Naruto: The Clanless Prince

In the woods at the edge of Konoha, thunder roared continuously.

A large section of the forest was devastated—trees lay toppled, and flames consumed the remnants.

Sora, having completed the final sword form of the Breath of Thunder, stood motionless.

After enduring prolonged torment, Sora finally heard the system's soothing words.

[The Breath of Thunder has been simulated successfully. The rewards have been distributed, and the system will release the takeover state.]

When Sora regained control of his body, he collapsed to the ground, curled up, and trembled violently.

Pain...

It was everywhere.

The pain was so excruciating that Sora couldn't even muster the strength to cry out.

Now, Sora deeply regretted choosing the woods as the location for the system's takeover.

Unable to move even a finger, he was surrounded by flames, and without immediate action, he would be consumed by the fire.

After lying there for what felt like an eternity, Sora's body grew hotter as the flames edged closer.

The instinct to survive spurred him into action.

Fortunately, the area he had chosen was near a small river—if he could crawl into it, he might survive.

Sora's progress was agonizingly slow, and the heat from the flames began to scorch his body. he could even feel his clothes burning.

Just as he finally approached the river, several figures landed in front of him.

Gathering what little strength he had left, Sora raised his head and immediately froze.

His pupils contracted when he saw the man leading the group.

It was none other than the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

While Sora had anticipated that the commotion might draw Konoha's attention, he hadn't expected Sarutobi Hiruzen himself to come.

At least he might be saved now. The rest could be dealt with later.

With that thought, Sora's tension evaporated, and he lost consciousness.

Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned as he looked at Sora, his gaze filled with confusion.

The destruction surrounding the area was clearly caused by a Lightning Style technique.

Yet, Sora was the only one present, and his hands bore evident burns from Lightning Style ninjutsu.

However, the scale of the destruction was beyond what a mere student at the Ninja Academy could accomplish. Not even a Chūnin could cause such devastation.

How had Sora, a mere academy student, done this?

Sarutobi Hiruzen found it incredible.

As for Sora herself, Sarutobi Hiruzen had a relatively favourable opinion of him.

Although Sora's parents had defected from Konoha in the past, their departure wasn't truly an act of betrayal. It was an elopement.

The conflict had been between Sora's parents and the Uchiha clan, not Konoha itself.

However, the Uchiha clan refused to acknowledge Sora, and the villagers of Konoha redirected their resentment toward the Uchiha onto him.

The villagers of Konoha were growing increasingly resentful towards the Uchiha clan, with signs of irreconcilable conflict beginning to emerge.

However, the current state of the ninja world was far from peaceful; a war could erupt at any moment, and Konoha still required the strength of the Uchiha clan.

Because of this, Sarutobi Hiruzen could not take any action against the Uchiha clan for the time being.

Caught between the villagers on one side and the Uchiha clan on the other, Sarutobi Hiruzen chose to ignore Sora's existence.

At the moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't entirely sure whether Sora had caused the destruction in the woods. If it were, he would need to reassess Sora's value.

As he looked at the unconscious Sora, Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze sharpened.

Lightning-style ninjas in Konoha were extremely rare. If the destruction was indeed caused by Sora, it indicated that he had mastered a formidable Lightning Style technique.

Since Sora had not left the village since his mother brought him back to Konoha, the Lightning Style ninjutsu he used must have been acquired outside the village.

If this technique were taught to Konoha's ninjas, who were capable of using Lightning Style, it would significantly bolster the village's power.

Sarutobi Hiruzen gave a decisive order to the Anbu beside him:

"Extinguish the flames in the area and take him to the ninja hospital for treatment."

The Anbu quickly obeyed, using Water Style ninjutsu to quench the surrounding flames.

One of the Anbu carried Sora and took him to the ninja hospital.

At Uzumaki Mito's mansion, Uzumaki Kushina returned with a dejected expression.

The young kunoichi, rejected by Sora, trudged into the mansion he shared with Uzumaki Mito, her spirits crushed.

Noticing her arrival, Uzumaki Mito greeted her warmly.

"Kushina, how was your first day at the Ninja Academy? Did everything go well?" he asked with a smile.

Uzumaki Kushina pursed her lips and cried out in frustration, "Grandma Mito!"

Seeing Kushina's upset demeanour, Uzumaki Mito walked over, embraced her, and guided her to the couch.

"What happened?" Uzumaki Mito asked gently.

Kushina recounted her day—how she was teased and called "Tomato" by her classmates, how she retaliated against her tormentors, and how Sora had rejected her offer of friendship.

"Sora?" Uzumaki Mito murmured softly.

Hearing this, Kushina asked curiously, "Grandma Mito, do you know Sora?"

"Hmm, yes. I've heard of him," Uzumaki Mito replied, her voice tinged with melancholy.

How could she not?

Sora's father was from the Senju clan, the same clan as Uzumaki Mito's late husband, Senju Hashirama.

Since Konoha's founding, however, the Senju clan had been dissolved, its members intermarrying with villagers and blending into the population.

When Sora's parents defected, Uzumaki Mito had pleaded with Sarutobi Hiruzen for leniency, but her request was denied.

Sora's mother was from the Uchiha clan, and Sarutobi Hiruzen, as Hokage, had to maintain peace with the influential Uchiha clan by respecting their wishes.

Later, when Sora returned to Konoha, Uzumaki Mito even offered to adopt her, but Sarutobi Hiruzen rejected the idea.

He cited the complications of Uzumaki Mito's status as the wife of the First Hokage and Sora's identity as the child of defectors, further rejected by the Uchiha clan.

At the time, Uzumaki Mito had lamented how distant Sarutobi Hiruzen had become.

Stroking Kushina's hair, Mito asked gently, "Do you know why Sora refused to be friends with you?"

"She said, 'I'm isolated by the whole village. If you become friends with me, you might be isolated too.' Then she told me to change seats when I go back to school," Kushina replied, her voice tinged with hurt.

Uzumaki Mito's eyes glimmered with sorrow.

"Isolated by the whole village… Oh, monkey," she murmured. "Sora didn't do anything wrong."

Uzumaki Mito sighed deeply, her heart aching for Sora's plight.

But at the moment, there was little she could do to improve Sora's circumstances.

As she gazed at the unhappy Kushina, Uzumaki Mito's mind began to turn, contemplating the situation.