Chapter 26: Chapter 25 A New Path to Power
Lying on the slanted rooftop of his dilapidated house, Naruto gazed up at the starlit sky, his blue eyes reflecting the moonlight. A gentle night breeze brushed past, but he paid no attention to it.
His focus was entirely on something else.
"Buy six physical training sessions!"
"Buy three chakra control training sessions!"
"Buy three hand seal training sessions!"
With a mental command, Naruto swept through the system's training options, spending his hard-earned resources without hesitation.
In mere moments, his body began to change—his muscles subtly tensed, his movements felt sharper, and an overwhelming surge of energy coursed through his veins. His body, once that of an underdeveloped academy student, was now several times stronger.
A smirk played on his lips as he sat up. "Let's test this out."
Naruto leapt from the rooftop, not just to the ground, but straight to a tree trunk several meters away.
He landed lightly, feet sinking into the bark.
His eyes widened.
"Whoa… My jumping ability's improved by that much?"
Excited, he pushed off again, dashing deeper into the nearby forest. The night was silent except for the rustling of leaves as his movements blurred through the shadows.
Standing amidst towering trees, he clenched his fist. His knuckles cracked in anticipation.
With a powerful punch, Naruto struck the nearest tree.
BOOM!
A massive trunk—so thick that three grown men would struggle to wrap their arms around it—snapped in half. The canopy crashed down with a thunderous impact, shaking the ground.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Several more trees followed, splitting at their midsections as Naruto's strikes tore through them like paper.
Breathing heavily, he stared at his own fists.
"...My strength has increased dozens of times."
Testing further, he approached a nearby stone wall, clenched his hand, and threw another punch.
CRACK!
A gaping hole burst through the wall. Another series of strikes later, the entire structure crumbled into rubble.
Naruto took a deep breath, dusting off his hands.
"With this level of physical ability, I should be on par with a Chūnin-level taijutsu user... maybe even Lee at the start of the Chūnin Exams."
He grinned to himself. "Not bad."
Suddenly, movement flickered in the distance.
He turned his head slightly, sensing the presence of incoming ninja.
—Nara Clan members.
A group of them rushed over, no doubt responding to the destruction in their backyard.
"Shit, better not stick around."
Without hesitation, Naruto leapt into the trees, vanishing into the darkness.
---
Returning to his small, dimly lit house, Naruto sat cross-legged on his bed, organizing his thoughts.
"I have Scorch Release as my kekkei genkai."
"My taijutsu is around early Genin Lee's level."
"My kunai throwing is at an elite level."
"But I still don't have a true trump card…"
He needed something—a skill, a technique—that could push him beyond his current limits.
His mind wandered to the system's taijutsu options.
[Taijutsu Mastery Options]
▶ Eight Gates Technique (500 million ryo)
Unlocks the body's chakra limits, providing immense power. Eight stages: Gate of Opening, Rest, Life, Pain, Limit, View, Wonder, and Death. However, using it damages the body.
▶ Senju Secret Art: Chakra-Enhanced Strength (200 million ryo)
Concentrates chakra into strikes to unleash earth-splitting force.
▶ Forbidden Technique: Lightning Cell Activation (400 million ryo)
Enhances physical abilities by infusing the body with Lightning Release, increasing speed to blue-lightning levels.
Naruto sighed. "The prices are insane."
Sure, purchasing them would let him instantly master these abilities, but there was no way he could afford that amount.
"The smarter option is to learn them first, then buy the system's advanced training… That way, the cost drops to a tenth."
As he pondered his next step, his eyes landed on a scroll tucked inside his ninja pouch.
"...Right, almost forgot about this."
Unrolling the parchment, he read the title scrawled across it.
"Fire Style Ninjutsu Scroll."
A smirk tugged at his lips.
"This was the bet I won from Itachi. Let's see what he was willing to part with."
His gaze scanned the contents.
▶ Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique
▶ Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique
▶ Fire Style: Hiding in Ash Technique
▶ Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet
▶ Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame
Naruto's smirk deepened.
"So this is what he gave me?"
Did Itachi think these Fire Style techniques would be useless to him because he only had a wind affinity?
If so… that was a huge miscalculation.
Naruto raised his right hand.
A golden-orange flame flickered to life in his palm.
Scorch Release.
A fusion of fire and wind.
"Since I have both affinities, I can use Fire Style at full power."
He glanced back at the scroll, narrowing his eyes as he picked out three techniques.
▶ Fire Style: Hiding in Ash Technique
(Obscures vision with superheated ash while burning enemies caught in it.)
▶ Fire Style: Heavenly Prison Technique
(A sealing jutsu that suppresses an opponent's chakra.)
▶ Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame
(A large-scale inferno capable of incinerating entire battlefields.)
A slow grin spread across Naruto's face.
"This… is perfect."
Meanwhile…
Somewhere in the Uchiha Compound, two certain shinobi sneezed at the same time.
Uchiha Shisui rubbed his nose. "Weird… Someone must be talking about me."
Uchiha Itachi frowned. "Forget that. We still have 400,000 copies of Naruto's book to sell before we clear the debt."
The two prodigies sighed, staring at the stack of questionable literature beside them.
"Hey, Shisui…" Itachi muttered.
"Yeah?"
"…You think Kakashi would buy a few copies?"
"...Worth a shot."
And thus, the legendary Uchiha duo continued their most dignified mission yet—selling smut for survival.
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(A/N: Don't Forget To Add In Your Collection And Support via Powerstone)