The air inside the forest was much cooler than in the village. The scent of damp earth mixed with fallen leaves filled my nose, while the bushes swayed gently in the breeze, forcing me to stay alert and distinguish between the movements of prey and the forest's natural rhythm.
Little by little, I began to understand the habits of the animals living there, from the paths they frequently traveled to the times they came out in search of food.
By relying on patience and the small amount of experience I had, I managed to bring home a fair amount of game.
It was not always large, but it was more than enough to help meet my daily needs.
Sometimes I caught rabbits or young deer, while on other days my hunting results were far more modest.
Even so, I was still satisfied because my efforts were never truly wasted. Occasionally, I even shared some of the meat with villagers who needed it.
Before long, the villagers began to recognize me as someone who was always willing to help, though I still did my best not to stand out too much.
I only displayed abilities that remained within the bounds of what an ordinary person could reasonably accomplish, avoiding any unnecessary attention.
After all, I had no desire for anyone to start questioning my origins simply because my abilities seemed too different from those of a normal person.
Of course, hunting was only something I did during the day to avoid raising suspicion.
During the daytime, I behaved like an ordinary village youth trying to make a living, blending into the community without revealing anything unusual.
I chatted with the villagers when necessary, helped with light work whenever it was needed, and then went back to living my life just like everyone else.
When night gradually fell and the entire village slowly grew quiet, I secretly practiced controlling my Chakra.
The oil lamps inside the houses went out one by one, leaving the village wrapped in peaceful silence, accompanied only by the chirping of crickets and the soft rustling of the wind through the trees.
I trained little by little, carefully trying to understand the flow of energy now coursing through my body without drawing anyone's attention.
Whenever I felt my Chakra move according to my will, I made every effort to memorize that sensation so my control would become increasingly stable.
This allowed me to observe every tiny change taking place within my body.
How my Chakra flowed, how that energy responded to my thoughts, and how it felt when the flow became smoother.
I committed every sensation to memory so that each training session would be better than the last.
Even the smallest mistake could prove disastrous if someone happened to witness me doing something unusual.
Because of that, I always made sure everyone was asleep before I began training.
I would immediately conceal any trace of my Chakra, steady my breathing, and wait until everything became completely quiet again before continuing my training.
Being that cautious certainly slowed my progress, but it was far safer than taking unnecessary risks.
While living in this village, I also began observing the villagers more carefully.
I paid close attention to the way they spoke, worked, and went about their daily lives, hoping to notice something others might have overlooked.
Whenever I helped with village work or went hunting, I took the opportunity to observe them without appearing suspicious.
The longer I stayed here, the more I came to understand the villagers' little habits.
At first, I suspected that someone among them might be hiding their identity as a ninja, but after observing them for several days, I realized I had been mistaken.
There were no suspicious movements, no habits that suggested combat training, and even their body language genuinely reflected the lives of ordinary villagers.
The way they carried their equipment, walked, and reacted to their surroundings showed none of the discipline or vigilance that a ninja would normally possess.
The villagers were truly nothing more than ordinary people. Even the elderly man serving as the village chief, whom I had previously suspected of possessing some kind of special ability, turned out to be nothing more than a normal human who had spent most of his life protecting this small village.
The old man's face was lined with deep wrinkles, and his steps had begun to slow with age, yet the look in his eyes still reflected his genuine concern for every villager.
The village chief spoke calmly and with quiet authority, earning the villagers' respect not because of his strength, but because of his experience and years of devoted service.
On one hand, that fact brought me a sense of relief, as it meant there were no immediate threats I needed to worry about while staying here.
I could train and gather information with far less risk than if this village had been inhabited by ninjas.
As long as I didn't do anything too conspicuous, the chances of my identity being exposed would also be much lower.
On the other hand, however, that very situation only made me even more curious. This village was truly isolated from the outside world.
Very few merchants ever came here, and news from beyond the village was rarely heard. The villagers lived simple lives, as though time itself moved much more slowly here than it did in the outside world.
Even so, I continued trying to gather every piece of information I could, no matter how small.
I listened carefully to the conversations of traveling merchants whenever they stopped by, memorized every place name they mentioned, and compared them with what I already knew about this world.
Although the information I obtained was extremely limited, every piece still held value because it helped me better understand the current situation.
Most of what I learned consisted of fragmented stories, but together they gradually formed a much clearer picture than I had before.
Little by little, those scattered fragments of information began fitting together. While many details were still unclear, at least I was no longer completely blind to the state of the world I now lived in.
At the very least, I managed to confirm that my current location was within the Land of Fire.
That information alone was extremely important because it finally gave me a clear point of reference. Now that I knew where I was, I could begin estimating other possibilities regarding the current era and the world's overall situation.
The next piece of information was even more important. Konohagakure had indeed already been established, although it was still a very young village.
Unfortunately, no one knew exactly how many years had passed since its founding.
Everyone simply said that the village had not existed for very long, but no one could provide a specific number.
For the people living in this remote village, Konohagakure was merely a name they occasionally heard from passing merchants.
They knew the village's name, but they had no real understanding of what was happening there.
In addition, I also learned that the First Great Ninja War had not even begun yet. That meant Madara Uchiha had not yet defected from Konoha.
The relationship between Madara and Hashirama should still be at its strongest, or at the very least, it had not yet reached the point of fracture that would eventually give rise to countless future tragedies.
That conclusion made me even more certain that the Naruto world I had entered was set in a very ancient era, long before Naruto's birth, and even long before the generation of his parents.
All the pieces of information I had gathered over this period were gradually coming together to form a far more complete picture.
Although there were still many missing pieces, at least I was no longer wandering aimlessly as I had been when I first arrived in this world.
[Note: This is my other novel: As a Blacksmith in the World of Jujutsu Kaisen. As the White Spider-Man in Earth-76 with the Spider-Man System]