How did it come to this?
All around me lay an endless wasteland of garbage. I couldn't see far into the distance, but it was abundantly clear that mountains of trash stretched as far as the eye could see. C-Calm down. First, count prime numbers. 2, 3, 5, 7, 11... I'm getting a sudden wave of déjà vu here, but... w-well, whatever, that doesn't matter right now. First, stay calm. Close your eyes and take a deep breath.
...Like hell I can stay calm!!
...How on earth did it come to this?
The Gamble of a New Life
At that moment, as my life as Akira Kitajima was drawing to a close, harboring feelings of unfulfilled ambition, I wished for the activation of my third Nen ability: [Reincarnation / New Game Plus].
The next thing I knew, although I couldn't open my eyes yet, my consciousness awakened. Yes, I was awake!
I had definitely died. So if I had consciousness right now... it was a success! Reincarnation / New Game Plus had activated without a hitch!!
Hell yeah, now I can win! I just won the biggest gamble of my entire life!!!
...Or so I rejoiced, but my celebration was tragically short-lived...
The fact that Reincarnation / New Game Plus worked was wonderful. Genuinely something to celebrate. However, there was a fatal miscalculation...
My mother—the woman who gifted me this brand new body—died. And she died before she could even give birth to me. The moment my consciousness awakened, the overwhelming surge of aura released from my soul forcibly pried open all the aura nodes throughout her body.
If an uninitiated person doesn't contain the aura leaking from their entire body, their aura will rapidly drain away. Aura is life energy itself. If it depletes completely, the victim faints from extreme exhaustion, or worse, succumbs to total organ failure and death. For a heavily pregnant woman—one who had never practiced a shred of martial arts—mastering Ten on the spot was virtually impossible. And so, she tragically passed away from aura exhaustion...
If there was any silver lining to this tragedy, it was that she was already in her final term, allowing me to be surgically delivered alive from my deceased mother's body.
I had caused the death of an innocent woman... In my previous life, I had never taken a human life. And yet, the moment I was reborn, I became the direct cause of death for a defenseless woman...
Right after reincarnating, an overwhelming wave of guilt and remorse crashed over me...
An Ominous Awakening
Yet the miscalculations didn't stop there.
The second miscalculation was that the aura enveloping my tiny infant body had increased exponentially. It was conspicuously greater than during my past life's peak... What in the world is this? Before my death, my aura capacity was at best two-thirds of my prime, but right now, I have nearly double that volume, hey...?! Well, whatever. I guess you could call that a happy accident.
The real problem was the quality of this aura.
What an utterly sinister, ominous aura... It feels as though it harbors every conceivable misfortune in existence...!!
...Well, maybe that's an exaggeration. At the very least, my own hostile intent isn't infused into it, so it's not purely malevolent. But conversely, that means it's this terrifyingly ominous without even channeling malice or bloodlust...!!
Why?! Is it because I died once before? ...Yeah, that's probably it. In fact, my mother's death might have also been partly caused by this sinister aura. It's far too toxic for an ordinary civilian to bathe in...
Due to this horrifying aura, the doctors, the nurses, and even the man who appeared to be my father refused to come anywhere near me... Thinking I should use Zetsu, I tried to shut my nodes, but it didn't go smoothly... Dammit! Is it because the nature of my aura suddenly shifted so drastically?!
Eventually, once my aura quieted down a little, my father (?) cautiously approached. By the way, since my infant eyes hadn't opened yet, I was perceiving everything entirely through aura sensing. The utility of Nen is honestly absurd. Though still inferior to a certain franchise's chakra, of course.
"What a cursed, monstrous infant! This thing... this thing must be what killed Mischa!!"
...Mischa. Is that the name of my mother in this life? ...It hurts that I can't even deny his accusation.
"You monster...!"
Saying that, my father drew what felt like a firearm, aiming to shoot me... A gun?! Wait a damn second!!
Full-power Ken!!
Immediately afterward, a gunshot rang out. But I took zero damage. In fact, the bullet didn't even hit me. He was probably trembling in terror from my aura, which threw off his aim. He was literally rattling like a leaf. Realizing that staying like this would lead nowhere, I suppressed my aura once more. ...I'm gradually getting the hang of this.
"Wh-What do you think you are doing in a place like this?!"
Nice one, doctor! Tell him off!
"S-Shut up! You know as well as I do that this creature killed Mischa! You felt it too, didn't you?! That grotesque, horrifying aura!!"
