[Nightfall: The Hokage's Residence]
The village was asleep. The only sound was the chirp of crickets and the occasional snore from a guard.
I crouched on a rooftop overlooking the Hokage's estate.
[Passive Skill: Presence Concealment (Assassin Rank) - Active]
I blended into the darkness. To the naked eye, I was just a chimney.
Suddenly, an orange blur darted across the street. Naruto. He wasn't exactly being stealthy—he was giggling nervously and tripping over his own feet—but somehow, the guards didn't see him.
Plot Armor, I mused. The strongest Jutsu of them all.
He slipped into the residence. Minutes passed.
Then, chaos.
"THE SCROLL OF SEALS IS GONE!" "STOP HIM!"
Ninjas erupted from the building like angry hornets.
I watched Naruto sprint toward the forest, a massive green scroll strapped to his back.
***
[Location: Forest of Death - Outskirts]
Naruto sat in a small clearing, panting heavily. The massive scroll was unrolled in front of him.
"Okay..." Naruto wiped sweat from his forehead. "If I learn one jutsu... Iruka-sensei has to pass me! Let's see..."
He squinted at the complex kanji.
"Multiple... Shadow... Clone? Aww man! Clones are my worst subject!"
From the tree branch above, I watched him struggle. It was endearing, in a pathetic sort of way.
Suddenly, Iruka burst into the clearing. He was battered, breathing hard.
"Naruto!" Iruka shouted. "What are you doing?!"
"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto beamed, oblivious to the danger. "I did it! I got the scroll! Now you have to let me pass!"
"What?" Iruka froze. "Who told you that?"
"Mizuki-sensei! He said..."
Whoosh.
Kunai flew from the darkness. Iruka pushed Naruto out of the way, taking the blades in his leg and shoulder.
Mizuki stepped out from the shadows, two giant shuriken strapped to his back.
"Nice work, Naruto," Mizuki sneered. "Now, give me the scroll."
The drama played out exactly like the anime. Mizuki revealed the truth about the Fox. Iruka gave his speech about Naruto being a citizen of Konoha, not a beast. Naruto cried.
I watched, eating a rice ball I pulled from my inventory.
Man, this is better than 3D cinema.
"Naruto," Mizuki said, his voice dripping with malice. "Give me the scroll."
"Mizuki-sensei?" Naruto looked between the two men, confused. "What's going on?"
"Don't give it to him, Naruto!" Iruka yelled, pulling a kunai out of his leg. "He used you! He wants the scroll for himself!"
Mizuki laughed. It was a classic villain laugh—loud, arrogant, and annoying.
"Naruto," Mizuki smirked. "Do you want to know the truth? Do you want to know why everyone in the village hates you?"
"Stop it, Mizuki!" Iruka screamed.
"It's because you are the Nine-Tailed Fox!"
Silence. The revelation hung in the air like poison.
Naruto froze. The revelation hit him like a physical blow. His eyes dilated. The chakra around him began to bubble, turning a sinister red.
I watched from above, eating a rice ball I had pulled from my inventory.
Man, this is better than 3D cinema. The emotional damage is crisp.
"Naruto," Mizuki said, his voice dripping with malice. "Give me the scroll."
"Don't give it to him, Naruto!" Iruka yelled, pulling the kunai out of his leg with a grunt of pain. blood splattering. "He used you! He wants the scroll for power! He doesn't care about you!"
Mizuki laughed. It was a classic villain laugh—loud, arrogant, and annoying.
"Naruto is just a beast!" Mizuki shouted. "He's a monster! He'll use the scroll to destroy the village just like he did twelve years ago!"
"You're wrong!" Iruka screamed, struggling to stand. tears streaming down his face. "Naruto isn't the Demon Fox! He's Naruto Uzumaki! He's a citizen of Konoha! He works hard... he's clumsy... and he's a bit of an idiot... but he's my student! He's a splendid ninja!"
Naruto, hiding behind a tree, clutched the scroll to his chest. Tears streamed down his whiskered cheeks. The red chakra receded, replaced by the warm, blue determination of the Will of Fire.
And scene, I thought, swallowing the last of my rice ball. Beautiful. Oscar-worthy performance, Iruka.
Mizuki growled, losing patience. "Fine. If you want to die together... so be it!"
He reached for the second giant shuriken on his back. "Die, demon!"
