Chapter 1: The Unwelcome
The whispers followed him again, sharp and biting like winter wind.
"Look, there it is again. That unlucky one."
"Tch. Even Uchiha blood can't wash away the stench of a stray."
"Keep your voice down! Do you want to end up in the Konoha prison?"
"They say the child of a traitor will become a traitor too. The Hokage is too soft-hearted, letting it stay here."
Kagenori kept his head slightly lowered, his expression shadowed as he walked through the streets of Konoha. The words weren't new to him—he'd been hearing variations of them for five years now.
Nine years had passed since he first arrived in this world, and five since he came to Konoha. In that time, the initial thrill of discovering the Naruto universe had curdled into something bitter and resentful.
The villagers weren't wrong about everything. The blood of the Uchiha clan did flow through his veins, a fact that should have granted him status and belonging. Instead, it marked him as an outsider, a contamination.
The Uchiha prized the purity of their lineage above all else, marrying only within their clan. But Kagenori's parents had broken this sacred rule. His mother carried the Uchiha heritage, while his father bore the blood of the Senju—the Uchiha's ancient rivals.
Had his father been anyone else, perhaps the Uchiha might have overlooked the transgression. But a Senju? That was unforgivable.
When the clan leaders discovered Kagenori's mother was pregnant, they confined her immediately, demanding she terminate the pregnancy. In a daring rescue, Kagenori's father slipped past Uchiha defenses and spirited her away from Konoha.
The Uchiha clan would not tolerate their bloodline escaping their control. They reported the incident to the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who promptly declared Kagenori's parents missing-nin and dispatched ANBU to retrieve them.
Yet somehow, his parents evaded capture, finding refuge in a remote village without ninja. There, Kagenori was born, and for four blissful years, they lived as a family—the only truly happy memory Kagenori possessed.
Then came the night everything shattered. A pack of unusually powerful wild beasts descended upon their peaceful village. With no ninja to defend them, the villagers stood little chance. Driven by desperation to protect her family, Kagenori's mother activated her Sharingan, fighting alongside his father to repel the creatures.
That moment of survival became their undoing. Like vultures drawn to carrion, rogue ninja sensed the activated Sharingan and descended upon the village, eager to claim the prized eyes for themselves.
In the brutal battle that followed, Kagenori's father died shielding him and his mother from a lethal attack. Though gravely wounded herself, Kagenori's mother used her last strength to bring him to Konoha's gates, begging the Hokage to take him in.
Surprisingly, Sarutobi Hiruzen agreed. While Kagenori's parents were technically missing-nin, they had never acted against Konoha's interests. Moreover, the boy carried both Uchiha and Senju bloodlines—potential that shouldn't be left to wander outside the village.
So Kagenori stayed. The Hokage brought him before the Uchiha clan, asking if they would acknowledge him as one of their own.
They refused.
Konoha provided a modest, dilapidated house on the village outskirts, then largely forgot about him.
Kagenori understood their rejection. Given the bitter history between the Uchiha and Senju clans, his mixed heritage made him an abomination in their eyes.
Initially, he'd clung to naive hope. Surely aside from the Jinchūriki, Konoha's villagers would be reasonably accepting? He dreamed of building a new life, only to have those hopes systematically crushed.
Nearly every villager regarded him with open hostility.
Over time, Kagenori pieced together why. First, his parents were missing-nin—traitors in the villagers' eyes. Second, and perhaps more significantly, the Uchiha clan's behavior had poisoned the well.
The Konoha Military Police Force, controlled entirely by the Uchiha, had grown increasingly arrogant in exercising their authority. They maintained order with an iron fist, arresting anyone who spoke against them on charges of "criminal tendencies." This bred deep resentment among the populace—resentment they couldn't safely direct at the powerful Uchiha clan.
So they directed it at him—a child with half-Uchiha blood and not even a proper surname to his name.
Kagenori wasn't like Naruto. He didn't possess that bottomless well of forgiveness. Five years in this environment had eroded whatever optimism he might have once possessed. He couldn't comprehend how anyone could grow up surrounded by such hatred and still choose to forgive.
Even the villagers' beloved Hokage had proven disappointing. Sarutobi Hiruzen had witnessed Kagenori being harassed multiple times, yet each time, the old man merely glanced his way before continuing on as if he'd seen nothing. Gradually, Kagenori realized the Hokage's benevolent demeanor was just that—a performance.
To Kagenori, Konoha had become a gilded cage.
Yet he couldn't leave. Konoha wouldn't permit it, and even if they did, he lacked the power to survive outside the village's protection. Ironically, despite everything, Konoha remained his safest option.
His confidence that he could eventually change his circumstances didn't stem from his Uchiha or Senju heritage. With only half of each bloodline, he might never awaken the Sharingan or Wood Release.
His hope lay in something else entirely—a system simply called 'The Witness.'
Its mechanics were straightforward: witness significant events to accumulate points. However, activating the system required an initial 100 witness points.
In five years, he'd only gathered 50 points—all from witnessing Namikaze Minato's enrollment at the Ninja Academy three years ago.
The other 50 points remained elusive, stymied by his isolated position within Konoha and the current era of peace. With the Third Great Ninja War still years away, opportunities to witness significant events were scarce.
But now, a chance approached. Uzumaki Kushina would soon arrive in Konoha and enroll in the Academy.
Witnessing her admission would surely grant him the remaining 50 points he needed.
Then, at last, his system would awaken.