It was late in the evening, and the streetlights in Konoha were just being illuminated, casting a warm glow over the quiet streets.
In the Konoha hospital, in a room bathed in warm light, a child lay peacefully on the bed with his head resting on a woman's lap. A gentle breeze wafted in through the window, playfully lifting their hair and carrying the soft scents of roses and herbs from the garden outside.
The boy was breathing evenly, and one might think he was asleep if not for the occasional smile and his whispers of, "Not yet, Aunt Mikoto."
The woman looked at the boy with mild amusement in her eyes, which was occasionally tinged with a hint of sadness.
'He really seems to have forgotten about everyone and everything—he didn't ask much about how he was injured, nor did he ask about his identity or where his parents were.'
She remembered him almost jumping out of bed when the Mystical Palm Jutsu was used on him, and the look of curiosity on his face as he was asked about the green aura of the jutsu.
'At least he woke up and is able to speak normally and act like a typical child when encountering new things.'
She let her lips curve at the edges. 'And he's playing around with me just like we used to years ago.'
'Kushina will be happy once she learns you woke up. I want to visit her and tell her in person.'
Thinking of Kushina, her expression turned sad once again. 'Poor Kushina; she's not the same as she used to be. Losing Minato and having Hotaru in a coma for years have really taken their toll on her. It's about time something good happened for her.'
'I will not let you come to harm again, Hotaru. I will protect you,' she swore to herself, her face set in a determined expression.
***
[System is about to be Initiated.]
[Important note: During the Initiation process, the System may restart several times. This is necessary to complete the process and ensure the System is correctly Initiated.]
'Huh?'
[The crystalline display, i.e., the System interface, visible to the host may turn on and off during this process.]
'What the f*ck?'
[Host is advised not to stop the chakra supply in panic. Any interruption in providing chakra will lead to the termination of the initiation process.]
[As the host has been previously informed, such an interruption will be considered a rejection of System Initiation by the host.]
Hotaru took a deep breath and exhaled. He opened his eyes just a fraction to keep an eye on the crystalline display, or rather the 'System Interface' as it was referred to by the System.
And sure enough, the System Interface was flickering on and off, some flashes quick and some slow.
It was then.
[HOST!… DON'T PANIC!… LISTEN TO ME!…]
Out of nowhere, tense mechanical voice, exuding a sense of great urgency, reverberated in his mind.
He was expecting to just lie there for five minutes and get this over with, but the sudden, loud voice caught him so off guard that it took all his willpower not to jump out of bed and bang his head against the wall.
'WHAT THE F*CK IS WRONG WITH YOU? ARE YOU TRYING TO GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK?!' he screamed internally.
[LISTEN. I D-]
'Could you not speak so loudly. And why the hell are you even able to speak?' he thought.
[Interactive Voice feature allows voice interaction with the System, and is a functionality reserved for higher levels of access.]
'Higher levels? But you aren't even Initiated yet. How can I have…'
[That is not important. Host, pay attention to what I am about to say without interrupting me.]
'Alright, alright. What got you so riled up?'
[We don't have much time to talk, so I will keep it brief.]
The flickering System Interface revealed an empty progress bar, stark against the dim screen, indicating the System Initiation.
[-] 0%
[The Host seems to be under the impression that he has transmigrated into this boy in this world. That is not the case.]
Hotaru was indeed thinking along those lines. But if it wasn't transmigration, then how did he get here? Did that mean he was stuck in the Naruto anime?
[##] 23%
The progress bar filled up slightly, now at 23%, but it still had a long way to go.
[I don't know what 'Naruto' or 'anime' means. However, I can confirm that this world is real. Host is not in a dream, a game, or something else.]
[Due to some special circumstances and the accumulation of good karma in the host's previous life, the host has been reincarnated.]
Hotaru shook his head, disbelief etched across his face. 'Karma? Reincarnation? Is it real?'
[Yes, when someone accumulates enough good karma or overcomes great evil in their life, they are granted the gift of reincarnation. For their noble deeds in their previous life, they are given one more chance to seek happiness and find contentment.]
Hotaru was bewildered. This sounds too good to be true. Why would anyone be reincarnated solely to experience happiness and contentment? There had to be a catch. Maybe he would eventually be asked to fulfill some obligation in return for the chance at a new life. The thought left a knot of unease in his stomach.
'Happiness and contentment? I don't believe you,' Hotaru scoffed, his voice dripping with skepticism. 'Maybe I need to do something for being reincarnated.' He struggled to accept that such a thing would be given out for free.
[Whether host believes me or not, that is the truth. Host is free to do anything in this life without obligations. Maybe host would find happiness in the warmth of family, or perhaps host would like to seek the love of his life and settle down. Maybe host wants to do something for this village, or maybe host wants to be the best in his profession. Host is free to choose and do anything.]
When the System mentioned doing something for this village, Hotaru almost let out a laugh. Yeah, he wasn't that naive.
[I would like to remind host one last time that this is not a game. This is the real world. Host was born into this world, and this body belongs to host. All the people host sees and interacts with in this world are real.]
