Naruto: Uzumaki Yuji [EN]

The day after the regular practice in outdoor training, most of it was theory. Although Yūji claimed to be genuinely interested in what the teacher was explaining, he only wanted to learn in a practical way.

At the very least, that was the way he had been taught when he first used cursed energy, executing it while fighting curses.

Even though he had said he could surpass his past life... it was truly painful to let go. Yūji's expression dimmed slightly as he remembered it.

He couldn't simply forget what he had lived before his friends, the people he cared about, life in Japan, the technology. He didn't want to say it, but he even missed something as simple as using the internet.

In this era, nothing existed! He thought it was just him and his sister being poor, but no one they had seen or met had the slightest knowledge of technology! Especially in this rainy area, it was undoubtedly the saddest village he had ever seen. He couldn't have an opinion about the place where he was born and raised until he deserted, as he had only known the forest and all its resources.

But he truly missed and longed for some form of entertainment.

A heavy and sorrowful sigh escaped his mouth. His eyes were closed, but he didn't expect someone to touch his shoulder. When he lifted his gaze, he saw Nobumi looking at him curiously.

" What's wrong, Nobumi? " the boy asked with curiosity.

" I think you fell asleep or something, but class is already over. "

Yūji opened his eyes in surprise, realizing that the class had indeed ended. It seemed that reminiscing about his precious memories had taken up a lot of time.

With urgency, he got up as he remembered that Sister Konan had mentioned going to the outskirts of Amegakure after leaving the academy. " Ah! I didn't realize! Thanks for reminding me, Nobumi! I have to go; I'm late to meet someone! " After that, Nobumi just watched as the small redhead ran straight to the exit, he was extremely energetic.

The girl simply smiled calmly, without showing her usual arrogant facade. " That boy is definitely way too happy to be from such a sad village. " she said with a hint of maturity in her voice. Though she sighed, because in the first place, it was that fleeting and cheerful spark that had drawn her to him, so different from the people filled with death wishes and rage.

She also left the academy, but as for Yūji, he truly had strong legs, as he ran without stopping toward the place Sister Konan had mentioned for training with his sister. He was sure she was already waiting with Konan.

" I'm so late! " he whispered to himself, only he could hear.

Upon reaching the training site, just as he had expected, he guessed correctly standing before him were Konan and his sister Karin.

Karin had left Yūji earlier, thinking he would spend time with his friends. She had never been able to make a friend before because she worried those Grass ninjas would threaten her like before. But now, both she and Yūji were free from abuse and from being considered mere tools.

" Yūji! You're a bit late! " the girl said playfully, showing happiness happiness because, in the four years she had been taking care of her brother, he had never lost that spark of joy.

" I'm so sorry! " the poor boy gasped dramatically, trying to catch his breath. He didn't want Sister Konan to cancel their training session because of his mistake.

As for the older woman present, Konan narrowed her eyes, observing how, despite running almost the entire village, the boy showed barely any signs of fatigue. His small body had impressive endurance undoubtedly an immense potential.

She had a lot of faith in that little one, who would surely bring great surprises.

" It's nothing, Yūji-chan. Let's begin. " the lilac-haired woman spoke with a gentle smile. She understood that the boy was still adjusting to his surroundings, so she didn't see a problem in him being late.

Once Yūji had calmed down from his mild exertion, he curiously looked at the rocky terrain. " Sister Konan, is it okay to train in the rain? It might be slippery here. " he asked innocently, glancing at the woman in front of him. His sister had already positioned herself beside him.

" I want you to engrave these words in your mind, Yūji-chan; A ninja does not care about the environment they are in. Whether it's raining, snowing, storming, muddy, sandy, or rocky, they must always accomplish their objective and never take a step back. You must learn to use the environment to your advantage. " Konan spoke calmly, causing Yūji to look at her with admiration.

" Always accomplish the objective and be part of nature. Got it. " the boy said excitedly, committing Konan's words to memory.

With that, the woman smiled serenely, though it was only for a fleeting moment before she took a few steps away from the children. A slight crease formed between her brows, giving her a somewhat stern expression.

