"I Want a Refund".
System Error: Refunds are not available. Please contact System Support—oh wait, I am the support.
The voice in his head was chipper, smug, and infuriatingly robotic. But to the guy now lying face-up on a grassy hill in the middle of nowhere, this was his new, awful reality.
"I said I want a refund," he groaned. "Or a model replacement. You've clearly got bugs. I want a Version 2.0 with actual customer service."
Host is ungrateful. System is a cutting-edge, interdimensional chakra integration AI. Not replaceable. Not refundable. Not sorry.
Rei Tanaka—or, as he used to be known on Earth, Ryan—gritted his teeth and sat up, brushing leaves from his hoodie. The sky above looked like something straight out of an anime. That's because it was—he'd transmigrated into the world of My Hero Academia.
He had no Quirk.
He had no money.
He had one pair of jeans, a hoodie, and apparently…
"Welcome to the Chakra Optimization and Mission System (C.O.M.S.)!™"
...a talking parasite lodged in his brain.
"Why couldn't I get the system that gives me a billion dollars? Or the one that makes me invincible? Noooo, I get Chakra Clippy."
Clippy was more helpful than you.
Rei clutched his head. "You make me do pushups and squats to unlock chakra reserves. At least Clippy didn't give me shin splints!"
Host has not completed this morning's task: 500 pushups, 500 sit-ups, 5km sprint. Failure will result in temporary system shutdown.
"Temporary what now?"
System will shut down access to chakra pool for 12 hours. System does not negotiate with lazy ingrates.
"You're literally holding my power hostage." Rei scowled. "That's emotional abuse."
System suggests Host stops being a baby and starts being a shinobi.
He groaned again and flopped backward onto the grass.
This wasn't how he expected things to go. He thought transmigrating would come with perks. Maybe an overpowered Quirk. Maybe a beautiful girl carrying him to safety. Not being dropped into the countryside near Musutafu with a psycho gym coach in his brain.
He sighed. "Fine. I'll do your death workout. But after that, I want something useful. No more 'chakra reserve +0.5%' garbage. Give me a real jutsu."
System accepts the terms. New mission generated.
---
[SYSTEM MISSION]
Title: Sweat, Pain, and Gains
Objective: Complete your morning training:
500 Pushups
500 Sit-ups
5km Sprint
Time Limit: 1 hour
Reward: Shadow Clone Jutsu
Failure Penalty: Chakra lockdown for 12 hours. Also System will call you a loser.
---
"Oh-ho," Rei grinned. "Now that's more like it."
He stood, stretched his arms, and cracked his knuckles.
"Alright, you defective battle app. Let's get sweaty."
---
Rei dropped into pushup position, mumbling curses under his breath.
"One… two… three…"
By forty-five, his arms were already shaking. He wasn't unfit back on Earth, but he definitely wasn't anime-tier either. By the time he hit 100, he was sweating buckets.
Pushups: 100/500. Sit-ups: 0/500. Sprint: 0/5km. Time Remaining: 47:23
He wheezed and flopped onto his back.
"I swear," he panted, "when I unlock Genjutsu, I'm putting you in an infinite Tsukuyomi."
Host would fail. System has infinite resistance to cringe threats.
Rei growled and started on sit-ups. Every time he came up, he could practically hear the system smugly counting behind his eyes.
By the time he hit 500 pushups and sit-ups, Rei was on the verge of tears. His body felt like someone had slammed it repeatedly into a wall.
"I… hate… you."
Congratulations, Host. Now run five kilometers. Uphill. Preferably barefoot.
"YOU'RE NOT FUNNY."
He pushed himself up with noodle arms and began to jog. His legs screamed. His lungs burned. And halfway through, he considered just letting the system lock his chakra for 12 hours.
Then he remembered the reward.
Shadow Clone Jutsu.
A grin cracked across his exhausted face.
"…Fine. I'll finish this. But I want two clones. No cheap knockoff crap."
Reward level: basic Shadow Clone. Two clones granted. For now.
---
[MISSION COMPLETE]
Title: Sweat, Pain, and Gains
Status: SUCCESS
Reward:
- Shadow Clone Jutsu (Mastered)
- Chakra Reserve +2%
---
Rei collapsed onto the grass, face-first, sweat pooling under his cheek.
"You… monster," he whispered.
System detects increased endurance. Host may now consider being less of a wimp.
"Teach me the jutsu before I choke myself."
A wave of warmth surged through his chest as knowledge filled his mind—like a memory that had always been there, just waiting to be remembered.
He sat up slowly, clutched his aching ribs, and formed the hand seal.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Poof!
Two identical copies of him appeared beside him. They looked at him, blinked… and simultaneously groaned.
Clone #1: "Oh god, I feel everything. Why are we so sore?"
Clone #2: "I thought being summoned meant skipping leg day!"
Rei stared.
"…They talk?"
System note: Shadow Clones are full cognitive replicas. Have fun.
"Wait—if I send them to do missions—?"
Chakra is split evenly. You get exhaustion. Enjoy your genius idea.
Rei grinned, wiped the sweat from his brow, and collapsed back again.
"…Still worth it."
He let the clones vanish in two soft poofs, leaving only the rustling grass and his aching body behind.
---
Later That Day…
Rei limped into a nearby town—Musutafu, according to a signpost. He managed to swipe a towel from a laundromat clothesline, wash up at a public fountain, and snag some leftover bread from a convenience store dumpster.
His hoodie was still damp, but he didn't care. His chakra was real. The system, for all its psychological torture, was legit. And now?
He had jutsu.
He smirked to himself as he limped toward the city lights.
This world was full of heroes with flashy powers and ridiculous hair. He had none of that.
But he had chakra.
And he was gonna get paid.
---