After parting ways with Guy, Ren left the Ninja Academy and followed the road west.
The last trace of daylight had vanished behind the Hokage Monument, leaving the village beneath a deep blue evening sky. Lanterns flickered to life along the streets one by one, their warm glow spilling from shopfronts and apartment windows. The smell of grilled fish, broth, and woodsmoke drifted through the cold air.
Ren's legs still ached from running, and his chakra network felt hollow after being drained three times. Even so, his footsteps were lighter than they had been that morning.
For eight years, he had trained without knowing whether his efforts would ever amount to anything. Now, for the first time, he possessed a genuine path toward strength.
The system was absurd, its personality questionable, and its definition of romance possibly insane—but it worked.
That was enough for him.
Konoha was far larger than it appeared in the manga. The village contained administrative districts, crowded commercial streets, clan compounds, training grounds, hospitals, schools, warehouses, and numerous civilian neighborhoods.
Most residents lived together freely, but individual clans still gathered within their own territories. The Uchiha occupied their district, while families such as the Hyūga, Aburame, Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka maintained compounds suited to their traditions.
Ren's home was in a quiet civilian neighborhood approximately twenty minutes from the academy. The houses there were modest, the streets narrow, and the residents familiar enough to recognize one another on sight.
He crossed a small wooden bridge, passed a row of winter-bare trees, and turned down the final street.
When Ren reached his house, he searched his pocket for the key. Before he could insert it into the lock, a cheerful voice called from the neighboring courtyard.
"Ren, you're finally back!"
He turned toward the fence.
A young girl with short brown hair leaned over the wooden railing. She had gentle chestnut-colored eyes, a round face, and two violet markings painted across her cheeks. The smile she wore possessed a warmth that made people instinctively lower their guard around her.
Rin Nohara.
She was holding a wooden bucket with both hands. Something thrashed inside, sending droplets of water over the rim and onto her sleeves.
Ren walked closer. "Were you waiting for me?"
"Only for a little while." Rin tried to lift the bucket higher, but her arms trembled under its weight. "My father caught too many fish at the Naka River yesterday. We can't finish all of them, so he asked me to bring a few to you and your mother."
She carefully pushed the bucket over the fence.
"Please take it quickly," she added, her smile becoming strained. "They're heavier than they look."
Ren reached out and took the bucket before she dropped it. Several silver-scaled fish swam restlessly through the water inside.
"Thanks, Rin. Tell your father that his fishing trip finally paid off."
Rin giggled. "I'll tell him you said that."
They had grown up as neighbors, and their families had always been close. If one household needed ingredients, medicine, or help repairing something, the other usually offered assistance before being asked.
Ren glanced at Rin's familiar smile and felt a complicated emotion stir within him.
In the future he remembered, Rin Nohara was not the strongest kunoichi, the heir to a powerful clan, or the wielder of a legendary bloodline. Nevertheless, her death would reshape the ninja world.
A certain Uchiha boy would carry her memory for the rest of his life.
For her sake, he would abandon his name, wage war against reality itself, and help plunge the entire world into darkness.
Rin was the gentle light Obito Uchiha could never bring himself to forget.
Yet the girl standing before Ren was unaware of that future. She was simply Rin—kind, considerate, and trying not to stare too obviously at his sweat-soaked clothes.
Her gaze traveled over his exhausted face. The concern in her eyes deepened.
"Did you train with Guy again?" she asked. "You look completely worn out."
"Guy made me run two hundred laps, and then I practiced the Transformation Technique until my chakra ran dry."
"Two hundred laps?"
"It was supposed to be fifty."
Rin covered her mouth, but a small laugh escaped anyway. "You should have known better than to trust Guy's idea of a short training session."
"I've learned my lesson."
She examined him again, this time with the focus of an aspiring medical-nin. "Your hands are scraped, and you're putting too much weight on your left leg. You should clean those wounds before dinner."
"They're only scratches."
"That's what people always say before the scratches become infected."
Her gentle tone remained unchanged, but the look in her eyes made it clear that she would not accept an argument.
Ren surrendered with a smile. "All right. I'll clean them."
Rin nodded, satisfied. Then her voice softened. "You've been training very hard lately."
"The early bird catches the worm." Ren lifted the bucket slightly. "Graduation is next year. If I can't become a shinobi, I'll have to find another career. Maybe I'll spend the rest of my life preparing fish for Ichiraku Ramen."
"You wouldn't be bad at it."
"Rin, you were supposed to deny that possibility and tell me I'll become a great shinobi."
Her eyes curved with amusement. "I think you could become either one."
Ren sighed dramatically. "Such confidence in me."
Rin laughed again, and the weariness in Ren's body seemed to lessen.
"Speaking of training," he said, glancing toward the road, "where's Obito? I'm surprised he isn't here."
