Shinobi Quest

by bbahla1

Shikamaru unknowingly makes a wish upon a shooting star and suddenly finds himself with the powers of The Gamer. Whatever will he do next?

1. Simple

Chapter 1

Simple

This is a work of fanfiction, drawing from the worlds of "Naruto," created by Masashi Kishimoto, and "The Gamer," created by Sung Sang-Young. This work is not for profit, and I do not claim any ownership over "Naruto" or "The Gamer." There are also references to other popular sources, which are written here in parody. Thank you, and please enjoy!

…

It was truly amazing, what chakra and man could do. Shikamaru Nara sighed contentedly as his eyes danced across the ceiling of his family's home. Lightly stained akita cedar of a rustic and reddish hue stretched as far as he could see. Their home was the only clan estate created (except for his own) by the Shodai Hokage himself, Hashirama Senju, a perk he threw in to convince the reclusive Nara clan to join his and Madara Uchiha's great experiment. It wasn't just a house – it was an entire compound, capable of serving as home to over ninety people. When the Nara clan - eighteen members at the time - arrived and protested that it was too much, Hashirama just laughed and told them that his dream was to create a place where there would be peace and prosperity, a place where their children could grow up and have many, many children of their own. Shikamaru smirked – it was still way too much. Three generations later, and the clan had only grown to twenty-five, simply because the Naras were typically too lazy to want to raise more than two children at a time. They turned most of the extra space into storage and housed the Village Hidden in the Leaves' nursery for medicinal plants. When the clan asked why the estate was so far from the village center, the first hokage grinned and commented that they would thank him for the privacy once the village began to grow. They did.

Shikamaru closed his eyes, enjoying the peacefulness of the moment. This was his last night as a civilian. He had passed his examination at the academy the week before, and tomorrow, he would find out for sure who his new team would be and who his sensei for the foreseeable future would be as well. These could be some of his last moments of tranquility.

"SHIKAMARU NARA! ARE YOU STILL HERE?"

Shikamaru sighed. Leave it to his mother, Yoshino, to shatter the peaceful moment. "… No?" he called.

Yoshino Nara burst into his room and frowned at seeing him lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. "I thought I told you to go out and see your friends. You haven't left this house in three days."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "It's not like there's anything to do until tomorrow."

"There's always something to do, Shikamaru," she hissed. "I've given you your space this week, but this is ridiculous. Get out, even if for a couple hours. Just be back before eleven. Go see Choji. Go see anybody. Just get out of your room." Her tone softened. "I know you're a ninja now. I know there are a million things running through your mind right now. But you cannot hide away in your room whenever you try to avoid thinking about something."

The soon-to-be genin grimaced; she always saw right through him. "But it's already dark out. Can't it wait until…" he paused when he noticed her fists clenching. "Fine. This is such a drag…"

"There, was that so hard? Now, GET."

Shikamaru swung his legs off his bed and stretched. "Might as well go see what Choji's up to… since apparently I can't stay here." His mother followed him down the stairs, making sure he actually left and didn't try to come back through his bedroom window, which he may or may not have done before. He walked down their front steps and took a deep breath of the cool evening air. He glanced up at the dusk sky and grinned as he saw a few clouds dancing in the last rays of the sun. He took off down the path into town, taking his time as his thoughts wandered.

Unlike the rest of his class, Shikamaru had a good idea of what was to come. He knew that tomorrow would begin a possibly short life of hard work. Every moment not spent getting better meant a higher chance that he or his comrades could die. He had spent the last three days in contemplation, trying to fully prepare for the reality into which he was stepping. Everything was so simple and safe at the academy, unlike in the rest of the shinobi world. The Land of Fire had had its share of hardships, sure, but compared to the other ninja villages, they enjoyed perhaps the highest quality of life during childhood. When the Sandaime had stepped back into the role of Hokage, he made it a point to immediately adjust the academy curriculum to allow children to grow up. Too many young children had been forced into combat during the wars, and the risk of a future prodigy snapping and turning against the village just too great.

The street lamps cast an orange hue along the streets as he entered the fringe of the village. Shikamaru sighed as he noticed the number of pedestrians on the street ahead and the clamor of city life reached his ears. "So this is why mom kicked me so late… tonight's the last night of that science exposition the Cryptanalysis Division is hosting to try to raise funding." He rolled his eyes. "Like there's going to be anything interesting there. The biggest advances are from the Land of Lightning, and they sure as hell aren't going to send anything to Konoha."

