Welcome, to The Game. Naruto; Game of The Year Edition V.2
Wh..Wha?
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What the hell is this?! What's going on!?
Character Select:
Naruto
Sasuke
Sakura
Confirm? Y/N
What the hell is this thing talking about? Difficulty? Sakura?!
Character selected. Initializing world…
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My vision came to light like a breath of forced air. My eyes burned.
"AH!" ...what? That voice… it sounded.. higher than usual.
"What the hell!?" As my eyes started adjusting to the onslaught of color that was searing through them I could start to make out my surroundings.
Pink.
Pink everywhere. Pink walls. Pink cabinet. Pink bed. Pink posters of pink trees. Pink walls!
I looked down. My hands!
"Okay, what is going on! Why does my voice sound like this? Where is—"
I saw a mirror in the corner of the room and rushed to it. What I saw…
It was rather short, with slightly lanky arms and legs. Pale white the color, almost eerily so. Face getting rid of its last vestiges of chubby cheeks. Eyes almost green distracting from long hair that blended in with the walls.
"That…. was all real?"
It shrieked.
I didn't move from the floor in which I.. found myself in. It had been a few minutes. How many I couldn't tell. I had avoided looking in the mirror that whole time, but that didn't change what was right in front of my eyes.
Denial still hadn't caught up with reality, but it was a near thing.
This… is unbelievable. Any attempt I use to try to understand what just happened is not computing. There's nothing. Nothing at all.
I hear noises downstairs. Voices and rustling. A smell of food wafts from downstairs up. There's people here.
Start Tutorial?
Y/N
Huh? What? A blue box just. Appeared in front of me. Is that supposed to happen?
Maybe.. It's out to help me. I hesitantly click yes, with a finger too small. Too small.
Confirmed. Open: "Stats" to continue the tutorial.
How exactly do I do that? Do I say.. "Stats?"
Stats
Name: Haruno Sakura
Lvl. 5
Next lvl. 04.79%
Designation: The Gamer
Occupation: Academy Student
HP: 1000
MP: 750
Str: 3
Agi: 6(+1)
Cha: 9
Int: 12
Wis: 13(+3)
Luck: 3
Description: Sakura is a young Konoha Academy student who excels in book learning and word problems. Her main interests are Sasuke, fashion, and one-upping Ino, in that order. Despite being a fairly bright girl, she doesn't seem to have much motivation to pursue her ninja career.
Current state: Denial, Suppressed terror.
Why is this the easiest thing to accept so far? Also what's up with that description? Should I be worried?
Naruto: Game of the Year Edition V.2 operates under three main premises. Stats, skills, and quests. You can access all three of these through either saying or thinking them. You progress through the game under the quests, aided by your stats and skills.
"..kura! Sakura! Can you not hear me?! Will you come down already!" I hear from downstairs.
Quest initialized.
[Main Quest]: Come down and introduce yourself!
Description: Your parents heard you scream earlier, and breakfast was set ten minutes ago. Assuage their worries by showing up.
Success: 20 exp. Increased reputation with: Haruno Mebuki, Haruno Kizashi
Failure: Decreased reputation with: Haruno Mebuki, Haruno Kizashi
Accept?
Y/N
This thing gives you no space to breathe. I clicked Y.
"Coming!" I shouted. Oh God here I go.
I rushed down the stairs, surprised how easy it was to maneuver a body that wasn't mine.
I came down into the dining room, both of the parents already at the table, waiting for me. Once they saw me, their faces subtly lit up.
But.. But..
Just above their heads were…
Haruno Kizashi Lvl. 2
Haruno Mebuki Lvl. 2
What. This just keeps getting weirder and weirder.
The people themselves didn't seem that out of the ordinary. Regular looking people, if you ignored Kizashi's weird purple hair color and styling.
I cautiously sat myself down in the only chair available. They were serving pancakes for breakfast, syrup and sugar on the side. My belly grumbled.
"Itadakimasu." They said. Oh right. Japan. Or something.