Mischa-san, huh? That must be the name of the woman who brought me into this world. I can't blame this man for how he feels... Anyone who had their beloved wife killed would be driven mad with grief and rage...
"I-I understand your grief, but this is a hospital! As a physician, I cannot permit anyone to harm a patient in a sanctuary dedicated to saving lives!"
What a remarkably noble doctor. A true model physician... Wait, you don't mean 'it's totally fine to kill him outside the hospital', right?
"A human? You call this devil a human being?!"
W-Well, isn't that a bit harsh...? Though admittedly, my aura is terrifying. If I ran into someone emitting an aura like this, I'd sprint in the opposite direction without looking back.
"Fine. Whatever. As long as I don't kill it, right?... Hey, it's me. Dispatch the men to Menfil General Hospital immediately. ...Yes, them! All of them!! And have a blimp prepped and ready to launch. Understood?!"
Ah, so this place really was Menfil General Hospital. It's only about 500 meters from my old dojo, and my disciples used to visit here frequently. More importantly, what on earth did dear old dad just call over? ...Don't tell me?
The Exile
About ten minutes later, a squad of men dressed in black suits entered the room alongside my father. The doctor and nurses were forcibly shoved out of the room.
...Yup, these guys are definitely Nen users... So Dad called in Nen users! To command Nen users like this, he must hold quite a high status... He was packing heat earlier, too—is he a mafia don or something?
Well, that doesn't matter right now. Actually, it might matter a lot, but let's shelf it for a moment.
Nen users are bad news!! No matter how much aura I have, my physical vessel is literally a newborn baby. There's no way I can fight! I refuse to get spawn-killed right after reincarnating! F-For now, full-power Ken!!
...Huh? Why are they trembling in absolute terror?
Ah, right! Nen users who can actually perceive aura are far more sensitive to its horrifying intensity. And right now, there's a touch of defensive hostility mixed in.
It's super effective!
"H-Hiiieee! B-Boss, wh-what the hell is that thing...?!"
"Is that seriously a newborn baby...?!"
"I-I thought I was gonna die on the spot..."
"... (Fainted unconscious)"
...It's WAY too effective!
"Pathetic! And you call yourselves my elite bodyguards?!"
"B-But Boss... the reason you summoned us is this infant, right? What are we supposed to do with it...? You're not asking us to kill that thing, are you...?"
"Hmph! As much as I loathe it, I won't kill it. If I murder it here, a record will be logged in the International Civil Data Registry. A permanent record stating that it's my child!"
So he's not going to officially acknowledge me, huh... Well, fair enough. If a baby possessed such an ominous aura and caused the death of your wife, very few human beings would ever accept it...
"I summoned you to guard me. I have no idea when this monster might strike... Hey, load it into the car. Have Dahl and Zaza flank it on both sides. I doubt it could, but don't let it escape under any circumstances."
"W-We have to sit next to it?!"
"U-Understood..."
Sorry for making you guys draw the short straw...
"Also, that useless Belom over there who fainted is demoted. Make him start back from the bottom rung!"
RIP Belom...
Departure
And so, I was loaded into the car. Where are they taking me? It doesn't seem like they intend to kill me directly, but... Having nothing else to do, I decided to run some diagnostic checks on my Nen.
Yup. Everything works flawlessly. Although the increased volume and altered quality caught me off guard initially, once I got used to it, I could manipulate aura just as intuitively as in my previous life. Meanwhile, Dahl-san and Zaza-san were staring at me in sheer terror, as if witnessing an unspeakable Eldritch horror.
Well, of course they were. A newborn infant was casually cycling through Ten, Ren, Zetsu, Gyo, En, and Ko right in front of their eyes—and at high speed. If that's not a living nightmare, I don't know what is.
I figured it might make them even more wary of me, but at this point, cat's out of the bag anyway.
Eventually, I was taken out of the car. I was carried with the delicate urgency of someone transporting raw nitroglycerin, and next, I was loaded onto a blimp. Where on earth are they taking me?
The Drop
How long have I been on this blimp? Probably about five or six hours? I wish someone would tell me our destination, but there's nobody around... Leaving a lone newborn abandoned on the cold floor... their humanity is seriously questionable. ...Well, putting myself in their shoes, I can totally understand why.
Come to think of it, if there were Nen users around, I could have used aura to write letters in the air. That way, I could have communicated... Though honestly, if a newborn baby started writing fluent messages with aura, they'd probably just treat me like an even bigger monster.
