Konoha: Naruto, trained by Aizen

Every surge of adrenaline and the thrill of pushing your limits is so addictive.

From dawn until midday, a completely exhausted Naruto sat under a tree, drenched in sweat and panting heavily.

"Swish, swish, swish." Suddenly, the surrounding bushes made a sound.

"Who is it?" At Naruto's shout, a young man with thick eyebrows stepped out.

Chapter Ten Rock Lee

This is a young man with thick eyebrows and an 'ordinary' appearance, wearing a black vest.

If your eyebrows are normal, you won't be able to see them at all in a crowd.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to peek. I saw your training earlier, and it was really impressive." Lee Rock, who had been exposed, scratched his head sheepishly, then said excitedly.

Naruto noticed that Rock Lee's hands were wrapped in bandages, he was walking with a limp, and there were even small cuts on his face from sharp objects.

Rock Lee's black vest was faded from washing, and his ninja shoes were worn out, with calluses visible on his bare toes.

It's not hard to see that the other party might be a commoner who longs to become a ninja and change their fate.

=

"No, it's just daily training. If you want to change your destiny, you have to put in the effort." Naruto smiled gently and nodded amicably to Rock Lee.

"Yes, only through hard work can one become an excellent ninja." Rock Lee nodded vigorously, deeply moved.

"I think so too."

Having established a basic topic of conversation, the two began chatting casually.

During their casual conversation, Naruto learned about Rock Lee's background.

He was born into an ordinary family and will be able to enter the ninja academy next year to become a ninja.

Rock Lee aspires to become an excellent ninja, so he has been undergoing some rudimentary training.

His training was mostly haphazard, leaving many hidden injuries on his body.

Rock Lee's background seemed too ordinary to Naruto, but his desire to become stronger and his efforts pleased Naruto.

"Rock Lee, you are the hardest-working person I have ever met." Naruto first praised Rock Lee, then changed the subject.

"But do you know that the direction and method of your efforts are even more important?"

"Direction and method? Naruto, you mean...?"

"If you find the right direction, your training will be twice as effective. You are at the age where you should be developing, but I see that you are covered in injuries. Obviously, you have not taken good care of yourself in your daily training, and excessive training will also deplete your body's potential."

“Naruto, you’re right. My arm often hurts so much that I can’t sleep,” Rock Lee said with a look of conviction.

Rock Lee, who knew absolutely nothing about training, could only throw punches and learned martial arts through trial and error.

As for ninjutsu, forget about it; his family didn't give him any opportunity to come into contact with chakra early on.

During in-depth discussions about training, Rock Lee was even more impressed by Naruto's demeanor and elegance.

Naruto would impart all his knowledge to Naruto, no matter how detailed the training was.

Strength training, physical training—many details that had left Rock Lee scratching his head suddenly became clear at this moment.

He also understood what a scientific training method was.

"No one's success is achieved overnight. The world has no shortage of talent, but without the accumulation of time, talent will only be wasted. However, if you choose the wrong direction to exert your efforts, it will backfire." Finally, Naruto quoted a famous saying that someone had just taught him yesterday, with a slight modification at the end.

"Thank you, Naruto." Rock Lee said, his face full of gratitude.

His thick eyebrows and silly training methods have always been the object of ridicule by the village children, and he is always pelted with stones whenever he goes out.

He had doubts about himself, but in the end he gritted his teeth and persevered.

Naruto is the first person to share his training methods so seriously.

Although it may not be absolutely correct, he felt that affection.

Rock Lee bowed deeply to Naruto, his eyes blazing with passion: "Please allow me to train with you."

"With pleasure." Naruto immediately smiled.

.......

The strong are destined to be lonely, but on the road to becoming strong, one needs many subordinates.

In the training field, Naruto quietly watched Rock Lee running around.

Under the blazing sun, Lee Locke was covered in sweat, looked exhausted, had dry lips, and his chest heaved like a ruptured windmill.

Even so, his eyes remained resolute, and his steps did not falter.

