— Konoha, Year 59 —
At the entrance of the Ninja Academy, the final graduation exam rankings were posted on the bulletin board.
Gekkō Shigure scanned the list until he found his name: 170th place.
He sighed silently.
Turning away from the crowd, Shigure left the academy grounds and began his walk home.
Graduation was just a few months away, but he felt utterly helpless. People always talked about how lucky time travelers were—getting a second chance at life, usually ending up as some OP boss character.
But it had already been twelve years since he arrived in this world.
Born the same year as Naruto. In the same class as him.
Yet here he was—just... average. Average ninjutsu. Average taijutsu. Average chakra control.
Nothing about him stood out.
Well, except his face. He did look good—good enough to rival Sasuke. That, at least, drew attention.
He was handsome. That was something. And he was also familiar with the story and the protagonist team.
So even if he wasn't powerful, maybe Naruto—future Hokage and all—would still look after him a little, right?
But still, wasn't it a waste?
After struggling through reincarnation and ending up in the world of Naruto, was he really going to live a forgettable, mediocre life?
What a pity.
Of course it was. Shigure didn't want that. He refused to accept that fate.
But what could he do?
No matter how hard he worked, talent still mattered. And background mattered even more.
The Gekkō Clan—barely a dozen members strong.
A minor family in the grand scheme of Konoha.
Their most well-known ninja was Gekkō Hayate, a Konoha jōnin.
By bloodline, Hayate was Shigure's cousin. But because of his unimpressive skills, Shigure had only ever exchanged a few polite greetings with him in passing.
He soon arrived home.
Shigure's parents had died in the Nine-Tails' attack twelve years ago. Since then, the other members of the Gekkō Clan had stepped up to take care of him.
They helped manage his inheritance, paid his monthly living expenses, and even pooled together to cover his tuition at the Ninja Academy.
His parents had left him a modest house—three rooms and a small living space. Nothing grand, but spacious enough for him to live comfortably on his own.
He opened the fridge and took out a can of soda.
Pssh!
Glug-glug-glug!
After downing half the can in one go, Shigure flopped onto his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Looks like after graduation, I'll just be another forgettable genin..."
[God-Level Skill System Activating...]
"Huh?"
An unfamiliar voice rang out in his mind, making Shigure jolt upright.
"I-Is it... finally!?"
A system?! A real cheat system?!
He had waited twelve years for this moment!
You have no idea how hard I endured!
Shigure's face twisted in a mix of joy and frustration, tears welling up as he smiled like a madman.
[Error!]
[Error!]
"Hey! Hey! Stop that! I take it back—I'm not mad! Please work!"
His whole body was tense. After twelve long years, the system finally arrived—and now it was bugging out?
What if it crashed permanently?
He might actually die of heartbreak.
[Attempting reboot...]
"Yes, yes! Rebooting fixes 99% of all problems. Come on...!"
[Reboot failed]
[Auxiliary functions corrupted]
[Mall module missing]
[Quest module lost]
[Template module missing]
[...Lost]
[...Lost]
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
At least let me see the full system before it breaks!
Wait—these are just extra functions, right? That's fine! The core system should still be intact!
Gripping his bedsheet with white knuckles, Shigure stared at the glowing interface that had silently appeared before him. One line after another of red error messages scrolled across it.
His heart felt like it was on a freefall.
[Core module missing]
[Error!]
[Error!]
It's over... even the core module's gone...
A system that dies the moment it appears? Is there anything more pathetic?
[Conducting secondary diagnostics...]
[Only remaining module: Skill Bar]
[Skill Bar module is 70% damaged — attempting startup...]
...Skill Bar?
What good is a skill bar on its own?
Especially a broken one...
[Skill Bar activated]
[Passive Skill Slots: 7 empty]
[Active Skill Slots: 3 available]
[Core data of active skills is missing — attempt repair?]
Repair?
Yes! Absolutely repair!
If this last piece breaks too, there'll be nothing left.
[Initiating data collection...]
[Active Skill: Gluttony※]
[Effect: Very hot...]
[Active Skill: ※※]
[Effect: hot, hot, hot, hot, hot, hot, hot]
[Active Skill: Great Sage※]
[Effect: hot, hot, hot, hot, hot]
...
Great. All it gave him was garbled trash.
[Active Skill Slot Repair in Progress — Estimated Time: Unknown]
"Get outta here!"
Unknown repair time?! So I have no idea when I'll finally learn what these three garbled active skills even do?!
Fine, then what about the passive skill slots?
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
[Passive Skill: Empty]
All empty.
The active skills might be a mess of corrupted data, but at least something's there.
The passive skill bar, though? Completely blank!
Is it... broken too?
[Passive skills not detected — Host may install passive skills manually]
Manually?
I can install them myself?
How exactly am I supposed to do that? And what kind of passive skills are we talking about here?
[Detected skills currently mastered by host: Chakra Refinement, Academy-Level Taijutsu, Clone Technique, Transformation Technique, Substitution Technique... Basic Kunai Throwing, Basic Cooking, Basic Walking, Basic Jumping... Basic Language, Basic Arithmetic, Basic Communication... Basic Eating, Basic Drinking...]
Shigure: "..."
Wait, wait—eating and drinking are considered skills now?
What's next? Wiping your ass?
[Detected: Advanced Butt-Wiping Technique]
"...Get lost!!"
...
TN:
So? What do you think~? 😊
...
Every 100 Power Stones = +1 Bonus Chapter