Chapter 7 - Friends?

I headed back just in time for my class to finish Taijutsu training and all were headed to lunch. I took a moment to come to terms with what just happened. I tried my hand at flirting. It didn't work so well. All in all, though, I was glad to make a friend in Narumi, and I do think that I've raised her affection meter by a decent amount.

It was a bit cruel, cold-hearted and manipulative to even consider the affection levels in my interaction with Narumi but…It was a part of me now. I would also have to get stronger first by any means necessary and until then, I could not afford to be lax. Lady luck had gifted me with my Kekkei Genkai, and even if it was a bit against my morals, I needed to use what was given to me. The least I could do, however, was to be as genuine as possible in my interactions and hide the affection subbranch and all its notifications—Which I figured out how to do after Sayuri's constant notifications annoyed me—during conversations with my friends and only check it after.

Speaking of which, I haven't checked the system ever since my chakra coils matured a few days ago.

System.

[System message: Congratulations! Your Chakra coils have fully matured! It's time to truly begin your new journey. All level caps (30) have been lifted. All stat caps (30) have been lifted.]

[System message: Congratulations! You have achieved the max points in all stats prior to the second and final stage of the local universe's biological evolution. As a reward, you have achieved the trait: Prestige Potential.]

[Notification: Hinata Hyuga's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Hinata Hyuga's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Sakura Haruno's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Ino Yamanaka's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Narumi Uzumaki's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Narumi Uzumaki's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Kekkei Genkai: Love Release has created a new skill: Flirting!]

[Notification: Flirting has increased to level 2]

[Notification: Flirting has increased to level 3]

[Notification: Flirting has increased to level 4]

[Notification: Narumi Uzumaki's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Narumi Uzumaki's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Narumi Uzumaki's affection level has increased.]

Name: Jin Takezuchi (Level 30)

Age: 15 years old

Traits:

Prestige Potential (MAX)

Stats:

Toughness: 30

Agility: 30

Stamina: 30

Cunning: 30

Charisma: 30

Chakra Capacity: 30 (low genin)

Skills:

Ambidextrous (level 30)

Dancing (level 1)

Breathing (level 30)

Observation (level 30)

Cooking (level 30)

Cleaning (level 30)

Massage (level 30)

Flirting (level 4)

Lust Aura (Active) (level 1)

Advanced Taijutsu (level 30)

Weapons Mastery (level 30)

Basic Chakra Channeling (level 30)

Study of Poison (level 30)

Advanced Kenjutsu (level 30)

Affinities:

Earth Affinity (level 1)

Kekkei Genkai:

[Lust Release] (level 1)

[Love Release] (level 1)

Ahh… full maxed out 30's across the board. How satisfying. Now that my chakra coils are matured, it was time to finally step up the grind. It had taken me a while to get all my stats this high from just regular un-chakra-powered training but now I expect it to speed up once chakra was mixed into the fray.

The purpose of all that taijutsu training served more than just to raise my stats. It was also to establish muscle memory and gain combat experience in spars against Sayuri. Good old Bob had never taken a martial arts class in his life so I took the liberty to beat ninja combat into me because as a regular old Earthling who was woefully underprepared, both mentally and physically, for the ninja world, I needed a lot of time to acclimate. Doesn't matter how much strength, speed and chakra you have, if you don't know how to react in a combat situation, then you're as good as a meat shield.

I had prepared myself for most cases. With the help from Sayuri I was able to learn what I should do in scenarios like hostage situations, ambushes, being surrounded, as well as understanding what to expect in the aftermath—the possible mental trauma and post-fight anxieties. To be prepared to witness death looking at you and not freeze up is one thing, actually experiencing it and being able carry on is another.

For me, I have plenty of experience sparring with Sayuri. But being in an actual life or death situation? I only had one of those. Let's just say that it involved a giant rat and leave it at that for now.

I noticed another thing in the notifications after a more thorough read after my first glance.

Expand Prestige Potential.

[{Potential} is the potential of a user after the second stage of evolution. It ranges from: Crippling→Limited→Weak→Average→Strong→Extraordinary→Prestige]

….

Now I was glad that I maxed out all my stats in the first stage of the evolution before my coils had matured.

