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[—NTLS—]
Chapter Forty Nine: Spoils to the Victor!
[Ding!]
[You have created a user-unique skill.]
[What shall you name it?]
Huh? I made my own skill?
Naruto couldn't particularly think too deeply about what the system meant, for the resounding noise of the monkeys was what was currently taking over all the mental space he had. They were shouting and chanting various phrases he couldn't exactly pick up what exactly was being said, but nevertheless knew that they were positive just by the feel he was getting.
The warrior monkeys were clearly supportive of Wukong winning the fight, so their rampant applause was confusing, to say the least. It seemed like they, first and foremost, appreciated a good fight more than anything else.
The warrior branch of the sky monkeys respected power and ability over all other facets of life, and thus it didn't matter if you were a monkey, human, or even a caterpillar.
The strong deserved respect.
The weak do not.
It was a way of thinking Naruto couldn't really understand too well but could see the merit in it. For one, Konoha had a similar standing, though not to the same degree. The Hokage was usually considered the strongest living shinobi in the village, though that came with other limitations as well. Obviously, in a shinobi nation, there would be great importance placed on the strong.
Monkey King Enma made his way towards Naruto while waving for someone up in the stands—most likely a medic—to take care of Sun. Next to him was a much shorter monkey with exotic-looking clothes and various necklaces over her chest. A serene look was on her face as if she wasn't on this plane of existence itself, and—most peculiarly—she walked with her eyes closed and fingers tracing the beads of her necklace. The other hand carried a thick wooden staff that reverberated loudly every time it struck the floor.
"Congratulations on winning, Uzumaki," Enma stated brusquely. "A good first impression."
"Thank you," Naruto responded back after a moment's pause.
"Now, we must begin with the official signing of the summoning contract. Quickly, quickly."
Naruto pointed to his fallen opponent. "Uh, what about Sun over there?"
Enma waved it off casually. "He'll be fine. Probably a bit saddened after losing a fight after so long to someone near his age. Though, it would do him good to lose once in a while. I'm sure he will get even more determination to get stronger now he has someone to measure his abilities to. Enough of that, let's hurry up. This is Shaman Akiko, who will be presiding over the procedure."
The shaman didn't say a word, merely nodding in agreement before going back to tracing the beads on her neck.
Naruto merely shrugged his eyebrows. Hiruzen joined them a second later, merely clapping him on the shoulder as they all joined together and followed Enma as he left the arena. The interested stares of the other monkeys were a bit weird to deal with, but the blond wasn't unaccustomed to attention and was glad that unlike usual it wasn't negative press like normal.
The massive tree in the center of the forest, or "The Heart" as it was named, had numerous branches and tunnels within its trunk, each extending hundreds of meters in all directions. There were numerous monkeys walking back and forth through the tunnels, each of them looking different and having varying jobs. Students, for one, who carried small bags wandered around aimlessly. Adults, some carrying bags of food and others entire wagons of weapons. Naruto could have sworn he saw a scientist or some kind of researcher as well.
They finally reached a small, dimly lit room that only had a small lantern in the corner as a source of light. It looked like a personal library of sorts, with a large collection of books stuffed into tall bookshelves that lined the walls.
"That's where you'll be signing the summoning contract," Enma said, pointing to a long scroll present on the desk in front of them. "Do it neatly."
Naruto's eyes lit up. "Sweet! Where is the ink?"
Hiruzen muffled a laugh. "Ink? I'm afraid that won't be suitable for a summoning contract."
"Then what are we supposed to use?"
The shaman stopped her hand's movements for the first time since Naruto met her. "Blood. Your blood will be used as a sign of loyalty and other reasons which aren't needed to be discussed at this particular moment of time. Bring your hand out."
Naruto hesitantly and slowly brought out his palm.
The shaman raised a neatly manicured eyebrow. "Are you slow?"
He quickly placed it forward.
Her hand moved in a flash, too quickly for Naruto to even react. One second his palm was completely free of any markings, and then a second later there was a small prick on his index finger, leaking out a bulb of crimson-red blood that grew in size every passing millisecond.
"Here," Akiko said, pointing at a blank space near the corner of the scroll. "Sign your name."
Naruto swiftly wrote his name with the flowing blood, surprised at how free-flowing the blood was. It definitely was flowing much too quickly from his body, similar to ink. It was…unnatural. But he had not seen the usage of any jutsu, so was consequently confused as to what exactly the shaman did. She touched his hand after the process was done, her fingers glowing a bright green for a mere moment and healing the small injury he had almost instantly.
Naruto couldn't help but be impressed.
