(AN: Hello all! I've just got a few questions to answer from the reviews before we begin today! First off: to OtsutsukiMitra, not sure if I'm going to do much with the Uzumaki Clan, I haven't decided on that yet, as for the Uchiha, definitely going to have something play in there with the story. As for the Gamer Ability, I only have plans to ever have it revealed to one person, and that won't be until much later. As for the Shadow Clones, they're definitely OP still, and will grow stronger as he levels the skill up. Also, I realized I screwed up with the Elemental Coatings; I put their stats as Lvl 1 even though he learned it from the scroll, so it instead starts at Lvl 2, so that's been fixed.)
"Thank you so much, young man."
"No problem, ma'am!" Naruto stepped away once the woman was done embarrassing him by ruffling his hair. "Try to stay out of threes, Dai-kun!"
[Random Encounter complete!]
[Description: Saved Dai-kun from the very tall tree. How a clawless cat got so high up, you'll never know!]
[Rewards: 5 relationship with Madam Nami, 1 Relationship with the Konoha Civilian Population, 15 EXP, 100 Ryo.]
Not a bad haul for a five-minute quest. It had only been about an hour and a half since stepping out of the apartment for the morning when he came across his first Silver Question mark. As the morning progressed, more and more popped up on his screen. "Though… some didn't last long." The first two he had taken off towards had disappeared on his journey over. Meanwhile, some were still there, slowly pulsing.
It was interesting to learn the dynamics of the system, and he was also learning to prioritize the faster blinking question marks. Like his current one, it had been nearby, but was quickly blinking away. And seeing a chunin run up to the woman now, asking if she was the one that needed help, he could figure out why ones were disappearing.
"I may be the only gamer, but everyone else here is still alive with their own lives." He muttered.
[Due to your thought-provoking words, your WIS has increased.]
Of course, it ate into his EXP gain, though at least he got some stat increases while learning that the world wasn't centered on him.
Checking the map, Naruto realized there were two more quests nearby. Well, one was a golden exclamation point, not a quest. The Event was slightly further away and was blinking fast, while the other pulsed slightly, so he took off for the first one, hoping it was something good. "At least they're near each other."
It took only two minutes this time, and a lot of huffing and puffing to make it before the question mark could disappear, but he made it, and stood watching as a cat and dog fought.
On hind legs?
[Due to your exertion, your DEX has increased]
"Not now." He muttered.
[Event Discovered! Cats & Dogs One: Feline Espionage]
Naruto could only stare in confusion as the two fought. Especially since they wore clothes, and the cat was on his hind legs throwing around shuriken. Meanwhile, the dog was expertly dodging, weaving in and out of the ground itself.
"What the heck?" he couldn't help but say. Which seemed to be the wrong thing to do, as the two stopped fighting to look at him.
"You, little boy!"
"Kid, you need to get help!"
"Don't listen to the mutt, help me escape!"
"My summoner is on the way. If you can make some noise, he'll be able to find this location easier."
"What the—" talking animals and they could throw weapons and use jutsu? Was this what all Events were like?
[A Choice has been given.]
[Choice One: Side with the dog.]
[Choice Two: Side with the cat]
[Rewards for Choice one: 10 Relationship with ?, 10 Relationship with Kakashi Hatake, 10 Relationship with active and retired Shinobi, 75 EXP, 1000 Ryo, ?, ?]
[Rewards for Choice Two: -100 Relationship with ?, -100 Relationship with Kakashi Hatake, -1000 Relationship with all of Konoha, -5 Relationship with Hiruzen Sarutobi, -10 Relationship with Iruka Umino, Nuke-Nin Title, 2500 EXP, 15 Attribute Points, 5 Skill Points, 3 Perk Points, ?, ?, ?]
Holy hell, that second option was calling to him like a siren! But… those relationship decreases were also worrying. What would happen if he chose the second option, and what was a Nuke-Nin?
"Naruto, my summoner is Kakashi Hatake, an Elite Jonin of the Leaf!" the dog shouted at him.
