Chapter 4: The Loving Konoha That Enchanted Li Yao
He wasn't used to eating sashimi sushi, but the body's previous owner, Kimura Yō, not only was used to it—he liked it a lot.
As Kimura Yō's friend, Minato naturally knew his preferences. The lunch he brought was filled with foods Yō enjoyed.
If Li Yao suddenly disliked sashimi sushi—or worse, if he ate it and wanted to throw up—that would definitely be suspicious.
So, Li Yao forced himself to swallow it. He even deliberately licked his lips. And then he realized—huh? His body didn't feel nauseous at all. On the contrary, there was a slight craving.
That earlier sense of revulsion... it wasn't real—it was purely psychological.
This body had already adapted to sashimi sushi. It wouldn't get sick from it.
It was just Li Yao's past-life eating habits resisting it.
This resistance was mostly mental, not physical.
"Good. That means I can inherit many of Kimura Yō's habits."
Li Yao sighed in relief. This way, he could fully become Kimura Yō.
"Yō!"
While Li Yao was thinking this, Minato was struck with realization.
The subtle changes in Li Yao's expression—what he thought were discreet—were completely caught by Minato's ever-watchful eyes.
That instant flash of disgust—Minato noticed it.
He showed no change on the surface, eating sushi rice balls casually with Li Yao. But inwardly, his thoughts were racing.
First was the change in chakra temperature,
Then the refinement speed and duration of chakra.
And now, even eating preferences.
Especially the moment when "Yō" ate the sashimi sushi, clearly wanted to gag, but forced himself to swallow it—that attempt to cover up, to lie and disguise—it was too obvious.
This proved that the current "Yō" disliked sashimi sushi, maybe even found it revolting.
But the real Yō loved sashimi sushi.
Which meant, there could only be one truth.
Yō… was no longer the same Yō.
At this moment, Minato was certain: the "friend" before him was no longer his friend.
Or rather, his friend had been secretly controlled.
And if the enemy who controlled him was in Konoha—able to manipulate Yō from a distance—it meant the person couldn't be far.
If Minato acted rashly and tried to report it, the enemy might notice and decide to kill Yō to silence him.
So he held back. As he continued eating, he secretly activated his chakra temperature sensing ability, trying to find the hidden controller.
"Hah… I'm so full!"
After finishing half the lunchbox, Li Yao patted his belly out of habit and leaned back, comfortably resting against the desk behind him.
For the past seven days since arriving in the Naruto world, he hadn't had a decent meal. It was instant noodles or boiled eggs—always eaten with a feeling of anxiety.
In fact, if his food at home hadn't been running low, he might not have even come to school today.
Now that the threat of his identity being exposed was gone—
He was at ease. He had Minato's friendship. He got to eat a hearty lunch. It felt amazing.
And surprisingly…
Even though he initially felt disgust toward the sashimi sushi, after eating it, he no longer minded at all.
It was like someone not used to spicy food—they'd suffer the first time, but after getting used to it, the heat would become a source of pleasure for their taste buds.
That was exactly what happened to Li Yao. The sushi's flavor stimulated his body, which in turn sent signals of pleasure to his mind, making him genuinely enjoy it.
As a result, he now didn't dislike sashimi or vinegar at all.
It was undeniable: the body and mind influence each other.
Physical pleasure translates to mental joy.
Mental joy returns as physical comfort.
So Li Yao's subconscious habits from his past life were now manifesting in this new body.
Like patting his belly after eating—a totally normal action for him. He didn't even think about it.
But someone else noticed.
From Minato's perspective, his friend had never once patted his belly after a meal—not even once.
So seeing this, Minato's gaze sharpened. It was yet another piece of evidence confirming that his friend had changed.
As he cleaned up the lunchbox, Minato smiled and suggested, "Let's keep eating lunch together from now on."
"Sure!" Li Yao's eyes lit up, sitting upright. He'd been wondering how to afford meals—if Minato was going to feed him, he had no complaints. But thinking about the original Yō's personality, he quickly added, "But don't worry, Minato. Once I become a strong ninja, I'll pay you back double."
Blame it on Konoha's pathetic relief funds.
Everyone knew about them—if even Naruto, the Hokage's son, had to drink expired milk and go hungry, how much worse would it be for a Chunin's orphan?
If it weren't for the house left behind by his parents, Li Yao might have already been sent to the orphanage.
So getting a free lunch from Minato every day was a huge deal.
After all, they were friends. No need to be overly polite with friends.
And besides, he would repay it all someday.
