"Mizuki-sensei, I'll be heading back now."
"Don't forget to return that scroll later."
Naruto didn't have much confidence in his hand-drawn scrolls, so he wasted no time, ready to escape as soon as he greeted Mizuki.
Meanwhile, Mizuki eagerly untied the large scroll, his eyes filled with anticipation as he skimmed through the contents. At first, his expression lit up with excitement. But the more he read, the stranger his face became.
[Mizuki's Anger Value +32]
"Wait, Naruto!" Mizuki's voice sharpened. "Why is the handwriting on this scroll so sloppy? And the ink… it hasn't even dried!"
Naruto's heart skipped a beat. Mizuki hadn't discovered any high-level ninjutsu yet, but at the very least, he had some brains.
His little trick wasn't going to fool him for long.
"Mizuki-sensei, I don't know why the handwriting is so bad—I didn't read the contents." Naruto's voice wavered slightly, though he quickly added, "And as for the ink… it's been raining a lot lately, so the scroll must've gotten damp."
Guilt gnawed at him, and his feet instinctively picked up speed, almost vanishing with the Body Flicker Technique.
[Mizuki's Anger Value +66]
"Stop right there, Naruto! Do you really think I'm an idiot?"
Mizuki, his face contorted with rage, pulled out a kunai from his ninja pouch and lunged after Naruto.
It was only now that he realized—he, a proud instructor of the Ninja Academy, had been played by a student.
"Mr. Mizuki! If you have something to say, just say it! No need for the knives—!"
Naruto, catching sight of Mizuki's approach from the corner of his eye, bolted.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
A chase began. A tall figure pursued a smaller one, leaping from rooftop to rooftop.
Mizuki's face was twisted in fury as he threw shuriken after shuriken, each one aimed at Naruto's back.
Yet, no matter how many he threw, Naruto always dodged—just barely, but always in time. It was as if he had eyes on the back of his head.
Their chase led them out of the village and into the dense forest east of Konoha.
"You won't escape, you damn fox!" Mizuki snarled. "A monster like you should've never been born!"
Naruto suddenly skidded to a halt atop a tree branch. He no longer ran. Instead, he turned back, his eyes cold and unyielding.
"Mizuki," Naruto said, his voice eerily calm. "Because of what you just said, I've added you to my kill list."
"From today onward, anyone who calls me a monster will pay the price."
"And you? You didn't just insult me—you insulted my parents."
"For that, the price you pay will be much heavier."
Mizuki scoffed, a mocking smirk curling on his lips. "Naruto, do you really think anyone in this village will ever accept you?"
"Konoha lost countless lives because of you—the fox inside you. No one will ever acknowledge you. You'll always be a hated outcast, licking your wounds alone in the shadows."
As he spoke, Mizuki pulled out a scroll from his pouch.
With a burst of smoke, a massive shuriken appeared in his hands.
"Die, Naruto!" Mizuki roared, hurling the weapon with all his strength.
Whoosh!
The shuriken spun rapidly, whistling through the air as it tore toward Naruto.
With a sharp crack, it sliced through the tree trunk he was standing on.
Branches crashed to the ground.
But Naruto had already leapt to another tree, dodging just in time.
His hands flew through a series of rapid hand seals.
"Wind Release—Great Breakthrough!"
His cheeks puffed slightly before releasing a violent gust of wind.
As the blast expanded, it grew sharper and faster, resembling a miniature tornado.
"Nani?! He knows Wind Release?!" Mizuki's eyes widened as the fierce winds threatened to swallow him.
He barely managed to escape using the Body Flicker Technique.
Crash!
The powerful gust struck a tree, its leaves exploding into the air. Deep, jagged scratches appeared all over the bark as if dozens of blades had carved into it.
Had Mizuki taken the hit directly, he might've been torn apart.
A dark glint flickered in Mizuki's eyes. He flung several shuriken at Naruto, but his real attack was already in motion.
Naruto skillfully deflected the incoming projectiles with his kunai, metal clashing against metal with sharp clinks.
But then—he sensed something.
A faint tug at his senses.
He jumped, just in time.
A massive shuriken—the same one Mizuki had thrown earlier—came spinning back from behind him, barely grazing his clothes.
Naruto's pulse quickened. "What the hell was that?"
He narrowed his eyes, quickly scanning Mizuki.
There—on his right hand. A nearly invisible silk thread was wrapped around his fingers, connected to the returning shuriken.
"So that's your trick," Naruto muttered.
He realized now—Mizuki's earlier barrage of shuriken had been a diversion. The real attack had been the returning strike from the massive shuriken.
"Naruto! This time, you won't dodge!"
Mizuki yanked the thread again, sending the giant shuriken hurtling toward Naruto.
But Naruto simply smirked.
Did Mizuki think he'd fall for the same trick twice?
Did he think Naruto was just some clueless rookie fresh out of the Academy?
As someone who had watched Naruto in his past life, he was well aware of the tricks ninja used.
Sometimes, the weak defeated the strong by being smarter—more deceptive.
Kakashi was right—ninjutsu is all about deception.
With a swift movement, Naruto disappeared, using the Body Flicker.
Then, he hurled his kunai—not at Mizuki, but at the silk thread controlling the shuriken.
Slice!
The thread snapped cleanly.
Mizuki's eyes widened in horror. "No… no way—!"
His most trusted technique had just been undone in an instant.
His face paled as realization struck—he had underestimated Naruto.
And now… he was going to pay for it.
(End of Chapter)