He frowned as he noticed two members of the crowd turn and start walking his way. "Please don't know me, please don't know me… They waved. Great, they're from my class."

Shikamaru steeled himself for one of the worst things in the world – a conversation with people to whom he had no interest in speaking. Akio Kohaku and Kazuo Tono were technically listed in the middle of the class as far as grades went, with passable taijutsu and the ability to perform the mandatory academy jutsu. Unlike his peers, Shikamaru had a general idea of how the team assignments went – there was always a second test, one that eliminated over two-thirds of those who passed the exam. Some of the eliminated with talent went to a different academy program located outside the walls, while the rest were cut from the program altogether. They then entered civilian life. The reason the village let them stay in the program was that the more they developed, the more likely their children would have higher potential as shinobi. Chakra was funny that way. Akio and Kazuo wouldn't make the cut – they simply didn't have the talent to survive past the academy, nor did they have the chakra capacity to do much beyond the academy's required jutsu. He waited until they got closer before acknowledging them. "Yo."

"What up, Shikamaru?" Akio greeted. Kazuo waved a hello. "You come to see the last of the tech show?"

Shikamaru shook his head. "Nah, that'd take too much effort with the crowd. I'm just going to what Choji's doing tonight."

Akio grinned. "Choji's not going to be doing anything tonight." He pointed back at the crowd. "There was a takoyaki eating competition at the expo, and he won. I don't think he feels like a winner now, though- he had to knock three people out of his way on his race to the bathroom."

"Oh, Choji, not again," Shikamaru groaned. Akio and Kazuo just laughed. Kazuo's eyes then lit up.

"Oh! Man, you should check out my uncle's stand. He's a chunin that works in the intelligence division breaking down foreign technology. He and some of his friends are showing off a game they recreated. It's really cool!"

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "A game? What kind of game?"

Kazuo bounced on his feet. "It's so cool! So you know about those new televisions that came out a few years ago, the ones that have those plugs in the back that nobody knows what they're for?" Shikamaru nodded. He knew about them, but his clan didn't own any televisions. His mother had shut that down immediately, knowing the danger it would pose to anyone with Nara blood. "So apparently they're something that's been for sale in the Land of Lightning and a couple other places for almost a decade, and they have other machines that plug into the televisions and let you do more than just watch the channels."

That actually sounded pretty interesting. "What kind of stuff can they do?"

"They can watch films through tapes instead of going to the theater, and they can play music and stuff, but supposedly, they can also be used to play a game that appears on the screen. So my uncle and his team reverse-engineered a game machine and created their own! They spent a couple years working on it, since apparently their first games weren't very good, but this one is pretty cool."

"… Sweet. How does it work?"

Kazuo was still almost too excited. "They called it a role-playing game. So the game has a main character that you control with a remote thing that has buttons. And the character can move across the screen and talk to other characters who have a question or explanation point over their heads that are in the game and they tell you how to go on quests. It's still on a black and white screen, but they're working on that. And you can fight crazy enemies like zombies and animals and weird things, and when you beat them, you get experience points, which let you reach a new level and you can pick how you get stronger. And you can pick up items that do lots of things…"

Shikamaru tuned him out. "Yeah, mom would never let me have something like that… Sounds interesting, but what's the point of spending so much effort on something that isn't real? I could use that time to watch the clouds or train." Shikamaru nodded as Kazuo paused to catch his breath. "Sounds cool, but don't we basically do the same thing as ninja? You know- go on real missions, earn real money…"

"Yeah, but this isn't real! That's what awesome about it," Akio chimed in. "So anyone can have an adventure without having to risk going outside the gates or having anyone attack you. All the fun, without any danger! And you don't even have to be a ninja to play it."

Shikamaru withheld himself from rolling his eyes. "Yeah, these two are definitely not going to make it past tomorrow if they are that into things you don't have to be a ninja to do."

"Yeah, I guess. Well, I'll have to check it out sometime, thanks, but hey, I better go on home if Choji's sick. See you tomorrow." He turned around and walked away, wincing as the two walked back into the crowd, still yammering loudly about the game. Shikamaru chuckled once they disappeared into the crowd. "Sounds like such a waste of time. But it's an interesting concept… Oh, man, what a drag. This is going to be stuck in my head all night."