"The work has been done," the shaman stated slowly. "The boy will need to be back here in a week to proceed with the ceremony."
His eyes widened. Ceremony? What is going on here?
Hiruzen placed his only hand on the boy's shoulder. "Just a process for you to be formally accepted as a summoner of the sky monkeys. It's a fun event, so don't think about it too much."
"Hmm, interesting. So what do we do now?"
Hiruzen shrugged. "Go home. I'll teach you the summoning jutsu tomorrow morning."
They were about to leave before an interruption occurred.
"Boy," Akiko mentioned in a low drawl. "I noticed a foreign source of chakra within you when I used my puncture technique. Do you…happen to be a Jinchuuriki?"
Hiruzen stiffened.
Naruto didn't confirm or deny the statement. "How could you be so sure?"
Akiko scoffed. "Please. Anyone with a brain and a modicum of talent for sensing could tell that the amount of chakra you have is near unimaginable. Even without the Kyuubi, I can tell that you have a great amount of chakra at your disposal. If it's not too forward to ask, have you met the Kyuubi yet?" Her wrinkled skin seemed to brighten.
For some strange reason, Naruto felt a very weird gut sensation building in his body. The look on the shaman's eyes was disturbing…though he might have been overthinking it. It wasn't the normal disdain or fear the adults of Konoha showed.
It was awe.
Not of Naruto…
The Kyuubi.
He wasn't sure how to feel about that.
He decided to lie. "No, I haven't seen the fox yet."
The shaman let out a disappointed sigh. "A shame. Don't get me wrong, according to the invasion of the Leaf which certainly did happen, the Kyuubi was the catalyst for many deaths that day. Yet it would still be a great moment to meet such a beast, don't you think so?"
Naruto remembered the meeting he had with his cohabitant and winced. "I guess…"
The shaman clapped her hands together, startling him. "Enough of that! Shoo, shoo! I have a lot of work to do today."
You're the one who stopped us. Naruto grumbled internally. That whole conversation was weird, but I can't exactly explain why.
They began to walk now, eager to get back to Konoha after several long hours in this unfamiliar world. Naruto went through the notifications that he had ignored while going through the contract process.
Let's see…
[Ding!]
[Quest "Second Step To Greatness" Completed!]
[Quest Details: Defeat Sun Wukong.]
[Quest Rewards: Exp. 5000, Become a Summoner, ?]
What are the question marks this time?
[New Title: "Summoner of the Sky" Achieved!]
[Title: "Summoner of the Sky" increases the overall stats of the user by 10% while fighting in high altitudes as well as improving chakra efficiency of wind-release jutsus by 15%.]
Interesting. The Summoner of the Sky obviously refers to the sky monkeys. This title would be super strong when I find myself in this type of situation. Ten perfect is no laughing matter…
He was slightly bummed out that he didn't get any level up, but wasn't too surprised at the same time. It was getting exponentially harder and harder to level up. Part of that was due to the greater amount of XP required to reach the next level, but mainly (in Naruto's opinion) it was due to the lack of stronger opponents that he could regularly fight. When Naruto was lower level, fighting someone like Kiba would be enough to gain him a level, but now winning against the brawler-type Genin wouldn't help him too much. On the other hand, fighting someone who was too strong, such as Jiraiya or Tsunade, didn't help too much either except for showing the difference between them.
That was why Naruto resorted to challenging Team Ten to a three versus one, wanting greater obstacles which were difficult but also actually possible to do.
He shook his head. I can complain about the system later. Even though it's been fairly nice for the past few months. Back to scrolling.
[Ding!]
[You have created a user-unique skill.]
[What shall you name it?]
This was obviously in reference to the 'chakra sphere' technique that Naruto had employed in a desperate attempt to somehow track the movements of Wukong through the thick smoke that didn't allow even a speck of light through it.
A name, huh?
Just "Chakra Sphere" felt somewhat boring. Naruto wanted a name that encapsulated what using the technique felt like. The feeling of knowing everything! The feeling of understanding more than others of what was occurring all around them.
An idea formed in his head.
I call the skill the 'All-Seeing Eye."
[Ding!]
[New Skill: All-Seeing Eye has been achieved!]
Amazing.
"That jutsu you used at the end, young Naruto, what exactly did you do, if I may ask?" The Third Hokage asked, breaking him out of his stupor. "I want to know how it compares to my own version."
Naruto nodded in affirmation. "Fine, I'll explain it. I got it from you, actually."
Hiruzen tilted his head in confusion. "Really?"
