Chapter 23
My back cracked like a dry twig, a loud, satisfying pop that echoed in the quiet valley. I groaned, rolling my shoulders and inspecting my hands. The dirt was ground so deep into the ridges of my fingerprints and under my nails that I was pretty sure it was just a part of my skin now. I’d be scrubbing for a week and still find soil.
We were done. Finally.
I looked out over the fields. What had been an empty valley a week ago was now a lush, vibrant patchwork of greenery. We had successfully cultivated a massive variety of medicinal herbs, staggering them through different generations. We had fast-acting, low-potency crops for immediate mass production, and we had the heavy hitters, the fifteenth and twenty-fifth generation monsters, stockpiled in stasis scrolls for critical emergencies.
"If I never see a piece of farmland again…," I muttered to the empty air, "it'll be too soon."
With the work officially concluded, I finally allowed myself to focus on the flashing icon in the corner of my vision that I’d been studiously ignoring for days.
The blue screen shimmered into existence.
[Achievement Unlocked: Become a Chunin][Rank: MID]
That was expected. A nice bonus for the promotion. But the second notification was the one that caught my eye.
[Achievement Unlocked: Alchemy I - Start a Farm][Rank: MID].
You have introduced a new field of medicinal study that is likely to outlive you. This achievement has multiple tiers that will unlock over time as the impact of your innovation spreads and changes the world.
I stared at the text, a strange lump forming in my throat.
Legacy.
In a world where shinobi were often treated like disposable tools, where life was cheap and death was sudden, the idea that I had created something permanent was… heavy. It was scary, in a way, knowing I’d altered the course of history. But it was also incredibly heart-warming.
If I went out on a mission tomorrow and caught a kunai to the throat, I wouldn't just be a name carved on the Memorial Stone. I wouldn't just be "that kid Orochimaru taught." I would be the reason the medical corps could save thousands of lives. I would be the foundation of a new science.
I wasn't going to be forgotten.
That thought settled my nerves more than any meditation technique ever could.
However, the impending rewards brought a different kind of anxiety. Two Mid-level rolls.
Honestly, I was a mess thinking about it. My powers were already a chaotic jumble of "mutated bloodlines" and "hidden techniques." If the System gave me something completely out of left field, like laser eyes or wings, explaining it away was going to be a nightmare. They definitely suspected something was off about me. You didn't just stumble into being a physical stateshifter who could also grow plants, had enhanced senses and become a Taijutsu genius overnight.
But as I looked at the group preparing to leave, a wave of resignation washed over me.
Fuck it.
I was the student of a Sannin. I was on a first-name basis with the Hokage. I had saved the Jinchuriki and the future Fourth Hokage. I was too entrenched, too valuable, and frankly, too well-liked to be thrown in a cell just for being weird. If I got a strange power, I’d just shrug and let them come up with their own theories. They were good at rationalizing my existence so far.
The return journey to Konoha was a quiet affair, at least on my end.
Minato and Kushina were walking ahead, Kushina looking vibrant and healthy, chatting animatedly about what type of ramen she was going to eat first when we got back. The success of the operation seemed to have lifted a weight off her shoulders.
Tsunade was guarding the sealing scrolls containing the harvest like a dragon guarding gold. She looked exhausted but manic, her mind likely already racing with the concoctions she could brew.
Orochimaru was quiet, his golden eyes observing everything, likely cataloging data for his own private research.
"Finally going home," Hiruzen sighed, looking less like the God of Shinobi and more like a grandfather who just wanted a nap. "Though the paperwork this will generate... terrifying."
"Better paperwork than funerals, sensei," Tsunade shot back, though her tone was lacking its usual bite.
I stayed silent, trudging along in the back, letting the familiar sights of the Fire Country forest soothe my mind.
‘It would be hilarious if bandits attacked us.’ I thought idly, the God of Shinobi, World’s Strongest Kunoichi, The Snake Sanin, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki and the Yellow Flash.
By the time we passed into the village through hidden entrances that were guarded by ANBU, night had fallen. The village was lit by lanterns, warm and inviting. We disbanded quickly, the exhaustion of the week catching up to everyone.
I made it back to my apartment, locked the door, and didn't even bother turning on the lights. I collapsed onto my futon, the darkness of the room feeling like a protective blanket.
I was safe. I was home. And I had two rewards waiting for me.
"Alright," I whispered to the empty room. "Let's see what we got. Roll.”
[Synergy] [Reincarnator] (Providence)You have learned something very useful: the power of working in a group. You can now fight alongside others without getting in their way and always contribute your piece for success. While you are in a group, everyone will share this powerful ability, making you a valuable member of any team.
