Starts In Konoha: Unlocking Shadow Clone

Of course, it wasn't the three-tomoe Sharingan.

But...

"Oh my god, are you kidding me?"

Staring at his reflection, Naruto noticed that his crimson eyes now contained only an empty circle, the space where tomoe would usually rotate.

'What's going on?'

'The tomoe is gone. Could it be that the one-tomoe Sharingan is not the lowest level, and there is also a zero-tomoe Sharingan?'

'After experiencing such intense grief, I actually ended up with something that seemed like a downgrade.'

'I didn't gain a curse-repelling buff or anything, so why this bizarre outcome?'

This was way beyond anything Naruto could have imagined.

He couldn't help but ask, "System, what's going on here?"

[Friendly Reminder: The host can view the item description.]

Hearing this, Naruto opened the system panel.

[Chuunibyou Sharingan: After wearing it, you can obtain the Kekkei Genkai Sharingan. Current state: Mangekyo Sharingan. Can be upgraded to Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan by transplanting another Mangekyo Sharingan.]

"Huh? Mangekyo?"

Naruto's brain immediately crashed. He had never imagined that the black circle in his eyes could actually be a Mangekyo.

'Wow, it's just… wow.'

'A mere D-Rank Genjutsu allowed me to awaken my Mangekyo Sharingan?!'

Even knowing that Naruto had somehow exploited a loophole, this loophole was incredibly excessive.

To leap from a single-tomoe directly to the Mangekyo… it was the kind of upgrade he wouldn't have dared to dream of.

But after thinking about it carefully, the Sharingan can be evolved through strong emotional stimulation, and evolved into the Mangekyo Sharingan after experiencing the pain of losing a loved one. In the Genjutsu, he had witnessed the pain his previous life's death brought to his parents.

This overwhelming grief had almost obliterated his sanity, burdening him with guilt and remorse.

A sorrow this deep resulting in the awakening of the Mangekyo Sharingan actually made sense.

As for why Sasuke didn't experience a similar breakthrough?

That part was simple… it lay in Sasuke's own circumstances.

When Sasuke lost his parents and clan, he was only five years old and hadn't yet felt the depth of familial love. Thus, the loss didn't carry as much anguish. His primary pain was his incomprehension of Itachi's actions, a feeling of pure anger.

Naruto, however, had experienced the deep parental love of his previous life for over twenty years.

Among the most profound sorrows in life, the grief of parents burying their child ranks high.

Having made sense of everything, Naruto opened the system panel once more.

The Mangekyo Sharingan not only greatly enhances the user's original Sharingan's abilities, but also grants unique Dojutsu.

It must be known that Kishimoto himself once said the Mangekyo Sharingan is an all-seeing eye, possessing godlike abilities.

[Mangekyo Sharingan's original Dojutsu: Unique Copy!]

[Allows the user to replicate any Ninjutsu, including Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tota. Once selected, the Ninjutsu is permanently accessible to the eye. Please note, each eye can only replicate one Ninjutsu, and choices are permanent. Please choose carefully.]

[Susanoo: An ultimate ability unlocked only with the Mangekyo. Upon activation, a huge amount of Chakra forms a humanoid shape to cover the host's body, nullifying most attacks. However, overuse will lead to blindness. Only by awakening the Eternal Mangekyo can this drawback be negated. Please use with caution.]

[Yasaka Magatama: long-range attack that can be unleashed by the Susanoo, hurling magatama beads resembling the Sharingan pattern. Requirements: Complete-body Susanoo.]

Even after reading the entire introduction to the abilities, Naruto still hadn't come back to his senses.

He already knew about the Susanoo and Yasaka Magatama, but his unique Dojutsu was like a god-tier hack!

He could potentially copy Itachi's Dojutsu to have Tsukuyomi in his left eye and Amaterasu in his right. He can also copy Sasuke's Kagutsuchi, combine it with Obito's Kamui, or even approach Danzo to copy Kotoamatsukami.

