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The next morning, warm sunlight streamed through the window and spilled across Ken's face.
"Time to get up."
He sat up, stretched lazily, then pulled up his personal interface.
Chakra: 500
That was his current state.
It only took a day for his chakra to fully recover—much faster than an average ninja.
That was the power of the Sage Body.
"Convert 450 chakra into Sage Body energy."
Energy +450. Sage Body Lv.1 (459/100,000).
Normally, if a ninja completely ran out of chakra, they'd die.
When Kakashi fought the Deva Path of Pain, he'd once died from chakra exhaustion.
After repeated testing, Ken figured out that as long as he kept at least one-tenth of his chakra, his body would function just fine.
So now, every day, he could use 450 chakra to upgrade his bloodline while leaving 50 to keep himself running.
On top of that, he had 1500 points of reserve chakra stored away. If something urgent came up, he could tap into it instantly.
And if he ever ran out of that reserve, he could just start saving part of his daily chakra again to refill it.
Right now, his top priority was still upgrading the Sage Body.
Next came the Sharingan and Wood Release.
Wood Release also had a special trait—it could absorb chakra and turn it into his own.
But since Ken was still weak, he chose to play it safe and feed his bloodlines using his own chakra.
Once he reached jonin level, though…
Enemy ninja from other villages, rogue shinobi—their chakra could all become fuel for his growth.
As for jinchūriki… yeah, better not for now.
They had insane amounts of chakra, sure—but none of them were easy targets.
After getting up, Ken cooked breakfast and packed a lunch.
Money was tight. Even though Fugaku and Mikoto helped him out from time to time, he still had to live frugally.
Technically, since his parents had died for the village, he was supposed to receive a stipend.
And at first, he did.
But after the Nine-Tails incident last year, everything changed. The payments kept shrinking—now they were only half of what they used to be.
Not even enough to cover a month's food.
As a long-time Naruto fan, Ken didn't need to think hard to know why. It was obviously because of the Nine-Tails incident.
Which basically explained why his twenty-five-kilogram body carried forty-nine-point-nine-nine kilograms worth of rebellious spirit.
Today was the opening ceremony.
After getting ready and packing his lunch, Ken put on the new clothes and backpack Mikoto had bought him, then stepped outside.
The sunlight was blinding.
He narrowed his eyes—and the moment he turned, he saw Itachi leaning against the wall, like he'd been waiting there for a while.
"What are you doing here?" Ken asked, puzzled.
"Father said you're not familiar with the school. He asked me to go with you," Itachi replied calmly, expressionless.
"Oh."
Ken nodded, and the two of them set off together.
The Uchiha clan lived on the outskirts of the village, while the Ninja Academy was near the center of Konoha. It took over half an hour to walk there.
After a moment of silence, Itachi suddenly asked, "Do you think… if the conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha keeps getting worse… will it lead to war?"
Itachi was smart.
He could see the growing tension between the village and his clan—but as a child, there was nothing he could do about it. The helplessness weighed on him.
"Who knows?" Ken said lightly, hands behind his head as he looked up at the sky. "Let fate decide."
It's not like he could just say—
Hey, Itachi. In seven years, you're gonna slaughter your own parents for the sake of the village.
The rest of the walk passed in silence.
People bustled along the streets.
Ken didn't mind going to the Ninja Academy.
In fact, he thought systematic learning was the best way to survive in a world where the strong devoured the weak.
But after graduation, once you became a genin, you'd be assigned missions by Konoha's higher-ups.
Dangerous ones.
And if war broke out, you'd be sent to the battlefield.
Naruto's very first escort mission ran into Zabuza, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and Haku, who had a bloodline limit.
If Naruto hadn't lost control in anger and tapped into the Nine-Tails' power, Sasuke might've died right there.
The ninja world was dangerous.
Good thing Ken had a system.
After walking for more than half an hour, they finally arrived at the academy gates.
Itachi gave Ken a slight look of surprise.
Under Fugaku's training, Itachi had been practicing for over two years. His stamina was excellent—walking this long didn't faze him at all.
But he knew Ken's situation. And yet, the boy wasn't even out of breath.
That level of physical fitness was unexpected.
What Itachi didn't know was that after awakening his Sage Body to Level 1, Ken's physical abilities had improved dramatically.
He could probably run dozens—if not hundreds—of laps around the Uchiha training grounds.
Following the directions, the two of them made their way to the school field.
It was already packed with people.
Three minutes later, an old man in Hokage robes slowly walked onto the red-carpeted stage, surrounded by the school's leadership.
It was Konoha's Hokage—Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Behind him stood three other elders: Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane—figures of power within Konoha.
As soon as Hiruzen appeared, the crowd erupted into thunderous cheers.
A satisfied smile spread across his aged face.
"Parents, students—welcome. I am Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage of Konoha. I welcome you all here today!"
The applause grew even louder.
On stage, Hiruzen raised a hand gently, and the crowd quickly quieted.
"Where the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire burns on. Its light will continue to illuminate the village and nurture new leaves to grow…"
He spoke with passion, explaining the Will of Fire to the new students below.
Many of them were visibly moved—faces flushed, fists clenched, dreaming of becoming strong ninja who would protect Konoha and carry on that will.
Ken, on the other hand, felt sleepy. He even yawned.
The fire illuminates new leaves?
Yeah, right.
His own experiences over the past year had made one thing very clear—
The so-called Will of Fire was just empty words.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, as Hokage, made every decision from the perspective of the village.
His beloved student Orochimaru had kidnapped and experimented on hundreds of people—even children.
And yet, in the end, Hiruzen let him go.
Because in his eyes, Orochimaru was his most talented, most cherished student. Maybe he would change.
Hiruzen gave him a chance.
But who gave those dead villagers a chance?
And when it came to the Uchiha—one of Konoha's founding clans—Hiruzen showed a very different kind of ruthlessness.
For the sake of so-called peace, he had the nerve to ask Itachi to wipe out his entire clan.
The higher-ups of Konoha had long since started viewing the Uchiha through a biased lens.
If they hadn't pushed and pressured them at every turn, would the Uchiha have ever even considered rebellion?
And this… was the Will of Fire Hiruzen talked about?
Ken scoffed.
The atmosphere in the field grew more and more heated.
Many students were shouting, "Long live the Third Hokage!"
Ken joined in at the top of his lungs—
"Long live the Third!"
When in Rome, do as the Romans do…
"....."