"He's a weak fool, just like his master, boy. Come, join me and you can gain unrivaled power by my master!"
"If you help me, Naruto, I'll let you touch my paws."
"Your… paws?"
As the dog was distracted by Naruto, the boy watched as the cat made to move. So, with a practiced move, he pulled out a shuriken and threw it at the dog.
"Naruto!" it shouted, and leaped back. Only for the shuriken to clang as it stopped the cat's attack from behind.
"Wretched boy!" the cat shouted.
The dog twisted around, dodging another group of throwing weapons. Meanwhile, Naruto pulled out a few more, pumping chakra into them. "Let's see what this water jutsu can do! Water Style: Coated Shuriken!" He called out, throwing the weapons with practiced ease, trying to focus and—
Focus Mode Activated
The cat twisted to barely dodge, but as he did, one of the shurikens suddenly expanded with a watery flair, and sliced through its pack, sending papers and scrolls scattering through the air.
"You little rat." With murder in his eyes, the cat shot at Naruto, steel claws glistening in the morning sun.
"Not so fast!" the dog appeared, slamming into the side of the cat, sending it hurtling away. "You ain't gonna touch the kid."
"Pakkun!" A quiet shout was heard from nearby.
"Over here Kakashi! It's a summon!"
"Damn you, dog! I'll get you one day, and your little kid too!" Using its cat like reflexes, it dodged the three kunai thrown from a white-haired man on the roof of a nearby building. Each one had a weird-looking tag on the end. "You'll have to be better than that to defeat me, Hatake!"
"Raikiri!" In an instant, faster than Naruto could see, the man was upon the cat thrusting an electric hand at the cat, another of those tags on his fingers tips, but just as it was to connect, the cat disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"Whoa…" Naruto's eyes widened at that ability. Even as the man stood before him, arm still outstretched, behind him the dirt and leaves were still climbing into the air from his speed.
Name: Kakashi Hatake
Title: The Copy Ninja
Job: Elite Jonin
Level: 47
STR: 56
CON: 35
DEX: 75(162)
INT: 61
WIS: 61
LUK: 49
Relationship: [Well Liked 19/100]
162! But why was it in parentheses? Because of that Jutsu? He needed that.
"Naruto? What are you doing here? Did you—"
"Hey, old man! Teach me that Jutsu!" Naruto practically jumped into the man's face. Only to quickly add in a, "Please!"
"Whoa, slow down there, kid." The man tried to wave him off.
"Oh, come on! I bet with that speed I could out speed Sasuke-teme!"
"Out speed?" Kakashi asked.
"Yeah, yeah, that Raikiri skill of yours! How's it work? Do you just coat your body in lightning in order to move faster? I heard from my sensei that people do that. Something about stimulating your muscles and nerves or whatever."
"Huh, you know I never really thought of it like that." Kakashi had to pause, "Though I suppose it does do that, the ability is an A Rank Lightning Assassination technique. Though there are similar ones, such as the Raikage's hell stab and armor…"
Naruto blinked as the man trailed off, a million thoughts drifting behind his eyes.
[Due to unknown reasons, your relationship with Kakashi Hatake has increased, 15.]
15 for a conversation? "But hey, you should totally teach me that." He said.
"Maybe if I become your Jonin sensei, kid. Pakkun, I need a report."
Naruto tuned out the rest of the conversation, ignoring the others as more and more shinobi arrived, sometimes putting in his own two cents when asked, but for the most part, he thought about finding a way to level his Lightning affinity. That speed was out of this world… He was glad he was well liked by the man in order to get his stats.
"Naruto…"
Man, he wished he could go back and change from wind to lightning. Why hadn't the old man mentioned how awesome that was? Or maybe he should have asked around more…
"Naruto!"
"Huh?"
The man shook his head in exasperation. "Pakkun says you helped him fight off that spy. As an Academy Student, you didn't have to do that."
"Well, he just said to make some noise, but I felt like I had to step in!"
"Well, it was very loyal of you. I'm sure in the future you'll make a fine shinobi."
"You know what will really help me be a fine shinobi?"
Kakashi blinked his one eye at the boy in confusion. "Hm? What would that be?"
"That kick ass jutsu you used!"
The man roared with laughter, as did the others around him.
[2 relationship with Kakashi Hatake, ?, ?, ? and ?]
"Do you have a high chakra control and a Lightning affinity?" He asked.
"Eh… not really."
"Well, keep practicing and one day we can find out your affinities. Just keep up with your control exercises for the time being, what id it you have? The Leaf Exercise?"
"Yeah… Oh! But I'm also learning how to cut a leaf in half and pull water from a damp towel!"
Silence fell over the group now.
"Did he just say…"
"Cutting a leaf?"
"Pulling water?"
"Naruto," Kakashi asked, "Why do you know those two?"
"Huh? Oh, it's because I have a Wind primary and a Water secondary! Though I'll definitely have to learn Lightning next! Hey, hey, what's the training exercise for that!?"
"He's already learning elemental transformations?"
"Naruto-kun, where did you learn those?"
"Neko-chan!" He spun around as his favorite masked Anbu appeared from the wind. "How are you? I haven't seen you in weeks!"
"I was out of the village on a mission." She simply replied, "Now please answer my question."
Oh right, he probably shouldn't have said that. What had Iruka-sensei said? It was a Chunin thing?
"Yes, Naruto, please tell us." Kakashi added.
Thinking quickly, Naruto did the one thing he could. "I found a couple scrolls in the woods the other day and bam! I don't have them anymore, but they were really helpful!"
"And I guess there was some chakra paper there as well, which is how you know your affinities," Kakashi muttered.
"If you would be so kind, Naruto," Neko asked suddenly, "Would you mind confirming your natures with another chakra paper? It is dangerous to learn the wrong elements."
"What are you, calling me a liar!?" Naruto shouted, trying to get out of the situation.
It seemed to work as the two backed off, though Hatake still had a troubled look in his eye.
"Well," the man finally said, "I think we could leave it off here today. We shinobi can handle the rest of this issue. Why don't you leave now, Naruto?"
Fuming at still not getting that cool Jutsu, but thankful for getting a way out, Naruto simply agreed. "Alright, old man—"
"Old man?" Neko muttered.
"But I want something cool as a reward for helping save the day!"
"If it weren't for the kid and I distracting the cat, he would have reversed summoned much earlier with all of the information. Thankfully Naruto's water shuriken cut his bag open."
"Water shuriken?"
"I also have a wind one!" Naruto shouted before he could stop himself.
"He does deserve a reward." Pakkun interrupted once more.
"He'll be rewarded," Kakashi assured the two. "But for now, we have a job to finish. Why don't you head on home now, Naruto? We'll handle it from here."
Grumbling, Naruto agreed and walked away, but not before hearing one last jab thrown his way by some faceless guy.
"Can't believe he's learning elemental Ninjutsu already. Isn't he failing the Academy?"
Bastards. He'd show them one day.
[Mission Accomplished!]
[Event Completed: Cat's & Dogs Part One!]
[You chose the good side and stayed in Konoha even as great power was waved under your nose. You are a true Shinobi!]
[Rewards: 10 Relationship with Pakkun, 10 Relationship with Kakashi Hatake, 10 Relationship with active and retired Shinobi, 75 EXP, 1000 Ryo, 1 D Rank Skill Scroll.]
[1 Reward has been deferred. You will receive it at a later time.]
While frowning at the last line, he instantly used the D scroll and read the reward.
[D Rank Taijutsu Skill Learned!]
Stunning Elbow (Lvl 2 0%): A vicious elbow swing that can seriously hurt an opponent. Costs 5 Chakra to use.
12% Chance to stun.
5.5% Critical Strike Chance
51% armor penetration
That… was pretty cool. And it was only a D Rank Taijutsu skill? "I wonder what S-ranks will be like?" He focused on the armor penetration stat, wondering what it was, and a new window appeared.
[Armor Penetration: A stat that tells how much of your damage will be filtered by a target's defense. It can go through physical armor and chakra armor.]