I nodded slowly. This was subtle, but incredibly useful.
As a newly minted Chunin, I wouldn't always be operating with Team Orochimaru. The war demanded flexibility. I’d likely be slotted into ad-hoc squads on the front lines, teams made up of strangers with different fighting styles, tempos, and personalities. Usually, that friction caused mistakes.
With this, I became a universal adaptor. I wouldn't just fit in, I would make everyone else better just by being there. No friendly fire, no crossed lines. It was a force multiplier that would keep me and whoever I was stuck with alive.
Then, the second roll came through.
[Limit Break Survivor] [Dragon Ball] (Talent)Many species have natural limits imposed on them. There are, however, some exceptional individuals who can not only shatter these limits but do so repeatedly. You are one of the rare individuals capable of this. Any so-called limit or restriction you possess can be ignored with enough effort. This means that you will never stop increasing in strength no matter how far you go. Though as you climb higher, you will likely need to put more effort into breaking your new ceiling.
I stared at the screen, my breath catching in my throat.
This… I couldn't believe my luck. A grin stretched across my face, wide and genuine.
As much as this world was filled with monsters who could split mountains, people still had biological ceilings. There was only so much muscle a human frame could pack, only so fast a nervous system could fire before hitting a plateau.
This perk erased that.
And the synergy with Attribute Distribution… my mind raced with the possibilities.
The theory was simple: Using AD, I could drain points from my Strength and Speed, dumping them into a passive stat like Stamina. This would reduce my physical condition back to a near-civilian state. Training a weak body yielded fast, noticeable gains - "newbie gains." Once those muscles healed and strengthened, that new power would be added to my total pool, which I could then redistribute.
It was an infinite feedback loop of growth.
The only reason I hadn't abused this method yet was time and danger. I wasn't a "Gamer" character. I didn't do ten pushups and get a stat point instantly. My body still operated on biology. I needed to tear the muscle fibers, let them heal, and eat enough to fuel the growth. That took days, sometimes weeks of recovery.
In the middle of a war, walking around with the strength of a civilian or even just not my full strength while my muscles rebuilt themselves stronger was a risk to my life that felt unnecessary. That wasn't even to mention the frequent high-rank missions I'd be taken on. If I reset the stats before the gains settled in, I'd have just lost time.
But after the war? If I survived this?
I could grind until I rivaled the Tailed Beasts in raw physical stats alone.
My grin faded slightly as reality settled back in. "If I make it out alive," I whispered.
Unlimited potential didn't mean much if I got caught in an illusion and stabbed in the throat tomorrow. I touched my chest, remembering the feeling of helplessness against the Iwa-nin's genjutsu.
I had the tools to become a god. I just had to survive long enough to use them.
The morning sun hadn't quite burned off the dew when I arrived at the training ground. The fresh green flak jacket felt a little stiff on my shoulders, a physical reminder of my new rank, but the weight was welcome. I adjusted my headband, ensuring it was straight, and dropped from the tree line into the clearing.
"About time, Chunin," Anko called out, though there was no real heat in it. She and Asuma were already there, stretching.
"I'm on time," I countered, glancing at the position of the sun. "You two are early."
"Discipline," Asuma said with a smirk, though he looked tired.
Before I could reply, the leaves in the center of the clearing swirled unnaturally, coalescing into Orochimaru. He looked us over, landing on me with a light intensity.
"While you are now officially a Chunin, Yuuki," Orochimaru began, his voice cutting through the morning calm, "and eligible to take missions with other squads, I am suspending that privilege for the immediate future."
I blinked. "Sensei?"
"The mission to the Land of Grass exposed a fatal flaw," he stated, his golden eyes boring into mine. "Your susceptibility to Genjutsu. Until that weakness is addressed, you are a liability to any standard team that expects a tank and gets a statue."
He gestured for us to gather closer.
"Genjutsu operates by introducing foreign chakra into the victim's own mind, manipulating the flow to feed false information to the brain," he explained, falling into his lecture mode. "There is a split second — a moment of dissonance — where the mind registers the intrusion before the illusion takes hold. If you miss that window, breaking it becomes exponentially harder."
He turned to me. "During the ambush, did you feel anything before the earth wave appeared?"
I nodded slowly, thinking back. "It felt... sudden. Too sudden. There were no signs at all, I even thought that it was unnatural, just the image appearing instantly."
"Exactly," Orochimaru said. "Trust that instinct. If the world stops making sense, assume your senses are compromised. And the moment you feel that dissonance..."
