It started with planks.
Naruto couldn't hold one for more than thirty seconds.
"This is torture!" he shouted, face-down in the dirt behind the training field.
I was holding two medicine balls above my head while standing on one foot. "This is Tuesday."
Naruto groaned. "You're insane."
I grinned. "That's the idea."
We trained together for three days straight. Not the shinobi kind of training—chakra and clones—but real-world, gut-wrenching, muscle-burning grind. I taught him what a superset was. He taught me how to use chakra to stick to a tree.
Fair trade.
> System Alert:
"First Bond Formed – Naruto Uzumaki"
Bond Bonus: +5% Training Efficiency when training with Naruto.
Hidden Potential: Unlocked when trust reaches "Deep."
Huh. Okay.
So it wasn't just stats. Bonds mattered, too.
This world had more layers than I thought.
---
On the fourth day, Sasuke showed up.
He didn't say anything. Just watched from the tree line as Naruto collapsed after a sprint circuit and I corrected his form on squats.
"You planning to join us or just critique from the shadows?" I asked.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I'm just watching. For now."
"Suit yourself."
He left before I could push further—but I could tell: curiosity was a crack in his armor. Sooner or later, he'd ask.
---
Later that afternoon, Iruka called us into a solo exercise session. One-on-one sparring. No showboating, no substitutions. Just raw ability.
My opponent was a quiet genin-level assistant named Hayate. Not the coughing swordsman—just a Chuunin flunky helping with evaluations.
I bowed. So did he.
Then he attacked.
He was fast. Faster than anyone I'd fought so far. I dodged the first strike, but the second grazed my ribs. The third was a sweeping kick that knocked the wind out of me.
So that's what real speed feels like.
> Adrenaline Surge Detected. Initiating Temporary Buff.
+10% Reflex
+10% Strength
Duration: 60 seconds
The next exchange went differently. I dropped into a low stance, ducked a high kick, and countered with an uppercut right to the chin.
He staggered back, blinking.
"…not bad," he muttered, rubbing his jaw.
We ended in a draw. But I knew.
If I didn't have the system?
He'd have flattened me.
---
That night, something happened.
I was heading back from the river, towel over my shoulder, muscles sore but satisfied from the day's grind, when I felt it—chakra. Cold, sharp, precise.
Then a whisper.
"You're not from here, are you?"
I froze.
A masked figure leaned against a tree. ANBU? No. Too relaxed. Not quite hostile, but far from friendly.
"Who are you?" I asked quietly.
"I'm someone who watches the future. And right now? Yours is noisy. Unstable. Off-script."
My pulse spiked. "What do you mean?"
"You're not part of this timeline," they said. "But you're tangled in it now. That makes you… a variable."
They vanished before I could respond.
> System Alert:
Unknown Chakra Signature Recorded.
Threat Level: Moderate.
Data Stored. Further analysis required.
For the first time since arriving, I felt it.
Not just danger.
But the weight of consequence.
I wasn't just leveling up in someone else's story.
I was starting to rewrite it.