Prologue
A young child stood still, beneath the starry skies of the Hidden Leaf Village, a land pulsing with verdant vigour.
He sat down, his limbs sprawled across the grassy ground, gazing at the stars with a melancholic expression, eyes lost deep in thought.
Despite his tender age, this 6-year-old experienced something unlike anything the rest of the villagers ever went through.
He had awakened memories, ones never meant to be possessed.
Too realistic to be a mere dream yet a surreal experience for a life he never had. This unexpected trial could either be a curse or… a gift.
(POV Taito Ren)
Why is no one free today? I wanted to have a shuriken fight in the park. Since when did they start being so obedient?
Wait! Doesn't that group of stars look a lot like a kunai today.
Wow! That one looks like a shuriken.
Suddenly the child grew grim.
I miss Mom!
'She stargazed with me, telling me how Grandpa used the stars to keep track of his location. I really can't understand how.' reminisced Ren.
I should ask Aunt Mai, maybe I will tell little Kei when he grows up.
The kid walked ahead slowly, dark memories springing forth within his mind.
His mom's death due to childbirth, his dad's draft to war, him trying to convince his mom that he would never take miso from the ramen again on her deathbed.
He went as far to plead that he would earn the money to eat at Ichiraku, but she just smiled and closed her eyes.
He stopped, pausing to catch his breath.
''Why are adults so complicated?'' Ren muttered quietly.
As he walked ahead he saw shops closing. Grief morphed into despair.
'Wait a minute—Ichiraku was closing, that means it's curfew.' Ren deduced.
"Oh no! Aunt Mai is going to be mad. I better run." Ren shouted, sprinting towards home.
While running he looked back into his mind.
He thought about the memories of that old man from another village… no… a world, when he had hit his head falling down.
That world was so fancy and… what was the word?… shiny… yes, shiny compared to the village. But the Konoha was so familiar to the story of that old man's nephew.
What was the story's name?… yeah it was called Naruto.
That old man was a doctor. Most of his family left like how Mother did, and only his nephew was with him.
That old man was like Aunt Mai—he was single, is that the right word? Adults are so weird, why do they want someone extra to take care of? Being single is better, right?
Whatever, the old man's nephew watched something called anime, well it moved funny but looked so cool. The stinky books Dad bought are so boring.
Ren then stopped abruptly upon seeing his house. He stopped to catch his breath, looked around carefully as he examined his house.
'Great!' he thought.
The lights are still on. Great! Looks like I am still on time.