Hyuga Hizashi came home one evening, cradling a baby boy in his arms.
His twin brother, Hiashi, stepped forward, eyes narrowing in confusion.
"Whose child is that?"
"He's mine," Hizashi replied softly.
Hiashi frowned. "But... your wife died giving birth to Neji. How—?"
Hizashi let out a long breath, avoiding his brother's gaze. "During a mission to Kirigakure nine months ago, I… made a mistake. A brief lapse in judgment. His mother—she contacted me recently. With the Bloodline Purge intensifying in Kiri, she's terrified. She begged me to take him. His eyes..." Hizashi lifted the baby's face slightly. "White as snow. The Hyuga blood runs strong in him."
Hiashi's expression darkened. He exhaled, heavy with the burden of leadership.
"You know what this means. He'll be seen as an outsider. A pariah within the clan."
Hizashi's steps faltered. He turned, locking eyes with his brother.
"I know I'm only from the Branch House, Hiashi. But I'm asking you—no, begging you—to help him. Convince the elders to accept him. If they can't... I'll leave. I'll raise him away from the clan. Can you imagine that? A Byakugan wielder growing up beyond Hyuga walls? And don't misunderstand—this isn't a threat. It's the only option I'll have left."
Meanwhile, at Yakiniku Q...
"Inoichi," Choza said, chewing happily, "I swear my cousin's cooking got even better today."
Inoichi chuckled. "Probably riding the high of becoming a father."
Choza grinned, holding up his chopsticks. "Who would've thought? Three friends from different clans, all marrying after the war—and now, three years later, each of us welcoming a child on the same day?"
"Correction," Shikaku added, lifting his glass. "Five children, actually. Shibi and Tsume both told me they're clan got babies due today too."
Choza blinked, then laughed. "Five? That's wild. You think the Hyuga or Uchiha had kids too?"
"Could be," Inoichi replied thoughtfully. "I heard the Hokage's wife is expecting soon as well."
Elsewhere, in the Uchiha compound...
"Did you just come from the hospital?" Mikoto asked, opening the door with a curious smile.
"Yes," Hazuki replied, stepping inside. In her arms was a newborn swaddled in black. "This is Karasu. I hope he and little Sasuke will grow up to be the closest of friends."
One Month Later
A thunderous roar split through the sky above Konoha. The colossal form of the Nine-Tails towered over the village, its rage setting the city ablaze. Fire engulfed the streets; buildings crumbled under its wrath. Screams echoed from every corner, the cries of terrified citizens filling the smoke-choked air. Panic reigned.
A child sobbed helplessly as he watched, frozen, while rubble crushed his mother before his eyes. Fathers sprinted home only to find nothing but ash—empty shells of once-lively homes, their families gone.
Desperate survivors rushed through the chaos, seeking refuge in hidden shelters. Among them moved a man with dark glasses, calm in the storm. His body crawled with insects—Aburame Shin, using his Kikaichu to locate survivors and guide them to safety. One arm held tightly to a small infant swaddled in cloth: his son.
Unnoticed, the baby's tiny hand lifted in the smoke, eyes half-lidded in feigned sleep.
Kyuta: This is my only shot… I need to drain as much chakra as I can from the Kyūbi.
From his palm, a single Kikaichu darted into the air, gliding with unnatural precision toward the rampaging beast. As it latched onto the Kyūbi's immense chakra, it began to swell—feeding the rest of the colony hidden inside the child's body. The insects worked tirelessly, absorbing the chakra, growing, splitting, multiplying—on the brink of bursting as they stored the energy in an internal chakra vault exclusive to Kyuta.
Kyuta (thinking): Naruto only had half of the Kyūbi. Me? If this works… I might surpass even him.
The strain was immense, but the Kikaichu endured. Hidden from sight, inside the calm of his false sleep, Kyuta's mind drifted… back to a life long gone.
In Another World…
A boy named Josh sat in front of his computer, answering an odd, seemingly endless online questionnaire. The AI-driven form adapted with each response, learning, testing, challenging.
Question 1:
If you were to reincarnate into an anime world, which would it be?
Answer: Naruto.
Chat: Typical.
Question 2:
Which clan would you be reborn into?
Answer: I want to be from 15 different clans—or at least have 15 bloodlines.
Chat: That's either impossible… or your DNA would be so diluted you'd lose them all.
Josh: Not if I'm split into 7 kids. Each one gets two bloodlines.
Chat: That's… new. Elaborate.
Josh: Okay. Let's start with the first kid:
He's from the Aburame and Uzumaki clans. The Uzumaki blood grants enormous chakra reserves and durability, while the Aburame line gives him mastery over Kikaichu insects—custom-made to drain any form of chakra, even a Biju's.
Chat: You mean Kikaichu.
Josh: Right. And he'll have an inventory that stores Kikaichu.
Chat: Interesting. But I'm setting limits. The insects can't drain natural energy, and the inventory can't store anything except insects.
Josh: Fair enough.
Chat: Continue.
Josh: Sure. Next is the second kid…
Kyuta's eyes snapped open.
Through the chaos, he noticed his father gently placing him into the arms of another woman from the Aburame clan.
