Ch. 4 - Normal Day

The next day, after having trained late into the night, Naruto awoke with sore muscles. He lay on the clean bed, staring up at the ceiling, making no effort to get up as he lazily contemplated a few things he had in mind.

I need to get some new clothes. Old Naruto's fashion sense was garbage, and all he had was that ugly monstrosity he wore in canon. Apart from that, I also need to buy groceries and a few kunai and shuriken so I can train with them.

He had already received a bunch of information from his clones at the library yesterday, mostly about the history of this world and up to a little of the Warring States era.

Among other things, he had also learned the academy taijutsu—which was garbage compared to modern era martial arts—along with a few things about iryōjutsu, which he believed would be useful in the future.

—Haaah~

He sighed wistfully as he forced his aching body to get up, before grabbing a normal black shirt with the Uzumaki swirl on its back, along with black shorts, and putting them on.

Once he finished dressing, he walked into the bathroom and washed his face and brushed his teeth.

Hmm. I could definitely take these whiskers off by pulling them hard enough.

He thought inwardly while staring at his reflection in the mirror. He was thinking of ways to improve his charisma, and given how the people hated him for the Fox, he considered removing the whiskers that only seemed to associate him with it all the more.

Along with that, he planned to head over to a store and buy some skincare products and a few items that could help his greasy hair, which seemed to have lost most of its vitality despite being Uzumaki.

Showering last night didn't improve his hair, even after using a large amount of shampoo.

Naruto really is the most lucky yet unlucky character ever.

He sighed, before grabbing some tweezers and holding one of his thin, long whiskers. His face cringed slightly at the thought of the pain, before he slapped the other side of his face.

"Man up!" he motivated himself, as he closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and...

Pulled.

"AHHHHH!!!"

...

Ten minutes later, and five more screams after having pulled out the first whisker, Naruto still stood in front of the mirror, his eyes red from crying, and his cheeks now devoid of whiskers.

«One must suffer to be beautiful—or in this case, handsome! +3 Charisma»

His face now had a more appealing aspect, which would only become more handsome as he grew older, especially when he used the skincare products he hoped to buy.

No blood? I kinda expected some drops of blood to come out, not gonna lie.

He thought inwardly, examining his face and noting that the holes where the whiskers had been were closing at a slow rate.

Then, he simply unfocused his attention, left the bathroom, put on his sandals, and proceeded to leave his apartment, locking the door behind him.

With three simple hand signs, his form puffed out in smoke, and a new appearance took hold.

Short black hair with blue eyes, a high nose bridge, and distinctive cheekbones, along with skin that seemed too white to be healthy. He pursed his lips tightly as he walked towards the busy streets of Konoha.

...

In Konoha, at a tailor shop that was quite famous throughout the village.

An old woman with a wrinkled forehead, pale complexion, and white hair that seemed to have a small luster of golden color at its ends, was wearing a traditional Japanese yukata with floral patterns sewn across it. She sat on the floor and looked at her granddaughter making clothes, an unreadable expression on her face.

—Ding!

Suddenly, the door to the shop swung open, causing the bell above to chime and alert the old woman that there was a customer.

She turned her head towards the door and saw a young boy with a small smile and slightly narrowed eyes walking in, observing the shop's interior with curiosity.

The old woman got up from her sitting position and made her way to the boy, noticing the glinting light reflected from a Konoha forehead protector snugly wrapped around his waist like a belt.

"Hello, customer. How may I help you?" She bowed, despite the person she bowed to being a child. She was a worker and also the store owner, which meant she had to show respect towards her customers.

"I am here to ask if you can make some custom-made clothes I have in mind. I need them as soon as possible." He didn't delve into the reason he needed them, as that was of no concern to the woman.

The old woman nodded, "We can do that. Just tell me the materials you want for the clothing and the general shape of them."

The kid paused to recall what the clothes looked like, and it didn't take long for him to open his electric blue eyes and start describing them.

"White, form-fitting pants that are lightweight and easy to move in. They should taper down the legs to the ankles, and make them comfortable to wear." He paused, leaning down and outlining the shape on his body with his hands before moving on to the next piece of clothing.

