[ JINICHI WATARU ]
'Open the system shop' I commanded, watching the digital interface shift and expand into a massive catalogue. My eyes widened as I beheld a surprisingly large variety of weapons, items, and intricate armours. The digital shelves were completely stocked with legendary gear straight out of the Ninjago universe.
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[SHOP]
[WEAPONS]
SERPENTINE & ANACONDRAI WEAPONS
Golden Dark Blade [8,250,000 Credits]
Golden Spear [5,500,000 Credits]
Golden Axe [5,500,000 Credits]
Golden Hypno Fang [10,000,000 Credits]
Spitta's Toxic Toothpick [10,500 Credits]
Fangdam's Golden Staff [6,000,000 Credits]
Spear of Forked Tongues [31,500 Credits]
Blinding Staff [167,500 Credits]
Fang of Poison [2,350,000 Credits]
Anacondrai Blade [45,000 Credits]
Anacondrai spear [35,000 Credits]
NORMAL & MISCELLANEOUS WEAPONS
Dragon's Fire [105,000 Credits]
Spear [4,250 Credits]
Scythe Blade [6,000 Credits]
Staff of Light [15,250,000 Credits]
Major Spear [8,500 Credits]
Silver Battle Mace [12,750 Credits]
Constrictai Double-Headed Axe [27,500 Credits]
Grim Pick Axe [5,350 Credits]
Trusty Axe [3,250 Credits]
Dark Axe [10,500 Credits]
Nin-Jô [4,500 Credits]
Silver Dark Blade [31,500 Credits]
Knockout Nemesis 3000 [82,500 Credits]
Double-Bladed Axe [7,250 Credits]
Boomerang [2,850 Credits]
Butterfly Sword [9,000 Credits]
Katana [5,750 Credits]
Crossbow [4,750 Credits]
Shurikens [3,750 Credits]
NINDROID & TECHNOLOGY WEAPONS
Saw Blade [18,500 Credits]
Blaster [60,000 Credits]
Digi-spear [4,850,000 Credits]
Gun [27,500 Credits]
CULTIST & TRIBAL WEAPONS
Chain bola [6,750 Credits]
Crossbow ballista [67,500 Credits]
Fang claws [10,250 Credits]
Stone blade [24,500 Credits]
GHOST & SKY PIRATE WEAPONS
Twin Daggers [13,000 Credits]
Scythe [8,500 Credits]
Soul Archer's bow [23,750,000 Credits]
Double Bladed Dagger [15,750 Credits]
Ghost Blades [9,000,000 Credits]
Flintlocks [38,500 Credits]
Cutlasses [10,750 Credits]
VERMILLION & SONS OF GARMADON WEAPONS
Vermillion sword [31,500 Credits]
Vermillion axe [36,000 Credits]
Dagger [3,100 Credits]
Sai [4,500 Credits]
DRAGON HUNTER & ONI WEAPONS
Iron Baron's staff [20,000,000 Credits]
Chain Rifles [235,000 Credits]
Omega's staff [65,000,000 Credits]
PYRO VIPER & BLIZZARD SAMURAI WEAPONS
Aspheera's staff [55,000,000 Credits]
Char's snake scepter [825,000 Credits]
Naginata [31,500 Credits]
Scimitar [25,000 Credits]
Zane's scepter [42,500,000 Credits]
Frost Lance [365,000 Credits]
KEEPERS & MERLOPIAN WEAPONS
Lightning staff [1,725,000 Credits]
Bone spear [21,000 Credits]
Bone sickles [27,500 Credits]
Keeper spears [31,500 Credits]
Trident [105,000 Credits]
Kalmaar's trident [60,000,000 Credits]
Dragon Sais [5,500,000 Credits]
Maaray Blades [67,500 Credits]
VENGESTONE & CRYSTAL WEAPONS
Vengestone spears [4,250,000 Credits]
Whip [5,750 Credits]
Crystal gun [8,000,000 Credits]
Crystal King's sword [75,000,000 Credits]
IMPERIAN & WOLF CLAN WEAPONS
Imperium Sword [3,000,000 Credits]
Claw Staff [4,000,000 Credits]
Mallet of Shattering [23,750,000 Credits]
Blood Moon Blade [34,000,000 Credits]
Ras' golden hammer [52,500,000 Credits]
FORBIDDEN FIVE WEAPONS
Nokt's Sword [70,000,000 Credits]
Zarkt's Flail [70,000,000 Credits]
Drix's Sickles [70,000,000 Credits]
Kur's Axe [70,000,000 Credits]
Rox's Sword [70,000,000 Credits]
CONSUMABLES & MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTS
Badaboom Dynamite [17,500 Credits]
Staff of Control [36,500,000 Credits]
Ice cream [2,000 Credits]
Sausage [2,000 Credits]
Chicken leg [2,000 Credits]
[ ITEMS]
BOOKS, SCROLLS, AND JOURNALS
Clouse's Spellbook [27,500,000 Credits]
Scrolls of Forbidden Spinjitzu [100,000,000 Credits]
The Book of Elements [45,000,000 Credits]
Captain Soto's Journal [500,000 Credits]
The Book of Spells [14,000,000 Credits]
The Book of Ceremonies [3,400,000 Credits]
