Darkness… All around me was nothing but darkness.

  I couldn't see anything, hear anything or even feel anything. It was like I was floating in a dark void.

  'How long has it been?

  How did I eve here…??

  ht... Now I remember.'

  “Ring…”

  The sound of a bell ringing throughout the school could be heard.

  “That will be all. Css dismissed.”

  “Yes!” “Whoohoo!!” “Finally!”

  The sounds of a teacher eager to leave and reae and students even more eager to enjoy their holidays came.

  Almost all the students chatted amongst each other in groups. Excitedly discussing their pns to spend their vacation. Amidst all the studehusiastically chatting, almost no one paid attention to the loudent quietly gathering his things and leaving the css.

  His name was Thomas Kane. He was the son of a wealthy industrialist. Shipped off to b school at a young age and with two older brothers who outshined ihing they did and deemed as prodigies by everyohomas didn’t have the motivation to excel in anything.

  Even though he was above average in IQ and could easily attain top marks in all subjects, his scores in studies were average due to his otivation.

  During the first few months of b school, he tried to make friends. He mao make a few but after a short while he figured out they only became friends mostly due to the fact that he came from a wealthy family.

  He cut ties with them and then found the task of making friends tedious and tiresome. He was smart enough to not make himself a social outcast. He made her friends nor enemies. He maintained an average score. He had an everyday ordinary life.

  But there were two things in life he loved. Chess and ics. He was very good at chess. Predig his oppos moves from the start and outsmarting them by a wide margin was one of his favorite ways to win the game. As he pyed more and more he got really good at it.

  He also pyed poker with his brothers whehey would e to visit. He couldn't beat them but each time they pyed he learned a couple of his tells that would give him away. So with each game he got a little bit better at trying to trol his emotions from showing on his face. He wao learn to make the perfect poker fabsp;

  The sed thing in life he loved was ics, manga and anime. He loved them. The stories they tell. The characters they portray. It brought him endless joy reading and watg their adventures. He was a hardcore fan.

  He spent his days in his apartment alone reading all kinds of id mangas he could get his hands on. He fell in love with them from a young age. He enjoyed reading about the different adventures aen imagined what it would be like if he were in that world.

  He left the school and reached his apartment building after about a 15 minutes walk. His apartment was situated ohird floor. The apartment was a modest one. fortable for a single persoarted climbing the stairs. And as he reached the sed floor, he suddenly began to feel dizzy. His hands suddenly grabbed onto the side rails to steady himself. He felt like the world inning around him.

  “hat the hell?” After a few moments, the vertigo he was feeling slowly disappeared. “Oh, man.! I must be more tired and hungry than I thought.” He slowly started to walk and he reached his apartment doors.

  “Hey, Tommy.” Thomas heard the voice of his neighbour. He turned around and saw an old man with a white beard wearing round gsses and a deerstalker hat standing behind him.

  “Hey, Mr. Mark. How you doing?”

  “Fine kid. Was just gonna go out froceries. Oh, and I got a package delivered with your name.”

  Thomas’s eyes wideedly. It’s finally here. “Yeah. It’s something I ordered from overseas. It’s a new ic book series that’s retly released. I ’t wait to read it.” His eager anticipation could be heard in his voice.

  “You really love those books don't you?” Old man Mark said with a good-humored voice.

  “Hold on, I'll get them for you.” The old man turned around and walked back to his apartment and Thomas took out his keys and opehe doors to his home.

  The old man came back holding a brown package box. Thomas was about to grab the package box when the vertigo he was feeling earlier came back. The feeling was more intehis time. As Thomas was falling down and bg out, the st thing he heard was the scared shouts of old man Mark.

  When Thomas regained sciousness and opened his eyes, he realized he was in a hospital room. He saw the hospital gown he was wearing and he could smell the aics lingering in the air. He tilted his head to the side and saw old man Mark sitting beside him in a chair slowly nodding off.

  “Mr. Mark.”

  Thomas’s voice woke up the old man with a startle and he looked at the boy lying on the bed. “Oh my god! Tommy, you woke up. Hold on I’ll get the doctor.” He rushed outside to find the doctor. He returned shortly afterward and behind him came a man in his te forties wearing a doctor's coat.

  “Hello Thomas. I'm Doctor Phillips.” The man introduced himself. Thomas o him.

  “You were brought in unscious and we did a workup of your blood and did an MRI and it isn't good... Son, you have stage 3 brain cer and it's progressing quickly. We o start treatment right away.”

  Thomas couldn't hear anything else. His whole body went numb. He felt as if his whole world was breaking apart.

  “How bad is it?” He asked with a low voice.

  “It's really serious. Even with treatment, I am afraid you won't have much time.” The doctor replied with a serious tone.

  Seeing the distraught look on the boy, the doctor decided to give him some time to digest the news.

  “I'll give you two some time. I’ll be in my office if you need me.” Said the doctor and he left the room.

  “Tommy, I called your parents. They’re flying over. They’ll be here tomorrow. Yonhrough this.” Old man Mark said holding Tommy’s hand.

  “I….I don’t…”

  Thomas didn’t know what to say or even think. He felt like he was suffog. All he could hear was the heart that ounding in his chest.