"Cycle my chakra," I finished. "Disrupt the flow."
"Violently, even if it wastes some chakra" he agreed. "Today's exercise is simple. You will spar with each other. While you fight, I will be casting random Genjutsu on all of you. I will start subtle and increase the complexity. You must detect the intrusion, dispel it, and maintain your combat awareness."
We all nodded.
Internally, I sighed. This was going to be brutal. Perks like [Martial Arts Prodigy] and my elemental affinities gave me a massive edge in physical combat and Ninjutsu, but they didn't make me a genius in the traditional shinobi arts. I wasn't a Kakashi or a Minato. I didn't have an innate sense of the Shinobi arts. I had to grind for it. I shook my head, I had enough "cheats" as is.
"Yuuki, Anko. You're first," Orochimaru commanded.
Anko stepped forward, rolling her neck with a crack. She grinned, a predatory expression that looked entirely too pleased.
"I've improved a lot," she warned, dropping into a low stance. "I even started waking up at that ungodly hour you used to in the Academy to get extra reps in."
I couldn't resist. "Congrats. You've finally reached my Academy level." Some taunting never hurt.
Her eyes narrowed into slits. She launched herself at me without another word.
I smiled, letting [Martial Arts Prodigy] guide my movements. She came in fast, a flurry of jabs and kicks designed to overwhelm, but to me, the lines of attack were clear. I flowed around a sharp right hook, sidestepped a knee, and weaved under a spinning backfist.
Then I winced internally. She feinted high and snapped a vicious kick straight up between my legs. If I hadn't read the weight shift in her hips a second before, that would have ended the spar — and my lineage — right there. I twisted my hips, letting her shin graze my thigh instead.
She realized she couldn't land a clean hit and disengaged, leaping back. Her hands flashed through seals. Tiger. Snake. Tiger.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
She was using fewer signs, the normal one needed six. That was new. I grinned, she was improving, that's good.
Just as the chakra built in her chest, the world went hazy. A grey film descended over my vision, blurring the distance between us. This Genjutsu was a lot more obvious than the one the Iwa-nin had used.
Intrusion.
I didn't hesitate. I flared my chakra, pulsing it outward in a sharp burst. The grey film shattered, restoring my vision just in time to see the fireball roaring toward me.
I didn't use Nature Release — that was for life-or-death situations. But, my Nature Release which had adapted to this world came with a few benefits, that being my affinity for the elements of Earth and Water that I'd trained a bit in, as my hands flew through a few signs.
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"
A slab of rock erupted from the dirt. The fireball slammed into it, the impact shaking the ground. Heat washed around the sides of the barrier, and debris rained down.
I dropped the technique, letting the stone crumble, and dashed through the lingering smoke and dust.
Hiss.
A smoke bomb detonated at Anko’s feet, expanding instantly into a thick, obscuring cloud.
I skidded to a halt, my ears straining. My hearing picked up the sound of footsteps retreating. But then... I heard another set. Lighter. Coming from the left.
Two sets of footsteps?
I frowned. Genjutsu. It seems I hadn't detected this one.
I flared my chakra again, hard, disrupting my internal flow.
The sound didn't stop.
Confused, I hesitated. Was it a layered illusion? Or had I failed to dispel it?
Enough hiding.
I formed the Bird seal with one hand. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough."
I exhaled a sharp, concentrated gust of wind. It tore through the clearing, shredding the smoke cloud and blowing away a handful of shuriken that had been flying toward me where Anko was standing.
The visibility returned instantly. I saw Anko standing a few meters away on the ground, looking slightly off-balance from the force of the wind.
I didn't hesitate. I dashed toward her, intending to end the spar right there.
As I closed the distance, I felt a familiar prickle at the base of my skull. Another foreign chakra signature entering my system.
Genjutsu.
I dispelled it instantly with a sharp internal pulse, my focus never wavering from Anko. Before I could enter striking range, my hearing picked up a new sound — a heavy, whistling rush of air coming from directly above me.
I snapped my head up.
Another Anko was dropping from the canopy, gravity accelerating her descent, a kunai held ready to drive into my shoulder.
Two of them?
My mind stuttered for a fraction of a second. Was the one on the ground an illusion I failed to dispel? Or a clone?
I shifted my stance to intercept the aerial threat, prioritizing the attack coming from the high ground. I couldn't get out of the way without Swift.
The Anko standing on the ground suddenly smirked, her hands forming a seal.
"Release!"
