Obviously, I don't own Naruto.

[Chapter: 1]

Something had happened to him. Something he couldn't reverse.

The last thing he could remember was a deep sense of loss. A mountain of regret and a sprinkle of… failure. He'd failed someone, or something, and as a result he lost everything.

That, and he remembered fire.

If he had a clear mind, he likely could've mended these shattered thoughts into a coherent one, but he just couldn't. There was something wrong with his body that just didn't let him.

He kept throwing up, kept pushing and spilling things, and for some reason he couldn't control his emotions. That sense of loss pushed him to cry himself to sleep and then forget about it the next day. Every thought he had would get derailed by the next, mostly because the world around him was… confusing.

A blurry mess of colors with too bright lights and too dark shadows. Sensations he didn't know existed or had long forgotten about poked him, confusing him even more.

Was he sick? Was he dying? Was he on the strongest bad trip the world had ever seen? He'd never been much of a drinking or drugs type of guy, despite being around people who were into that sort of thing, but it was still a possibility. And how would being drugged out of his mind relate to a fire?

Whatever had happened, that fire was the only constant. Every day, it haunted him. Confusion racked his mind thinking about it, but it was clear that fire was important. A catalyst for something. The catalyst that pushed him over an edge and into… this.

Whatever it was, it had messed him up something fierce.

Likely something was wrong with his brain, no sickness lasted that long.

Or maybe it did… he wasn't a doctor and his medical prowess was low to say the least. He was more of a math guy than a science nerd.

And it's not like it'd be farfetched to say something happened to his brain. As far as he knew, the brain was a squishy meatball that fell apart at the lightest of injuries to it.

It would explain why everything looked so… off. His arms seemed like little twigs and everything else seemed so big. Something to do with his perception in funky ways. Depth perception? Size perception? Both?

Plus, if his brain was messed up that badly, he must've been in a hospital…

Not.

It had been months since he'd first woken up in this drunken hell and it was clear he wasn't in a hospital. Nor was he in his own home. There were two people who consistently came and left, his primary caretakers, and he didn't recognize either. One was a tanned man with an… interesting hairstyle colored burgundy and blue eyes. He looked ridiculous with his hair like that and his sideburns so angular. The other was a woman with shoulder-length blonde hair that came down in a singular bang. She looked pretty normal all things considered, even if her eyes were a very rare shade of green.

Were these his caretakers or his kidnappers? And why did they keep speaking a weird dialect of Japanese at him like he'd understand what the hell they were saying? And to top it all off, they kept calling him that weird ass name… Who in the name of all that is holy was Haruki?!

His name was… uh… it was…

Well, it damn sure wasn't Haruki that was for sure. It was getting annoying not being able to clearly remember things. And that meant he couldn't rely on his memories.

He needed to get up, thank these nice people for taking care of him, and stop freeloading like a bum. And then he needed to find out what the hell happened to him.

So that's what he set out to do.

It took even more months, but he could feel himself getting better. He could see clearer, and the sensations were lessening in intensity. After a while he even managed to flip himself over and hold his head up again.

If the bright smiles from the very confusing caretakers were any consolation, then he was going in the right direction. He still didn't know what they were saying, but it sounded encouraging. And he was picking up on a few words here and there.

Mostly just basic ones they often said to him, but it was an improvement nonetheless.

Each day he was getting better. And each day it became easier and easier to think.

Despite that though, he was getting a bit antsy to start walking soon. Or to start doing… anything, soon. He'd started having tantrums because of how bored he was, just causing a ruckus for a bit of entertainment.

Man, was it embarrassing. He was almost ready for college and here he was acting like a…

…A child.

No, that couldn't be true. He couldn't have….

But what if it was? What if something had happened to him, because of the fire, and he…

Was that why he couldn't remember things clearly? If that was the case, why did he remember anything at all?

For a moment, his realization started to put things into perspective. And yet, it seemed like a crazy notion. One that he had to confirm with his own eyes.

Or, ears, in this case.

He abruptly sat up, startling the man beside him. And with a fat, grubby little finger, he pointed straight at him.

"You!"

That wasn't… the most intelligent way to ask that, but he didn't exactly have a fluent grasp on the language. Also, he was freaking out.

The strange looking man stared back at him in fond amusement, furrowing his brows and simply staring at him. It wasn't the first time he'd spoken to his caretakers, but he often just… didn't.

