-...ra!(???)

 "(What is this...)"

I don't know what I am hearing in this void of nothingness, but it sounds annoying.

-..omura! (???)

 Very annoying...feels like to cats making the worst sound imaginable, it's grat-!

"HOMURA!!!!"(???)

"H-hein?! What! What's happening?!"

I-It's not dark anymore? 

As I opened my eyes the darkness I was previously surrounded by vanished.

 

"You finally woke up! Jeez! You have to wake up on time! The sisters and father are tired of you never waking up on time!"(???)

 

 "( W-what? What! I-I...This is my room...and she is...D*mn! And I was having such a nice dream! Come back! My Kurama!!!! )"

As confusion gripped me, I struggled to regain control of my cognitive senses. Everything felt alien for a brief moment, as if I had just awakened from a dream or perhaps relived a distant memory.

I am just cool like that, I am blessed or cursed by a dark force in my left hand that could pose a threat to the entire world...No. That part is not true nor even a tiny bit realistic.  

Still, I do feel like I forgot something important, rather, instead of forgetting it feels hazy and distant, yet strangely familiar... defying comprehension.

But now, the dream had dissipated, leaving behind the figure of a young girl standing before me. Memories flooded my mind, as if a missing part of myself had been reabsorbed. It suddenly became clear...What exactly am I on? I don't know what I was just talking about...but I recognized this place and unfortunately the girl in front of me as well.

With her bright blue hair...or was it green? I think I might be slightly color blind...because I really can't tell her weird colored hair...though I have not been tested yet so it is hard to know. But regardless of that, it was the girl most defining feature, and her eyes, though I couldn't quite discern their color—perhaps a dark shade of gray?

The realization struck me like an angry woman driving on straight road.

How did I forget who exactly I was messing with?  Sadly and desperately... I chuckled nervously, attempting to defuse the tension between us.

"Haha...sorry, Saya. I promise I'll try harder next time," I said, my voice laced with an air of playfulness, hoping to put her at ease. This girl was known for her violent tendencies, a real-life berserker. I had experienced her wrath before, and the memories of broken things instilled genuine fear within me—a fear I would never admit, not even to myself.

Saya sighed, clearly unimpressed with my words. "You always say the same things but never actually follow through! Also, did you just think something rude again?" she questioned, her eyes filled with suspicion.

Cursing inwardly, I felt trapped by her uncanny sixth sense. "Sh*t! Go back to the Saint Seiya universe already!" I thought to myself, frustrated by her ability to perceive my inner thoughts.

"N-nah, I swear! Saya, please, I didn't mean anything rude this time! I swear!" I pleaded, meeting her gaze with an earnest expression.

She continued to scrutinize me, but eventually relented, likely realizing she had more pressing matters to attend to. "Fine, I don't have time to lecture you today. It's our turn to buy groceries for everyone. Did you forget?" Saya stated, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

To be honest, I wanted to sigh as well, but I had learned never to let my guard down in front of her. I couldn't say for certain if all women were like that, but the ones I knew were far too suspicious. Sighing could be seen as an admission of wrongdoing, and I had spent considerable time mastering a poker face that revealed nothing incriminating.

"....Ah-ah?! Oh! I-I forgot, sorry!" I quickly interjected, attempting to mask my forgetfulness with playful antics, winking one eye and sticking out my tongue in typical anime fashion.

Unexpectedly, Saya seemed upset, and without warning, she yanked on my left ear with her astonishing strength. "OW!! Give! Give!" I cried out, feeling the pain shoot through my earlobe.

"No time for your nonsense today! We have to buy vegetables early! Aunty Mikone sells the newest vegetables first, and Uncle Tatsumaki always offers the freshest fish to the pretty housewives!" Saya declared, emphasizing the importance of the task at hand.

(Like I care about those two morons!!!) I thought, internally expressing my apathy toward the individuals she mentioned. Honestly, I had better things to do—going back to sleep being one of them. But I couldn't voice that sentiment aloud. This girl possessed unimaginable strength and zero tolerance for nonsense.

"Hahaha, yeah! I'm now awake and ready! Let's go and get the best stuff for everyone! Ooooh!" I exclaimed, feigning enthusiasm and mustering the energy to accompany her on the grocery run.

My words didn't align with my true personality—I was more of an alpha and respected and feared by everyone who knew me. Because I only care about numero uno, me! However, the looming threat of a beating from this oddly strong little girl would make anyone reconsider their life choices.

I have a reputation to maintain after all.

"...Although I can tell you're not being truthful again, I don't have time to reprimand you this time. Go clean yourself up!" Saya commanded, her tone revealing a mix of exasperation and urgency.

"Yeah!" I responded loudly, maintaining the façade of enthusiasm as I acknowledged her instructions.