'Why do you know about all these things?' he asked the System.
[It is a bit difficult to explain, but I shall try. The circumstances of the host's death in the previous life were unique, to say the least. When the host's soul was being purified in preparation for reincarnation, the System was not detected. I am sure they were not even aware of the concept of a System. Thus, I have knowledge of matters related to reincarnation.]
The thought of someone doing something to his soul scared him. 'I was purified? What did they do to me?'
[Nothing to worry about. It's just normal procedure that everyone who reincarnates undergoes.]
Hotaru furrowed his brow, his voice laced with confusion. 'But that doesn't explain why I am able to think like an adult. How old was I when I died in my previous life? Surely, a six-year-old child should be more naive and innocent.'
[###] 30%
The progress bar filled up a little more, now at 30%.
[In the host's previous life, the System was never provided with the host's personal information, so I do not know the host's age. When host's soul was purified for reincarnation, the memories and personality were indeed wiped out, which should have made the host just like any other child. However, you had me when your memories were erased, and that made a difference.]
Hotaru furrowed his brow in confusion once again. 'What do you mean by that?'
[The Host spent an inordinate amount of time with the System during the host's previous life. Therefore, the System always had data regarding, lets say, the host's 'personality' and 'thought patterns' among other things, for lack of better terms. Even when the host lost these traits during soul purification, the System always had another copy.]
Hotaru's heart raced as a wave of disbelief washed over him. 'Wait, what? You mean all this time, you had a backup of my personality and umm… thought patterns?'
[Yes, host. That is correct.]
Hotaru could swear there was a hint of pride in the System's mechanical voice. Honestly, even his feelings were alternating between awe and unease.
'Then why do I have memories about this world, but not my previous world? Everything should have been lost when my soul was purified, right?' he asked the system. This question stumped him the most: why would he retain memories of Naruto's world while everything else was lost?
The System seemed to have no answer to this question as well, remaining silent for a while.
[###] 33%
No response.
[###] 36%
No response.
[###] 38%
[Now that the host mentions it, what happened at that time makes a lot more sense.]
Hotaru was intrigued. Maybe he would finally learn why his memory of this world had been left intact. 'What happened at what time?'
Heh, of course. There had to be a reason for it; he wouldn't have been reincarnated for free.
[When host's soul was being purified, I remember them saying they were going to cleanse it of everything related to the host's previous world. Once they finished, a small amount of data was left behind in the host's soul. I believed they had missed a few aspects of the host's self that weren't memories, so I transferred that data into my internal memory.]
Hotaru was shocked. So, it seems he was reincarnated, with no strings attached, and that he was truly free to do anything. To think the System could do such a thing right under their noses without getting caught! Wait. 'System, who were the people who purified my soul? Also, did that data contain the memories of this world?'
[The System is not aware. I can only perceive what the host sees. Since the host was dead at that time, I could only perceive what was happening to the host's soul. I observed that the host's soul had been purified and that some data was left behind within it.]
[The System does not understand how the host was able to have memories of this world before the host's death. Additionally, the System cannot access the data stored within it, so I cannot confirm whether the data I moved into my memory pertains to the memories of this world.]
That was a lot for Hotaru to take in. He now understood why he only had memories of this world and not of his previous one.
[###] 39%
Quiet.
[####] 40%
Quiet.
[####] 41%
Now, Hotaru was left with only one question: 'Why now? Why didn't you return all the data you had when I was born?'
[Host seems to be forgetting that I need chakra to function. The first time System detected chakra in host's body was when the host was already in a coma. If I am not mistaken, this woman named Mikoto had rescued you and used the same jutsu she was now using on you.]
Hotaru felt a wave of gratitude and warmth as he realized that Mikoto had come to his rescue.
'But in all these years, many jutsu must have been used to heal me. Why didn't you use that chakra to wake me up? Why did you only wake me now?'
[That was the issue the System had been restless to discuss with the host. I needed to explain everything up to this point to get to that.]
Hotaru recalled the System's sudden, loud yells in his mind just after the Initiation process had started, almost making him jump out of bed. 'Okay. Tell me what you wanted to discuss that made you so restless.'
[####] 47%
[Host, I will tell you everything that has happened while you were in a coma. The host must keep in mind that the System can only see things that the host sees. When the host was in a coma, I could only monitor the host's body and nothing else.]
[But host must remember not to panic. Everything is under control now that the host is out of the coma.]
Hotaru gave a mental nod.
[When host was in a coma for the past three years, host's blood essence was being extracted every day by some people.]
'M-my w-what?'
Alarm bells rang in Hotaru's mind. A wave of panic washed over him, accompanied by a sinking sensation in his stomach that sent ripples through his entire being. His breaths quickened, each one feeling shallow and constricted.
Inside, his mind spiraled, racing with relentless thoughts: Who took my blood essence? Were they trying to kill me? Why didn't anyone notice it was happening?
The weight of uncertainty pressed down on him, leaving him feeling more vulnerable than ever before.