Now that I have access to chakra, I can start power levelling my Earth affinity and Kekkei Genkai abilities as well as my stats once I get home. Maybe I can even try out this…love chakra…Whatever it does.

"Hey! I didn't see you in Taijutsu today," a voice said behind me.

I turned around to be greeted by the sight of Yamanaka Ino in all her glory with hands on the hips and a seductive smirk on her face.

"Hey!" I greeted, "Nice to see you again Yamanaka-san, I had something to do during Taijutstu class that unfortunately took precedence over it."

"Hmm…" Ino contemplated, "this thing you had to do…it wasn't something to do with Narumi, was it? Oh, and call me Ino like you did before."

"Ah…right Ino-san. And yes, I was with Narumi. I had to clear things up between us after what I said to her today."

"Well, what did you say?" Ino asked.

"That…is for me to know, Ino-san. I wouldn't want to want share a private conversation I had with a friend."

Ino looked at me apprehensively. "You're friends with Narumi?"

I nodded. "Yes."

"You do know that she has the Kyuubi inside of her right?" She queried.

"And that's what makes her awe-inspiring. She keeps us safe just by existing. She's also really sweet once you get to know her." I replied.

Ino once again looked at me as if I had grown another head. "You're a…strange one Jin-kun…" Then she smiled. "At least I know that my future boyfriend is loyal!"

"…"

The flirting skill wasn't even active this time…

"Oi! Ino-pig! Are you harassing Jin-san again?!" Someone said from a distance as they approached. After a glance in their direction, it was found to be Haruno Sakura in her usual attire, though dirtied up a bit from Taijutsu.

"Haruno-san," I greeted as she got close, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Takezuchi Jin but you can just call me Jin for short."

Sakura positively beamed and a light blush adorned her pale face. "W-well Jin-san, you can call me Sakura then…"

Ino looked between the two of us, unimpressed. "Oi, Sakura, I found him first so I got dibs. You can try to get in his pants when I'm already his girlfriend. And aren't you chasing Sasuke? Why don't you go ahead and bark up that tree over there?," she said pointing to where Sasuke was, eating lunch alone.

I looked at her with my brows furrowed and Sakura just silently fumed.

"Ano~ Ino-san, We've only met today and I'm not sure about being anyone's boyfriend yet…though I would love to get to know you." I smiled a bit at her as she turned her attention back to me. Then she smirked like the cheshire cat.

"You can get to know…All. Parts. Of. Me," she punctuated whilst getting closer.

Sakura's eyebrows started twitching.

I smiled down at her then grabbed her hips and pulled her close.

"I would love to," I replied much to Sakura's dropped jaw.

[Flirting has increased to level 5!]

Silence notifications! I mentally hissed.

[Notifications silenced]

Even Ino blushed at my straightforward response. "R-really?" She asked tentatively.

"Yes…" I said, "…If you make an effort to befriend Narumi, that is." I had a cheshire grin of my own as I finished my sentence.

Ino deadpanned as I let her go. "Really? You're really gonna do that?"

"Yup," I said. I had grown to really, really, really like Narumi from our brief interaction. I wasn't sure what this world's Naruto was like but from what I'd seen, she was just as incredible as her manga counter part. Any help I can send her way was going to make me feel happy.

Although it was none of my business who Narumi associated herself with, I could at least try to get the prejudice off her back. She also seemed…lonely.

I sighed. "Trust me, if you actually try and get to know her, you won't regret it. It…just might be hard to get past her walls initially but…it'd be worth it!"

"…maybe some other time," Ino drawled.

"I'll do it!" Sakura interjected.

Ino and I looked at her in surprise. "What?!/Really?!" Ino and I said respectively.

Sakura looked like a kid who was caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "I mean, yeah…" she said, blushing, "I don't see why not. I never really listen to what other people say anyway. Kyuubi or not, I think I can give it a shot."

My heart swelled and once again, that unseen force came over me and I stepped forward to give Sakura the most grateful hug I could give her. She lit up like a light bulb. A red, blushing lightbulb.

"Thank you Sakura-chan. But please, give it your genuine effort and not because I asked you to. Narumi is genuinely amazing. You'll see."

She smiled at me whilst Ino looked gobsmacked.

Something was…missing here. Or maybe I should say, someone?

