Chapter 1: Whispers of Destiny

In the dim, warm embrace of the fluid-filled space, Naruto stirred, his consciousness flickering to life in a world of darkness. Disoriented and bewildered, he strained to make sense of his surroundings.

'I shouldn't exist!'

His mind grappled with his identity, struggling to assemble the pieces of his fractured existence.

Memories surged, slicing through the murk of confusion. He recalled his former life with stark clarity—the relentless beatings from his father, the first kill at the tender age of three, the painstaking lessons in inflicting pain so excruciating that people wouldn't wish it on their worst enemies.

He was forged into a monster.

Naruto's body trembled as the specter of those days loomed large in his mind.

Not from fear, though.

But because once, he had reveled in it.

He had savored the sight of suffering.

He had basked in a sense of superiority, his mind steeped in a ruthless creed.

The strong prey on the weak.

It was their right, he thought once.

He had enjoyed being a monster.

Yet, everything had changed when he met her, the love of his life. But now she was de-

'That old fucker!'

The thought of his murdered wife and daughter ignited a fresh wave of fury within him.

But here, in this cramped, shadowy abyss, where Naruto could scarcely comprehend his own presence, he was unable to unleash his wrath. The enclosing walls seemed to tighten around him, their oppressive proximity suffocating his rage.

Suddenly, a blue screen flickered into existence within Naruto's mind.

{Name: Naruto Uzumaki 

Identity: Reincarnator 

Skills: [Sukuna, Lord of Malevolence], [Azmuth, The First Thinker] 

Notice: You have reincarnated after being deemed worthy. You possess the abilities you desired. The former of the skills has been modified to use chakra instead of cursed energy.}

'What the fuck?'

Staring at the ethereal screen, memories of countless fanfictions he had read in his previous life cascaded through his mind. The realization struck him like a bolt of lightning: he had been reincarnated!

'Is this even possible?' he wondered, his thoughts racing with the implications.

His mind swiftly turned to thoughts of his family. 'If I ended up in the Naruto universe, does that mean there's a chance I can go back to my world?'

He examined the abilities now listed before him. 'Sukuna's power and Azmuth's intelligence... Did whoever reincarnate me hear my complaints and thought they were my wishes?' The sheer absurdity of the situation seemed almost too surreal to comprehend.

But none of that mattered now. With these newfound powers and his body's ancestry, he knew he could ascend to the top. 'As long as I use my knowledge wisely, I can become the strongest.'

Recalling the 'God', Shibai, from the Boruto series, Naruto made up his mind. 'I need to be at least that strong to even have a chance of returning. This world has plenty of jutsu involving the dead; maybe I can use one to bring my family back to life.'

Desperation ignited his resolve. He didn't waste time questioning if it was possible; he simply decided it would be.

He had no other option.

'I'll become the strongest, return to my world, and bring my family back to life!'

.....

'Sorry for taking over your body, Naruto. If I grow strong enough to exist beyond time, I'll go back and free you,' he thought, offering a quick prayer.

'Now, how the hell do I become the strongest?'

He 'glanced' at [Sukuna, Lord of Malevolence] and willed it open.

[

Sukuna, Lord of Malevolence

Genius: Possesses an unmatched genius in all facets of being a shinobi.

Incarnation: Capable of transforming a body part into a cursed object that can be used to possess another's body.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Exhibits extraordinary skill and power in hand-to-hand combat, making them a formidable opponent.

Powerful Body: Endowed with immense strength, speed, reflexes, and durability.

Great Tactical Intellect: Demonstrates genius-level strategic and tactical acumen, able to discern and act upon various angles, information, patterns, perceptions of any situation, conflict, or environment.

Metamorphosis: Can generate additional body parts at will.

Immense Chakra: Possesses a vast amount of chakra from birth, inherently poisonous in nature.

Black Flash: Result of applying Chakra within 0.0000000000000000001 seconds of a physical strike, causing spatial distortion, making the chakra flash black and amplifying the strike's destructive power by 2.5 times.

Binding Vows: An advanced form of Fuinjutsu enabling modifications in exchange for something equivalent, also used to form binding contracts with others, moderated by the universe.

Shrine: Enables the user to unleash slashes at various ranges to sever objects and space, and to release destructive flames when combined with Divine Flame.

