The enormous Sky Screen remained above Koyagakure, displaying the strange mission concerning Inuzuza Kiza, and the villagers were still trying to understand why an event that had been introduced as one of the five Ultimate Missions had suddenly turned into something that sounded more like village gossip than a world changing challenge. Then the rules appeared.
THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS MISSION IS TO DISCOVER WHO INUZUZA KIZA LOVES.
A few villagers immediately started laughing.
Then another line appeared.
NO FORCE MAY BE USED.
The laughter grew louder. Force? She was the second strongest of all the Clans. Who would dare?
NO MEMBER OF THE INUZUZA CLAN MAY PARTICIPATE.
The Inuzuza Clan members immediately looked uncomfortable. Then the final restriction appeared.
INUZUZA KIZA HERSELF MAY NOT PARTICIPATE.
The Villager Chat exploded.
Villager Mina: HAHAHAHA!
Villager Toma: THE MATRIARCH CAN’T EVEN ANSWER HER OWN QUESTION!
Villager Haku: THIS IS THE STRANGEST MISSION EVER!
The Ninja Chat was just as loud.
Genin Raku: So we have to investigate someone’s love life?
Chunin Sora: Apparently.
Genin Raku: Is this really an Ultimate Mission?
Jonin Taro: Don’t say that where Kiza can see it.
Genin Raku: She already saw it.
Jonin Taro: Then I never knew you.
The Sky Screen finally displayed the duration.
MISSION DURATION: ONE MONTH.
IF NO ONE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETES THE MISSION, THE REWARD WILL BE GRANTED TO THE INUZUZA CLAN.
That earned another wave of laughter.
However, Koga barely paid attention. His mind was already somewhere else. He glanced toward the little Ignilion standing beside him. The tiny Flame Spirit Beast had grown slightly since the battle, its mane now reaching a little farther around its head, while faint flames occasionally flickered around its paws whenever it breathed.
Koga crouched.
"You need to stay hidden."
Ignilion looked up.
"Rrr?"
"Yes, I’m serious."
The little beast tilted its head.
Koga sighed.
"If the whole village sees you wandering around, everyone will know where and who I am."
Ignilion made another small sound.
Koga nodded.
"Exactly."
He looked around cautiously. The villagers were far away and still focused on the Sky Screen, while the Ninja were busy discussing the mission and the Top Overlords were dealing with their own problems.
Koga lowered his voice.
"We need to keep you low profile."
Then he noticed something floating slightly above Ignilion.
A faint System window.
Koga blinked his eyes.
"What is that?"
He leaned closer.
The transparent screen remained in place. His eyes widened.
"I’ve seen this before."
A strange feeling passed through him.
In the Spiritual Beast Game from his past life, every beast had a similar interface. Players could inspect their creatures and view their levels, attributes, abilities, and talents. The best part was that, through these screens, they could even issue commands to their beasts.
Koga’s heartbeat quickened.
"Don’t tell me..."
He reached out and touched the screen. His fingers felt a cook wind and then the interface expanded.
Ignilion’s information appeared.
NAME: IGNILION
TYPE: FLAME SPIRIT BEAST
SPECIES: LEGENDARY BEAST
Koga stared at and then his eyes hurriedly moved to the level.
LEVEL: 16
He froze.
"Sixteen?"
Koga rubbed his eyes. He remembered checking Ignilion earlier. It had been Level 5. Now it was Level 16. Which made him contemplate silently.
He looked at the little beast.
"You leveled up?"
Ignilion wagged its tail.
Koga slowly understood.
"The battle..."
His eyes widened.
"Did you gain experience from defeating Kuma Rai?"
The little beast gave a proud little growl.
Koga’s mouth opened. Then he laughed wryly.
"So that’s how it works just like in the game."
He had wondered how the System would allow him to grow stronger without chakra. Since it had this game interface, could the beast grow stronger through battle? And if the beast did grow stronger, perhaps he could become stronger through it as well. He couldn’t help but think about it, yet shook his head immediately as there were more pressing matters in his head.
Koga quickly opened the abilities section. He remembered what Ignilion had possessed at Level 5. Only two moves.
Flame Fang.
Earth Eruption.
Now there were more.
FLAME FANG
EARTH ERUPTION
GRINDING FANGS
MAUL
EXTREME FLASH
Koga stared at the list. His eyes slowly widened.
"No way."
These were not ordinary abilities. He knew them.
