The Chunin Exam Quest
After experiencing two separate episodes—one back in reality and one in the quest—I slipped out into the real world for a breather. The unfamiliar sense of powerlessness still clung to me, so I collapsed onto my bed to rest. Once I’d recovered a bit, I fired up the entertainment app for the first time in ages.
NEW!!
Your relationship with character Tony Stark has reached LV 2.
Your relationship with character Pepper Potts has reached LV 1.
Your relationship with character Natasha Romanoff has reached LV 1.
I hadn’t done much besides getting a little closer to Tony, so the levels had barely moved. “Figures. Looks like the level only climbs after you build a deeper connection,” I muttered, then closed the app. I tried pulling the Hammer Drone out of my inventory, but the only thing that appeared was the message [Impossible.]. The only items I could actually take out were two handguns.
“System, are there any skills I can actually use in reality?”
> Available skills are Inventory, Mental Resistance, Hacking, and Shooting.
> Among them, Hacking and Shooting will be locked at [F] rank.
It was a pleasant surprise that Hacking and Shooting worked in reality, even if the F-rank cap was a little disappointing. Still, I didn’t have any immediate use for them, so I shrugged it off.
“If I make an Instagram using the hacking skill, no one can track me, right?”
> Correct. When scrambled with the Hacking skill, modern technology cannot trace you.
Reassured, I uploaded a few photos, then opened the world list to jump into the One Piece setting. Only two worlds were available.
— One Piece (Time Stopped)
— MCU (Time Stopped)
Quest World: Naruto
Objective: With limited abilities, challenge the Chunin Exam that protagonist Naruto is taking and advance to the main tournament.
1. Starting point is fixed at three days before the first preliminary round of the Chunin Exam. You may select two lower-rank ninjas participating in the exam as teammates. (Each character carries an original-work influence cost. Combinations that exceed the total cost limit cannot be selected.)
2. All stats are restricted to rank [E] for the duration of the quest and cannot be raised. However, one stat may be restored to its original rank.
3. Only one skill may be used during the quest, excluding Inventory. In exchange, you may additionally select and use one skill from the original Naruto world.
4. Upon quest completion, original skills will be restored regardless of success or failure. Failure will delete the newly selected skill.
Quest Rewards
1. +3 additional accessible worlds
2. Remove one item from Inventory (full functionality restored)
3. Select and learn one skill from any creative work
There didn’t seem to be any penalty for failing, so I was already leaning toward yes. Reward number one felt a little weak, but once I read two and three I immediately flipped to I have to do this. Advancing to the main bracket of the Chunin Exam didn’t sound that hard.
“If I pick someone, what happens to their original team?”
> They will be replaced by either an original-work character or a character who does not appear in the original story.
“Can I choose the skill and teammates after I enter?”
> Affirmative. However, you will have a one-hour limit after entry.
“Perfect. That’s plenty of time.”
I decided to finish the rest of the setup once I was inside and could brainstorm with the viewers.
The moment I entered the Naruto world, my lowered eye level felt strange. I looked down and realized I’d become a child around elementary-school age. After scanning the modest room and stretching to get used to the smaller body, I opened the window. In the distance rose the cliff carved with the faces of the previous Hokages.
“Whoa… seeing it in person, it’s even more impressive.”
I took a moment to admire the view, then started the stream.
Stream Title: I Need Your Wisdom, Everyone!
As soon as the stream went live, a flood of viewers poured in. The moment they saw my transformed appearance, half of them started teasing while the other half freaked out.
“Jinnie is a baby! Hehe~”
“Ugh, I’ll stop. A new quest popped up, so I jumped in to clear it!”
The guy who just typed that is definitely Korean. I’m willing to bet money on it. I quickly calculated how long I’d been in the Naruto world—about ten minutes.
“No time to waste, so I’ll explain fast. This is Konohagakure. The Chunin Exam starts in three days, and the goal is to reach the main tournament.”
“But only one stat stays at its original rank while everything else is locked at E. I can only use two skills total, and one of them can be chosen from the original Naruto skills. Also, there’s a cost limit on teammates… Anyway, I’d rather hear your opinions on which stat and skill I should keep at full power.”