At the mention of Obito, Rin's expression became fondly helpless.
"He said he's been practicing a new ninjutsu. He wants to show it to me after he masters it."
"A new ninjutsu?"
"You should come and watch too. I don't think Obito will mind."
Ren was about to answer when the system chimed.
A translucent message appeared before his eyes.
[You have learned of a mysterious new individual through your neighbor. Although you have not met her, curiosity has already taken root in your heart.]
[Will you seize this opportunity and arrange a fateful encounter?]
[Yes / No]
Ren stared at the message.
Rin stood less than two feet away from him. She was alive, smiling, and unmistakably human.
The system ignored her completely.
Instead, it had reacted to a ninjutsu that had not even appeared yet.
"You really are hopeless," Ren murmured.
Rin tilted her head. "Did you say something?"
"Nothing." Ren selected [Yes] and smiled. "I'd like to see the results of Obito's training. Let me know when he's ready."
"I will." Rin looked once more at the scrapes on his hands. "Go inside and rest. I have some ointment and bandages at home, so I'll bring them over later."
"Thank you, Rin."
After exchanging a few more words, Ren carried the bucket into his house.
Warm air greeted him the moment he opened the door. The kitchen smelled of cooked rice and miso, while the soft hiss of hot oil came from the stove.
A woman with long silver-white hair stood in front of it, preparing dinner.
Aoi—Ren's mother.
Unlike many reincarnated protagonists he remembered reading about in his previous life, Ren had not awakened as an orphan with a tragic background or mysterious inheritance.
He had a mother who worried when he came home late.
She worked as a librarian at Konoha's public library and possessed neither a famous bloodline nor combat abilities. Ren had inherited her silver-white hair and refined features. Even at eight years old, shopkeepers often joked that he was handsome enough to earn extra vegetables without asking.
Her profession had given him another advantage. Since he was three or four years old, Ren had been able to read books about mathematics, medicine, geography, chakra theory, history, and the politics of the Five Great Nations.
His understanding of this world came from more than memories of a manga. He knew its rivers, trade routes, harvest cycles, medical practices, and military structure. That knowledge did not grant him strength, but it kept him from being completely ignorant.
His father was an ordinary Chūnin.
Two years earlier, he had volunteered for an extended rotation along Konoha's border to earn additional mission pay. The assignment was supposed to last two and a half years.
With tension rising between the hidden villages, Ren had recently begun thinking about him more often.
Would his father return before the war began?
Or would he be trapped at the border when the first true battle erupted?
Ren forced the thought aside and carried the bucket into the kitchen.
"Mom, Rin's father caught too many fish and sent some over."
Aoi turned away from the stove. Her expression brightened when she saw him, but her eyes quickly narrowed at his disheveled appearance.
"You look like you fought the entire academy."
"Only Guy."
"That explains it." She wiped her hands on her apron before glancing at the bucket. "These are fresh. I'll thank the Noharas tomorrow."
Aoi studied her son for another moment, then smiled knowingly. "You seem happy tonight. Did something happen at school?"
Ren almost told her the truth.
Then he imagined explaining that he had awakened a dating system whose current targets were the Three Basic Techniques.
"Ren?" Aoi prompted.
"My instructor praised my progress with the Transformation Technique," he said instead.
It was not entirely a lie. The person offering praise had simply been a personification of the technique itself.
"Did he?" Pride immediately entered Aoi's voice. "I knew your hard work would pay off. My Ren is incredible."
"Mom, it was only the Transformation Technique."
"Progress is progress. Now wash your hands before dinner."
"All right."
Ren cleaned his scrapes, washed away the sweat, and returned to the dining room. By then, Aoi had placed the meal on the table: golden-fried river fish, pork and green peppers, steamed rice, and mushroom miso soup.
The sight alone made Ren's empty stomach ache.
Mother and son ate together while Aoi asked about his classes. Ren answered carefully, describing Guy's training without mentioning the system. When he told her about performing the Transformation Technique repeatedly, she scolded him for draining his chakra so recklessly.
Rin and the Transformation Technique had given him the same warning.
Apparently, even sentient ninjutsu could possess maternal instincts.
After dinner, Aoi gathered the dishes and returned to the kitchen. Ren retired to his room, sat beside the window, and opened the system interface again.
He intended to study the favorability levels and determine whether the menu contained any hidden functions.
A voice suddenly rose from the courtyard.
"Ren! Are you there?"
Ren recognized it immediately.
He pushed open the window and looked down. Two children stood outside the house.
Rin had returned with a small medical pouch tied at her waist. Beside her stood a boy with wild black hair, orange-tinted goggles, and a blue scarf wrapped around his neck.
Obito Uchiha.
The moment Obito noticed Ren, his face tightened. His irritation became even more obvious when he realized Rin was smiling up at Ren's window.
