Getting naked from the waist up, Luka sat by the river with his feet in the water.
The insects near the river provided him with a pitiful amount of EXP. Each insect yielded him on average 0.01% EXP.
It took almost 100 insects to yield a single point of EXP.
But that didn't matter compared to the main reason he was devouring the insects.
Luka murmured quietly: "Maybe they are too small..."
But the next notification shows that not everything was in vain.
[[Chakra Nature: [Water Style (Iron Lv.1 – 00%)] acquired!
Technique: [Hydraulic Propulsion (Iron Lv.1 – 00%)] acquired!
+50 EXP
+5 Points]
Slowly but steadily, he managed to devour the river water through his feet.
It wasn't exactly fast, but it opened many doors for him.
Luka's feet remained in the water.
Constantly using 'Predation', he notices that the predation speed increased by about 30% compared to before.
'If I devour an entire forest, is there a chance I can obtain Wood Style?'
He swallowed hard just imagining that happening.
At the moment, that was nothing more than a dream, an illusion.
His predation speed wasn't high enough to be able to do something like that in such a short time.
It would take days, months, or years to be able to devour an entire forest.
'But it's worth trying to do that with some trees later.' He thought.
Everything — or almost everything — begins as a simple dream. But only by trying does it stop being a mere illusion and, who knows, one day it may become reality.
...
Insects, something he hated, especially when he went to waterfalls and came back home covered in bites.
Now, he could barely wait for the insects to be attracted to him.
Distracted, he didn't notice that a dragonfly landed on his shoulder and, in autopilot mode, the dragonfly was swallowed by his body, being digested.
[[Successful Predation!]
You acquire the basic instincts of a Dragonfly.
[360-Degree Vision (Iron Lv.1 – 00%)] acquired!
[Dragonfly Wings (Iron Lv.1 – 00%)] acquired!
It becomes possible for you to transform into a [Dragonfly]
+1 EXP
+1 Bonus Points]
Luka stood up.
It was an unexpected result, but it also worked for his objective.
Storing all his clothes, Luka transformed into a Dragonfly.
Instinctively, Luka knew how to fly.
His mode of flight was similar to that of a helicopter.
Luka managed to see his reflection in the water.
Although he didn't know the color of the dragonfly he devoured earlier, the transformation made him golden, with 12 cm in length and a 13 cm wingspan across both pairs of wings.
His vision in this form seemed even better, to the point where everything appeared to be in slow motion.
When he moved, he was even faster than he could imagine; in a matter of seconds, he reached a speed of 50 km/h.
'This is even better than I expected to achieve!' he thought.
Dragonflies are extraordinary aerial predators. When Luka tried to catch an insect, he was basically so fast that the insect didn't even have a chance to escape.
[+0.01% EXP]
Flying with his tiny body, Luka continued gaining altitude until he reached the upper part of this area.
Seconds later, he was already about 14 thousand feet above ground level.
With his 360-degree vision, it became easy for him to find the tall walls surrounding the Hidden Leaf Village.
'So, it's not very far from where I am...'
That was good news for him.
Obviously, he didn't forget the mission he received.
Now that he knew the location of the Hidden Leaf Village, he wasn't in a hurry to go there.
Before going, it was better to get at least a little stronger.
[–0–]
A few days later.
'Status.'
「[Luka]
Species: Slime
Title: None
[Level: 2] – [885/2,000]
Points: 712
– Techniques: [Predation (Platinum) Lv.1 – 5.8%], [Dissolve (Bronze) Lv.5 – 18%], [Absorption (Bronze) Lv.5 – 19%], [Restoration (Bronze) Lv.4 – 11%], [Mana Perception (Iron) Lv.9 – 99%], [Superhuman Vision (Silver Lv.1 – 10%)], [Superhuman Physique (Gold Lv.1 – 21%)], [Hydraulic Propulsion (Iron Lv.8 – 53%)], [360-Degree Vision (Iron Lv.8 – 99%)], [Dragonfly Wings (Iron Lv.7 – 74%)]
– Chakra Nature: [Earth Style (Iron) Lv.9 – 99%], [Water Style (Iron Lv.9 – 99%)], [Yin Style (Iron) Lv.2 – 50%], [Yang Style (Iron) Lv.3 – 22%]
– Power Source: [Natural Energy (Iron) Lv.4 – 42%], [Chakra (Bronze) Lv.8 – 11%]
– Resistances: [Pain Resistance (Iron) Lv.2 – 19%], [Pierce Resistance (Iron) Lv.2 – 17%], [Spiritual Attack Resistance (Iron) Lv.1 – 99%]
– Jutsus: [Clone (Iron) Lv.8 – 88%], [Transformation (Iron) Lv.9 – 97%], [Substitution (Iron) Lv.8 – 33%], [Leaf Hurricane (Iron) Lv.9 – 29%], [Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing (Iron) Lv.4 – 1%], [Body Flicker (Iron) Lv.4 – 2%]」
Compared to the day he arrived, he improved a lot.
However, he started to stagnate.
'If everything goes as I planned, I'll be able to infiltrate safely.'
Flying in dragonfly form, Luka was only 100 meters away from the village entrance gate.
The day was clear and sunny. There were some ninjas at the guard post, two taking care of the gate.
The entrance was immense.
Even the people looked tiny in comparison to those gates.
Acting like a dragonfly, not wanting to be discovered, Luka got closer and closer.
Even after passing through the gates successfully, he didn't relax.
Flying to the top of a tree, he observed for a few seconds before moving to the next.
It didn't take long for him to find the place he was looking for.
'This has to work!' he said to himself.
Patience is a virtue.
Luka waited patiently for the right moment to act.
...
Several hours later.
Night came.
Luka finally moved.
[[Memory Loss] – A potion that makes the user temporarily lose their memory. 200 points
Note: The duration of memory loss varies between 1 day and 9 months]
[-200 Points]
A potion entered the storage of his stomach.
It was a somewhat risky gamble, but the result would be good enough to be worth the risk.
Still as a dragonfly, he flew until he reached in front of a wooden door.
Landing on the ground, from his stomach came out a handcrafted baby basket, followed by a thin blanket, and then, he changed form, transforming into a human — or rather, into a baby inside the basket with simple clothes.
In the basket, there was also a piece of wood with [Luka] carved on it.
Closing his baby eyes, Luka began to dissolve the potion vial in his stomach, and soon the contents worked their magic.
Complete memory loss, even if temporary.
The moment it took effect, Luka, in baby form, began to cry.
Inside the house, a beautiful red-haired woman heard the cry of a baby.
That cry caught her attention, making her stop washing the dirty dishes, drying her hands on her dark blue apron with an orange spiral symbol.
*Click*
As she opened the door, she brought both hands to her mouth.
She didn't stay in shock for long, running, she tried to find who had the courage to abandon a baby in front of her door.
However, no matter how much she tried, she was surprised to find that she wasn't able to locate who did it.
Returning, she stood before the basket with the baby inside.
She crouched in front of the basket, soon exclaiming in a gentle voice: "Wow! Aren't you the cutest little thing in this world? How cruel or desperate must someone be to have the courage to abandon you?"
When she picked him up in her arms, the crying ceased and with his hands waving in the air, 'the baby' began to laugh while trying to reach her face.
Seeing this, an indescribable shine passed through the clear eyes of the beautiful woman. She smiled, saying in a very soft and gentle tone: "Hello, little friend, aren't you adorable?"