Cool, he bet he could knock Sasuke-teme on his ass with this skill.
Though, as Naruto continued to look at the skill, he focused on the Chakra use frowned while opening the Status Screen.
Chakra: ERROR
Wasn't there something in his notifications about that?
Opening them, he saw all the way at the bottom was a bug fix, whatever that was, at 97%. Whatever, it would be fixed soon, he guessed. For now, however, he looked at his map and noticed with confusion that a large red and silver R was wandering around on the screen. What the heck was that?
[Rival System has been discovered.]
[Optional Tutorial beginning]
[Welcome to the Rival System, a system implemented to grow both you and your allies! When looking at your map, you may sometimes come across a red and silver R. This R denotes a Rival who is itching to fight! Whether it's physical, mental, or spiritual. You can figure out who and what this rival wants by focusing on their R. A Rival can be named by you, the challenger, or by the game. You will receive +/-15% Relationship when initiating a Rival Challenge, so good luck, and happy hunting!]
Sasuke was ready to fight this soon? He stared long and hard at the name until it finally zoomed in and the information screen appeared, similar to an observe.
Name: Sasuke Uchiha*
Status: Bored and Antsy
Likes: Moving, fighting, avenging, shurikenjutsu
Dislikes: Orange Menaces, blondes, family
Current Wants: To escape the area.
Escape the ar—wait a minute! "What's that about disliking orange menaces?! Oi, is this your doing game?!"
He stomped his foot and cursed the system, but he knew it wouldn't do much, so after gaining his emotions back, he stalked towards the R, ready to give Sasuke a piece of his mind!
And yet, when he arrived, he couldn't help but feel sorry for the boy. He had everything Naruto always wanted, and yet…
"Sasuke-san, please buy my carrots. They're good for your eyes!"
"Please, why don't you stop by my home for a quick spot of tea? My daughter is there and is quite the looker, you know."
"Uchiha-sama, please look over here."
"Uchiha-sama!"
"Uchiha-sama!"
"Uchi—"
And it continued as the other boy shrunk in on himself more and more until his back was against the wall. So Naruto did the only thing he could think of.
"Oi! Sasuke-teme!"
Silence fell over the crowd, and like the red sea, whatever that was, the crowd split before Naruto, and he was able to quickly rush forward and grab the boy's arm.
"Dobe! Let go of—"
"Let go of him!"
"Someone get the ANBU!"
"The demon!"
"Someone!"
"He'll hurt—"
"Sasuke! I challenge you to a race!"
"What?" He looked so confused as Naruto grinned as brightly as he could.
[Rival Challenge Initiated! Catch me if you can!]
[State the terms and conditions. If your rival agrees, then the race is on!]
[Rewards For Winning: 1 Attribute Point, 1 DEX, 50 EXP, 5 Relationship. Your wager.]
[Rewards for Losing: 1 DEX, 50 EXP, 2 Relationship. -Your Wager.]
"From here to the Uchiha Clan compound! If I win…" what could he fain from this? Something good it had to be. "You have to teach me a D Ranked Fire Jutsu!"
The boy looked at him like an idiot. "A D Ranked? And what would I get? Nothing?"
"I'll teach you a D Ranked if I lose! I've got five elemental ones, your pick!"
The crowd was moving once more, and Naruto quickly checked the boys' stats and blanched.
Name: Sasuke Uchiha*
DEX: 17
How had the boy gotten two levels in DEX already since yesterday? They were even now! This wasn't fair.
[DEX Increased 17 - 18]
Naruto didn't like having to spend an attribute point this early in the day, and had originally planned on stock piling them for situations like yesterday, but this… this just wasn't the time. Plus, he could get another point from this battle, and the EXP was worth it.
"Tch, fine, dobe. You're on." And he took off.
Squawking, Naruto followed after, diving through the crowd as they shouted after them. Every time Sasuke was able to pull a trick and get ahead of him, Naruto was able to catch up with his pure DEX, but what really made the difference was the sudden attribute increase.
[Due to strenuous activities, your DEX has increased.]
