Bully Lord In the Chunin Exam (NarutoVerse)

Chapter-23: Rias Gremory and Kenpachi Zaraki

Rose shifted slightly in her seat, her posture still poised and graceful, but there was an unsettling gleam in her eyes—a mixture of amusement and seriousness that made Kuro's stomach tighten. He braced himself instinctively, knowing that whatever she was about to say would only complicate matters further.

"There is another matter we must discuss," Rose said, her voice cool and deliberate, as if savoring the tension in the air.

Kuro raised an eyebrow, feeling a mixture of disbelief and growing unease. "What now?" he asked, though he feared the answer.

Rose's lips curled into a faint, knowing smirk, the kind that suggested she was fully aware of the impact her words would have. "Your companions—Reika and Xero. Have you ever wondered why their abilities feel... unique?" she asked, her tone almost playful, but with an undertone that made Kuro sit up straighter.

Kuro frowned, his mind already racing. "Unique? Yeah, They're strong, sure, but this world is full of unique people because of their Kekkei Genkai or Kekkei Tota. But… What are you getting at?"

Rose's smile widened, but it was the kind of smile that felt unsettling—there was something beneath it that made Kuro feel as though he was about to be exposed to some deeply hidden truth. "They aren't simply people from this world," she said, her voice carrying a trace of amusement as though she were speaking to a child who had yet to grasp the full extent of the situation. "They are modeled after characters from your world."

Kuro blinked, his mind grinding to a halt. "Come again?" he asked, utterly stunned. His brain refused to process what she had just said, as if it couldn't accept the words in front of him.

Rose's smirk widened, though her voice remained calm, no longer tinged with amusement, but with a quiet authority that sent a shiver down Kuro's spine. "Reika draws inspiration from Rias Gremory, a character you know well. Her personality, her powers, even her presence—everything is a reflection of that origin. Similarly, Xero embodies traits of Kenpachi Zaraki, another figure from your own world's anime, LN or manga character."

The revelation hit Kuro like a punch to the gut, the world around him blurring for a moment. His thoughts scrambled as he tried to process the staggering weight of her words. "You're telling me... they're not real?" His voice came out as a hoarse whisper, disbelief creeping in as he struggled to understand what Rose was saying.

"They are as real as you are in this world," Rose corrected him, her gaze unwavering, calm despite the storm of emotions churning in Kuro's chest. "But their essence is derived from concepts you already understand. This was no coincidence. The system designed them to be your allies, knowing their potential would complement your mission."

So, now that Kuro's really thinking about it, Reika's red hair and, well, her twin mountains are kind of giving him serious Rias Gremory vibes. He never once put that together—like, not even once. It's almost like the universe didn't want him to notice. Meanwhile, Xero? Man, that guy's rocking the same hair and bells, plus an eye patch that's straight out of Kenpachi Zaraki's playbook. Kuro's over here like, Damn, how did I not see that coming? It's like these characters are straight-up pulling from anime classics, and he's just now catching on.

Kuro shook his head in disbelief, as if doing so might somehow undo the truth she had just revealed. "And their powers? Are they limited by this world's rules?" he asked, his mind desperate for any form of clarification, some explanation that might help him make sense of the chaotic flood of revelations he was drowning in.

"For now," Rose said, her eyes glinting with something that could only be described as knowing. "But their true strength lies dormant. If you can help them unlock it, they will become forces to be reckoned with." Her words hung in the air, heavy with the weight of possibilities Kuro hadn't yet begun to comprehend.

Kuro's frustration boiled beneath the surface, unable to stay contained for much longer. His thoughts were a tangled mess of anger and confusion. "Why me?" he spat, the words bitter in his mouth. "Why saddle me with this responsibility? I didn't ask for any of this." The resentment in his voice was palpable. He hadn't asked to be thrust into a world of dangerous missions, secret organizations, or cosmic conflicts. He had just wanted to survive—no, to find some semblance of normalcy. But here he was, tangled in a web of fate, with no way out.

Rose's expression softened, though her eyes remained sharp and penetrating. "Because you are capable, Kuro. You may doubt yourself, but the system does not. It chose you because you have the potential to succeed where others would fail." Her voice was gentle, almost soothing, but the words carried an undeniable authority, a quiet conviction that Kuro couldn't ignore.

Kuro stared at her, his mind a whirl of conflicting emotions. His hands clenched into fists at his sides, and his throat felt tight, like he couldn't quite catch his breath. He didn't respond immediately, too overwhelmed by the truth that had just been laid bare before him. Instead, his thoughts swirled with questions he wasn't yet ready to ask, questions that he feared would tear apart whatever fragile sense of control he had left.

The void around them seemed to stretch, the silence growing heavier as Kuro tried to come to terms with everything Rose had revealed. The idea that Reika and Xero were somehow connected to people from his world—people who existed only in the fictional space of stories—was a concept so foreign, so absurd, that Kuro couldn't fully grasp it. He had fought alongside them, relied on them, trusted them. And yet, now, Rose's words forced him to see them in an entirely new light.

Before Kuro could gather himself enough to speak, the void around them began to shift. The table, the chairs, and Rose herself dissolved into nothingness, as if they had never existed at all. The blackness that had surrounded them evaporated just as suddenly, leaving Kuro in a state of disorientation. The sensation was overwhelming, as though the very fabric of reality was being ripped away and then hastily reconstructed in an instant.

Kuro blinked rapidly, trying to adjust his eyes to the change. His heart pounded in his chest, and for a brief moment, he felt as though the ground beneath him had disappeared entirely. But then, as quickly as it had begun, the blackness was gone. Kuro found himself back in his seat, the familiar sights and sounds of the inn flooding back into his senses, grounding him. He was back—back to the world he knew, but everything had changed. The notification screen that had once hovered before him was gone, as if it had never been there in the first place. His wooden sword rested against the wall nearby, untouched, as if the entire conversation had been a strange, disorienting dream.

Kuro glanced around the room, his gaze landing on Reika and Xero, who were sitting across from him. They were engaged in quiet conversation, their expressions calm and composed despite the chaos of the day. But Kuro's chest tightened as he thought of Rose's revelation. They're modeled after people from my world, he thought, the realization still settling uneasily in his mind. And they don't even know it.