The Anko falling toward me didn't strike. Her form bloated outward mid-air, inches from my face, and exploded.
It wasn't fire or smoke. It was mud. Heavy, chakra-infused river mud that slammed into me with the force of a battering ram, driven by the momentum of the fall.
"Ugh!"
The sludge hit me like a wet blanket, driving me into the dirt. It hardened rapidly the moment it made contact with the air. I tried to pull my legs free, but I was buried to my waist in seconds, my arms pinned to my sides by the rapidly solidifying earth.
I froze. I could use Attribute Distribution to hulk out of this, or manifest roots to break the earth apart, but both would be excessive for a spar.
Anko, the real one on the ground, straightened up and dusted off her hands, looking incredibly smug.
"I give," I said, shaking the mud off my face.
Orochimaru stepped into the clearing, looking pleased. "Excellent use of the Mud Clone for an aerial trap, Anko. And Yuuki..." He looked at me, trapped in the dirt. "You hesitated. You were so concerned with identifying the Genjutsu that you failed to account for a physical diversion. While being paranoid is good, being over paranoid to a certain art is a flaw as well.”
I nodded in acknowledgement as I turned to Anko, "Good trick with the clones," I admitted. Her smile was smug.
While I was happy for her, there was only a certain amount of smugness I could tolerate from her.
Might
I flexed and pushed outwards breaking through the solid earth, as I grinned at her as she rolled her eyes.
"You're a sore loser," she deadpanned, as I nod in agreement.
I didn't feel bad in losing to her, every tactic used here was a tactic I'd survive in a real battlefield.
"Clean yourself up in the river and take a five." Orochimaru said.
He turned to the others. "Asuma. You're next with Anko."
I sighed and trudged over to the river to clean myself up.
It wasn't until a few days later that Orochimaru deemed my genjutsu countermeasures competent enough to return to active duty.
I stood before the Hokage's desk, watching a plume of smoke drift from his pipe.
"You’ll be sent with a recently formed Genin team and their Jonin out on their first C-Rank," Hiruzen explained, tapping a scroll on the table. "Since it is wartime, even routine missions carry risk. You’ll be shadowing them as insurance. I believe you won’t be sensed? You told me in our last chat you were working on a technique like that."
I nodded. I’d been developing a specific application of the [Living Disaster] perk. Hanami’s connection to nature wasn't just about growing trees, it was about being nature itself. He could slip past Gojo of all people.
"Watch," I said.
I didn't weave a sign. I simply adjusted my connection to the world around me. I felt my chakra settle, synchronizing with the wood of the floorboards, the plants in the corner, the very air of the village. To the naked eye, I was still standing there, but my presence — my chakra signature and partially my intent — simply faded. I became part of the scenery.
Then, I tried to form a small root in my palm. The moment I focused on an attack, the harmony shattered, and my chakra spiked violently back into existence.
"Impressive," Hiruzen admitted, his eyes narrowing as he scanned me. "I could not sense you at all until you moved to strike."
I dropped the technique, exhaling a breath. It took a toll on my reserves, but for a delivery mission, it was manageable.
"The Jonin has already been made aware that you’ll be following them," Hiruzen continued, a small, suspicious quirk touching his lips. "Though the genin do not know. We want them to feel the true weight of a mission without a safety net beyond the presence of their sensei.”
I narrowed my eyes. I didn't trust that look of amusement.
"Report to the Main Gate in an hour. Follow them at the distance you deem necessary. Flare your chakra twice to indicate you’re ready to go."
I nodded and left, for the rest of the hour, I sharpened my weapons, and did some light stretching, as I headed for the gate via the rooftops. When I arrived, I settled on a high perch and looked down at the team gathering below.
I sighed. Ah. That’s why he was amused.
Standing by the gate, looking nervous but determined, were Hayate, Yugao, and Kurenai. Their Jonin sensei was a man I didn't recognize, looking over a map.
I shook my head, suppressing a smile. I flared my chakra twice — short, sharp pulses.
The Jonin stiffened slightly, gave a barely perceptible nod, and signaled his team to move out. I waited a beat, then slipped into the tree line to follow.
The starting pace that they set was rather slow by my standards. Then again, Team Orochimaru and I had been Genin for a while and went on plenty of missions, while Hayate, Yugao, and Kurenai had only graduated a few months ago.
I kept my distance, moving through the high canopy like a ghost. I maintained my camouflage technique, blending my chakra with the surrounding nature, only releasing small, deliberate pulses every ten minutes to let the Jonin leader know I hadn't abandoned them.