Seemingly satisfied with my answer, I watched as Saya left the room, no longer needing to pretend. Finally, I could go back to sleep, where things were calm and I could find peace within my thoughts.

She may be a slave driver, but when pressed for time, she was quick to give up and handle things herself. She was too serious for her own good, taking on way too much for someone so young... not that I cared anyway. I'd rather just go back to sleep, far away from the problems of the real world. And oh boy, did this world have its share of problems. Problems that I'd rather not be a part of any more than I had to. Unfortunately, I messed up, and I messed up big time.

But just as I was about to drift off, I heard the voices of two familiar brats echoing in my room.

"Hey! Don't go back to sleep! Saya-chan is going to come back again, and if you're not ready by then, she'll lose her sh*t and break everything again!" exclaimed one of the boys.

"Yeah, dude! We don't want to suffer her fury again just because you're too lazy!" added the other.

Toshio and Zenkichi, the two idiots I happened to share this room with, couldn't resist butting in. Being an orphan was pure hell—I had no privacy.

That's right, this was an orphanage. I resided here because, like them, I was also an orphan. It was pretty obvious, duh!

"Toshio and Zenkichi, not you guys too... back me up, Uryuu!" I pleaded, hoping for support from the last member of our little gang who slept beneath my bed.

To be more precise, we shared a bunk bed. In this room, there were two bunk beds, housing the four of us brats. Due to limited space, everyone had to share a room. I was fortunate enough to have three familiar faces around my age. It would have been even more unbearable to share a room with strangers whom I couldn't get along with at all.

...Not that I got along with any of these brats, but we had been stuck with each other for so long that we had no other choice.

"...I don't want that girl coming here again, so you better get moving!" Uryuu chimed in, breaking the hope of any male solidarity among us.

Yep, we really didn't get along at all. I couldn't wait to get rid of them.

"...sigh," I sighed, unable to contain my frustration.

(Why do they make four-year-old kids do crap like this in this freaking world?)

Sadly, with no backup from my companions, I had to resign myself to my horrid fate and get out of bed.

Otherwise, those brats may jump on me and present my battered body to Saya as some sort of peace offering. I'm not being paranoid; it has happened before. I can't even begin to describe how much I hate those bastards...

"...*sigh*."

After being pretty much pressured into accompanying Saya, I found myself waiting outside the orphanage alone.

"That damn girl! She isn't even here ahead of me!" I grumbled to myself.

"Ah, sorry for the wait. Let's go!" Saya finally appeared, apologizing half-heartedly.

"Okay..." I muttered, questioning why it took her so long to get here. There was hardly any change since the last time I saw her.

"Oh, here, take yours!" Saya handed me a shopping bag, a smile on her face.

This brat... I could never tell if she was mad or genuinely happy. That's just how high her vile poker face level was.

"Ah, thanks Saya. I can always count on you," I said, expressing some gratitude.

"Of course! We're the same age and from the same orphanage. We have to take care of each other. Now let's depart!" Saya exclaimed with enthusiasm.

"O-okay..." I responded, puzzled by her excitement. What was so great about going to the center of the village? I guess for someone like her who didn't know any better, it was like going to an amusement park... Well, whatever.

Saya and I embarked on our shopping trip, diligently buying everything on the list given to her by the sisters. It felt like an eternity as we went from vendor to vendor, navigating through hordes of housewives and elderly folks. It seemed that no matter where you lived, the elderly always woke up at impossible hours and were first in line for everything.

"So much stuff to buy! These sisters are pretty tough on us orphans... well, not really, but I always feel like I have to work much harder than the other kids," I muttered to myself.

While the other kids played around and went about their days carefree, us orphans had to help around and take care of numerous chores at the orphanage.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?!" Saya snapped me out of my thoughts, her voice tinged with annoyance.

 

"Eh? Did you say something?" I turned my head towards Saya, realizing she had been talking to me earlier.

It dawned on me that she was trying to communicate, but I tended to tune out the words coming from brats and annoying people. I mean, you have to when you live with as many needy and shitty people as I do. Tuning out the noise is the only way to remain sane, at least until breakfast.

I reside in a house with around 70 to 100 people or something like that. Even people with large families don't have to endure the level of noise pollution I'm subjected to on a daily basis.

"Jeez! At least listen when I'm talking to you! Anyway, Sister Kasumi said that you haven't been doing your writing homework!" Saya scolded me.

"Oh... I sorta forgot about it. It was just so hard! I-I just needed a break before completing it, but I ended up doing something else... hahaha!" I chuckled nervously, trying to brush off the topic.

"What's the excuse? After breakfast, we're going to finish your homework!" Saya insisted, determined to ensure I completed the task.

"Y-yes, ma'am!" I reluctantly agreed, feeling the weight of my impending fate. "Not this again! What did I do to deserve such a horrible fate!?... Haven't I suffered enough? I thought this time things were going to be easy mode, but so far, it's been hard mode all the way through!"