There was a character off of the roster that existed in the Naruto mangas. It was only when I tried to form the teams of trios in my head that I realised it. Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba and…Aburame Shino.

He was missing. Where was he? Did he even exist in this universe? Did I…replace him? Did my existence cancel his' out?

Weird…

I left the thought for later as I chowed down on my packed lunch. I was accompanied by Sakura and Ino and we were sitting at one of the cafeteria tables.

"That looks like an awfully scrumptious bento you got there, Jin-kun. Did your mother prepare it for you?" Ino asked, trying to make conversation.

"No, my parents died in the Kyuubi attack," I responded, "I made this myself."

There was a silence that loomed for a moment before I looked up to see both Ino and Sakura staring at me.

"…what?" I asked, my face heating up a bit from the attention, "Is there something on my face?"

"N-no" Ino said looking a bit dejected, "I'm just…Sorry I brought the topic up…"

I smiled. "It's nothing to worry about. I was a baby when they passed away and I've gotten over it."

Sakura chewed on her lips before enquiring: "And…you're still okay being friends with Narumi."

I scoffed. "Narumi didn't kill my parents, the Kyuubi did. If Narumi never existed, the fox would have taken many more. I'm grateful, not hateful."

Ino just sat there, once again looking at me as if I were some sort of strange creature she doesn't understand. Sakura on the other hand beamed.

"That's a wonderful way to see it, Jin-san," Sakura said.

"It should be the only way to see it, Sakura-chan," I added, "There's too much unjustified hate on our Jinchuriki."

The two sat there for a while, contemplating what I said.

Then Ino asked, "Hey Jin-babe, can you also make me a bento like that?"

Sakura slapped Ino's arm.

"Hey!" Ino said, rubbing her arm, "I was just saying! You're just jealous my boyfriend knows how to cook."

I looked at one of my uneaten pieces of fried chicken.

"Do you want some?" I offered.

Ino looked surprised that I did. Were girls not used to common courtesy from boys here? Then she smiled that smile again.

"Well~" Then she purposely dropped her chopsticks, "Ah! Oh no, my chopsticks!" She faked being shocked. "I guess you're just gonna feed it to me then, Jin-kun!"

Sakura's eyebrows started twitching again.

I shrugged. I mean, what was the harm?

I used my own chopsticks and picked up the chicken then set to feed it to Ino.

Despite all of Ino's bravado she still blushed like a strawberry when I actually agreed to do it.

My hand motioned closer and closer and Ino opened her mouth wide to accept it.

…Only for Sakura to snatch it up last second with her own mouth and then proceeded to chew on it like she didn't just yoink it out of the air right in front of Ino's face. "Mmm! You made this Jin? It's really good! Too bad I can't let you spoil me too much cuz I'm on a diet."

Ino still had her mouth open in shock. A real shock this time. Then her own eyebrows twitched.

"THAT. IS. IT!!! BITCH GET OVER HERE!" She said as she jumped on Sakura, drawing the attention of others in the cafeteria.

An oddly familiar voice that sounded like Kiba's shouted in the distance. "Catfight!"

I snickered. These two were amusing on so many levels.

Narumi was already in her seat when I got to class. It was the same homeroom class and the seats were still arranged the same way.

"Yo!" I greeted.

"Shut up, Jin-baka" Narumi muttered, her cheeks going red.

I chuckled before sitting down next to her. It was then Mizuki-sensei walked in.

Ninjutsu class was…basic. I shook my head as I was walking home. The class today taught about basic chakra manipulation concepts and the basic hand signs of jutsus. Of course, I'd already spent the time to learn all the hand signs beforehand though I was never able to manipulate my chakra through them for fear that i'd damage my still developing coils. Now though, I needed to get it down asap.

Reactivate notifications

[Notifications reactivated!]

[Notification: Ino Yamanaka's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: Sakura Haruno's affection level has increased.]

[Notification: You have learnt a new skill: Basic Chakra Manipulation.]

Great. At least I learnt a new skill out of that rather stale lecture. I already had basic chakra channelling as a skill to further improve the extent to which my coils developed, allowing me to max out my chakra capacity before the coils fully matured. But chakra manipulation was the key skill to actually using chakra and being able to do something with it.

