The screech of tires came too late.
Josou had been mid-step, his phone clutched in one hand displaying the latest chapter discussion thread about Naruto's complex chakra system. He'd spent the better part of his lunch break arguing with other fans about the theoretical limits of kekkei genkai combinations, his fingers flying across the keyboard as he walked. Twenty-three years old, working a dead-end office job, living alone in a cramped apartment—his life had narrowed to a routine of work, instant ramen, and endless anime marathons.
The delivery truck driver never saw him step into the crosswalk.
There was no time for regret, no flash of life before his eyes. Just impact, a moment of confusion, and then—
Nothing.
Awareness returned slowly, like surfacing from deep water.
Josou found himself standing in a space that defied description. It wasn't white, nor was it dark—it simply was. No ground beneath his feet, yet he stood. No sky above, yet he sensed infinite distance. The space breathed with possibility, humming with an energy that made his non-existent skin prickle.
"You departed rather suddenly." The voice emerged from everywhere and nowhere, resonant and ageless.
A figure coalesced before him, though calling it a figure felt inadequate. The being shifted between forms—sometimes humanoid, sometimes geometric patterns, sometimes pure light. Josou's mind struggled to process what his eyes showed him, settling on the impression of a tall, androgynous entity wrapped in flowing silver that might have been robes or might have been starlight.
"I'm dead." Josou's voice sounded strange to his own ears—clearer somehow, untouched by the chronic tiredness that had plagued his living days.
"Your physical form has concluded, yes." The being's form stabilized slightly, revealing what might have been a face—sharp features that could belong to any gender or none, eyes that held galaxies. "I am Aethren, Keeper of Thresholds, Guide of Souls Between. You stand now in the Interstitium, the space between what was and what might be."
Josou processed this with surprising calm. Perhaps death had stripped away his capacity for panic, or perhaps some part of him recognized this moment from countless isekai stories he'd consumed. "And what happens now?"
"That depends." Aethren moved, though movement seemed the wrong word—they simply existed in a different position, as if editing reality frame by frame. "Your soul carries an unusual resonance. Strong imagination. Deep attachment to stories, to worlds beyond your own. Such souls are offered a choice, when circumstances align."
Something stirred in Josou's chest. "A choice?"
"Reincarnation. Transmigration. A second chance in a reality that resonates with your spirit's frequency." Aethren's form rippled. "I sense you carry particular affinity for a world of shinobi, of chakra and conflict, of bonds tested by fire."
Josou's breath—could he even breathe here?—caught. "Naruto? You're talking about the Naruto universe?"
"A world inspired by your fiction, yes. Reality branches infinitely; every story echoes somewhere in the cosmos. This particular branch follows the narrative you know, with all its complexity, darkness, and possibility for growth." Aethren tilted their head. "But understand—this is not a game. Death there is permanent. Pain is real. The world does not bend to narrative convenience."
"I understand." The words came without hesitation. What did he have to return to? An empty apartment, unfulfilling work, a life half-lived through screens? Here was a chance at something more. "I accept. I want to be reincarnated there."
Aethren's expression shifted into something that might have been approval. "Very well. As is custom for souls crossing between worlds, you are granted three wishes to shape your new existence. Choose carefully—I will not grant wishes for omnipotence, omniscience, or control over the world's fundamental nature. Your wishes must work within the world's established systems."
Josou's mind raced. He'd played this scenario out countless times in his imagination, debating with friends about perfect builds, optimal power sets. But now, faced with reality, the frivolous fantasies fell away. He needed to survive. To thrive. To actually live this time.
"I need time to think."
"Time here is fluid. Take what you require."
Josou organized his thoughts methodically, drawing on years of franchise knowledge. The Naruto world was brutal, especially for those without power. Kekkei genkai users had natural advantages, but even they died by the dozens in wars. He needed versatility, survivability, and most importantly—potential for growth that wouldn't immediately paint a target on his back.
"I've decided," he said finally. Aethren's attention focused on him with intensity that would have been crushing in a physical body.
"My first wish: I want to be reincarnated as a hybrid between the Uzumaki clan and the Kaguya clan, possessing the Kaguya clan's Shikotsumyaku kekkei genkai."
The Uzumaki bloodline offered incredible chakra reserves, longevity, and natural affinity for fuinjutsu—practical benefits that would serve him throughout his life. The Kaguya clan's bone manipulation kekkei genkai provided close-to-mid-range combat capabilities and defensive options. Together, they formed a foundation that was powerful but not unprecedented. Both clans existed in the world's history; their combination wouldn't immediately scream "reincarnator."
Aethren considered this. "The Uzumaki and Kaguya clans carry compatible genetic markers despite their differing origins. Your chakra pathways will be robust, your life force substantial. The Shikotsumyaku will manifest fully, unhampered by the illness that plagued Kimimaro. Granted."