Shikamaru turned and went back down the road – his walk had spent about an hour. His mom wouldn't let him back in by now – it was only around 8:30 PM. He glanced up at the first stars of the night and smiled contentedly. "Maybe just a couple more minutes outside will keep her from bothering me about coming home too soon. It's not my fault Choji overate again." He looked up at the tree limbs, searching for a good place to relax. He settled on an extra-large branch and climbed up, leaning his back against the tree and folding his hands behind his head. The branches above served as a window to the stars and the clouds above. Then he noticed something and groaned. "The way the branches are, it looks like a square… like a television screen. What a drag. I can't get away from it. And it's pointless to think about it, because there's no way mom would ever let me do something like that."

He closed his eyes to try and get the image out of his head. "But it's such a simple way to be a ninja. Just go around, doing missions or quests or whatever, fighting monsters… and you don't have to worry about the annoying things, like being ambushed and dying for real, or who you need to find in a quest since they are notated with floating punctuation. You just fight monsters, and then you level up, just like that… I wonder if the character has to eat or sleep?" He groaned and shook his head. "Damn it, I'm trying to clear my head, not fill it with more crap!"

Shikamaru inhaled the scent of the forest and of the maple tree on which he sat and breathed out, letting the thoughts dissipate in an attempt to reach the tranquility for which he yearned. He opened his eyes and traced the outline of the single wispy cloud in the night sky, shining brightly from the illumination of the silver moon above. "This is it… tomorrow, I start my new life as a genin. No more simplicity. Fewer moments like this. I wish my life as a ninja could be like the ninja in that game… Ugh, there it is again! Forget it, time for bed."

Little did he know, as he sneaked through the trees towards his home, that behind the cloud he gazed upon streaked a single flash of light: a shooting star, thundering through the earth's atmosphere and breaking apart miles above him. And as the pieces moved towards the earth, one could almost form a word by connecting the dots: 'DONE.'

…

"SHIKAMARU, WAKE UP! YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE!"

"Ugh…" Shikamaru stirred, groaning as his mother's voice roused him from sleep. "Just a few more minutes…"

Yoshino wasn't done yet! "SHIKAMARU NARA! WAKE THE F…"

Shikamaru tensed. "Something's wrong. She never just stops." He opened his eyes and found himself surrounded in pitch-black nothingness. He leapt out of bed and frowned as his bare feet his the floor. His floor was wood. This was… "I don't know what this is…" He bent down and reached his fingers down towards the floor, only to find that they passed right through it. He blinked in surprise. "Am I… floating? Wait, maybe this is like the time Ino tried to hypnotize me through her jutsu…" He closed his eyes. "Ugh, Ino, this isn't funny. I was sleeping. That's weird. Get out of my head."

He paused, expecting to hear her giggle in the background, only to hear nothing. "Oh, man, this can't be good…" He summoned up his chakra and stilled it before putting his fingers together and expelling it. "Kai!"

Shikamaru opened his eyes to find nothing changes. "This is the weirdest genjutsu… I heard of something like this that the second hokage was famous for, but nobody in the village besides the Sandaime would be able to do something like this. Maybe it really is Ino…" "Ino, last chance. Don't get me started… ack!"

He jumped back as a bright blue light flashed into existence in front of him, following him as he retreated. He braced himself with his arms in front of his face as it followed him, only for it to stop directly in front of him. He widened his stance and chanced a peek before swearing and dropping his guard. "This is one hell of a dream…"

In front of him, in a glowing, floating blue window, was a screen with only a few words:

"Shinobi Quest, version 3.0.

New Game"

Shikamaru turned around to check his surroundings, but the screen followed him, always floating into position in front of him. He waved his hands where his nightstand should be only to find more nothingness. "So this is more than just the floor… I can no longer sense anything in my room." He sighed. "This is such a drag… I still can't escape this game stuff, even in my dreams. Looks like no other option."

He took another look at the screen and tried to press 'new game' only to find his hand passing through the screen. "How did Kazuo say it worked… a remote." He looked around, but couldn't find anything in the limited light offered by the blue screen. "The only option is to select a new game, so… Ah, so it works remotely by voice."