Still, I truly did a terrible thing to my mother in this life... An apology can never make up for it, but I desperately wished I could have said sorry just once... All of this happened because I created such a ridiculous Nen ability. It's not that I've given up on living, but the regret still eats away at me.
As I was lost in thought, a mechanical whirring sound resonated—whiiiiir—and the floor beneath me suddenly split open. A weightless sensation enveloped my entire body.
Huh?
Before I could react, I was plummeting upside down toward the earth at terminal velocity!
Hold up! They just dropped me out of a blimp!! What happened to 'I won't kill it'?! Anyone would die splattered on the pavement from this height, you psychos!!?
Hiiieeeeeeeee!! I'm falling, I'm dropping, I'm pluuuuummetinggggggg!!!
Dammit! Like hell I'm dying here! First, En!!
I expanded my sensory sphere to confirm my altitude and pinpoint the exact moment of impact. Then, as the ground rushed up, I released a massive blast of aura toward the earth to counter my downward momentum. Immediately following that, I channeled full-power Ken to absorb the residual impact!
...
Phew, I somehow pulled it off. That was terrifying. In all my years across two lifetimes, I don't think I've ever panicked that hard.
Wait, where even am I? Checking with my En, it seems like I'm surrounded by endless mountains of trash...
...Mountains of trash?
I pushed my En to maximum range! Whoa, that's insane—it expanded nearly a full kilometer! And as expected... everywhere around me is trash, trash, trash, and more trash!
No matter how you look at it, this is Meteor City. Thank you very much.
The Reality of the Wasteland
...How on earth did it come to this? (Loop back to the first line).
Two days have passed since I was abandoned (air-dropped) into Meteor City.
I'm still wrapped in a single scrap of cloth, spending my days all alone... Why? Isn't Meteor City supposed to accept everything and everyone?!
Why won't anybody pick me up? Every single person who catches sight of me turns tail and flees like a frightened rabbit... No, I get it. It's totally because of my aura... Even for the hardened residents of this wasteland, a creepy baby like this is too much to stomach...
One guy even chucked a literal bomb at me... which I swatted away with an aura blast before it could detonate!
...And after that, absolutely nobody came near this area anymore.
Dammit! Should I have just maintained Zetsu the whole time?! But if I did that, a newborn baby would be exposed raw to this horrific environment with toxic fumes drifting around. That's suicide for an infant just a few days old... Surviving in this wasteland from birth, no wonder terrifyingly strong Nen users grow up here... What was that group called again? The something Troupe?
Sigh... I'm so bored. Lying on my back doing nothing is pure torture. I can't practice Nen in this condition either. I mean, I could, but draining aura equals draining life energy. What kind of tragedy would it be to commit accidental suicide on day two of my new life?
...Guess I'll use [Original Knowledge / Protagonist's Perk] to kill some time. The consumption for that is negligible anyway.
...Huh? It's not activating. Why?
My [Absolute Obedience / Geass] restriction should have been lifted upon death! I'm not under anyone's Manipulation ability! There shouldn't be any issue with using it! ...Could it be that reincarnating wiped away my previous life's Hatsu abilities? Or maybe, because my physical brain changed, the original memories stored in my neural pathways are inaccessible?
...Yeah, that's entirely possible.
Sigh. Losing that ability stings, but it is what it is. More importantly, I'm in serious trouble. Even if I can use Nen, my biological body is still fundamentally an infant. Without food or water, I can't hold out much longer. My consciousness is already fading in and out...
Someone, anyone, please come...
Hm? A reaction on my En! Someone's coming!
This is my final chance. I desperately suppress my aura. I hate using Zetsu, but beggars can't be choosers. At this rate, I'll die of dehydration anyway. I'd rather risk catching an infection than guarantee my own death!
Please! What's lying here is just a harmless, adorable baby who can use Nen, has past-life memories, and happens to possess an enormous, slightly creepy aura!
Whoever you are, please pick me up! I swear I'll repay your kindness with interest, kind sir!!
The Witness
Lately, strange rumors have been circulating through Meteor City.
Word had it that an infant fell from high above the clouds. And that despite plummeting from the sky, the baby landed upon the earth without a single scratch.
A baby falling from the heavens and landing unharmed? What ridiculous nonsense, I had initially laughed it off, but the situation seemed increasingly bizarre.
This is Meteor City. The residents here accept whatever the outside world casts away. Yet that baby was reportedly still abandoned in the exact crater where it had landed.