“We’ve only got about forty-five minutes, so I’ll listen to those who understood. I was thinking of keeping Strength at A+ and everything else at E. What do you guys think?”
“Hey! Be serious! The rewards are amazing!”
“No time, so I’ll finish setting everything first and explain later.”
I was a huge fan of Guy-sensei, so that last comment hit me right in the heart. “Guy-sensei… romance… I like it! If I pick Eight Inner Gates it should synergize well with the skills I already have.”
“I can pick up genjutsu later once my stats return after the quest. For taijutsu, Strength would be best, right?”
“But if I use Eight Inner Gates in every fight, will my body hold up?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure, so I’ll raise the second choice, Agility, and only use Eight Inner Gates when it’s really dangerous.”
I set Agility to A+, chose Eight Inner Gates as the Naruto skill, and after debating between Renewed Taekwondo and Divine Sword Dance for the existing skill, I ultimately picked Divine Sword Dance.
Name: Jin
Age: 14 (20)
Stats
Stamina: E
Strength: E
Agility: A+
Intelligence: E
Stamina (Virility): E
Mana (Internal Energy): E
Remaining Funds: 2,670,000 won
Skills
Inventory [EX]
Divine Sword Dance (Heavenly Wolf Fierce Battle)
Eight Inner Gates (Naruto)
The empty status window made me wonder if I could really pull this off, but since I knew the original story, I figured that with a bit of luck it was doable.
“Now I need to pick teammates. I already have one in mind—Hinata—so I’ll take recommendations for the second.”
The last comment made me flinch, but I pretended not to notice and asked for other suggestions.
“What about Tenten or Ino…?”
Aside from looks, Tenten’s performance was just too weak. Since the vast majority of viewers were recommending Ino, I decided on Hinata and Ino.
“The empty spots will apparently be filled by random ninjas.”
“One second.”
I selected Hinata Hyuga and Ino Yamanaka as my team.
Fortunately the cost limit wasn’t exceeded and both were accepted.
After finishing all the settings within the time limit, I let out a sigh and collapsed onto the bed. “That took more mental energy than I expected.”
“Three tickets to other worlds…”
“Plus the right to bring one inventory item into reality with full functions, and the ability to learn any skill from any creative work.”
“Everyone, I can only bring one item into reality.”
Knock knock.
“Hmm? Who is it?”
I got up and opened the door. Ino was standing there.
“Jin! How can you stay inside instead of coming out to train? We were supposed to meet up and practice our coordination! Hurry up—Hinata’s been waiting forever.”
Was the setting like this? It made sense; it would break plausibility if we never saw each other until the actual exam day. Seeing Ino made me look forward to the future. How was I supposed to hold back until she became an adult? Could I even hold back? While having those pointless thoughts, I followed Ino as she ran toward the training grounds.
“Who’s the supervising jonin? I hope it’s Kurenai…”
Full of expectation, I arrived at the training ground to find Hinata and an unfamiliar male ninja waiting.
“You’re here? We don’t have much time left to practice coordination, so come earlier next time.”
I half-listened to the unfamiliar jonin who was apparently in charge, gave a vague nod, and greeted Hinata.
“Hey, Hinata! Sorry I’m late.”
“N-no, I didn’t wait long…”
“What about me? I even came to your house to pick you up.”
“Thanks for coming to get me, Ino.”
Ino’s face was already bright red. Hinata still seemed to like Naruto, so she only looked a little awkward around me and didn’t show much interest. If I wanted her to fall for me instead of Naruto and also help her gain confidence, I’d need to meet her often, take care of her during the exam period, and give her plenty of encouragement.
“Apologizing to your comrades is a good attitude for a ninja, Jin. Let’s begin training. I will hide using stealth for three hours. You three will form a formation and track me together. Even if you find me, you must remove this bell to succeed. We start five minutes after I disappear.”
I wanted to talk more with Hinata, but the jonin kept butting in. I nodded, pretended to hold a strategy meeting, and led Hinata and Ino farther away. The jonin flipped an hourglass on the ground and vanished.