Shin: "Take care of him. I'll be back."
The woman nodded and disappeared into the smoke with the infant.
Kyuta watched in silence, his infant body too small to speak, too weak to move. But his mind—his soul—was burning with realization.
Kyuta (thinking): This… this is the part where I become an orphan, isn't it?
He clenched his tiny fists. If fate was going to play its part, so would he. But on his terms.
The Day the Kyūbi Attacked
Aburame Shin died a hero.
He was found buried beneath rubble, his body shielding three civilians. Even in death, his Kikaichu had continued to lead survivors to safety. His closest friend, Aburame Shibi, honored his sacrifice in the only way that felt right: when his own son was born, he named him Shino, a tribute to Shin's memory.
Kyuta, still just an infant then, had absorbed an extraordinary amount of the Kyūbi's chakra. The Kikaichu within him were forced to evolve—adapting their internal chakra pathways to better process and replicate the Nine-Tails' chakra. The transformation made them faster, more resilient, with enhanced regeneration and drastically improved chakra-draining ability.
That incident also unlocked something deeper.
While still too young to wield it, Kyuta had unconsciously developed the foundation for a unique Jutsu—one requiring precise chakra control, maturity, and experience. He recognized early on that his immense chakra reserves, while powerful, could become a burden without discipline. So, he focused inward, refining his chakra control in secret.
But that wasn't all.
Using the evolved Kikaichu as conduits, Kyuta began sharing portions of the Kyūbi's chakra with his six reincarnated kids—each of them scattered across the village. The chakra wasn't meant for battle, not yet. Its purpose was more subtle: to boost their early development. And it worked.
The Next Generation Awakens
Each child began developing chakra pathways far earlier than expected, accelerating their physical and mental growth. By age two, all seven were already walking, running, and even talking in full sentences—behavior that stunned their families.
To those around them, they seemed like prodigies.
Training programs began early under the guise of play. Their parents thought it was all innocent fun, but to the seven, it was disguised prep:
Hide-and-Seek became stealth training.Tag built stamina, agility, and battlefield awareness.Throwing balls sharpened reflexes and tracking.Nap time was covertly used for meditation and chakra control.
They would occasionally cross paths—especially during park outings organized by their mothers or caretakers. Bonds began to form, particularly among the boys of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio, who often found themselves in each other's company, unaware of the deeper connection that linked them.
A New Kind of Companion
On one such trip, Inuzuka Kaito returned home with a strange animal.
At first glance, it looked like an ordinary pup—except it was covered in what appeared to be black ink. No matter how many times the clan tried to bathe it, the substance remained. Eventually, they realized the truth: this wasn't ink. It was alive. A viscous, slime-like entity had merged with the dog. Not a parasite, but something symbiotic. Protective. Intelligent.
The creature seemed bonded to Kaito, responding to his emotions, and guarding him like a shadow.
Kaito named him Tatsumaki.
He became Kaito's constant companion—eating, sleeping, training, and playing at his side. The dog showed a surprising level of awareness. He even cleaned up after himself, much to the clan's shock.
Kaito's mother, Sakura, she was a civilian who wasn't born into the Inuzuka clan. She had arrived in Konoha after the Third Shinobi World War, having lost her entire family. She had been branded a traitor in her homeland for accusing the higher-ups of orchestrating the deaths of her loved ones. Konoha offered her refuge. The Inuzuka accepted her, and she pledged that if the strange dog caused trouble, she would take full responsibility.
But Tatsumaki was no burden. He was loyal, disciplined, and undeniably unique.
The Inuzuka elders began to whisper perhaps Kaito wasn't just another prodigy. Perhaps the strange dog wasn't a curse… but a gift.
While playing with Tatsumaki one day, Kaito's mind began to drift—slipping from the present into a memory of his final day in his past life.
Josh: "Alright, next is the second kid…"
He paused, fingers hovering over the keyboard.
Josh: "He's from the Inuzuka clan and the… uh, I'm blanking. I don't even know if the other clan's name was ever actually mentioned in canon. But they use the ___ release.
Chat: "You mean the clan from the Village Hidden in the ___? The ones with the ___ Release?"
Josh: "That's the one. And this kid's companion would be a special dog, except not just a dog—a symbiotic creature. Like Venom but adapted for chakra."
Chat: "So the symbiote can shift depending on the host it merges with?"
Josh: "Exactly. But more than that. The symbiote evolves over time by ___.
Chat: "That's got a lot of potential. But don't you think it's a little too powerful? Are all the kids going to be this strong? And won't that break the plot?"
Josh leaned back, thinking for a moment, then typed:
Firstly, they'll all start slow—but yeah, faster than normal kids. Not for the sake of being 'cool,' but survival. With people like Danzo lurking, they need a head start.
Secondly, yes, the rest will have similar-ish power levels eventually. And honestly—look at Naruto and Sasuke. They got massive boosts that made the rest of the Konoha 12 practically irrelevant. Balance is already broken in canon.
Finally, we're eventually going to fight aliens. I'm not going to make carbon-copy powers, though. No Rasengan. No Chidori. No Sharingan hacks. I'll keep it original. Maybe one or two familiar ideas, but that's it."
