Land of Fire.
Hidden Leaf Village.
It was time for morning classes at the Ninja Academy, and many students hurried inside the gates.
Two boys walked together with their arms around each other’s shoulders, laughing and messing around.
Behind them, other students pointed at the pair—one with red hair, the other with yellow—whispering among themselves.
The two boys paid no attention to the chatter around them.
“Hey, Kamiki, when do you think we’ll finally graduate from the academy?” Naruto, his yellow hair messy, asked with an arm wrapped around the red-haired boy beside him.
Kamiki froze the moment the question left Naruto’s mouth.
He gave no answer for a long time.
Then, his body jerked violently.
Confusion clouded his eyes for a second.
Right after, his gaze cleared again.
Coming back to his senses, the red-haired boy looked around blankly.
He lifted his own pale, small hands, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Where am I?
Kamiki had been an ordinary elementary school student.
While walking and watching anime on his phone, a speeding car had hit him.
When he opened his eyes again, he was in this completely unfamiliar world.
Just as he was wondering what had happened, memories flooded into his mind like a tidal wave.
This was the world of Naruto.
And he was an orphan picked up from a battlefield by some ninja.
The Third Hokage had named him Kamiki.
Though he shared the same name, this Kamiki had it far worse.
Even with the trademark red hair of the Uzumaki clan, he showed zero talent.
Five and a half years had passed since he entered the Ninja Academy at age six.
Over those years, he worked many times harder than ordinary people, yet learned almost nothing.
Kamiki turned his head, staring at the blonde boy beside him in shock.
Transmigration.
He really had transmigrated into the world of Naruto.
Naruto was world-famous as one of the big three anime, but Kamiki did not know much about it.
As a school kid, his life had been packed with after-school cram classes and constant competition.
He never had time to watch such a long anime, so his knowledge of it was very limited.
Seeing that Kamiki seemed off, Naruto asked with concern, “Hey, Kamiki, are you okay?
Why are you suddenly acting dazed?” Kamiki forced down his shock and waved his hand.
“I’m fine.
Let’s hurry to class, or Iruka-sensei will scold us again.” Naruto nodded and ran ahead.
Kamiki watched Naruto’s back, lost in thought.
The original owner of this body and Naruto were both parentless orphans, which was why they became friends.
This gave Kamiki a great starting point.
After all, Naruto was the main character and would achieve great things in the future.
Staying on good terms with him meant a bright future ahead.
Since he was here, he had to accept it.
Walking along, Kamiki digested the memories in his head and got used to this new body.
After a moment, he frowned and muttered, “The original owner’s talent was truly terrible.
In all these years, he hasn’t successfully used a single real ninjutsu…” Ahead, Naruto noticed Kamiki walking slowly and called out, “Hey!
Kamiki, hurry up!
We’re gonna be late!” Kamiki called back and picked up his pace.
Inside the Ninja Academy classroom.
The moment Naruto and Kamiki walked in, whispers broke out across the room.
“Look, the two dead-lasts, Naruto and Kamiki, are here.” “Heh, the final exam is in a few months.
Those two dead-lasts will never graduate.
They really deserve each other.” “And look at how they look together.
One red, one yellow—they’re literally scrambled eggs with tomatoes!” Kamiki and Naruto ignored the mockery.
In his memories, this kind of thing had gone on for years.
They were used to it.
Kamiki lifted his eyes and looked at the students in the classroom.
The first person he spotted was Sasuke by the window.
Sasuke was leaning against the frame looking cool and gloomy, staring at the tree shadows outside, lost in thought.
Sakura, who liked Sasuke, sat right next to him.
Her eyes stayed glued to him without moving away once.
Besides those two, Kamiki spotted several other familiar faces: Shikamaru the smart one, shy Hinata with her Byakugan, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and the others.
Most of the Konoha Twelve were right here.
These people would become the pillars of the Hidden Leaf Village in the future.
Even though he had not watched the full anime, he recognized these famous characters because his real-world classmates often played with their pictures and talked about them.
Just as Kamiki was planning his next move, Iruka walked into the classroom carrying a stack of books.
The moment the teacher entered, the entire room fell dead silent.
Stepping onto the podium, Iruka cleared his throat and spoke.
“In a few months, all of you will take the final Ninja Academy exam.
Only by passing can you graduate, receive your ninja forehead protector, and become a true ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village.” “So today, we will review the Transformation Jutsu.” Iruka paced through the classroom as he explained.
“The Transformation Jutsu is an E-rank technique, the lowest level.
It only needs simple hand signs, but do not look down on it.” “It is an extremely useful support jutsu, handy in battle, spy work, or when luring enemies.” “If you master it, you can transform not just into people, but into animals, plants, or weapons.
It is very versatile.” “One thing to remember: a ninja skilled in the Transformation Jutsu can become an exact copy of the target, matching every detail and even their aura.
But a beginner’s transformation is very easy to see through…” “Sensei, you don’t need to explain so much.
We already know how to use it,” a student called out, laughing.
“Yeah, Sensei, you’re just explaining this for that dead-last, right?
How many times has it been?
Why even bother?
His chakra is pitifully weak, and whatever he turns into looks like a total mess!” another student chimed in.
They were talking about Kamiki.
Over the past five years, even Naruto had managed to use the Harem Jutsu to turn into a pretty girl, but Kamiki had never pulled off a single proper transformation.
Hearing the class make fun of him, Iruka said firmly, “I am a teacher.
I will never give up on any student.” “Kamiki probably just lacks experience or gets nervous, which is why his transformation fails.” “As long as he works hard, he will succeed in the future.” Iruka tried to defend him.
Walking over to Kamiki, he looked at him with encouraging eyes and spoke softly, “Don’t lose heart.
I believe in you.” Iruka had a good impression of Kamiki.
After watching him for years, he knew that Kamiki, as an orphan taken from a war zone, never complained or felt sorry for himself.
Knowing he had no natural talent, Kamiki practiced five to ten times harder than anyone else.
It was just a pity that, despite all his hard work, the boy’s talent and comprehension were simply too poor.
“He’s been studying for years.
How could he still lack experience or be nervous?” The other students shook their heads in disbelief.
“Hey, how about we let him demonstrate the Transformation Jutsu in front of everyone again!” a student suddenly laughed, a sly, mocking glint flashing in his eyes.
He just wanted to laugh at Kamiki’s failure.
“I want to see if he can even pull off a Substitution Jutsu, too,” Sakura joined in with the teasing.
Seeing the class make fun of him, Hinata’s face flushed red.
She whispered, “We are all classmates.
Don’t do this, it isn’t nice…” “Kamiki, ignore them,” Naruto patted Kamiki’s shoulder, speaking with concern.
Facing the loud laughter of the room and Naruto’s worried look, Kamiki thought for a moment, then spoke up.
“How about…
I give it a try?”