(AN: That feeling when you get several reviews in an hour, only for most of them to be bot reviews trying to scam people. Sadge. Jh831, Good to see you again! To answer a couple of your questions, the next level for nature training is going to take a while. Naruto is definitely faster than some, but until his chakra control is higher, he's going to continue struggling with the techniques. As for the Sakura and Ino relationship, it's because Naruto constantly badgers Sakura for dates, and distracts her from Sasuke in Ino's eyes. As for the Iruka spar, he'll get better as he learns, he's still not the best on picking up key information yet. He, and everyone who's reading this, haven't picked up on several hints I've been dropping about something else, so it's going to be a little while longer before he really gets into the groove of actually learning.)
(AN 2: Shout out to Frostbearer for being the 100th follower of this story! And Freedom Ringer, I'll be going over some medical ninjutsu in a coming chapter. But it won't be til after Lvl 9 at the earliest.)
[Ding! Beginner's Academy Style Leveled up! Lvl 6 - 7 (3%)]
[Ding! Beginner's Taijutsu Conditioning Leveled up! Lvl 14 - 15 (1%)]
[Due to extreme training, STR had increased.]
[Due to extreme training, DEX has increased.]
Naruto wiped the sweat from his brow and grinned. Since two days ago, after equipping and learning how to activate those leg warmers, his stats were going up fairly quickly during his training. Sadly, as he looked over at his Rival System screen, he could tell that the Teme was also quickly gaining on him. One thing he had realized, however, was the fact that he probably wouldn't be able to beat the Uchiha just yet.
He still had a long way to go. The boy's skills were just too far ahead, most likely at Intermediate with his Interceptor Fist and his conditioning. There was a reason why the boy's punches were so much hard than his own. While going through the skill purchase screen, he had found a taijutsu section and found the Interceptor Fist.
Beginner's Interceptor Fist Rank D+: The go to style for the Uchiha clan, made specifically for one reason: Improving the Sharingan. This style focuses on DEX above all other attributes, and serves as a basis for all Uchiha skills and jutsu. A very aggressive style, with median defense. At Lvl 1, STR is passively increased by 1.5% and DEX by 2% when in use.
He soon found the B- Ranked Intermediate style, which was 23.5% and 33% respectively.
Meanwhile, his own style was at a measly Lvl 7.
Beginner's Academy Style (Lvl 7 1%) E Rank: The basics of the basics, only a civilian child could fight worse when up against this technique. Passively increase STR and DEX by 7% when in use.
The Intermediate version only started at 16.5% as well, and who knew what level his Rival was at. Still. He'd get there. Iruka's tips were already helping. He fell back into his stance and began to practice once more, sweating profusely at his heavy body. Thankfully, his Academy Student Title gave him a learning boost.
Naruto patted his now full belly, and side eyed his map. He had been so busy working on his taijutsu over the last couple days that he hadn't even done a single side quest lately.
EXP: 396/550
Level: 8
"I gotta get some more levels." He had already promised to go back to the dungeon at Level 9. He just needed a bit more EXP and he'd go. But, as he watched the map, he noticed a new symbol. A Blue and Gold capital R running frantically around on the screen in a nearby training ground. Was that someone different from Sasuke? Was it just a different color? Could it actually be Sasuke?
As he focused on the R, only question marks came up in the information section. So, with burning curiosity, Naruto made his way to the nearby grounds.
"Yosh, Lee! Your Youth is burning brightly!"
"Thank you Gai-sensei!"
Oh, it was the bushy brows again. "There's no way they're not related." They were practically identical.
"Naruto-san!" the two shouted upon his arrival.
A notification flashed, and Naruto quickly glanced over, blinking at the words.
[A Wild Rock Lee has appeared!]
[Note: A New potential rival is denoted by a blue and gold R. Once the Rival has been fully accepted by the Player, the R will turn its normal Red and Silver.]
Well, that answered that question.
"Yosh! Naruto-san, this is the perfect moment to test our Youth's against the other. What would you say? And I will gladly keep my weights at full strength to even the playing field!"
"That kinda feels like he's saying I'm not good enough."
[Rival Mission Unlocked!]
[Rival Mission: Fishcake Beat's Rock]
[Quest Description: Rock Lee has challenged you to a spar! Defeat him to win!]
[Rewards: +5 Relationship with Rock Lee and Maito Gai, +25 EXP, +1 Attribute Point, +100 Ryo.]
[Note: Win or Lose, Rock Lee will become an available Rival. He specializes in Races, Exercising, and Taijutsu. A good match for Regulated Spars.]
He accepted the quest, and Gai deemed himself to be the referee. "First to three points win!" He quickly made a circle in the dirt, allowing the two to have a half proper arena.
As Naruto moved into the area, he couldn't help but notice something. "These things always move so quickly. Is the system actively pushing things at a faster pace? These types of spars don't usually happen so quickly."
"Are you ready, Lee, Naruto?"
Answering in the affirmative, Naruto fell into a stance before the green boy, quickly tossing an observe his way.
STR: 23
DEX: 24
Lee would be his best training partner for eventually facing Sasuke, that was for sure. "Let's enjoy this match, Lee." Lee's stats were lower than Sasuke's now, at least with the weights on. But his taijutsu was probably just as good as the boy's, at least from that Taijutsu specialization.
Sasuke's Rival profile read that his specializations were in Ninjutsu and Taijutsu. Best for no-holds-barred spars. Which really meant beating the hell out of each other. Matter of fact, there was another R floating around for the boy right now.
Name: Sasuke Uchiha*
Status: Bored and Antsy
Likes: Moving, fighting, avenging, shurikenjutsu
Dislikes: Orange Menaces, blondes, family
Current Wants: To practice Ninjutsu with someone
Maybe when he was done with this spar, he'd go check it out. The boy usually gave him something better than 25 EXP. "Though I guess I am fighting a severally weakened Lee, so the EXP would be worse than normal."
"Being!"
Naruto realized in the next second that Lee was far more aggressive than himself. Also, weighted body parts hurt a lot.
Block Penetrated! 13 Damage received
Health: 29/42
He slid out of the circle, sending grass flying into the air.
"Point to Lee! Begin the next point on my mark!"
No pauses here. And his Taijutsu was impressive. 24 STR hit him for 13 damage, which meant his levels were high. So Naruto would have to improvise with his newly leveled technique.
Stunning Elbow (Lvl 4 97%): A vicious elbow swing that can seriously hurt an opponent. Costs 5 Chakra to use.
16% Chance to stun.
6.5% Critical Strike Chance
53% armor penetration
This time as Gai announced the match, Naruto immediately smashed a flying Stunning Elbow into the boy's face.
Hit! 7 Damage.
Health: 147/230
Stunned for 1 second!
Jackpot. Naruto planted his feet against Lee's chest, and spun, hooking a kick to the side of his head, and sending him sprawling out of the circle.
"Point to Naruto! Current Tie! Begin the next point on my mark!"
The man was all business even as his student picked himself up from that 14 Damaged Critical hit.
Lee was backing off now, however, as his stance took a more defensive position. "Hey, I'm getting good at this sort of thing." He muttered to himself. Now then, the elbow only cost five chakra, which was easy enough to spam, and nowhere did it say he had to hit a specific body part.
So—"Begin!"
Block—
Blo—
Blocked! 4 Damage.
Good thing this skill had armor penetration.
A fist swung through where his head had been as Naruto rolled to the side. Still, elbows couldn't be the only thing should use during a spar. No matter how good they were.
Wait, he had all those skill points now, right? How much was that flying knee skill? Didn't it have a real nice stun bonus to it? He purchased it quickly and blocked a harsh kick from Lee.
Blocked! 5 Damage Received.
Flying Knee (Lvl 2 0%): Soar through the air, knee out to crack some skulls! Just like in the movies.
21% Chance to stun.
1.1x STR Modifier
51% Armor Penetration
-10% Accuracy
He faked an elbow as Lee approached, and the boy backed off, but it was just what Naruto needed as he leaped into the air after him, activating the skill. Lee didn't have a chance to block and took the attack face on. Literally.
Critical Hit! 21 Damage
Stunned for 1 second
The two continued moving, and they both blew out of the ring… but Lee landed first as Naruto flew past him, landing in the soft grass and sliding away, staining his clothes, but.
"Match Point! Naruto Uzumaki!"
"Urgh…" Lee groaned as he slowly sat up, gripping his most likely throbbing head.
"Great spar, Lee!" That had put him up a level in a couple of skills.
[Ding! Beginner's Academy Style Leveled up! Lvl 7 - 8 (11%)]
[Ding! Stunning Elbow Leveled Up]
Stunning Elbow (Lvl 5 0%): A vicious elbow swing that can seriously hurt an opponent. Costs 5 Chakra to use.
18% Chance to stun.
7% Critical Strike Chance
54% armor penetration
[Rival Mission Complete!]
[Fishcake Beats Rock!]
[Rewards Claimed!]
He had beaten him.
Sure the other boy was severely limited by the same weights that Naruto had disabled prior to the fight, but he still beat an upper classman. Oh right, wasn't this guy also the dead last?
"That was a good fight, Naruto!" Lee was now in his face, smiling madly.
"It was, Lee! Maybe we can do it again, sometime."
"Most definitely!"
Before Naruto could say anything else, a dark and foreboding Gai was suddenly standing behind the boy, picking him up by the back of his jumpsuit. "Lee… I am so… so… disappointed."
"Gai-sensei?"
"This means we must double, not triple, no quadruple our training!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"Give me 1000 laps around Konoha! On the double!"
"I'll make it 1100, Gai-sensei!"
"It better be 1200 now, Lee!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
"I'm gonna barf." Naruto couldn't get out of there fast enough. "Now to see what the teme is up to."
Sasuke scoffed. "As if you could beat me, Naruto. Check this one out." With a flourish, and a small range of hand signs, the boy was spewing out a massive fireball, easily destroying the target before them. "Beat that."
[Relationship with Sasuke Uchiha has increased, +1.]
"I haven't even done anything yet," Naruto thought to himself. This Rival quest was a little funner than the previous one, at least. They had started off with comparing academy techniques; the Henge and the Kawarimi, anyway. Then he had followed it up with the Fire Flies technique. Finally, Naruto had bragged about his shuriken jutsu, which now led to—"I have to admit, that is kinda cool. If you like fire anyway."
Sasuke scoffed. "Fire is the best element. It has the best offensive capabilities."
"Unless you're against a water user." Naruto laughed at the boy's scowl. "Now check this out, I've already created a combo technique using two jutsu."
Mentally, Naruto pulled back the chakra of his studying shadow clones, and allowed them to pop. Barely blinking at the onslaught of new memories. He had gotten used to simply popping them every three or four hours, then replacing them. It was a pain while at the academy. The only downside was that he couldn't dispel them at night, so when he woke in the morning, he usually got a headache from the 24 hours of total practicing suddenly being absorbed into his brain.
Still, the results spoke for themselves.
Beginner's Wind Nature Training (Lvl 5 86%)
Leaf Exercise (Lvl 7 11%)
Chakra Control (Lvl 5 13%)
The chakra control exercises were the worst. They barely went up. No matter what he did, even doing it alongside his four clones wasn't enough. So his control was still at POOR.
He let his hands fall into a now familiar sign and tried his clone jutsu.
[Skill failed due to POOR Chakra Control.]
[Skill failed—]
[Ski—]
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" He shouted. Finally, his four clones popped into place, and with a quiet glare to sharpen their postures, he produced two shuriken in each hand. "Watch this, teme! Water Stye: Coated Shuriken!" Five throwers, with eight shuriken each, pumping chakra into the jutsu to its largest size of 61%, absolutely shredded the group of targets within eyesight. His Wind jutsu was slowly getting there, but with his highest skill being water between the two, he figured it would be better to show if off. But it would beat his fire ball if they went at each other.
[Relationship with Sasuke Uchiha has increased, +2.]
"Barely impressive, dobe."
Though his words said one thing, the quest that popped up said otherwise.
[Rival Quest Complete!]
[Description: Impress Sasuke with your Jutsu Arsenal.]
[Rewards: +5 Relationship, +50 EXP, +1 WIS]
"Only 79 EXP before I level up."
He also checked their relationship now and nodded to himself.
Relationship: Friendly Rivalry (14/200)
Not bad. He wondered what the next level would be. Maybe just Rivals?
"Don't forget to bring your a-game to the spars next week, dobe." The Uchiha was already leaving the area as Naruto looked up from his screen.
"You bet I will!" Naruto continued smiling until the other boy was long gone, watching him on the map… "Yeah… I will."
Would he, though? Would he even be ready? Naruto's hands clenched in his pockets, but this wasn't the time for self doubts. He had to train. He had to get stronger. He had to make sure something like that fire never happened again. Naruto knew he couldn't cause something like that again. He couldn't—
[Gamer's Mind skill—]
"Stop!" He shouted, instantly removing the skill before it could kick in. He couldn't do this again. He let it come back when in the hospital and yet, and yet… "Damn it!"
No, he was fine. He could keep going.
"I just need to get stronger. I just need… need to become better."
"Don't forget to bring your a-game to the spars next week, dobe." Sasuke hadn't been wrong. He needed to be at his best. They were having a tournament next week, mostly just to make time pass faster in anticipation of their one month off during the peak of summer. It would give time for everyone to adjust, and the new teams to get used to their new senseis while still having their old senseis around for a little while.
"Something I might be doing soon…"
Naruto sighed, kicking a stray clump of grass in boredom. He had this entire system at his fingertips and yet… he felt almost stuck. He had a little over a year before he could graduate at 12, but as an orphan, he just had to sign the paperwork himself to take the early graduation exam next month. But did he want to? Would that even alleviate his boredom? He had heard the horror stories of the dreaded D ranks already, and whoever his Jonin sensei was would probably hate him. So did he really want to go for it?
That's what had brought him out and about Saturday, instead of continuing his training. If he passed the test, which he could, would he even make it in the world?
"I'm going to be Hokage." He whispered to himself. He would be, if it was the last thing he did. "But… With this system, would it really be under my own power?"
[Would you like to hear a story?]
(Yes/No)
Naruto blinked at the screen. A story? "What kind of story could you tell?"
[A good one.]
(Yes/No)
"Before I say anything, tell me. All these events that have happened around me. Are they your doing because of me? Or would they simply continue happening without me?"
[If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around. Would anybody care?]
(Yes/No)
"I don't think that's how that saying goes."
(Yes/No)
"Fine. Tell me your crappy story."
[Once upon a time, a man wanted to help. So he did.]
Naruto sat in silence for several minutes, waiting for more, and yet… "What the hell is this!"
[Your anger blinds you.]
"I'm not blind!"
[You think you are the cause of the fire, so you do not see.]
"But I am! I did cause it! It was because I existed! Right? Tell me I'm wrong, because I know I'm not!" Was he crazy? Screaming at nothing, a screen, probably a mere figment of his imagination.
[But did you cause the fire?]
"By existing I did!"
[Forty-five people.]
"What!" Naruto raged at the reminder. He knew he had saved forty-six people, but… Wait? Forty-five? No, he saved…
[Forty-five people. That is the amount of people that died in that terrible fire. The Anbu did not make it in time. The matron was able to get out one single child before a beam collapsed on her. None survived but that boy.]
"What?" Naruto whispered.
[They burned. Screaming in agony. Naruto Uzumaki never learned of their fate. Instead, he ate ramen at Ichiraku's, and then trained at Training Ground 27 until night fell. He then went to bed. Happy and content. Did this Naruto cause the fire?]
"What are you saying?"
[You saved those people. I merely take in information from the surroundings, and I convert that into data. You nor I killed those people.]
"But—" What the hell was this thing saying?
[Would you like to listen to that story now? Without anger coating your eyes and ears.]
(Yes/No)
Naruto swallowed thickly and slowly answered. "Yes."
[Once upon a time, a man wanted to help. So he did.]
[His own people looked down upon him. Some knew him for himself, while others knew him as a criminal. He, however, knew what he really was. He knew he was Nothing.]
[But one day, Nothing found Something. People who needed help. And so Nothing gained a purpose, he raged, and he stormed, and he tried to bring these people to safety. But everything was against him, the Horsemen, the King, and even the Gods themselves. So Nothing knew he had already lost.]
[The Horsemen chased him to a cave, where he could only hide his people. He could not defend them, even as he threw up a powerful protection. But in that cave, he found something special. He found power. So Nothing became Something once more. And so he stepped from the save, a fire burning in his soul, and he challenged first the Horsemen. Then the King. And finally, the very Gods were forced to bow before him. For Nothing was Something, and Something was all he needed to be.]
"I don't… so I should become something? Is that what you're saying?"
[Urgent Quest Unlocked!]
[Priority Quest: Find Your Something!]
[Description: Visit Three of the Eight Areas provided and find your reason to be you.]
[Rewards: Something.]
"Something?" Naruto couldn't help but laugh at the rewards.
[Rewards: Something, +1 EXP.]
"Now we're talking."
[Would the Player liked to activate the Gamer's Mind Skill (Lvl MAX)?]
"Sure. Let's do it." He had some grinding to do.
(AN: Wooo, two chapters in one day. Can you guys believe that? Make sure to give me all the reviews, alright? And none of them bot reviews, got it? So. A serious chapter at the end there, and the story is now moving along.
Name: Naruto Uzumaki
Title: Academy Student
Job: Academy Student
EXP: 471/550
Level: 8
Health: 42/42
Chakra: 1000(5000)/1000(5000)
STR: 23
CON: 25
DEX: 31
INT: 15
WIS: 14
LUK: ?
Attribute Points: +2
Skill Points: +3
Perk Points: +2