Chat: "That's… oddly reassuring."
Josh blinked, then smirked.
He'd just realized how seriously he was taking this questionnaire.
Josh: "Well, too late to back out now. Let's finish this properly."
Kaito snapped back to reality at the sound of the front door sliding open.
Inuzuka Shippo: "Honey, I'm home."
Sakura (calling from the kitchen): "Welcome back! You were gone longer than usual. How was work?"
Kaito's father, Inuzuka Shippo, stepped into the room, his posture weary. A Tokubetsu Jōnin with the tracking division, he carried the scent of the forest and the quiet tension of a man chasing ghosts.
Shippo (sighing as he sank into the couch): "Still no sign of him. Lord Jiraiya's pulling double shifts trying to track him down, but the bastard's slippery. You'd think even snakes would leave some scent behind—but he hides it too well."
Sakura wiped her hands on a towel and walked over, trying to shift the mood.
Sakura: "Let's not talk about work right now. Look what your son dragged in last week."
Kaito bounded over, beaming with pride, his small hands wrapped around a strange, ink-black pup with glimmering eyes.
Kaito: "Look, Dad! This is Tatsumaki!"
Shippo smiled at his son, ruffling his hair affectionately.
Shippo: "Hey now, you're talking better every time I see you—and running too. I really have been gone too long."
He turned his attention to the dog. At first glance, it looked like a standard ninken pup. But then he blinked… and blinked again. The oily sheen of the creature's coat rippled with movement—too fluid, too alive.
Shippo's eyes flicked to Sakura, a question behind them. She just smiled calmly.
He exhaled and let it go.
Shippo: "Alright, champ. Why don't you go finish playing? I'll grab dinner, and later I'll come tuck you in."
Kaito: "Okay!"
The boy darted off, Tatsumaki trotting at his heels like a shadow.
Shippo watched the strange pup vanish down the hallway, then leaned in closer to his wife.
Shippo (quietly): "That dog's not normal."
Sakura (smirking): "Neither is our son."
He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.
Shippo: "Let me guess—the clan gave you hell over it?"
Sakura: "You have no idea."
She nudged him toward the dining table.
Sakura: "Anyway, I made your favorite. Figured you'd need it after the week you've had."
For a while, the house filled with the warmth of dinner and quiet conversation. Laughter echoed softly through the halls. For that one week, life was peaceful filled with family, food, and the fleeting calm before duty called again.
Soon, Shippo would leave for another mission.
But for now, Kaito was safe. And Tatsumaki watched everything with knowing, ink-dark eyes.
Shippo's Next Mission – Shadows in the Rain
A week passed far too quickly.
The night before Shippo's departure, the rain hadn't let up for hours. The sky rumbled like a distant beast. Kaito was already asleep, curled next to Tatsumaki, who kept one eye open.
Shippo stood near the doorway, fastening the last strap of his flak vest.
Sakura (quietly): "Is it him again?"
Shippo: "Yeah. New reports say he was spotted near the border of the Land of Rivers. Intel's shaky, but… Jiraiya thinks he's testing new hiding techniques. Something about suppressing his chakra in bursts."
He didn't need to say the name. They both knew who he was.
Sakura: "You're not going alone, are you?"
Shippo (shaking his head): "Team of four. Anko's leading. They want sensory types and trackers—fast ones."
He paused, then glanced back toward Kaito's room.
Shippo: "He's growing fast, isn't he?"
Sakura (softly): "Faster than we ever expected."
He nodded, then opened the door. Rain misted in.
Shippo: "Tell him I'll be back before the next full moon."
Sakura kissed his cheek.
Sakura: "Just come back at all."
Shippo vanished into the night, his silhouette swallowed by storm and shadow.
Tatsumaki's Perspective – The Watcher Within
The boy was asleep.
Tatsumaki curled beside him, his breathing synced with Kaito's—a slow, rhythmic inhale and exhale. His outer shape still resembled that of a ninken pup, but beneath the surface, something far more ancient stirred.
The symbiote did not dream. It watched.
Inside the inky mass that made up his body, swirling tendrils shimmered like black flame—connected to the boy by threads thinner than hair, fused to his chakra network. Kaito's essence pulsed like a gentle heartbeat, and Tatsumaki drank it in—not hungrily, but reverently.
Not long now.
This body was growing fast. Stronger than projected. The genetic balance was exceptional: Inuzuka instincts paired with something… deeper. Something fractured.
Seven pieces, the symbiote thought. Seven children. One soul.
A concept alien even to its own ancient memory.
And yet—it remembered the moment it bonded with Kaito. It remembered the echo of the soul within him whispering:
Josh (voice, memory, intention):You'll protect him, right?
Tatsumaki (responding):Always.
The promise still held.
A drop of rain tapped against the window, and Tatsumaki's eyes—glowing with faint silver—narrowed.
Something was coming.
Not soon, but not far off either.
The air itself had shifted, and danger wore many faces.
Let them come, the creature thought, coiling just a little tighter around the boy.
We are not ready. But we are preparing.