Lock ignored the malicious Kabuto.
This was because his attention was completely focused on the System inside his mind.
[blackening value +5000]
[Current blackening value: 15,000]
[main personality Trust and Reliance Value: 62% (Cannot drop below 45%)]
Since the Trust Value exceeded 60%, it had become easier for Lock to obtain blackening value from Naruto.
For example, the wave of showing off he had just performed.
After his appearance changed, many people praised him for being handsome and directed envious hatred toward him.
There was also beating up the thick-browed Rock Lee, who confessed to Sakura, along with his teacher, Guy.
This vanity and satisfaction from being praised actually generated blackening value.
This differed from the previous mechanism, which only converted negative emotions or the pleasure of revenge against specific targets.
However, Lock felt this was perfectly normal.
After all, the blackening value required to exchange powerful Ninjutsu was extremely high.
If obtaining blackening value remained this difficult later on…
…then he would have to question whether the System was truly competent.
"I gained 5,000 blackening value in one go? Did one pose give Naruto an internal orgasm?"
Glancing around, Lock quickly noticed many female ninja secretly peeking at him and Sasuke.
Some were even quietly giggling and pairing them together as a CP because their auras felt similar yet different.
But once they noticed Lock's cold gaze sweeping toward them, they immediately blushed and pretended to stare at the floor.
[blackening value +50]
[blackening value +50...]
Alright, confirmed.
It was because he was being praised as handsome.
He was receiving the same "popular guy" treatment as Sasuke.
Naruto, sharing the same perspective, was naturally ecstatic.
Considering how girls used to treat Naruto with disgust in his memories, the contrast explained everything.
The coldness on Lock's face softened slightly as he gave the female ninja a faint smile.
Instantly, screams erupted.
[blackening value +500!]
"Heh, you really live up to your name, Young A-Ming."
Lock muttered to himself before withdrawing his gaze.
Ignoring Naruto's confused questioning, he opened Might Guy's exchange panel.
[Might Guy]
[blackening value required: 30,000]
Exchanging all of Guy's current abilities required 30,000 points.
This was 15,000 more than the full Hiruzen Sarutobi package.
The difference existed because Hiruzen possessed an enormous quantity of Ninjutsu.
Otherwise, his value might not even reach 10,000 — possibly lower than pot-shadow Danzo.
Someone else's single Mangekyo Sharingan alone matched Hiruzen's entire value.
Even Kakashi's current price relied heavily on one Mangekyo.
Unfortunately, Lock lacked both the blackening value and spare eyes to pursue eye-based abilities.
So he abandoned the idea to avoid wasting resources.
He opened the detailed list instead.
[Kage-level Taijutsu]
[blackening value: 4000]
[Basic Taijutsu Techniques]
[blackening value: 1000]
[Summoning Technique: Ninja Turtle]
[...]
[Eight Gates]
[blackening value: 24,000]
[Gate of Opening]
[blackening value: 3000]
[Gate of Rest]
[blackening value: 6000]
[...]
[Gate of Death]
[blackening value: 24,000]
The exchange method was similar to the Nine-Tails Chakra before.
Each gatecostst progressively more.
The Gate of Death required unlocking all previous gates, so it equaled the full Eight Gates cost.
If he exchanged earlier gates first, later purchases would automatically deducthe t already spent value.
Lock checked his balance.
[Current blackening value: 16,000 (gained 1,000 from smiling)]
After calculating briefly, he immediately selected Exchange.
[Exchange Successful!]
[Kage-level Taijutsu -4000]
[Basic Taijutsu Techniques -1000]
[Fourth Gate: Gate of Pain -12,000]
[Current blackening value: 0]
The moment the exchange completed, a warm current flowed through Lock's entire body.
His limbs trembled slightly.
Then his body subtly grew several centimeters taller.
The muscles beneath his clothes tightened and expanded, forming perfectly streamlined contours.
Sasuke, seated beside him, suddenly turned his head.
Although Lock sat perfectly still, Sasuke instinctively felt something had changed.
Before he could ask—
Bang!
Morino Ibiki appeared at the front of the classroom along with the proctor team.
"Silence!"
"Everyone, return to your seats and prepare for the exam!"
Ibiki's voice was not loud, yet it carried heavy killing intent that instantly suppressed the noisy classroom.
Everyone obediently sat down.
"My name is Morino Ibiki. I am the examiner for the first test…"
Ibiki began explaining the rules.
No fighting or killing during the exam.
Ten questionsare worth ten total points.
One point deducted for each wrong answer.
Two points deducted for each instance of cheating discovered.
If one member lost all points, the entire team would be eliminated.
Because Naruto had been replaced by Lock, Sasuke and Sakura did not release killing intent toward Naruto like in the original timeline.
As proctors distributed the exam papers, the test officially began.
Lock picked up the paper and looked at it.
Question one: decode encrypted information. He didn't know.
Question two: calculate attack range using the projectile shadow trajectory and analyze the enemy characteristics.
He didn't know that either.
Inside consciousness, Naruto sighed in relief.
"Lock, good thing you're here. If it were me, I'd definitely drag everyone down…"
Before Naruto finished speaking, Lock tossed the pen aside and stood up.
"What are you doing, Lock?!"
"You don't know either, so you're going to cheat?!"
"They'll deduct points!"
"Shut up," Lock replied irritably.
He truly didn't know the answers.
But this exam wasn't testing knowledge.
It tested intelligence gathering ability — in other words, cheating skill.
But with his strength, why would he need intelligence gathering?
A Tailed Beast transformation plus a dozen Tailed Beast Balls would erase the problem.
No intelligence required.
Thus, Lock stood up, preparing to personally "greet" Ibiki.
Perhaps with a fist.
Or Nine-Tails Chakra.
But before he could leave—
The examinee beside him quickly slid over a completed answer sheet along with a note.
'My Lord, this is your perfect-score test paper.'
After reading it, Lock looked toward Ibiki at the front.
Ibiki's scarred face forced out an awkward, apologetic smile.
Clearly, this student had been deliberately arranged beside him to provide answers.
Only then did Lock realize why Hinata was seated far in the back instead of beside Naruto like before.
He originally assumed she was too shy because of his appearance.
Now it was obvious.
She had simply been moved out of the seat.
---
A/N: 40+ Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded.
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