Naruto: Snow Cold

Days went by, they turned into weeks, and then into months.

I mostly just followed my routine during this period: waking up early, having breakfast, training with Dad, coming back home to make more ice cream to sell, continuing to learn Kanji, wall training, and the list went on.

Sometimes I would help my mom with the chores, like cleaning the floor or washing vegetables and stuff. I'm such a good kid, aren't I?

Ah, let's not get ahead of ourselves. I did cause quite a mess every time I made ice cream with my dad, and you can probably imagine my mom's reaction to that. With how often I curse, I slipped up one time while I was mopping, when this one stubborn stain wouldn't come off.

Let's just say that day I found out that whooping your children is perfectly normal in this world.

It was embarrassing, but I still love them.

As promised, the Akimichi gave our family (and me!) a share of the ryo they earned through selling the product, about once a month or so.

The money rolled in quickly. Wahahahahaha!! I'm not saying I'm rich, but I had plenty of money saved up for myself in my room now. Do you know how many bowls of ramen I could buy?!? Gosh, my mouth just waters thinking of it! I could probably buy one of those fancy chakra metal swords, hehehe!

Oh, quit dreaming. As if I would ever have enough for one of those with just selling food.

Hmmm... Oh yes, I've also made decent progress in both of the Leaf Jutsus. I managed to increase my record time to one hour, thirty-six minutes, and fifty-one seconds. Pretty good, right? I can also finally cut the stupid leaf within just one session, with around two or three pumps of chakra.

By the way, now I'm a perfect 10 out of 10 when it comes to shuriken and kunai, and I've greatly improved my throwing speed. Only on still targets though... moving targets will give me some real trouble, let alone those at high speeds who can also bend their limbs to dodge.

I can walk on walls now, too, although for a limited amount of time. I guess around 30 minutes? Watch me as I become Spider-Man himself! All I need to do is learn to make chakra-form strings when expelled from my fingers. I could go like thwip, thwip, and swing all around Konoha.

Maybe it's not possible with my current chakra reserves, though. They've certainly grown with constant use—at least a three or four-fold increase by my estimates—but it's still not enough, and it's kind of like I've hit a wall or something. Like I'm being limited by the growth of my body. Perhaps this is why toddlers don't get trained much when they're this young.

Mom got me a significant amount of books too, so I've been reading a lot. A cooking book due to her noticing my interest in helping her cook, and an arithmetic book? I didn't have much use for it, pretty much the same as in my previous life, just a different context.

History books (which were relatively short compared to my previous world), culture, hand seals, Introduction to Fuinjutsu, and some other books to keep me busy for the next few years. And most importantly, biology and chemistry. This was because of me, who nagged her over and over again to get those specific books.

I needed to know what changed, so I obtained them and kept them in order on my bookshelf, along with the other books.

So many damn things to study! And besides, they were mostly boring, but informative.

We did visit the orphanage from time to time, bringing them gifts often and conversing with the Matron, who was just as lovely as ever! Now that I think about it, I haven't had eggs and bacon in a while. Cravings are troublesome and so random.

Oh yeah, Rasengan training was a bust. I had asked my mom to buy me some water balloons to see if I could make them explode with my chakra alone, by sending the water in all directions. Turns out I don't even have enough chakra. Imagine trying to make a rubber ball burst—that would be so damn hard... There goes my dream of Rasengan-ing people into the ground.

For now.

My birthday came before long. I am now four years old. Two more years before I start the academy, baby! My parents gifted me some really nice clothes and a high-quality soccer ball. I liked the clothes, but that soccer ball? Oh, I had so much fun trying out tricks with it that I couldn't normally.

I never really liked watching soccer matches, but actually playing felt like a rush. It felt so damn good every time I touched it with the top of my shoe, or whenever I kicked it with all my strength.

It's really satisfying to see the ball curve as it travels.

Anyway, remember those books I mentioned before? I've been reading, and it's certainly interesting.

Our body's biology is similar to my old world's, except that we have a Chakra Pathway System, or better known as a Meridian system. It is a term used to describe the points within the body that channel chakra through it. Simply put, they serve the same purpose for chakra as blood vessels do for blood. I sound like such a nerd, don't I?

Along those pathways, there are 361 points called "Tenketsu" that control the flow of chakra like circuit breakers, and within those points are the Eight Gates, which control body function and strain levels.

This system is a network within the body that transports chakra, similar to how the circulatory system moves blood. It also plays a role in creating chakra, as each cell and protein is connected to this system. The capillaries draw physical energy from the cells, which is then refined into chakra by various organs, particularly the heart.

What interested me the most, though, were the Eight Gates. Even if they seemed dangerous as hell, it would be amazing to just blitz through enemies unrestricted.

They are located in various parts of the body. The Gate of Opening is in the brain's left hemisphere. The Gate of Healing is in the brain's right hemisphere. The Gate of Life is on the spinal cord. The Gate of Pain is also located on the spinal cord. The Gate of Limit is in the abdomen. The Gate of View is in the stomach. The Gate of Wonder is below the stomach. And finally, the Gate of Death is in the heart.

Ugh...

So much to do.