"A gate that connects two worlds…"
Naruto slowly pulled his consciousness back, though the shock still lingered in his eyes.
Through touching the World Gate, he had learned that a Devil Fruit had crossed between worlds, subtly linking the two.
And due to the special nature of the Doa Doa no Mi (Door-Door Fruit), he could now open a gate between both worlds.
The oceanic gate in his mental world was a physical manifestation of that link—its deep blue hue representing the One Piece world.
"As expected of a conceptual-level Devil Fruit… opening things like air doors, stone doors, or wooden doors is one thing… but even a World Gate…"
Naruto's eyes lit up with excitement, his fists clenched tightly.
Compared to the world of Naruto, he clearly favored the freedom of the One Piece world. At least there, he wouldn't be cursed for no reason.
That world was filled with "monsters" of all kinds—giants, fishmen, minks, long-arm tribes, dwarves…
There, he'd be seen as a perfectly normal boy.
And in the One Piece world, power reigned supreme. As long as he had strength, he could carve out a future for himself.
If nothing else, he could join the Marines. At least then, he wouldn't have to worry about safety.
The more he thought, the more excited he became. Naruto once again entered his consciousness, reaching out to touch the World Gate, trying to push it open.
But—the gate didn't budge.
Formed from endless seawater, the World Gate felt as heavy as a mountain.
"No good. With the power I currently have—or rather, the chakra I have—it's still not enough to open the gate between worlds…"
Naruto reluctantly pulled back his consciousness.
After eating the Devil Fruit, the fruit had become his Kekkei Genkai (bloodline limit).
He'd already confirmed this: even after soaking in a stream, he hadn't felt the slightest bit weakened.
And unlike regular ninjutsu, bloodline limits could be used even without chakra, though the toll on the body was immense.
When he tried to open the World Gate earlier, he had felt it shift slightly.
But that wasn't nearly enough to open it.
"Not enough chakra. I'll have to endure a bit longer…" Naruto gritted his teeth and forced himself to close his eyes again.
He needed to refine more chakra—he had to get out of this hellhole called the Hidden Leaf Village.
…
The next morning.
The blonde boy opened his eyes, fatigue clouding his bright blue gaze.
He had spent the entire night refining chakra.
"My body… it's completely drained…"
Naruto frowned and clutched his stomach. His entire body screamed with exhaustion.
Too much time refining chakra had worn down his mind, but what really suffered was his underdeveloped body.
After all, he was still just a five-year-old child.
Forcing chakra refinement with such a body left him extremely weak. Without nutrition, it could even affect his growth.
In severe cases—he might even drop dead from it.
Thinking of this, Naruto suddenly recalled the original Naruto from the series.
Despite being the main character, he was the shortest kid in the entire class when he graduated—shorter than even Sakura.
But that wasn't his fault.
Eating junk food all the time, living off expired meals, and still needing to extract physical energy from his cells to refine chakra—of course his body couldn't grow properly.
The fact he didn't drop dead was all thanks to his Uzumaki bloodline.
"I'm done eating that garbage…" Naruto's eyes flashed with a cold light. He closed his eyes again, sensing the blue chakra in his body.
After a whole night of effort, he now had a good amount built up.
"In that case…"
Taking a deep breath, Naruto gathered the chakra into his palm and gently pushed it toward the nearby wall:
"Stone Door!"
With a soft creak—
A thick stone wall, old and solid, was pushed open into a stone door.
Seeing the half-meter-thick stone slab, Naruto's eyes gleamed.
Opening this door had only consumed less than one-twentieth of his total chakra.
Which meant—after a whole night of refining chakra, he could now open over twenty doors!
"Wooden Door!"
"Revolving Door!"
"Sliding Door!"
"Folding Door!"
"Invisible Door!"
…
The sounds of doors creaking echoed one after another.
Naruto was brimming with excitement, experimenting with all kinds of door types.
The tiny room was soon filled with incredible, diverse doors as if it had become a furniture showroom.
Looking at the unique shapes and forms, Naruto began imagining their uses in actual combat.
Only when his chakra had dropped to half did he reluctantly stop, and gently pushed the air beside him:
"Air Door!"
A translucent air door opened before him.
Unlike before—this time, Naruto stepped through it.
Inside the Air Door, it felt like an alternate dimension—but not quite. He could still see the outside world from within, as if through a pane of glass.
In this state, his body felt intangible. He could move through the real world's walls and buildings with ease.
…
After some brief study, and sensing his body growing more exhausted, Naruto phased through a wall and left his home.
The street outside was still bustling with activity, the usual noise and clamor a symbol of Konoha's prosperity.
But this time, as Naruto walked down the street, for the first time—
He didn't feel any hateful gazes.
Because he was within the dimensional space of the Air Door—completely invisible to the villagers outside.
"This must be what it's like when Obito goes into his phasing state…"
A smile curved across Naruto's lips as he walked on.
Along the way, from within the door space, Naruto saw many familiar ninja—
Anko was buying dango.
Chōji and his father Chōza were devouring meat at the yakiniku restaurant.
And Might Guy was charging down the street on his hands, shouting about youth while carrying a massive wooden log.
…
All of these high-level, elusive ninja didn't even notice the blonde boy walking right beside them.
Just like that, Naruto reached the store.
Ignoring the shopkeeper at the entrance, he walked to a secluded back corner and gently pushed the air inside the door dimension:
"Air Door!"
With a creak only he could hear, a tiny thirty-centimeter air door opened.
The door was so small that even child-sized Naruto couldn't squeeze through.
But he never intended to.
He simply reached his hand through the mini Air Door—ruthlessly sweeping food off the store shelves.
(End of Chapter)
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