"Transformation Jutsu."
Foosh
A smoke cloud erupted.
"Replacement Jutsu."
Foosh
Another smoke cloud.
"Clone Jutsu."
Foosh
Everyone was left in awe.
"Hehe… what do you think, Iruka-sensei? How did I do?" Sukuna grinned.
Iruka looked at the pink-haired boy, then back at his student list, and wrote something before looking back at Sukuna.
"Failed." Iruka said, veins twitching on his forehead.
"Eh… why?"
"What do you mean why? Why the hell are you throwing smoke bombs in class, you brat!" He finally couldn't take it anymore and shouted, his head swelling to unseen proportions.
"Oh, did you see that? I think that was the biggest one yet." A student whispered into another's ear.
"Yup, that was nearly 20% bigger than last time when Naruto painted the Hokage monument." The other student nodded.
"Do you think there's a limit to how much his head can swell?"
"Eh… hm, maybe. Will his head pop if it reaches its limit?"
The entire student body blinked, as if imagining how it would look, and then looked at Sukuna. Winking at him.
'Do it man, it's for science.'
'Yeah, yeah. For science.'
Sukuna was speechless. Iruka too seemed to notice the sign language going on between the kids, and he thought his head really would burst today.
"Whatever, just pass me already. I have to visit Konoha Hospital after this. Aizawa-sensei dumped all his work on me like usual." Sukuna said with a nonchalant tone, finally making Iruka lose it.
…
It was already evening by the time Sukuna got out of the academy. Around him, he saw many students lingering even now.
But he didn't bother with them, heading directly toward the blond sitting alone on a swing, radiating defeated main-character vibes.
"What happened? Why are you sitting here?" he asked, only to find Naruto lifeless, hollow in the eyes.
The blond, with much difficulty, raised his head, only to drop it again after seeing it was Sukuna.
"I failed…" Naruto slowly replied, his voice distant.
"Ah…" Sukuna nodded.
It couldn't be helped. Just like his own condition, Naruto too couldn't pass the test.
Sukuna had trained Naruto for years—not just him but all his friends—but mainly, he trained Naruto in chakra control, hoping to give him a solid foundation before the story began. But no matter how good Naruto's chakra control got, with the Nine Tails interfering with his chakra, there was no way he could use the Clone Jutsu.
The main issue was how precise chakra control needed to be to use a normal clone. Unlike a shadow clone, a normal clone was just an image. An intangible image of chakra.
So, Naruto couldn't do it.
As for Sukuna—
He had tried everything to find a way to pass the ninjutsu test, but nothing worked. From using sealing techniques to mimic how ninjutsu worked, to trying some crazy binding vow to perform ninjutsu—nothing seemed to work.
It seemed like fate that he couldn't use normal ninjutsu.
Without performing those basic three techniques, he could kiss his shinobi headband goodbye.
He thought of using genjutsu on both Iruka and Mizuki to make it seem like he performed ninjutsu, but that wouldn't work. Not that he was incapable of putting them under genjutsu—he had been learning under Izumi for years now.
He was a master of genjutsu at this point. But he couldn't just suddenly show up and claim he could do jutsu without arousing suspicion.
If he had a real method to perform them, then sure. But tricks with genjutsu would be revealed quickly once Iruka and Mizuki looked closely—which they would. No one just gets good at ninjutsu overnight.
Naruto didn't, and he wouldn't either.
So his only option was to make himself so useful that the Hokage had no choice but to pass him.
Much like Rock Lee. And yes, the boy had passed the test without using ninjutsu just last year.
Sukuna had been proving his worth too—through his excellent work at the hospital and his role in developing Naruto's overall strength.
If the Hokage could pass Naruto and Rock Lee, then he had to pass Sukuna as well.
"What about you?" Naruto asked after a little while.
"Me?" Sukuna's face darkened.
"Move aside, I wanna sit too." Sukuna's mood dropped to match Naruto's, asking for some space.
