The laughter stopped, the village fell silent and Koga himself looked up.
"Huh?"
The Ninja Chat froze. Even the Villager Chat became quiet. Everyone knew Inuzuza Kyo.
He was an elite Jonin. One of the strongest Ninja in the village.
The Inuzuza Clan members immediately looked toward him.
Kyo stood calmly among them. He had clearly made his decision. Then the Sky Screen answered.
CHALLENGE REQUEST DENIED.
Kyo frowned.
"Denied?"
The explanation appeared.
ONLY INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE REACHED THE REQUIRED LEVEL MAY CHALLENGE AN OVERLORD OF THIS RANK.
Another line appeared.
REQUIRED STRENGTH: SANNIN LEVEL.
The entire village became silent. Then whispers began to resound.
"Sannin?"
"Then Kyo cannot challenge him."
"Of course he can’t."
"There are no Sannin in Koyagakure except the clan leaders."
"Exactly."
Kyo’s expression became ugly.
He knew it was true. He was an elite Jonin. But Sannin was on another level entirely. Only the leaders of the four great clans had reached that level. Nobody else in Koyagakure had.
The Villager Chat immediately filled with messages.
Villager Mina: So Kyo cannot challenge Yukiju Ken?
Ninja Raku: Not unless he reaches Sannin level.
Villager Toma: That’s unfortunate.
Ninja Raku: For him.
Villager Toma: Why?
Ninja Raku: Because now everyone knows he isn’t Sannin.
Inuzuza Kyo: Raku.
Ninja Raku: Yes, sir.
Inuzuza Kyo: Stop talking.
Ninja Raku: Yes, sir.
The chat quieted again. Then a villager cautiously asked...
Villager Mina: Can villagers challenge them too?
The question immediately attracted everyone’s attention. And the Sky Screen responded.
YES.
The villagers stared. Then another message appeared.
ANY INDIVIDUAL MAY CHALLENGE AN OVERLORD IF THEY MEET THE REQUIRED CONDITIONS.
The villagers became excited. Then the next line appeared.
IN FACT, THE NUMBER ONE OVERLORD OF KOYAGAKURE IS A VILLAGER.
Silence. The Villager Chat stopped. The Ninja Chat stopped. Even the four great clans stopped moving. Then the Sky Screen displayed the information.
FULL NAME: INUZUZA KOGA.
AGE: 16.
CLAN: INUZUZA CLAN.
NINJA VILLAGE: KOYAGAKURE, HIDDEN WILDERNESS VILLAGE.
ROLE: KOYAGAKURE VILLAGER.
STATUS: HEALTHY.
RANKING: NUMBER ONE, STRONGEST.
SPECIAL TRAIT: POSSESSES NO CHAKRA, BLOODLINE, OR SPECIAL ABILITY THAT HE KNOWS OF.
The village exploded.
"What?!"
"He’s a villager?"
"Sixteen?"
"No chakra?"
"No bloodline?"
"How can someone with no chakra be number one?"
The Inuzuza Clan nearly lost control.
"What?"
"Find him!"
"We have to find him!"
"Search every household again!"
"He is sixteen!"
"We checked everyone!"
The Ninja Chat became chaotic.
Inuzuza Ninja: How is this possible?!
Inuzuza Ninja: We searched the records!
Inuzuza Ninja: There is no Inuzuza Koga!
Karasu Ninja: Then where did he come from?
Yukiju Ninja: The System says he belongs to your clan.
Inuzuza Ninja: We know what it says!
Kuma Ninja: No chakra and number one?
Karasu Ninja: That makes no sense.
A villager typed:
Villager Haku: No wonder he’s poor.
Another message followed.
Villager Mina: What?
Villager Haku: If he isn’t even a Ninja, how would he make money?
Koga’s face went pale.
"Hey!"
He looked around.
"That isn’t the important part!"
Nobody heard him. The chat continued.
Villager Toma: So the strongest person in the village has no chakra?
Ninja Raku: Apparently.
Villager Mina: And he’s poor?
Ninja Raku: Apparently.
Villager Haku: This is getting strange.
On the other hand, Koga could only cover his face. "Please stop talking about that."
Then a new message appeared.
KUMA RAI: CAN I CHALLENGE THE NUMBER ONE OVERLORD?
The Sky Screen immediately responded.
YES.
The village went silent. Another explanation appeared.
THE OVERLORD RANKING EXISTS TO ALLOW CHALLENGES.
WHEN A CHALLENGE IS ACCEPTED, BOTH PARTICIPANTS WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO A SPECIAL BATTLEFIELD.
THE BATTLEFIELD WILL PROTECT THE PARTICIPANTS FROM TRUE DEATH.
The villagers stared. Then the next message appeared.
HOWEVER, THE BATTLE WILL END ONLY WHEN ONE PARTICIPANT IS DEFEATED.
ALL METHODS ARE PERMITTED.
EVEN SUICIDAL TECHNIQUES MAY BE USED.
IF THE CHALLENGER DEFEATS THE OPPONENT FIRST, THE CHALLENGER WINS.
The entire village became shocked.
"You can use anything?"
"Even a technique that kills yourself?"
"As long as you defeat the opponent first?"
The Sky Screen answered.
CORRECT.
The mood became much heavier. Then another explanation appeared.
HOWEVER, DEFEAT CARRIES A PRICE.
The villagers held their breath.
A CHALLENGER WHO LOSES SHALL FORFEIT SOMETHING IN EXCHANGE FOR THEIR DEFEAT.
Kuma Rai’s eyes narrowed.
"What do I lose?"
The screen answered.
