Naruto: Faint Smile - CH 3

It has been a few months since my rebirth. And thus far, I have been able to discover a few things, nothing much mind you, but enough to get a general idea of what I was dealing with.

Apparently, I’d been reborn in the world of Naruto, more specifically, Konoha, pretty much confirming this entire thing was an Isekai.

That simple realization alone had confirmed a few suspicions that had been gnawing at me since I came into existence in this strange new world. For one, it answered the question of what language my the people around me were speaking, that language being Japanese. And two, it also answered my question as to what exactly I was feeling around.

The strange energy that seemed to be in every single person that I had met thus far, a force, pulsing and throbbing with life, was Chakra.

I traced my fingers in the air, feeling the soft hum of the energy around me. It was not just within the individuals; this place breathed Chakra too. The earth under the village pulsed with it, the animals, the water… everything had a bit of Chakra in it.

Anyway.

Another thing I had discovered was that my personality had changed.

I was no longer the frazzled, anxious person I remembered being in my past life, I was now calm, serene even with all of this. Not that I was totally different, mind you. It wasn't a complete 180 degree turn in my character, but more like an evolution, I suppose. Some aspects of my old self were still there in the core, as solid as oak, while others had faded away like smoke in the wind.

Talking about fading away. My memories had stopped fading.

I had a still lost a big chunk of my past life. But now, I didn't wake up each morning with less than I'd had before, the drain had been plugged.

The only thing I regretted was the fact I had forgotten about what happened in Shippuden, it would’ve been very helpful to remember that, but I suppose beggars can’t be choosers. I'd have to make do with the scraps of my remembered knowledge.

Besides, it wasn’t all bad, I still remembered the first part of the anime, before they grew up and stuff, so that was ought to be worth something. Then again, I had no idea where in the general timeline I was, but I suppose I’ll find out.

In the meantime, I suppose I ought to learn… no, relearn how to walk.

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[A few months later.]

After months of listening to the people around me, I’d begun to pick up some of the language. And I had to say, I was learning Japanese at an unnatural pace, maybe my new brain was better suited to learning, or maybe it was the fact I was only interacting with the language in question, whatever the case might be, it felt like I had an unusual knack for remembering things now.

Well, they do say newborns and kids have sponges for brains, maybe they weren't far off.

By now, I had also learned how to crawl, and walk… kind of, keeping the balance was still a bit of a challenge. Occasionally, my stubby legs would give way under me, sending me sprawling onto the tatami mats.

Be that as it may, I was grateful to have recovered some semblance of control in my movements. Being carried around was… an indignity I was happy to do without.

Not that my new parents had stopped carrying me around, but now that I had some control over my body… the amount of time I spent in their arms had thankfully decreased.

Another thing I had learned was my new name. Takeshi Arata… or is it Arata Takeshi? I don’t remember how they orient names in Japan, but either way, it had a nice ring to it.

“He always looks so serious, isn’t he cute?,” my mother, Mai Arata, cooed, her fingers combing tenderly through my hair.

“He’s practicing for the ladies,” my father, Arata Yoshiro, chuckled, ruffling my already tousled hair with a loving touch. "Just watch. He'll be a heartbreaker.”

I scowled at his words, silver eyes flashing in mild irritation.

It wasn’t that it bothered me that he said that. Its that he said it… every single day, multiple times. By now, it was simply annoying.

But enough about that.

 Let’s talk about what I have learned.

Our house was located close to the Uchiha District, a section of the village that was, for lack of a better term, prestigious. Apparently, my father made decent money as a well-respected blacksmith, in the village, allowing us to reside within close proximity of one of the big clans.

He was a shinobi as well, but had retired due to permanent injury, or so I had gathered from the snippets of conversations I had heard.

My mother on the other hand, worked in administration in the Hokage Tower. She was a ninja, like the old man, but it seemed she never went to active duty.

I was fine with this arrangement. Their professions meant they spent a lot of time at home with me, providing me ample opportunities to pick up nuances of the language and local customs.

“Who’s my hungry little lion?” Mai cooed, holding up a spoon filled with mashed potatoes as she lifted me off the ground with one hand. I watched her suspiciously, making her giggle. “Don’t pout, Takeshi. It tastes good.”

Oh well, I am hungry, and mashed potatoes sound good.

As I ate, I contemplated about what awaited me in the future.

I knew I would eventually be enrolled in the academy, from there, it would only be a matter of time before I had to kill someone.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I wasn’t scared of the prospect, that much I knew, but other than that, I didn’t know.

I guess that’s a problem for future me, present me has some potatoes to devour.