What Mizuki didn't know was—
the moment Naruto turned away, his lips curled into a faint, mocking smile.
In Naruto's eyes, Mizuki was nothing but a hopeless fool.
Steal the Scroll of Seals?
What kind of idiot came up with a plan like that?
No thought for feasibility. No thought for success rates.
Just a man drunk on his own petty ambitions.
If that wasn't stupidity, what was?
"Well then, Mizuki-sensei," Naruto thought, smirk deepening. "Let me make good use of you. Don't disappoint me now."
Leaving the exam room, he ignored the odd stares from his classmates.
Of course, he knew exactly why they were staring. He didn't wear the forehead protector that marked a graduate, and though the exam hall wasn't soundproof, they had heard enough of Iruka's stern voice to guess what happened.
Unlike in the original story, Naruto here was not the dead-last. He was a top student, consistently in the top five overall. In theory exams, he was a regular top-three, sometimes even first. In combat, he excelled—only Sasuke ever truly outshone him.
And even that was by choice.
If Naruto hadn't held himself back, "Second Pillar" wouldn't stand a chance. After all, Sasuke had awakened a one-tomoe Sharingan during the Uchiha massacre, but didn't even realize it yet.
To his classmates, though, Naruto failing was unthinkable. Sure, they'd seen him struggle with the Clone Technique, but surely, with his smarts, he'd have figured it out by now.
So when he walked out without graduating, the shock in their eyes was genuine.
Only one pair of eyes held no surprise—only concern.
Hinata Hyuga.
As Naruto's lonely back receded, her pale eyes shimmered with worry, hands twisting together unconsciously.
"Naruto-kun…" she whispered.
Naruto, meanwhile, didn't leave the Academy grounds. He made his way to the rooftop, found a quiet spot, and lay back lazily.
"All I need to do now is wait for Mizuki to come find me. If I remember right, it should be after the exams, near sunset. Hm… enough time for a nap."
Hands folded behind his head, he closed his eyes, gazing at the drifting clouds above.
This was his chance.
Miss it now, and there wouldn't be another.
Unlike the Naruto of the original story, he wouldn't waste it.
The original had only learned the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique—
from an entire book crammed with Konoha's forbidden techniques.
A colossal waste.
This time, Naruto's eyes were set on far greater prizes.
The Reaper Death Seal.
The Flying Thunder God.
The latter needed no explanation—developed by the Second Hokage, perfected and immortalized by his own father, the Fourth. For Naruto, it was a legacy technique, one with immense meaning.
The former? Pure curiosity. Were the Shinigami and Jashin of the original story real in this world? The Reaper Death Seal might be the perfect doorway to finding out.
And beyond those, there were countless more forbidden arts.
He didn't need to master them all now.
Learning the theory, the seals, the principles—that alone would be enough to study later.
"This is the first real step," Naruto thought, eyes narrowing.
But then, suddenly, his expression shifted. He sat up straight.
"Wait a sec. What if Mizuki doesn't follow the script?"
Because here's the truth: the "plot" was never more than a guideline.
Since arriving in this world, Naruto knew—if he treated the story as gospel, he wouldn't even see his own death coming.
Would Mizuki really come to him, just like in the original?
Most likely.
But…
The Uchiha massacre had already played out slightly differently from canon.
If that major event could change, what about this one?
Naruto frowned.
Sure, he hadn't deliberately caused any big divergences. But his mere existence was already different—no pranks, no dead-last label, no lonely clownish childhood.
There had been changes.
And if Mizuki deviated even slightly from expectations… then what?
The answer hit him like a stone.
Nothing. He had no plan.
If Mizuki didn't approach him, he'd lose the perfect excuse to "accidentally" steal the Scroll of Seals.
He'd also lose his chance at graduating.
The first problem, he could live with—there'd be other ways to grow stronger.
But the second?
Failing to graduate here and now would spiral into complications he didn't even want to imagine.
Naruto exhaled bitterly.
"So in the end… I'm still stuck in a passive role."