He was barely able to eek out a win by slamming face first into the clan compound doors, but as he rubbed his bruised face, he didn't miss the small smirk/grin that decorated the other boy's face.
"Alright, dobe, a deal's a deal."
He held his hand out expectantly.
"I'll get it to you tomorrow. Have to make sure you aren't going to blow your head off with it."
Naruto huffed and crossed his arms. "You could at least thank me, you know."
"For what?"
"Rescuing you, maybe?"
"Hn."
[-1 Relationship with Sasuke Uchiha…]
What kind of—!
[1 Relationship with Sasuke Uchiha!]
"Thanks." The boy muttered, only to turn and walk through the compound's door.
"You're welcome!" He shouted over the gate. "You emo bastard!"
What a sour puss…
"Oooh, a shiny!" Nearby was a fast blinking silver question mark. So, he quickly claimed the rewards from the Rival encounter, and took off.
"You know, getting all that DEX really helps with getting to these jobs faster." He told himself to justify the purchase. "It's all part of my genius… plan? Is that smoke?"
Deep in the woods was a small isolated house on the edge of the village. Most people would think it was a training ground, but Naruto had visited this place many times growing up… The size of that smoke plume definitely wasn't a fireplace or camp.
He burst into the clearing with worry. And watched in horror as the theater burned brightly. Naruto could hear a few shouts from here, and felt his breath hitching. It was Sunday, and the first week of the month… which meant the theater was closed to the public, as the Orphanage was allowed free admittance… he used to sneak in with the other kids, Madam Shimi used to give him a wig, otherwise the owner would kick him out.
He couldn't breathe. Why couldn't he breathe? How could he help if he couldn't—
[Gamer's Mind Skill (Lvl MAX) Activated!]
Naruto shouldered his way through the doors, shattering the wood easily, and looked around. Two people stood, trying to shout names, the old Orphanage Caretaker, Akayuki Tarumi, and a child who was bawling their eyes out.
"Oi! The doors open, hurry!"
"There are more kids in here! And the work—you?" The woman turned, but only had a second to be shocked to see the demon of Konoha, when a beam fell nearby.
Running towards them, Naruto pushed the kid toward the door, and grabbed the caretaker's hand. "Which rooms? Is it still 3, 5, and 7?"
"You remember?"
"We don't have time for that!"
"Right, right, yes, it's the same. I was trying to find a key. I had to take Michi to the bathroom, and the workers locked the doors."
Naruto ignored the obvious fire hazard, and turned towards the nearest room, 3. "Go on, get out, I'll break down the door and try to get everyone out!"
"What can you do?!"
"Something! I can do something! Anything!" He ignored the notification that appeared, dismissing it. This was no time for the system. He had to help. He ran at the door and felt it creak as he shouldered it. But it wasn't enough, a few more outta do it, but—
[STR Increased 11 - 12]
He wished he hadn't of spent those points on DEX now. But still, it was enough to splinter the wood and bust it open with a follow up kick. Two kids ran past, coughing and sputtering.
They always split the groups into 15, evenly amongst the three rooms, with 7 having the dregs. He always got put in 7. This meant there were at least 13 other kids here.
He grabbed the bigger kids before they could run out. Letting the little ones run past. "Help me get anyone who collapsed!" He order. One listened, the other took off. 6 more left in the room, including the bigger kid. He shoved two of the youngest into the boy's arms and pushed him out. But where was the caretaker?
"Hey, someone come help!" There, in the back corner, a beam had fallen. Two kids were stuck on the other side, and the caretaker was trying to stomp out the flames with his coat.
"Get back!" He only knew one water jutsu, and he wasn't sure if it would even help, but here goes nothing! Shouting the name of his jutsu, Naruto slammed three shuriken with their 52% size into the wood, cracking and breaking it, but thankfully also quelling the fire. He took the smallest on his shoulder and helped the older man collect the bigger one. But where was the final kid?
Wait! Observe!