Naruto's eyes were calm as he lowered his head and carefully assessed Rock Lee in his mind.

He has an ordinary appearance, a passionate and simple personality, and seems easy to fool. His talent is unknown, but he is definitely a hard-working genius.

"Naruto, I'm done running." Rock Lee's voice suddenly rang in Naruto's ears.

Naruto looked up and saw Rock Lee, panting heavily, sitting exhausted opposite him.

He immediately broke into a gentle smile.

"Well done. Let's call it a day. Take some time to rest and recuperate. Your body needs rest."

“I’ll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen,” Naruto said, patting Rock Lee on the shoulder.

Rock Lee, a guy who works incredibly hard.

On their way to Ichiraku Ramen, Rock Lee, who was walking with Naruto, also received some malicious comments from the villagers.

"Look, that boy with thick eyebrows is walking with the nine-tailed fox."

"That's disgusting."

"Not only is he ugly, he's also brainless."

Naruto was used to such harsh words, so he always maintained his elegance and composure, but this was the first time Rock Lee had heard such comments.

He remembered that his parents had also told him about the nine-tailed fox.

The nine-tailed fox is extremely sinful, has a perverted personality, and enjoys eating children.

But he simply couldn't equate the gentle and refined Naruto with the Nine-Tailed Fox.

He turned to look at Naruto.

Faced with those vicious curses that even angered him, Naruto responded with a faint smile and instead apologized to himself:

"I'm sorry, Xiao Li. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have been yelled at by them. How about we split up and meet up at Ichiraku Ramen?"

Lee Rock felt anger and confusion brewing within him.

Even to empathize with someone else's feelings.

Like Naruto, he was the target of ridicule from mischievous children, but unlike Naruto, adult villagers also mocked and ridiculed him.

Even under such circumstances, Naruto remained refined and even considered his own interests.

How could such a person be the nine-tailed fox demon who destroyed the village and committed heinous crimes, as others described?

Then he stepped forward, his eyes burning with fury, raised his fist and roared, "Listen up, all of you! Naruto did absolutely nothing wrong from beginning to end. It's you, you..."

Before he could finish speaking, a rotten egg exploded in his face.

He wiped the egg mixture on his face, looking completely bewildered.

Seeing this, Naruto stepped in front of Rock Lee and shouted at him:

"you go first."

Naruto originally thought that he could stop the villagers from venting their anger on him by changing his temperament and way of dealing with people.

It did work initially.

But Lee Rock's expression of discontent ignited the deep-seated resentment within the villagers.

We all know that Naruto has never done anything immoral or harmful since birth.

But he is a nine-tailed fox demon, so he deserves to be cursed and should die.

You should join us in condemning the issue, instead of standing up and playing the hero.

As a result, Rock Lee also incurred the wrath of the villagers.

Chapter Eleven: One Year Later

With Rock Lee standing up for them, the two seemed to grow even closer.

"Naruto, in my eyes you are not that Nine-Tailed Fox, you are my friend! A friend who acknowledges me!" Rock Lee said solemnly to Naruto afterward.

"Thank you."

Rock Lee was one of the first people to stand up for Naruto.

It's impossible not to be moved.

But according to Aizen, sympathy and being moved are the most pathetic and the emotions that should be abandoned.

So Naruto quickly put that feeling of being touched behind him.

Let's approach Rock Lee with reason.

These simple-minded, hot-blooded teenagers are often excellent 'comrades-in-arms'.

"See you at the training ground tomorrow, same time as always." After dinner, the two agreed on a time to meet again the next day.

.......

In the days that followed, Naruto gained a new training partner.

Rock Lee bought weights with Naruto. He wasn't interested in swords, so he spent most of his training time honing his physique and practicing martial arts.

Although it is still rough, at least it is already taking shape.

Naruto, on the other hand, has already begun training in swordsmanship.

Holding the dark green Mirror Flower Water Moon, she continuously swung her sword under Aizen's guidance.