He had spent countless hours playing Spiritual Beast World in his past life. Grinding Fangs sharpen its fangs to extremely strengthen physical attacks. Maul was a brutal close range attack that became stronger against weakened targets.
Extreme Flash was one of the beast game’s most powerful movement attacks, allowing a beast to cross enormous distances in an instant while striking the opponent.
Koga could hardly believe it.
"These are top tier moves."
He looked at Ignilion differently.
The little creature was still small. Still adorable. Still making tiny sounds. But beneath that appearance was a growing legendary beast.
Koga smiled.
"Not bad."
Then he noticed another section.
INNATE TALENT
He opened it. His expression changed immediately.
LEGENDARY FLAME PRESSURE
Koga’s breathing stopped.
He quickly read the description.
WHEN IGNILION IS RELEASED, ITS NATURAL PRESSURE WEAKENS THE ABILITIES OF NEARBY FOES BY HALF.
Koga stared.
Half?
The description continued.
FOES WITH WEAK WILLPOWER MAY BE UNABLE TO ACT.
Another line appeared.
SOME FOES MAY FLEE INSTINCTIVELY.
Then:
CONTACT WITH IGNILION’S PRESSURE MAY ALSO CAUSE BURNING.
Koga’s mouth slowly opened.
"This..."
He stared at Ignilion intently. He didn’t know what to do with it.
"You’re actually a legendary beast."
Ignilion looked pleased.
"Rrrr."
Koga laughed quietly.
"You don’t even understand what I’m saying, do you?"
The beast licked its paw.
Koga shook his head.
"Still, you’re amazing."
His pride grew. For the first time, he felt that perhaps the System had not completely abandoned him. The Game Interface from the Spiritual Beast Game made Ignilion stronger through battle. Its innate talent was terrifying. And it had already defeated a Sannin level Ninja.
But Koga’s smile quickly faded.
He looked toward the village. The problem remained. He was still weak. He had no chakra. He had no bloodline. He could not personally defeat an army of assassins.
If someone surrounded him with hundreds of Ninja, what was he supposed to do?
Throw a rock?
Koga sighed.
"And the System keeps telling everyone I’m overwhelmingly powerful."
His expression became bitter.
"That is the biggest problem."
If the villagers believed he was strong, that was manageable. If a powerful Ninja believed it, that was dangerous. If other villages heard about him, it would become worse.
Someone would eventually come looking. Someone would challenge him. Someone would try to assassinate him.
Koga did not want any of that.
He wanted a peaceful life. He wanted to train. He wanted to grow stronger. He wanted to survive. That was all.
"I need to hide my beasts."
He glanced at Ignilion.
"Really hide."
Then his eyes shifted toward the second legendary beast reward. The creature was still waiting inside the System.
Koga hesitated.
"Fine."
He opened the reward.
A new profile appeared.
NAME: FENFYR
Koga’s eyes widened.
"Fenfyr."
The image of the creature appeared. The creature looked nothing like Ignilion. Its body was dark, almost black, and its eyes were completely black as well, giving it an eerie appearance that made it look as though it had been carved from the night itself. White markings covered its body. They flowed along its back and sides like clouds drifting across a moonless sky. The markings were bright enough to stand out against its dark body.
Koga stared.
"Beautiful."
Fenfyr looked like a creature born from the sky during a storm. Its body was lean and powerful, built more for speed than brute force. Its long limbs gave it an almost graceful appearance. There was something unsettling about it too.
It did not look wild. It looked intelligent. It looked like something that was watching from above.
Koga then remembered its lore.
In Spiritual Beast World, Fenfyr was another creation of the legendary Phoenix Minokawa.
Ignilion had been created to guard the sacred mountain. Fenfyr had been created to guard the Sky Palace. One ruled the earth and fire. The other ruled the heavens and wind.
Koga smiled.
"So Minokawa really made both of you."
He opened Fenfyr’s profile.
TYPE: WIND SPIRIT BEAST
SPECIES: LEGENDARY BEAST
LEVEL: 5
Koga nodded.
"Level five."
So Fenfyr had not received the same experience as Ignilion. That made sense. It had not fought yet. Koga scrolled down. The moves appeared one by one.
WIND CLAW
SKY STEP
Koga nodded.
Those were good. Then he scrolled again. His finger stopped. His eyes widened.
ROARING WIND
Koga stared at the screen.
"No way."
He continued downward. Then another move appeared.
TRANSFORM
Koga’s eyes widened even further.
He stared at the two abilities.
"Roaring Wind..."
His voice became quieter.
"And Transform?"