Sunlight glowed through the glass windows of the Yamanaka Flower Shop. Arthur and Alice shuffled through baskets from within. Their simple mission was to clean and organize the entire shop.
Arthur, wielding a watering can, carefully replenished the orchids. "How are the others doing?"
Alice shrugged. "Honestly, little. We mostly train individually. Jasper and I hang out a lot, though."
"Are you two official?"
Alice paused, her blood racing, before she said, "Official? We… well, it's kind of complicated. We just... have fun together, I guess."
It had been a while, but for once, Arthur felt like he were acting as if he were back on earth.
"You know, Alice, marriage is sacred. Don't rush into something like relationships lightly."
"I know, but Jasper's not such a bad guy like some of you think he is…"
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?" He wasn't interested in Jasper himself, but this line of questioning might yield more information about the other players. "What makes him so special?"
Alice launched into a passionate defense. "He's strong, funny, and... well, he's on the verge of awakening the Tenseigan."
Arthur's hand, holding the watering can, froze in mid-air.
The Tenseigan was a powerful dōjutsu acquired by an Ōtsutsuki clan member implanted with a Hyūga clan member's Byakugan. This combination transformed the Byakugan into the Tenseigan, resulting in a blue pupil with a floral pattern.
It granted abilities like flight, energy blasts, and a special transformation. Obtaining it usually required sacrificial means.
Arthur's surprise must have shown on his face because Alice blinked, suddenly realizing what she'd blurted out.
"Wait, I… I shouldn't have said that!" she stammered, covering her mouth with a hand.
"Don't worry," Arthur reassured her, quickly composing himself. "This is between you and me. But I am curious. Why would Jasper want to awaken that?"
Alice relaxed slightly. "He wants to be stronger, I guess. But he hasn't done anything to progress his KG (Kekkei Genkai)."
Arthur nodded, filing away this information. He knew the dangers of the Tenseigan. Or rather, he knew the dangers if a player like Jasper awakened it.
"Speaking of strong," he continued, changing the subject, "what about the others? How's their training going?"
"Marge's been practicing this weird transformation," Alice revealed, wrinkling her nose. "She calls it Slug Sage Mode or something. Sounded gross when she told me about it."
Arthur's mind raced again.
Sage Mode was a special state that made users incredibly powerful. To enter this state, they mix natural energy from their surroundings with their own chakra, creating a substance called 'Sage Chakra.' This lets them tap into the world's natural energy and use it for new jutsu or power up their old ones.
Learning Sage Mode was very tricky. There were two main places that taught it: Mount Myōboku (land of the toads) and Ryūchi Cave (land of the snakes). It took a lot of chakra and a strong body to handle Sage Mode's power.
Here's the challenging part: entering Sage Mode required staying perfectly still to become one with nature and balance the natural energy with your own. Taking in too little natural energy won't work, but taking in too much will turn the user to stone forever.
The toads at Myōboku used special oil to help people learn Sage Mode. This oil lets the body absorb natural energy without moving, but it only worked on the mountain. And at Ryūchi Cave, one could get natural energy injected by a giant white snake. If the person was strong enough, their body will handle it. If not, the snake would eat them.
There was a downside to using Sage Mode: the user can't move while gathering natural energy, leaving them open to attack. Also, the transformation had a time limit.
There were, of course, ways to get around these weaknesses. One option was to have someone else gather natural energy for them while they fought. Another way was to use Shadow Clones to gather energy.
Why Arthur was surprised upon figuring out Margaret's goal was because he had never heard of or seen a 'Slug Sage Mode' before. No one, absolutely no one in the ninja world, had it. In fact, it shouldn't even be possible to acquire.
If he were to consider it, Slug Sage Mode could be a hypothetical power learned in Shikkotsu Forest (the land of slugs). Its power would likely focus on regenerative abilities and sensory techniques rather than raw strength.
Who knew what Margaret could have up her sleeve? And if she was doing that, Arthur wondered about Jada.
"Jada?" Alice repeated. "Ever since you helped her get the Sharingan, she's been trying to copy everyone's moves."
Arthur was not the least bit surprised. Rather, he commended her for not letting it go to waste. His suspicions were confirmed when Alice stated that Jada had only been copying techniques from notable characters like Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake.
The former was a taijutsu specialist who relied on his physical prowess rather than ninjutsu or genjutsu. He's incredibly strong and fast, able to perform amazing feats like punching someone through a rock wall.
Kakashi, on the other hand, was a well-rounded ninja skilled in all three main jutsu areas: ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu. He, too, possessed a Sharingan (just one), which allowed him to learn all five basic elements, including light and dark styles.
If Arthur were to guess, Jada had likely already copied most of the taijutsu skills her body could handle from Might Guy and then copied Kakashi's basic ninjutsu and kenjutsu.
"What about Will?" Arthur wondered. "I heard from Jada he's been trying to learn the Rasengan."
"You sure are asking a lot about the others," Alice replied, giving him a knowing look.
"Right… Sorry. I guess it's wrong of me to gossip."
"Haha! Gee, Arthur. Relax. You just want to make sure they're doing alright, and I get that."
Whether that was true or not, Arthur remained quiet about the matter.
Alice paused before answering. "Will abused the Shadow Clone jutsu like we knew he would. So he's basically learned the Rasengan already." Arthur was impressed since a technique like that took months to learn. "To be fair, all he does is train with Naruto and their clones."
Not only was William surely progressing at a faster rate, but so was the main character. If this kept up, Naruto would surpass Sasuke. Or worse: the main character would surpass Arthur.
Arthur refrained from asking about Alexander, in case Alice became suspicious.
