The room was silent except for the faint hum of the ceiling fan and the flicker of a computer screen replaying the final episode of "Naruto Shippuden". The boy sitting cross-legged on the floor leaned closer, eyes gleaming as if each moment were happening before him for the first time. He mouthed the words along with the characters, his heart pounding when Naruto and Sasuke exchanged their final blows in the Valley of the End.
His name was Arata Kiyomizu, a twenty-one-year-old college student whose world revolved around one thing—Naruto. He wasn't just a casual fan; he lived and breathed the series. Every chakra concept, every Jutsu, every tragedy—it all felt real to him. When other people saw fiction, Arata saw life lessons, pain, and determination. To him, Naruto Uzumaki's story wasn't a tale. It was a belief system.
He leaned back, smiling faintly as the screen faded to black. The ending music of the anime echoed softly in his room. "If only I could see that world once," he whispered. "If only I could walk through Konoha's streets… fight by their side…"
He chuckled under his breath, embarrassed at himself. "Yeah, right. As if some goddess will appear and grant me that." Still, a part of him couldn't let go of the dream.
His phone buzzed with a message from a college friend reminding him about tomorrow's exam. Arata sighed. "Exams, deadlines, responsibilities… all the boring stuff that doesn't exist in anime." He shut down his computer and closed his eyes for a moment, imagining the warmth of the Hidden Leaf Village, the sound of the wind in the trees, and the laughter of Team 7. It felt like home, even if he had never been there.
Hours passed. The city outside stirred under the night rain, streetlights painting moving shadows on his window. Arata sat by the sill, watching droplets race down the glass, his mind lost in thoughts of what-ifs.
He murmured, "If I could choose a life… I'd want to live as Sasuke. Not because he's perfect, but because he had the strength to defy fate. To change everything, no matter how dark it became."
The storm grew harsher, lightning washing over the streets in a brilliant flash. Arata looked up at the sky with quiet wonder—then everything turned white. There was a screech of tires, a blinding light, and then… silence.
For a long time, he felt nothing. No pain. No sound. No body.
When sensation returned, he floated in a shapeless space filled with soft golden light. There was no ceiling, no floor, only endless warmth. He blinked—or thought he did—and found himself surrounded by glowing motes of energy that pulsed rhythmically, each beat like a heartbeat of the universe itself.
"Where… am I?" His voice echoed strangely, stretching into infinity.
A whisper responded, soft yet commanding. "Between worlds. Neither life nor death chooses you yet."
He turned sharply, seeing a figure emerge from the light. She had pale, shimmering skin and long hair that flowed like starlight. Her eyes held spirals of galaxies, their motion calming and terrifying all at once. Draped in layers of ethereal white cloth, she looked nothing like a goddess of myth—but rather like something far beyond comprehension.
Arata stammered, "Are you… God?"
She smiled faintly. "A goddess, if that word brings you comfort. I preserve the cycle of souls between realities."
He stared, heart racing. "So… I died?"
"You did," she said gently. "Your soul detached from the mortal plane during an accident. Yet, you are not meant for ordinary reincarnation. Your attachment to another world—your belief—tethered your consciousness. You pulled the threads of destiny yourself."
Arata's thoughts spun wildly. "Wait… you mean Naruto's world?"
The goddess nodded. "You wished for it deeply enough that your soul's fabric intertwined with that universe's energy. Imagination shapes reality more than mortals believe."
Hope surged in his chest like fire. "Then can I… truly go there?"
Her gaze softened. "Yes. But the worlds remain bound by balance. To step into that world, you must specify your desires carefully. You may ask for five wishes, but remember—changing destiny comes with price."
He hesitated, shaking from excitement. "Five wishes… okay. My first wish—I want to be reincarnated in the world of Naruto."
"That is granted," she said, her voice echoing across eternity.
"My second wish," he continued, "is to keep my past life's memories."
"Done."
"For my third wish—I want the ability to analyze any ninjutsu, taijutsu, or ability I see, so I can understand and use it."
The goddess paused. "That power borders on divinity… yet your will is strong. Granted—though mastery will require effort equal to your resolve."
"For my fourth wish," Arata said, "I don't want anyone to see my hidden memories. The memories of this life or anything I choose to hide from others."
The goddess's expression turned unreadable. "Secrecy over memory can twist the soul… but very well."
Arata took a deep breath. The fifth wish was the most important.
"For my final wish," he declared, "I want to be born as Sasuke Uchiha."
The light around them seemed to pulse violently, as if the universe itself reacted to his words. The goddess stepped closer, her hand glowing faintly as she touched his forehead. "As you wish, Arata. But heed my warning: you cannot rewrite what was meant to be. If you change fortune's core, destiny will correct itself. Some fates do not bend—they break."
Her words sent a chill through him. "What do you mean?"
"Even gods do not stand above balance," she said softly. "Should you oppose it, the world you love will crumble."
Before he could reply, the golden light consumed everything. The sensation of falling overtook him, faster and faster until even thought dissolved.
And then… a cry echoed.
The cold air of another world filled his lungs. Voices surrounded him—women's, hurried and tense. He opened his tiny eyes just enough to catch glimpses of firelight and worried faces. The scent of blood and medicine filled the air. A trembling midwife whispered to a weary dark-haired woman.
"Congratulations, Mikoto-sama. It's a boy."
Through the haze, Arata's—no, Sasuke's—mind clicked into focus. He felt the faint pulse of chakra for the first time, flowing like a newborn star inside him. The world of Naruto, once a dream, had become reality.
Arata's last conscious thought before drifting into infant sleep was a quiet vow:
"This time… I'll change everything. But I'll remember what she said… destiny doesn't rewrite easily."
To be continue...