Konoha.
On the outskirts of the village.
Iori Yakumo opened his bleary eyes and began preparing breakfast: milk, fried eggs, and bread.
He was a transmigrator, and it had been three days since he arrived in this world.
On a cold night, the original owner of this body had inexplicably died at home.
Perhaps he had gone to the Pure Land, or perhaps his soul had merged with Yakumo’s.
The original owner’s parents had been ordinary Chunin of Konoha.
In reality, they were little more than cannon fodder, and both had died during the Second Shinobi World War, leaving Yakumo three million ryo in compensation for their deaths.
His special ability had awakened three days ago.
It wasn’t some impressive, all-powerful system, but a crude interface resembling a single-player game.
It was the very same mindless grinding game that had worked him to the point of death.
[Daily Missions] [Weekly Missions]
After his transmigration, the game had become even more primitive.
All that remained was its most basic personal status screen, a mission system, and a few pitiful rewards.
Name: Iori Yakumo Age: 7
Constitution: 3.3 (stamina, resistance, recovery)Strength: 2.7 (lifting capacity, attack power, etc.)Agility: 3.1 (reflexes, running speed)Intelligence: 4.2 (learning ability, mental resistance)
Yakumo immediately closed his status screen and opened the daily mission interface.
Three missions refreshed every day, each offering a small attribute increase and fifty gold coins.
Unfortunately, he hadn’t transmigrated on a Monday, so no weekly missions had appeared that week.
As for the gold coins…
Yakumo still hadn’t discovered what they were for.
After three days of hard work, he had accumulated 450 coins.
[Daily Missions] A Good Start to the Day
Complete a five-kilometer jog before eight o’clock in the morning.
Rewards: 50 gold coins, 0.1 Constitution.
Hard Work Makes Up for a Lack of Talent
Complete a 2,000-word essay analyzing and summarizing the Will of Fire before eleven o’clock at night.
Rewards: 50 gold coins, 0.1 Strength.
The Meaning of Spring
Accept a bento from Mori Yasuko and tell her, “I love your bentos more than anything!”
Rewards: 50 gold coins, 0.1 Intelligence.
…
Even transmigration couldn’t change the fundamental nature of that soul-crushing grinding game.
Yakumo grumbled as he finished his simple breakfast.
After a quick warm-up, he set off on his morning run.
He finished breakfast at 7:40 a.m.
Yakumo’s house stood on the outskirts of Konoha, not far from the Forest of Death used for the Chunin Exams.
He jogged along the road until he reached a bookstore.
By then, his first mission had become eligible for submission.
“Submit mission.”
A wave of warmth surged through his body, soothing his slightly fatigued muscles.
The sensation came quickly and vanished even faster, disappearing completely within a few seconds.
It felt as though he were immersed in pleasantly warm water while countless gentle hands massaged his entire body.
“Now that’s the good stuff!”
If he had to describe the sensation in a single word, that word would be bliss.
The pleasure of feeling his body grow stronger was what motivated Iori Yakumo to keep grinding through his missions.
He could swear that this was nothing more than a cheap trick designed to keep players addicted.
After some bargaining, he bought a book titled The Great Ninja: A Biography of Hiruzen Sarutobi for 120 ryo.
He needed it as reference material for his mission.
At first, Yakumo had tried using various technical tricks to pad his word count and complete his assignments with minimal effort.
The result, however, had been mission failure.
After observing the system for several days, he discovered that some missions were connected to that day’s experiences, almost as though they predicted what was going to happen.
That morning, the Third Hokage would be giving a speech about the Will of Fire.
Naturally, the system had generated an essay assignment on the very same subject.
In the days before, he’d stayed up late struggling to complete assignments such as How to Survive Alone in the Wilderness, The Essential Professional Qualities of a Ninja, and An Analytical Report on the Characteristics of Kunai and Shuriken.
At 8:30 a.m., Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, was scheduled to deliver his speech on the Will of Fire in the main auditorium.
As first-year students attending the Academy for the first time, the children received special treatment.
They were seated near the front, where they could bask in the radiant glory of the Will of Fire from a close distance.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood at the podium and began with a brief introduction.
“Disciple of the Second Hokage.”
“The Professor of Ninjutsu, the strongest shinobi in Konoha.”
“I have a modest understanding of every nature of ninjutsu.”
“Led our forces to victory in the Second Shinobi World War.”
…
Is this guy here to show off?
Yakumo wondered as he watched Hiruzen enthusiastically introduce himself from the stage.
Hiruzen cleared his throat, surveyed the young, innocent faces of the first-year students, and began his official speech.
“The Will of Fire was first proposed by Lord First…”
Below the stage, Iori Yakumo’s eyes lit up.
He hurriedly took out his notebook and began taking notes, gradually adopting an expression of deep admiration.
As expected of the shinobi world’s master of brainwashing.
Two hours later, Yakumo glanced at the increasingly fervent expressions around him and couldn’t help sighing inwardly.
This old man has studied motivational speaking, too…
Time flew by.
At 12:30 p.m., Hiruzen finally announced the end of the gathering, still looking as though he hadn’t had enough.
His face was flushed, and he showed not the slightest sign of fatigue.
“The old man sure knows how to ramble.”
A black-haired boy sitting in the front row suddenly complained.
The person bold enough to criticize the Third Hokage in such a tone was Yakumo’s classmate, Asuma Sarutobi.
“Here, Yakumo-kun.
Your bento.”
Mori Yasuko sat down beside Yakumo without the slightest hesitation and took out an exquisitely crafted wooden lunch box.
The delicious aroma seeped through the gaps in its lid.
Yakumo thanked her and reached out to accept it.
Mission Three: Triggered.
Yakumo’s expression changed slightly.
“I love your bentos more than anything!”
With a smile, Iori Yakumo opened the lunch box and eagerly devoured the seaweed rice balls and richly flavored miso soup inside.
Not far away, Kurenai Yuhi turned to chat with Asuma Sarutobi about the afternoon’s classes.
It’s all for the mission.
“Submit mission.”
A cool stream of energy gathered in Yakumo’s brain, completing the enhancement within seconds.
Today was the first day of the Ninja Academy.
In the afternoon, their homeroom teacher would distribute the instructions for chakra cultivation.
In fact, since both of Iori Yakumo’s parents had been shinobi, their study naturally contained manuals explaining how to cultivate chakra.
However, beginning chakra cultivation before the age of six could interfere with physical development.
After school, Yakumo walked home with Mori Yasuko, holding the manual on chakra cultivation.
Yasuko’s parents had been classmates of Yakumo’s parents.
More than ten years ago, they had stopped taking on missions and opened a ninja tool shop using the connections they’d built during their careers as shinobi.
Their business provided them with a comfortable living.
“Yakumo, would you like to practice kunai throwing with me?”
The two walked in silence until they reached their front doors.
Unable to hold back any longer, Mori Yasuko asked the question, her eyes filled with hope.
“No.
I’m planning to go home and try cultivating chakra.”
Yakumo answered somewhat coldly, shut the door behind him, and walked into the dimly lit courtyard, paying no attention to the increasingly resentful look in the girl’s eyes behind him.
He understood how Yasuko felt about the original owner of his body.
He also knew how well she had come to understand him through all the years they’d spent together.
If anyone in this world could discover that the soul inhabiting this body was no longer the original one, that person would undoubtedly be…
Mori Yasuko.
But the missions still had to be completed…