Magic Crest
"The familiar ceiling… is that the right word?"
That was Shirō's first thought upon waking. The fact that he could think like this already meant he was fine—and still his usual goofy self.
"You're awake? Shirō."
"Mom? Why are you here?" Shirō blinked, remembering he had told Kushina and the others not to tell his mother.
"Last night, your Aunt Zhi Zi and I came to the hospital to visit a friend, and we saw you here. Why can't you ever give us a break?" Keiko scolded gently.
"Well~ I'm fine, aren't I? Don't worry, your son knows what he's doing."
"By the way, Mom, how long have I been asleep?"
"Not long, just one night. What, are you going to train again?" Keiko frowned, immediately catching on to her son's intent.
"No, no, just estimating the time."
"You'd better not. The doctor said you need rest right now. No running around."
"Got it, Mom."
"Oh, you're awake. How do you feel?" Sakumo entered just then, carrying the calm presence that earned him the respect of the village.
"Teacher, much better already."
"Shirō, Sakumo-sama, you two chat. I'll go prepare something to eat." Keiko excused herself, sensing the men had something to discuss.
"Okay, Mom. Be careful."
"Got it."
Sakumo chuckled. "Ha, your mother is very good to you. I heard she stayed here with you the entire night."
"Ah, she is very good. Too good, really—she always treats me like a child."
"Heh, but you are still a child. How old do you think you are?" Sakumo laughed lightly.
Shirō could only shrug helplessly. He couldn't exactly explain he was a transmigrator, could he?
"Alright, let's move on. How do you feel—about the thing you worked so hard to obtain?"
"Ha, I feel great!" Shirō raised his right arm, revealing the faintly glowing blue Magic Crest.
"What's it for?" Sakumo asked curiously.
"It's useful in a few ways. First, it can strengthen my Secret Skill to a certain extent—and the enhancement grows as the Crest evolves.
"Second, it can store a large amount of chakra in advance, so I can draw on it in battle.
"And finally, it optimizes itself in line with my cultivation. I don't need to do deep research into the Crest—it grows with me."
"That's impressive. But there must be limits. It doesn't seem like anyone else can use it?"
"Correct. The chakra pathways differ from person to person, so it won't work for others. Same reason I can't use ninjutsu outside my natural attribute."
"Shirō?! You're awake?!"
Kushina and Minato rushed in. Kushina ran up and squeezed him into a tight hug. "You worried Big Sister to death, you idiot!"
"I'm fine, Big Sister, let go already." Shirō winked at Minato for help, but the blond only waved awkwardly from the side, not daring to intervene.
Just as Shirō tried to push her off, he heard her sobbing. His hand stilled and shifted into a hug. "…Forget it. I'll let my future sister-in-law cry a little."
"Damn brat, why did you do something so dangerous? You should've let me protect you! Do you know how worried I was?"
"I know, I know—I won't do it again, promise! But really, how long are you planning to hug me in front of everyone?"
"Hmph, you're my little brother, I'll hug you as long as I want!"
"Yes, yes, everything you say is right. But if you keep hugging me, Minato-nii might turn into the Green Flash."
Kushina's face heated up instantly. She released him with a huff. "Tch, it's your honor I even hug you! Don't think I'd hug just anyone!"
Seeing his disgusted expression, she nearly exploded.
"Hahaha, alright, enough fooling around," Minato interjected. "Shirō, would you mind explaining this Crest of yours? Don't misunderstand—we're just curious. If it's inconvenient, you don't have to."
Actually, Minato hadn't wanted to pry—it was impolite. But Kushina was worried this strange new technique might harm Shirō, and she couldn't bring herself to ask. So Minato did it for her.
"It's fine. If I don't trust you guys, who else would I trust in this world?"
He repeated what he'd just told Sakumo, though he left out one important detail—the Crest's ability to push beyond his Projection Magic's limits.
The truth was, the Magic Crest recorded his Reinforcement and Projection Magic, allowing him to temporarily project Noble Phantasms beyond his normal rank limit.
If his current maximum was a C-rank Noble Phantasm, the Crest let him project a B-rank one—though not for combat. Still, this was crucial for his future plans.
Because now, Shirō could finally project Li Shuwen's Divine Spear and begin training in Bajiquan. With it, he could patch his greatest shortcoming.
Until now, he'd been stagnant in close combat. Overconfident, he had dismissed physical techniques, and he couldn't self-learn Bajiquan from the system alone. He had even considered abandoning it. But now, thanks to the Crest, he had no reason to hesitate.
In the days that followed, Shirō listened to his mother on the surface—resting in the hospital without reckless training.
But in truth, once Keiko stepped out, he devoted himself to researching the Magic Crest. His goal: master it enough to trigger instantly under pressure.
At night, he projected Ruler Breaker, using Medea's craft to forge magic crystals—condensed magical energy, crystallized into solid form. In the Nasuverse, high-level crystals could even approximate the essence of a Heroic Spirit.
Of course, Shirō wasn't capable of that. What he created were low-grade versions, but they sufficed for fueling the Crest.
The drawback was speed. His production rate was sluggish, and later—after comparing it to Ryūchi Cave's spiritual flow—he realized it was due to the village's weaker leyline.
Subscribe to patreon.com/MexxyWave to get 30+ chapters