"Ah… okay."
So now both boys sat together on a single swing, radiating defeated main-character aura.
It was late in the evening when Mizuki approached Naruto. The silver-haired chunin wore a sly smile, hiding his true intent.
Sukuna could see exactly what was going through that bastard's mind from miles away, but he let the story play out. While he didn't have to, this was how Naruto would get his hands on the famous Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Without that jutsu, Naruto was incomplete. Not to mention, if Naruto learned how to use clones for training early on, that would be next level. Sukuna planned to help the blond boy with that as well.
"Hey, Naruto," Mizuki said in a friendly tone.
"Yeah, Mizuki-sensei?" Naruto looked at him with innocent eyes.
"Mind coming here for a minute? I wish to talk to you a little." He motioned for Naruto to come over.
Naruto, being Naruto, didn't think twice before following him. Sukuna just sighed. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't change this boy.
"There's a special test that only a few can take. If you pass it, you'll become a real shinobi, no matter what the academy says. It's secret, though. Only you can do it."
Naruto's eyes lit up with excitement. "Really? A test just for me? That means if I pass, I can become a shinobi?"
"You guessed it." Mizuki smiled.
He kept his smile wide. "Of course, Naruto. But… this is something only you can do. If you bring someone else along, the test won't count. It has to be you, alone."
Naruto hesitated and looked at Sukuna. "Even Sukuna can't come…?"
Mizuki quickly waved his hand. "No, no… he'll be given his own test, Naruto. But this one is only for you. You have to do it alone."
Naruto was an idiot—everyone knew it. Mizuki was no different. But with Sukuna… Mizuki knew the pink-haired boy would figure him out instantly if he got involved.
"Oh, okay Mizuki-sensei. What's the test?" Naruto's eyes shined.
And then the story went as it was supposed to.
Naruto snuck into the Hokage's office that night, heart pounding as he grabbed the giant scroll.
The little bastard even sent the strongest Hokage—the Professor, the God of Shinobi—flying with blood sprouting from his nostrils using his Sexy Jutsu.
He felt proud of it. Sukuna, watching from afar, gave him a thumbs up. Though that thumbs up would never reach the blond since Sukuna was hiding, observing from the shadows.
Soon, word of Naruto stealing the Scroll of Sealing spread, and Iruka came rushing.
From the shadows, Sukuna watched everything unfold with his Kamui. Hidden away in another dimension, even the Hokage's eyes couldn't track him.
"So, it begins," Sukuna muttered, taking a deep breath. This was the start of a legend.
He mostly expected the story to play out the same way he remembered: Mizuki tricks Naruto, Naruto runs, then Iruka steps in.
But things went differently this time.
When Mizuki appeared in the forest, pretending to praise Naruto, Iruka caught up, shouting, "Naruto! Give that scroll back, it's dangerous!"
Naruto blinked, confused. "But Mizuki-sensei said it was a test…"
Iruka's sharp tone made Naruto pause. "He lied to you!"
Naruto's eyes widened. And here the story changed. Instead of running away like before, he clenched his fists.
"You lied to me? Dattebayo!" he shouted at Mizuki, anger blazing in his eyes.
"Then I'll beat you myself!"
Sukuna's smile faltered a bit. Last he remembered, Naruto ran away here.
Mizuki smirked, pulling out a giant shuriken. "You? Beat me? Don't make me laugh. Nine Tails."
"No Mizuki, don't say it!" Iruka was alarmed.
"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Naruto asked in confusion.
This led to Mizuki telling Naruto that he was the Nine Tails.
However, this time, Naruto didn't stop. He didn't doubt himself. He glared back at Mizuki.
Iruka stepped in front of Naruto, ready to protect him, but the blond pushed forward. "No! Iruka-sensei. This is my fight!"
From afar, Sukuna chuckled under his breath. "I might have changed the story way too much already."
…
A/N: What do you think? How strong would Naruto be without his signature Shadow Clones?
xxx
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