Chapter 62 - 10
Chapter 10: Ninja Economics 101 — Robbing the Bad Guys for Dummies
(In which Naruto contemplates philosophy, capitalism, and punching creeps in alleyways.)
Naruto Uzumaki was not the kind of houseguest who cleaned up after himself or folded the laundry without being asked. But he was the kind of houseguest who brooded in the dark like a philosophy major during finals week. Which, considering he was technically a spirit inside Danny's soul, made him something between a ghost, a big brother, and a walking motivational quote poster with a mean right hook.
As he moved through the Fenton house—silent as a shadow, smooth as peanut butter—Naruto's mind wasn't on his footsteps. No, his brain was busy swimming laps in the Olympic Pool of Existential Dread™.
Danny.
The kid was trying. Naruto could see that. He was putting in effort, throwing punches, reading actual books (Naruto shuddered), and most importantly—not quitting. But Naruto had seen this before. Push too hard, too fast, and you didn't get a hero.
You got a burnout.
Or worse—a ticking time bomb with unresolved trauma and a flair for dramatic monologues.
"Fear and pain aren't teachers. They're just... tools," Naruto muttered, mostly to himself, as he reached the living room. "Tools I've been leaning on way too much."
Danny was still a kid. One with dark circles, shaky test grades, and a disturbing talent for falling down stairs. If Naruto wasn't careful, he'd end up teaching Danny how to win fights and lose everything else that mattered.
Shaking his head like he was clearing cobwebs, Naruto flicked his wrist. A shimmer of chakra-threaded illusion wrapped around his body like a second skin. Add a hoodie, some casual jeans, and a dash of ancient-ninja-stealth-technique no jutsu, and boom: