New Upgrades

As the group disbanded for their break period, Shino decided to head to the Forest of Death to collect the harvest from his drones.

The air was crisp and refreshing as he made his way through the alleys and streets of Konoha, the conversations of nearby people and bustling noises of tools filling his ears, clearer than ever before. It was an interesting sensation, yet one that he is still requires time to get used to.

He finally arrived at his designated location, where his drones were burrowed and awaiting his collection. Moments after collecting the precious harvest, he watched all his drones bustled back into the forest, starting their diligent work anew. Never tired, no complaints – the dream worker of every employer.

Satisfied with the progress, Shino decided to head back to his home to check on his Zerg Dominator system.

As a member of the Aburame clan, he still feels it is the safest to spawn bugs within his home. The chances of exposure were high, yet he knew he had the support of his father. This in itself marked his home as a safe zone.

Well, technically, there is no safe zone in this dangerous ninja world. His home was just relatively more secretive compared to other places.

As he arrived at his home, he couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation as he delved into his Zerg Dominator System. He really didn't expect to find a parasitic insect that could achieve neural control in the zombie's brain! This sudden windfall brought him sudden benefits that he didn't think was possible.

Now, he finally had time to understand the evolution of his body! The changes it brought were too great, and it would definitely allow him to become a more efficient and powerful ninja.

"Alina, analyze the upgrades brought by the assimilation of the new gene strand."

A soothing female voice greeted Shino in his mind. This was his Zerg Dominator system. It had always been able to communicate with him, but only in a fixed robotic manner. It wasn't until the recent upgrade that it had gain a semblance of artificial intelligence.

He discovered this on the journey back and spent some time figuring it out during rest time. Besides increasing the ease of using the Zerg Dominator system and gaining analytical capabilities, Alina could also help him manage his Zergs in the most efficient way, based on his preexisting command.

Shino didn't know if this was good or bad, but regardless, it was bound to him. He easily came to accept it, especially since he knew that the AI won't arbitrarily interrupt his speech like everyone else...

So, Shino customized its voice, and gave it the name Alina, referencing the queen of zergs from a certain universe.

[Overmind, the recent changes to your body are due to a genetic mutation that has given you the ability to become an infestation pit. Due to this ability, your body has become a hotbed for plagues and viruses. You can now develop antibodies and store viruses, allowing you to quickly adapt to new diseases and become immune to them as long as you do not die. As a side effect of the transformation, your senses and perception have been moderately enhanced.]

Shino nodded imperceptibly. Although he discovered the changes in senses, but he would have never guessed that his body can now adapt to plagues if he didn't have a system.

This was thanks to his new ability, infestation pit. Just like the hatchery, it was merged with his body.

Shino's mind raced as he tried to comprehend the magnitude of this revelation. Although not prominent in the story itself, he knew that the ninja world had many powerful plagues and diseases running amok.

It's just that the medical techniques of this world is a bit abnormal and can solve most conditions. Also, diseases and plagues usually don't pose a threat to ninjas due to their stronger physiques.

But, there are some powerful ninjas who are still affected by chronic illnesses. Even the Sage of Six Paths had a deadly disease until he resolved it with Polar Particles.

Now, Shino had gotten the ability to resist these powerful diseases. He had never imagined that he would one day gain the possibility to become immune to them. This would greatly reduce the risk once he encounters some dangerous diseases like Chakra virus.

Of course, the prerequisite of this was the gradual buildup of resistance through the self-administration. He will first have to find a way to gain access to these diseases. Perhaps Konoha had strands of viruses and diseases stored in its medical department. He will need to look into this without attracting suspicion.

It seems there is another dangerous activity of collecting and injecting viruses added to his training schedule- ahem, please, don't try this at home. This story is not meant to encourage dangerous suicidal thoughts. Back to the story...

Although the infestation pit granted him a powerful ability, this infestation pit unfortunately was unlike the game structure, where it can be used for researching new units and spawn powerful units like the infestor. Instead, this transformation only allowed him to spawn a new type of unit derived from the infestor, the neural parasite!

"Alina, show me the details of the new neural parasite unit. Oh, and call me Master or Little Shino."

[Affirmative, Overmind.]

Shino's brow twitched a bit. Although Overmind wasn't a bad name, he had been trying to correct the way that Alina addressed him the entire journey back, wanting to match a certain fantasy queen.

However, he still couldn't change a thing. He wasn't sure if its intelligence wasn't high enough or if it did this purposefully to mess with him.

The interface in his mind was automatically accessed by Alina, pulling up a zoomed-in display of a small, parasitic organism with multiple tentacle-like appendages on their heads.

[Neural parasites are one of the iconic abilities of the powerful Zerg infestors. Injecting the neural parasite into an organism can allow the host to control the other for a limited time, depending on the organism's strength and resistance. Neural parasite are created within the Infestation Pit in the host's body, and require a 25 biomass to produce. Once trained, they can hibernate in the host's body and await usage. Note, neural parasites are relatively fragile and can be quickly destroyed if not injected with adequate procedures.]

Listening to the explanation and reading the displayed data, Shino couldn't help but be excited for a bit before becoming deflated.

"The cost is high, and the control is not permanent. Not only that, I don't have the infestor unit itself, so I have to manually inject the parasite into the target's brain. Unless I have a complete lab with proper equipment, the chances of me doing so is slim. This unit is rather tasteless. Hey, why couldn't it be the hyperevolutionary virus being unlocked. If that were the case, I would have the initial ability to push the world."

Shino couldn't help but sigh inwardly. However, it was expected. There was no way one random species can unlock the full extent of his abilities. He should be thankful he even got an infestation pit upgrade.