At his utterance, the words 'new game' blinked and the screen dissipated, only for a new screen to appear in its' place. "Due to predetermined conditions, your character statistics cannot be changed." "Okay, but how do I go to the next screen…"

As soon as his thought ended, the screen dissipated again and a new screen appeared. "So my thoughts control the process as well… That makes it less of a drag," he observed, interested growing. The screen in front of him now was significantly larger than the previous ones, taking up almost his entire field of vision. At the top was the word 'Character,' and beneath it was a picture of his face and his name next to it. He twitched a little as he continued on.

"Character

Name: Shikamaru Nara

Age: 12

Faction: Konoha: the Village Hidden in the Leaves

Affiliation: N/A

Rank: Academy Graduate

Title: [Academy Student] (+5 SP)

Level: 8

EXP: 0 / 867

Health Points (HP): 114 / 114

Chakra Points (CP): 78 / 78

Stamina Points (SP): 23 / 23

Strength (STR): 2

Vitality (VIT): 8

Dexterity (DEX): 4

Intelligence (INT): 55

Wisdom (WIS): 15

Luck (LUK): 0

Stat Points (ST): 0

Chakra Control: 24%

HP Regeneration: 5% / minute

CP Regeneration: 5% / minute

SP Regeneration: 5% / minute."

Shikamaru took a deep breath, then look through it one more time. "What is this the standard this is comparing me to? Chakra control at twenty-four percent, strength at two… luck at zero? Compared to intelligence at 55? That's a huge discrepancy!" Shikamaru paused, then pondered. "Maybe it's not… Maybe I have no idea how weak I am because I haven't really seen what a ninja can really do… Which contributes to why my wisdom is way lower than my intelligence."

Shikamaru's brain flashed back to only two week's prior, when in a spar he had landed a punch on Ino's cheek only for her to ignore it and sock him in the face hard enough to knock him unconscious. "… Maybe it's right. Two for strength. This is depressing. What else is there?"

"Next… Ha. Of course." A screen popped up over the status screen that stated: "Congratulations! Your intelligence has surpassed 50! As a reward, you have unlocked the attribute: 'Head in the Clouds': Doubles the rate of CP & SP regeneration while watching the clouds." "Now I have an excuse. Next… Inventory? For what?"

Apparel

Head:

Torso:

Undershirt:

Gloves:

Underwear:

Legs: [Plain Boxers (White)]

Feet:

Accessory:

Accessory:

Weapon 1:

Weapon 2:

Projectile 1:

Projectile 2:"

Shikamaru's eyebrow twitched. "Great, so what was the point of keeping track that I'm only wearing my boxers? That's just creepy. Next." This time, a second screen appeared next to the first. At the top was the word Storage, and then there were several boxes of a deeper shade of blue beneath it. At the bottom was a fraction that read '0 / 20.'

"Storage? There's no way for me to figure this out right now… Next, this has to be over soon." The two screens faded as another took their place, this time titled: 'Attributes.' A small window popped up on top: "No current elemental affinity assigned! Please make a selection."

He blinked a few times at that one. It was common knowledge that members of the Nara clan typically had an affinity for earth ninjutsu, but here he could apparently select something else. He mind started running through the advantages of each element, but only one was his favorite to watch as it flashed across a darkened sky: "Lightning."

"Gained 'Elemental Affinity Lightning': Increase EXP gained for lightning ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of lightning ninjutsu by 25%."

Shikamaru dismissed the pop ups and took a look through the attributes screen.

"Attributes

Gamer's Body: The Gamer's body functions as though in a game setting. Sleep heals all status effects and injuries. HP, CP, and SP recovery rates continue during sleep at the standard rate.

Gamer's Mind: The Gamer's mind functions as though in a game setting. Enables the Gamer to think rationally and peacefully while under duress. The Gamer is immune to mind-control or mind-invasion techniques; anyone who enters the Gamer's mind will not be able to see anything or take control of the body.

Nara Clan Member: Unlocks Nara clan secret jutsu. Unlocks affinity with wild deer. Unlocks medical jutsu.

Nara Clan Heir: Trained in Self-Preservation for the sake of the clan! Permanent +100 to Health Points.

Wunderkind: Gifted with advanced cognitive abilities; evident at an extremely young age! Permanent +30 to Intelligence, +10 to Wisdom

Playing with Fire: +10 to all stats when facing opponents from the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

Head in the Clouds: Doubles the rate of CP & SP regeneration while watching the clouds.

Elemental Affinity Lightning: Increase EXP gained for lightning ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of lightning ninjutsu by 25%."