Divine Flame: Allows the creation and manipulation of fire for long-range attacks by chanting "Open" and forming an arrow.

Ten Shadows: Grants the ability to summon ten different shikigami using shadows as intermediaries, and overall manipulation of shadows, including hiding within them or storing objects within one's own shadow.

Soul Awareness: Provides the capability to interact directly with souls.

]

Wasting no time, he then opened the other skill.

[

Azmuth, The First Thinker

Note: You're just too fucking smart.

]

'Damn.'

.....

....

...

..

.

Naruto had no idea how much time had passed as he stared at the two new skills.

'What the hell just happened?'

The knowledge that flooded his mind provided an answer. It was the knowledge of Sukuna and Azmuth, both formidable in their own right, that had settled into his brain after opening the skills. Despite Azmuth's unparalleled intellect, it took a moment to process.

Azmuth's extensive knowledge about souls was what truly surprised him. Despite Sukuna's extensive experience, Azmuth's theoretical understanding far surpassed his. Given Azmuth's reputation as the greatest mind in the Ben 10 universe, perhaps it wasn't all that shocking.

'Azmuth may lack practical experience, but his compilation of soul-related knowledge from various species is extraordinary.'

'Now, how do I use this power to gain an edge that the original Naruto never had?'

After pondering, the answer came to him.

'Use soul awareness and the combined knowledge of Sukuna and Azmuth to hijack Asura's power within my body.'

This was just the beginning.

'Next, use soul awareness, their combined knowledge, and Metamorphosis to modify my body, strengthening the Uzumaki gene using my mother as a model. Azmuth's expertise in DNA will be crucial here.'

Then, the final step.

'Gradually absorb Kurama's chakra to further enhance my body.'

He could manage the first two steps, but absorbing Kurama's chakra posed a challenge. However, he believed that if he succeeded with the Asura and Uzumaki plans, absorbing Kurama's chakra would be possible by leveraging Asura's and Uzumaki gene's powers.

Since he had reincarnated, he had no desire to sit by and watch as Obito slaughters his parents.

Saving them was crucial as they can help him become stronger. Though their survival would mean he wouldn't remain Kurama's jinchuriki.

So, this was his one opportunity to get his hands on Kurama's chakra.

'Minato and Kushina were kind-hearted if the plot is to be trusted. I refuse to let another family be torn apart because I failed to act.'

He regretted not going after his father first. Perhaps then, he might still have his family.

'No use dwelling on that.' Shaking off the thoughts, he used soul awareness to look 'inside' himself.

It's important to note that while he had the skill, truly powerful uses required chakra. He needed time to unleash the full power of the [Lord of Malevolence].

Simply looking at someone's soul with soul awareness didn't cost chakra, but using it to affect the real world did. For instance, enhancing his Shrine ability with soul awareness to cut souls directly would be an active use.

'Here I come, Asura! You better prepare your brown Otsutsuki butt!'

His daughter would be proud of that insult.

______________________________________________________________________________________

A/N:

Naruto: Bout to get the greatest head start of all time.

World: Bout to get fucked

So, how did you like the chapter? I know there nothing much in this chapter but we are just starting out. And also, I don't really like to start the story with this kind of meaningless hijacking soul drama tbh.

That is why, we are going to see how the decision he has taken to give himself an edge has already caused butterfly effects in the outside world in the next chapter. I'll also show a few things he did to ensure Minato's and Kushina's survival.

Lots of characters will appear next chapter so make sure to read the next one.

I finished with editing today so I released the chapter a day before I promised. I was planning to release on Friday.

I've got exams from Sunday so it may take a bit more time to release the next chapter, as I like to spend quite a time writing and editing. For instance, I spent like 9 hours on this chapter to make it as perfect as possible(i really hope there's no mistake :P). Outlining took like an hour, which I did yesterday. So, I spent like 8 hours straight today working on this. I might not be able to allocate that much time to write the next chapter as writing in blocks isn't really my thing.

I'd rather spend 10 hours straight writing and editing rather than divide that into block of 3 hours and complete it all in 3 days. If I do that, I forget what I'm even trying to write about. Words flow out of my hands better when I'm writing it all at once.

I'll see what I can do.

See ya!!