DISCLAIMER: The rights to Naruto and Naruto Shippuden belong to Masashi Kishimoto, Viz Media, and Shonen Jump. I do not claim to own them in any way. Please support the official releases
"Naruto, I always looked up to you, and wanted to be like you. No one could ever replace you. But, little did I know that I would have to." A fan of the anime finds himself in the body of Naruto Uzumaki. He doesn't want to change anything, and wants to respect the legacy of his idol. However, he's not the only Guest in this world.
Please FOLLOW & REVIEW!
12 years ago, a Nine-Tailed Fox Demon suddenly appeared! With it's powerful tails, it caused mountains to crumble and created tidal waves miles away that crashed into the shore. The ninja of Konohagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, gathered to defend their home and hold off the beast!
Then, a powerful ninja known as the Yondaime Hokage challenged the Kyuubi to a mortal combat. At the cost of his life, the Yondaime sealed away the beast inside the navel of a newborn boy. The boy's name is Naruto Uzumaki
However, 12 years later the one known as Naruto Uzumaki… would disappear.
Present Day
A familiar scene. Two chunin level ninja chase the blonde boy with whiskers throughout the village, after the boy vandalizes the village's precious Hokage monument. This scene is the anime opening to the story of the one and only Naruto Uzumaki, and It has been retold in countless Fanfictions.
"Naruto, get back here!"
"You're in big trouble! When the Hokage gets his hands on you…!"
What am I doing here… in Naruto's clothes? Why am I carrying a paint bucket and running from ninja?
The only thing different about this scene was that the mind, inside the body of Naruto Uzumaki, did not belong to a certain blonde shinobi.
How fast am I running? Surely this is breaking some sort of speed limit. I'm no runner, and I barely walk. Now I'm leaping from rooftops and bouncing off buildings. When did I master parkour?
Who is this person? For now, we'll call him The Guest.
"Oi, you brat," One of the ninja yells at The Guest while shaking his fist, "If you don't cut this out, you're going to get it!"
I better lose these guys, thought The Guest as he looked back at his pursuers, before I have to hear anymore vague threats. At first the Guest had no clue as how to complete this task, but then a flash of inspiration hits. The Guest suddenly remembers the pouch of ninja tools on his backside.
Oh, now I got an idea! With no time for second thoughts, the Guest heads street level, transitioning the chase from the rooftops to the city streets. He leads the ninja through the streets, till they come across a little park.
"Do you really think you can get away, Naruto!"
The Guest stops and turns around to face the two Chunin, as if preparing for stand-off. He reaches into his ninja tools pouch, causing the two ninja to tense.
"Naruto," one of the Chunin raises up his hands as a sign of good will, "You surely don't intend to make this violent.. do you?"
"Are you stupid," The Guest laughs, "This is only the oldest ninja trick in the book!" He tosses two smoke bombs into the ground, creating a large smoke screen that envelops the Ninja's vision.
"A smoke bomb?"
"Quick, clear it out! He'll get away"
Using a simple wind jutsu, the Chunin blow the smoke away to reveal…
… The Guest/Naruto still standing in the same spot.
"Yo!" The Guest holds up a peace hind sign. Wasting no time, the two Chunin tackle the blonde shinobi to the ground.
"Gotcha, you little bastard!" However, in a poof of smoke the boy disappears and is replaced with a log.
"Substitution Jutsu!"
"Dammit," one of the Chunin raises his fist as he shouts into the heavens, "We lost him!"
"How did we fall for that?" the other Chunin grabs and shakes his head in frustration.
"DAMN YOU, NARUTO!"
Meanwhile,
The Guest sits on a distant rooftop, mentally reviewing his escape.
Originally, I planned to use the smoke bombs to hide in the tree by the park. However, I'm pretty sure those Chunin would have found me. The Guest giggles as he hears the Chunin shout and curse him from a distance. Now, they should be too flustered to find me.
