Naruto: Reincarnated as a Demon King

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The Chūnin instructor ignored the uproar outside the arena, his expression dark as he flickered onto the field. He glanced down at Shuu, whose nose had been punched so hard that it was practically embedded into his face, and couldn't help but twitch at the sight.

Three missing front teeth, a completely shattered nasal bone, and a perfectly clear fist imprint on his face.

Even if Shuu's injuries healed, his once decent-looking face was ruined. Not even the legendary medical genius Princess Tsunade could fix this if she returned to the village!

"You still have the nerve to smile after doing this?"

The instructor glared at Raiden, his face twisted with fury.

Raiden cast him an indifferent glance, not even bothering to respond. Without a word, he turned and walked away.

Just an extra. Not worth acknowledging.

"You've beaten Shuu to this extent do you think the Hyūga Clan will let this slide?!"

The instructor's angry shout followed Raiden's retreating figure.

As Raiden walked out of the training grounds, the students instinctively parted, making way for him.

He stopped in front of Izumi, his usual serious expression intact, though this time, there was a slight smirk tugging at his lips.

"We promised to enter the Elite Class together."

"Hmph, if you can win, do you really think I would lose?"

Despite clearly being worried, the girl turned her head away in a prideful pout, offering Raiden only a view of her cute side profile.

Raiden twitched his lips, wanting to laugh but wary of making her angry.

The world wouldn't stop turning just because one person was injured.

Not even if that person was a so-called Hyūga prodigy.

After watching Izumi's match, Raiden left the Ninja Academy with her. Since it was Friday, the next two days were a break. As usual, he would be helping out at Izumi's family's sweet shop.

And, of course, Izumi won her match.

As for the Chūnin instructor's warning about the Hyūga Clan's retaliation? Raiden couldn't care less.

In this world, strength dictated everything.

Even the Hyūga Clan couldn't control Konoha with a single hand.

As long as he proved himself valuable enough, the Third Hokage wouldn't allow the Hyūga Clan to act recklessly. And even if worse came to worst wasn't there always Danzo?

---

Konoha Village – A Forest by the River

It was the weekend.

After finishing his work at the sweet shop, Raiden made his way to the forest for training.

As the sun dipped below the horizon and the sky darkened, he showed no intention of stopping.

His current training? Water walking, refining his chakra control.

For most people, a small unit of chakra was enough to create a shadow clone. But for Raiden, he needed two or even three times that amount to produce just one.

If he couldn't control his chakra well, mastering powerful ninjutsu would be impossible. The stronger the jutsu, the greater the chakra consumption.

His physical strength had skyrocketed, and his chakra reserves had grown immensely far surpassing his peers.

Yet, it still wasn't enough.

Raiden sometimes envied Naruto's ridiculous chakra pool. A mere Genin with chakra reserves greater than some Jōnin? Completely absurd.

But there was no point in complaining.

Training was the only answer.

Raiden stood on the river's surface, chakra concentrated beneath his feet.

Stay steady, keep control, and victory is assured.

Suddenly—

The chakra beneath his feet wavered.

The once-calm river churned violently, bubbling like boiling water.

SPLASH!

"Tch failed again!"

Raiden surfaced, wiping water from his face before launching into an impromptu dog paddle session.

Failed water-walking meant more swimming practice.

Thanks to the Devil Fruit's curse, Raiden was despised by the sea. If over half of his body was submerged in freshwater, his entire body would go limp.

But through relentless training, he had gradually overcome this limitation.

So now, he treated swimming as weighted resistance training.

"One kilometre of freestyle. If I don't finish, I'm not going home today!"

Setting a personal challenge, Raiden paddled forward.

Freestyle swimming? More like dog-paddle survival. A regular person swimming a kilometre wasn't a big deal.

But Raiden wasn't normal.

With his Devil Fruit's weakness, swimming felt like he had ten thousand tons of weight strapped to his body.

It took him nearly three hours to finish the distance.

That alone spoke volumes about the struggle.

Talent was predetermined. But success? That was earned through hard work. No power came without effort. If fate had given Raiden an opportunity, he would seize it with everything he had.

If he wasn't training, he was on his way to training.

Train, train, and train some more!

SPLASH!

Panting heavily, Raiden climbed onto the riverbank, rolling onto his back like a dead fish, gasping for air. A single kilometre of swimming was far more exhausting than a full day of sparring.

Yet, the satisfaction that followed was exhilarating. He could feel his body changing. Part of it was due to his Zoan Devil Fruit's passive enhancements.

The rest? The result of relentless training.

A year ago, he couldn't even walk up a flight of stairs without gasping for breath. Now, he could swim a thousand meters under extreme resistance.

The feeling was incredible.

"Been swimming for over a year now. Basic land training doesn't seem as effective anymore."

"Maybe it's time for weighted training. How much weight should I add…? Maybe a full ton?"

Despite only being six years old, Raiden's physique, enhanced by his Zoan abilities, was nothing short of monstrous.

He had no precise sense of weight.

The "ten thousand tons" he imagined in the water was merely a number he assigned.

Maybe it was real. Maybe it wasn't.

Either way, he needed to test his limits.

With that in mind, he set off toward the village.

---

Konoha Village – Commercial District

Raiden wandered through the bustling marketplace, scanning his surroundings.

He recalled that the ninja tool shop should be nearby. He didn't visit the market often, given his lack of money. Even when he did, it was usually just passing through.

Now, standing amidst the lively crowd and the peaceful streets, he felt a strange sense of disconnect.

Konoha, in the aftermath of the Nine-Tails attack, was at its weakest.

On the surface, it seemed prosperous.

But beneath that exterior… rot had already begun to spread. A village still lost in nostalgia, indulging in fleeting peace, unaware that danger loomed ever closer.

"Tch. Not my problem."

Shaking his head, Raiden dismissed the thoughts. His eyes landed on the familiar sign of the ninja tool shop.

Without hesitation, he stepped inside.

Surrounded by an array of kunai, swords, shuriken, daggers, and military blades, one might have expected him to be interested in the weaponry.

But Raiden's gaze was locked onto something else entirely.

---

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