Unable to retort Saya's words, I had no other choice but to shut up and comply. After all, the alternative was not worth the trouble. This is what happens when you're weak. Not that I consider myself weak, but she's just too strong... unnaturally strong!

We continued walking around until we reached the final store. However, just as we were about to enter, something unexpected happened.

Little did I know, this would turn out to be the weirdest thing that had ever happened to me.

"GET OUT!!! YOU DEMON!!!" the shop owner shouted with anger, throwing something towards a boy.

"Father, please calm down!" a clerk woman pleaded, trying to restrain the shop owner.

The boy stumbled and picked himself up, clutching the object that was thrown at him. It was evident that he was struggling on the inside.

His face displayed extreme pain and sadness, but the onlookers seemed indifferent. A small crowd had gathered, paying attention to the unfolding events. Some chose to look away, while others stared with apparent hostility towards the boy. However, most seemed perplexed by the situation.

It wasn't that they lacked opinions; it was more like they were afraid or uncomfortable, at least from what I could gather.

"Look, it's him!" a woman whispered, drawing attention to the boy.

"That filthy demon is here again today?" one man muttered.

"I swear, sometimes I just don't know what they're thinking..." a woman commented.

"Shush! Enough, don't talk about that anymore!" another man hushed the conversation.

Whispers spread through the crowd, attempting to gossip about the incident. Though I wasn't particularly close to what had transpired, I could easily hear their murmurs.

The boy, on the verge of tears, suddenly sprinted past me at full speed, not looking back.

While part of me wanted to scold him for his rudeness, I didn't care much for politeness and chose to keep my mouth shut. After witnessing what the boy had just endured, I had no desire to contribute to the already vile treatment he had received from these moronic people. The fact that adults would behave that way toward a child was utterly disgusting. I felt oppressed by the atmosphere, and frozen in place, unsure of how to react.

(Right! I almost forgot, considering I have no idea about the timeline in this world. No, not only that, but I just recently learned about how I became an orphan. It was only a few months ago. And living in the boonies, I had no idea of the village's ongoing events. Plus, I've never met him in person before. But... those whisker marks... there's no doubt about it! That was Naruto!)

Uzumaki Naruto.

The protagonist of the popular multimedia franchise named after him. To think I'd ever meet him in person... it was an odd feeling, to say the least. I wasn't a big fan, but he was undoubtedly a significant part of my childhood, influencing me in more ways than one. That's why, even though I didn't hold him in high regard, I couldn't help but freeze in place, contemplating the implications of this encounter.

"Listen, Homura, I'm not sure why, but the adults said not to approach that kid. They said he was dangerous. H-Homura, are you listening to me?" Saya voiced her concern.

I wasn't sure if Saya realized I was acting strangely or if she noticed me freezing in place, but she warned me to stay away from Naruto.

How did she know that?

Had she met him before?

...Maybe if I hadn't skipped most of the chores I was supposed to do in the center of the village, would I have met him earlier too?

So many questions arose from the recent events, but I preferred not to let my interest in Naruto be known to others, at least not at this point. It could prove far more dangerous than I could handle rationally.

"Ah yes, no problem, I listened to everything you said, I swear," I replied, feigning enthusiasm.

"...Hmm?! sigh Whatever, let's go somewhere else," Saya sighed in exasperation.

"Okay!" I feigned enthusiasm once again.

(Stop talking to me like you know more than me! You damn civilian nobody! I come from a family with a high pedigree, and with the cheats I obtained before reincarnating, I'm not like you, a nobody from the forgotten masses of background characters!)

This girl's know-it-all attitude really gets to me sometimes! Does she think I'm a complete moron? Well... I am one of the worst students at the orphanage right now, but that's mainly because I didn't feel like studying or applying myself to learn a new language. I'd rather just enjoy this time of my life and live a slow and quiet life, free from everything. But now I'm unsure how much more free time I'll have in the future. I'm genuinely scared by what I found out

We had to resume our shopping.

That Naruto incident only put a dent on our current route but we still had to complete the task that was given on to us. 

As we are about to leave to the next shop, I stopped to look towards the huge faces of the Hokages far away.

There were 4 very distinct faces plastered on that wall of stone...needless to say I was not too pleased by my current predicament even though somewhere in my heart I knew it all along that it wasn't true that I'd leave a life free of worries.

(D*mn! This just confirms it, I really need to get out of here! I can't become canon fodder for crazy Uchihas and interdimensional aliens!)

Somewhere within my heart...perhaps I wasn't even truly aware at the time but a spark of determination lit up in a barren soil of laziness.

Something inside me had changed because for the first time in my life I've felt an urge to do whatever I could to gain more power, enough power to try to escape the cold embrace of death once more.

chapter end