"You've been following me for quite a while. It must've been hard on you…"
Naruto suddenly stopped walking, taking a satisfying sip of milk.
He glanced amusingly at the dead-end alley ahead, deliberately chosen for its isolation, and spoke in a calm tone.
His voice carried a peculiar undertone.
The Anbu, who had followed him all the way from his house, tensed up.
This kid's aura was disturbingly strange.
...
"Huh? Are you guys playing 'Red Light, Green Light'?"
Naruto slowly turned around, looking toward the darkness that seemed to swallow everything.
"Did he really notice us?"
The Anbu members felt uneasy, their confidence shaken under his gaze.
Before they could react further, Naruto's small figure shot forward like a cannonball.
And his trajectory? Straight toward their hidden position.
"Impossible! How could this brat detect our location?"
...
"So, this is what it feels like to grow stronger... I can feel my power increasing every second. It's such a fascinating sensation…"
Naruto's figure disappeared into the darkness.
"Move! His speed—"
One of the Anbu members was still processing the situation when another shouted, unable to contain his fear.
The shout boomed like thunder in the night, startling the surroundings.
"Now that I've exposed you, do you really think you can escape?"
Naruto's small frame suddenly appeared behind the shouting Anbu.
His voice was calm, yet it carried a chilling edge. Without hesitation, his hand formed a claw and drove into the Anbu's lower back.
Bang!
To Naruto's surprise, he didn't pull out the man's kidney as he expected. Instead, the Anbu turned into a block of wood.
He frowned slightly but soon smirked.
He had already locked onto the scent and energy fluctuations of his prey…
Compared to before, his strength was terrifying, his speed was outrageous, and his sensory abilities were almost absurd. He was addicted to this newfound power.
As for the chakra within him, he wasn't entirely sure how to use it.
The academy didn't teach him much about that…
At best, he could use it for basic techniques like the Clone Technique or enhancing his kunai's power.
As this thought crossed his mind, Naruto's eyes lit up.
Moments ago, it seemed like his subconscious had used chakra to boost his speed…
...
The remaining Anbu, startled by how quickly their comrade had been forced into using a substitution technique, bolted without a second thought.
While running, one of them pulled out a signal flare from his pouch, preparing to launch it.
Naruto observed their actions. Though he didn't fully understand what the flare was, he had a rough idea of its purpose.
Now that his strength was exposed, there was no way he could let these Anbu live.
If they escaped, he'd have to consider how to leave this dark, miserable village altogether.
The ground beneath him cracked as Naruto accelerated, creating a crater with the force of his step.
His speed was even faster than the fleeing Anbu!
...
The Anbu who had used the substitution technique remained hidden, observing his partner distract the demon fox. Without hesitation, he bolted in the opposite direction.
He had no intention of using a signal flare.
The escalating noise of the battle in the village meant it was impossible for others not to notice.
What use was a flare in such a situation?
Running for his life was the better option…
Naruto, effortlessly overtaking him, moved with an almost ethereal grace, leaving a trail of afterimages in his wake.
Hearing the commotion draw closer, the Anbu grew increasingly panicked, fumbling to pull the flare's cord.
The more he panicked, the harder it became to grasp it, as though the flare was mocking him.
...
Finally, he managed to grab hold of the cord that seemed to drift farther away with each passing moment.
"Who designed this stupid flare?!"
The Anbu cursed under his breath, both relieved and furious.
"Demon fox, no matter what—"
Before he could finish, a small hand pierced his flesh.
"Huh?"
Without hesitation, Naruto tore out the Anbu's kidney and tossed it to the ground.
He then let out a strange, questioning sound, as if to ask, "What were you about to say?"
"Damn! My kidney!"
The Anbu member looked at his kidney, which Naruto had just thrown to the ground, and hesitated before speaking.
"Don't worry, you won't need it anymore…"
As the Anbu, still in shock and about to respond, started to react, Naruto's fingers came together and plunged into his chest.
The earlier distance had been a hindrance, but now, with the two in close proximity, Naruto could reach him…
…
"You're dead."
Feeling the heartbeat under his grip, Naruto whispered these words as his hand pierced the Anbu's skin and grasped his heart.
Without hesitation, he clenched tightly…
"You…"
The Anbu's heart was crushed. His body fell backward, lifeless, as his eyes under the mask turned dull and empty…
On the ground was the lifeless body of the Anbu, lying in a pool of blood.
Even in his wildest dreams, he hadn't imagined dying so pathetically—
Killed by the Nine-Tails, a creature not even considered a ninja…
Naruto's senses picked up his prey's figure, rapidly fleeing into the distance. Feeling a sense of frustration, he stopped in his tracks.
Noticing other ninja closing in from all sides, Naruto realized it was too late to give chase…
Even though his strength was growing quickly, his lack of combat experience was glaring.
…
"Don't resist. I'm taking you back."
As Naruto hesitated about whether to flee the village, a calm and steady voice startled him.
Before he could react, he was hoisted up.
The next moment, he was being carried swiftly across rooftops, leaving the scene of the crime behind.
As they passed the Anbu's corpse, it suddenly exploded, lightning crackling across it until the body was charred and unrecognizable.
"There was… one more person wearing a mask. He got away…"
Naruto looked up at the silver-haired man wearing a mask, who carried him like one might carry a kitten.
For some reason, being near this man gave Naruto a feeling of comfort he couldn't get from anyone else.
It was a warmth he couldn't explain, something soothing.
This feeling, along with a strange sense of familiarity, eased his tense and battered heart.
"Someone else will deal with that. Don't take on things you can't handle. No one's going to clean up after you."
Hearing Naruto's voice, Kakashi felt a pang in his heart.
Suppressing his inner turmoil, he spoke calmly yet coldly.
This child had changed—so drastically that Kakashi could no longer understand him.
One incident had turned him into someone unrecognizable. It puzzled Kakashi and left him with a deep sense of guilt.
That guilt gnawed at him, tearing at his conscience.
…
A short while later, they arrived at Naruto's home.
"Big brother, why are you helping me?"
Naruto sat on his bed, looking at Kakashi, who was preparing to leave, and asked softly.
"I'm not helping you. No one can truly help you. Everything depends on you. Study hard. Train hard…"
Hearing Naruto's words, Kakashi paused for a moment before responding coldly.
Naruto's mindset was clearly off, and Kakashi knew he needed to find a way to help him.
Until he could figure out a solution, he wanted to prevent Naruto from causing any more trouble. That's why he spoke so bluntly.
…
"Thank you, big brother…"
Naruto said softly, watching as Kakashi opened the door to leave.
Kakashi was someone special—the only person, aside from the hypocritical Hokage, who had ever genuinely helped him.
He had left an indelible mark on Naruto's heart.
Even though Naruto desperately wanted to know who Kakashi was and why he had helped him, he couldn't bring himself to ask…
"Naruto… This world still holds beauty. Don't lose hope in it…"
As Kakashi stepped out the door, he thought for a moment before leaving these words behind and closing it.
…
"Beauty…? You won't even tell me why you helped me. You haven't lived my life, so why try to comfort me?"
Naruto stared at the closed door, muttering to himself with a complicated expression.
After a moment, he seemed to remember something.
He quickly looked down at himself, noticing spots of crimson blood, and felt annoyed, his gaze turning sharp.
After some thought, he took off his jacket, tossed it into a bucket, added detergent and water, and prepared to destroy the evidence.
…