Chapter 1: Sparring with the Third Hokage
"Naruto, I'm coming in."
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi wore a kindly smile as he tapped on the small door.
"I'm busy—let yourself in."
Naruto sounded impatient.
Hiruzen paid no mind to his tone and pushed the door open—then his eyes bulged.
A naked, golden-haired beauty had wrapped herself around his arm, sweetly calling him 'Hokage-sama.'
His vision turned pure white.
Hiruzen clapped a hand over his nose.
Blood spurted out.
With a poof!
Mist rose and the beauty vanished.
"You lose, Third Grandpa."
Dropping the unfinished black knight belt, Narutoraised a hand. "Pay up."
They'd made a bet earlier.
If Naruto could land even the slightest scratch on Hiruzen, he'd get the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsuearly.
Wiping his nosebleed, Hiruzen protested, "That's cheating—no honor, ambushing and tricking an old man like me."
For all his experience, he'd never seen an attack like that.
Naruto rolled his eyes. "You're the Third Hokage—keep your word."
Hiruzen's face stiffened; he chuckled. "That beauty just now—was it the Transformation Jutsu?"
Naruto was annoyed.
In his past life he'd desperately wanted the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu.
School, exams, work, binge-watching—everything except a girlfriend could be left to clones.
Right—Uzumaki Naruto no longer held the original soul; it had been swapped two years ago.
His past name had been Lin Xiu, "clever and elegant," his father's wish.
Classmates, lacking poetic appreciation, simply called him "Xiu-er."
Sadly, besides outshining even the handsomest actors and topping every exam, he'd been perfectly obedient.
Just after his college-entrance exams, his father rewarded him.
A life-size dakimakura of Tohsaka Rin.
It socially mortified his dad, but blood is blood—no broken legs.
That night he'd hugged Rin to sleep, only to wake up in the world of Naruto.
Why did it turn out like this?
It was supposed to be bliss.
Hiruzen cut his musings short: "Where did you learn that?"
Naruto tilted his head. "You gave it to me."
"I did?"
Hiruzen was puzzled.
Yet it made sense.
Besides the caretakers who'd delivered meals since his birth, no other Ninja had ever reached him.
"You mean the Three Academy Jutsu I gave you?"
That was the only possibility Hiruzen could think of.
But Transformation was merely E-rank; that bombshell had clearly been at least C-rank.
Could Naruto be a Ninjutsu prodigy?
He thought of Naruto's father, Minato Namikaze, and felt a pang.
So alike.
Minato's genius was undisputed.
Refining the S-rank Flying Thunder God Techniquemade him unique in the Ninja World.
"Of course. I mastered the Three Academy Jutsu at a glance, so I asked for the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu."
Naruto feigned irritation.
He didn't hate Hiruzen, but he didn't like him much either.
Two years in this world had brought him countless 'kind' stares.
In the end he'd become a shut-in.
Spending free time on 'handicrafts.'
He understood Hiruzen's plan.
Let the Jinchuriki grow up isolated, avoiding bonds with civilians; as long as the higher-ups stayed friendly, dependence and loyalty would follow.
To Naruto, shaped by a Chinese education, the tactic was despicable.
What was true integration?
Uniform standards and cultural assimilation, he believed.
Hiruzen fell silent.
Thanks to the Nine-Tails and his Uzumaki blood, Naruto already had Chakra reserves the old man envied.
Yet mastering the Three Academy Jutsu instantly at his age was outright genius.
"You really are like… me."
He'd almost said 'your father,' then caught himself.
Now wasn't the time for truth.
"Shameless!"
Naruto glared.
My talent comes with a cheat.
Who are you to compare?
Right—his personal golden finger.
The Ninja Achievement Gacha System.
Actions triggered achievements, granting gacha pulls and stat points.
Achievements split into active and passive.
Active were system-given; passive had to be discovered.
[Congratulations, host, for achieving 'Sparred with Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi.' Reward: 1 Common Gacha.]
That was the reward he'd just earned.
Two types of pulls: common and targeted.
Common was random; targeted let him choose the category.
[Drawing… Congratulations, host: item cardobtained.]
Inside his system space floated a copper card.
[item card: dog food.]
[Description: Permanent item. Produces one 0.5-kg bag daily. Irresistible to any dog.]
What the hell?
I'm your host, not your dog!
Show some respect, system!
Naruto ranted mentally.
Delicious or not, it's still dog food.
"Naruto, I'm the strongest Hokage."
Hiruzen was miffed.
Being told he resembled such talent was the highest praise.
Anyone else acting this way would've earned a lecture on the Will of Fire—or a 'chat' with Danzo.
"Shouldn't the strongest Hokage keep his promises?"
Naruto's big bright eyes locked on him.
"…"
Hiruzen was embarrassed.
He'd talked himself into a corner.
All because he'd bragged about the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu and tried to fob Naruto off with a bet—only to be ambushed by a bombshell.
No old cadre could withstand that.
"Naruto, the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu is too soon for you. How about the Shadow Clone Jutsuinstead?"
Hiruzen offered a compromise.
Multiple Shadow Clone was forbidden; if the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki went berserk, it'd be a disaster.
With Naruto's Chakra, ordinary Shadow Clones should be safe.
"Fine."
Naruto accepted the scroll.
Shadow Clone Jutsu was excellent.
Basically an EXP multiplier.
Only pity was his young age.
These two years had yielded few achievements.
And the gacha prizes were random junk.
Snagging a B-rank jutsu still counted as victory.
"Naruto, don't stay cooped up all the time."
Before leaving, Hiruzen advised, "Go see the world."
"I know."
Naruto unrolled the scroll, ignoring Hiruzen, and began to read.
Not too hard.
In canon, graduate Naruto mastered Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu in under half an hour.
"I'll be six soon—give me an academy admission letter."
"No problem!"
Hiruzen agreed at once, secretly pleased.
Though the boy kept his distance, he mostly obeyed.
Next step: choosing teachers and classmates.
Once Hiruzen left, Naruto set the scroll aside and pulled out the dog food card.
"Should I taste it?"
He was curious—how delicious could it be?
But he decided against doing something so inhuman.
His consciousness sank into the Sealing Space. "Big Fox, I brought you something good!"