The silence of the night was broken only by the faint sound of crickets outside the wooden house. Uchiha Makoto lay flat on his bed, staring at the ceiling, when suddenly the mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
[Ninja Village Prosperity System: The more prosperous and powerful the Ninja Village led by Uchiha Makoto, the more generous the rewards he receives.]
[System Activation Condition – Become the leader of a Ninja Village.]
[Condition met. Loading system progress… 97%... 98%... 100%... System activated!]
The moment the words ended, Makoto's heart leapt with joy. His hands clenched tightly on the blanket as he sat up abruptly.
"It's finally here!" he muttered excitedly. "My golden finger! My cheat!"
The voice was clear, mechanical, and undeniably real. Makoto quickly pulled up the panel, his eyes shining with anticipation. For days he had been waiting for the system to awaken, and now—at last—it had.
He carefully studied the glowing screen that unfolded before him.
But after only a short while, his expression began to freeze. His jaw tightened, and by the end of his inspection, he nearly spat blood.
"This… this rotten thing!" Makoto slammed his hand against the bedframe. "This is what I was waiting for? This half-baked trash?!"
Indeed, the system was unlike the glorious cheat systems he had read about in novels from his past life.
There was no daily sign-in function.
No lottery wheel of fortune.
No dazzling system store selling Mangekyō Sharingan, Eternal Mangekyō, or forbidden jutsu manuals.
Nothing.
Its function was as bare as a skeleton: the stronger and more prosperous his Ninja Village became, the greater the rewards he would receive. His personal strength would grow along with it, endlessly if he pushed hard enough.
And that was it.
No shortcuts.
No handouts.
No instant power-ups.
Makoto rubbed his temples with both hands. "This thing… this thing was designed by some drunk uncle scratching his feet, wasn't it?!"
His heart was filled with grief and indignation. He had spent so much effort building the foundations of this so-called Ninja Village, finally fulfilling the system's conditions. And what did he get? A glorified motivational speaker disguised as a cheat!
After a long moment of grumbling, Makoto forced himself to breathe deeply. His lips twitched bitterly.
"Fine… fine. At least it's honest. No sugar-coated lies, no fake promises. If I work, I get results. If I slack, I get nothing. At least this thing isn't a black-hearted boss trying to scam me."
It was true—when the system activated, Makoto could feel the difference in his body immediately. His chakra surged, his spiritual power solidified, and even his Sharingan's glow seemed sharper.
He quickly opened his personal panel.
[Name: Uchiha Makoto]
[Age: 17]
[Chakra Attributes: Fire, Lightning, Yin]
[Total Chakra: 2.5 Ka (originally 1 Ka)]
[Strength: Kage. (Evaluation: There are differences even among Kage-level ninja, and you are the gatekeeper!)]
"...Gatekeeper, huh?" Makoto's lips twitched harder. "Trash system, you really don't know how to compliment people, do you? Couldn't you at least say 'promising young Kage' or 'future legend'?!"
He sighed, closing the panel.
The personal stats were one thing, but the system had also created a Ninja Village Panel, separated into five categories: Military, Economy, Politics, Culture, and Influence.
Military: measured the number of ninjas, clans, and jutsu in the village.
Economy: reflected financial reserves, resources, and income.
Politics: judged the integrity and unity of leadership.
Culture: how lively and creative the people were.
Influence: how well-known and respected the village was among outsiders.
Looking over the empty bars of the chart, Makoto wanted to cry without tears.
"This is what you want from me? To build a village in five dimensions?! You might as well ask me to create Konoha 2.0 overnight!"
According to the "usual script" of a transmigration story, tonight should have been his soaring moment. Normally, this was the time where protagonists awakened some divine power—Mangekyō Sharingan, Rinnegan, or at least some cheat item like a Sage's scroll.
Instead… he had received what looked like a motivational seminar disguised as a system.
Just as he was cursing, the voice returned.
[Special warm reminder: As the Ninja Village prospers, it will actively attract extraordinary and high-quality talents. Every talent attracted is exceptionally valuable. Please make good use of this function and do your best to build your village!]
Makoto blinked.
"What the hell is this supposed to mean?"
He replayed the words in his mind. At first glance, it was meaningless. After thinking harder… it was still meaningless.
"Of course a prosperous village will attract talents! Do you really think I needed a system to tell me that?!"
He buried his face in the pillow and groaned.
"Damn you! This night is ruined!"
Despite his exhaustion, his mind kept spinning until dawn.
---
The First Meeting
When morning finally arrived, Uchiha Makoto dragged himself to the meeting room with dark circles under his eyes. The place was simple—rows of stools and wooden chairs. Their finances were far too tight for luxury.
Still, today marked the first official meeting since the establishment of the village.
There weren't many people yet—barely over a dozen—but appearances mattered. A village wasn't a village without meetings!
As Makoto entered, he noticed something unexpected.
"Hold on… new faces?"
Indeed, sitting among his ragtag group were three unfamiliar figures.
Sato Kazuma quickly jumped to his feet and saluted. "Lord Makoto! Allow me to introduce them!"
Before he could continue, one of the girls dramatically stood up, covering half her face with her hand. Her crimson eyes glimmered with chuunibyou flair.
"My name is Megumin, heir of the Crimson Demon Clan! The wielder of the strongest offensive fire release—Explosion Ninjutsu! My ultimate jutsu can split mountains and shatter earth, leaving behind nothing but abyssal despair—"
She struck a series of theatrical poses, waving her cloak like some stage actress before dramatically falling back into her seat.
Makoto's mouth twitched violently.
Kazuma coughed into his fist, face red with embarrassment. "L-Lord Makoto, forgive her. Megumin is… well, eccentric. But I can vouch for her strength! I saw her Explosion Ninjutsu myself—it's insanely powerful."
"Mm." Makoto forced a straight face, though inwardly he thought: This system… don't tell me it's going to keep sending me weirdos?
Kazuma quickly moved on.
"This is Aqua. She's a specialist in Medical Ninjutsu, with extraordinary healing ability."
The blue-haired girl puffed out her chest proudly. "That's right! With me here, you'll never have to worry about injuries. No matter how badly beaten your ninjas are, I can patch them up in no time!"
Makoto nodded slightly. At least that sounded useful.
"And finally, this is Darkness. She comes from a noble family in the Land of Fire. Despite her background, she insisted on training as a ninja and through sheer perseverance, she has become a Taijutsu specialist."
Darkness bowed politely. "It is an honor to serve, Lord Makoto."
Her golden hair shimmered in the light, her armor clinking slightly. She looked the very picture of a knight… though Makoto swore he saw a strange glint of masochistic excitement in her eyes.
Makoto rubbed his forehead. "So this is what the system meant by attracting talents…"
Last night he had cursed it for being vague, but now, seeing three powerful—if eccentric—individuals appear, he felt his mood lift.
"Fine. Maybe you're not completely useless after all," he muttered under his breath.
For the first time since the system activated, hope flickered in his heart.
This was just the beginning.