The Scroll of Airjitzu [10,000,000 Credits]
The Scroll of Confusion [5,500,000 Credits]
The Scroll of Dancing Monkeys [325,000 Credits]
The Scroll of the 4th Dimension [65,000,000 Credits]
MAGICAL ARTIFACTS, RELICS, AND TOKENS
Tomorrow's Tea [21,000,000 Credits]
Traveler's Tea [975,000 Credits]
The Tea of Truth [325,000 Credits]
The Blade Cup [12,250,000 Credits]
The Serpentine Sacred Flutes [16,750,000 Credits]
The Wolf Masks [30,000,000 Credits]
AMULETS, MEDALLIONS, AND CROWNS
The Wave Amulet [100,000,000 Credits]
The Storm Amulet [100,000,000 Credits]
The Amulet of Protection [34,000,000 Credits]
Master Chen's Amulet [23,750,000 Credits]
The Spectral Crown [60,000,000 Credits]
The Cat-Eye Jewel [8,000,000 Credits]
Tanabrax's Medallion [10,000,000 Credits]
MINERALS, GEMS, AND SPECIAL MATERIALS
Chronosteel [41,000,000 Credits]
Vengestone [825,000 Credits]
Deepstone [1,675,000 Credits]
Condensed Evil [55,000,000 Credits]
Clearstone [2,750,000 Credits]
The Blue Crystal [34,000,000 Credits]
[ ARMOURS/GI]
Stone Warrior Armor [23,750,000 Credits]
The Dragon Armor [75,000,000 Credits]
Deepstone Armor [12,250,000 Credits]
DX Gi [5,250,000 Credits]
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I saw a large variety of weapons, elemental Gi's, and strange techno-blades gleaming brightly on the virtual display screens. A sudden text box popped up, initiating a highly detailed tutorial regarding the new shop mechanics.
[ Good day player [ Jinichi Wataru ], you have now been granted access to the system shop, here we have three categories ]
[ Weapons, Items and Armour. The names are self-explanatory, so I will be moving on to further matters, how to buy stuff from the SHOP, as the player can see, there is a price tag attached to the various items in the SHOP, the player can gain credits by simply completing system issued quests, as the credits will now be given as another part of the rewards the player gets from completing quests. ]
[ However, the number of credits a player gets per quest depends on the quest difficulty, so the player should please take note.]
"So I gain currency as a reward alongside standard experience points," I muttered quietly to myself. The system cheerfully confirmed my hypothesis with a bright, bouncing checkmark on the center of the screen. It explained that t finishing quest objectives would quickly fill my digital wallet.
I excitedly scrolled through the extensive catalog, searching for the absolute most powerful items in the lore. I actively looked for the realm crystal, the time blades and the oni masks fully expecting them to cost a massive fortune. I also searched for the Realm Crystal and the Mega Weapon, but they were nowhere to be found. The shop was completely devoid of any universe-threatening artifacts that I distinctly remembered from the shows.
'System, why are the truly overpowered weapons missing from the shop?'
A new message quickly materialized.
[ Like I have told player [ Jinichi Wataru ] before, the more powerful, world threatening and universe threatening weapons are in the hand of the first lord. Only he can decide whether the player is worthy of wielding them, although some relics are already in existence in this world.]
I groaned in intense frustration, realizing I was essentially being heavily gatekept by a literal, omnipotent god.
"I guess I have a very long way to go before I can wield the sword of sanctuary." I complained bitterly. Before I could close the shop interface, a bright golden gift box suddenly appeared in the center.
[ As a token for reaching this stage the player has been given a gift from the first lord. ]
My heart hammered in my chest as I eagerly tapped the virtual box to immediately open it. I happily imagined receiving a powerful elemental blade or at least a high-tier piece of enchanted ninja gear.