Shikamaru took a deep breath, then shook his head. "This has to be the most intricate dream I've ever had…" he muttered. "Next."

A second screen appeared, just like with the inventory. This one was titled 'Attributes to Purchase. Current Attribute Points (AP): 2.'

Bye, Felisha: Increase chances of outwitting your opponent and escaping by 25%. (AP: 5)

A Gentleman & A Scholar: Multiply EXP gained for ninjutsu abilities by 50%. (AP: 5)

Dreamer: Multiply EXP gained for genjutsu by 50%. (AP: 5)

I Know Kung Fu: Multiply EXP gained for taijutsu by 50%. (AP: 5)

Big Stick Diplomacy: Multiply EXP gained for bukijutsu by 50%. (AP: 5)

Medicine Man: Multiply EXP gained for iryojutsu by 50%. (AP: 5)

Affinity: Water: Increase EXP gained for water ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of water ninjutsu by 25%. (AP: 25)

Affinity: Wind: Increase EXP gained for wind ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of wind ninjutsu by 25%. (AP: 25)

Affinity: Earth: Increase EXP gained for earth ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of earth ninjutsu by 25%. (AP: 25)

Affinity: Fire: Increase EXP gained for fire ninjutsu by 50%. Reduce CP costs of fire ninjutsu by 25%. (AP: 25)"

"I could purchase perks and second affinities? That's… useful." He glanced at the top of the screen again and noticed his current attribute points at 2, the cheapest attribute costing 5, and the affinities costing 25. "Man, what a drag. And I was getting excited… Next." This time, the new screen, titled 'Jutsu,' appeared with an arrow at the bottom. His eyes went towards the arrow, and the text moved to upwards, revealing to him more categories. He went back to the beginning and start reading from start to finish. Jutsu was divided into multiple categories, such as ninjutsu and genjutsu, and subcategories, like his family ninjutsu and elemental ninjutsu.

Ninjutsu

Nara Clan Secret Jutsu

Shadow Bind (Level 10): Original technique created by the Nara clan to control the shadows. The user manipulates his or her shadow across surfaces to the shadow(s) of the opponent(s) and renders them immobile. (CP: 20 per target, +1 per sec. of resistance per target) (Range: M)

Ninjutsu

Clone (Level 5): The user creates an illusionary copy of himself to try and deceive the enemy. (CP: 20, Limit 2 at a time, Range: S)

Transformation (Level 5): The user creates an illusion that covers the self and mimics the appearance of another person or thing. (CP: 15, +1 per 15 sec.)

Substitution (Level 5): The user replaces herself with a nearby log or other inanimate object to escape damage. (CP: 15, Range: M-)

Nature Manipulation

Fire Style: Charcoal (Level 2): The user transforms wood or stone into glowing embers. (CP: 20, Range: S-)

Genjutsu

Kai (Level 2): Releases user from genjutsu. The higher the level, the higher level of genjutsu that can be broken. Higher leveled genjutsu can be broken through consumption of additional chakra based upon level of enemy's jutsu. (CP: 10+)

Taijutsu

Academy Taijutsu (Level 19): Basics of hand-to-hand combat.

Bukijutsu

Shuriken (Level 5): Ability to throw shuriken in combat. (Accuracy: 5%, Range: M)

Kunai (Level 7): Ability to throw or wield kunai in combat. (Accuracy: 7%, Range: M)

Iryojutsu

N/A

Zatsujutsu

Leaf Concentration (Level MAX): Concentrate on holding a leaf to your body to learn how to control chakra! Develops chakra control multiplier from 0 to 1 at maximum.

"Zatsujutsu… must be for anything that doesn't fall into the other categories…"

Shikamaru dismissed the window and glanced back through the list, noticing that even small techniques not intended for combat were listed, such as the charcoal creation technique his father had taught him last summer for starting a cooking fire. "I know everything that's listed here, beyond what level this dream apparently thinks I execute my techniques. Only level 10 for the Shadow Bind Jutsu? That shouldn't be right…" But in the back of his mind, cold dread started to set in. "What if… What if my control over my chakra has limited my control over my techniques? That would mean that I've never really mastered the Shadow Bind like I should have…" His father had once famously trapped nearly two-dozen enemy shinobi using the Shadow Bind Jutsu, the basis for all of the Nara clan shadow manipulation techniques, enabling Chouza Akimichi to eliminate them all in one giant hit. Shikamaru was nowhere near that point.

