Chương 50: A Night of Reflection
And on that night,
Although Naruto didn't engage in any other training activities, he reviewed the two recent battles he had experienced. Especially after facing Kakashi head-on today, Naruto gained a deeper understanding of the life-and-death struggle he had with Suimoku a few days ago. He further recognized his severe deficiencies in combat experience and skills. To put it more bluntly, if the current Naruto were to face the Naruto who had never been in a battle before, the former would have an overwhelming advantage. This difference was most evident in terms of experience and skills.
Ninjas are not samurais, and they do not favor direct confrontations, even though the world of Naruto often portrays head-on battles. In the moment of battle, everything is in constant flux, and even the smallest change or opening can lead to the worst outcome - death.
For a ninja, survival is everything, and results take precedence over the process. Regardless of the means and methods, ninjas must possess the determination to do whatever it takes. In today's special survival exercise, Kakashi repeatedly emphasized this to the three of them.
The phrase "To snatch the bells, you must be prepared to kill me" was the best direct proof. Through his battle with Kakashi, Naruto had a fuller understanding of this point. It was because of his life-and-death struggle with Suimoku that Naruto had a more tangible experience.
Judgment, perception, and the ability to understand one's own position and the clear objective of a battle were essential for a competent, if not excellent, ninja. The most perfect and fierce battles were often determined in a split second. Ninjas who could achieve this were considered the most outstanding. They needed to be decisive in an instant and have the determination and patience to back it up.
Naruto's battle with Suimoku relied on his determination to fight to the death, while his bell-stealing battle with Kakashi relied on his clear objectives and a tactic that was full of deception. All of these were part of combat awareness.
In turn, these two battles could be transformed into essential combat experience to make Naruto more skilled in his next battle. Knowing the enemy and knowing oneself were essential. People who couldn't understand their own position were often rookie extras who wouldn't survive past the first few chapters.
Since he was given a second chance at life, Naruto was determined to survive to the end and become the only protagonist in this world. This world was wrong, and since there were errors, they needed to be corrected. Naruto had the confidence and ambition to do so.
Of course, you could also call it arrogance. But without a doubt, this was Naruto's most significant goal that came from his innermost self.
If you wanted to change the world, you needed the corresponding power. Which was more important, fists or reasoning?
Naruto always believed that without strength, his reasoning couldn't prevail. And having strength without reasoning only resulted in senseless violence. Naruto didn't want to be either of these; he simply wanted to be someone with enough strength to speak with reason.
Just like the First Hokage, who established the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Did Hashirama Senju really influence the First Hokage? Did he bring temporary peace to the four great ninja villages through his sincere actions? No!
From Naruto's perspective, the First Hokage was just strong enough that the other four ninja villages had to fear him when he united them through necessary interests (such as dividing the tailed beasts). It was the combination of strength and interests that brought temporary peace to the ninja world.
Both were indispensable. Having strength alone would eventually lead to conflict for the sake of interests, even if it meant death. Having interests alone would lead to people fighting to satisfy their insatiable desires, regardless of the cost.
So, Naruto once thought that the First Hokage's path in establishing the Village Hidden in the Leaves was correct, but the path he took afterward was wrong. What Naruto wanted to do now was to correct the part of Hashirama Senju's path that went astray.
Does this sound familiar?
Yes, it's almost the same as the view of Madara Uchiha – that Hashirama Senju was naive and foolish! However, Naruto would take a more pragmatic approach, not falling into the same naive and misguided path as Madara.
To achieve this goal, Naruto needed more power. He not only had to consider facing his current enemies but also the possibility of Madara Uchiha, who might be resurrected. There was also the threat of Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, waiting in the afterlife to be revived. And there could be other Ōtsutsuki members to come.
Plus, the biggest potential ally who could also become Naruto's greatest enemy – Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, commonly known as the Sage of the Six Paths, was still silently observing the ninja world from the void.
Naruto never overlooked his existence, especially when he had Asura's chakra within him. Naruto had a great fear of Hagoromo, wondering if he would sense Naruto's unusual thoughts and entertain the idea of directly eliminating him to correct the course of history.
Of course, these were all baseless speculations in Naruto's mind. In the original storyline, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki seemed more like an observer who left it to humanity to handle their own affairs. His only concern appeared to be preventing his mother from being resurrected, while leaving the rest to the people of the ninja world.
Of course, all of this was Naruto's unfounded speculation. The original plot could only serve as a certain degree of reference, not to mention the many glaring plot holes and inconsistencies it contained.
However, all of the above served as motivation for Naruto to push himself harder and accelerate his path to becoming stronger. Without enough strength, he couldn't be sure. But with absolute power, why would he need to hesitate?
As an official ninja,
This night of reflection
Helped Naruto further clarify his future path,
As well as the necessary training plans for this period,
Fully utilizing his advantage of knowing the plot in advance,
To accelerate his path to becoming stronger,
So that in the future,
He could truly control his own destiny,
And fulfill his deepest ambitions!
(End of this chapter)
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