"Rin told me you've learned something new," Ren called.
Obito's cheeks flushed. "I told her I would show her. I didn't say anything about inviting you."
Rin turned toward him. "It'll be more fun with three people."
"But, Rin—"
"Ren, Obito is ready to demonstrate his new technique. Do you want to come?"
"Of course."
Before Obito could finish objecting, Ren climbed onto the windowsill and jumped into the courtyard.
The landing sent pain through his exhausted legs, but he concealed it behind a calm expression.
Obito stared at him in disbelief. "You could have used the door."
"The window was faster."
"I still haven't agreed to let you come."
"Rin invited me."
Those three words defeated him instantly.
Obito folded his arms and turned away. "Fine. I'll allow it this once. You should be grateful for the chance to witness the greatness of Obito Uchiha."
"I'm deeply honored."
"But you're not allowed to tell anyone about this technique—especially Kakashi!" Obito pointed at Ren with a fierce expression. "This is my secret weapon. Once I master it, I'll finally defeat that arrogant jerk!"
Ren struggled not to laugh.
Obito had not revealed the technique's name, but there were only so many ninjutsu an eight-year-old Uchiha would be desperate to show off.
It was almost certainly the signature technique of the Uchiha clan—the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.
The technique was famous for two things: looking spectacular and almost never hitting an important opponent.
For Ren, however, even a technique mocked for missing its targets represented an extraordinary opportunity. The Great Fireball was a C-rank ninjutsu, far above anything civilian academy students could legally learn before graduation.
If the system allowed him to establish a connection merely by witnessing a technique, he might gain access to ninjutsu otherwise kept beyond his reach.
It would not copy techniques instantly like the Sharingan, but under the right circumstances, it could become something equally valuable.
After receiving Aoi's permission, Ren followed Rin and Obito toward a nearby forest training ground.
The three children left the residential street behind and passed beneath the dark canopy of trees. Moonlight filtered through the branches, painting broken silver patterns across the narrow path.
Obito continued farther than necessary, frequently glancing over his shoulder. He was clearly terrified that another Uchiha—or worse, Kakashi—might witness the performance.
Eventually, they reached a clearing surrounded by dense trees.
"This should be far enough." Obito walked toward the center before suddenly turning to Rin. His nervousness vanished beneath an eager grin. "Rin, watch carefully! Don't blink!"
"I'm watching," she assured him.
Obito planted his feet.
Ren's amusement faded as he noticed the change in the boy's expression.
For all his clumsiness, Obito was still an Uchiha. The moment he began forming seals, his concentration sharpened. Chakra gathered inside his body, surging upward from his abdomen toward his chest.
Snake.
Ram.
Monkey.
Boar.
Horse.
Tiger.
Ren silently memorized each movement.
Obito inhaled until his chest expanded. Heat shimmered around his lips, and a faint ember glowed deep inside his mouth.
"Fire Release…"
The surrounding air tightened.
"…Great Fireball Technique!"
Obito expelled his breath.
Flames erupted with a thunderous roar.
What began as a narrow stream of fire expanded violently, twisting into a blazing sphere taller than any of them. Scarlet light flooded the clearing, driving back the darkness. Dry leaves curled from the heat, and the frozen earth hissed as the fireball tore across it.
Rin raised an arm to shield her face.
Ren stood frozen, his silver-white hair whipping backward in the wave of superheated air.
He had seen fire techniques on a screen in his former world. Witnessing one from only a few meters away was entirely different.
The heat pressed against his skin like an open furnace. The roar swallowed every sound in the forest. For a single breathtaking moment, it felt as though Obito had dragged a piece of the sun down into the clearing.
The Great Fireball exploded against the far side of the training ground, scattering sparks through the night like a storm of burning stars.
Obito lowered his hands and turned toward Rin, his face flushed with pride.
Before anyone could speak, a deafening chime rang inside Ren's mind.
[Ding! Exceptional potential target detected.]
[Limited-Time Encounter Mission activated.]
The system interface unfolded across Ren's vision. Behind the translucent screen, the last flames of Obito's technique continued to burn.
Within those flames, the silhouette of a new girl slowly appeared.
Long crimson hair flowed around her like living fire. Golden eyes opened through the smoke, proud and untamed, and a dangerous smile curved across her lips.
[In the moonlit forest, you have encountered a mysterious girl whose beauty burns as fiercely as her temper. One glance has left an unforgettable impression upon your heart.]
[New potential target identified: Fire Release — Great Fireball Technique.]
[Target Rank: C]
[Target Disposition: Proud]
[Target Affinity: Unknown]
Then one final line appeared.
[Warning: The Great Fireball Technique has noticed you.]
The crimson-haired figure turned her head.
And through the burning interface, her golden eyes locked directly onto Ren.