c1: School Starts
Konohagakure no Sato Hidden Leaf Village.
Border district.
Yakumo Jing opened his slightly dazed eyes as the early morning light filtered through the thin shoji screen. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he moved mechanically to prepare breakfast: warm milk, a fried egg, and two slices of lightly toasted bread. Simple, but enough.
He was a transmigrator someone who had crossed into another world. Three days ago, he had awakened in this strange yet familiar world: the world of Naruto.
It had been a cold, windless night. The original soul of this body had died under mysterious circumstances likely chakra exhaustion or latent trauma from training. Whether the boy's soul had moved on to the Pure Land or fused with Yakumo's own remained a mystery. What was clear was this: the body now belonged to him.
The boy's parents had been standard issue shinobi mid-ranking chunin who had died during a border skirmish with rogue Iwagakure forces two years earlier. Their graves sat near the Hero Memorial Stone, names etched quietly beside others who had been lost without grandeur.
Three days ago, Yakumo's so-called "golden finger" his cheat ability had awakened. But unlike the overpowered systems from novels, it wasn't flashy. It was a barebones game-like interface.
It was eerily familiar: the same solo RPG interface from the mobile game he had been playing the night he died.
〖Daily Tasks〗 〖Weekly Tasks〗
The UI had become even simpler upon crossing over now only a primitive task menu and status page remained. No store. No inventory. Just this skeleton framework of a game.
Name: Yakumo Jing
Age: 7
Constitution: 3.3 (endurance, chakra recovery, immune resistance)
Strength: 2.7 (basic attack, load-bearing capacity)
Agility: 3.1 (reaction speed, physical movement)
Intelligence: 4.2 (mental acuity, chakra control, memory retention)
He immediately closed the stat panel and opened the daily task menu. Three tasks refreshed every morning. Each rewarded a small amount of stat increase and 50 ryo gold coins, though he hadn't yet found a way to spend them meaningfully. After three days, his total was 450 ryo.
Since it was Thursday, no weekly missions had refreshed those came every Monday.
〖Daily Tasks〗
1. "The Start of a Ninja's Day"
Complete a 5-kilometer jog before 8:00 a.m.
Reward: +0.1 Constitution, 50 ryo
2. "Diligence Overcomes Clumsiness"
Write and summarize a 2,000-word essay on the Will of Fire before 11:00 p.m.
Reward: +0.1 Strength, 50 ryo
3. "The Meaning of Spring"
Accept Mori Masako's bento and tell her: 'Your bento is my favorite.'
Reward: +0.1 Intelligence, 50 ryo
Even reincarnation couldn't change the grinding nature of the game. Yakumo grumbled after his modest breakfast, pulled on a light hoodie, and began his warm-up routine.
By 7:40 a.m., he was jogging through the outer district.
His home was near the Forest of Death the infamous training ground used during the Chunin Exams. The area was quiet in the mornings, save for the occasional patrol or training squad. After jogging past the bookstore near the academy district, his task interface pinged softly.
"Submit Task."
Warmth radiated from his core, traveling through his limbs. It felt like being submerged in a hot spring like hundreds of tiny hands massaged his muscles. The sensation vanished within seconds.
"Bashi... that's the stuff."
If he had to describe the feeling of leveling up in a single word: refreshing. That addictive rush the tangible sense of growth was enough to keep any player hooked.
After catching his breath, Yakumo wandered into the local bookstore and spent 120 ryo on a well-worn volume titled "The Great Ninja: The Hidden Legacy of Hiruzen Sarutobi." It was essential reading Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, would be delivering a lecture today.
Earlier, Yakumo had tried to outsmart the task system using ghostwriting scrolls and memory-doubling pills. The system rejected all shortcuts. The essay had to be written by hand, the thoughts genuinely his. He soon realized some tasks weren't just physical they reflected events of the day.
Sure enough, today's lecture at the academy was about the Will of Fire a core ideology of Konoha, passed down from Hashirama to Hiruzen and beyond. Yakumo now understood: the system knew.
It wasn't just a game interface anymore.
It was watching the story unfold and guiding him through it.
A few days ago, in order to complete his tasks, Yakumo stayed up all night studying "Survival Tactics for Shinobi in the Wilderness," "Essential Qualities of a Konoha Shinobi," and "Tactical Analysis of Kunai and Shuriken Mechanics."