He spun the weapon. It roared through the air, aiming straight for Naruto's neck.
Iruka braced himself to jump in front of it. It was the moment. The sacrifice.
I prepared to stay hidden. I didn't want to steal Naruto's thunder. This was his origin story.
[DING!]
[System Quest: The Hidden Boss] [Mizuki is annoying. He insulted your Disciple. He hit your teacher.] [Objective: Beat him into the ground.] [Reward: +2000 SP + Title: "Protector of the Plot"]
Wait, what?
2000 SP?
My eyes nearly popped out of my head. That was two Gacha spins. That was a down payment on a Chakra Nature transformation.
I looked at Naruto, trembling but brave. I looked at Iruka, bleeding and ready to die. I looked at Mizuki's stupid, punchable face.
Sorry, Naruto. Daddy needs points.
I stood up on the branch. I channeled chakra into my legs.
[Skill: Geppo (Sky Walk) - Active]
I kicked off the air, the sound like a cracking whip, launching myself downward like a ballistic missile.
"Mizuki!" Iruka screamed, closing his eyes, waiting for death.
"Hahahaha!" Mizuki laughed maniacally. "Let's see how many shuriken you can block with your body!"
He prepared to throw the second shuriken.
CRASH.
I landed.
Not with a kick. Not with a punch.
I landed with both of my steel-toed ninja boots stomping squarely onto Mizuki's shoulders.
The force was tremendous. It was like a piano falling from a skyscraper. Mizuki didn't even have time to scream. He was driven face-first into the dirt, his body folding like a lawn chair.
The giant shuriken flew harmlessly into a tree with a sad thunk.
"OOF!" Mizuki wheezed, the air leaving his lungs in a violent burst.
Dust billowed up.
I stood on top of his twitching body, balancing perfectly. I adjusted my collar and dusted off my jacket.
"Evening, Sensei," I said casually, looking down at the shocked Iruka and the wide-eyed Naruto. "Sorry to drop in. I was just taking a walk and saw some trash that needed taking out."
Iruka stared. "K-Kenji?"
"Kenji!" Naruto shouted, wiping his tears.
I looked down at Mizuki, who was trying to crawl out from under my boot.
"Get... off..." Mizuki gasped, clawing at the dirt.
I applied more pressure. Crack. A rib, probably.
"You know, Mizuki," I said, my voice dropping to a terrifying whisper that only he could hear. "You really shouldn't touch my investments. Do you know how much ramen I've bought this kid? That's a sunk cost I can't recover if he's dead."
I looked up at Naruto.
"Naruto. He called you a demon."
Naruto gripped the scroll, his eyes red and slitted. The Fox's chakra leaked out, but this time it was controlled. Focused.
"Yeah..." Naruto growled.
"He lied to you. He used you. And he hurt Iruka-sensei. Look at Iruka's leg. That's a lot of blood."
Naruto looked at Iruka. His rage spiked.
I stepped off Mizuki and kicked him casually in the ribs, flipping him over so he faced Naruto. Mizuki groaned, clutching his chest.
"What do we do to trash, Naruto?" I asked calmly. "Don't you want to show Iruka-sensei what you learned from the Scroll of Seals? The first jutsu?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed. He formed a cross seal with his fingers.
"Yeah," Naruto whispered. "I'll show him."
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
POOF. POOF. POOF.
It wasn't three clones. It wasn't ten.
Smoke exploded through the clearing. When it cleared, the trees were covered in orange. The ground was a sea of orange. The air was filled with orange.
A thousand Narutos stood there, knuckles cracking, grins wide and feral.
"We take it out!" a thousand voices screamed in unison.
Mizuki's eyes bulged. He scrambled backward, terrified. "Wait... wait! Let's talk about this! I can give you an A! I can give you extra credit!"
I leaned against a tree, crossing my arms and activating my [Steal] skill passively, just in case Mizuki had anything valuable left.
"Get him, boys," I ordered.
What followed wasn't a fight. It was a beatdown. A synchronized, chaotic, therapeutic ass-kicking delivered by a thousand angry midgets.
"AAAAHHH! NOT THE FACE! NOT THERE!"
As Mizuki's screams echoed into the night, I turned my gaze away from the violence and focused on the real prize.
The Scroll of Seals lay abandoned on the grass.
I walked over to it casually.
"System," I whispered. "Scan."