The box burst open with a massive shower of digital confetti, finally revealing my grand, divine prize.
[ *POOF* ]
A rusty, jagged Sky Pirate Cutlass materialized in my hands, looking exactly like it belonged in a trash bin.
I stared blankly at the incredibly mediocre sword, feeling my initial excitement instantly turn into deep depression.
"You have got to be completely kidding me right now," I whined loudly to the empty room. I quickly checked my digital wallet.
[ CREDITS: 000,000,000 ]
'Damn! I'm flat broke!'
My depression deepened significantly, completely crushing my earlier, foolish dreams of becoming an overpowered elemental god today.
I slumped back into my mattress, letting the dull cutlass rest heavily on my flat chest. Suddenly, a distinct, robotic giggling sound echoed clearly inside my head directly from the system interface. The system was actually laughing at me because of my highly pathetic reaction to my current absolute poverty.
[ Lol. You though you would become some sort of god, no strings attached? Lol!]
"Shut up, you stupid floating purple rectangle," I grumbled angrily as the mocking digital laughter continued endlessly.
'Sigh whatever. Time to take a bath.'
I dragged my exhausted body straight into the bathroom to finally take a much-needed hot shower. The scalding water felt absolutely amazing as it aggressively washed away the dried sweat and dirt.
I stood under the stream for a long time, letting the heat soothe my aching muscles. My mind drifted briefly back to the violent encounters we had barely survived during the deadly mission. I forcefully shook those dark thoughts away and reached for a fresh bar of cheap soap. I scrubbed myself completely clean until my skin felt raw and entirely refreshed once again.
I stepped out of the shower and quickly dried myself off with a clean white towel. I rummaged through my wooden closet to find a fresh, comfortable set of everyday civilian clothing. The soft cotton shirt and loose pants were a massive upgrade over my rigid ninja gear. I collapsed onto my bed, letting out a loud groan as my sore back hit the mattress.
I stared up at the ceiling, taking a deep breath to center my constantly racing thoughts.
'Status'
The familiar glowing purple screen materialized instantly in the air right above my tired, waiting face. I eagerly scanned the bright digital text, hoping to see some massive improvements after my struggles.
My eyes darted across my status page, searching for any sign of a significant level increase. Unfortunately, my overall level and my core stat points had not changed even a single bit. I scowled at the screen, feeling a sharp pang of deep disappointment quickly settle in my chest. The entire Land of Tea fiasco had apparently yielded absolutely no base stat growth for me whatsoever.
I swiped over to the skills tab, desperately hoping for at least some form of positive news. The only things that had levelled up were a few of my basic combat and movement skills. Even then, the skill progression was painfully slow and barely noticeable in the grand scheme of things. I sighed heavily, mentally preparing a space in my vision for the system to display my current stats.
I stared at the empty space below, leaving a slight gap in my mental focus for the interface.
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[STATUS]
[Name] — Jinichi Wataru
[Level] — 19
[Exp Bar] — 120,000 / 13,107,200
[STATS]
Strength — 33 [High Genin]
Constitution — 33 [High Genin]
Speed — 33 [High Genin]
Dexterity — 33 [High Genin]
Intelligence — 33 [High Genin]
Chakra Capacity — 33 [High Genin]
[Stat Points] — 89
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[Skills]
Transformation jutsu [ Lv 24 ]Clone jutsu [ Lv 25 ]Spinjitzu/Spinjutsu [ Lv 19 ]Image Training [Lvl 24]Metal [ Lv 48 ]Chakra Augmentation [Lvl 18]
● Chakra Control [Lvl 40]
Scan [ Lv 10 ]
● Substiution jutsu [ Lv 21 ]
● Shurikenjutsu [ Lv 24 ]
Body flicker technique [ Lv 21 ] Shadow Clone jutsu [ Lv 19 ]●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●
glowing panel hovered steadily in my vision, mocking me with its stubbornly stagnant, unchanged numbers. I felt an intense wave of frustration wash over me as I analysed the incredibly slow progression. My near-death experience with that deadly poison had apparently meant absolutely nothing to the cruel system logic.
I rubbed my temples, trying to understand exactly why my growth was moving at a snail's pace. I had fought deadly assassins and survived a massive political conspiracy in a hostile foreign land. According to typical video game logic, I should have gained a massive amount of experience points. Instead, I was still stuck in the exact same spot I was before I even left the village.
I leaned back against my pillows, staring intensely at the glowing blue text floating above me. My mind drifted back to a previous cryptic message the system had generated a while ago. It had explicitly stated that I was still too weak to officially receive any system quests. I pondered on that specific message, trying desperately to wrap my head around its underlying, hidden meaning.
