"There will be a reward for ending a character!"
A good discovery indeed.
However, if the character's development path isn't unlocked, then ending them directly only grants a handful of abilities and jutsu.
To Yuichi, that kind of reward was far from attractive.
Among all of Jiraiya's abilities and techniques, none were particularly worth coveting.
It was the second option that caught his eye.
A random mastery of one elemental nature.
Grandmaster… did it mean raising his proficiency in a single elemental style? Or perhaps…
"I'll take the second one."
[Congratulations, Host has acquired Earth Style Ninjutsu Grandmaster]
[All Earth Style techniques unlocked]
All of them.
Unlocked.
Yuichi's mind raced as he pulled open his character panel.
Sure enough, a new column appeared under his ninjutsu list.
Earth Style.
A long list of Earth Style techniques filled the section.
The sheer number of densely packed jutsu made it hard for Yuichi to contain his excitement. He nearly leapt in joy.
Among them were techniques he'd already collected during his daily selections over the last three weeks—Rock Flow, Mountain Technique, Transformation, and others.
In just three weeks, Yuichi had gathered:
– 5 Earth Style jutsu
– 6 Wind Style jutsu
– 4 Water Style jutsu
– 6 Fire Style jutsu
Twenty-one in total.
And every single one, he'd mastered to perfection on the same day using Shadow Clones.
Now, his Earth Style alone held six perfected jutsu:
[Earth Style: Soil Substitute]
[Earth Style: Rock Flow]
[Earth Style: Transformation]
[Earth Style: Mountain Technique]
[Earth Style: Rock Concealment] — allowing movement hidden within stone and soil
[Earth Style: Flowing Earth River]
Wind Style, meanwhile, had eight at perfect level, including Great Breakthrough, Beast Wave Palm, and others he had refined:
[Wind Style: Wind Blade] — gathering chakra to form a cutting sword in hand.
[Wind Style: Wind Reversal] — rebounding enemy Wind attacks.
[Wind Style: Thousand Blades of Wind] — unleashing countless slicing gusts.
[Wind Style: Wind Shuriken] — infusing shuriken with wind chakra for lethal power.
[Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere] — spitting compressed air bullets.
[Wind Style: Vacuum Great Sphere] — an advanced, strengthened form.
His Water Style had four newly perfected techniques:
[Water Style: Water Blade Cut] — infusing chakra into a weapon to sharpen its impact.
[Water Style: Instant Water Step] — teleporting within water sources, while bending currents to attack.
[Water Style: Exploding Water Colliding Wave] — creating a massive sphere of water, trapping foes while the caster moved freely within. (The same move Kisame used when fused with Samehada against the Eight Tails.)
[Water Style: Water Whip] — forming a whip to strike or restrain enemies.
And finally, six new Fire Style jutsu:
[Fire Style: Fire Dragon Song Technique]
[Fire Style: Scorched Ash Cloud]
[Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet]
[Fire Style: Blazing Meteor]
[Fire Style: Headstrong Flame]
Every one of them, brushed to perfection through Shadow Clone training.
With his Sage Body, Wood Style physique, and the sheer vitality surpassing even Naruto's, Yuichi could spam jutsu with reckless abandon. The Wood Style clone he had stationed in Konoha continued to draw Sarutobi Hiruzen's attention, leaving him free to grind ninjutsu to mastery.
Looking at his status panel now, almost every jutsu bore the word: Perfect.
The sight alone brought him a deep satisfaction.
But now, with Earth Style mastery newly unlocked, countless more techniques waited to be perfected.
It seemed his training would only get busier.
Yuichi cast a glance at the gorge, now slowly returning to calm.
Jiraiya had been dealt with.
Of course, it hadn't been without meticulous preparation. He had exploited every possible advantage, turning the tide decisively in his favor.
Had the battle broken out suddenly, it would never have been this easy.
But still—he had done it.
Even against a Sannin like Jiraiya, Yuichi had triumphed. That alone put his combat strength firmly at the Kage-level.
The terrifying advantage of limitless chakra… now he had experienced it fully.
Relentless barrages of ninjutsu to suppress the enemy, forcing an opening, then exploiting it with clones or Wood Style strikes.
The results were devastating.
'End rewards, huh? I suppose I can't just leave Sarutobi Hiruzen's head for Orochimaru.'
The system had hinted that opening a character's development path could yield greater rewards. But if that wasn't possible—like with Jiraiya—then outright killing them granted an "end reward."
And that wasn't bad either.
Of course, it wasn't as though every original character could be ended so easily.
Rewards varied depending on a character's strength and influence.
This was Jiraiya—one of the Legendary Three. His "end reward" naturally held immense value.
By refusing it, Yuichi had instead gained elemental Grandmastery.
Then… if Sarutobi Hiruzen was killed and his end reward also sacrificed…
Would that unlock mastery of another element?
The thought sent a thrill through him.
"There's no way I can let Orochimaru take that prize. I'll have to plan carefully."
Yuichi leapt away, darting swiftly back toward Konoha.
The noise from this battle hadn't carried far enough to alert the village. Still, he couldn't afford to linger. His mission of "observing" Konoha had to continue without suspicion.
But as he moved through the forest, Yuichi suddenly halted.
Down below, beneath the trees, was Uzumaki Naruto.
Clutching two freshly caught fish, the boy hurried toward Jiraiya's last known location.
Perched on a thick branch, Yuichi watched Naruto hop and stumble his way along.
'So… Jiraiya deliberately distracted him.'