  “I need some air.” He said while slowly getting up.

  “Tommy. I…”

  “Mr. Mark. I need a moment. I’d like some time alone now… Please.”

  Old man Mark looked at him with and then nodded. “I’ll wait outside.” He slowly left the room.

  Thomas went to a window and looked outside. It was nighttime. Ahe outside was still buzzing with activity. Tears slowly fell down from his eyes. But he didn’t make a single sound.

  He spent the few minutes just standing there and looking outside with tears running down his face. He then slowly looked at himself and then around the room. He saw his school uniform folded on a nearby table.

  “Screw this. I’m not staying here.” He felt angry and ripped off the gown he was wearing. “I gotta get outta here.”

  He quickly put on his school uniform ahe room. When Mark saw him leaving in his uniform he was bewildered.

  “Tommy where are you going?”

  He asked. “Out for a walk.”

  That was the only reply he got. Mark got up from his chair “It’s too dangerous. You o stay here.”

  Thomas didn’t reply and took off running. He reached the entrance of the hospital and quickly left the pce.

  He didn’t know where he was running to. After a few minutes, he reached what looked like a park. He slowed down and came near a benbsp;

  Thomas sat down a his whole body quivering. Si was nighttime there wasn’t anybody around. He started whimpering and cried again. This time small sobs started ing out. Thomas sat there g for some time.

  He was in denial but it soon turo anger. "Damn it, Damn it, DAMN IT." He ched his fists and gritted his teeth.

  "Damn it Thomas! Get a grip! Don't let this be your end." He shouted to himself.

  He quieted down soon after and slowly calmed himself. He was startled when he felt water drops slowly falling on his face. He realized it was starting to rain. Just as he was about to get up from his bench he saw a shadow moving iweewo trees in front of him. In any other circumstances he wouldn’t have cared but this time, curiosity got the better of him aarted walking slowly towards the two trees.

  He looked down and saw a fat bck cat with goldehomas felt as if the eyes of the cat were shining in the dark night. Strong winds started blowing and the rain was getting heavier and heavier by the sed. It was as if a giant storm had engulfed the city. Both the boy and cat were staring at each other as the rain tio pour down on them.

  Thomas didn’t know why or for what reason but he decided to pick up the bck cat and go home. He didn’t know why but when he looked into its eyes he felt as if he was being judged by something far more intelligent than him.

  He wehe chubby bck cat aly picked it up and slowly started walking ao the street to call a cab. As he was standing there by the side of the road, soaked in the heavy rain, he suddenly heard a small explosion. He looked and saw scraps of a tire flying everywhere and a car out of trol speeding toward him.

  “Oh no!”

  His eyes widened and before he could even move to get out of the way, the car was right in front of him. The cat in his arms jumped away right before the car sent him flying.

  He flew back a good 10 ft in the air before toug the pavement. He tumbled a few times on the ground and came to a stop. He could feel the blood flowing out of him and his sciousness slowly fading away.

  The st thing he saw was the bck cat ing towards him and toug his hand with its paw and its golden eyes peering into his own.

  ---------------

  Am I alive or dead?

  What is this pce?

  How long have I been here?

  Then I heard a voi my head

  [You have obtaihe right to bee a pyer. Do you accept?]

  Bee a pyer? Accept?

  What’s happening to me? What does it matter… I’ll be dead soon anyway.

  [Your time remaining is limited. Should you refuse, your heart will stop in 3 seds. Do you accept?]

  Whether or not this was a halluation, Thomas was certain of ohing. His impendih.

  [2 Seds]

  At this point, Thomas gave himself up tnation. He wao live. To have a sed ce at the life that was taken from him.

  [1 Sed]

  I WANNA LIVE. I ACCEPT.

  He couldn’t move his lips and utter those words but he screamed them in his mind. And then a voiswered.

  [Wele, Pyer]

  Suddenly something started to ge. ‘Wait a minute. What’s this feeling? It's as if I’m in a dream and trying desperately to open my eyes. e on wake up. Damn it WAKE UP.’ Suddenly my eyes opened in a snap.

  The first thing I saw was a blue box floating in front of me.

  You have slept in a bed. HP, d SP have been fully restored.

  What the F*ck? I looked around in a daze and found that I was lying on a bed in a room that was definitely not mine. When I saw a window at the end of the room, I stood up from my bed ao look. The view that greeted me was something I couldn’t prepare for.

  Four majestic faces adorned a mountain with the sun slowly rising from behind. I quickly realized that what I was looking at, was in fact the Hokage Mountain. I did a double take and then...

  “WHAT THE F*CK?”

  That was my first rea after realizing that I was in the Naruto universe.

  —-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Author’s Notes:

  Ok. A few things first. English is my sed nguage. So please five any minute grammatical mistakes you might see. Sed: I pn on pleting this story. I will see it to the end. Reading a good story and then seeing it not be updated is disheartening. The hing is, I haven’t decided on a pairing for the main character. And even if I do decide, it won’t be for a long while. And before you ask, No. This story won’t have a harem.

  Your reviews, ideas, criticism and thoughts are wele. They will be a great motivator for me to keep going and improve my writing.