"Obviously, where else do you think I got the idea and the confidence to know that it may actually work? Well, as to how I did, I'm not too sure. My adrenaline was doing most of the thinking for me in that situation. But as for the process, let's see. First I brought chakra to the overlying skin of the body, and let it go. And similarly to the Rasengan, I pushed the chakra to form a circle, albeit a much bigger one."
"How did you keep the chakra contained in such a large area?"
"Contained? Of course not, all of that chakra leaves by itself. I constantly refill it so that I can actually use the sensing part of the technique. Weird, eh? How do you do it?"
Hiruzen chuckled. "Not anything that complicated, I assure you. Once you're my age, you'll notice that your connection with chakra will become much deeper and more intimate. There's a reason why sensors are more usually older individuals, as they have a closer relationship with chakra as a whole, not only their own but a general connection with other chakra natures as well."
"How does that relate to you?"
"I'm old and experienced—and thus my connection with chakra is especially strong. I don't send continuous amounts of chakra like you do into a sphere. I merely let out short pulses of chakra every now and then. Similar to the echolocation of bars, if you have any idea about that. I believe my method is much less chakra expensive compared to yours, but not as accurate once someone enters the small area within your jurisdiction. Interestingly enough, the amount of chakra it would assume is nearly unfathomable—it's almost like a jutsu created for your sole usage."
[Ding!]
[New Title: "Inventor" Achieved!]
[Title: "Inventor" increases chakra and MP efficiency by 35% when using skills and techniques invented by the user as well as giving a 5% boost to all other stats.]
Could this day get any better?
[—NTLS—]
"Ah, the fresh air of Konoha!" Naruto said to no one in particular, enjoying the familiar atmosphere of home. "First stop: Ramen!"
The travel back to Konoha was a long one, but was fun nonetheless. He got to spend time with the old man, something which was once a rarity and seemed to be becoming more and more common these days. He almost felt bad for being happy that the old man retired and Tsunade was replacing him. It allowed Naruto to spend more time with the former Hokage who now didn't have such a heavy pressure on his shoulders that consistently weighed him down every second of the day. That responsibility now was with someone else, someone who was younger and just as capable.
Naruto found himself missing the sky-tree forest, though. The mystic nature of the hidden civilization that he was now irreversibly connected to couldn't be explained with mere words. The beauty of the trees and their relationship with the monkeys was something that couldn't be understood by the likes of them, but even the small portion that they did manage to grasp was telling enough.
That didn't mean he was over Konoha—obviously not. His home has its own charm, a homely atmosphere that couldn't be replaced.
Teuchi was selling ramen to a couple of customers, but didn't seem too busy. It is the middle of the day, after all. Naruto reasoned with a glance towards one of the empty seats he was eyeing up to take.
As he took the seat, he noticed a familiar face to the right of him. "Iruka-sensei?""
Iruka had a gentle smile on his face with a pleasantly surprised expression plastered on. "Ah, Naruto! Our newest celebrity finally decided to meet me!"
Naruto blushed. It was one thing for random people to ask him for autographs, but getting such sort of compliments from someone like Iruka, who had seen all of Naruto's highs AND lows, it was much, much more embarrassing. "Do not call me that!"
Iruka smirked. "I hope it doesn't get to your head too soon. I wouldn't want my student to become big-headed because he's the same rank as me now."
Oh yeah, we're both Chuunin. Naruto realized. He felt the headband that was tied to his forehead. It feels like a week ago when Iruka gave me this after that whole debacle with Mizuki. Wow.
"How's life? I heard you headed somewhere with the Lord Third," Iruka asked casually, twirling the ramen in his bowl.
Just like the good old days, Naruto went on one of his hour-long rants, revealing everything that happened in excessive detail and with added dramatic moments. He made sure to include the parts where he was randomly shoved into the arena to fight Wukong, which had been the most surprising moment of the entire visit.
For a moment, a student forgot all of his troubles.
And a master rejoiced in the sheer joy his pupil radiated.
Neither had any idea of the storm that was coming.
[—-]
Meanwhile…
A man in a dark, black cloak with red clouds stood in an empty room, having just finished a meeting with the rest of the group.
A manic grin was spread across his face.
"Konoha, eh? I guess I can pay them a visit."
[end]
My Pa tre on is back online for those who want to read THREE chapters or THREE WEEKS ahead (chapters 49, 50, 51) and support my endeavor to become an author. So if you can't wait for the next update—check out:
P a treon . com (slash) PaladinKaladin
Shorter chapters recently cus' of a bunch of health stuff, it's gonna be normal from next week onwards.
Question of the day: 1. What's your favorite class in gamer fics? (Rogue, Necromancer, Wizard, etc.)
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