"Make the black shirt skin-tight, but also stretchable enough for me to grow into it a bit. I want it to be breathable and feel cool and comfortable when I work out or spar." He recalled the last two items.

"Then a long white coat that extends a little below the knees with wide sleeves that taper towards the wrists. Make it durable yet lightweight. Lastly, a black scarf with golden spider lilies as decorative patterns." He finished, as the woman closed her eyes to make a mental image of the clothes.

After a few minutes of silence, she opened her eyes and nodded with a smile tugging at her lips, "Very distinct clothing, not like anything I've seen before. I should be able to make it within a day."

"Great! How much will it be for all?" the boy asked, a little excited about getting his clothes made so soon.

He made a mental note to take a few more missions if the cost was a bit pricey.

"Four thousand two hundred ryo," the woman said as she mentally counted the price for each item and the cost of materials.

Naruto didn't argue or think much. He fished out a stack of money, unfurled it, and counted it, then took out 4,500 ryo and gave it to the woman.

I should at least give her a tip. It doesn't sit right with me to just get things like this and not offer a tip. Even back on Earth, I always tipped if I had extra cash.

"Take the extra three hundred as a tip since you'll probably be working hard on the clothes for me," he grinned, as the woman gained an appreciative smile and took the money.

After that, she took his measurements rather quickly before offering parting words to him, "Please come back here by tomorrow at this time, and your clothes will be ready for you, young man." She gave a quick bow, escorted him out, and then re-entered the shop to get to work.

Naruto, in the meantime, spent his time walking through the streets where some stalls were open, selling meat skewers, vegetables, fruit, and the like.

He picked up some food on the way to a shop that sold shinobi gear. Before long, he arrived in front of a huge storefront and walked into the shop, his eyes looking around rapidly to see the items displayed.

He didn't waste time and went over to the weapons section, grabbing fifty kunai and shuriken, as well as a book he saw in one corner of the store that he found interesting.

[Fūinjutsu Guide For Beginners]

Since I am an Uzumaki, I should have at least a bit of talent in this field. I should just buy it and make my clones memorize everything in it and start practicing.

He flipped through the pages of the book to see the seals he would be able to learn in this beginner's guide before closing the book and walking over to pay for his stuff.

In total, I spent close to thirteen thousand ryo in just one early morning.

—TuT TuT

He inwardly cried as he felt the drain in his pockets. One thing that wouldn't change about him was the fact he loved money!

As a person who had grown up alone as an orphan and had to start working from a very young age to even be able to afford living under a roof, he had developed strong feelings towards money.

He could remember when he had first been paid in cash back on Earth. How he brightened up, grabbing the twenty-dollar note, and staring at the handsome appearance of Gremory Geo III before he brought it up to his nose and started sniffing the addicting scent of money!

Fuck! Don't remind yourself of such an embarrassing past!

He cursed himself as his hands and face started heating up, making him immediately grab his purchases and hurry home.

—Haa

He sighed again.

It didn't take long for him to get home. Once there, he created thirty clones: fifteen to get started on water walking, ten to practice boxing, four to train with him, and one to buy the things he had forgotten in his embarrassment.

…

At the training grounds, he instructed four of his clones to grab small rocks from the ground and start throwing them at him.

-Ffsss

The sound of a rock gliding through the air rang out as Naruto dodged the incoming rock with his reflexes. Unfortunately, another rock soon glided in and hit him on the back without him realizing it.

He continued to try and dodge, and before long he got used to the pace, ignoring the few notifications from his system that popped up occasionally.

"You four, change positions and throw them while moving this time," he barked out and ordered the clones. They instantly followed his commands, and the training became even more challenging for him.

After two hours of this training, he stopped when he saw no further improvement in his reflexes.

I probably need to increase my own speed so that my clones can throw the rocks faster, making them harder to see.

He deduced inwardly, dispelling those clones and sitting down on the ground. Thankfully, this training also helped improve his aiming skills, which were almost trash.

10-kilometer run, 100 pushups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 squats to go now.

He smiled wryly.