"Itadakimasu." I mumbled. Weird how I can still understand them though. That's probably a feature.
Open: "Skills" to continue the tutorial.
Oh, we're still doing this? That was prompted wasn't it.
Skills, I thought.
Skills:
Gamer's Mind (Passive) lvl. Max: Allows the user to calmly and logically think things through. Allows peaceful state of mind. Immunity to psychological status effects.
Gamer's Body (Passive) lvl. Max: Grants a body that allows for the user to live the real world like a game.
Observe (Active) lvl. 1: Allows the user to see the stats of another person. Higher levels lead to more detail.
Basic Chakra Manipulation (Passive) lvl. 3: Able to form chakra by mixing spiritual and physical energy together. Allows for the use of jutsu. Modifier: +(lvl.) to Wis stat.
Bukijutsu (Passive) lvl. 2: Ability to use weapons, most commonly kunai and shuriken.
Substitution Jutsu (Active) lvl. 4: Allows the user to switch with an inanimate object to avoid an attack. Current MP use: 200 MP.
Acrobatics (Passive) lvl. 1: Ability to do flips, kicks, jumps, and more. Anything that requires you to move your body in an acrobatic way. Modifier: +(lvl.) to Agi stat.
Okayy then. Gamer's Mind would probably explain why I'm still somewhat sane right now. And not, you know. Passed out on the floor. It's something. Also, can I talk about the MP usage on the substitution?! I could barely do 3 of them!
You regain HP and MP by sleeping. Quests will pop up when prompted in the real world. You can store your items, weapons, and belongings in your Inventory, which can be summoned the same way as your stats. That concludes the tutorial.
Wait, hol up. That's it!? It just leaves me like that? Seriously, what's with the tone too!
I sigh internally. Now what?
"Sakura, are you alright?" Mebuki asks, having finished her meal already.
Turns out I'd just been staring at my plate this whole time. I felt blood rushing to my head.
"Uhh. Yeah. I'm fine. Just had a bit of a revelation."
"Oh, what kind?" Kizashi asks.
Umm. Something. Quick. "I just thought I should start taking this whole shin—I mean kunoichi thing seriously, you know?"
Kizashi harrumphed. "Well, I'd certainly hope so! We give that wretched Academy a pretty penny to be able to keep you there you know!" He waved his finger in the air.
They kept talking after that, but I focused on finishing my meal.
[Main Quest] Completed: Come down and introduce yourself!
+20 exp.
Increased reputation with: Haruno Mebuki, Haruno Kizashi
Well that was easy. Although I should probably be worried that they think her screaming to herself is only a slightly odd occurrence. Then again they're raising a preteen so. Wait? How old am I supposed to be?
A little voice in my head told me eleven. It also told me I'm late for the Academy.
"I'm late!" I rushed out of the chair, and straight back up to my room, grabbing my bag and other trinkets to take with.
Oh! Clothes! I looked at myself in the mirror.
That's a girl's body. An underage girl's body.
Umm. Uuuh. Ai. Shhh.
Okay. No.
Blindfold? Blindfold.
I took a hand towel for my eyes and a shirt and shinobi pants I found in the drawer and hastily put them all on. Oh God this is so weiirrd!
After that horrible debacle I flew out the door with a shouted "Bye!" to my parents, heading for where this body's memory of the Academy was.
I almost tripped coming out of the door, simply for the onslaught of stuff in my vision.
Over every single person's head was their name and level.
Otonashi Kuro lvl. 3
Shinji lvl. 1
Aiko lvl. 4
Akimichi Junna lvl. 18
Kurama Enma lvl. 2
Whoa. That's gonna take some serious getting used to. Also is that Akimichi one a chuunin or something? Their levels are way higher than mine.
Observe.
Name: Akimichi Junna
Lvl. 18
Designation: Akimichi clan member
Occupation: Genin
HP: 21,000
MP: 2400
The rest of the stats gave me question marks. Observe is at level one after all. But what in the cricket baskets are those stats! For a genin!? Am I that underleveled!?
