The sun had already risen high over Konoha.
Inside Naruto's small apartment, everything looked different — almost unrecognizable.
The floor gleamed, polished to the point where Naruto could see his own reflection. The mountain of trash that once filled the corners was gone. The dishes were washed and stacked neatly. Even the sink sparkled. The faint smell of soap and lemon filled the air. For once, his home looked… livable.
By normal standards that is. While cleaning, Naruto had felt like he wasn't cleaning his house but part of his identity.
Right now, Naruto sat cross-legged in the dining room, surrounded by five shadow clones. The six of them formed a neat circle on the floor. A single sheet of paper and a pen lay in front of him.
Each Naruto wore a serious expression.
" Yosh! Guys, we need to discuss our future plan. The first thing on our agenda is…"
He looked up from the paper.
"Was that dream even real?"
The clones exchanged looks. One of them — Clone One — raised his hand.
"Boss, I think the dream was real,"
He said firmly.
All the other Narutos turned to him, signaling him to continue.
"Think about it. There are too many things that match. The projection we saw, our life, the people around us — even the Fourth Hokage. And although we aren't a hundred percent sure if we're his son, it's at least a ninety percent chance. Everything fits, except maybe the personality part. Blond hair, blue eyes… it's all there."
He paused, letting the words sink in.
"Hmm..."
Naruto rubbed his chin thoughtfully, nodding to himself. It sounded… reasonable.
"Alright,"
Naruto said.
"What else? This doesn't confirm anything yet."
Clone One nodded.
"True. But rather than wasting time brooding over whether the dream was real, we should focus on proving if the knowledge we gained is real."
All the Narutos hummed in agreement, sinking into thought. Then Naruto nodded again.
"You're right. For now, let's assume the dream is real."
He picked up the pen and crossed out the first line on the paper, which read Is the dream real? Then he looked up again, his blue eyes sharper than before.
"Now, on to the second topic — the training plan."
All the clones straightened their backs.
"We already have a huge advantage in training efficiency. With Shadow Clones, we can multiply our progress by several folds,"
Naruto said, tapping the pen on the paper.
"What we need now is an effective plan — something that guarantees fast improvement."
"The first thing we'll focus on is chakra control,"
He continued.
"It's essential if we want to get stronger!"
All the clones nodded without argument.
"Alright, first things first — tree walking, then water walking. We'll increase the difficulty step by step."
"Then, we'll start elemental chakra training since we have wind and water affinities."
"And at the same time, we'll train Rasengan to push our control even further."
Naruto scribbled down the list. The scratching of pen on paper filled the quiet room. But before he could continue, Clone Three suddenly spoke up.
"Boss, I think you're forgetting something important."
Naruto looked up. All the other clones turned to him too.
"As we are right now, we're severely malnourished. All we eat is ramen,"
Clone Three said flatly.
"Let's be real — that's not healthy at all."
He crossed his arms. "If we think back to all the knowledge we've read — fanfics, theory posts, improvement arcs — we know that physical strength is just as important as chakra. Maybe even more. Ninjutsu is powerful, but if we don't have a fast and strong body to keep up, we're dead the moment we face someone who's better at it. And with our chakra control, mastering one ninjutsu will take a lot off time. And spaming it in battle is unrealistic. Ninjas aren't mindless RPG character."
Silence fell over the room. The words hit hard.
"Hmm..."
Naruto tilted his head back, humming thoughtfully. Then, his expression brightened as he came to a decision.
"You're right!"
He admitted with a nod.
"I was kinda dumb to forget that. So, training our body it is."
He jotted down another line on the paper.
"But that brings another problem,"
He said, frowning.
"We're malnourished. We need healthy food. But no one will sell it to me."
The clones glanced at one another until Clone Two raised his hand.
"What if we use the Transformation Jutsu, boss?"
Naruto blinked.
"Wouldn't that be illegal?"
Clone Two smirked.
"Only if we get caught. And are you really afraid of that, boss?"
Naruto's eyes widened — then a mischievous grin spread across his face.
"Hehehe~ you're right!! Alright then, priority number one — taijutsu and body training! The rest will follow."
He clapped his hands once.
"Since we can train multiple things at once, I'll handle the physical part. You guys focus on chakra control and jutsu."
"Yosh!"X5
All five clones saluted in unison.
"Boss, I think you should train somewhere secret!!"
Clone Five suddenly said.
"Why?"
Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow.
Clone Five jumped to his feet, eyes shining.
"Because it's cool!! Think about it!! What'll happen when we suddenly appear super strong out of nowhere!? Everyone will be shocked! It'll be like… like a wolf in sheep's clothing!!"
Naruto blinked — then his heart started to pound. That did sound awesome.
"Shut it, idiot!!"
Clone Four cut in sharply.
"Think smarter. You're right that we should train in secret, but not because it's cool. If people find out, it'll cause trouble. The villagers won't like us getting stronger — especially that annoying Civil Council. They're a pain in the ass. We don't want to trouble Jiji with their complaints, right? And we need to be wary of Danzo and Root. He gets wind of this, with his personality, he will surely try to pull some shady move."
The excitement in the room dimmed, replaced by silent agreement. All the Narutos frowned and nodded.
"Alright,"
Naruto said finally, his tone steady.
"After tomorrow's team selection, we'll head to the Forest of Death to find a hidden spot for training!!"
He pushed himself up, energy flooding back into his voice.
"Yosh!! Everything's set!!"
All the clones jumped to their feet as well.
"Alright, boys!! After tomorrow, our journey to becoming the greatest Hokage in existence begins!!"
"Yay!!"
With a puff of smoke, all five clones vanished, leaving Naruto alone in the quiet, spotless room.
He looked around, the silence almost heavy now. Then, a small smile crept across his lips.
Tomorrow would be the start of everything.