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JST Chapter 362: When the Demon Fox Has Better Grades Than You
🕑 Added 2025-06-30 04:00:23 +0000 UTC'Alternate space-time Naruto and the Nine-Tails… they’re already bound to me.' Kazuki smiled as he watched the boy and the fox train tireles
'Alternate space-time Naruto and the Nine-Tails… they’re already bound to me.'
Kazuki smiled as he watched the boy and the fox train tirelessly, his thoughts calculating in the background.
'Given the time ratio, ten years here is less than a year in my original timeline...'
'I’m in no rush to return. The Sage of Six Paths will have to exhaust considerable effort and resources if he wants to turn the upper echelon of the shinobi world into an army capable of challenging me…'
And those future elites?
They were all just waiting to be harvested by Kazuki—like rows of leeks, ripe for the cutting.
'Naruto and the Nine-Tails are valuable to me because the more I teach them and provide resources, the more their growing strength returns to me with exponential gain...'
'Once the two of them conquer this world together, I won’t even have to worry about being punished by the laws of alternate space-time. I’ll essentially be able to extract chakra worth several times the yield of a Chakra Fruit from this dimension.'
Brahma-Manifested Svadhisthana: When those under Kazuki’s tutelage grow stronger—or overturn their destined fate—their progress generates multiplied feedback to Kazuki, based on their unique traits.
And the multiplier?
It correlates directly with the emotional bond they share with him.
Contemplating the full scope of the Rinnegan’s ocular abilities, Kazuki’s eyes flashed with insight.
'So power alone isn't enough… I need to ensure they break free from their original destinies.'
'Destiny is shaped by one’s worldview. To shift that… I’ll need to guide them, step by step—through each experience, reshaping the boy and the fox without them realizing it.'
Naruto and the Nine-Tails continued practicing Kazuki’s improved clone techniques, over and over again.
And then—moments later—
[Smack!]
A piece of chalk, thrown with surprising force, struck Naruto squarely on the head from the front of the classroom.
“You little brat! The Hokage went out of his way to give you a chance to attend this academy!”
The chūnin instructor at the podium—his face clouded with fury—shouted angrily: “If you’re not going to take this seriously, then get out! Today we’re covering the Fundamental Three Techniques—how do you expect to graduate if you can’t even pay attention to this?”
“You might as well drop out right now!”
Inside his spiritual world, Naruto flinched reflexively at the harsh reprimand.
But almost immediately, his expression hardened into a frown.
What do you mean, I was ‘granted a special chance’ to attend this school? Do they really think I’m just some demon fox in disguise?
I’m the son of the Fourth Hokage!
After Kazuki had shown him the true history of Konoha’s wars…
Naruto just wanted to say—if it weren’t for his father’s legendary feats during the Third Great Ninja War, driving enemy villages back under the name of the Yellow Flash, a mere chūnin like this one wouldn’t even have the qualifications to be teaching here so comfortably.
The Konoha chūnin instructor stared at Naruto, his eyes seething with anger—and tinged with a vile satisfaction.
Back on the Night of the Nine-Tails, years ago, this very chūnin had lost both of his parents in the chaos...
Even though he knew—
It had nothing to do with Naruto. The boy had simply been unlucky enough to be chosen as the jinchūriki.
But hatred never fades on its own.
Hating the jinchūriki and dumping some of that bitterness onto Naruto… it was his way of venting.
Even though he knew full well—aside from the Third Hokage, no one in the village had the authority to expel Naruto.
Attending the academy was mandatory for the jinchūriki. It was part of their socialization process—a way to foster bonds.
After the scolding from the instructor…
The entire class turned to look at Naruto with mocking, scornful, indifferent eyes.
Only Shikamaru and Chōji glanced over with some helpless sympathy. Hinata, for her part, looked worried.
But no one else showed even a shred of kindness toward him.
This was the world Naruto lived in.
“You said you were teaching the Three Basic Techniques, right?”
Naruto slowly stood up—not to crack a joke like he usually did, not to deflect the awkwardness by acting goofy. This time, he stared straight into the instructor’s ugly, twisted gaze and said calmly: “You’re a terrible teacher. There’s nothing worth learning here. I mastered those techniques a long time ago.”
The instructor’s mouth twisted in disbelief, and the room erupted in laughter.
Everyone knew Naruto was the only one in class who still struggled to even extract chakra properly.
And now he was claiming he’d already mastered the Three Basic Techniques required for graduation?
What a joke.