" I want to remind you, kids, that although you know me as kind, I won't be during this training. The reason I am determined to teach you is for your own good, so you can help the weak with your strength. This training is advanced for your age; you should be learning this after graduating from the academy. But as I said, I see potential in you... so don't blame me if I'm strict. " she said firmly, expecting them to respond or question her about the training. But she received neither.

She was satisfied with this, so she slightly softened her solemn expression. " Alright, we'll start with the basics how to control your chakra. I'm sure Yūji knows the foundation of this, but controlling and manipulating it is entirely different. "

Konan walked toward them with ease, manipulating small pieces of paper that emerged from her body using her paper ninjutsu. She watched as Yūji and Karin each took a piece of paper, their curiosity evident. Konan continued speaking calmly, " This little paper will be your new guide to chakra control. If you want to become efficient at this, all you have to do is stick this paper to a part of your body and keep it there while you manipulate your chakra. If you use too much energy, the paper will tear. If you use too little, it will fall off. "

She explained efficiently, watching as the children frowned in concentration. Karin was the first to act in the rain, holding the small paper against her forehead with her index and middle fingers to keep it from falling. Closing her eyes, she tried to locate her chakra and slowly direct it toward her forehead.

Karin made slight grimaces, and Yūji's eyes sparkled as he watched her seemingly succeed.

" Oh! You can do it, Karin! Go, go! My sister is the best! " the boy cheered with excitement.

After about fifteen seconds, the paper fell, and Karin let out a deep sigh.

It was very difficult to move her chakra and keep it in a fixed point. Karin looked somewhat frustrated. " I lasted so little... "

" You don't need to worry; it's normal not to last long at first. But the more you practice, the easier it will be to realize that you've already mastered chakra control. " Konan said calmly, noticing the frustration in the girl. She then shifted her tranquil gaze toward the boy, who was sticking out his tongue with the paper on his forehead.

" The same goes for you, Yūji. Don't worry about how long you last. "

" I'll be the best, Sister Konan! Though Karin is also really good, I want to last even longer! " the boy declared loudly, still with the paper stuck to his forehead.

Although he seemed arrogant and determined, secretly, he was hearing Sukuna's voice speaking to him.

' I couldn't feel the chakra, but now that you're trying to mobilize it, I can perceive it. It's too bright. You have another network that was previously invisible, now filling up abundantly. It's so white and pure... Ugh, how disgusting... Now I can feel this energy it's an enemy, at least until you learn to control it ' said Sukuna in Yūji's mind, also looking out through the eyes of the red-haired boy. With a mocking voice, he once again appreciated it. ' Even though it's pure energy, that doesn't take away the fact that it's in the same category as cursed energy. It's more volatile and easier to manipulate. Just sigh and try to enter a state of concentration. Calm your heartbeat and don't force that energy. The moment you feel it, it's like opening a door let it enter the area where you have that leaf. Don't hold it; let it flow as much as it returns to its center of origin. '

Even if Yūji didn't want to admit it, Sukuna was very intelligent and cunning when he wasn't thinking about death and the misfortune of others. With just slight suspicions about this energy, so different from cursed energy, he was already giving him advice on how to handle it.

Knowing that Sukuna wouldn't give him a wrong answer, after all, he would also benefit from this. Yūji obeyed his words, closing his eyes and taking long breaths. He stayed like that for half a minute until he managed to ignore his sister and the one who would now be his sensei. He entered a state of concentration, shutting everything else out.

He only paid attention to the rain, the soft drizzle hitting the sparse vegetation in the area, the gentle vibrations the rain emitted as it struck both his body and the ground. His senses sharpened, and his expression of concentration shifted into one of complete serenity.

Slowly, he moved his finger away from his forehead, feeling a warm and abundant sensation spreading from his abdomen. Imagining that interior, it was like a living, dancing flame, emitting a vibrant and pure blue color.

Although some wisps formed into gentle, dancing flames of a rotten red color, it seemed like above him was the bottomless pit of his cursed energy. His cursed energy used to be like chakra —a pale blue with black tones— but ever since Sukuna became an essential part of him, that energy constantly changed to a blood-red mixed with black.

It seemed that cursed energy and chakra still couldn't touch each other, repelling one another. But he would pay attention to that later. Now that he was in this state, he needed to make it work.