The Guest sets down the paint bucket, and inspects the right hand of his new body.
How did I know how to do all that stuff? I've never been too physical, yet I was moving like a… a ninja; and then when I was leading them to the park, I remembered all the stores I passed and even the street names.
Noticing a puddle on the rooftop, The Guest crawls over to it and looks at his… Naruto's reflection.
That's definitely Naruto, he adjusts the goggles sitting on his forehead, somehow I've ended up…
"NARUTO!"
Eh, did they find me already? The Guest turns around to see a very angry Iruka Umino, standing behind him with his hands on his hips. Oh crap!
"WHY AREN'T YOU IN CLASS RIGHT NOW!?"
NINJA ACADEMY
"Iruka-Sensei," The Guest/Naruto is tied up in front of the class, "This is humiliating! I said sorry, didn't I?"
"You can't get out of everything just by saying sorry, Naruto!"
"Can I get out this?"
"No!"
"Iruka-Sensei, what a scrub."
"Naruto," Iruka grits his teeth, finding little room for patience, "Tomorrow is the graduation exam, and you've failed the last two times! This is no time for you to be screwing around!"
Let's see, I can use the Substitution Jutsu. Can I use the Transformation Jutsu too?
"You're right, Iruka-Sensei!"
"Huh?" Not expecting the blonde to be so cooperative, Iruka is caught off-guard.
"In fact," The Guest/Naruto grinned a big devilish grin, "If you would let me go, I can show you this super awesome jutsu I've been working on! I think you'll be impressed, Iruka-Sensei!"
Iruka wasn't sure what to think of Naruto's words. He seemed far more cooperative than usual. Could this be Naruto sincerely trying to make up for his actions, or was it all the build up to another prank?
"I suppose that would be fine," Iruka starts to untie the rope around Naruto, "As long as you're willing to show the entire class." The Guest/Naruto nodded and stood in the center of the classroom.
I remember this part very well, the Guest formed the necessary seal with 'his' hand for the transformation jutsu, let's see if I can 'out-do' Naruto here, hahaha! Focusing the necessary chakra into the jutsu, the Guest listened to 'his' body's instinct and allowed it to instruct him on the art of transformation. So, that's how it works.
"Transformation!"
In a puff of smoke, the 12 year old shinobi disappeared. Now standing in his place, is an elderly women in her mid-eighties and wearing nothing but a two-piece orange swimsuit. The elderly women blows a kiss towards Iruka-Sensei, while her hands rubbed her wrinkled body suggestively.
Iruka merely stared unamused, and unaffected by The Guest/Naruto's stupid trick. Not one of the students laughed.
A moment of silence.
Eh, not the reaction I expected. Feeling embarrassed from the stares of his classmates, and Iruka's disapproving gaze, the Guest undid the transformation. The Guest rubbed the back of his head nervously, looking down at the floor to avoid eye contact with anyone.
"Did you like my 'shock and awe' technique, Iruka-Sensei?"
"Hmm, it was very shocking indeed."
"Well, that was an experimental version... " The Guest surely did not expect that acting like a prankster would be this embarrassing. The worst part was realizing that, in the corner of the room, a certain dark-haired girl had just watched him transform into a naked old lady.
Someone kill me now
HOKAGE MONUMENT
That afternoon, Iruka made the Guest/Naruto clean off the Hokage faces. The Guest worked from a piece of scaffolding that hung from the top, where Iruka sat. As he cleaned, the blonde shinobi was deep in thought.
How did I end up here?
FLASHBACK
TEENAGE OTAKU'S ROOM
A teenage boy sits at his desk, scouring through the internet on his computer. His room is littered with various Naruto memorabilia. On his wall hangs a poster of Naruto battling Sasuke, and on his desk is a figurine of Hinata.
"Oi, this fiction is a piece of garbage!" The boy furiously types on his keyboard, writing a wordy review on the fanfiction he was reading. "Naruto was never physically abused, and Anko is not a part of the Torture and Interrogation Force! Get your canon straight!"
