My name is Otsutsuki Hagoromo.
I am the one who brought peace and order to this world, the one called the Sage of Six Paths.
Do you know of parallel universes?
Countless universes where identical worlds share the same span of time.
With even the smallest choice, a new parallel universe comes into being.
And this place, now, is where there is a boy whose fate has become tangled... No, in this place, it is a girl.
That girl’s name is Uzumaki Naruto.
It will be an uninteresting and melancholy tale, but it is your task to watch this girl’s story through to the end...
Of course, that is your choice.
Whether you watch, or leave.
Or perhaps you are someone who has already seen the ending once?
Let me say it again: this is a parallel world...
A place where the same story, yet a different story, begins.
It is your freedom to watch that story.
Then let us begin.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
In a dark, cold room, the sound of a clock’s second hand echoed.
I was in a place so devoid of warmth that it was hard to believe anyone lived there.
My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I am five years old.
I am a “monster.”
If you ask why, the truth is that I do not really know either.
Whenever I go outside, people look at me and call me a monster. They ask why I am still alive... They tell me to disappear... To die...
They hurl every kind of insult at me, and sometimes they even throw stones.
At first, I was sad, hurt, and miserable. Sometimes I fought back, and sometimes I played pranks to get revenge, but...
All I got in return were even worse insults and violence.
In the end, after nearly dying several times, I gave up on everything.
Still, I was used to it now.
No, rather than getting used to it, I had chosen not to think about it.
Whenever I thought about it, my chest hurt too much.
So I gave up thinking.
I simply accepted being called a monster, being insulted, being beaten...
As something natural.
I am an orphan.
Of course I am. I am a monster.
Everyone hated and despised me.
So I stayed quietly inside my empty home.
Because this dark, cold place was the only refuge I had.
Here, I did not have to hear insults or get beaten for no reason.
It was safe.
...
And yet, for some reason, the pain in my chest remained.
Still, there was one person who did not insult or hurt even a monster like me.
The Third Hokage.
Sometimes the Third Hokage came to my house and gave me money for living expenses, but it was actually meaningless.
I had learned how to use money, but nobody would sell me anything.
Instead, they would lash out at me, curse at me, sprinkle salt in my face, and throw me out.
Sometimes salt got into my eyes and hurt so badly, yet they would kick me and send me flying anyway.
Sometimes people took my money, too. Regardless of their age, if I had anything, they would beat me until I passed out, then take it all away.
Eventually, someone wearing an animal mask began bringing me food, but even that was in poor condition.
Most of the ingredients were spoiled, and since I was too young to even understand the idea of cooking, I had no choice but to eat the ingredients as they were.
I put them in my mouth without even peeling or washing them.
Even when it made me hurt or sick, I could not complain.
Going without anything to eat and suffering from hunger was far worse.
My golden hair grew longer with every passing day.
I did not understand why something so useless kept growing.
Long hair only made it easier for people to catch me when I tried to run away.
And when they grabbed it and tore it out, it hurt even more.
...
Yet by the very next day, both my wounds and the hair that had been torn out had already returned.
All I could do was cut it short by myself with shards of glass lying on the floor at home.
Sometimes I cut my hands, but it was better than being grabbed by the hair and beaten.
Knock. Knock.
Then, accompanied by a knock at the door, the Third Hokage entered my home.
"Naruto, this is this month’s living expenses."
"...Thank you."
"Use it sparingly. I will be going now."
"Um... Excuse me."
"What is it?"
"Why am I alive?"
"..."
"Everyone hates me. They ask why I am alive, but I do not know either."
"I am sorry, Naruto."
The Third Hokage never answered my question. He only apologized.
"A ninja is one who endures. If you keep enduring, I am sure that you, too, will find good bonds someday."
"...Yes."
But an apology was not the answer I wanted to hear...
The truth was, I really hated ninja...
Ninja always insulted me and beat me, and sometimes they threw kunai at me. They were so frightening.
I did not want to endure anymore...
But I could not say anything.
Because if even the Third Hokage began insulting and hitting me, I felt as though I would truly be alone.
And after he left and I was alone again, I sank to the floor and cried without a sound.
Because I am a monster...
This must be natural...
Let me say it once more: this is the story of a girl in a parallel world.
The story of a fox girl who wishes for nights when she no longer cries.
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