The guy didn't seem to catch on. He scrunched his nose in annoyance and confusion. It was hard to focus on one thought at a time.

He pointed at himself. "Me, Haruki!" Then he huffed, lowering his voice to normal levels. The language was still extremely awkward for him. "Y-you?"

Thankfully, the man finally seemed to catch on, "Me? I'm the main man! Father. Pops. Your dad!" He paused, noticing his blank stare. "Can you say daddy for daddy, Haruki?"

Ah.

His… dad kept trying to convince him to say it with him, but Haruki zoned out- ignoring him completely. He didn't understand half of what the guy was saying, if he was honest, but he knew the word 'Dad'.

That confirmed it, then. He'd died. Probably in that fire he couldn't stop thinking about. And now he was here, reborn as some jackass named Haruki.

Just… great.

In hindsight, he probably should've realized something was up when he didn't have any teeth… And when they kept giving him a pacifier. That, coupled with the tens of other things that should've tipped him off.

Baby brain was not very conducive for critical thinking, huh?

Months later, when the fog of his mind cleared to acceptable levels, something else rang alarm bells in his head.

He still wasn't over the fact that he'd died, and that he couldn't remember his past life very well, but a realization was beginning to overshadow that depression.

And that depression was starting to evolve into conflicted rage.

Why? Because of his name.

Haruki meant 'spring child', and it wasn't a bad name all things considered, but that wasn't the issue. No, it was his surname that bothered him.

Haruno.

His full name was Haruki goddamn Haruno.

And as he stared out his window at the mountain high above, a mountain with three giant faces carved into it, he had to accept his fate.

His name was Haruki Haruno, and he was born in a world of ninjas. Naruto, the elemental nations, the shinobi world, whatever you wanted to call it.

What the fuck.

One one hand, yay! He perhaps wasn't a normal person to be happy about being born in this world of monsters and warlords, but he just couldn't help it. In his past life he'd dreamed of a day like this. Where he could be reborn in a world with honest to god super powers.

And it was even one of the worlds where pretty much anyone could become powerful if they were ruthless enough. His favorite! Having a bloodline was a factor, sure, but there were plenty of ways you could become extremely powerful without one.

Being born in a world where everything comes to talent and luck would have sucked ass.

On the other hand… uh, wait, why was he angry again? Man, being a toddler really sucked when he had to both control his emotions and think clearly.

It was uh… Oh! Right. Sakura.

The issue wasn't what most people would assume. Lots of people harbored some form of hatred for the uselessness that is Sakura and most would be dismayed at the thought of being related to such a person.

But nah, that wasn't it.

Honestly, he didn't mind Sakura even if she wasn't as prominent as Sasuke or Naruto. And her 'physical abuse' was all just very badly done gags by the author in his attempt to portray a teenage girl. In the real world, she'd likely just be a normal person. Naïve in the beginning, since she was a child, but eventually learning the truth of the world and growing to match it.

If anything, he respected how powerful she became when she started much, much, weaker than pretty much everyone else. Even Ino had a better start than she did.

It was his existence in relation to her that was the real issue. He wasn't the super manipulation mastermind 'all according to keikaku' type of person, but he wanted to use his future knowledge for… something. Anything, really.

And now he couldn't. Because he was directly related to Sakura, being her older brother. Plus, his existence could've invalidated hers. What if she was never born in this timeline? That'd ruin just about everything.

Literally. Without her, the world likely would end many times over.

If anything, he was underreacting rather than overreacting at being her brother. It meant he had to be the one to fix all the stupid issues this world concocted if Sakura was never born. That, or sit back and risk the world ending.

Like, what if all the filler was actually real? And the movies? If so, he might as well give up now because he could barely remember canon, much less all those.

To sum it all up, he was at a crossroads.

A crossroad that took him weeks of moping around and brooding to ponder about. It was the choice to take the path of less resistance, and simply treat chakra like any other magic system- becoming a civilian and studying it for fun…

Or to become a ninja. A trained killer, and a powerful adversary.

He was old enough to walk and talk by now. The children of this world were monstrously advanced in comparison to his past life so he had to make this choice now. To dedicate his life to saving the world? Or…

Wait.

Did he even have to make that choice?

Just because he became a ninja didn't mean he had to do something that drastic. Naruto and Sasuke would still be born, irrelevant of him. And they were the prophecy children, the fated rivals and all that.