Naruto could go far beyond just copying others' Sharingan Dojutsu. He could seek out others with Kekkei Genkai to acquire abilities like Haku's Ice Release, Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku, the Godaime Mizukage's Boil Release, the Sandaime Kazekage's Magnet Release, or even Wood Release cultivated from Hashirama's cells. He might even seek out Onoki to obtain the Kekkei Tota, Dust Release.

Besides that, there were countless other special Kekkei Genkai he couldn't even fully recall at the moment.

No matter how he mixed and matched, the potential combinations were godlike.

It was just a shame that each eye could only copy one ability. Otherwise, Naruto would've already declared himself invincible.

'My unique Dojutsu is too terrifying!'

Naruto exhaled deeply, finally calming his excitement.

Growl!

At this moment, his stomach rumbled loudly.

Even with his newly heightened powers, he was still human and still got hungry...

'Forget it, let's not get sidetracked. I'll copy abilities as I come across them. For now, food comes first.'

After making up his mind, Naruto dashed out of the door.

The morning sun was soft, and though he'd been holed up indoors for days, he quickly adjusted. Once oriented, he headed straight for the Haruno household.

In recent days, Mebuki had visited him daily, bringing food, though he hadn't felt like eating at the time. Now, he could finally go and enjoy a proper meal.

"Naruto, are you alright now?" Mebuki exclaimed in surprise when she saw Naruto entered the house.

"Mom, I'm fine now. Sorry for worrying you." Naruto replied with a smile.

Regardless of her motives, Mebuki's visits while he was down and out meant a lot to him.

For those who treated him well, he would always be grateful.

Growl~

Naruto's stomach rumbled once again, and he couldn't help but say embarrassedly, "Well, I am still a bit hungry. Is there any breakfast left?"

"As long as you can feel hunger, I'm relieved. I was just about to make breakfast. Go wake up Sakura. It'll be ready soon." Mebuki said with a doting smile.

"Okay!"

Naruto responded eagerly, then quickly headed up to the second floor.

Since that Hell Viewing Technique he'd experienced, he hadn't seen Sakura and had no idea if she still held any resentment toward him.

However, this time, before he could knock on the door, Sakura opened her door herself.

"Is the sun rising in the west? You're actually up this early?" Naruto was genuinely surprised, and his heart was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

'It looked like last time's wake-up call had helped Sakura break her bad habit of sleeping in.'

However, before he could commend her, Sakura cut him off, saying unhappily: "Naruto, are you senile? Today is the orientation of the Academy, and Iruka-sensei notified us to gather early."

"Orientation?" Naruto's heart skipped a beat, 'It was the day we'd be assigned to teams.'

He suddenly felt a bit disappointed, "I thought you'd finally learned a lesson and matured, but clearly, you're the same as ever. Well, since you're up, let's go have breakfast."

After saying that, he turned and headed downstairs, sat at the dining table and began to look forward to the delicious breakfast.

Soon enough, breakfast was served.

Mebuki spoke kindly: "Sakura, starting today, you'll be a Kunoichi of the Konoha. It'll be much harder from now on, so if you run into trouble, remember to ask your brother for help. Naruto, I hope you'll look out for your sister, too."

Sakura slammed her chopsticks down and said unhappily, "Mom, I'm not a kid anymore. I don't need his help, and I don't even consider him my brother. I'm done, I'm going first."

After saying that, she got up and stormed out.

Seeing this, Mebuki sighed and said, "Naruto, your sister doesn't understand yet, so please look out for her."

"No problem." Naruto couldn't refuse since he had received the favor.

Besides, they might end up on the same team, so he'd have to help a burden like her out regardless.

However, Naruto still felt a nagging uncertainty.

In the original work, he was assigned to Team 7 with Sasuke and Sakura to balance their team's abilities: his position as the 'dead last' matched with Sasuke's top ranking and Sakura's mid-level skill.

But now, having graduated at the top, he wondered if a butterfly effect might alter the team assignments.

Only time would tell…