Consciousness slowly emerged from boundless darkness, like a drowning man clawing his way toward the surface.
The faint scent of medicinal herbs reached his nose first.
Then came the soft support of a bed beneath his back.
Kazama Ryū opened his eyes with effort.
The familiar wooden ceiling came into view, along with his mother slumped against the edge of the bed.
Even in sleep, her brows were tightly knit.
He tried to move his fingers.
A deep soreness and weakness surged up from his bones, spreading through his entire body.
“Hiss…” The faint sound stirred Misako from her shallow sleep.
“Ryū!
You’re awake!” She snapped upright.
Her bloodshot eyes filled with relief, which was quickly followed by fear and heartache.
She reached out, checking his forehead, then his hands and feet, her voice trembling with urgency.
“How do you feel?
Does anything hurt?
Are you uncomfortable anywhere?” “I’m fine, Mom.” Ryū forced a stiff smile, his voice dry.
“I’m just… a little hungry.” This fragile body made one truth painfully clear to him—Chakra was a ninja’s mana bar.
Once it was drained dry, even a god would collapse.
The price of activating the system was letting him experience the extreme weakness Kakashi was so famously familiar with.
“It’s good that you’re hungry, that’s good!” Misako’s eyes reddened as she hurriedly stood up.
“You’ve been unconscious for three whole days!
I’ll make you something right away.
Just rest!” As he watched her rush out of the room, warmth and guilt tangled together in Ryū’s chest.
He knew that his sudden collapse had pushed this already fragile family even closer to the brink.
Once he was alone, Ryū silently called out in his mind.
“System.” A pale-blue interface appeared at once.
[Name: Kazama Ryū] [Age: 6] [Physique: 4] [Spirit: 6] [Chakra: 15/100] (Slowly recovering) [Skills:] [Chakra Extraction Technique: LV.0 (81/100)] [Clone Technique: LV.0 (79/100)] [Basic Taijutsu: LV.0 (98/100)] […] Ryū examined the panel carefully.
It was so barebones it could almost be called primitive.
No flashy shop.
No lottery system promising miracles.
No beginner gift packs.
Only one core concept stood out.
Proficiency.
Practice, and you grow stronger.
The corners of Ryū’s mouth lifted uncontrollably.
“So even in another world, I’m still grinding like a corporate slave, huh?” He complained inwardly, but he understood better than anyone just how terrifyingly perfect this system was for someone like him.
No bottlenecks.
No shortcuts.
Just effort in exchange for results.
Wasn’t this the kind of fairness he had dreamed of in his previous life?
His gaze lingered on the numbers beside Chakra Extraction Technique (81/100).
That had to be the result of his sporadic training over the past six years.
Eighty-one points in six years.
By Konoha standards, that was firmly in “painfully average” territory.
Before, cultivation without feedback had been like pushing a millstone in total darkness—monotonous, exhausting, and hopeless.
Now, every bit of effort would turn into visible progress.
For someone who had once lived by deadlines and performance metrics, this was like a mental stimulant.
After regaining a bit of strength, Ryū forced himself out of bed and walked into the study his father had once used.
The room was small and sparsely furnished.
The only thing of value was a locked cabinet.
He found the key and opened it.
There was no gold, no silver, and no secret manuals capable of shaking the world.
Only three scrolls lay quietly inside.
Ryū picked up the first and unrolled it.
[Detailed Explanation of Three Basic Jutsu Practice] Plain and ordinary—the most basic teaching material from the Ninja Academy.
The second scroll: [Insights on Body Flicker Technique Practice] A D-rank technique.
Common, but demanding solid Chakra control.
The third scroll: [Wind Style: Great Breakthrough] A C-rank Ninjutsu, and the strongest attack his father had mastered.
This was the entire legacy of an ordinary Chunin—so meager it made one’s chest tighten.
Yet Ryū hugged the three scrolls as if they were priceless treasures.
This was his foundation.
His starting capital to defy fate.
“Dad’s Chakra nature was Wind… so mine probably is too.” His thoughts sharpened.
“Then the plan is simple.” Back in his room, Ryū found a piece of paper and began writing and sketching with a pencil.
The logical thinking he had honed through endless presentations in his previous life was now fully put to use.
Step One: Strengthen the foundation.
Target: Chakra Extraction Technique.
Without sufficient Chakra reserves and recovery speed, everything else was meaningless.
This had to be his top priority—grind it until it leveled up.
Step Two: Arm himself.
Target: The Three Basic Jutsu.
E-rank techniques.
Low cost.
Extremely practical.
When you lack offensive power, survival and disguise come first.
Low investment, high return—this was the best armor he could afford.
They needed to be maxed out as soon as possible.
As for Body Flicker Technique and Wind Style: Great Breakthrough, they would have to wait until his Chakra problem was resolved.
Once the plan was complete, Ryū felt an unprecedented clarity.
Tomorrow, he would return to the Ninja Academy.
That place was filled with geniuses like Kakashi Hatake, and elite heirs like Asuma Sarutobi.
And he?
Just an ordinary war orphan.
But from today onward, things were different.
Night fell.
Insects chirped outside the window while the house remained silent.
After confirming his mother was sound asleep, Ryū sat cross-legged on the bed and closed his eyes.
Following the method ingrained in his memory, he began the first truly deliberate cultivation of his new life.
He carefully extracted energy from his cells, then guided his spiritual force to merge with it.
For a six-year-old, the process was both tedious and painful.
Sweat quickly soaked his bangs, and his body trembled under the strain of intense concentration.
At last, a thin thread of Chakra formed and flowed into the nearly dried-up pool within his body.
Just as exhaustion overtook him and he prepared to stop— [Ding!] The crisp notification rang out in his mind.
[Chakra Extraction Technique proficiency +5!] Ryū’s body jolted.
His eyes flew open.
On his exhausted face, a brilliant smile bloomed at last.
It works.
It really works.
The lack of Chakra.
The aching body.
The pitiful family savings.
In that moment, none of it mattered anymore.