Not him. Definitely not Sakura.

He didn't have to worry about them, in hindsight. Or the world, for that matter. If the world was that fragile and easily destroyed, or as easily conquered, it would've been done years ago.

If he looked at things realistically, this life wasn't some anime centered around a child pariah's journey to being recognized for his hard work and making friends. This was just one weird reality.

His weird reality.

Which meant that his decisions shouldn't be based on anything except himself. So what did he want? What was important for him, ignoring the excitement of possible superpowers?

…

…Family.

Guilt rooted itself deep in his gut as he thought about them. The family that he had before this one. He may not have been entirely to blame, but he could tell his own shortcomings had contributed to their end. To his end.

So he made a vow; That failure would not be repeated.

He'd become a ninja, stronger than a Jonin. Stronger than the Sannin and all the Kages combined. The mere thought of challenging him would be seen as ludicrous. Laughable.

Like Hashirama had done with the village long ago.

And then he'd protect his family with his presence alone. Unlike Hashirama though, he would focus on techniques theoretically anyone could use. Techniques that he'd bind to his blood, and pass down to his descendants after his death.

If this village burned? His family would be strong enough to walk on the ashes, and that was final.

Nothing, and nobody else mattered.

[Neural shift detected in cognitive patterns.]

[Scanning for changes…]

[Critical neural reconfiguration detected, designated as vow "Redemption"]

[Objective "Acceptance" has been successfully achieved. Initiating reward: Synchronization]

[Activating Protocol Path #763 - codename "Shinobi".]

[Commencing synchronization process with host.]

[Warning: Estimated duration for full synchronization is 34,310 hours.]

"…Huh?"

(Mebuki Haruno)

If anyone had explained to Mebuki, in graphic detail, how stressful having a child was, she likely would've thought about it more. She loved her little flower, but still, she would've hesitated.

That hesitation would've vanished a second later but at least she could say she had braced herself for this.

Alas, she hadn't. And thus, her stressful life began.

She was aware her little flower wasn't a normal child. She'd been aware of this since he was first born. Since the doctors had blatantly said they'd never seen a child be born and just stare at them.

That staring didn't last long since babies needed to scream after being born, but it was a sign that something was… off. And now that little Haruki didn't need to scream just to keep living, he continued to just stare at her half the time in blatant confusion.

Which, as cute as it was, had started to concern her.

From all the books she'd read and all the people she talked to, developmental issues started when the child was young. Why wouldn't her anxiety spike after hearing something like that?

The other parents were jealous of her, saying how they wished their child was as quiet and easy to handle as Haruki. She was just being 'too paranoid'. Ugh. Even Kizashi, the buffoon, had told her that it didn't really matter in the end.

She would've kicked his ass six ways to Sunday if he hadn't elaborated that it didn't matter because he'd love Haruki either way- developmental issues or not.

While that was sweet, and saved him from a swift knuckle sandwich, it wasn't really the issue. Of course they'd love their child either way, but she wanted to know what they were dealing with here.

So she took him to every doctor she knew, and she kept getting back the same thing. They'd note her concerns, and tell her to wait. Problems, if they existed, would make themselves more known with time.

And that's what she did.

She waited.

And waited.

Slowly, she was losing patience, but she waited some more.

A year and a half passed like a hurricane. Every day her anxiety grew as she watched her child grow. She started pulling out her hair, biting her nails, getting little sleep even when Haruki didn't cry at all.

And damn did he grow fast. He forced himself to walk, just standing over and over despite his legs being too weak to even try. Instead of naturally learning how to speak he'd hear a word and whisper it to himself again and again until he got it right.

For a while, Mebuki felt like she was missing out on her child's, well, childhood. He was growing so fast it was astonishing.

But at the same time, infant years were frankly just cooing over how cute he was and being astounded at his growth speed. There wasn't much to miss.

…Though she did wish sometimes that he was a bit more normal.

His first word was "You are already dead," And for some reason he kept screaming "What?!" right afterward, giggling uncontrollably. She still didn't know where he got that from, but she was convinced it was Kizashi's fault.

Maybe not directly, but her husband kept showing Haruki his favorite TV shows. It was totally his fault.

And his growth just didn't stop. He kept improving, going from barely walking to running from place to place. From barely understanding a few words to speaking more coherently than her husband sometimes!

That was a low bar though, to be fair.