As he is about to click 'post review', the boy hesitates and sighs.
"What am I doing here?" Clicking the 'X' button on the tab to delete it, the boy forgets his review and stands up
Noticing that it's unusually bright outside, the boy looks out the window. As the light pours into this room, the boy notices it keeps getting brighter and brighter.
"What the hell?" He could almost feel the light envelop him, as his entire world was washed away
BACK IN THE PRESENT
Next thing I know, I'm stuck in the body of Naruto and running from Chunin. So far, this day seems to be progressing just like the first episode of the anime. Which means that any second now…
"You're not leaving till you clean every last drop!" Iruka noticed the boy slowing down, seemingly caught in thought until he called out.
It's important that I don't mess this up, mused The Guest as he wet his towel again, or else I won't be able to win over Iruka's acknowledgment and graduate.
"Whatever," the Guest put on his best angry face, trying to recreate Naruto's emotions in his words, "It's not like there's anyone waiting for me at home!"
The next few moments of silence stretched on for an eternity in the boy's mind, as he waited for Iruka's response.
D… did I say it right?
"Hey Naruto," Iruka scratched his face as he watched the boy.
"Hmm?"
"After, you finish here, how about I treat you to some ramen?"
Yes! It worked!
"Alright! Now that's some real motivation, Iruka-Sensei!" With a new found sense of vigor, The Guest got back to work, moving twice as fast as before.
ICHIRAKU RAMEN
"Naruto, what were you doing to the monument? Don't you know who the Hokage are?" Iruka lectured the boy, as they ate.
For now, I better play along and just follow the script. The Guest didn't want to mess up or change Naruto's timeline too much, at least until I get a better idea of the situation I'm in.
"Of course," As he speaks, The Guest loudly slurps up the noodles in his bowl, "Basically, they're the strongest ninja in our village! The best of the best! Especially, the Yondaime who was a hero that beat the Kyuubi!"
He'd seen this scene hundreds of times. He knew the lines, and the faces that Naruto made as he spoke. He even knew Iruka's next words before he said them. The Guest could recite entire episodes of the anime by heart.
"Then, why would you do such a thing?"
Of course, he knew Naruto's next words. The phrase that would would define his character.
"Because someday I'm going to…" He knew the words, but somehow they refused to leave him.
"Going to what, Naruto?"
The Guest tried to force the words out of Naruto's mouth, but to no avail. He couldn't open his mouth to speak, yet couldn't shut his mouth either.
"I'm going to surpass…"
Iruka leaned in, eager to hear Naruto's reason. Instead, the blonde shinobi leaned back.
I… I can't say it
Unable to face Iruka, and unable to speak, The Guest flees. He runs down the street and then body flickers away, leaving a confused Iruka, "What the…?"
NARUTO'S APARTMENT
The Guest lays face down in 'his' bed. It's the bed that belonged to Naruto Uzumaki. However, the Guest could recall the blonde shinobi's many nights spent on this mattress, and in these sheets. To him, it almost felt like he was home, in his own room.
Where are you Naruto?
The Guest reached to the dresser, and pulled out a hand mirror. He knew that Naruto kept one in the top drawer, where he also kept his underwear. Looking into the glass, he realized that he can't see his own reflection. Instead, the face that stares back at him is the whiskered blonde he idolized.
I've always looked up to you, Naruto. Even when no one else believed in you, you'd always pulled through. You pushed yourself past your limits, and earned the admiration of the entire ninja world.
Suddenly feeling the weight of the goggles on his forehead, the Guest tore them off and tossed them across the room.
How can I halfheartedly tell Iruka, that I'll become Hokage and surpass all the rest. That's your title, and that's your claim. Even if I'm just taking your place…
Suddenly, The Guest recalled memories that were not his own. He remembered the first time he adorned the green goggles. He remembered the hope that Naruto had felt, that someday those goggles would be replaced with his own headband. Jumping out of bed, The Guest rushed over to the goggles and picked them up. He breathed a sigh of relief, after checking for any scratches and finding none.
