"Arata, you don't have to mind it," Iruka said awkwardly. "Naruto's just… bad with names."
Even as he said that, Iruka realized how flimsy the excuse sounded.
No one's memory could be that bad — not enough to forget a classmate they'd sat beside for six years.
But to his surprise, Arata didn't seem offended at all.
He simply smiled. "It's fine. I'm not exactly the social type."
"Don't say that," Iruka replied quickly. "Naruto's just hopeless with details."
That was the first time Naruto actually paid attention to Arata.
"Iruka-sensei, did Arata pass the graduation exam too?"
Iruka turned to him with a twitching smile.
"Of course he did. You're the only one who didn't pass, Naruto. What have you even been learning all these years?"
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly.
"I just suck at Clone Jutsu, that's all! My Sexy Jutsu is way better!"
At the mention of that forbidden technique, Iruka's face turned crimson with rage.
"Don't mention that filthy jutsu again!"
Naruto shrank back in his seat, muttering under his breath,
"But you got a nosebleed when you saw it…"
"Shut up! Don't say another word!"
Iruka's face was red as a tomato, his embarrassment written all over it.
Arata, meanwhile, didn't react at all.
He simply smiled and said to Teuchi, the ramen shop owner, "Uncle, one bowl of tonkotsu ramen, please."
Teuchi chuckled as he began preparing it.
"So, Arata, you passed the Academy exam, huh? About to become a full-fledged ninja. I'll add two eggs today — on the house."
Arata smiled. "Thanks, Uncle."
Ayame, Teuchi's daughter, set a bowl of tonkotsu ramen… said warmly, "Congratulations, Arata! I'm really happy for you."
She liked him — polite, quiet, and handsome. Unlike most of the rowdy kids who came by, Arata was always respectful.
By the time Iruka and Naruto finished their conversation, Arata was already done eating.
He ate faster than usual — probably because sitting beside the two of them was… awkward.
He stood up politely. "Iruka-sensei, Naruto, enjoy your meal. I'll get going."
Iruka blinked. He hadn't expected Arata to finish so quickly.
Then he looked at Naruto and understood.
He didn't blame Arata — after all, the boy's parents had died during the Nine-Tails' attack.
It was natural for him to feel uneasy around Naruto.
Naruto, of course, had no clue.
He grinned and waved. "See you later, Arata! Let's hang out sometime!"
Arata smiled faintly and left without a word.
Polite… but distant.
Naruto didn't notice the subtle coldness in Arata's tone, but Iruka did.
He sighed softly.
"At least he's better than most. There's no hatred in his eyes — just distance."
What Iruka didn't know was that Arata's distance wasn't born of hatred.
He simply didn't like getting involved in trouble.
That night, back at home, Arata lay on his bed staring at the ceiling.
His mind wandered.
"I wonder when that system reward will come… if it's even real."
The so-called AFK System had appeared out of nowhere, and for all he knew, it might be nothing but a hallucination.
As midnight deepened and his thoughts began to fade into sleep—
[You have been idle for one day. Congratulations - Chakra Limit Released.]
His eyes snapped open.
"'Chakra Limit Released'? What does that even mean…?"
Suddenly, a faint blue glow enveloped his body.
Arata instantly recognized it — chakra.
But this wasn't ordinary chakra. The density was unreal, far purer and thicker than anything he'd ever felt.
"This chakra… it's at least a hundred times stronger than before," he whispered.
"So this is my reward?"
In the next moment, that vast wave of chakra surged into his body like a flood.
His muscles relaxed, his senses sharpened, and a rush of pleasure washed through him.
"Haa… too good…"
He bit down on his blanket to keep himself from making a sound — otherwise, his neighbors might've thought something very different was happening in his room.
After what felt like forever, the energy finally settled.
Arata lay there, panting lightly, feeling lighter and sharper than ever before.
"Unbelievable… I can absorb chakra from the outside now?"
In this world, chakra was normally drawn from one's own cells — physical and spiritual energy mixed within the body.
That was how most ninjas cultivated their chakra.
Until tonight.
Arata realized something had changed — the flow of energy wasn't just internal anymore.
He could feel the chakra in the air, and it was flowing into him naturally.
"Normally, extracting too much chakra weakens the body…" he thought, frowning. "But this doesn't hurt at all."
This world, he realized, didn't follow all the rules he remembered from the anime.
Here, pulling out chakra didn't drain life energy unless overdone.
Still, the total amount depended heavily on one's physique — and by extension, bloodline.
That was why the great clans — Uchiha, Hyuga, Senju — produced so many strong ninja.
Their bodies were built to handle more chakra.
Arata's parents had been civilian shinobi.
Their talent, and thus his own, was painfully average.
Before tonight, his chakra reserves were maybe one-tenth of Sasuke's.
Compared to Naruto, whose Uzumaki lineage granted him monstrous stamina, the difference was more like one to ten thousand — and that's not even counting the Nine-Tails.
But now?
Now, his chakra had skyrocketed a hundredfold.
Easily on par with an upper-level jōnin.
He could also absorb energy from the outside world freely — something most ninja couldn't even dream of.
Arata didn't realize it yet, but what he was absorbing wasn't just chakra — it was natural energy, the same power used by sages.
That was why it felt so pure and rejuvenating.
He sat up, looking down at his hands glowing faintly blue.
"This… this system is insane. And this is only the first day?"
He chuckled softly, awe and amusement blending in his eyes.
"Too bad I don't actually know any real jutsu. Aside from the Clone, Transformation, and Substitution Techniques, I've got nothing."
His parents hadn't left behind any scrolls.
They were only mid-level ninja, and their modest home had never contained anything special.
"Well," Arata muttered, lying back down. "Maybe the system will unlock more skills later. For now… this is enough."
A hundred times more chakra was no small gift.
In this world, power meant survival.
"At least now… I've already surpassed Sasuke in chakra reserves."
He smirked.
Even the Uchiha heir, famous for his vast energy, couldn't compare now.
Of course, Naruto was still in a league of his own — the Uzumaki and Senju clans were practically chakra monsters.
But Arata didn't care.
For the first time in twelve years, he felt genuinely alive.
"This is a good start," he whispered as he drifted off to sleep.
"The era of the Idle Shadow begins."