“Sure, his clothes look a little cooler than before—but if he doesn’t have the skills to back it up, trying to sound all cool like Sasuke-kun just makes it awkward…”
Sakura, with her pink hair and broad forehead, gave Naruto a quick once-over—white short-sleeved shirt, black long pants, clean and simple. For a second, her eyes lit up. But then she turned dreamily to the side to gaze at Uchiha Sasuke and delivered her verdict with a shallow sigh.
But Naruto didn’t even glance at the girl he used to have a crush on.
Instead, he looked around the classroom, meeting everyone’s eyes.
And all he felt was a wave of quiet disgust and alienation.
Boring.
Why had he gone to such foolish lengths before—doing all sorts of stupid things—just to get the attention of people like this?
How pathetic…
As he recalled the intense days of training under Kazuki, pushing himself with those improved shadow clone techniques, his fingers instinctively and fluidly formed a familiar seal.
[Bang!]
A puff of smoke burst into the air.
Two shadow clones appeared on either side of Naruto, and now, three Narutos stood together, all staring coolly at the stunned academy instructor.
Just moments ago, the classroom had been filled with laughter. Now, it had fallen into complete, dead silence.
The two shadow clones beside Naruto bent down and picked up the broken pieces of chalk that had fallen on the desk, narrowing their eyes.
“You’ve got some backbone now, kid. I’ll lend you a bit of my power!”
The Nine-Tails burst out laughing. “Throw it back!”
A faint layer of chakra coiled around the clones’ wrists. With a flick of his own wrist, Naruto sent the two pieces of chalk flying like sharp kunai—blasting through the blackboard and embedding themselves deep into the wall.
The instructor stood frozen, eyes wide, staring at the gaping holes in the blackboard, cold sweat forming as he slowly turned his head to look.
This wasn’t the Three Basic Techniques at all.
This was clearly the Shadow Clone Technique! And the way he threw those chalk pieces—he was clearly using chakra-enhanced projection techniques...
What the hell was going on?
The silence in the room now was louder than all the laughter that had come before.
Naruto turned his head—just in time to meet Sakura’s wide-eyed, stunned gaze.
After a single beat—
“So boring…”
Naruto took a deep breath and murmured, “The old me… was seriously boring.”
Kazuki watched the scene unfold with a quiet smile.
Naruto scanned the silent room. His gaze swept over his classmates’ stunned and uncertain expressions, and he let out a cold, disdainful snort.
Once upon a time, he had gone out of his way to show off—to act wild and foolish, just to catch a certain girl’s attention.
Haruno Sakura.
Countless times, he had pulled all sorts of antics—trying to act tough, stand out in any way possible—just to get her to look at him differently.
But Sakura had always responded the same way: a frown of annoyance, muttering things like 'demon fox', 'orphan', or 'freak', before turning her dreamy gaze toward Sasuke, surrounded by admiration from everyone else.
Time and again, it was the same triangle.
Naruto would look at Sakura.
Sakura would look at Sasuke.
And Sasuke... would look at Naruto.
A perfect loop.
But today—after Naruto had demonstrated the Shadow Clone Technique and the art of chakra-infused projectiles…
Sakura, visibly shocked, finally looked at him properly.
And to her surprise, the scruffy demon fox orphan she once thought of as dirty and weird—now clean, well-dressed, and freshly groomed—actually… didn’t look bad at all.
Maybe even… kind of handsome?
Handsome in a way that didn’t lose to Sasuke?
Her eyes, unknowingly, softened with a strange emotion.
This—this was what the old Naruto had yearned for more than anything.
The kind of gaze he once believed he’d give anything to earn.
But now, seeing that flicker in Sakura’s eyes, something stirred in his chest…
And then quickly faded.
There was no joy.
No excitement.
Not even satisfaction.
If anything—there was a hint of disappointment.
So this is what it feels like to finally be noticed by Sakura?
Turns out… it wasn’t all that great.
Pretty dull, actually.
He couldn’t even remember why he had once been so obsessed with making her see him, or with earning the approval of classmates and teachers—people who were shocked simply because of a Shadow Clone or a touch of the Nine-Tails’ chakra.
Shouldn’t life have more meaningful pursuits than this?
If he kept wallowing in such shallow validation… wouldn’t that betray everything Kazuki-nii had taught him?
Naruto turned on his heel and strode out of the classroom in wide, unhurried steps, not the slightest bit attached to the awestruck stares behind him.
At that moment—
As Naruto savored the strange tangle of emotions within him, a quiet understanding began to emerge.
It felt as if invisible chains had suddenly snapped from his body.
And with that release came a deep sense of freedom—
And with freedom, a surge of joy unlike any he had felt before.