Several salvage squads had apparently attempted to retrieve the infant, but all of them fled in sheer terror from an eerie, unnatural power radiating from the child. One scavenger, driven mad with fear, even hurled a bomb directly at the baby—only for the explosive to be deflected several meters away into the distance before detonating, leaving the infant completely unscathed...
Impossible. Where could such an infant possibly come from? ...Could it be some form of Nen beast manifested by an unknown Nen user?
Intriguing. I suppose I will go take a look.
...What on earth is this?
Upon reaching the sector where the infant was said to be, I witnessed something utterly unbelievable.
En. And an absurdly vast one at that... Taking the epicenter into account, the sphere spans nearly an entire kilometer. A newborn infant is sustaining an En of this scale? That makes it all the more impossible...
What should I do? Shall I make contact with this sphere...?
...Let's step inside. If this truly is an infant, taking it in and raising it could prove quite entertaining. We take whatever we desire. That is who we are.
Besides, if the rumors are accurate, none of the salvage squads suffered any actual physical harm. It may well be an unexpectedly harmless existence.
I take a single step forward, making contact with the boundary of the En...
Is this thing... a monster?!
A wave of aura beyond anything I could have ever imagined crashes over me. I have never felt aura of such an ominous, unsettling quality. Despite being an extended En, its density rivals Uvo-san's Ren...!!
My entire body freezes in place. My footsteps grind to a dead halt after just one step...
...?! The En... was deactivated...?
Why? Because I stepped into its domain?
Why? Is it luring me in?
What should I do? Press forward, or retreat...?
I cannot simply tuck my tail and run after being mocked like this. Accepting the provocation, I take a step forward.
Standing atop a heap of rubble about 500 meters away, I gaze toward the center of the former En.
There it is. It really is an infant. Barely a week old, perhaps? If it has radiated such an aura since birth, being discarded here makes perfect sense. Furthermore, it is currently in a state of Zetsu. To suppress its aura the moment I made contact with its En... That is undeniable proof of conscious awareness!
An infant that possesses self-awareness, commands Nen, and radiates an astronomical, anomalous aura? What else could it be but a monster...?!
...! Our eyes met! It definitely looked right at me—and smiled!
The instant I saw that baby smile, I turned on my heels and sprinted at full speed back toward home...
I must warn my comrades. Do not set foot in that sector.
Desperation and a New Power
I felt someone's gaze locked onto me from about 500 meters away. Oho! The person from earlier came back!
See? Look at this cute, harmless little baby~! Not scary at all~! I wonder what kind of person came to check on me? My vision has cleared up, so let's take a peek.
Since my eyesight is still weak, I'll enhance my eyes with Gyo. And just in case, I'll use In to conceal the aura so I don't spook him.
Whoa...?! What an insanely handsome young boy! Is he around twelve or thirteen? Dammit! His good looks are downright infuriating!!
No, no, bad Akira! That handsome boy is going to be my adoptive father! I need to appeal to him with my brightest, most innocent smile!
WAIT, WHAT THE HELL?! Look at that speed! That kid just bolted like an absolute rocket!! That's not just running away—that's orbital velocity!!
Wait! Don't leave me! What did I do wrong?!
...Dammit, he's already out of range.
Another day has passed, hasn't it...? I-I can't take it anymore... I've hit my absolute limit. My stamina is completely dry...
Honestly, lasting this long as an infant is a miracle in itself...
Nobody has visited since then... I've pulsed my En a few times, but there isn't even a rat in sight. Well, there were some initially, but the moment I pulsed my En, every living creature vanished from this entire sector...
Am I really going to rot away and die in a dump like this...?
No! I was finally reborn! I refuse to die without even getting to enjoy my second life!! If it was going to end like this, dying permanently as Ryusho would have been ten thousand times better!!
If I die here, then Mischa-san... Mom sacrificed her life for absolutely nothing...!!
Somebody... somebody please save meeeeeeee!!!!!!!
[Great Mother's Love / Grateful Mother] Activated.
"It's all right, my sweet child. Mommy will protect you."
...Huh? What does that mean? What just happened???
Why am I suddenly being tenderly cradled by a gorgeous beauty?
Wait... why does this feel so incredibly warm and comforting...?
What in the world is this???
◆
[AN NOTE]
Nen Ability Explanations
[Reincarnation (Lol) / Reincarnation? No, It's Possession]
Type: Manipulation
Description: An unconscious Nen ability created by the lingering regrets of Sho, who died filled with remorse. At the exact moment of activation, the user—having transformed into posthumous Nen—possesses a human within a 600-meter radius centered on the user.
