Being blocked again—and again—Jiang Shang finally snapped. Already fuming, he exploded right there on the spot.
"Who the hell is it this time!?" he shouted, glaring down at the foot that stopped his kick.
But the moment his eyes traced upward and landed on the person's face… his entire expression froze.
⊙▃⊙
Gulp.
"U-Uchiha… R-Ren?!"
Other than Minato and his family, Uchiha Ren didn't have much patience for anyone. His expression was cold, his hands steady on the wooden sword he held in both hands, and his left foot still clamped down on Jiang Shang's attempted kick.
Beneath their feet, the chubby girl was still curled on the ground—but thanks to her… generous proportions… the pose now looked more like a poor attempt at a side split.
It was awkward all around.
"Why the hell are you here?!" Jiang Shang blurted, his voice cracking in panic.
The other three boys all scuttled back like frightened crabs, terrified that this guy might beat them up too.
Ren glanced at him with disdain and said flatly, "Why can't I be here? This some kind of private property?"
"..." Jiang Shang didn't even know how to respond. He froze in that position, not daring to move a muscle.
At that moment, Minato arrived. He crouched down and carefully grabbed the chubby girl by the ankles, gently dragging her out from beneath the two boys.
Her squished face slowly returned to its original round shape, and despite the redness on her cheek, she still looked dazed.
Minato smiled warmly and helped her up. "You okay? Did he hurt you?"
The girl shook her head, her chubby cheeks jiggling slightly. "I'm fine. Thank you!"
Minato checked her over—aside from the slapped cheek, she didn't seem hurt. Though her eyes were so small he couldn't quite tell what kind of expression she had.
Jiang Shang, meanwhile, was internally spiraling. Should he move? Would that make Ren stomp him? But if he didn't move… was he just going to stand there like an idiot?
Then he saw the fat girl still standing there, and something clicked in his brain.
"Uchiha Ren, are you seriously stepping in on this?!"
Ren didn't even look at him. "I heard someone say, 'If apologies were enough, what's the point of the Security Department?' That was you, wasn't it?"
Jiang Shang: "!!!!" (╯°Д°)╯
Oh no. Oh no no no.
He didn't know Ren was that close! How did he even hear that line?!
Sure, most folks in Konoha grumbled about the Security Department. But since it was run by the Uchiha clan, no one dared to say anything publicly.
If it was any other Uchiha, he might've been okay. They probably would've tossed him in a holding cell for a day or two and let him out.
But Ren?!
Dead. I'm dead.
He quickly squatted down, gently lifted Ren's foot, and wiped the sole with his sleeve like it was some holy artifact.
"Haha… Ren-san! You know me—I run my mouth before I think!"
Ren yanked his foot back and gave a cold sneer. "Run your mouth before you think? You sure you've got a brain to think with?"
"Uh… hehe…" Jiang Shang chuckled weakly, not daring to talk back.
Damn you! If I could beat you, you'd be eating dirt right now!
Ren gave him a sharp look, then tapped him on the cheek with the back of the wooden sword.
"I'm in a good mood today. You're lucky. Watch your mouth next time, or I won't be so nice."
And it was true—he was in a good mood.
He'd just bonded with a system. A legit, cheat-code-tier system that could make him stronger. His future was looking pretty bright. So this whole thing? Barely a blip on his radar.
The only reason he stepped in at all was because of that dumb line about the Security Department.
Hearing Ren's words, Jiang Shang nearly cried tears of relief. He really thought Ren was going to break something.
Instead… he got off with a warning?
Was Ren actually… chill today?
He looked up at Ren's face and found himself… weirdly less annoyed by it.
"Y-Yeah, totally! Thanks for the lesson, big bro! I'll keep my mouth shut next time, promise!"
Ren turned away, not even bothering to reply. "Get lost."
"We're leaving! Right away!" Jiang Shang nodded and bowed, retreating quickly with his gang of sniveling followers.
The chubby girl looked at Ren with gratitude. "Thank you, Uchiha-kun. You're a really good person!"
Ren blinked. He didn't really care about compliments, but the way she said it caught him off guard.
"…Do I know you?"
The girl nodded vigorously, cheeks bouncing with the motion. Her expression was full of admiration, as if she were staring at a celebrity.
"Uchiha Ren's the most popular guy in school! Everyone knows you!"
While Minato was good-looking too, he didn't have the noble pedigree that Ren did. That knocked him down to second place in the school heartthrob rankings.
Ren's expression twisted into annoyance. "School heartthrob?"
He really didn't care about that kind of thing. He spent most of his time messing around with Minato or training. He hardly talked to anyone else in class.
But now that he thought about it… yeah, there weren't a lot of guys at their level. Let alone ones who were decent-looking.
…Okay, maybe it made sense.
But he couldn't be bothered.
Waving her off, he said, "Alright, that's enough. I'm not saving you next time, so steer clear of those idiots."
"Got it!" The girl nodded again, and this time her whole body bounced like a water balloon.
Today was just bad luck. She should've checked her horoscope before leaving the house. If she'd known she'd bump into them, she would've gone a different way.
Ren turned to leave, wooden sword in hand.
Minato smiled kindly at the girl. "Don't worry. If they try anything again, just come find us. We've got a little pull in class."
The girl's eyes lit up. "Minato, you're a good person too!"
"Heh… thanks! Take care!"
With that, Minato jogged after Ren, leaving the girl alone behind them.
As their figures disappeared down the path, her grateful expression slowly faded into something more neutral. Her tiny eyes—usually lost in her round face—opened slightly.
Revealing… white pupils.
"Namikaze Minato… and Uchiha Ren…"
She'd slipped up today. That was careless.
She'd have to be more cautious from now on—fade into the background. Blend in. Do not get noticed. The last thing she needed was for the main family to send her to the battlefield.
She turned and waddled off, body rippling slightly with each step.
But as she walked, she narrowed her eyes again, determination hardening her expression.
If she wanted to avoid being married off to that sleazebag her clan had picked out, she needed to stay ugly and useless-looking—for now.
Meanwhile, Ren and Minato didn't spare the incident another thought.
Minato glanced sideways. "Ren, what do you think about the war outside?"
Ren shrugged. "What's there to think? We're still kids. It's not our turn yet."
The tension at the borders was rising fast. War was coming. The Second Great Ninja War would be officially underway soon.
But they hadn't even graduated yet. Even after they did, they'd start with basic missions, always supervised by a senior ninja.
Their true test would come during the Third War.
That's when the real shift would happen—the younger generation would step up while the older guard fell.
If not for Minato, the Third War could've ended in disaster. Lightning Country had practically fought their way to Konoha's gates.
Minato thought about it and nodded. "You're right. We're not there yet. The village still has plenty of high-ranking ninja."
As they spoke, they reached the classroom.
It was mostly empty.
With only three short classes per day, most students either went home or played outside after lunch.
Only a few kids stayed behind to nap.
Ren and Minato didn't waste any time—they grabbed an empty bench and sprawled out.
Ren clutched his wooden sword, closed his eyes, and sank into his mental space.
There, inside his consciousness, he focused everything on the old, rusty sword.
As he channeled his battle experience into it, the rust began to peel away visibly.
The progress bar ticked forward.
8%…
"Only eight percent? Man… who knows how long it'll take to fully unlock you."
He already knew he was a transmigrator with a system—confirmed and real. But after the initial euphoria wore off, he found his focus shifting back to the sword.
It frustrated him how slow the progress was.
Eventually, he stopped thinking about it and let his consciousness drift into rest.
Ding…