"Shinshoku."
The moment Naruto thought it, his body blurred—and vanished. In the same instant, he reappeared a meter away, then vanished again, returning to his original spot. The air barely shifted.
To anyone else, it would've looked like nothing happened.But Naruto knew better. He'd just used his newfound ability twice in less than a heartbeat—faster than even the swiftest Body Flicker.
Human eyes could capture thirty-six frames per second. What Naruto just did happened in less than a ten-thousandth of that. With mastery, he could go even faster.
He stared down at his trembling hands."So this… is the power of the Six Divine Paths."A grin tugged at his lips. "Not bad. Not bad at all."
Then came the frown.His mental energy—his spiritual focus—had dropped slightly."Right. The Divine Paths burn through mental strength... so even this has a cost."
By his estimation, his mental focus of thirty-one could support the technique only a few dozen times. Not bad for a start, but not nearly enough to reach the top.
"Well, guess I'll just have to strengthen that too," he muttered. "Next up… let's try Ten'gan."
Golden light flickered across his eyes. His vision exploded outward—walls, alleys, trees, all laid bare before him. Every leaf, every breath within fifty meters danced clearly in his sight.
And beyond that... three masked figures.Anbu.
Naruto's mouth twitched. Of course he knew them. The shadow corps of Konoha. They appeared when tragedy was about to strike, like moths drawn to suffering. And yet, their strength was undeniable—Kakashi, Yamato, even Itachi had once been Anbu.
Still, he doubted they'd noticed him. Their eyes could capture hundreds of frames a second, maybe thousands. But him? He moved in less than one ten-thousandth of a second.
"Let's test the next one... Ten'on."
Voices crashed into his mind all at once:"Uncle, where are you going?""Be careful out there!""Dinner's almost ready—""…nowadays kids have no manners—"A flood of laughter, whispers, cries.
Naruto clutched his head and groaned, collapsing back on the bed. "Okay. That's too much insight."He shut it down immediately.
Still, the results were useful. Ten'gan and Ten'on each drained roughly two points of his mental focus when active. Manageable for now—but something he'd need to master before they overwhelmed him again.
As for the others—Shinri, Unmei, and Kyōmetsu—he'd have to test those later. Kyōmetsu alone had already granted him ten extra years of life. Whether it could also extend someone else's… he wasn't sure, but he had no one to test that on anyway.
Naruto sat cross-legged, hands clasped together. "Rikudō Shingon, how do I upgrade these powers?"
For a moment, there was silence. Then came the voice—neither male nor female, echoing softly like temple bells soaked in mockery.
"Ah… the Host asks such mortal questions. How refreshing."
A faint chuckle followed.
"Upgrades require… souls."
Naruto froze. "...Souls?"
"Yes, Host. The essence of being. The shimmer between life and death. The currency of gods. Or, in your case, discount Hokages."
He exhaled sharply. Souls. Of course it couldn't be something simple.
But after everything he'd seen—the death, the reincarnation—he couldn't deny the truth of it.The Six Divine Paths demanded sacrifice.
His thoughts spiraled—voices from two lives overlapping in his mind:
"I want to live. I want to be acknowledged.""Don't worry, Naruto. I'll inherit your dream.""I'll become Hokage, and I'll stand at the top."
Power. Immortality. Recognition. They all burned in his chest, twisting together into a single conviction.
"If my soul's the price," he said quietly, "then so be it. Power itself isn't evil—it's the hand that wields it."
He stared at his palms again. "If a good man uses darkness to save others, that's still light. And if evil wears holiness, it's still rot underneath."
He smiled faintly. "I'll bear it. I'm Uzumaki Naruto. My heart's clean enough."
He collapsed back onto the bed. His spiritual energy barely dented, but his small body couldn't keep up. Within moments, he drifted into sleep, breath calm and steady.
Outside, three masked Anbu watched from the shadows.
"Dog," whispered the one with the cat mask, "did you feel that just now?"
Dog-mask tilted his head. "Impossible. He's just a kid—barely old enough to mold chakra."
"Still… something about him feels off."
Dog's eyes narrowed. "We'll stay alert. I'll report this to Lord Hokage."
The night deepened, carrying the soft sound of wind—and somewhere inside that tiny room, a sacred, teasing voice echoed faintly in Naruto's dreams.
"Ufufufufu~ The Host dreams of glory again. How adorable."