Naruto: My Clones Can Evolve

The rogue ninjas hesitated for only a second before scattering in all directions.

"Run! This kid is a monster!"

"You think I'm letting you leave?"

Genzuki scoffed, forming a hand seal—Shadow Clone Jutsu!

An equal number of clones appeared, one for each rogue ninja.

"Shadow Clones—open the Eight Gates!"

With a single thought, every clone activated the Eight Gates technique.

In an instant, they closed the distance, hunting down the fleeing rogue ninjas one by one.

Screams of agony filled the air.

They didn't just die—they were slaughtered.

The last remaining rogue ninja fell to his knees, trembling.

"Please… spare me! I don't want to die! I… I swear I'll never do anything like this again!"

Genzuki narrowed his eyes.

"Spare you?"

"Did you spare the innocent villagers? Did you spare the women you tortured to death?"

The rogue ninja fell silent, unable to meet Genzuki's gaze.

"Die."

With a flick of his wrist, Genzuki picked up the broken blade from Kurosaki's corpse.

A sharp slash—and the rogue ninja's head tumbled to the ground.

『Ding! Mission complete! Reward: Water Clone Jutsu! Earned 10 reputation points!』

『Detecting second clone acquired: Water Clone!』

『Ding! Shadow Link activated! Water Clone has evolved to match the host's level! Host has inherited all Water Clone abilities!』

Genzuki exhaled and pulled up his system panel.

[Water Clone]

[Rank: Jonin]

[Talent: Water Style Mastery]

[Abilities: All A-rank and below Water Style jutsu]

A new wave of knowledge flooded his mind.

His chakra reserves doubled, and he instinctively understood the mechanics of Water Style jutsu.

At the same time, he noticed something new—he had gained 10 reputation points.

"System, what's reputation used for?"

『Reputation can be used to purchase items from the Reputation Store.』

The store interface opened before him.

Genzuki glanced at the categories—"Artifacts," "Materials," and "Keys."

He tapped on "Artifacts."

[Kusanagi Sword – 30,000 points]

[Golden Staff – 25,000 points]

[Uchiha Fan – 50,000 points]

[Itachi's Three Sacred Treasures – 80,000 points]

[Flying Thunder God Kunai – 100,000 points]

…

The list went on, with even more absurd prices further down.

In the materials section, he found items used to evolve clones.

The key section contained entry passes to various trial grounds.

And those weren't any cheaper than the artifacts. Some were even more expensive.

"I need to earn more reputation—fast."

Genzuki assessed his current situation.

With both Water Clone and Shadow Clone at his disposal, he now possessed Water Style ninjutsu and the Eight Gates technique.

"I'm already pretty strong, but I need to find even tougher opponents to gain more reputation."

Just as he had that thought, pain suddenly flared through his body.

His legs felt like they were filled with lead.

He staggered and fell to one knee, struggling to stay upright.

The backlash from the Eight Gates was hitting him all at once.

"Yeah… I can't use this recklessly. This needs to be my trump card."

Genzuki knew he had to rest.

But before he could recover, the distant thunder of galloping hooves reached his ears.

From the sound, there had to be dozens of horses approaching—at least as many as the rogue ninjas he had just fought.

"Who could this be?"

Right now, he could barely move.

If the newcomers were strong, he was in serious trouble.

He could try to leave, but if these were allies of the rogue ninjas…

That would mean abandoning the children behind him.

"Genzuki… are you okay?"

The orphaned children, whose parents had just been slaughtered, were looking at him with teary eyes.

They knew he was the one who had saved them.

A few of them reached out, helping him stand.

For a moment, Genzuki was dazed.

He glanced around at the battlefield.

The corpses of the rogue ninjas lay scattered among the remains of the villagers they had massacred.

"This world… is nothing but survival of the fittest. If you don't kill, you will be killed."

Genzuki clenched his fists.

He had power now.

If he wanted to change the world of Naruto, he had to dominate it completely.

Only by ruling it himself could he eliminate all injustice, all suffering.

The terrified faces of the children filled his vision.

Through the pain, Genzuki forced a grin.

"Don't worry… no matter who they are, I'll protect you."

The children sobbed, nodding frantically.

Then Genzuki sat down, forming a hand seal to focus his chakra and recover.

Minutes later, the galloping hooves came to a halt.

Thirty black horses thundered into the village, kicking up clouds of dust.

The riders wore black cloaks and headbands.

The headbands bore a single black square at the center—like a burning coal.

"Captain Kageyama! Survivors spotted!"

One of the riders pulled his horse to a stop and shouted.

Their leader, clad in a thick leather coat with a face wrapped in dark bandages, surveyed the carnage.

He looked over the bodies, his eyes dark with anger and guilt.

"We were too late…"

Then his gaze landed on Genzuki.

And the pile of rogue ninja corpses.

His expression shifted to one of shock.

Slowly, he guided his horse toward Genzuki.

"Stop right there, horse-riding ninja."

Genzuki's eyes snapped open, locking onto the approaching man.

Kageyama hesitated, pulling his horse to a halt.

"We're here to help," he said.

Genzuki had regained most of his strength, but he remained cautious.

These ninja were far stronger than the rogue shinobi he had just fought.

"I've never seen ninja on horseback. Usually, those are bandits," Genzuki remarked flatly.

"You little—watch your mouth!" one of the black-cloaked shinobi snapped.

Kageyama raised a hand, signaling for silence.

But it was already too late.

Genzuki smirked, forming a hand seal.

A compressed wave of water spiraled from his fingertips.

Before the ninja could react, he was blasted off his horse.

Tension snapped through the group.

The black-cloaked shinobi immediately reached for their weapons.

"You brat! You wanna die?!"

But Genzuki wasn't done.

His Water Clone materialized behind the fallen shinobi.

With a swift movement, a massive sphere of water formed around him—trapping him completely.

The surrounding ninja erupted in fury, ready to strike.

"Don't move," Genzuki said coldly.

His Water Clone formed a razor-sharp blade of water, pressing it against the trapped shinobi's throat.

"I hear the human breath-holding record is 24 minutes," Genzuki mused.

"Let's see how long your friend lasts."

"You little bastard! You'll die for this!" one of the ninja growled.

"Enough!"

Kageyama's voice boomed across the battlefield, silencing his men.

Though they clearly hated it, none of them dared to defy their captain.

His voice was calmer when he turned back to Genzuki.

"My subordinate acted out of turn. Can you at least let him breathe?"

Genzuki nodded, signaling his Water Clone to allow a small air pocket in the Water Prison.

"But if you try anything, I'll slit his throat."

Kageyama glanced around at the slaughtered rogue ninjas.

"You… you killed all of them?"

"Just self-defense."

Kageyama took a deep breath.

"Water Gunshot, Water Clone, Water Prison… all executed in seconds."

"And you only formed a single hand seal."

"I've never seen anyone—especially a ten-year-old—do that."

Genzuki let out a quiet chuckle.

"Kageyama… in this world, there are plenty of people younger than me who are already stronger than you."

Kageyama's eyes darkened.

"Who are you?"

"Genzuki," he answered.