Without thinking, he let his chakra circulate throughout his body, going directly to his forehead. Even though it reached his forehead, he managed to keep it calm, like a river flowing steadily, going back and forth to the center of his vital and pure energy.

He didn't realize that, in this state, a gentle wind appeared around him, swaying his hair. Karin adjusted her glasses with joy as she saw her brother successfully keeping the leaf on his forehead. But despite the smile on her lips, she was also very surprised, her expression turning into one of pure shock.

" Y-Yūji, you... " Karin had truly expected her brother to fail at keeping the leaf in place.

" Two... six... ten... twenty... forty... " Konan was visibly astonished by the surge of power from the young boy in front of her. Her Akatsuki cloak swayed in soft motions as she observed the boy's chakra.

It was overwhelmingly abundant. Her surprise grew even more when she realized that, despite having such an enormous reserve for someone his age, the boy showed no signs of fatigue or loss of concentration.

" He's really doing it... " Konan muttered as she observed the leaf on the child's forehead, which hadn't fallen or shown any signs of breaking. Her smile widened, revealing her white teeth. " I can't believe he's been in this state for over ten minutes. "

The reason Yūji was in that state was that he was letting Sukuna examine his chakra reserves more closely. At the very least, he knew that would satisfy Sukuna's desire to experience new power and energies.

He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze determined as he looked at his sister and his sensei. Now that he had familiarized himself with his chakra, it was surprisingly easy. He didn't have to force it.

He could control his chakra just like his cursed energy. In fact, it was even easier than cursed energy, as it was light and fluid.

When he opened his eyes, the oppressive aura of his chakra disappeared as if it had never been there in the first place.

" Sister Konan! Look, I'm doing it! How long has it been? " Yūji asked excitedly, looking at Konan and Karin. His sister stared at him with wide eyes, while Konan's smile was even more pronounced than he remembered.

" Fifteen minutes, exactly. " Konan hadn't stopped counting in her mind. Yūji was greatly surprised by the number, much higher than he had expected.

" WHAT?! " He let out a dramatic exclamation, watching as the paper exploded into thousands of tiny pieces, making him quickly rub his forehead as it started to itch.

" Did I really last that long? " Still holding his forehead, the boy looked at Konan with wide eyes, noticing the smile on her face.

" That's right... It seems you truly will be very powerful in the future, Yūji. " Her gaze was filled with pride, perhaps because, even though she tried to ignore her emotions, looking at the boy's face reminded her of the late Yahiko.

The red-haired boy grinned widely, celebrating with a smile as he moved closer to his sister. " Sister! I did it! " Even though he didn't say it out loud, his actions screamed: *Come on, praise me!*

Karin showed a joyful expression toward her younger brother. " You're really intelligent and skilled, Yūji. You surpassed me... " She still couldn't stop imagining how small, visible bursts of blue energy were emanating from his body so soft and calming.

The boy, immersed in his happiness, then turned to the lavender-haired woman. " Sister Konan, does that mean I passed chakra control? "

With a subtle but amused expression, Konan calmly shook her head. " There's one more step before you can claim mastery over chakra. Now, I'll show you the next method. In the coming days, you'll need to adapt to it. Watch closely, I'll execute it without explanations. You two will have to figure it out yourselves. " she explained calmly, her amber eyes observing the two children.

Without showing any emotion, she walked toward a relatively flat rock, resembling a wall. As soon as she stepped onto it, Yūji thought she would fall face first, but to his utter shock, he was once again amazed by this crazy world.

She was sticking to the rock! She didn't even flinch!

" Alright, now it's your turn. " With a jump, she landed back on the ground, watching as the girl sighed before attempting the exercise.

Konan observed Karin with interest, mentally noting that the girl wasn't lagging behind Yūji. As someone who had experimented with refining chakra control, Karin had done exceptionally well on her first try. She took four steps before falling to the ground, surprising Konan.

When Jiraiya-sensei had trained her, Nagato, and Yahiko, she hadn't been able to take even a single step during the first few days. But these children, achieving it on their first tries without any external help, proved that they were exceptionally talented.

Now his gaze returned to what had most of his attention, that little redhead who was as bright as the sun, someone who truly seemed to illuminate the Village of Rain. Yūji had a pensive expression, standing still, glancing sideways as he watched his sister try again.

