bit different from others," Shisui extended his index finger, and a faint blue light emerged from its tip, gently touching Kirito's lower abdomen. "This is chakra."
Kirito felt a surge of energy from Shisui's fingertip enter his lower abdomen. His abdomen instantly felt vibrant, yet also somewhat repelled.
The energy split into two: one warm and lively, the other somewhat cool.
"This is physical energy and spiritual energy. Remember this feeling. You need to find your own spiritual energy and physical energy. Then, combining them will create chakra."
The two energies merged into one and then retracted back into Shisui's fingertip.
So this is chakra, physical energy, and spiritual energy? Kirito tried hard to remember the feeling he just experienced.
"Brother, I want it too!" Uchiha Sasuke pulled Itachi's sleeve and shook it vigorously.
Itachi looked at Sasuke with a gentle expression and poked his forehead.
"Just once, Sasuke. If you can't extract chakra, I'll teach you next time."
"Brother." Sasuke threw himself into Itachi's arms, continuing to act spoiled.
"Just once, Sasuke. Children shouldn't refine chakra too early." Itachi sounded a bit helpless.
"Okay, brother." Sasuke pouted.
Itachi gently touched Sasuke's lower abdomen with his finger, then withdrew it after a moment.
Sasuke's face was filled with excitement.
"Alright, sit here quietly. Brother Shisui and I will continue."
Kirito closed his eyes, trying to recall the feeling from earlier.
Ignoring the clanging sounds of weapons clashing nearby, Kirito's heart became calm, and he slowly felt a warm energy and a cool energy within his body.
Is this my physical energy and spiritual energy?
The two energies, guided silently by Kirito, intertwined, and a more powerful energy emerged.
Chakra!
Kirito opened his eyes.
End of the Chapter.