At 8:30 that morning, all first-year students were ushered into the main auditorium of the Ninja Academy. It was a tradition on the first day of enrollment, the Hokage himself would personally indoctrinate new students with Konoha's guiding doctrine: the Will of Fire.
As a new entrant to the Academy, Yakumo was assigned a front-row seat prime placement to receive this ideological baptism.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, stood on the elevated podium with a dignified bearing. Dressed in his official Kage robes and the white hat marked with the kanji for "Fire" (火), he began his customary introduction with practiced ease.
"I was trained by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju," he stated, his voice calm but carrying. "I have mastered all five basic chakra natures. They call me the 'Professor' of Ninjutsu."
"I led Konoha to victory in the Second Great Ninja War."
...
"Is this guy flexing his whole résumé?" Yakumo thought, watching as Sarutobi continued to list his accomplishments with a passionate gleam in his eye.
The old man cleared his throat, then swept his gaze over the sea of young, attentive faces before him barely pre-genin children filled with idealism. With a gravity that settled the auditorium, he began his speech.
"The Will of Fire was first put into words by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. It is the belief that true strength comes from protecting those you love your comrades, your village, your home."
Yakumo's eyes lit up. He quickly pulled out his notebook and began jotting everything down in sharp, practiced strokes. A sense of awe crept into his expression.
"The man really is the top-tier brainwasher of the shinobi world…" he noted silently, half in admiration, half in jest.
Two hours passed. Around him, the students were hanging on every word. Many had stars in their eyes. Yakumo glanced around the auditorium, inwardly marveling.
"This must be what indoctrination by charisma looks like…"
By 12:30, Hiruzen concluded his speech and formally dismissed the students. Despite having stood and lectured for two straight hours, the Hokage's face remained bright and energetic.
"Geez, old man really likes to hear himself talk."
The mutter came from the front row a black-haired boy with a bored expression. Yakumo immediately recognized him: Sarutobi Asuma, the Hokage's own son. His tone was irreverent, but the familiarity in his voice revealed deep roots.
"Yakumo-kun, here's your bento."
Mori Masako appeared at his side, gently setting a beautifully lacquered wooden lunch box on the bench beside him. The smell of simmered seaweed and grilled fish wafted up as she opened the lid, filling the air.
Yakumo accepted it with a polite nod. At that moment, his interface pinged softly.
〖Daily Task 3 Triggered〗
"The Meaning of Spring"
He looked slightly startled, then quickly recovered. With a soft smile, he said the required words:
"I like your bento the most."
Masako blinked, her cheeks dusted with color, but said nothing as she watched him dig into the food. Yakumo ate in silence, savoring the warmth of the miso broth and the soft chew of seaweed rice balls.
Nearby, Yuhi Kurenai, a fellow student, turned to chat with Asuma about the curriculum for the afternoon class the beginning of chakra theory and refining.
"All part of the mission."
"Submit Task."
A cool, tingling energy gathered at the base of Yakumo's skull, then pulsed outward through his mind like waves. The cognitive clarity was noticeable, though subtle. Task three complete.
"Eat slower, Yakumo-kun," Masako said with a chuckle. Her smile softened as she watched him devour the lunch. Ever since her parents died in a rogue mission mishap, she'd rarely seen him smile like this.
"Submit Task."
Another prompt confirmed the stat gain. Afternoon classes would include the first scroll-based introduction to chakra refining standard protocol for Year One.
Yakumo's parents had both been active-duty shinobi before their deaths in a mission near the Grass Country border. Their home still held foundational guides to chakra manipulation. But his grandfather's journal warned: refining chakra before age six risks destabilizing physical growth.
After school, Yakumo and Masako walked home side-by-side, their footsteps falling in sync along the dusty path toward the Konoha housing district.
Masako's family ran a shinobi supply store now Yamanaka Tools & Textiles. Her parents had been teammates of Yakumo's own, but left active duty a decade ago to pursue a quieter life using their connections and merchant licenses from the War Era.
"Yakumo, do you want to practice kunai throws with me later?" Masako asked as they neared the crossroads, her voice shy but hopeful.
"No," Yakumo replied flatly. "I'm going home to start chakra refinement."
Without another word, he turned, closed the front gate behind him, and walked into the dim courtyard, leaving her stunned in silence.
He knew she cared for him no, cared for the original Yakumo. Her bond with him went back years. Of everyone, she might be the one person capable of noticing something was different. Sensing the change. Realizing…
That Yakumo Jing wasn't quite the same.
But there were tasks to complete.
Always, the tasks.
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