In Konoha, the midday sun was warm and pleasant.
After Rin Nohara finished lunch, she returned to the classroom.
Before the afternoon classes began, she took out her notebook and reviewed the key points the teacher had covered that morning.
Today was only her second day of school, but she was determined to study hard and become an excellent medical-nin like Lady Tsunade.
Suddenly, a line of text appeared in her notebook on its own.
[“My name is Rin Nohara. By the time I see this message, I’ll be dead.”]
[“I was caught in a space-time disturbance and fell unconscious…”]
?
A huge question mark practically appeared above Rin’s small head.
How could her notebook write on its own?
And why did it have to write something so ominous?
As she wondered about this, more text continued to appear.
[“When I woke up, it was already nighttime. I carefully observed my surroundings and discovered that I was inside the Uchiha clan compound. I couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.”]
[“I now have three options.”]
[“1. Go to the Uchiha residential district and ask someone what happened.”]
[“2. Go to the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters, report the incident, explain my bizarre experience to the officers, and ask for their help.”]
[“3. Pretend nothing happened and go home to sleep.”]
The text finally stopped there.
Rin was confused and a little annoyed.
She had figured it out.
This seemed to be a small game in which she was the protagonist and had to make choices.
But why did it have to make her the protagonist?
Still, the game seemed quite interesting, and she wanted to try playing it.
So, if she really were in this situation, what would she choose?
First, she didn’t want to trouble anyone.
The text said it was nighttime, but it didn’t specify the exact time.
If it was already late and everyone was asleep, disturbing the residents would be very rude.
Therefore, she eliminated the first option.
Second, she wasn’t injured, and she couldn’t explain what had happened to her.
Reporting it…
She would rather not.
She eliminated the second option as well.
Finally, it was already late, and she still hadn’t returned home.
Her parents would be worried.
Thus, Rin immediately said, “I choose option three. I need to hurry home.”
The words in the notebook began to move again.
[“Because I didn’t want to trouble anyone, I chose to go home and sleep.”]
[“I left the Uchiha clan compound and headed outside.”]
[“The road outside the Uchiha clan compound was silent, with no one in sight.”]
[“As I wondered what was going on, several masked shinobi suddenly leaped out from all directions.”]
[“They looked like Lord Hokage’s ANBU, but they were somewhat different from the ANBU I usually saw.”]
[“Because… they carried an aura of utter disregard for human life.”]
[“Before I could understand what was happening, one of them rushed toward me. He was too fast for me to see clearly. All I felt was a chill across my neck.”]
[“I died.”]
[“This adventure has ended.”]
[“Evaluation: Because of my kindness and unwillingness to trouble others, I chose to pretend nothing had happened and go home to sleep. Unfortunately, the road home did not seem very safe…”]
[“Results: I survived for only a brief moment, which was not enough to earn a high evaluation. Final score: 0.5.”]
[“I gained a small amount of insignificant knowledge.”]
[“My unusual knowledge of Konoha increased slightly.”]
Rin puffed out her cheeks in indignation.
What kind of ridiculous game was this?
She had died just like that, without even knowing why?
Was a score of 0.5 really that low?
At that moment, a piece of knowledge suddenly appeared in Rin’s mind in the form of text.
[“Konoha, bathed in sunlight, is not as bright as it appears on the surface. There is also a force hidden deep within the darkness known as—Root.”]
[“Like the ANBU, Root operatives wear masks while carrying out missions. Root possesses authority similar to that of the ANBU. Sometimes its authority is lower, but at other times, it is even greater…”]
Rin was stunned.
Root?
What kind of organization was that?
Did such an organization really exist in Konoha?
Rin suddenly remembered that she had been killed in the game by a group of shinobi who looked very much like ANBU.
Could those people have been members of Root?
Rin couldn’t help but shiver.
If this organization also existed in the real Konoha, how could she ever dare to walk alone at night again?
At the same time, she was unconvinced.
A score of 0.5—was the game looking down on her?
If she could try again, she would definitely achieve a better ending.
At that moment, text began to appear in the notebook once more.
[“I have one chance to reset each day. Do I want to use it?”]
Rin was delighted.
So she could play again.
She nodded and said, “I want to use it.”
The same three options appeared in the notebook again.
Go to the residential district, go to the Military Police Force headquarters, or go home.
This time, Rin had made up her mind.
“I choose to go to the Military Police Force headquarters and report the incident. There are bad guys in the village. They need to be caught.”
More text began to appear.
[“This time, I chose to go to the Military Police Force headquarters and report the incident.”]
[“I arrived at the Military Police Force headquarters. The road was just as quiet, with no one around.”]
[“I approached the headquarters and suddenly noticed that the lights inside, which had been on moments ago, had gone out.”]
[“I saw a strange figure flickering in and out of sight through the window. He seemed… to be slaughtering people.”]
[“I heard muffled groans. I heard screams.”]
[“At this point, I have two choices.”]
[“1. Go forward and investigate.”]
[“2. Run while I still can.”]
Rin was startled.
Someone was massacring the Konoha Military Police Force?
A strange figure?
Screams?
How had she gotten caught up in something so terrifying?
Without the slightest hesitation, she said, “I choose option two.”
The text continued to appear.
[“Since I was only a defenseless girl, I turned and fled without looking back after witnessing such a terrifying scene.”]
[“At this point, I have two options.”]
[“1. Run back the way I came and escape from the Uchiha clan compound.”]
[“2. Head toward the residential district.”]
Escape?
How could she escape?
There was still a group of villains called Root outside.
Therefore, Rin could only say, “I choose option two.”
[“I knew there were still enemies outside the Uchiha clan compound, so I ran toward the residential district.”]
[“The terrifying shadow sensed my presence, but after noticing the direction in which I was fleeing, he chose not to pursue me.”]
[“The streets along the way were equally deserted. The closer I got, the stronger the smell of blood became.”]
[“I entered the streets of the residential district and was horrified by the sight before me. Bodies lay scattered across the ground, and blood flowed through the streets.”]
[“There were elderly people, children, civilians, and shinobi. They were all dead.”]
[“Every one of them was a member of the Uchiha clan.”]
[“I felt as though someone was watching me from behind.”]
[“I instinctively turned my head and suddenly noticed someone crouching atop a distant utility pole.”]
[“At that moment, I saw his blood-red eyes and the constantly spinning pinwheel-shaped pattern within them.”]
[“I experienced a beautiful dream within the world of Tsukuyomi. I died.”]
[“This adventure has ended.”]
It really helps the fic grow!