Sword of God -- A Naruto Fanfiction

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Walking down the streets of Konoha, Naruto reminisces at how far he has come.

The nostalgic air that surrounds him is overwhelming as he honours his past, recalling fond memories as a child as well as a moderately accomplished shinobi for his age.

He walks, passing through numerous marketplaces, stalls with friendly, smiling vendors.

For a moment, he tricks himself into falsely believing that they smile at him, just before their serene, joyful smiles turns into that of an ugly scowl as they see him looking.

He sighs in sadness. Will I truly become accepted? What is my purpose in life? I suppose that becoming the Hokage, a man of great repute, is the only way I'll ever find out. What is my greatest, most heartfelt desire that I so yearn for but don't recognise?

Having beaten himself into the ground with gruelling training exercises, Naruto can proudly boast his mastery over jonin level kenjutsu, though his ninjutsu does lag behind in many aspects, he knows that acing the upcoming Chunin Exams will be a breeze.

What is my calling? My inner nature? Naruto questions mentally. Perhaps I can become Konoha's first true weapon master... yes, that will get me some repute...

He heads towards his apartment, and by pure coincidence, passes by a very...peculiar scene,

Naruto walks up to it. "Hey! Put him down!"

A boy dressed in what seems to be black pyjamas and red make-up applied to his face is holding Konohamaru from the scruff of his neck.

I may not have had many interactions with Jiji's grandson, but I know for a fact that Jiji would want me to protect him.

Nearby are Moegi and Udon, standing by and watching the spectacle unfold, whimpering behind...

Sakura, Naruto recognises in disgust. Don't tell me that they were associating with her.

"Not until I teach this brat a lesson!" The pyjama-ninja replies, raising Konohamaru higher into the air.

"No, Kankuro!" A girl of similar height to the now named Kankuro shouts. She has teal eyes and sandy blonde hair.

"Listen to your girlfriend, Kankuro," Naruto demands, his face taking on a more stoic tone.

"Naruto-baka," he hears. His left eye twitched in annoyance.

Discreetly, he flips the bird at her, earning a similar twitch of the eye.

"She's my sister!" Kankuro indignantly roars.

Suddenly, Naruto disappears from reality, and as Kankuro's — and many other's — head cranes towards every nook and cranny, their search is meddled with.

A chilly, grim whisper drifts through the clearing, the voice disembodied as if a spectral entity had spoken: "Does it matter?"

Naruto appears in the position he had just been in, before it flickers, distorting like a glitched animation, before reappearing two feet to the left, and then four to the right.

It keeps happening like it's in a loop.

Kankuro's snarky response stutters out. He releases a quiet gasp, as he feels the cold touch of metal on his neck and a presence at his back.

Naruto had vanished from the material plane once more.

A simple kunai, pressed hard into the neck using the flat of the blade, meaning that it had yet to draw blood.

"One flick of the wrist is all it takes to rend your head from your body. The simpler things are the more effective, are they not?" Naruto growls.

Meanwhile, Kankuro begins to sweat. "Fine," he submits albeit with a hint of defiance in his voice, allowing Konohamaru to fall to the ground.