"Still, this could be useful in some limited situations. For example, interrogation- Well, the Yamanaka clan's ability may be a better option for this job. Eh, who knows. Perhaps, I may need to secretly interrogate ninjutsu from others?"

After some pondering, Shino simply shelved this unit. It wasn't something he needed at the moment as it was not useful in combat or development. He could spawn one when needed in the future.

Perhaps when he unlocks the infestor, these parasites would become outdated.

[Overmind, please note that the neural parasite gene is a requirement for unlocking the infestor unit. Every organism will remain relevant for the development of the hive.]

"As it should be. Are there any other changes that should be noted?"

[Overmind, please note- you can now evolve your Zergs to become more resistant to certain diseases or become disseminators of plagues themselves. Note that the strength of the plague is restricted by the upgrade of the infestation pit ability. Please note, it is advised that the Overmind contribute the Kochu Worm Insect to the infestation pit. Due to host's absolute control over it, its poison can upgrade the infestation pit ability with low risk.]

Shino tilted his with a bit of confusion. What does poison have to do with plague? Anyhow, he nodded in agreement, "Let's do as you say."

Moments later, a good portion of the Kochu Worm Insect in his body melted and integrated into his body. Shino felt a sudden sting of pain surging through his body. Minutes later, the pain vanished and Alina greeted Shino once more.

[Overmind, the infestation pit's plague had been upgraded. Plague bacteria can now secrete weak neurotoxins. Antibodies have been optimized to be immune to weak neurotoxins. Neural parasite strength slightly increased.]

Shino's eyebrows raised with surprise as he made a fascinating connection. It was no coincidence that numerous stories link plagues and poison to the same deity, for they seemed to complement each other in some ways.

If there wasn't Alina to remind him, he would have never thought to have tried this. Perhaps, this was the true power of the hive mind – optimized with an unparalleled ability to utilize every available resource for the sake of evolution.

"Great work, Alina. Remind me again when you discover targets that can be used to enhance my abilities."

[Affirmative. Overmind, Alina shall always be at your service.]

Exiting his mind space, Shino opened his eyes.

"I need to train," he said to himself, his voice resolute. "I must learn how to control my powers so that I can use them to protect my village."

Well, he wasn't sure if anyone is watching, but it's always best to come up with good excuses that conform to the Will of Fire. However, his eyes obscured by his glasses were deep, hiding the real reasons behind his desire for strength gain.

And with that, he set off to hone his skills. Although it was said to be a break from mission, but the truth is that it was time allotted for the Genins to train. If a Genin really treated break-time as a real break, then they may end up dying on the battlefield one day.

Only idiots would waste their time having fun in this dangerous ninja world. Even the geniuses with cheat-like bloodlines are working hard, what say an average ninja like Shino… oh wait, he also has cheats now- Ahem, it seems his goal is to at least keep up with the power of Naruto and Sasuke.

If he can't even do that much with his golden finger, then he should just smash his head with a tofu during the late game, lest he ended up in a dream where he reveals all the secrets of his Zerg Dominator system.

"It'll be April soon- if I'm correct, Team Kakashi should be heading back from the Land of Waves soon. Naruto and Sasuke had already activated their cheats, and the coming events will continue roll forward like a growing snowball… I don't have much time left. Alina, optimize my training schedule."

[Affirmative, Overmind.]

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months as Shino alternated between missions and training tirelessly, pushing himself to the limit in order to master his new abilities. His progress was slow but steady, and with each passing day, he felt more in control of his powers.

As he practiced, he engaged in long conversations with Alina, seeking its advice and guidance on how to improve in the most optimal fashion.

[Overmind, it is determined to be optimal to spawn another X number of drones to be deployed in training ground number Y…]

[Overmind, a new route of collection optimized for efficiency and safety has been recorded. Please review…]

[Overmind, chakra disruption system has been optimized and integrated into system functions. Alina is ready to be of service once the host falls into an illusion…]

[Overmind, automatically bug defense system has been established and integrated with the system. Alina is ready to guard the Overmind whenever and wherever...]

[Overmind, the enclosing seal, acquired from the host's biological overseer, is being optimized by the hive mind for Zerg integration. Basic Zergs can now hibernate and be enclosed in scrolls. Optimizing further for integration with biological body. The progress is 4%. More fuinjutsu data is required to increase the efficiency…]

[Overmind, strands of new disease detected in passing biological life form. The Overmind is advised to collect a sample of the target's blood for…]

[Overmind, the construction is lacking biomass and natural resources of...]

[Overmind, your reflexes are still too slow. You need to work on your hand dexterity and chakra control if you want to be effective in battle. This can be done by…]

[Overmind, biomass points is insufficient for body recovery and optimization. Please avoid self-harm in training until sufficient biomass is acquired...]

With the assistance of Alina, he trained harder than ever before, pushing his body to the brink of exhaustion as he honed his speed and agility.

He spent countless hours running, jumping, and dodging, constantly pushing himself to be faster and more agile- so much so that he received a training invitation from a passing duo dressed in green jumpsuits…

Fortunately, he escaped. He was definitely not ready to compare with those two training maniacs.

Outside of this, the hand speed was also trained to ease his usage of the body substitution technique- no, not that type of hand speed. He's talking about hand signing.

And so, as he trained and grew stronger, Shino remained vigilant, always on the lookout for any signs of danger.

Then, one day, Alina alerted Shino to a preset important event notice.

[Overmind, Sand Village Gaara and his entourage has been discovered in Konoha Village by surveillance bugs. Please take notice.]

The Chunin exam was about to begin.