'Did the system consider A-rank mission encounters to be beneath its threshold for assigning official quests? If fighting Jonin-level and Chunin-level threats was not enough, what kind of strength was it actually expecting from me?'
I dismissed the interface entirely, plunging my room back into the normal, quiet shadows of the evening. I placed the useless pirate sword in my inventory, silently cursing the First Lord's terrible sense of humour. I needed to focus on training my existing skills instead of relying on magical, unavailable shop items.
Tomorrow, I would begin working on my physical conditioning and mastering my basic chakra control all over again. I closed my eyes tightly, letting the extreme exhaustion finally pull me down into a deep, dreamless sleep.
[ HIASHI HYUGA ]
I sat rigidly at the head of the long wooden table inside the main Hyuga compound. The traditional meeting room was dimly lit, casting deep shadows across the weathered faces of the clan elders. I had just been officially informed of Jinichi Wataru's sudden, highly unexpected return to the Hidden Leaf Village. A panel discussion had been immediately convened to carefully determine our official stance on the young anomaly. The tension in the quiet room was incredibly thick, threatening to completely boil over at any given moment.
"The boy has returned alive, which proves his strange combat techniques are highly effective in battle," Elder Koji stated. He leaned forward, tapping his wrinkled finger aggressively against the polished surface of the large wooden table.
"We must consider bringing him into the fold before another clan tries to claim his highly unique potential." Several other elders murmured their quiet agreement, clearly intrigued by the boy's strange, powerful defensive rotation. I listened in perfect silence, keeping my facial expression entirely neutral as the bitter debate raged on.
"Are you suggesting we recruit him?" Elder Yuta scoffed loudly from across the long wooden table.
"His very existence brings a terrible stain to our proud clan's esteemed and utterly flawless name," he continued angrily. He slammed his palm onto the wood, his Byakugan veins bulging slightly at his tense temples.
"It is a massive insult that a bastardized version of our sacred Hiden exists outside these walls," Yuta declared.
"The Kaiten is a strictly guarded secret, and his blatant imitation makes a complete mockery of our traditions."
"It is not a direct imitation, Yuta, it is something entirely different," Koji argued back fiercely. "The reports clearly state he uses a strange balance based spinning technique rather than pure chakra expulsion," he noted.
"If we recruit him, we can properly study this phenomenon and perhaps even integrate it into our own arsenal." The two elders glared at each other, their stubborn pride fueling the rapidly escalating, highly bitter argument. I maintained my stoic posture, carefully weighing the objective validity of both their opposing, incredibly impassioned arguments.
"Bringing an outsider into the main house would completely disrupt our delicate internal political balance," another elder chimed in.
"We cannot ever risk exposing our true clan secrets to a boy with zero Hyuga blood in his veins," he insisted.
"He is a highly dangerous variable, and dangerous variables must be swiftly and permanently eliminated from the equation." The room erupted into a chaotic chorus of shouting voices, each elder vying to be heard over the others. I closed my eyes briefly, letting out a very soft, highly controlled sigh of deep, lingering frustration.
"Silence, all of you," I commanded, lacing my deep voice with just enough authority to shake the entire room. The elders immediately ceased their petty bickering, settling back into their cushions with highly respectful, lowered heads. I opened my eyes again, sweeping my stern gaze across the entire assembly of proud, deeply traditional old men. "Your passionate arguments are noted, but you are severely lacking in basic, strategic political foresight," I stated calmly. I folded my hands neatly on the table, preparing to deliver my final, absolutely undisputed judgment on the matter.
"You completely fail to consider the most crucial piece of intelligence regarding this boy's current standing," I pointed out.
"The Third Hokage explicitly favours the boy and has taken a keen, personal interest in his continued development," I added.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi is not a foolish man, and he watches over Team thirteen with intense, protective scrutiny."
"Any hostile action taken against Jinichi Wataru will instantly incur the Hokage's unyielding, completely terrifying wrath," I warned them.
I let the heavy weight of that reality sink deeply into the stubborn minds of the gathered elders. "We cannot afford a direct political conflict with the Hokage's administration over a mere Genin," I continued.
"An assassination attempt or a forced kidnapping would quickly bring the entire village's Anbu forces crashing down upon us."
"We must constantly prioritize the absolute survival and political stability of the Hyuga clan above our injured pride."
"Therefore, we will absolutely leave this complicated matter entirely unsettled for the time being," I concluded firmly.