Every time she took him to the park, she would hear whispers about it. People loved their gossip, especially parents bragging about their perfect child. She'd hear them talking about how he was a prodigy. A genius. But that wasn't it, was it?

She couldn't explain why, not with logic, but he wasn't a genius. A mother knows her child, and even if he was smart for his age, there was more to it. He was… strange.

Her love for him never wavered in spite of that, but she noticed things.

Sometimes he would just sit there, gazing at nothing and moping. He'd frown heavily whenever he saw something that even resembled fire. There were countless times where she walked into him just standing there, staring in contemplation at his own hands.

But still, she waited.

That was, until something just… clicked.

There was no explanation for it, but one day he was just… happier. And from then he'd never been the same.

Instead of ignoring every toy they got him, he'd play with them in honestly odd ways. He'd run around the house and throw things at his father just for a giggle, enjoying when Kizashi would playfully chase after him. Cartwheeling, backflipping, handstands.

He was much more active than a child his age should be, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that he started to actually let himself be a child. To enjoy his childhood.

After all that stress, it was a relief to see him so carefree, as children should be.

The fact that his gleefulness had evolved into wanton destruction of the house was less than ideal, but it was better than watching her toddler be depressed.

Finally, after almost three-and-a-half years of 'strange', she could relax.

Well, relax as much as a mother could with a terrifyingly intelligent hellion running around.

(Kizashi Haruno)

"Again!"

Kizashi sighed, going through the hand signs again, this time transforming into an elderly man with a very long beard, watching his son get more and more fascinated as time went on.

"This… makes absolutely no sense!" Haruki chirped as if it was a good thing the Transformation Technique had broken his little mind.

"If this elder knew you'd be so captivated by chakra, he would've told your mother to not buy so many toys." Kizashi said, stroking his comically long beard.

"Chakra…" His son repeated to himself, licking his lips before continuing. "What… what exactly is chakra?"

"It's the energy of life. Or life energy, whichever one. Every living being has chakra. Even the plants and the animals."

"Really? Then isn't using it for tricks like this dangerous? Couldn't you run out and, like, die?"

Kizashi frowned, sharpening his gaze. "And who told you what death is?"

"Uh… I dunno, to be honest. I can't remember." His son scratched his cheek, looking sheepish.

Ninja training was honestly the best when raising a child. He could instantly tell if his son was lying or not. If he was happy or sad. Reading body language was better than any jutsu. (Too bad it's never really useful with other ninja. Only the Hyuuga and Uchiha were that good.)

Haruki really hadn't lied, thankfully, but it was concerning that someone already explained what death is to his son without consent.

On the bright side, at least he didn't have to anymore. He was not looking forward to the birds and the bees later.

He hummed, saving that thought for later. "I see. Anyway, yes, you can and will die if you run out of chakra. But a small trick like this barely costs anything so don't worry about your old man."

"Costs nothing, huh? Then can you teach me? …I tried meditating to feel my chakra but I couldn't feel anything. And it's been days!"

He shook his head. It was hard to remember sometimes that he was only a toddler since he clearly was more intelligent than others his age.

Dispelling the transformation, he crouched down to get on eye level with his son. "Sorry kiddo, but I doubt you'd be able to feel anything for quite a while. Probably even longer than most kids, in fact."

Haruki raised an eyebrow in lieu of pouting or screaming like other children would. "And why's that?"

"Well, uh, hmm. How do I explain this one?" How did you explain genetics to a kid without… "Oh, I've got it! It's sort of like your hair."

"My hair?" He reached up and patted his spiky pink hair.

"That's right. It's pink even though neither me nor your mother's hair is that color. Mine is burgundy, and hers is blonde. Together, they seem to combine into yours."

For some reason, Haruki didn't look convinced. "Uh huh."

"So since you've got traits from both of us, you don't really have a lot of chakra. Not much at all."

"Do… do you not have much chakra?" He asked that question almost like he was afraid to offend. That was adorable.

But Kizashi had never been shy about his lack of chakra. "To put it bluntly? Yeah. Your mom's side of the family were all merchants. There were pretty much no shinobi in the family, so she didn't inherit much of anything when it came to chakra."

"I, on the other hand, come from a family of ninjas known for their below-average chakra levels but high control. Combine that and you get…"

"Me." Haruki finished for him.

