Chapter 2: Gaining knowledge
-"This means that someone is reading something."
The wonderful smell of ramen filled the area as I neared the humble restaurant. I let myself in and sat at an empty seat. There were a few other customers that were in the process of eating in there, but they didn't seem to mind my presence. Surprisingly most of them gave me small smiles and the occasional wave. I responded to their greetings with a nod and a wave of my own before turning my attention to the two owners of the place.
Teuchi and Ayame were in the process of filling an order so I patiently waited for them to be done. I was soon lost in my thoughts and jumped when Ayame started to talk to me. "Wow Naruto you sure are quiet today. Is something on your mind?" I shrugged and said it was nothing. After that I began the process of picking what I wanted to eat. Thankfully I could read the kanji, no doubt from the memories that are stored away in me.
She frowned at my vague response as she tried to figure out what the problem was. It didn't take long at all for Ayame to remember what day it was. She looked away in sadness when she realized that I didn't have a headband on. "Naruto… I'm sorry that you didn't pass today." Teuchi heard what his daughter said and sighed in sadness as well. He really hoped that the kid would've passed so that he could get closer to his goal.
To make it up to him, Teuchi thought it would be a great idea to give Naruto a treat. "Hey kid, eat as much as you want today. You're going to need it for the amount of training that I know you're going to put yourself through soon. By the time that the month is over I'll bet that you will be in tip top shape." I gave him a genuine smile as I thanked him for his kindness.
A few minutes went by as I waited for my first bowl of miso ramen. I knew that the original Naruto loved it, so I probably would too. I spent the time waiting by looking around the restaurant. It's smaller than what I'm used to, but it gives off a comforting feeling. It kind of reminds me of the cafes that I would sometimes visit with its comforting environment.
Before long a bowl was placed in front of me. I wasted no time by immediately breaking out my chopsticks and digging in. Unlike the old me I didn't scarf down the food like it was going to be my last meal. I knew that I could have as much as I wanted for one, and it was also technically my first time trying it. I found that I loved it, much to my delight. "It will be a cold day in hell if Naruto ever loses his love of ramen."
Teuchi and Ayame were somewhat concerned over my recent behavior. I was eating much slower than usual and also talking in a softer voice. They were relieved that I still kept up my appetite despite the sudden changes. I packed away eight bowls before I decided to quit eating. The crazy thing was that I never noticed how much I actually ate until I stopped. "Ayame must have prepared a new bowl to switch out for my empty one whenever she saw me running low."
I could only stare in shock at the sheer amount of food that I sucked up like a vacuum. It was amazing how much food I needed in order to get full. I frowned at that thought. "Where do I get the money to afford the obscene amount of food that I would need to eat on a regular basis? I'm not a ninja yet, and I'm an orphan, so maybe I get an allowance or something." A memory came in not long after which confirmed my suspicions.
Apparently the third Hokage gives me an allowance to use for each month. My apartment is also paid for by him until I become a ninja and collect my first paycheck at the mission center. "Well that's convenient." I thanked Ayame and Teuchi again for their generous offer before turning to leave the restaurant. A few minutes later I was walking in the direction of my apartment. I followed the way that I went before in a memory and soon stood in front of my door.
I grabbed the key from my pocket without even thinking about it and unlocked my apartment. As I was walking in I noticed that while there were a few things out of place, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. There were a couple piles of clothing strewn about my floor, but not too much to be concerned about. The kitchen did hold some empty instant ramen packets as I thought, but also not as much as I originally guessed. I was happy to note that my fridge is well stocked in perishable items such as various types of fruits, vegetables, eggs, and milk. "I'm glad that he wasn't solely living off of that instant crap."
I grabbed a glass from my cabinet after my initial inspection and filled it with some water. As I sat down at my table I began to think about my next move. "I have to get a lot of training in if I want to catch up to the rest of the kids in my new class. From what the villagers were saying earlier this hasn't been my first time trying to pass the exam. That must mean that this is my third time, which is the last time that I should be taking it. The series starts at the end of my next school year. I'm going to have to learn about the skills that I already possess, while also learning about things that Naruto never made much progress in at first. I can make a training schedule once I get some basic information regarding my current skill level."
