Kakashi Hatake had graduated from the Academy at the age of five.
By twelve, he had already attained the rank of jōnin. Had he not been struck by tragic loss and personal setbacks, he might have beco another Kage-level shinobi of Konohagakure before the age of twenty — second only to the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
nma did not dare to hope for such greatness. He never imagined that in the next six years he could beco a jōnin like Kakashi. That was impossible. Kakashi's rise had been due not only to his unmatched talent but also to the harsh crucible of life-and-death battles on the battlefield, experiences nma could not replicate.
Instead, nma's goal was simpler: to lay a foundation as strong as possible. If he couldn't reach the level of a jōnin, then at the very least, he had to aim for the strength of a chūnin.
In this critical stage of his growth, every small improvent would create ripples that determined his future.
From the beginning of January until the Academy's entrance season in April, nma devoted himself entirely to chakra refinent and control. When one is completely imrsed in sothing, ti flows quickly. Three months passed in a blur, and by the end of March, the breath of early spring swept through the village.
By now, nma had already reached the level of a quasi-shinobi in chakra usage.
His refined chakra granted him speed beyond that of ordinary people. With a single leap, he could already reach extraordinary heights. These gains ca not overnight but from long, patient polishing, step by step, without skipping the basics.
Chakra flowed from him like a spring, and though the amount he could refine was still less than one percent of his potential, that fraction already surpassed the reserves of most genin in the shinobi world.
This was one of nma's greatest strengths.
In the original tiline, Kakashi once explained that Naruto had to constantly use his own chakra to suppress the Nine-Tails. Even so, his chakra was already four tis Kakashi's. Without suppression, Naruto's natural reserves would have dwarfed Kakashi's a hundredfold.
Whether nma's condition was exactly the sa as Naruto's remained unknown. But as a direct descendant of the Uzumaki clan, his potential chakra capacity was enormous.
Even at one percent of his full reserves, the amount was frightening.
That's enough for today. Tomorrow is the Academy entrance day. I'd better return early and rest.
nma stretched, glancing at the setting sun. He carefully packed up before heading ho. Though he felt ti pressing against him, he knew the importance of restraint.
The people of this world had bodies far stronger than ordinary humans of his past life, but nma was still a child. He had to train within limits, lest he damage himself.
His current regin remained focused on chakra refinent and physical conditioning. As for more advanced exercises — such as climbing trees or walking on water to sharpen control — those would co later.
One step at a ti. A al must be eaten bite by bite. The road must be walked step by step.
That night, nma returned ho earlier than usual. After bathing, eating dinner, and ditating briefly, he went to bed, determined to face his first day at the Academy in peak condition.
But fate had other plans.
The night was utterly silent.
A thin crescent moon drifted above.
As his breathing slowed into slumber, nma expected the hours to pass in peace.
Yet—
Tick… tock…
The faint, echoing drip of water disturbed his consciousness. His awareness jolted awake.
This is…?
Opening his eyes, nma found himself in a pitch-black void. For a brief mont he was disoriented. Then a chill ran down his spine as recognition dawned.
He knew this place. The emptiness, the oppressive cold, the suffocating weight of malevolence nearby.
There could be no mistake.
He had entered the inner world of his seal — the prison of the Nine-Tailed Fox.
So it's finally happening… earlier than I thought.
Though the timing startled him, nma could not deny a surge of excitent. This was his first encounter with the mightiest of the Tailed Beasts, the Kyuubi no Yoko.
Though history rembered the Nine-Tails as a pet to Senju Hashirama and a weapon for Uchiha Madara, it was also the sa creature that could crush entire armies within monts.
To nma, it was both danger and hope — his greatest source of power in the years to co.
He walked forward, the echo of his small footsteps bouncing through a long, dark corridor. Turning a corner, he ca upon a massive archway. From within poured waves of visible, seething red chakra, spreading like a tide.
Even from a distance, his body trembled.
Still, he steadied his breath, clenched his fists, and pressed on.
As the space broadened, dim light revealed a towering prison gate, bars as thick as tree trunks. Behind them, darkness seethed.
Boom!
nma's arrival stirred the beast within.
A crimson flare of chakra burst forth, the sheer force shaking the ground, sending powerful gusts through the chamber.
nma's face stiffened.
"Oi… brat. Co closer."
The deep, sinister voice rumbled through the space.
It was commanding, dangerous — and yet oddly compelling.
Before he realized it, nma's feet moved of their own accord. Step by step, he drifted closer toward the massive presence sealed beyond the gate.
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