Shikamaru muttered "next" and perked up when he saw the next screen: "Character creation complete! New Game: Begin!"

The screen flew off into the darkness, and Shikamaru started gasping as he felt everything around him start to spin and church. He opened his mouth to scream as his footing disappeared and he fell into the abyss, only for everything to come to an abrupt stop. His ears ringing, his fingers darted out, shocked to find something physical to touch. "Soft… warm… is this… my bed?" Shikamaru slowly opened his eyes and found himself back in his room, lying under his covers in his bed. "So it was just a dream…" he whispered. He settled back into the sheets and gazed at the ceiling, trying to reign in his rapidly beating heart. "It was all so surreal…"

His vision was suddenly blocked by a dark figure hovering over him. "Shikamaru…"

He flinched. "…What, mom?"

"GET OUT OF BED!"

…

Shikamaru sighed as he stepped into the shower, the steam soothing his troubled mind as he recalled the vivid images of the game menu seared into the forefront of his mind. "I always remember my dreams, but never have I had so much control in them… It was too real. Would have been fun if I got to play. What jutsu could I learn? What kind of enemies would there be? Maybe I'll dream the dream again and spend more time on the jutsu screen…" "What the hell?!" Shikamaru bolted backwards, slamming his back against the cool tiles as his instincts reacted to a flash of blue right in front of his face. Breathing quickly, the academy graduate wiped the water from his face and gazed in awe at the sight in front of him:

JUTSU: Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Bukijutsu, Iryojutsu, Zatsujutsu.

"No fucking way…" "KAI!" He quickly stopped and restarted his chakra flow in an attempt to escape whatever genjutsu he must be caught in. Nothing changed. "No, no, no, what the hell is this!" Shikamaru summoned as much chakra as he could and expelled it at once: "KAI!" He collapsed to the floor, drained of energy, the blue, glowing window still in the corner of his vision. "Normally I don't go through chakra this quickly. Only two attempts at breaking free and I'm gassed…" The genius winced as he realized what he would need to do. "Character."

Character

Name: Shikamaru Nara

Age: 12

Faction: Konoha: the Village Hidden in the Leaves

Affiliation: N/A

Rank: Academy Graduate

Title: [Academy Student] (+5 SP)

Level: 8

EXP: 0 / 867

Health Points (HP): 114 / 114

Chakra Points (CP): 0 / 78

Stamina Points (SP): 18 / 18

Strength (STR): 2

Vitality (VIT): 8

Dexterity (DEX): 4

Intelligence (INT): 55

Wisdom (WIS): 15

Luck (LUK): 0

Stat Points (ST): 0

Chakra Control: 24%

HP Regeneration: 5% / minute

CP Regeneration: 5% / minute

SP Regeneration: 5% / minute.

"Chakra at zero… that explains why I'm beat. How much chakra does the release technique take?" Shikamaru waved the character screen away and looked again at the jutsu screen. "Genjutsu." The text on the screen swept up and was replaced by a screen titled 'genjutsu.'

Kai(Level 2) Releases user from genjutsu. The higher the level, the higher level of genjutsu that can be broken. Higher level genjutsu can be broken through consumption of additional chakra based upon level of enemy's jutsu. (CP: 10+)

"So I tried putting extra chakra into the jutsu until I hit zero. Either this is a ridiculously powerful genjutsu, or it's not a genjutsu at all," he reasoned. He waved the screen away and returned to his character screen. He frowned as he noticed something extra troubling. "Chakra control at 24%. That could be the other reason… and my CP is already back to 4 out of 78. That must be the 5% per minute regeneration."

Shikamaru dismissed the character screen and pulled up the inventory screen, twitching a little as the apparel screen appeared with no items equipped and a small warning at the top: "Caution: No Items Equipped. At high risk for critical hits." He picked up the bar of soap and waited, but nothing showed as equipped. He moved over to the storage screen, which was also still empty. He glanced at the soap, glanced at the screen, then murmured, "Storage!... Nothing. Store! Into! Go in! Enter!" He reached up with his free hand to tap at the screen and was surprised to see it ripple at his touch, which the other screens did not do. He took the bar of soap and held it up to the screen, watching as it passed through the screen like moving through a veil of water and appeared in the first slow. He was now at 1 / 20 items in storage. Shikamaru reached his hand out and tapped the icon showing the soap, and the bar flew out into his outstretched hand.