This radius matches the maximum range of the user's En in life.If no one is within range upon activation, no effect manifests and the ability dissipates.
If the possessed target retains their own ego/sense of self for more than one minute after being possessed, the ability also dissipates, and the user existing as posthumous Nen perishes as well.Furthermore, if multiple targets are present within range, it automatically selects whichever subject is easiest to possess. The target cannot be chosen at the user's conscious will (due to being an unconscious ability).
＜Restrictions＞
Does not activate unless the user dies.
Any cause of death is valid, but it will not trigger from suicide. Deliberately allowing oneself to be killed or harmed by others is also treated as suicide.
The longer the user lives, the higher the possession success rate becomes (because surviving to an advanced age is difficult in this world).
Any injuries or pain suffered by the possessed target are fully experienced by the user. In addition, if the possessed target dies physically, the posthumous Nen is also extinguished. (By virtue of this covenant, the user can freely control and move the target's body as though it were their own senses).
Because this ability manipulates the possessed individual, undergoing Exorcism (Nen cleansing) will dispel the technique, and naturally the user of this Nen will also perish.
＜Vow＞
If the user engages in sexual intercourse with a woman while alive, this ability is permanently nullified.
◆
[AN]
[A Mother's Great Love / Grateful Mother]
Type: Conjuration
Description: A Nen beast modeled after herself, created by the fierce love of a mother who awakened to Nen but died from exhaustion after failing to contain her leaking aura.
Although her form radiates an ominous posthumous aura, it imparts a deep sense of safety and comfort to her child. She possesses all manner of abilities beneficial for raising and nurturing a child. Her slight tendency toward being an overbearing "tiger mom" is her only minor flaw. Her total aura reserves are calculated as: ≪Mischa's aura pool in life + amplification from posthumous Nen≫.
＜Restrictions＞
Cannot appear or disappear at will like typical conjured Nen beasts. Once summoned, she remains active until her aura is completely exhausted.
Cannot move further than a 10-meter radius from the child she has designated as her own.
Incapable of utilizing basic or advanced Nen techniques such as Zetsu, Ren, Gyo, In, En, Shu, Ko, or Ryu.
Once her aura reserves are depleted and she dissipates, she can never be summoned again.
Her stored aura cannot be restored or replenished.
＜Vow＞
None in particular.
Inherent Sub-Abilities:
1. [Mysterious Breast Milk Filled with Love / Love Milk]
Type: Composite Transmutation and Conjuration
Description: Transmutes and conjures aura into breast milk infused with abundant love. The "love" components include:Rich nutrition, revitalization/toning, fatigue recovery, accelerated growth, infection prevention, beauty enhancement, aura restoration, etc.Additionally, the flavor can be adjusted freely.
＜Restriction＞
Stored aura reserves decrease every time breast milk is produced.
＜Vow＞
None in particular.
2. [Convenient Baby Goods Store / Convenience Baby Goods]
Type: Conjuration
Description: Conjures items and tools beneficial for the child.Can manifest a wide variety of items, ranging from disposable diapers to baby strollers.Can be conjured repeatedly as long as stored aura remains.
＜Restrictions＞
Limited strictly to items that Mischa knew of during her lifetime.
Cannot conjure anything deemed unnecessary for raising the child.
Stored aura reserves decrease with each conjuration. Aura consumption scales proportionally with the size of the item.
＜Vow＞
None in particular.
3. [Discipline of Love / Kyoiku Mama]
Type: Manipulation
Description: Disciplines the child with tough love for their own good. The child who receives this discipline has their subconscious manipulated, guiding their mind so they never repeat the behavior that triggered the scolding. This ability is also effective against posthumous Nen. Overusing it on the same subject causes rebellious pushback. Discipline is best kept in moderation.
＜Restrictions＞
Will not activate unless the scolding is driven by genuine, heartfelt concern for the child.
Overusing it on the same subject triggers psychological resistance. The tolerance threshold varies depending on the subject's mental strength, making the balance tricky to manage.
Stored aura reserves decrease with each use.
＜Vow＞
None in particular.
Supplementary Note: Because [A Mother's Great Love / Grateful Mother] is a Nen ability manifested through the posthumous Nen born from deceased Mischa's lingering love for her child, it is not an ability wielded by the protagonist.