An hour into the journey, the mission seemed painfully standard. The three genin were cautious, maintaining formation and checking their surroundings, though they lacked the paranoid edge that actual combat experience forged. They were good, for rookies.
Then, the Jonin leader stiffened.
He was a sensor. He stopped mid-leap, landing on a thick branch and immediately signaling the ground. "Halt! Get down, defensive formation!"
The genin reacted instantly, dropping from the trees to the forest floor and pulling their kunai, standing back-to-back.
"Coming from the North!" the Jonin barked, landing in front of them.
He barely finished the sentence when the earth beneath his feet rumbled.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
A massive dragon head formed from the mud and soil a few meters away, opening its maw to fire a relentless barrage of compressed mud projectiles at the Jonin. He was forced to leap away, creating distance to dodge the heavy fire. As he landed near the edge of the clearing, a large, muscular figure blurred into existence right next to him, engaging him instantly and forcing him further away from his students.
They're separating the Genin from their sensei, they'd be easy to take-down and then they could team-up on their sensei without the possibility of any interference.
That left the genin exposed.
A second figure dropped from the canopy directly above the trio. He just fell like a stone, a cruel grin plastered on his face, his fist drawn back.
I recognized that face immediately. I had memorized the Bingo Book cover to cover during my hospital stay as there was nothing else to do.
Gari of the Exploding Fist.
If that fist touched anywhere near them, they wouldn't just be hurt. They would be paste.
"Swift."
I shifted my attributes instantly, dumping everything into speed. The world slowed to a crawl.
I launched myself from my perch. I didn't try to attack him mid-air; that would be suicide against someone with his ability. Instead, I aimed for the space between him and the genin.
I landed with a blur of motion, grabbing the back of their shirts and yanking them backward violently just as Gari landed.
BOOM.
Gari’s fist hit the dirt where they had been standing. The ground where his fist had hit detonated. A violent explosion tore through the clearing, kicking up a massive cloud of dust and debris that shook the surrounding trees.
We skidded back, putting distance between us and the crater. The three genin stared at me, eyes wide, the shock of the near-death experience freezing them in place.
"Yuuki?" Hayate breathed, recognizing me quickly despite the situation.
"Stay back," I ordered, my voice leaving no room for argument. "Do not engage. Do not do anything."
I turned to face the threat. Gari straightened up from the smoking crater he’d made, dusting off his hands. He looked disappointed.
"Gari of the Exploding Fist," I said, keeping my body loose and ready to move. "And another Iwa Jonin. What are you doing this deep in the Land of Fire?"
Gari looked at me, tilting his head. He seemed amused rather than threatened. "Don't have to explain it to you, tree hugger."
He cracked his knuckles, the sound like dry twigs snapping. "But you... you look familiar. Yuuki Kagurazaka of Konoha. B-Rank bounty."
"That's me," I said dryly.
I dropped into a taijutsu stance, keeping my knees bent deeper than usual, ready to spring. My mind raced through the Bingo Book entry. Explosion Release: Landmine Fist. Detonates chakra on impact. Unblockable.
Unlike those behind me, with Guard I could perhaps live through one or two explosions, but the best strategy would be to not get hit at all.
"Swift is the only option," I thought, centering myself. "Don't get hit. Not even once."
Let me end the chapter off with an apology. This chapter, I'm sure, felt like filler. Truth is, I've been under heavy burn out and IRL issues, that is of course no excuse for skipping for this long. Please like and comment if you've got any questions or concerns, interections matter a lot to me.
I'll be working on the next chapter immediately after this, thankfully I've got a general idea of how I want this to flow, what characters will play a part, I might even kill someone off to add some angst. (Probably not).
Oh yeah, Gari and the other guy Monga are from the War arc, they probably fought in this war, I found them while going through the wiki looking for Shinobi for Yuuki to face. Also, I don't care if the limitation I mentioned with AD training makes sense or not - I'm keeping it because I don't want him too strong. As you'll see in the next fight.
But yes, thank you for continued support. I'll try my best to at least get to the next chapter by the following Thursday/Friday.
Once again, I can't express my gratitude enough for those who have stayed. I do need to work on some more stories, if you're into Harry Potter, you should go read the snippets Thread: https://questionablequesting.com/threads/spiders-web-of-snippets.35881/#post-11917968
It's called the Celestial Star, it's a fic featuring Gilderoy Lockhart who after his stay in Mungo is given a second chance to go back to the start of his teaching days at Hogwarts with the Celestial Gambler (a mix of all celestial documents) to become the star he was meant to be.