Hokage Office.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, exhaled a ring of smoke and set his pipe aside. He stepped forward and formed a hand seal.
A crystal ball floated before him, projecting a clear, real-time view of Konoha.
On the screen, Team Seven was carrying out a cat-catching commission.
"Stupid cat! Stop running!" Naruto panted as he tore through the trees, lunging for a fat, nimble cat ahead of him while complaining over his shoulder at Kakashi. "Why is it always these boring jobs?! I'm gonna be Hokage someday! Catching cats all day is ridiculous!"
Kakashi, mask on and eye smiling into a crescent, replied easily, "D-rank missions are still missions, Naruto. Every new genin starts from the basics."
"Ugh…" Naruto pouted but kept chasing.
He leapt and finally tackled the chubby orange cat, pinning it in his arms. "Ha! Got you!"
"Meowww!!"
The little demon cat flailed violently, raking Naruto's face with its claws and leaving several red scratches. Naruto yelped and nearly dropped it.
Watching through the crystal ball, Hiruzen couldn't help chuckling.
He observed for a while and noted Naruto seemed brighter than usual, working with unusual enthusiasm.
So the mysterious dream hadn't harmed him—if anything, it seemed to have lifted his spirits?
Hiruzen nodded faintly, reassured.
With a wave of his hand, the crystal ball's image dissolved.
Naruto truly showed no abnormalities, just as Kakashi had reported.
Still…
Hiruzen stood by the window, gazing at the Fourth Hokage's stone face on the Hokage Rock, his brows heavy with worry.
"A secret art I've never heard of…" he murmured, eyes sharp. "You hiding in the shadows… what is your purpose?"
After a long time, he sighed and returned to his desk.
…
Sunset fell. The day's missions were over.
"Ugh, I'm dead…" Naruto trudged home, shoulders slumped like his soul had leaked out.
All afternoon, Team Seven had done nothing but D-rank chores: catching cats, pulling weeds, cleaning riverbanks…
Not a single real enemy in sight.
For Naruto, it was more frustrating than failing training.
"Damn it, another wasted day!" he grumbled, kicking a pebble down the street. "When do we get a real mission already?! At this rate becoming Hokage is a million years away…"
Soon he reached his apartment.
He shoved the door open. The dim room was empty—something he was used to.
Naruto tossed his headband and jacket onto the sofa, went straight to his bedroom, and pulled out two tools he'd prepared.
One was a water-filled rubber balloon. The other was a solid rubber ball.
He clenched the water balloon, took a deep breath, and focused his chakra.
Pop.
The balloon burst instantly, water splashing everywhere.
"Whew. At least that part's fine."
He shook the water off his hands, tossed the broken balloon aside, and stared at the untouched rubber ball.
Now for the hard part.
He sat cross-legged, set the ball before him, covered it with both hands, and closed his eyes, replaying in his mind the way his father had shown the second stage last night.
"More concentrated… faster rotation…"
He whispered the instructions to himself and adjusted the flow of chakra in his body, pressing down slowly.
One second… two…
A faint vibration rose in his palms. The ball dented slightly, letting out a soft hummm.
"That's it!"
Naruto's eyes lit up. He tried to push harder—
—and suddenly the chakra bucked like a wild horse, collapsing in an instant.
Without chakra holding the pressure, the ball sprang back to normal shape and rolled away.
"Crap!" Naruto slammed his fist into the floor. "Why is it so hard in real life?! It looked easy in the dream!"
He fetched the ball again, pressing his hands over it once more.
But after hours of training, his body was exhausted. His chakra felt close to empty, and his arms were trembling with soreness.
No matter how he tried, the ball wouldn't burst, not even a little.
"Ha… huff…"
He slumped on the floor, gasping, sweat dripping off his chin onto the boards.
…No good. That's enough for today.
His vision swam. Even if he hated it, he had to stop.
He dragged himself into bed, pulled the blanket over his head, and collapsed.
As sleep took him, a small wish rose quietly in his heart:
If I can see Dad again tonight… I'm gonna ask him everything about stage two…
Fatigue swallowed him whole. His breathing slowed, steady and deep, and he fell asleep.
In the Dream Theater—
The vast, black auditorium stirred. Ripples spread through the void. Then three hazy figures appeared one after another in the front rows.
Kakashi adjusted first. Seeing he'd been pulled back into the same strange space, he didn't look tense at all; he sat down in the center seat of the first row as casually as if it were his couch.
One elbow on the armrest, chin in hand, he stared at the dark screen.
So it's happening again.
He'd already reported everything to the Third Hokage. With the Hokage investigating, they'd likely find the culprit soon.
At that thought, Kakashi simply waited for the "movie" to start.
-------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (168 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (180 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (110 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (170 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (68 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (110 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (60 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (100 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (50 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (50 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (50 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it