The elders exchanged highly reluctant, disgruntled glances, but absolutely none of them dared to openly challenge my direct authority.
"We will not make any immediate moves to recruit him, nor will we ever attempt to directly eliminate him," I declared.
"Instead, we will continue to quietly observe his daily movements from a safe, completely undetectable distance."
"If he eventually becomes a genuine threat to our Hiden, we will definitely reassess our official stance at that time."
"Until then, the Hyuga clan will remain strictly neutral regarding the boy known as Jinichi Wataru."
[ DANZO SHIMURA ]
I stood in the darkened depths of the Root headquarters, my lone eye staring blankly at the stone wall. The cold, damp air of the underground facility was a constant, strangely comforting reminder of my vast, hidden authority. A masked operative knelt silently on the floor behind me, patiently awaiting my explicit permission to deliver his report. I turned around slowly, my solid wooden cane tapping rhythmically against the solid rock beneath my old feet.
"Speak." I demanded coldly, my raspy voice echoing slightly in the vast, incredibly empty cavern. The operative bowed his head lower, keeping his masked face firmly directed toward the cold stone floor.
"Lord Danzo, I have just been officially informed of Jinichi Wataru's return to the village," he stated smoothly.
"Team thirteen has arrived back from their assignment in the Land of Tea without suffering any major casualties."
I narrowed my eye slightly, processing the new information with a highly cold, deeply calculating mindset. The boy had caught Hiruzen's interest, and thus now has mine.
"And what of the mission itself?" I asked, leaning heavily onto the ornate, carved handle of my walking cane. The kneeling operative hesitated for a brief fraction of a second before continuing his highly detailed verbal report.
"That is where the situation becomes highly unusual, Lord Danzo," the masked agent replied quickly.
"Another agent stationed near the administration building just informed me of a sudden, drastic change in their mission rank status."
"The Third Hokage personally upgraded their completed assignment from a standard C-rank directly to an A-rank mission." My eye widened slightly at the revelation, genuinely surprised by the incredibly massive leap in official classification.
"An A-rank classification for a newly formed team of inexperienced Genin is absolutely unprecedented," I muttered quietly to myself.
"Hiruzen is usually far too cautious to casually throw such a high rank onto a team of fragile children."
"Something incredibly significant must have truly occurred during their chaotic time in the Land of Tea." I stared intensely at the kneeling operative, my mind already eagerly formulating several new, highly intricate political strategies.
"What else have you discovered regarding the specific details of this unexpected A-rank promotion?" I demanded sharply. The operative shifted slightly, his tense body language betraying a tiny hint of deep professional frustration.
"The mission details have completely been locked from all standard administrative access, my lord," he explained nervously.
"Lord Third sealed the official file himself, making it absolutely impossible for our internal spies to quickly read the contents."
I scoffed loudly, heavily annoyed by my old rival's constant, highly irritating attempts to keep me strictly in the dark. Hiruzen always foolishly tried to shield his precious leaf ninja from the harsh realities of the actual, brutal shinobi world. However, his pathetic secrecy would never stop me from fully uncovering the absolute truth behind this highly suspicious mission.
"If the files in Konoha are sealed, then we will simply gather the critical information directly from the source." I declared.
I walked past the kneeling operative, heading straight toward my private communication terminal in the next dark room. I quickly reached out to my various underground contacts currently stationed deep within the Land of Tea's borders.
The Root organization had countless eyes everywhere, and a mission of that immense magnitude would have left a massive trail. I patiently waited for the highly encrypted messages to securely filter back through my hidden, incredibly reliable intelligence network.
It did not take long for the horrifying details of the political fiasco to finally reach my wooden desk. My contacts confidently reported a massive battle involving deadly assassins, a high-level conspiracy, and a violently poisoned Genin. Jinichi Wataru had impressively survived a lethal encounter that would have killed a Chunin operative. And what's more impressive the boy possesses a Kekkei Genkai, a late bloomer but still a bloodline limit nonetheless.
I smiled darkly, thoroughly impressed by the boy's incredible resilience and highly raw, completely untapped potential for absolute violence.
This newfound information quickly made the boy an incredibly valuable asset for the future of the Hidden Leaf. He clearly possessed the talent, a unique skill set and a hardened survivor's instinct that could be moulded perfectly to my will. I turned back to my loyal operative; my sharp mind fully set on my very next strategic course of action.
"Deploy even more watchers to silently monitor Jinichi's daily movements to see if he is a perfect fit for the grand motives of Root," I commanded firmly.