Changing Fate As Naruto

As Naruto and Sasuke finally stepped out of the long and isolated training period in Training Ground Three, a sense of unreality lingered in their hearts. After spending over a year in seclusion, their return to the real world felt dreamlike. When they saw the dim yellow streetlights—once so ordinary—illuminating the roads and dispelling the darkness, they both instinctively felt as if they had returned from another world.

It was like survivors returning to civilization after years of being stranded on a deserted island. Although the scenery before them hadn't changed much compared to their memories from a year ago, Naruto and Sasuke, who had grown used to camping, starting fires with sticks, and living off the land, couldn't help but feel a deep sense of unfamiliarity they struggled to describe.

"Haaah~ We're finally out… Hehe, I've gotten thiiis much stronger this past year! I'm gonna give my brother and the others a huge surprise when I get home!"

The beauty of being a kid is how quickly you forget your troubles. Aside from the initial daze upon confirming they had really walked out of Training Ground Three, Sasuke adjusted far faster than Naruto. After yawning and patting his lips with his pudgy little hand, he turned and nudged Naruto, who was still spaced out, with his elbow. Grinning widely, he spread his arms and continued:

"Y'know, I never realized how big Training Ground Three was until now… We spent a whole year in there and never saw anyone besides the three of us! I seriously thought we'd left the village a few times!"

"Ah… yeah, you're right… I was surprised too. When we chose this place to train, I had no idea it was that big, dattebayo…"

Jolted awake by Sasuke's playful elbow, Naruto finally snapped back to reality. As he responded absentmindedly, the enhanced sensory perception he had gained over the past year of intense training hadn't even been fully activated when he caught a faint, hidden presence nearby. Though it held no hostility, Naruto quickly pieced together the reason why they hadn't encountered a single soul in the training field all year.

'I knew it… No matter how big or deserted Training Ground Three is, it still has its limits. And yet, not even a single passerby showed up during our training—not even Uchiha Itachi, the world's most hopeless bro-con, who somehow managed to suppress his urge to visit his little brother for an entire year. That's not normal, right? Now that I think about it, this was probably arranged in advance by Pervy Sage. He must've stationed people nearby to block out all interference so we could focus completely on training.'

Naturally, Sasuke, who had also undergone custom training under one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, had improved his sensory abilities by leaps and bounds. If he'd been paying attention, he might have noticed the same hidden guards Naruto did. But Sasuke's thoughts were fully preoccupied with rushing home and showering his family with cuddles. And even if he had sensed someone, his childlike mind would've just assumed they were villagers still on duty and dismissed it completely.

(Well… he wouldn't have been wrong, in a way.)

Though Sasuke had narrowed the gap between his strength and Naruto's during the past year—excluding Naruto's Tailed Beast Mode and the Flying Thunder God Technique—his mental maturity still lagged behind. It was like giving both of them gunpowder: Sasuke would use it to make pretty fireworks and play around, while Naruto would craft a deadly explosive. That, more than anything, showed the gap between childlike innocence and a battle-hardened mindset.

"Hmm? What are you mumbling about now? Don't just stand there like an idiot, Naruto—we can really go home now! I can't wait to take a nice, hot bath and dive into my soft bed for a good night's sleep!"

No matter how much he tried to act mature, Sasuke was still a kid. This had been his first time away from his family for an entire year. The fact that he had managed to suppress his homesickness and focus on training was already impressive. But now that he was certain he could return home, the bottled-up anxiety and eagerness erupted all at once. Seeing Naruto still lost in thought, seemingly with no particular desire to go home, only made him more impatient. His tone rose, but he quickly softened again as something else came to mind.

"Oh, right, Naruto! Isn't it weird…? Back during training, just one night on those hard rock beds was enough to make my whole body sore, but now that we're finally out of that hellhole, I'm actually… kinda missing the days we spent with that old geezer."

Unlike Naruto, who had the advantage of memories from a past life and had basically "cheated" his way into building favor, Sasuke hadn't bothered to learn much about the upper echelons of Konoha's power structure. He didn't know the title "Legendary Sannin," nor did he understand the significance of Mount Myoboku or the Toad Sages. To him, Jiraiya was just a knowledgeable, eccentric, and extremely perverted old man.

"Of course you'd miss him. Pervy Sage was my dad's teacher—yup, the same guy you idolize as the great hero, the Fourth Hokage. That means, after this year of training, you and I are kinda like… peers? You know, same generation, fellow disciples under the same master and all that."

Seeing Sasuke puff his cheeks in confusion and pout adorably, Naruto had to fight hard not to burst into laughter. He flicked Sasuke's smooth forehead playfully, paused just long enough to hide his smile, and then jokingly added with mock seriousness:

"Oh? You're not ready to say goodbye, huh…? That's easy to fix! Pervy Sage is probably still nearby. We can just go back and train for another year or two—how's that sound?"

"Ahem—w-what are you saying, Naruto? Not wanting to leave? Me? Did I say that? No, right? I didn't! Definitely not!"

Over the past year, not only had Sasuke's strength grown, but all the playful bickering with Naruto had honed his ability to adapt on the fly. The moment Naruto teased him, Sasuke pursed his lips, tilted his head, and blinked his big, round eyes with feigned innocence.

Put simply, the once naïve little Uchiha was now learning how to play dumb. Thanks to Naruto's influence, he was slowly being corrupted.

"Haha, you little rascal—you picked that up fast. Too bad… I've got proof—get down!"

Naruto was just about to pull out an unopened voice recorder to playfully "threaten" Sasuke, when he suddenly sensed the life force of the hidden guards around them disappearing one by one. His expression changed instantly. At the same moment, a chilling bloodlust flared up behind Sasuke. Naruto's pupils shrank. Without time to think, his body moved instinctively. With a shout, he lunged forward and shoved the clueless boy to the ground.

Hiss—!

Almost the exact moment Naruto moved, a slick, cold, whip-like object grazed his head and struck the ground behind him. As Naruto turned his head to see what had attacked them, ready to explain to a bewildered Sasuke, his eyes finally locked onto the creature behind the ambush—its red tongue flicking ominously.

His entire body trembled as if submerged in ice water. He couldn't help but curse out loud, right in front of Sasuke.

"A snake…? What the f—Orochimaru?!"