I decided to ignore the mounting inner panic inside of me and made my way through crowded streets.
I didn't have much time to really admire the scenery, but Konoha was beautiful. It almost made me wanna stop and just stare. The vibrant colors, different and interesting types of trees and other flora everywhere. A certain Western-inspired aesthetic to the buildings. It's magical in a way you can't really describe or put your finger on.
Nonetheless, I made my way to the front of the Academy doors. Panting and sweaty. I really hope this body took a shower before going to bed.
"Hey! Stop right there Forehead!" Who? I turned around.
Long flowing close to white hair. Eyes similar in color to mine, set in a glare.
Yamanaka Ino lvl. 11
You have to be kidding me. Are you serious? I don't even want to observe her.
"Why does your hair look like a rat's nest!? Did you finally let the little rodents stay?" I felt for my hair. Oh, I forgot about that.
An irrational anger came to the forefront of my mind, aching and begging me to retort some equally biting thing to say. But. Did I really want to? Did I care enough about this side character? She wasn't important. Not really. But why is she at such a high level though!
"Ha! Don't you know, Ino? This is her trying her best. She's never gonna get anywhere with Sasuke like that." Some other girl that I hadn't noticed until just now belched.
Ami lvl. 7
Well that makes me feel a little better.
Ami was surrounded by a small posse of other girls around our age, all looking at me in the same nasty way.
Ino stepped in front of me. "You don't get to talk, Ami. The last time your hair looked anything better than terrible was the last time you got above a 50 on a test. Oh wait. That was never." You know what? Never mind. Ino's legit. She's great. All hail Lady Ino.
Wow, I am easy like that, huh.
Ami clicked her tongue and exited stage left, along with her cronies.
"Thanks Ino." I smiled at her. It's nice, having someone stand up for you.
Ino gave me a weird look, then backed away a bit. "Honestly, Sakura, you should be doing better than that. She's right, you know. Sasuke isn't gonna wanna look at whatever that is." Okay, rude. But fair. Do I care tho? No.
She walked off into the classroom. I followed her after a bit.
Walking in I could see all the usual suspects. Everyone I would expect was there, including some extras that probably weren't relevant.
Nara Shikamaru lvl. 10
Aburame Shino lvl. 12
Hyuuga Hinata lvl. 9
Uchiha Sasuke lv. 15
Whoa. Okay, he's quite a bit stronger than the rest. With a slight scowl on his face, he sat down at the end of the class by the window. Like a protagonist. Lemme see..
Observe.
Name: Uchiha Sasuke
Lvl. 15
Designation: Only Survivor of the Uchiha Massacre
Occupation: Academy Student
HP: 9000
MP: 1850
Str: ?
Agi: ?
Cha: ?
Int: ?
Wis: ?
Luck: ?
Description: The only Uchiha to survive Obito's purging of the clan, he lives everyday with the burden of revenge on what he thinks are his brother's deeds. Consumed by hatred and sorrow, the only thing he wants to do is train for the inevitable confrontation with his brother.
Current state: Annoyed.
Huh. It keeps my knowledge of canon in mind eh? Also it still doesn't show me his other stats, but his description and current state they do show? Strange. What if I level up Observe more?
I sat down next to Ino, who gave me a weird look but didn't say anything. I set my sights on other people in the room.
Observe. Observe. Observe. Observe. Observe.
The Observe skill has leveled up.
Oh there we go. That was fast. Also, TMI. I did not need to know how many people were.. going through puberty right this very second thank you very much.
Let's just try this again.
Name: Uchiha Sasuke
Lvl. 15
Designation: Only Survivor of the Uchiha Massacre
Occupation: Academy Student
HP: 9000
MP: 1850
Str: 20
Agi: 18
Cha: 36
Int: 17
Wis: 15
Luck: 2
Description: The only Uchiha to survive Obito's purging of the clan, he lives everyday with the burden of revenge on what he thinks are his brother's deeds. Consumed by hatred and sorrow, the only thing he wants to do is train for the inevitable confrontation with his brother.
