On the hillside, green grass swayed gently in the breeze.
Yang Xing looked down at his phone, the slight curve at the corner of his mouth unable to hide the joy in his heart.
On the wide screen, a line of faint black text appeared. The font, along with the words and images displayed, carried an odd sense of mystery.
Welcome, Contender of Discord.
Level 1 system obtained automatically. Please check the instructions.
After a series of introductions about the system's functions, an unusually eye-catching section appeared — the display of his personal attributes.
Character: Yang Xing
Age: 11
Current World Status:
Constitution: Low
Agility: Low
Chakra: Low
Endurance: Low
Having been in this world for over a year, Yang Xing finally saw a glimmer of hope. He never imagined that after a whole year, his phone would suddenly awaken.
Could this be what people call luck?
Still… waiting an entire year for this "luck" to show up was far too long!
Even though all the attributes displayed were "Low," Yang Xing didn't show the slightest disappointment. Instead, as he gazed at the sunlight spilling across the horizon, his eyes burned with determination.
"It's time to show the world who I am."
"Eh? Yang Xing, what do you mean by 'show'?"
The voice came from behind him. A boy, wearing a forehead protector and dressed in odd shin guards and knee guards — clearly not modern clothing — had appeared without Yang Xing noticing.
The boy's silly look, complete with two streaks of snot dangling from his nose, made him seem quite dim-witted.
Cough, cough! "I was just talking to myself. When did you get here?" Yang Xing turned his head, covering his unease with a dry cough. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. He hadn't even noticed the boy's arrival — if the phone's contents had been seen, that would've been no laughing matter. He'd have to be much more careful in the future.
But the snot-nosed boy didn't care about Yang Xing's explanation. Sniffling, he pointed into the distance.
"Over there! The others want us to come and play hide-and-seek too."
"Foolish, utterly foolish! Playing around won't make us stronger. It won't help me become a top ninja! It won't close the gap between us and the Hokage of this era!" Yang Xing shook his head, his gaze deep and resolute. His words came out fervent and impassioned. "Those so-called genius ninjas — even at our age, they were already showing their brilliance!"
He clenched his fists, his expression far too mature for someone only eleven years old.
"Oh!" The snot-nosed boy continued to stare blankly at the suddenly fired-up Yang Xing. His gaze even carried a touch of admiration. "You sound really amazing… but I still don't get it. Should we… go play or not?"
"What a stupid question." Yang Xing shook his head, then turned and started walking down the hillside. Even as he left, he waved impatiently at the boy still standing there. "What are you spacing out for? Hurry up! They've probably already started."
The snot-nosed boy: "…"
At the bottom of the hill, within a small clearing surrounded by trees, a group of children around eleven or twelve years old gathered noisily.
Naturally, every group had a leader. Perched on one leg atop a large rock, a boy with a small frame tried hard to put on the air of an adult. Clearly, he was the leader here — and also one of the strongest in the class.
He raised a hand, trying to look serious, and addressed the noisy group.
"This time we're playing Konoha vs. Bandits. Who wants to be the bandits, and who wants to be the ninjas of Konoha?"
"I, I, I want to be Hokage!"
"No way, I'm going to be Hokage!"
"What? I said it first! You just be a bandit instead!"
The children's chatter quickly turned into a heated squabble, everyone shouting over who got to play as Konoha's most powerful ninja — the Hokage.
The leader looked at them with a troubled expression, raising his voice. "You guys, quiet down! I said quiet down!"
Amid the ruckus, one figure stood out — someone who didn't fit in at all.
No matter what, Yang Xing couldn't blend in. After all, in truth, his actual age had long since surpassed the stage of playing childish games.
"What a bunch of brats," he muttered under his breath, not even bothering to lower his voice.
"You over there — I heard that!" The leader boy's sharp ears picked it up instantly. As one of the class's prodigies in chakra control, there was no way he'd miss it. His eyes narrowed when he spotted Yang Xing in the distance. His brow furrowed. "I remember you… you're that underachiever from school, right? What was it again… Yang Tao?"
In that instant, all the kids stopped bickering. Every pair of eyes turned toward Yang Xing.
"Who's that?"
"You don't know? Oh right, what was his name again?"
Yang Xing had no choice but to clear his throat and answer sternly, "Yang Xing. Yang, as in the Sun; Xing, as in the Stars — the sun that outshines starlight."
"Ohhh, so that's what your name means. But honestly, for you, that name is way too fancy."
"Haha! I remember him now — during chakra tests, he was weaker than a rabbit!"
"Wow, so there really is someone like that."
The children burst out laughing, but Yang Xing's face didn't change in the slightest.
He was an adult, after all. How could he possibly take the words of little brats seriously? That was the dignity of adulthood.
Patience. Endure.
"Hey, Yang Xing, right?" The leader boy, noticing how calm Yang Xing seemed, flashed a strange look. Then, smirking, he said, "Don't tell me you want to be Hokage too? Come on, someone who can't even handle chakra properly isn't fit to play that role."
"Heh. How foolish. Hokage? That's nothing but a minor role."
"What? Are you crazy? The Hokage is incredible!" The leader scowled, his tone dripping with disdain.
But Yang Xing ignored him. With a faint smile, he continued, "Compared to my goal, Hokage really is just a small role."
"Your… goal?"
"Yes. My goal is to conquer the world. Compared to that, the Hokage is nothing more than dust." Folding his arms, Yang Xing nodded to himself, completely ignoring the bewildered stares all around him.
The young boys and girls: "…"
"Is his brain broken? This guy's hopeless. Hey, everyone, playing with someone like him isn't fun. Let's go somewhere else."
The leader boy's irritation was clear as he turned to lead the group away.