We moved into position. The clearing was grassy and open, with a few trees scattered around.
"Ready... Begin!" Choji yelled, tossing a chip into his mouth.
Ino moved first. "Mind Body Switch Jutsu!"
She formed a hand seal, aiming her consciousness at me. I knew this move. If she hit me, she would take over my body.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" I shouted.
Poof!
Five Narutos appeared. Ino’s aim wavered, unsure which one was real.
"Choji! Human Boulder!" Shikamaru commanded.
Choji expanded his size and tucked his limbs in, rolling toward us like a meat tank.
"Hinata, jump!" I yelled.
Hinata leaped into the air. Thanks to her new, "aerodynamic" outfit, she jumped higher than usual. However, as she landed on a tree branch, the System decided it was time to work.
"Warning," the System announced. "Target: Shikamaru Nara. High Intelligence, Low Motivation. Initiating Rito Effect: The Shadow Bind Glitch."
Shikamaru was performing his signature move. "Shadow Possession Jutsu!"
His shadow stretched across the grass, aiming to catch my shadow and freeze me in place.
However, as Hinata landed on the branch, the wood snapped under her feet (despite being thick enough to hold an elephant).
"Ah!" she cried, plummeting toward the ground.
She fell directly into the path of Shikamaru’s extending shadow.
Normally, the Shadow Possession Jutsu just freezes you. But the System had other ideas.
As Hinata’s shadow connected with Shikamaru’s, the jutsu "glitched."
Shikamaru’s eyes widened. "What? My chakra... it is slipping!"
Instead of freezing her in a standing position, the shadow whipped around her ankles and wrists like a physical rope. It yanked her downward.
Hinata fell forward, sliding across the grass. The shadow pulled her directly toward Shikamaru.
"Whoa, hey!" Shikamaru yelled, trying to release the jutsu. "Stop!"
Physics failed again. Hinata slid right between Shikamaru’s legs, tripping him. Shikamaru fell backward. Hinata’s momentum carried her forward until she landed on top of him.
But because the "Shadow Possession" was still active and glitching, it forced them into a very specific pose.
Shikamaru was lying on his back. Hinata was straddling his chest. Her hands were pinned above her head by an invisible force (the shadow), and Shikamaru’s hands were involuntarily locked onto her waist because his shadow was mirroring her movements.
It looked like Shikamaru had used his secret clan technique to bind a girl and force her into his lap.
"Netorare Situation Detected!" The System cheered. "The 'Shadow Bondage' Event. Very niche. Very profitable. Shy Points Gained: One Thousand."
"Get off me!" Shikamaru yelled, his face turning crimson. "Why is this so troublesome?!"
"I can't move!" Hinata cried, tears forming in her eyes. "Your shadow is holding me!"
"I am not doing it on purpose!" Shikamaru argued. "My chakra is going haywire!"
Ino and Choji stopped fighting. Choji dropped his chips.
"Shikamaru..." Ino said, her voice dripping with judgment. "I didn't know you were into that kind of stuff. Using your clan's jutsu to tie up girls? Disgusting."
"It is not like that!" Shikamaru shouted, sweating profusely.
I knew I had to act. I had one thousand points fresh in the bank, plus my previous balance. I needed to break the shadow hold.
("I need to shock him so he loses focus,") I thought.
"Rasengan!" I shouted.
I didn't need to buy it; I already had it. I formed the spinning blue ball of chakra in my right hand. It swirled violently, the sound like a jet engine starting up.
"Naruto?" Ino gasped. "Since when can you do that?"
I charged at the tangled pair. "Let her go, Shikamaru!"
I wasn't going to hit them, obviously. I aimed for the ground right next to Shikamaru’s head to scare him into releasing the jutsu.
I slammed the Rasengan into the dirt.
BOOM!
The impact was way stronger than I expected. The ground exploded. A shockwave of dirt and grass erupted outward.
Shikamaru, startled by the explosion next to his ear, lost his concentration. The shadow vanished.
"I am free!" Hinata yelped, scrambling off him and rolling away.
However, the blast radius of the Rasengan had an unintended side effect.
We were near a small irrigation canal that ran through the training ground. The explosion cracked the bank of the canal.
A wall of water burst forth, rushing toward Ino Yamanaka.
"Ino, look out!" Choji yelled.
Ino turned just in time to get hit by a tidal wave of muddy water.
"Kyaa!"
She was swept off her feet. The water didn't hurt her, but it soaked her completely.
When she stood up, coughing and sputtering, her purple outfit was clinging to her skin like a second layer. She was dripping wet, her hair plastered to her face.
Choji, being a boy, immediately blushed and looked away. Shikamaru sat up, saw Ino, and groaned, covering his eyes. "This is such a drag."
"Warning," the System chimed. "Secondary Target Affected. Ino Yamanaka. Status: Wet and angry. Potential for 'Harem Expansion' detected. Would you like to spend 500 points to trigger the 'Heroic Towel' event?"
("What is the Heroic Towel event?")
"You offer her a towel. She perceives it as incredibly charming due to her vulnerable state. Attraction increases."
("Do it. I have the points.")
I reached into my ninja pouch. I didn't actually have a towel, but the System materialized a clean, dry, fluffy white towel in my hand as the points were deducted.
I walked over to Ino, who was shivering and looking ready to kill someone.
"Ino," I said, my voice dropping an octave (courtesy of the System, probably). "Are you okay? That was my bad. I put too much power into it."
I draped the towel over her shoulders.
Ino froze. She looked up at me. She saw the concern in my blue eyes. She felt the warmth of the towel. She looked at the crater I had just made with a A-Rank jutsu.
For a moment, the image of the annoying prankster Naruto vanished, replaced by a powerful, considerate ninja who could destroy the ground and then gently dry you off.
.....
...