Chapter 3
Naruto looked at the flushed face of the little white-eyed girl, Hinata, and thought to himself:
Just as in the original story. She's still so shy around me. It was after this kind of event that the original Hinata started to like Naruto. But the canon Naruto was a complete idiot who didn't notice anything and only had eyes for that wide-forehead Sakura...
But this Naruto was no longer the original one. Letting such a cute and shy little Hinata slip away would be a complete waste of his transmigrator identity.
Naruto walked up to the small Hinata, reached out his little hand, and gently patted her head, ruffling her hair. He flashed a bright, goofy grin full of white teeth and said:
"Looking at those white eyes of yours, plus those guys calling you 'young miss' earlier, you must be the eldest daughter of the Hyuga main family — Hyuga Hinata, right!?"
"Ah~~~ Naruto-kun… I… I am… Hyuga… Hinata… Thank you… for helping me just now…" Hinata's head was already spinning. Naruto-kun patted my head… he patted my head…
Naruto quickly pulled his hand back. If he continued, this little girl might actually faint.
He smiled at her and said warmly, "Since you're from the Hyuga clan, your taijutsu should be more than enough to handle those three 'piss-pants' bullies easily. Girls need to protect themselves. You shouldn't cry so easily, okay? Be strong. Show your strength to everyone. You're not just a fragile vase or a spoiled young lady. You… are an outstanding kunoichi of Konoha!"
Naruto extended his index finger and lightly tapped Hinata's forehead, looking at her with encouraging eyes. Then he gave her another bright, toothy smile.
"I… I am a strong girl… I am an outstanding kunoichi of Konoha! Naruto-kun, I understand. I won't let you down!"
Hinata's heart swelled with determination after receiving Naruto's affirmation. For a moment, she even forgot her shyness and spoke with surprising strength.
Naruto laughed in his usual silly way, then reached out again to gently pinch her cheek. "That's my good girl, little Hina."
"Naruto-kun… touching my… face… and calling me… little Hina…"
Hinata's face instantly turned burning red. Steam seemed to rise from her head. Her eyes rolled back, and she happily fainted from sheer bliss.
"Oh crap! I messed up. I completely forgot about this…" Naruto panicked and quickly caught Hinata's falling body, his face full of regret.
"Hinata-sama… Where are you~?"
A voice calling for her echoed from a distance.
Naruto cursed inwardly. He hurriedly carried Hinata over and leaned her gently against the trunk of a large tree, making it look like she had simply fallen asleep. Then he quickly hid behind another tree.
"Hinata-sama…? Hmm… Did she fall asleep? What a playful child…"
A middle-aged man dressed in Hyuga clan attire saw the 'sleeping' Hinata and walked over. He picked her up carefully and headed back toward the Hyuga compound.
"Phew… I'll have to be more careful next time," Naruto sighed in relief.
He then turned and walked toward the Hokage Tower. It was time to get some books from the Third Hokage. He needed to learn how to refine chakra as soon as possible.
"Looks like that little rascal is still causing trouble… Hmm? He seems to be coming this way. Don't tell me he's here to ask for money again?"
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, muttered to himself. Ever since Naruto started his secret physical training, his ability to ask for money had improved dramatically. Because of his guilt toward Minato, Hiruzen found it hard to refuse.
Naruto walked into the Hokage Tower with practiced ease. He pushed open the door to the Third's office and shouted loudly:
"Third Grandpa! Are you in?!"
Cough cough. "Naruto… You're not here to rob your grandpa again, are you?" Hiruzen stood up from his chair with a light cough.
"Nope! I'm already five years old now. I want to start reading books and prepare for entering the Ninja Academy in two years," Naruto said with a serious face, looking every bit like a model student.
"Oh? You actually have such a good mindset. That's wonderful!" Hiruzen's eyes brightened. "Alright, grandpa will first ask you a basic question. What is the main power that ninjas rely on?"
"Hmm… hmm…" Naruto pretended to think deeply, crossing his arms and stroking his chin like an experienced scholar.
Even if he hasn't studied it, he must have heard the term at least once… Hiruzen thought to himself.
"Oh! I know! It's 'Rakucha'! I overheard the adults talking about it once!" Naruto declared triumphantly, one hand on his hip and pointing at the Third with a big grin, as if saying 'You can't stump me!'
"Pfft—"
Hiruzen nearly spat out his tea. He stared at Naruto with wide eyes, black lines appearing on his forehead. Is this kid a genius or just an idiot…?
Cough cough. "Naruto, let me correct you. It's called 'chakra,' not 'rakucha.' You said it backwards," Hiruzen explained patiently.
"Ah… Hehe, I knew that! I was just joking on purpose!" Naruto laughed dryly, quickly putting on an expression that said 'I knew it all along.'
"Alright, alright. Stop pretending, you little brat. Do you want to hear the explanation or not?" Hiruzen looked at him with disdain but continued seriously.
"Yes! Yes! Of course I do!" Naruto immediately switched to obedient grandson mode.
Hiruzen explained, "The so-called ninja power is a special energy created by combining the body's cellular energy with spiritual energy. This energy is called 'chakra.' The stronger a ninja trains their body, the greater the amount of chakra they can produce. Chakra is used to perform taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu. These three types of techniques are divided into ranks: C, B, A, S, SS, and SSS. The higher the rank, the more powerful and astonishing the technique — but it also consumes much more chakra."
"Oh! I get it! Chakra is like a person's stamina. Walking is like a C-rank technique — low consumption. Running is like a B-rank technique — it uses up more stamina. Is that right, Grandpa?"
Hiruzen's eyes lit up with pleasant surprise. He nodded happily and smiled, "Excellent analogy! Your understanding is really impressive. You have great talent!"
Minato… did you see that? Your son has such high potential. I will definitely train him to become an outstanding ninja!
Naruto secretly rolled his eyes in his mind, then asked, "Then Grandpa, how do I actually refine chakra?"