The most logical thing for me to do was to see what I already had available to me. I searched my room and found different sheets of paper and books that held information on many topics. It surprised me at the amount of books that Naruto already had before the series started. "I guess he did try to get as much information as he could despite his situation." The thing that grabbed my attention was a notebook that was seemingly hidden underneath a pile of papers.
I grabbed the innocent looking notebook and flipped it open to the first page. My mouth dropped open at the amount of information that was crammed onto one page. "This looks like the technique that the old Naruto uses. How could I have forgotten his perverted jutsu?" I immediately focused on the many memories that Naruto stored away on the subject.
It felt like several hours had passed as I went through all of his thought processes regarding the oiroke no jutsu, or the sexy technique in English. In reality only thirty minutes were spent on regaining his memories. With all of the information in place I decided to test out a different version of the jutsu. I made the ram seal, but focused on a completely different form. A puff of smoke covered my body and when it left I quickly ran to the bathroom. The boy in the mirror was exactly what I wanted to look like.
I had messy black hair instead of a spiky bright blonde style. There were a few pieces spiking out in the back and it stopped a little bit under my ears. My light blue eyes turned a shade darker and my skin turned a shade lighter. The most prominent features that I decided to lose were the fox whisker marks on my face. I spent the next five minutes just staring at my new form and lightly pulling one of my spikes to see if it was real. I made a fist pump after it stayed and kept the jutsu going as I grabbed 'my' old notebook.
"It would be a pain in the ass for me later if I forgot to write down exactly what I accomplished." With my info written down on the next page I turned back to the massive amount of books and papers to choose from. "What should I focus on next? I know that Naruto wasn't very familiar with chakra control exercises. I think I'll look for a book on that." I skimmed the titles of each book before coming across a promising one.
The book was generically called 'How To Control Your Chakra'.As soon as I read the name I knew that it would be helpful. I flipped open the cover and began to read the basic summary. "This book will show you how to access and mold your chakra in different ways. You will be able to conserve more chakra and have an easier time when learning techniques once you begin our chakra control exercises." "Wow why wasn't Naruto better at ninjutsu if he had this book? Did he just not get to it before the series started, or maybe he didn't put enough time into it."
I turned to my bed, straightened my covers, and then set the book on top of it. "I think I'll make a pile of the books and papers that I need to go through first." I took the many history texts and set them in a separate pile on the floor. "I can wait until later to learn about the village's past." For now my search was directed towards learning the three basic ninjutsu that I need to pass the next exam. I found it after a while of searching and held the notebook above my head in victory.
I looked down at the notebook again and laughed at my writing. "Badass Ninja Techniques." "Well at least he wrote them down. I'm actually not that surprised that he did since he always boasted that he wanted to learn cool new kinds of jutsu in the anime." I figured that the notebook must have been used for school since that's where the first three jutsu are taught. I skimmed the first few pages to make sure that it was what I needed before nodding to myself and setting it on top of the first book.
Another long time of searching for anything useful led me to discover a hidden gem. I pulled the book out of the large pile and looked through the table of contents. The deceptively small book held more difficult chakra exercises than the first book that I found. I let out a whoop of joy and hugged it to my chest. "This is a book that I'll definitely need to read as soon as possible." The book holds the secrets to learning various techniques that include earth, water, and air chakra control exercises. I happily set that book down in my small pile and decided to call it quits for now.
Next I walked to my closet and changed into a clean pair of pants that were hidden in the back of it. Surprisingly they were a dark blue color rather than bright orange. Then I took off my goggles and outer jacket, which left me with my black t-shirt on. With that done, I gathered two of the three needed books and placed them on a nearby end table. I kept the first chakra control book with me. This is because I plan on at least trying one of the exercises today. With my book in hand and my new look still in place, I cracked the door open. When no people met my sight on either side I slipped out of my apartment and headed to a rarely used training ground.