He noted that Yūji always seemed very attentive to his older sister, though she herself told herself it was more of an obsession.

There was always a worry in his eyes, an indescribable fear, something she only briefly noticed when she saw Karin fall to the ground and the boy immediately ran toward her.

It seemed that his sister was the only thing that mattered to him, too deeply.

When Yūji saw that his sister was fine, he sighed and gave her one of his best smiles, acting with a comedic attitude, just as he did in his past life. " Sister, come on, you can do it! You're way too good and talented! " the little boy encouraged Karin. The red-haired girl gave Yūji a happy and affectionate smile.

" You too, Yūji! Let's do this! " With her motivation renewed, Karin ran straight toward the rock, trying to climb more than five steps, but beyond that, she couldn't take another step. Her chakra became unstable again, and she fell straight to the ground.

Yūji paid more attention to his own task, a determined smile on his face, his sharp eyes locked onto the challenge ahead. " I'm going to do it... Chakra is easier than cursed energy," he said, and the redhead was right. Every time he manipulated cursed energy, it was rough, painful, and erratic, while chakra was the complete opposite.

" If circulating all my chakra to my forehead made the leaf stay in place... then to climb this wall, I just have to circulate my chakra directly to the soles of my feet, specifically to that vast network I remember seeing. " the thoughtful boy murmured to himself.

' Of course, you dumbass, just do it already. '

' Shut up! I was trying to hype myself up! ' the boy thought irritably, yelling at the curse in his mind. He sighed in frustration, shaking his head before positioning himself to sprint toward the wall.

With the same determined gaze, he ran toward the wall. Karin paused her training, looking slightly sweaty from expending more chakra than usual. Konan, who was observing from a distance, sharpened her gaze to see how Yūji would handle it.

When the redhead reached the wall, he immediately let his chakra flow freely to the soles of his feet. It felt warm, like an extension of his own body. As he stepped onto the wall, it was as if he were still walking on the ground. He ran as far as his legs could take him.

Konan smiled again, realizing she hadn't been wrong. She remembered that Rokushō had once told her that Yūji could be a prodigy. She hadn't believed it then, thinking he simply had potential.

But now that she was seeing it for herself, she knew she had been wrong, Yūji didn't just have potential.

He was a prodigy.

Karin jumped with excitement when she saw how high her brother had climbed. " Yūji! You did it! You really did it! " she shouted joyfully.

Yūji stopped to look at how high he had gotten, his bright white smile illuminating his flushed face. " Look at me, sister! I did it! I'm so high up! " He was genuinely happy with his accomplishment.

However, just as Yūji was celebrating, a terrible pain shot through his body, forcing his eyes wide open. His stomach hurt as if he had been hit by a special grade curse, reinforced with a Black Flash.

He lost control of his chakra and started falling. Karin's smile turned into one of concern as she saw her brother falling, his face twisted in pain and confusion. " YŪJI! " Her cry showed her fear.

Konan saw this, surprised that something had suddenly happened to the boy. She quickly formed several hand seals to use her Paper Ninjutsu to catch him, but before she could act, she saw the boy recover on his own.

Just moments before hitting the ground, Yūji controlled his chakra and landed in a crouch.

Cracks formed beneath him, but the boy seemed unharmed.

She approached him, concerned and confused, noticing the look of bewilderment still on his face. Despite her surprise at how he had managed to reinforce his legs with chakra, she focused on the more pressing issue. " What happened just now? Why did you lose control? "

The boy didn't answer right away. He just stared at the ground before finally looking up at Konan. " I... I don't know. I'm sorry, Konan-sensei, Karin... " he apologized timidly, feeling guilty for worrying his sister and possibly Konan as well.

Karin approached Yūji, worried, seeing how troubled he looked. It was likely that he didn't want to say what had happened.

Konan suspected the same. She found herself puzzled by the deep pain she had seen in the child's innocent features just moments ago.

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[ A/N :I will be uploading my art from this book I'm making. I'm excited to include Yūji and his parasite Sukuna in it! :D I hope you all like it too. In these small panels at the end of each chapter, you'll find the artwork, a little service for you! , I hope you enjoy what we have so far in this book. ♡ —— Image]