He dismissed all of the screens and took some time to finish his shower in peace. After drying off, he put on his ninja gear, wrapped his Konoha Headband around his arm, and pulled up his character screen, noticing that his chakra was recovered enough for him to experiment, then pulled up his inventory once again.

Apparel

Head: Plain Earrings

Torso: Nara Clan-Insignia Sleeved Vest [+30 RAP with Sarutobi, Yamanaka, & Akimichi clans;

-10 RAP with all Leaf Ninja]

Undershirt: Plain Mesh Tank [+5% CP Regeneration]

Gloves:

Underwear: Plain Boxers (White)

Legs: Plain Capris (Brown)

Feet: Standard Sandals (Blue) [+5 Dexterity]

Projectile Bag: [Small Pouch: 15 / 15]

Accessory: Konoha Headband [+10 RAP with all Leaf Ninja and allies]

Accessory:

Weapon 1:

Weapon 2:

Projectile 1: Kunai (3)

Projectile 2: Shuriken (12)

"I'm guessing RAP stands for something… Rapport? Rapport. What did the Nara clan do to lose rapport with all Leaf Ninja?" Shikamaru wondered. He frowned as he noticed that much of his gear did nothing for his stats. "I could use some armor, or something, to protect myself."

He double checked his chakra points, then put his hands together in the Ram hand seal and concentrated on using as little chakra as possible before whispering, "Kai!" He immediately checked his character screen again to run the numbers. "Chakra points were at 30. They are now at 13… After putting my equipment on, some of my stats were boosted and my control is now at 31%. So I waste 69% of the chakra necessary to perform the technique. Genjutsu: Kai normally takes 10 CP, meaning it now costs 16.9, which was rounded up to 17… Man, what a drag. This makes a huge difference in what I can do."

Before leaving his room, Shikamaru gathered every extra shuriken and kunai he possessed and put them into his inventory, noting with a grin that duplicate items only took up one storage space per item, meaning he could store 20 shuriken and 6 kunai and only take up 2 / 20 spaces. He meandered down the stairs to the kitchen, where his father was sipping a cup of coffee at the table and his mother was just setting down three bowls of rice with fried eggs on top. Shikamaru thanked her and sat down. Yoshino Nara sat down as well, carrying two cups of coffee and setting one in front of her son. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Coffee? I'm twelve."

"You also have a history of falling asleep in class. I want you wide awake when you meet your sensei," Yoshino quipped. Shikamaru glanced at his father, who was hiding a grin behind his own cup.

"Drink up. It's not everyday your mother cooks breakfast," Shikaku joked.

Yoshino swatted his arm. "Today's special. Don't get used to it." She grabbed her chopsticks and looked at her son, who hadn't touched his rice or his coffee. "You okay? You're quiet."

The genin-to-be blinked, bringing his attention back to the present. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a lot on my mind. This could be a long day."

"What makes you say that? Registration and team assignments are usually done by eleven," Shikaku inquired.

Shikamaru shrugged. "It depends on whether our jounin sensei decides to do the second test today."

Yoshino blinked. "And who told you about that?" She glanced at Shikaku, who shrugged.

"I didn't tell him. But it's not exactly a well-kept secret," Shikaku observed.

Shikamaru nodded. "There are several teams of genin that graduated the academy but don't start taking missions around the village for either four, eight, or twelve months. I just asked one of the teams what happened to them." He took his chopsticks and broke the yolks of the fried eggs, letting them ooze over the hot rice. "I know most of the graduates in my class won't make it. There will probably only be three teams."

Shikaku's eyebrow shot up. "Only three? That's interesting. Why do you say so few?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "Only nine of us are strong enough for combat. And I already know that Ino, Choji, and I will be together. Our sensei will probably be a member of the Sarutobi clan."

Shikaku started laughing and set his coffee down. "I should be surprised, but I suppose it is obvious. Yours was the first team I created."

Shikamaru nodded. His father was the jounin commander- he likely had the teams figured out the day they all finished their tests. The family fell into quiet chuckles as they finished their breakfast.

Shikaku got up to refill his coffee, then leaned against the counter and stared at his son. "Who are the other teams?"

Shikamaru blinked. "Huh?"

"Who are the other teams that will pass? You said three teams."

