In an instant a fierce power flooded Kano's body, every inch of her skin tingling with pleasure.
Shikaku was anxious; Shikamaru simply stared in shock.
"So quiet at night because you've been secretly developing Ninjutsu?"
"Kano, that's amazing! A deer so lifelike—what a cute jutsu!"
Mom, if you knew how this jutsu worked you'd never call it cute.
With the mission complete, Kano's nerves melted away. She fetched a blank scroll, spread it out, and began writing the Chakra flow, hand-seals, and release conditions step by step.
Shikaku watched over her shoulder as she wrote.
"The formula is built on our Nara Clan's secret arts, but the overall structure is unheard-of. Never seen a jutsu like it—though there's a faint echo of Summoning Jutsu in there."
Shikamaru understood none of it; sure his father would corner him later, he slipped back to his room.
Their mother, Yoshino, went to slice fruit—such a complicated jutsu would take ages to dissect anyway.
The more Shikaku read, the more appalled he became. He needed Kano to explain every line; that alone showed the jutsu's staggering complexity.
Its intricacy rivaled a Bloodline Limit!
As current head of the Nara family, Shikaku didn't know every clan jutsu, but he at least recognized them all. He'd never seen anything remotely like this.
Tell him one person invented it? He wouldn't believe it if the Hokage said so.
It was like someone in a feudal era hand-crafting a new-energy car—no steam engine, no internal combustion, no hydrogen steps, no iterative trail at all.
Even the Nara Clan's Shadow Imitation Technique had been refined over generations.
"Kano… you really developed this yourself?"
"Of course."
"Keep this quiet for now. If anyone asks, say you uncovered an ancestral secret. That's your story."
Kano knew exactly what Shikaku meant: the tallest tree catches the wind.
Without a cheat she'd stay low-key. But with a system, hiding her growth would waste the cheat.
Pretty useless system, but still a cheat.
[Say I'm useless again and I'll—I'll cry for you! ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´Д｀ﾟ)ﾟ｡]
Fine, fine, you're the most useful, okay?
[That's better（︶︿︶）]
Kano finished recording the jutsu and handed the scroll to Shikaku, promising not to reveal it.
"Alright, I'll study this Shadow Deer Technique of yours tomorrow. Then we'll talk."
"I invented something this awesome and Dad's not even going to reward me?"
"Name it. I don't know what kids like these days, but if I can get it, it's yours."
Shikaku stroked his beard, sipping tea while the jutsu still spun in his head.
"Get me some Hashirama cells."
Kano dropped it casually.
Shikaku froze; somehow he kept the tea from spraying, face calm as ever.
"If you want me dead just say so."
Haha, kidding. Even if you got them I couldn't use them."
Kano munched the fruit her mother had cut, pondering what to ask for. In the end she kept it basic.
"Then I'll take—"
[An Idol sings without accompaniment? Unacceptable! Mastering an instrument is mandatory! host must perform a piece before at least three people. Reward: Basic Musical Charisma + 5 scores.]
"Couldn't you tell me the quest in advance so I could prepare? Now where am I supposed to find an instrument?"
Bento boxes in hand, Kano strolled toward the meeting point, grumbling at the system while popping yesterday's throat drops.
[Sorry (｡•́︿•̀｡), rules are rules. Besides, the instrument you chose is in the system space ( •̥́ ˍ •̀ू )]
"I can barely lift the thing, let alone play it. Can't you buff my strength? Systems do that, right?"
[No can do. I'm just an idol system. Only quest rewards and the system shop are available ╯▂╰]
"What—you've got a shop and didn't mention it!"
[You never asked ╭(°A°`)╮ and you refuse to sing or dance—where would popularity points come from? ヽ(￣д￣;)ノ]
"What's in this shop? Throat drops, conditioner, lutein gummies?"
[Nope. Every item is a past quest reward (''◇''｀)]
Kano opened the shop. First on the list: a ninjutsu fusion scroll, an easy-to-learn Forbidden Jutsu scroll—even that 0.3-unit Chakra.
"Damn it—if I'd known, I'd have sung and danced ages ago!"
She wanted to fling her forehead protector away and switch careers on the spot. Forget that troll fusion scroll—just the Forbidden scroll could save years.
Normal Forbidden Jutsu took years even with the right affinity and talent.
Naruto the cheat learned Shadow Clone in one night and Rasengan in days; with that talent he could've branched out instead of spamming the same orb his whole life.
The kicker: these were system editions—almost zero Chakra cost, max proficiency.
"Let's check prices. ninjutsu fusion scroll 1,000 popularity points. Random Forbidden (system edition) 40,000! That's insane. 0.3 Chakra 3,000. The fusion scroll's cheap for how busted it is."
[Fusion needs materials; the process itself isn't pricey (ｰ̀εｰ́)]
"So how many points do I—three? I can't even afford 10-point throat drops!"
[It's called a Voice Pearl (*≧ｍ≦*). You've only sung twice, tiny audiences each time. Points come from viewers who finish and rate the show. Your dad found it boring—no points for you ┐(─__─)┌]
"Got it. From now on I seize every chance to sing."
[Thought singing was too embarrassing (ｰ̀εｰ́)]
"Embarrassment doesn't pay the bills. If tossing my shame aside makes me stronger, I'll do it!"
[It's more convincing when your face isn't bright red～(￣▽￣～)~]
"Shut up! I'm off to the meeting point; I'll finish the quest somehow."