Relief washed through Josou. "My second wish: I want the Dark Release kekkei genkai."
This was his wildcard. Dark Release, or Meiton, allowed the user to absorb chakra-based techniques and release them in amplified form. It appeared in side materials, making it canon-adjacent enough to exist without breaking the world's logic. More importantly, it provided answers to his primary weakness—long-range combat and defense against ninjutsu. Combined with Shikotsumyaku, he'd have options across all engagement ranges.
"An absorption-type kekkei genkai compatible with your other bloodline traits. It will manifest through diamond-shaped marks on your palms, as recorded in the world's history. Granted." Aethren's form pulsed with light. "Choose your final wish carefully. This completes your gifts."
Josou had saved his most controversial choice for last. "My third wish: I want the Six Eyes from Jujutsu Kaisen, but adapted to function within the Naruto universe's chakra system."
Silence stretched through the Interstitium. Aethren's form flickered rapidly, as if processing complex calculations.
"The Six Eyes," Aethren said slowly, "represent a fundamental enhancement to energy perception and manipulation. Adapting this to chakra requires careful integration." They paused. "I can grant this, but understand the adaptation: Your eyes will provide perfect chakra control, eliminating wastage entirely. You will perceive chakra in extraordinary detail—seeing its flow, composition, and interaction with the world. You will process information at accelerated rates, particularly regarding chakra-based phenomena. However, this is not the Sharingan—you will not copy techniques through sight alone, nor will you gain precognitive abilities. The mental processing enhancement may prove overwhelming initially; you must train to utilize it fully."
It was perfect. The Six Eyes would multiply the effectiveness of his already substantial Uzumaki chakra reserves through perfect efficiency. It would help him master fuinjutsu, understand and counter enemy techniques, and potentially push his kekkei genkai to their absolute limits. The mental processing enhancement would help him think tactically in combat, essential for survival.
"I accept those conditions."
"Then it is done." Aethren raised one hand, and Josou felt something fundamental shift in his being. His soul brightened, expanding, restructuring itself to accommodate the gifts. "Three bloodlines, three kekkei genkai, eyes that see what others cannot. You will be formidable, Josou—but formidability attracts attention. Others will seek to use you, to control you, or to eliminate you before you reach your potential."
"I'll be careful."
"See that you are." Aethren's form began to dissolve, returning to abstract light. "One final matter: your time of arrival. When would you enter this world?"
Josou considered. Too early, and he'd be caught in the founding of villages, wars he had no knowledge of. Too late, and he'd miss opportunities to change the worst outcomes. "I want to be born approximately the same time as Kakashi Hatake. That places me in the generation just before the main storyline, giving me time to grow strong before the Nine-Tails attack and the major conflicts to come."
"A strategic choice. You will be born during the Third Shinobi World War's later years, in a time of violence and opportunity." Aethren's voice grew distant. "Your mother will be an Uzumaki survivor who found refuge in a small village on the border between the Land of Water and a minor nation. Your father, a Kaguya clan member who fled his clan's warmongering. They will love you, for what time they have."
The ominous implication wasn't lost on Josou, but he had no time to question further. The Interstitium began to collapse inward—or perhaps he was expanding outward, he couldn't tell.
"Live well, Josou. Live better than before. And remember—"
The world inverted.
"—the Naruto universe shows no mercy to the unprepared."
Sensation returned in a rush that was almost painful. Cold air. Wetness. Hands supporting him. And sound—so much sound, overwhelming after the silence of the Interstitium.
Someone was crying.
"A son," a tired voice said, warm and relieved. "We have a son."
Josou—though he couldn't think of himself that way yet, couldn't think much at all through the fog of infant consciousness—felt himself wrapped in cloth and placed against something warm. A heartbeat thrummed beneath his ear, strong and steady. Safe.
"What shall we name him?" A deeper voice, male, rough with emotion.
"Kenshin," the woman—his mother—said softly. "It means 'modest truth.' May he live honestly in this dishonest world."
Kenshin, Josou's fragmenting adult consciousness thought. I'm Kenshin now.
Awareness faded, the exhaustion of birth pulling him down into sleep. But before he surrendered completely, he felt it—a tingling behind his eyes, a sensation of infinite space compressed into two points. The Six Eyes, already developing. And deeper, in his bones and blood, the potential of three bloodlines waiting to awaken.
The Third Shinobi World War raged beyond the walls of this small clinic. His parents—refugees from destroyed clans—had found each other in a minor village called Shukuba Town, a trading post too insignificant for the major nations to bother conquering. Here, in relative obscurity, Kenshin would spend his first years.
He had perhaps five years before the war's end. Ten before the Nine-Tails attack on Konoha. Fifteen before the Uchiha massacre. Twenty before Naruto's graduation and the start of canon events.
Time to grow. Time to train. Time to ensure that this life, unlike his last, would matter.
Kenshin slept, and dreamed of bones and chakra and possibilities.