Shikamaru folded his hands together and leaned onto the table, thinking quickly. "I never gave it much thought, since I knew what my team would be… Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzaka, and Shino Aburame. All heirs to their clans, all with enhanced sensory abilities, and a two male to one female ratio, which Konoha has preferred since the second great war."

Shikaku started chuckling again as Shikamaru finished his last few bites of eggy rice before continuing. "Sasuke Uchiha was top shinobi of the class, and Sakura Haruno was top kunoichi. They will be paired together with Naruto Uzumaki."

Shikaku stopped laughing and took a drag of his coffee. "Naruto Uzumaki didn't pass the genin exam. Why would he be on the team?"

Shikamaru smirked. "The academy has passed other students who couldn't pass the ninjutsu exam. He passed everything else. The only reason he couldn't pass is chakra control, but nobody at the academy could help him with that."

"Oh? And why's that? Doesn't the academy teach control exercises?" Yoshino inquired.

Shikamaru smirked. "Yes, but they're designed for ninja with genin-level chakra or less. During the control test where we have our chakra capacity measured by putting it into those special tags, his disintegrated. I was watching him while it happened- he summoned so much raw chakra that it was visibly flowing around him. I thought he was going to blow the roof off. I don't know of anyone who can pull up enough chakra to make it visible without it being a special jutsu. There's no way he won't be put on a team, and right now, nobody else would be able to hold their own on a squad with the two top performers in the class."

Shikaku took a deep gulp of his coffee before setting it down on the counter and folding his arms. "… You are correct in that Naruto Uzumaki did pass, but not for the reason you think. He was able to learn and perform a clone technique before the end of the night of the graduation exam, with an academy instructor witnessing. With that, he received enough marks to pass as the lowest ranked in the class, and there is precedent for pairing the lowest scoring student with the top two. The famous Sannin come to mind as a team that followed that precedent. However, as nostalgic as the Sandaime Hokage can be, the final decisions on assignments actually comes to me, at his request. I am not bound by precedent if I believe such a team would not perform at a high level. Just having a lot of chakra does not mean we wouldn't cut him from the program."

Shikamaru nodded and took a sip of his coffee. Yoshino stood up and left the room, coming back with a small brown paper bag in her hand, which she handed to their son after pausing to tear off the receipt stapled to the top. "You'll have to forgive the wrapping job." Shikamaru raised an eyebrow and peeked into the bag, before inhaling sharply in shock.

"Explosive tags?!"

Yoshino laughed. "I figured if the coffee didn't wake you up, those would! They're illegal for non-ninja, and you technically aren't a ninja until later today, so make sure nobody sees you with them. We've got a few minutes before you need to leave; want to learn how to activate them?"

Shikamaru smiled. "I think I could go for that… thank you," he added sincerely. Shikaku and Yoshino smiled warmly at him.

"Sometimes, overkill is a good thing!" Yoshino said. She finished her mug of coffee and slammed it on the counter. "Let's go blow something up!"

She grabbed her son and dashed outside to the training grounds. Shikaku just shook his head as he finished his coffee in silence before letting out a deep sigh. "Either he's catching up or I'm becoming predictable. Better not play him in shogi as much anymore or he'll figure me out too soon."

…

Shikamaru was grinning as he sprinted towards the academy. Out in the training grounds, his mother showed him how to activate the explosive tags using the snake hand seal. On his first attempt, a blue screen appeared in the corner of his vision, saying: "Learned: Explosive Tag: Detonate (Level MAX). (CP: 1). Unlocked Jutsu category: Fuinjutsu."

Every attempt thereafter was successful, and he now had four-dozen tags in his inventory to use however he pleased. As he ran, he also learned that every action he took that took more physical energy than standard human activity would drain his stamina points. If he walked or ran, nothing happened. If he ran at the pace of a shinobi versus that of a civilian, he consumed stamina points, or SP. These would also regenerate, but just as with his chakra, it was not as much stamina as he was used to having. He would have to play around with it and figure out how best to utilize these features of the game.

Shikamaru smirked as his mind processed the possibilities. "Looks like life won't be as simple anymore. What a drag."

…

…

…

***Author's Note: Tightened up formatting and a made a handful of minor edits for consistency with later chapters. Most impactful edit would be regarding how some of the statistics are calculated. 29 October 2018.

Original: 14 October 2018, Edit: 29 October 2018