Name—
In the middle of the theater, slumped in the middle of the rows and head bleeding profusely. He leaped over the seats, taking the rows two at a time, and grabbed the back of his shirt as the caretaker rushed the first boy out of the room. Damn it, his shuriken! He'd have to leave them. Probably couldn't even touch them at this point. The boy in the seat was too heavy, but thankfully the care taker returned. He threw the boy on his shoulder to the man, and grabbed the one below with both hands, taking off through the building.
"Thank—"
"Get everyone out of the building, then please meet me in the next room!" Naruto ran off, but the entrance had collapsed and was blocking the doors with a large beam. He could hear the banging on the other side. Three shuriken weren't enough this time, and he was forced to toss two more at the flames, leaving him with two. He grabbed the wood, pulling, pushing, twisting, but the beam was too heavy, even as the first room's caretaker came back, bravely trying to help as the smoke billowed out.
He needed more people. One of him wasn't enough, but—Clones? No, his chakra control wasn't good enough for any of the ones… or was it?
"If my control is bad enough, can I still learn a technique?" They had still been white, which meant he could learn them. He could use them, right? The game would answer him at random times. Could it answer him now? "Please!"
"Kid, who are you talk—"
A window appeared, and he tuned out the caretaker.
[Note: Having lesser chakra control can cause the jutsu to fail, however, each level higher is only a 33% chance to fail the jutsu. There is also a 50% Chakra cost per level.]
Which meant he could use one. But which one should he buy? He didn't have enough points for the Shadow clone. The mist couldn't touch anything, there wasn't any water around for the water clones. The Wind Clones? No, there was fire, they could explode or collapse or, or…
"What do I do!"
[We noticed you still have not checked your Achievements section. You have SIX available to claim.]
"Achievements?"
"Kid, we have to go to the next room!"
Over a dozen notifications popped up, but Naruto only had eyes for one…
[Achievement Unlocked! The One and the Only Player!]
[Rewards: 3 Attribute Points, 3 Skill points—
He didn't let it finish.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A large puff of smoke appeared.
[Skill Failed due to—]
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
[Skill Failed due to—]
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
"Let's do this!"
"Alright!"
"Who's ready to beat some fire!?"
[Due to ? Influence, the Three clone limit has been temp—
[STR has increased 12 - 15]
Naruto slammed into the wood and tore the beam from the wall with his clones. A dozen of himself flew past him, rushing into the room to grab the kids while the original and three others ran toward the last room, easily breaking down the door and throwing shuriken everywhere. Who knew the clones also copied his equipment?!
Kunai and Shuriken splashed against the flames.
[Water Style: Coated Shuriken has Leveled—
[Water Style: Coated Shuriken Leveled Up! Lvl 3 - 4]
Two levels it went up as they threw and picked up his equipment, putting out as much flames as he could while spamming those shadow clones. He didn't care why the limit had been removed and he didn't care. Especially as he found the one person who had cared for him in the Orphanage. The one person who had made sure he had food, blankets, the one person who had made sure he felt some type of love…
He made sure a clone helped him grab the unconscious woman as they rushed through the flaming building. Not even caring as his clones busted through more and more walls and doors, grabbing the last few workers as the bulding burned to the ground.
Naruto could barely breath, and his throat and lungs were killing him, but this feeling was… he had done it. he had saved them.
Congratulations, all 46 Children, Caretakers, and Workers were rescued! Hidden mission com—
Naruto collapsed to the ground as blood began to leak from his mouth. He was a hero, he… had saved… all those… peop—
(AN: Hey, everyone! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Stay tuned for the next one and don't forget to leave a Review! Whoooo, a little hectic in the end there, huh? Didn't think I'd pull out some life or death scenarios this quickly did ya? Well, anyway, let's see what our hero has in store for us next time, huh? Enjoy! And once more, don't forget to Review! They mean a lot to me!)
Name: Naruto Uzumaki
Title: Academy Student
Job: Academy Student
EXP: 146/400
Level: 7
Health: 35/35
Chakra: ERROR
STR: 15
CON: 19
DEX: 20
INT: 11
WIS: 10
LUK: ERROR
Attribute Points: 0
Skill Points: 2
Perk Points: 1