---
"What's he doing here?" Harper thought, suspicion rising. "Right, after Naruto fails the graduation exam, Mizuki tricks him into stealing the Scroll of Seals. I didn't think he started plotting this early."
"By the way, Big Bro Harper, are you here to train too?" Naruto's voice snapped Harper out of his thoughts.
"Yeah." Harper nodded. If grinding XP counted as training, then he had definitely been training all day.
"Whoa! That means you must be super strong!" Naruto looked at him with admiration. "Hey, Big Bro Harper, why don't we train together?"
Ding!
[System]: Triggered Hidden Scenario: Training with Naruto Uzumaki. Do you accept?
Harper almost laughed out loud. Teaming up with an essential NPC to grind? That was basically cheating.
He suppressed the urge to cackle like a villain and nodded solemnly. "Of course!"
Ding!
[System]: Accepted Hidden Scenario: Training with Naruto Uzumaki.
Naruto's Affinity increased by 5.
Jackpot.
Naruto jumped up, pulled out a kunai, and bowed. "Please teach me, Big Bro!"
Wait a minute.
What was happening?
Weren't they supposed to train together? Like, kill mobs together?
Before Harper could process what was going on, Naruto charged at him with the kunai.
Whoosh!
Harper saw a blur of motion, and suddenly Naruto was right in his face, the tip of a kunai thrusting toward his throat.
Are you kidding me?
I just bonded with this kid, and now he's going to one-shot me?
The kunai stopped 0.01 centimeters from Harper's throat.
Harper could feel the cold steel radiating against his skin. If that strike had landed, he would have been dead instantly.
"Big Bro, why didn't you dodge?" Naruto asked, confused.
Harper swallowed hard.
Dodge?
Are you serious? You think I didn't want to?
Did you give me a chance to react?
Outwardly, however, Harper kept his cool. He put on a calm, masterful expression and waved his hand dismissively.
"Sparring like this is dangerous. Accidental injuries happen. Why don't we sit down and exchange pointers instead?"
Naruto blinked. "Wow! As expected of Big Bro Harper! You're so thoughtful!"
He sheathed his kunai.
Harper let out a long, silent breath of relief.
Naruto might be a flunk-out at the Academy, but he was still a trained ninja. Since he was an NPC, Harper couldn't see his exact level, but he guessed Naruto was at least Level 15.
Fighting him? That was like an old man drinking arsenic—suicide.
"So how do we exchange pointers sitting down?" Naruto asked.
That stumped Harper. He wasn't a real ninja. He leveled up by grinding XP and learned jutsu by clicking "Learn" on skill scrolls. He didn't actually know how to train.
"How about this," Harper improvised. "We take turns throwing shuriken. We watch each other's form, and then discuss our techniques."
Anything to avoid getting stabbed.
Naruto thought for a second, then nodded. He walked a few meters away, pulled out a kunai to block, and got into a defensive stance. "Ready when you are, Big Bro!"
Harper almost coughed up blood.
What is this, turn-based combat?
Whatever. He was too tired to explain. If things got hairy, he'd just beg for mercy.
Harper pulled out two shuriken and threw them at Naruto.
"Only two?" Naruto frowned, thinking hard. "Is this the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu? Big Bro is testing me!"
Naruto got serious instantly.
The two shuriken screamed toward him.
Naruto's eyes tracked them perfectly. His hand moved in a blur.
Clang!
Clang!
Two crisp sounds rang out as Naruto knocked the shuriken out of the air with his kunai.
But he didn't relax. He stayed in his stance, waiting for the follow-up attack.
Silence.
Nothing happened.
Harper stood there, sweating.
Good thing we didn't actually fight.
He had thrown those shuriken with everything he had, and Naruto swatted them away like flies.
"Is that it?" Naruto squinted at him suspiciously.
Harper gave an awkward but polite smile. "Naruto, your skills are impressive. I underestimated you."
"Oh! You were going easy on me!" Naruto realized, scratching his head and laughing. "I was wondering why that throw looked like something a first-year Academy student would do!"
Harper felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead.
"Okay, my turn!" Naruto said. He pulled out eight shuriken, holding four between the fingers of each hand. "Ready, Big Bro?"
"Wait! Wait, wait, wait!" Harper waved his hands frantically.
Eight shuriken? I'm going to turn into a pincushion!
"Throw them at the tree!" Harper yelled.
Naruto paused. Big Bro must be worried about hurting my confidence if I miss him. He's so nice.
Ding!
[System]: Naruto's Affinity increased by 5.
Harper stared at the notification, confused. What did I do?
But he didn't have time to think, because what happened next blew his mind.
Naruto crossed his arms and whipped them forward. Eight shuriken flew out at once.
Thwack-thwack-thwack!
A rapid series of thuds echoed as all eight shuriken buried themselves deep into a nearby tree trunk. Perfect accuracy.
Ding!
[System]: Observed Naruto training Shuriken Jutsu. [Basic Shuriken Mastery] proficiency +100.
Ding!
[System]: Observed Naruto training Shuriken Jutsu. [Basic Shuriken Mastery] proficiency +100.
The system notification chimed eight times in a row.
That meant in a split second, his [Basic Shuriken Mastery] had gained 800 proficiency points.
Harper's jaw hit the floor.
Normally, raising skill proficiency required spending precious XP. Since he was rushing levels, he hadn't invested any XP into his skills.
"Big Bro?" Naruto asked, seeing Harper frozen in place. "Was my form wrong?"
"Hmph. Well..." Harper put on his "Master" face, furrowing his brow. "It's close. But something is missing. Do it again. Let me see."
"Okay!" Naruto nodded seriously. He pulled out another eight shuriken.
And so, Harper scammed Naruto into practicing until the poor kid was completely exhausted and collapsed on the ground.
Harper checked his [Basic Shuriken Mastery]. He was only 300 points away from leveling it up.
This kid is a cheat code, Harper thought. A walking, talking cheat code.
If Naruto wasn't physically unable to stand up, Harper would have dragged him up and made him keep throwing.
After resting for a bit, Naruto spoke up. "Big Bro, do you know the Clone Jutsu?"
Harper shook his head regretfully. "I don't know any Ninjutsu."
"Oh, are you a Taijutsu specialist like Bushy Brow?"
"Something like that," Harper replied vaguely. "But I'll be learning Ninjutsu soon."
"Since you taught me so much about shuriken, let me teach you a jutsu!" Naruto jumped up, his energy suddenly restored.
Harper wanted to roll his eyes. Do I look like I need your E-rank Clone Jutsu?
Ding!
[System]: Naruto Uzumaki wants to teach you a Jutsu. Do you accept?
Seeing Naruto's eager face, Harper couldn't bring himself to say no. "Sure. Why not?"
"Big Bro, this is an original jutsu I created myself!"
Original?
Wait... could it be...?