Current state: Annoyed.
What is that charisma stat?! No wonder half the girls in this school are into him! That's way too high! I don't ever remember him being much of a people person in the manga, so the charisma stat probably isn't only linked to that. Does it take looks into account? What does that say for my measly 9 Cha?
...I don't wanna think about it.
Anyywayy, class is startingggg.
The bell rung and Umino Iruka lvl. 32 entered the classroom. So 30's is chuunin level huh.
"Greetings, class. Sit down, sit down. Chouji, please start the ai—"
The door burst open, a boy with blond, almost yellow hair barreling through. "Made it!" He grinned, and held up a thumb as if he was reassuring us or something.
Iruka looked mad. He started tapping the ground with his foot impatiently. "Naruto! You're late!"
Observe.
Name: Uzumaki Naruto
Lvl. 8
Designation: Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tailed Fox
Occupation: Academy Student
HP: 30,000
MP: 20,000
Str: 11
Agi: 6
Cha: 2
Int: 9
Wis: 3
Luck: 18
Description: An orphan who has been hated because of what is inside of him, Naruto has been alone all his life, not knowing why. With barely anyone showing him any positive attention, he seeks to gain the acknowledgement of the people around him by becoming Hokage.
Current state: Slightly nervous, sad.
That is by far the highest MP stat I've seen so far. They weren't joking when they said he's a chakra monster. That's insane.
"Hehe. But look sensei! I made it through before you started so it's all good ne?"
Iruka's teeth started grinding. "Naruto.." Iruka raised his hand.
*Wham!*
Class was in full swing, having moved on from algebra to common stealth theory. Very interesting stuff. Yes. Yup. Very enlightening. Audio wave signals, and ratios, and visibility spectrums. Fun times.
Ah, who am I kidding. This is massively boring.
At least I'm noticing I'm absorbing the information much more readily. Maybe because Sakura's supposed to be good at theory. That just leaves even less to focus on though.
I sighed.
I had observed the whole classroom already. What I found kind of disturbed me.
Almost everyone was a higher level than me. Especially the clan kids were much higher. Heck, Sasuke was three times my level. The only ones closer to my level were the clanless orphans like Ami, and even then I was falling behind.
I was one of the weakest. And it bothered me. I want to be strong. Stronger than anyone here.
But why? I have a life. A wife. Why am I here? Why am I still here? Why am I so calm about this and not freaking out that I've been taken from my home and placed in another body in a fictional ninja murder world with weird gamer powers?
My legs started twitching. I was anxious. But that was really all I could be right now. Is it because of Gamer's Mind?
I know what I want. I want out of here. I want to go back. Back to my wife and my home. I don't belong here. That's clear as day.
I want N— I want V— I want—
Oh my God. I don't know her name. I don't know her name. All attention that was focused on the class was taken away. I assaulted my memories of my life. Searched and searched and searched.
No faces. No names. Just images. Events with no connection to each other. A location or two.
Something emptied my brain.
And I couldn't feel anything about it. Everything that I am, and it was taken away. And nothing.
This.. This is Gamer's Mind, isn't it? It's making me want to focus on the game and the game only.
Well I got some news for it.
If you think you can control me?
YOU'RE DEAD WRONG.
I AM GETTING A WAY OUT OF HERE. BACK TO MY WIFE. BACK TO EVERYTHING THAT I LOVE, AND NOT WHATEVER THIS IS!
MARK MY WORDS, GAME.
Quest Initialized.
[Main Quest]: Beat The Game.
Description: Clear: ?
Defeat: ?, Kaguya, ?
Find a way out of the Elemental Nations and back to Earth.
Success: Returning to your original world. Completion of The Game.
Failure: Death.
Accept?
Y/N
Of course. Yes. I'm going back. And no one will be able to stop me. Not you, not Kaguya or whoever. No one.
I'm going back.
Y/N
For Her.