I already planned ahead for this. I needed to get tree-climbing, water-walking, and the basic elemental manipulations done as soon as I could. They were what I'd focus on after school this week, and during the weekend, of which Sayuri will be absent for a mission to Takigakure, maybe…maybe I will finally go on my prowl. The prowl for girls.

Yes. I know how that sounds but I have a lust-based power for Gandalf's sake! What better way to start than to get laid?

As I continued on my way home, I passed by a peculiar weapons shop that oddly jogged my memories for some reason. It was…familiar. It was named: Higurashi's weapon shop.

I figured that I could spare a bit of time to restock my weapons supply and get familiar with other ninja accessories so I went in.

"Welcome to Higurashi's blacksmithing and Weapon's shop!" A voice from the counter called out.

Ah. As I peered into the eyes of another major character from canon, I understood why this shop and its name seemed faintly familiar.

"Hi," I greeted.

"Hey!" Tenten responded.

…and just like all the other ninja girls, she was really pretty.

I got home that evening, dazed. For one, Tenten was shockingly sweet and helpful, two, I'd just found out some news. Big news. Apparently Tenten was only a year older than me…which left me gawking when I saw the Konoha headband on her head. She was already a genin.

As it turns out, you could graduate from the academy in a single year if you wanted to. I had absolutely no idea how I didn't know of this beforehand. Maybe my prior education on earth, special schools as they were, functioned in multiple-year blocks which for some reason made me assume the same thing here. No. If you could do the academy basic jutsus and was acceptable in Taijutsu you would immediately graduate and be put on Genin reserve until a team is formed. You could do it during the end-of-year exams or just…whenever you asked for an evaluation by one of the academy teachers.

Since everyone started at 15, all with matured coils and a blank slate, some could choose to take their time and take the full 3 years before graduating or just get it done as soon as possible. After all, when you lived for hundreds of years, time isn't really too much of a factor. Some talented ninjas, like Tenten's group, took only a year to graduate. Heck, she told me that nukenin Uchiha Itachi graduated within 8 months and Jonin Hatake Kakashi did it in 6!

…

…

I planned to graduate within three months. It was reasonable. It was just early enough to not waste too much time in school and late enough to leave a fair impression on the future members of the Konoha 11. Perhaps I would even be placed on a team with some of them if fate were to have it. I had a feeling that, even with the universe as different from canon as it was, these members would have a larger impact on the world as a whole.

With Narumi…I wanted to be her friend. Sure, I thought she was hot, there was no doubt about that, but I just can't bring myself to use or even test out my Kekkei Genkai on her. No, those were reserved for my 'prowling' time, with girls who I feel more comfortable taking advantage of. I might give up some school time with Narumi from finishing so early but I'll be sure to make plans to see her in her after school hours. I can't afford to stay in school.

I needed to get out into the world. I needed to get strong. If that meant giving up a high school life with my classmates then so be it. I guessed I'll stay on the genin corps doing D-rank missions until an available Jonin took me on a team anyway but compared to the academy, at least I was getting work done. Besides, maybe if I impress the Hokage enough, he might give me higher difficulty missions. But that was for the future. I needed to focus on graduating.

That meant grinding. Grinding hard. Grinding fast. Grinding now.

I channelled my chakra, forming the ram hand sign and focused on manipulating its structure. I felt the way it formed, the way it moved, and the way it interacted and behaved as I switched my hand signs from one to another.

[Ding!]

[Basic Chakra Manipulation has levelled up!]

[Ding!]

[Basic Chakra Manipulation has levelled up!]

[Ding!]

More. I needed more.

I sat there, in my backyard for hours focusing on the basics, learning the fundamentals, understanding the formula for success. I speculated that forming a basic clone jutsu at least a level 10 in chakra manipulation, a henge at level 15 and the Body switch at level 20. That was the order in which they were taught in the academy, after all. And they expected a regular student to master each of those jutsus…one at a time per year.

That's pathetic…

I could be far, far more productive in those years out in the field.

I lapsed in my concentration when my chakra flared for a bit, making me half a second slower on my next hand sign.

Unacceptable.

Again.

Again.

Again.

[Ding!]

[Basic Chakra Manipulation has levelled up!]