Konohagakure Ninja Academy.
"Good morning, Hagoromo!"
"Good morning!"
Greeting his fellow Academy students with a gentle tone, Hagoromo felt internally depressed. He currently enjoyed a level of treatment similar to that of the expressionless Sasuke: thanks to this particular face, he was inexplicably popular among the girls at school.
Seriously, is the 'Looks Association' paying you guys a salary?
Hagoromo utterly detested his luck in drawing lots. Truly, his luck was too good. After an accidental death, a certain chuunibyo God of Transmigration granted him a second chance at life—with bonus gifts included. He received three draws. The first resulted in an E-Rank item: the "skin" of a certain 2D character. This was fine; with this skin and the support of the 'Looks Association,' he could have thrived in any Slice-of-Life anime. At the very least, he could have been like School Days' Makoto... cough, scratch that... he could have truly enjoyed a Youth Romantic Comedy.
The result? His hands had betrayed him, and he proceeded to pull an A-Rank skill and an S-Rank talent. To his despair, the God refused all returns. Based on his newfound power, he was tossed into the high-risk world of Naruto.
Hey, hey! I'm really not that familiar with Naruto, okay? During his chuunibyo years, he was a die-hard One Piece fan. He used to get into flame wars with Naruto fans online, but his knowledge of the actual plot was superficial at best.
Of course, while he wasn't familiar with the timeline, he knew the characters reasonably well. He could remember most major players. This was largely because, during his chuunibyo phase, he used to write "scientific" papers comparing the power scales of the two series—titles like Practicality of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit vs. Lightning Style: An Evaluation of Destructive Effect and Energy Cost-Efficiency. Later, those cringe-worthy memories almost drove him to bury himself alive, and he'd kept them sealed in the corners of his mind. Who knew they would actually be useful now?
"Graduation is almost here..."
Looking at the gates of the Konoha Ninja Academy, Kamishiraishi Hagoromo couldn't help but feel emotional. He had been in this world for ten years. He entered the Academy at age seven, and now, the moment to graduate and head to the battlefield had arrived.
Kamishiraishi Hagoromo. This was the name he inherited from his parents in this world.
Following the universal law of transmigrators—"House, car, and parents both busy (deceased)"—Hagoromo was an orphan.
His backstory went like this: his father was a mere Chunin who unfortunately passed away right at the start of the current Great War. His mother was a Medical Ninja who was conscripted to the front lines shortly after giving birth to him and never returned.
In fact, during the various wars, a consensus tactic had formed among the nations: field hospitals were Tier-1 primary targets. As the value of Medical Ninjas became more apparent to both sides, they naturally became targets for both heavy protection and priority assassination.
That's right—it was currently the Third Shinobi World War. A war where people died every day wasn't just a reality; it was in full swing.
Every Shinobi World War was a chaotic free-for-all, and ironically, the Land of Fire—despite having the strongest hidden village—found itself under siege from multiple sides every time.
The Land of Earth, the Land of Lightning, the Land of Water, the Land of Wind.
Iwa, Kumo, Kiri, and Suna.
Forced into multi-front warfare, Konoha and the Land of Fire were extremely short on manpower. The Academy's teaching period was compressed into three years, and there was no minimum age for enrollment.
The famous Hatake Kakashi had enrolled in the same year as Hagoromo at the age of five. He stayed for only six months before graduating early to rush to the battlefield.
As for why Hagoromo joined the Academy to become a ninja?
Because being alone was too boring.
He was a person from another world—in a sense, an alien and a time-traveler, and an esper to boot. Yet he was bored. Honestly, he shouldn't have come to the Naruto world; he belonged in the Suzumiya Haruhi Brigade to "make the world more exciting."
"Hey, Hagoromo! Why the daze? How's your confidence for the graduation exam?"
While Hagoromo was lost in thought, someone slapped him on the shoulder.
He didn't need to turn around; his perception already told him exactly who it was.
Maito Gai: The perennial dead-last, future Taijutsu master, current Taijutsu mini-master.
Uchiha Obito: The second perennial dead-last. Self-proclaimed "Elite Ninja" whose actual grades and combat power trailed even behind Gai's. After his crush kicked the bucket, his descent into love-fueled madness would turn him into one of the ultimate bosses.
Hagoromo knew at least that much.
These two had long held the bottom two ranks in class. They certainly didn't need to worry about Hagoromo's grades.
"I'm definitely more confident than you two."
Hagoromo tilted his head and gave them a "dead-fish eye" stare. Looking at Obito specifically, he couldn't wrap his head around it—how could someone like this go mad for love? Does he even have the brains required for madness?
"It's not your turn to worry about me, is it? You'd be better off worrying about yourselves," he continued mercilessly.
There were eight classes in Hagoromo's year, with thirty students each. He recognized quite a few names: Ebisu, Shiranui Genma, Mitarashi Anko, Yuhi Kurenai, Sarutobi Asuma, Nohara Rin, Maito Gai, Uchiha Obito, and the early graduate, the son of the White Fang—Hatake Kakashi.
Of course, they weren't all in the same class. Hagoromo was only well-acquainted with Gai, Obito, and Rin. This was mostly because Gai and Obito were shamelessly social, and Obito was always dragging the two of them toward Rin. Otherwise, with a level of presence in the eyes of the other boys comparable to Hachiman Hikigaya, Hagoromo wouldn't have had any friends at all.
"We'll graduate smoothly, of course... as long as Ninjutsu and Genjutsu aren't on the exam!" Gai's confidence was baffling. Did he think the exam was Taijutsu-only?
"Hagoromo is so annoying. Especially that hair—it always reminds me of a certain self-righteous jerk!" Obito, meanwhile, didn't appreciate Hagoromo's concern at all.
Speaking of self-righteous, that's you, isn't it? Do you think I wanted this specific white hair? It's the "Will of God," okay? God said "Let there be light," and there was light. God said "You get premature grey hair," and so Hagoromo got premature grey hair. He couldn't exactly spit in the God of Transmigration's face over it, could he?
Besides, you think he hasn't tried? Is he going to tell you the vital secret that God's face is like a lotus leaf—nothing sticks to it?
The group entered the Academy but didn't head to the classrooms. Instead, they gathered in the small plaza in front of the school, as the graduation exam was to be held outdoors.
Note 1: The protagonist's name is derived from Kamishiraishi Mone and Otsutsuki Hagoromo. Kamishiraishi Mone + Otsutsuki Hagoromo = Kamishiraishi Hagoromo.
Note 2: Information available for disclosure: The E-Rank skin is Prince Arslan. Some may know him as a quite "masculine" Highness.