Chapter 6: Constant Stage
Hearing Sakura's words, Iruka couldn't help but think of Naruto's parents...
Although he still felt some lingering resentment toward Naruto, Minato Namikaze and Kushina were both heroes of Konoha. Hearing Sakura use them to attack the boy made even the usually gentle Iruka glare at her sternly.
"Haruno Sakura! Watch your words! And Naruto — laughing at someone else's dream is also wrong!"
After Iruka's half-hearted mediation, Sakura snorted coldly and sat back down. The few points she had given Naruto in her mind for his good looks instantly dropped into the negatives.
Ino turned to Sakura with a more serious expression. "Sakura, I heard Naruto is an orphan. What you said was really too much!"
Sakura let out a small "Ah…" and felt a brief pang of guilt.
But remembering that Naruto had laughed at her dream, she still muttered angrily, "How was I supposed to know he doesn't have parents? Besides, he started it by making fun of my dream!"
Ino gave her a speechless look, starting to seriously question her taste in best friends.
"My name is Nara Shikamaru. My favorite food is mackerel miso soup. As for my dream… just thinking about it is too troublesome, so I don't have one." Shikamaru answered lazily.
Soon, it was Naruto's turn.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I don't eat beef. My dream is to become a hero who can do whatever he wants."
"Him? Become a hero?"
"A demon fox wanting to be a hero who does whatever he wants — that's hilarious."
As expected, the classroom immediately filled with hushed whispers.
But who said only those standing in the light could be heroes?
[So Naruto-kun doesn't like beef… I believe you'll definitely achieve your dream.]
Only Hinata believed in Naruto unconditionally. She even secretly noted down in her little notebook that Naruto didn't eat beef.
About half an hour later, a Shadow Clone of Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived at the academy.
Standing on the temporarily set-up stage, he began the long opening ceremony speech.
"Where the Will of Fire burns, the leaves of Konoha dance endlessly…"
The same unchanging opening line as always.
Naruto stood with hundreds of students under the blazing morning sun.
He had thought the Third would finish quickly, but the old man ended up talking for two and a half hours straight!
One slogan after another — even a cult leader couldn't match his endurance.
Many students were already drenched in sweat.
Yet Naruto remained completely fresh and unaffected.
He hadn't been listening to the Third's rambling about the Will of Fire at all. Instead, he had closed his eyes and fully focused on maintaining Wind Breathing.
That was why the heat hadn't bothered him.
...
In the following days, Naruto's life became very routine — just home and school, back and forth.
No matter where he was, he kept the rhythm of Wind Breathing, and it had become second nature.
In the blink of an eye, one and a half months passed.
Early morning, inside the classroom.
Naruto sat by the window. His previously closed eyes slowly opened as he let out a soft breath.
After two and a half months of near-constant practice (except when sleeping), he had finally reached the [Constant] stage of Wind Breathing!
With his Perfect Uzumaki Sage Body combined with Constant-stage Wind Breathing, in a ninja world full of high-attack, low-defense shinobi…
In terms of sheer vitality and durability, Naruto was now probably at boss-level.
The system's voice rang out at the same time:
"Congratulations, Host. You have reached the Constant stage. Reward unlocked: [Absolute Chakra Control]."
Absolute Chakra Control: You possess extreme mastery over chakra. Whether spending it lavishly or controlling it with extreme precision, you can do so effortlessly, as if it were an extension of your own limbs.
A very good ability. Naruto felt genuine joy — his two and a half months of hard work had been worth it.
Reaching the [Constant] stage didn't dramatically boost his physical strength, but the real benefit was turning the Wind Breathing state into his permanent normal condition, while the constant subtle nourishment slowly transformed his body from within.
Today's first class was outdoor practical training.
Compared to the boring theory classes, the students of Class A were clearly much more excited for training.
Following Iruka, the entire first-year Class A headed to the training field.
"Next up is the shuriken throwing test. First — Uchiha Sasuke!"
Iruka held a notebook, ready to record everyone's scores.
Sasuke smirked, hands in his pockets, and walked to the center.
Shuriken throwing was something he had practiced many times with his brother Itachi before even enrolling. This was definitely his strong suit!
[You weaklings, watch closely. This is the moment you witness the gap between a genius and the rest of you!]
As the cool Sasuke stepped forward, several girls screamed in excitement — including Sakura.
Sasuke slowly reached into the shuriken pouch strapped to his thigh and pulled out three brand-new shuriken between his fingers.
Aiming at the wooden target post ahead, he flicked his wrist. The three shuriken shot out simultaneously.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
All three shuriken struck dead center on the post.
"Kyaa! As expected of Sasuke-kun! So amazing! So cool!"
Another round of ear-piercing screams rang out.
It was so loud that even Shikamaru scratched his itchy ears with a deadpan expression.
After finishing, Sasuke turned his head with a hint of pride, his gaze landing on Naruto in the crowd.
He was eager to show off his brilliant result.
He expected to see frustration in Naruto's eyes, but the other boy only looked calm, as if it meant nothing to him.
Most civilian students either missed completely or barely managed to hit the post with one shuriken.
Clan kids like Shikamaru and Ino did slightly better — at least hitting the target — but they were still far from Sasuke's precision.
This only made Sasuke's confidence grow even stronger.
"Next — Uzumaki Naruto."
Naruto walked forward unhurriedly, also holding three shuriken between his fingers.
"Is he trying to copy Sasuke and throw three at once?" Sakura sneered, clearly disdainful.
She had thrown her three shuriken separately and only barely landed two.
In her eyes, Naruto was just trying to show off.
Naruto raised his hand and flung the shuriken with lightning speed. Many students couldn't even see the motion clearly.
Even Iruka barely managed to catch it.
In the next instant, the three shuriken seemed to teleport, slamming deeply into the wooden post.
All three were perfectly aligned — identical in angle and depth, like three matching symbols on a slot machine.
Iruka stared at the target, mouth slightly open, eyes full of shock.
"This…!"
The accuracy and power caused the entire training field to fall into silence.
Sakura's face burned as if she had been slapped. She nearly awakened her second personality.
Sasuke stared fixedly at the three shuriken, fists clenched tightly. A faint red glint flashed in his eyes.
"This shuriken technique… isn't much worse than my brother's! Damn it! How can this guy be so strong?!"
What Sasuke didn't know was that Naruto's incredible throw had incorporated a trace of Wind Breathing sword-form technique.