Chapter 10: The Unseen Puppeteer
[Adam Yukimura POV]
The calm in Konoha, if you could call my daily shenanigans "calm," was shattered by the news. Gaara, the Kazekage, abducted by the Akatsuki. The entire village was on edge. For me, however, it was like Christmas had come early. The Akatsuki. A veritable smorgasbord of high-value skills. This was my chance to truly shine. And to die. A lot.
"Tsunade, my love!" I announced, striding into her office, where she was already poring over maps and intelligence reports, looking grim. "I volunteer for the Gaara retrieval mission! I have a deep, personal connection to the Kazekage! A bond forged in… well, in a very specific, very painful moment involving sand."
Tsunade looked up, her eyes narrowed. "You? On a retrieval mission? Adam, you're a civilian who occasionally gets punched through walls and puts rubber chickens on ANBU heads. This is serious."
"Exactly!" I countered. "My unique skill set is perfect for serious situations! Who would suspect the eccentric, immortal civilian to be a tactical genius? I'm a master of misdirection! A connoisseur of chaos! And besides, I owe Gaara one. He gave me a skill, after all. It's only fair I return the favor by getting myself killed by the people who took him."
Shizune looked faint. Tsunade just stared at me, then sighed. "Fine. You're assigned to Team Guy. But if you cause any trouble, or get yourself killed unnecessarily, I swear, I will personally revive you just to punch you again."
"Deal!" I beamed. "Though, I can't promise anything about the 'unnecessarily' part. Some deaths are just too good to pass up."
Team Guy. Lee, Tenten, Neji, and Guy-sensei. A perfect group of earnest, powerful individuals. And a great opportunity for some "accidental" deaths.
The mission was a whirlwind of action. We tracked the Akatsuki to their hideout. And that's where I found my first target: Deidara. The explosive artist. His C1, C2, and C4 creations were exactly what I needed.
Team Guy engaged Deidara's clone. It was a chaotic, high-flying battle. Explosions rocked the landscape. I, being the opportunistic individual I was, saw my chance.
"Lee! Guy-sensei! Look out!" I yelled, pointing dramatically at a particularly large, clay bird that Deidara had just launched. "It's… it's going to explode! Right over there! Where I am currently standing! Oh, the humanity!"
I "tripped" directly into the path of the clay bird as it detonated. The explosion was immense, concussive, and surprisingly artistic.
[ YOU HAVE BEEN KILLED BY: DEIDARA (UNIQUE DEATH!) ][ SKILL ACQUIRED: BASIC EXPLOSION RELEASE (Active) - A rudimentary ability to infuse chakra with explosive properties, creating small, controlled detonations. ][ DEATHS REMAINING (DEIDARA): 0 ]
I gasped, pushing myself up from the smoking crater. My clothes were singed, my hair was a mess, but I was otherwise fine. "Basic Explosion Release! Oh, this is fantastic! Now I can make exploding glitter bombs! Or, you know, just subtly blow up inconvenient paperwork in Tsunade's office! The possibilities are endless!"
Team Guy stared at me, mouths agape. "He… he just… exploded," Lee stammered.
"And now he's back," Neji finished, his Byakugan eyes wide.
"Told you I had a deep connection to explosions!" I chirped, dusting myself off. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have another Akatsuki member to 'meet.'"
My next target was Sasori. The puppet master. His human puppets, his poisons, his intricate control – all prime skill-farming material. The battle between Sakura, Chiyo, and Sasori was intense. I knew the timeline. I knew when Chiyo was about to be hit by Sasori's poisoned puppet.
"Chiyo-baa-chan! Look out!" I yelled, launching myself forward with "Impact Rush," throwing myself in front of Chiyo just as the poisoned puppet lunged. The needles pierced my chest. The poison coursed through my veins, a burning, agonizing sensation. My vision swam.
[ YOU HAVE BEEN KILLED BY: SASORI (UNIQUE DEATH!) ][ SKILL ACQUIRED: BASIC HUMAN PUPPETRY (Passive) - A rudimentary understanding of the principles behind manipulating human bodies with chakra threads. ][ DEATHS REMAINING (SASORI): 0 ]
I gasped, sitting up. The poison was gone, my body whole. "Basic Human Puppetry! Oh, this is going to be so useful! Now I can make my enemies dance like puppets! Or, you know, just subtly make them trip over their own feet! The possibilities for pranks are truly endless!"
Sakura and Chiyo stared at me, utterly dumbfounded. "He… he just took that hit for me…" Chiyo whispered.
"And then he just… got up," Sakura finished, her eyes wide.
"Just doing my part!" I said, giving them a cheerful thumbs-up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some new skills to merge!"
The mission concluded with Gaara's rescue. I returned to Konoha with Team Guy, the official reports detailing my "heroic sacrifice" and miraculous recovery. Tsunade received the reports, and I could tell they were… affecting her.
I found her in her office, looking at the report of my "death." Her usual stoic expression was gone, replaced by a flicker of something raw. Fear? Concern? It was almost imperceptible, but it was there. Shizune, who was with her, looked equally troubled.
"Adam," Tsunade said, her voice unusually quiet. "The reports… they said you died. Again."
"Oh, that?" I said, waving a dismissive hand. "Just a minor inconvenience! Happens all the time! You know me, Tsunade, I'm practically a walking, talking, regenerating disaster zone! But hey, I got some cool new skills out of it! And Gaara's safe! Win-win!"
She closed her eyes, taking a deep, shaky breath. "You… you idiot." The words were laced with frustration, but also, something else. Something that sounded suspiciously like relief.
" She cares! She totally cares! This is progress! "
I immediately retreated to my apartment, eager to experiment with my new acquisitions. "Basic Explosion Release" and "Minor Sand Manipulation." This was going to be glorious.
"System, merge 'Basic Explosion Release' and 'Minor Sand Manipulation'!"
[ MERGE SUCCESSFUL! ][ NEW SKILL ACQUIRED: EXPLODING SAND CONSTRUCTS (Active) - The ability to create small, unstable sand constructs that can be detonated remotely. ]
"Exploding Sand Constructs! Oh, this is going to be my new favorite prank! Imagine, a sandcastle that explodes! Or, you know, a very inconvenient sand trap for my enemies! The possibilities for chaos are truly endless!"
Next, "Basic Human Puppetry" and "Basic Chakra Network Manipulation." This was a more complex merge, but the potential was immense.
"System, merge 'Basic Human Puppetry' and 'Basic Chakra Network Manipulation'!"
[ MERGE SUCCESSFUL! ][ NEW SKILL ACQUIRED: CHAKRA PUPPETRY (Active) - The ability to create and control basic chakra threads to manipulate objects or exert minor influence over the movements of others. ]
"Chakra Puppetry! Yes! This is even better than I thought! Now I can make people dance without even touching them! Or, you know, subtly trip them! The possibilities for subtle, annoying pranks are truly endless!"
My new skills were powerful, versatile, and perfectly suited to my chaotic nature. I was no longer just a nuisance; I was a strategic nuisance. A Special Jonin with a unique set of abilities, all acquired through the glorious art of dying.
The Akatsuki had provided me with valuable skills, and I was ready for more. The world was full of powerful individuals, and I intended to "collect" from every single one of them. And in the process, I was going to annoy the hell out of my future wife. It was going to be glorious.