With all the mutations and gifts from his awakened consciousness, Li Yao was confident he'd be strong enough to stop Obito and save Minato and Kushina before the Nine-Tails attacked.
He would repay this debt with his life.
Minato wouldn't lose out on this deal.
"Mm."
Looking at the familiar face of his "friend" casually saying the things only his friend would say, Minato wanted nothing more than to tear apart whoever had taken over his best friend.
But he could only think that. On the outside, he kept smiling as usual and nodded happily.
It wasn't the right time.
Minato kept up appearances, acting as if nothing was wrong.
While talking and laughing with Li Yao, he focused inward, using his chakra sense to monitor Li Yao's body—hoping to find another chakra source, the one controlling him.
But there was none.
No hidden enemy.
Minato never found any chakra matching the source of the one inside Li Yao.
He had no idea… there was no enemy at all.
And Li Yao had no idea Minato was quietly investigating him.
He believed he had already perfectly integrated into this world—that he had truly become Kimura Yō.
He didn't realize danger was silently closing in.
…
"See you tomorrow, Minato."
"See you tomorrow, Yō."
"Bye, Yō! Bye, Minato! See you both tomorrow!"
At 5 p.m., outside the Ninja Academy gates, classmates waved goodbye to Li Yao and Minato. Li Yao waved back.
"See you tomorrow, Yō."
After the others left, Minato gave Li Yao a wave. Their homes were in opposite directions—north and south—so they always parted ways at the gate.
"See you tomorrow." Li Yao smiled and waved back. His expression was much more relaxed than in the morning.
The two turned and walked their separate ways.
Along the way, everyone who had known Kimura Yō before would greet him—not just classmates, but adults on the street too. Li Yao greeted them all in return.
There was no denying it—when it came to the kindness of villagers, Konoha beat all the other major Hidden Villages.
Today at school also felt good. There wasn't any of the bullying he had feared. Everyone was friendly and sincere.
In the morning, people were more reserved, concerned about Li Yao's mental state.
But by the afternoon, during the practical ninja tools class, they saw he had recovered somewhat from his parents' death. The other kids began talking and interacting with him, never once excluding him because he was an orphan.
This boosted Li Yao's sense of belonging to Konoha immensely.
It was nothing like the dark, cynical view of Konoha he'd seen on social media in his past life.
Here, Konoha—and especially the kids in the academy—were full of love and unity.
Honestly, it all came down to a strong sense of identity with the village. Just like in his past life, Li Yao had strongly identified with his own country.
With that kind of loyalty, people would naturally be more compassionate to others who shared that identity and were struggling.
That's why Konoha's people were kind to him.
Thinking about this, Li Yao couldn't help but admit—
The Will of Fire might be a brainwashing tool, but it worked.
Thanks to that "brainwashing," his classmates accepted him as a fellow Konoha ninja and treated him with affection.
At least he wouldn't suffer the fate that Naruto or Kushina did.
Naruto was hated because of the Nine-Tails propaganda.
Kushina was shunned because she was an outsider.
The ninja world was very xenophobic.
Many outsiders were spies—that's why people didn't trust them.
The Will of Fire, which promoted the greatness of Konoha, naturally had to paint outsiders as villains to enhance its own glory.
So people raised under this ideology were, understandably, very wary of outsiders.
Naruto and Kushina were technically "insiders," but still rejected.
But Kimura Yō was born and raised in Konoha. His parents died for the village. Of course no one would ostracize him—in fact, people were kind and caring.
"That's why…"
"This Konoha is really wonderful."
"At least, it is for now."
"I'll be the one to protect it in the future."
Just then, he happened to pass by the Hokage Building. Li Yao paused, looked up at the large characters for "Hokage" on the building, and smiled.
A firm smile spread across his face, and he turned to continue walking.
At that moment, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, happened to be standing at the window of his office.
"How wonderful. Another child who's inherited the Will of Fire."
He puffed on his pipe, eyes fixed on the path from the Ninja Academy.
Seeing Li Yao stop and look up at the Hokage building with eyes full of admiration, the Third smiled in satisfaction.
Another inheritor of the Will of Fire… and another supporter of his leadership.
What?
Supporting the Will of Fire doesn't mean supporting him?
Impossible.
He, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was the embodiment of the Will of Fire.
Supporting the Will of Fire was supporting him.
Watching the children who had inherited the Will of Fire walk past the Hokage building each day after school brought Hiruzen great comfort.
That's why, every day at this time, he liked to stand by the window and watch them go home.
(END CHAPTER)