Story Challenge: Free to a good home! Combine Self-Insert with Quantum Leap and Groundhog day, then throw it into the Naruto universe. Trying to change the world is not as easy as it would seem.
Quantum Ninja
The first time I died, my name was Asuka.
I never found out what my last name was, because as soon as I started blabbing about how civilians were ill-treating Naruto, jinchiriki of the Kyuubi and son of the Namikaze Minato to the Hokage, I found myself in Ibiki's interrogation cells and subjected to pain unlike anything I've ever felt before as the Konoha T&I head tried to discover how I knew such classified information. They didn't exactly buy the explanation that I watched it on television in another world. I think Ibiki just greatly overestimated how much pain I could endure, because I died of heart failure after just the first session.
My second death, my name was Yohomato Minoru. That time, I decided I'd just try to keep my head down, not draw attention to myself, and never give anyone any reason at all to think I should be brought to Morino Ibiki's attention. So, when my parents encouraged me to join Konoha's ninja academy, I declined, claiming I wanted to grow up to be a clothing merchant like my dad.
I was crushed by a colossal snake that broke through the walls of Konoha during the Sound invasion.
Getting slaughtered by Sand ninja or Sound ninja twice more made me think being entirely helpless and dependent on others was probably not the best way to survive being thrust into the Naruto story—I'll caution you later about reading aloud just any old parchment that gets mailed to you later on, if I don't manage to permanently die first—so I spent a couple lives going through the academy learning to throw shuriken, trying to figure out how the whole chakra thing worked, and learning what I could from my instructors.
You might think I would get through the academy without ending up a corpse, but you'd be wrong. Did you know it's a lot easier to fall and break your neck on an obstacle course than you might think? And a training kunai might not cut as easily, but they still kill you when they get shoved into your eye.
It was an accident. Ino didn't mean it, I just dodged the wrong way.
By the way, yes, that was the Yamanaka Ino who killed me. That's the upside to this living in Konoha thing: I get to meet the Rookie Nine, Iruka, the Hokage, and everyone! Okay, so I've sort of creeped them out a few times gushing about how awesome they are and stalking them a few times, but that was last life. I played it cool this time. Mostly.
Oh, and you know what? Ichiraku ramen really is THAT good.
Believe it.
On the other hand, I've also gotten to meet enemy ninja. And find out that the C-rank curse is horribly real. Which is why I, Tanasazi Aoi of Konoha's Team Three, am currently lying on the ground bleeding out with a kunai stuck through my spleen, or some other organ.
And…
Okay, so after I die, there's this radically cool moment when there's a flash of light or lightning, or something, and for a moment time seems to stretch out to infinity. It's not really infinite, but feels that way, and I get to catch my breath, and I guess explain a thing or two.
I'm not going from life to life waking up as a baby each time, that would really suck. No, when that flash of eternity ends I'll be staring out of my new eyes as someone else. I'll still be me, remember who *I* am, but I'll also be them, and know what they know and how felt, etc. Otherwise, I bet I'd have been to see Ibiki way more than I would like. Oh, I don't take their memories with me when I die, just my own and those I make when I'm them, so there is that.
Another thing is, I don't always come back to the same point in time. Sometimes I'm the right age to start the Academy and a few years ahead of Naruto and the Rookie Nine, and sometimes I'm in their same group, and about to graduate. Which sort of sucks, because I can't do that déjà vu omniscience thing like Phil Connors on that movie…what's it called? Anyway, because of the different start times and different perspectives, I don't know exactly what's going to happen around me all the time, which would totally come in handy. Sort of like a pseudo-sharingan.
Oh, and I only get to be a person once. When I die as that person, I can't go back and be them again. Konoha has a population of like 20,000 or so, that just leaves me 19,995 times to be able to come back and stop that Snake from killing the Hokage and a large chunk of Konoha's populace. Give or take a thousand lifetimes.
…and end of the white light, now I'll see who I am this time.
"Now, for introductions! I am Konoha's Sublime Blue Beast, Might Guy! It will be my responsibility as your jonin-sensei to fan the flames of your YOUTH!"
I could barely hear the man's words, my heart was beating so loudly. Oh. My. Word. I was on Team Guy. I was on Team Guy. I was on TEAM GUY!
"And now, my youthful students, it is your turn to introduce yourselves to me," Guy-sensei said, turning his attention to me.
"I'm ROCK LEE!" I yelled out, pumping my fist in the air.
Challenge Details
1. The traveler/SI should have no special skills from Earth that the author doesn't have. If you can't make gunpowder, concoct C4, or build an electrical generator without consulting the internet or a book, then neither can the character.
2. The traveler/SI's physical body is that of whomever he or she ends up jumping into.
For example, jumping into Lee's body at the point when Lee just joins Team Guy, Lee would have no ability to use ninjutsu or genjutsu or even the capacity to learn how. Additionally, if the character builds up chakra, strength, or anything else, that strength is left behind after a "leap" into that person. Each leap makes you start all over on physical training.
This also applies to blood limit powers and elemental affinities. While you would remember any techniques copied if you jumped into an Uchiha and used a sharingan, after leaping into a new body you would not be able to gain a new sharingan or use any of its powers.
3. Skills learned in one body do not transfer perfectly to another body.
4. Deaths reset the timeline. Except when they don't, much to the traveler/SI's surprise.
5. No super powerups for the protagonist. A gradual increase in skill and knowledge will lead to a much more competent protagonist by the climax, but the SI should never reach Hashirama or Madara levels of broken.
Alternate Rules:
1. Leaps between characters happen without requiring death and occur when a) the timeline has gotten too screwed up (meaning someone precious to Naruto will die), b) when whatever was wrong (such as Jiraiya's death) is set right and the traveler/SI could help things better from another body, or c) when it's funny.
2. Leaps into points in the timeline after the traveler/SI has made a change will reflect that change. For example, if in year 1 the traveler killed Tora as a genin, if a leap takes the traveler to year 2 as a genin they'll be chasing Tora II—an even more vicious breed of cat.