"Yup. If you want to be a shinobi then you've got your work cut out for you. I had to work twice as hard as everyone else and I'm still a Genin." He internally winced at his own words. Laying out the facts like that was probably too blunt. Too harsh.

"Hey, look on the bright si-"

"You said chakra is life energy, right?" Haruki cut him off, a startling amount of intelligence and ambition shining behind his eyes.

"Uh, yeah."

He fired question after question. "And what is life energy made of? You said it'd take me a while to feel anything, which means it grows, but why does it grow? Age?"

Kizashi blinked. Getting straight to the meat of the matter, huh?

His tone was dry and mechanical, as if reading from a script. "Chakra is formed when two primal energies combine together, physical energy and spiritual energy. Some refer to spiritual energy as mental energy, but both terms work."

"Physical energy is collected from each of the body's cells, and is increased through training. Spiritual energy is collected from the mind's consciousness and can be increased through meditation, studying, or just general experience. It's why some like to refer to it as mental energy."

"And yes, it grows since you're constantly developing until you become a full adult. Once you're an adult, the only way to increase it is through the methods I mentioned." Haruki nodded seriously. It was usually 50/50 whether he got all that or not. Being a genius like his son was didn't help with suddenly knowing what certain words meant.

"Then it's settled. I'm gonna need your help, though." Haruki continued. For some reason, he didn't like the sound of that.

"…What is settled, exactly?"

Haruki jumped out of his thinking face as if he just noticed Kizashi was there. "Hm? Oh, I'm gonna be a ninja. And I need you to help me with my training."

Kizashi sighed heavily.

"Haruki. You know the academy doesn't open until you're six, right? And you don't have to be a ninja to know a few fancy tricks if that's what you're really into. Settle down and-"

He cut him off again. "Nope. I already decided. I decided weeks ago, actually. I'm gonna be a ninja. One who'll be stronger than you. Than anyone. And it starts now."

Exasperated, he tried to put a bit of steel in his voice. "Are… are you sure? This profession… it isn't a game, Haruki." Evidently, he failed.

"I know that, dad. I'm not an idiot. But it's a dangerous world out there, even if you guys try to hide it away from me sometimes. Kids see more than you think they do, ya know."

Kizashi paused, not letting any emotion show on his face, and contemplated if he should teach him. Haruki wasn't wrong, the world was a dangerous place, but that's why he'd become a shinobi in the first place. So that when things went wrong, he could protect his family. His son didn't need to become a shinobi.

And what other village was stronger than Konoha? The only way someone would even get close to his family would be if the Sannin themselves started attacking the village.

On the other hand, he knew himself. And he knew his wife. Even if his son seemed to be showing signs of being a bit of a genius, he likely inherited the biggest thing both of them shared.

They were all stupidly headstrong.

There was a reason they didn't interact with either of their families much. His family was a family of shinobi; Living long wasn't really realistic unless you retired early. His wife's family, though, simply didn't approve of their relationship.

So what'd they do? They got married. And then had a child.

If Haruki inherited even a little bit of that headstrong nature, he would just become a shinobi either way, even if his parents didn't approve.

From that perspective, his choice was fairly simple.

Kami forbid something happened to his son, but if it did, he could at least take solace in the fact that he had prepared his son to the best of his abilities and tried everything in his power.

"...Fine. But you have to promise me something," Haruki nodded. Good, he was taking this seriously. "If you get bored during school, find something else to do. No early graduation. No skipping years ahead. You will attend every single day for all six years of the academy, got it?" He nodded again, no hesitation whatsoever.

He was probably going to regret this but…

"Then I'd be happy to teach you all I know."

Kizashi would never forget the beaming smile Haruki sent up at him that day. With that gleam in his eye and his teeth on full display, the look he gave him was almost… vicious.

Yo.

First up, this will be updated once every Monday. Secondly, I know most gamer stories get straight into the gamer thing, but that'll be in chapter 2.

And finally, a warning.

As a writer, I am primarily a plotter. I outline basically the whole story before starting. This one, though? I'm not outlining anything. Why? Because I'm writing this purely for my own enjoyment. I'm sharing it with you guys because... why not?

So lower your expectations.

I don't even know why your expectations would be high, though, this is a gamer fic…

I have a question before you go: I'm thinking I just skip straight to six-years-old when Sakura is born and he goes to the academy with the system finally unlocked. What do you think?

See ya.