Naruto… are you coming back to fulfill your dream?
Looking out the window, The Guest realized it was already morning.
Or, have I replaced you in this world?
NINJA ACADEMY
Iruka and Mizuki sat side by side in the examination room. One by one they called the academy students in, to test them on the Clone Jutsu. As they went down the list of students, Mizuki noticed a bizarre absence.
"Where's Naruto?" Mizuki was instantly concerned to find the blonde shinobi was nowhere to be seen on the list of students to pass the written exam. He looked over to Iruka, and noticed that the Chunin's head was hanging low.
"I don't know," Iruka rubbed the back of his head, "He didn't show up at all for the graduation exam."
"What could have happened?"
"I can't really put my finger on it, but yesterday he seemed nervous about something. His pranks were off, and he was actually listening when I scolded him. Then while we were eating at Ichiraku, he left without saying a word."
That doesn't sound like Naruto at all. Suddenly, Mizuki's eyes widened.
"Iruka," The Silver-haired shinobi stood up, "I need to use the restroom. Can you handle the students while I'm gone?"
"No problem, Mizuki"
Little did Iruka know, that his teaching partner was no longer Mizuki. He was another Guest.
NARUTO'S APARTMENT
The Guest inside of Mizuki, was a big fan of Naruto. So, to stand outside of his apartment, and knock on the door, waiting for THE Naruto to respond, was a dream come true for him.
I'm about to meet Naruto, the Guest looked down at his body and let out a sigh, If only I didn't have to do it in Mizuki's body!
The silver-haired chunin started to get nervous, as he heard footsteps come towards the door. His heart skipped a beat, as the door handle turned. The door swung open, revealing a disheveled Naruto.
"N.. Naruto-Kun…"
"Oi, Mizuki-Sensei," The blonde shinobi looked like he had just gotten out of bed, "What are you doing here? Wait, I already know the answer to that."
Iruka-Sensei was right, Naruto seems off.
"Mizuki-Sensei, why don't you come on in? I'll make some tea." Naruto opened the door for the Guest/Mizuki and the silver-haired ninja walked in. He immediately noticed that apartment was rather tidy for a boy's room.
"Huh, this isn't what I expected…"
"Thought there would be more of a mess? Well, this is how I found it too."
They both walked into the kitchen, and after leading The Guest/Mizuki to his seat, Naruto grabbed a teapot. They both stayed in an awkward silence, as Naruto waited for the water to boil.
"So…"
"Mizuki, I said it earlier," Naruto put his hands on his hips, and looked at the surprised Mizuki, "I know why you're here."
Is he referring to the real Mizuki's plans, wondered the Guest.
"You want me to steal the sacred scroll of sealing, right?" Naruto's look turned from a casual gaze, to a deathly glare. "You're probably going to trick me into it by telling me it's a special make-up graduation exam."
Im.. impossible, the Guest's eyes widened, then just like me… he's…
"If this is the Anime universe, then you're going to give the scroll to Orochimaru," 'Naruto' raises his right hand in the form of a simple hand seal, one that the Guest recognized immediately, from Mizuki's memories as a Chunin, "And you're just a simple selfish traitor if this is the Manga universe!"
"Wait… what are you doing…?"
"Ever since I let you in, you've been too focused on me to notice the paper bombs." Sure enough, The Guest scanned the room and found paper bombs plastered over the walls, floors, and ceiling of the apartment. There were few enough to not be immediately noticeable, but just enough to easily blow the entire floor to kingdom come.
"Naruto, you don't mean to..?"
"Mizuki, you're a traitor to the Hidden Leaf village. So, die!"
'Naruto's' chakra flared
TO BE CONTINUED!