THE COST WILL BE DETERMINED BY THE BATTLE AND THE TERMS OF THE CHALLENGE.
Then another line appeared.
THE NUMBER ONE OVERLORD SHALL NOT LOSE ANYTHING UPON DEFEAT EXCEPT THEIR CURRENT RANKING AND THE REWARDS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT RANKING.
The villagers slowly understood.
"So Koga only loses his position?"
"And his monthly rewards?"
"Yes."
"But the challenger risks losing something?"
"That’s what it says."
Kuma Rai smiled.
"Then I accept."
Koga’s eyes widened. The giant leader of the Kuma Clan had challenged him. The number two Overlord. A Sannin. A man with enormous physical strength. A man who possessed a giant Ninja Bear.
Koga swallowed.
His earlier thoughts suddenly came together. The System had placed him at number one. It had shown impossible feats. It had given him a legendary beast from another world. And now it has allowed someone to challenge him.
Koga’s mind raced.
Maybe the ranking was not saying he was genuinely strong. Maybe the feats were exaggerated. That strange man running through the rain? He still did not understand it.
Ignilion?
That was probably just some reward the System had decided to give him.
As for some hidden power inside his body... Koga did not believe it. He had lived in this world for a year. He knew what his body could do. He had no chakra. No bloodline. No special ability. Nothing. But then he remembered something. If the System was truly his, maybe this was why it had placed him at number one.
The system wanted him to battle!
Maybe this was the reason.
Koga slowly clenched his fists.
"So this is why..."
The Sky Screen suddenly flickered. The entire village became silent. A new message appeared.
NUMBER ONE OVERLORD, INUZUZA KOGA.
KUMA RAI HAS CHALLENGED YOUR POSITION.
DO YOU ACCEPT THE CHALLENGE?
Koga stared at the words. His heart hammered against his chest. The entire village waited for his answer. But he did not even need to think about it.
"No."
The answer came immediately that it made the entire village freeze.
Koga crossed his arms and nodded to himself.
"Hehehe."
Several villagers looked confused.
"What?"
"He refused?"
"Why?"
Koga rolled his eyes and ignored them. For him, it’s the wisest decision. He had finally reached the top. Number one. The strongest. And because he was at the top, the System had already promised him rewards. If he stayed there, he would continue receiving them.
So why would he risk his life fighting someone? Especially someone as terrifying as Kuma Rai?
Koga smiled.
"As long as I keep denying the challenges, I stay at number one."
He nodded again.
"Then I keep getting rewards."
His smile became wider.
The villagers looked at the Sky Screen. Then they looked at one another. Several sighed.
"He really refused."
"I can’t blame him."
"But I wanted to see the battle."
"So did I."
One villager shook his head.
"What a shame."
Even some of the Ninja looked disappointed.
Kuma Rai, however, was feeling the same. The massive clan leader stood beneath the Sky Screen with his arms crossed. For several seconds, he simply stared at it. Then he sighed.
"That’s disappointing."
One of his subordinates looked at him.
"Clan Leader?"
Rai shook his head.
"I thought I could test him."
"You mean the number one?"
"Yes."
Rai looked toward the image of Koga.
"From what we saw, that boy’s body language and information are strange."
"He is a villager."
"I know."
"He has no chakra."
"I know that too."
Rai frowned.
"But he’s still at the top."
The ninja asked, "Are you thinking something, Clan Leader?"
Rai nodded. Then he said, "Maybe he’s just gifted in physical strength. That’s why he surpassed us in physical strength. That’s why he’s at the top."
The ninja replied, "But still... what if it’s accurate? Not just physical body but Chakra too?"
Rai nodded. "I know. That’s why I want to challenge him."
He had seen people with extraordinary physical bodies before. Some civilians were naturally stronger than ninja. Some could lift enormous weights without chakra. Some could run faster than trained Clan descendants. There were even rare people whose physical bodies were so powerful that they could defeat ordinary ninja in close combat without chakra. But Rai had also seen those people lose.
A person could have overwhelming physical strength, but ninja techniques could turn that strength into nothing. A weaker ninja could use illusions. A weaker ninja could hide underground. A weaker ninja could attack from a distance. A weaker ninja could use traps.
Strength alone did not decide a ninja battle.
Rai had once watched a physically gifted fighter challenge a lower-ranked ninja. The fighter had been faster, stronger, and tougher. Yet the ninja had simply, luckily and on time, used a technique the man could not understand. The battle ended before the fighter even realized what had happened.
That was why Rai had been interested in Koga. The boy had appeared completely clueless. He watched the Sky Screen with the same confused expression as everyone else. Even when his incredible speed was displayed, to Rai, Koga had seemed unaware of what it meant.
Rai had thought that perhaps Koga possessed an abnormal body but had no understanding of his own strength. That could be dangerous. Or it could be an enormous weakness. A person who did not understand his own power could easily be defeated by someone who knew exactly how to exploit it.
Rai had wanted to find out.
But now...
"He refused."
Rai sighed.
"I wanted to know whether the number one really deserved that position."
However, as if answering to his disappointment. The Sky Screen flickered.
Kuma Rai looked up.
CHALLENGE REFUSAL DETECTED.
Koga’s expression immediately relaxed. "See?" He smiled. "I can refuse."
But the next message appeared and his face changed instantly.
THE NUMBER ONE OVERLORD MAY NOT REFUSE A CHALLENGE ISSUED BY AN OVERLORD WITHIN THE REQUIRED CHALLENGE RANK.
Koga’s smile disappeared.
"...What?"
The village became silent. The message continued.
THE NUMBER ONE POSITION MUST BE DEFENDED.