Night in Konoha always felt softer than it looked.
The village lanterns burned in warm amber tones, kids were asleep across the orphan dorms, and the Hokage Monument watched quietly over all of it—three faces carved in stone, long before Tsunade or Kakashi would exist. The Third's gentle stare seemed to glow in the moonlight.
Ethan should've been asleep too.
But something pulled him awake.
Not danger.
Not instinct.
Not chakra fluctuation.
The Panel.
It wasn't loud. It never was. It simply came online in the back of his awareness—cool, clean, system-precise. The same feeling as the first breath after emerging from the Bleach Node… except sharper. More urgent.
Ethan sat up in his bunk, slipped quietly into his sandals, and walked out onto the roof of the orphanage. The air was crisp with pine and night fog.
He stepped into the breeze and whispered, "I'm here."
The Panel opened.
A soft white glow unfurled before him.
---
[NARUTO NODE — PRIORITY ALERT]
A new mission chain has been generated.
Timeline Volatility: Moderate → Rising
Chakra System Compatibility: Stable
Recommended Action: Immediate review
Ethan straightened.
The Panel only flagged volatility when the world's underlying story currents were shifting. And this world… this world was the kind where being in the wrong place at the wrong time could get you erased without ceremony.
He motioned lightly.
"Show me the mission."
The Panel responded.
---
[NARUTO NODE — FIRST MISSION CHAIN]
MISSION NAME: EARLY ROOTS
Node Type: Political / Survival / Observation
Difficulty: Moderate
Optimal Age Window: Academy Year 1
---
OBJECTIVE 1 — OBSERVE QUIETLY
Monitor unusual Academy activity within the next 48 hours.
Indicators include:
• Iruka's schedule shifting
• Non-teacher shinobi appearing near classrooms
• Students missing without explanation
• Unannounced drills
• ANBU patrol frequency changing
• Chakra signatures inconsistent with standard genin presence
Restrictions:
NO interference.
NO meddling with Academy operations.
NO confrontation.
Reward: 10 PP
Ethan's pulse slowed in controlled ease.
Academy-level anomalies?
Early Root activity?
Possibly testing candidates?
It lined up perfectly with the era—Root was still active, still secret, still very much Danzō's domain.
He pressed two fingers to his temple.
"Okay. That's doable."
---
OBJECTIVE 2 — STABILIZE A CLASSMATE (NON-DESTINY SHIFT)
Assist one Academy student with a minor obstacle.
Candidate Options:
• Naruto Uzumaki — High story weight
• Sasuke Uchiha — Extremely high story weight
• Hinata Hyūga — Clan-sensitive
• Shikamaru Nara — Low volatility
• "Student ID #47" — Civilian, no plot threads
• Any other background classmate
Panel Note:
Helping Naruto, Sasuke, or Hinata increases timeline risk.
Ethan let out a long slow breath.
Naruto would ask questions he couldn't answer.
Sasuke was a walking pressure mine.
Hinata… was Hinata. He'd feel awful accidentally messing with her storyline.
ID #47 was the safe option.
But safe didn't always mean correct.
He kept reading.
Reward varies depending on target bond.
---
OBJECTIVE 3 — SURVIVE FIRST CONTACT
A Node-generated event will occur in the coming days.
Details: Hidden by design.
Purpose: Evaluate presence in the timeline.
Estimated Threat: Moderate
Survival Rate: 78–83%
Reward:
• Chakra Stability Boost
• Panel Archive Unlock: "Konoha Foundational Dossier"
Penalty for Failure:
• Timeline distortion
• Forced reset
• Permanent stat reduction
Ethan exhaled slowly through his nose.
The Panel never exaggerated.
If it said an unavoidable event was coming, it was coming.
He leaned back on his hands, feeling the rough tile of the dorm rooftop beneath his palms.
"…Alright," he murmured. "We handle it."
His voice didn't shake.
---
BONUS OBJECTIVE — REMAIN UNDETECTED
Avoid drawing the focus of the following:
• ANBU
• Hyūga Byakugan patrol units
• Inuzuka trackers
• Root operatives
• Yamanaka sensory specialists
(NOTE: The Uchiha Police had not yet been transitioned into policing Academy grounds; risk near zero.)
Reward: +15 PP
Ethan blinked once, slow.
Good.
Accurate.
Grounded.
And dangerous.
---
When the mission summary concluded, the Panel dimmed back into standby mode—hovering like a dormant lantern in the back of his mind.
Suzu stirred in the Taming Space, sending him a pulse of instinct-warning.
Aoi hummed softly, balancing him out.
Ethan whispered, "I know. I felt it too."
Konoha looked peaceful below him—the quiet laughter of distant night guards, the scrape of a broom as someone closed shop, faint drifting scents of broth and rice.
But beneath that…
Something was moving.
Something political.
Something predatory.
Something watching the Academy children a little too closely.
And now he had 48 hours to confirm it.
---
RETURN TO THE DORM
Ethan slipped back inside unnoticed and rested on his back, staring at the ceiling. The soft snores of other orphans were oddly comforting.
He wondered which of them the Panel marked as ID #47.
He wondered what Iruka's face would look like when the anomaly hit.
He wondered whether his presence tilted the timeline upward or downward.
Eventually, fatigue pulled him under.
---
MORNING — THE FIRST SHIFT
The Academy courtyard buzzed with noise—kids rushing, tripping, shouting, sparring with sticks.
Naruto barreled toward him, waving a leaf.
"Ethan! Ethan look, I'm totally gonna get this leaf-sticking thing today, dattebayo!"
The leaf fell off Naruto's forehead immediately.
Ethan sighed. "…Sure."
But he felt it—instantly.
A ripple.
A wrongness.
A shift of air that didn't belong.
He turned casually.
A man in a jonin-standard green flak jacket stood beside Iruka.
Not a parent.
Not a teacher.
Not a visitor.
Someone assessing.
Iruka's expression tightened just slightly at whatever the man whispered to him.
The man's eyes drifted across the children…
…and paused on Ethan for half a second too long.
Not suspicion.
Not hostility.
Evaluation.
Then he looked away.
But it was enough.
---
[OBJECTIVE 1 — Progress: 12%]
Unscheduled shinobi presence confirmed.
Possible pre-Root-screening activity detected.
Risk: Elevated slightly.
Recommendation: Maintain low profile.
---
Ethan lowered his gaze and pretended to adjust his academy-issued notebook.
Inside his chest, his heart had already slowed into the steady, measured cadence of a boy who'd trained under spiritual pressure, fought monsters, and survived apocalypse worlds.
The Naruto Node had officially begun.
There was no turning back.