As the two finished cleaning the shop, a sense of foreboding settled over him. These players—each with their own unique abilities and motivations—consisted of no ordinary feats. They each had more knowledge than him regarding how to correctly strengthen their characters.
The bar would be raised further if Arthur ever slacked off.
Soon, the two exited the shop with the evening sun glinting off the polished tiles. Arthur turned to Alice and thanked her for the help. And as they walked away to make their report, she hummed cheerfully.
"So, Arthur, what have you learned since you came here?"
He kept his voice casual. "The usual things: layout of the streets, some shops... the best places to eat, I guess."
Alice chuckled. "I meant jutsus? Jada mentioned you're actually quite stronger than you look. Even Jasper gets upset when I bring up your name. But I've never sensed you on any of the training grounds or sparring with anyone."
Arthur's smile faded slightly as he understood what he had heard. She said 'sensed.' Alice was a sensory type!
A sensory-type ninja was someone with the special ability to sense chakra. Unlike most, who could only feel intense chakra releases, they can actively sense chakra at will. This lets them detect hidden enemies, identify people by their unique chakra signatures, and even tell if someone was lying.
Being a sensory type does have limitations.
Some, like Karin Uzumaki, need to focus and use their own chakra to sense others, making it difficult to fight while sensing. Additionally, sensory types can be fooled by hidden chakra, fake chakra signatures, or special techniques that block chakra detection.
Knowing these facts made sense on how Alice was able to find Arthur back at the restaurant; she had sensed his location. And considering she never sensed him beforehand, tells him that her range was limited.
Had he not been so diligent with his affairs and chosen secluded areas to train in, he would have been exposed a dozen times over.
Showing no concern, he answered, "I'm more of a support player, really. Not much of a fighter."
"Support player?" Alice frowned. "I would think someone who could best Jasper in taijutsu was more than that."
This was getting risky. Arthur thought of something fast, conceding, "Alright, alright. I know a couple of water style jutsus. Happy?"
Alice's face fell again as she scolded, "You still only know two?" He figured it was Jada who had told her those facts. "Come on, Arthur, you can't keep falling behind."
He forced a laugh, hoping it sounded genuine enough. "I know, I know. We may not see eye-to-eye on everything, but we're all stuck with each other, right? Maybe I'll join in on one of your training sessions one day."
Alice's eyes narrowed for a brief moment, then she returned his smile, albeit a little more skeptical. Then she clapped him on the back. "You better!"
Upon reaching the Yamanaka compound, the two walked into Inoichi Yamanaka's office.
Inoichi was a Jōnin and the current head of the Yamanaka clan. He was said to be calm, analytical, and very dedicated to his members. Being a loving father who spoils his daughter, Ino, he trained her to inevitably take over as the leader one day.
Arthur and Alice found him behind his desk, idly sipping tea. The man's infuriatingly calm demeanor grated on Arthur's nerves.
"Finished your mission already?" Inoichi drawled. "How productive."
"Yes, sir." Alice answered, showing respect.
Mission? That was grunt work. Arthur felt like talking back, but he refrained.
Inoichi steepled his fingers. "Good. I understand that it was more of a chore than you expected, but anything to help you advance in the rankings."
Arthur humbled himself by stating that the mission was no trouble and that he was content with it.
Inoichi chuckled. "Mr. Bennett, correct? Alice told me a lot about you. I'm glad you two are friends."
Was this a test? Arthur was not going to fall for any more schemes that the other players thought they could bait him into. So he lowered himself further, announcing that he was simply pleased to help.
Inoichi's gaze softened. "Good to know." Then he handed them each a pouch containing one hundred ryō. "Now, dismiss yourselves and enjoy your night."
Outside the office, Alice nudged Arthur playfully. "I think he likes you."
"I should be saying that to you."
"Well, I am technically his half-niece or something. Anyway, if you're not doing anything tonight, I'd be more than happy to see how good your taijutsu is."
Arthur knew better than to give himself away, especially when dealing with a sensory type like her. He simply couldn't risk revealing his true strength, but he needed a way to deflect her request without raising suspicion.
"Taijutsu, huh?" he mused, feigning regret. "Much as I'd like to, I'm afraid my skills pale in comparison to yours. Besides, I'm more suited for support roles like—"
Alice's brow furrowed, making him pause midsentence. "Support roles? Why do you keep thinking you're not like the rest of us?"
"I didn't say that. I—"
"Is it because your character's Clan-less? None of us think you're weak, Arthur. I just thought you should know that."
Arthur had a hard time believing that. Perhaps she was right regarding Jada and William's mindset about him, but players like Jasper and Margaret undoubtedly looked down on his character.
He shrugged. "Water jutsus are more my thing, really. And I think if Jasper had used his Byakugan at the start, he would have won… Tell ya what, though: maybe you can give me a few pointers on how you hone your sensory skills to help me back you guys up one day."
This elicited a surprised giggle from Alice. "Sensory skills? Really? You're interested in that?"
"Absolutely," he pressed, hoping his fake enthusiasm wouldn't sound forced. "I mean, being able to pinpoint enemies from afar—that's invaluable for any team."
"You really want to be a support player, huh?" she said, clearly flattered by his interest. "Well, then, I guess I can help a little. But my sensing's not exactly a walk in the park."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I kind of feel more like an Esper than I do a sensory ninja."
"A what?"
"Ugh... Never mind. It's sort of complicated to explain. Here, I'll give you a rundown on sensing regularly instead."
Without much time spent, she launched into a detailed explanation of how sensory perception worked. They were minor things: the need for focus, the limitations of range, and chakra signatures.
As she spoke, Arthur got exactly the information he needed.
There was now one more technique he had in mind to learn: 'Chakra Disguise.'