Land of Fire, Hidden Leaf Village.
At this moment, the Sanada clan's compound lay littered with corpses.
A boy named Sanada Kazama was being ruthlessly beaten by Root operatives who had stormed the residence.
In truth, Kazama was not of this world. He had crossed over from the twenty-first century into the world of Naruto. Yet, despite living here for five long years, he had never been able to condense chakra. In the eyes of others, he was nothing but a worthless failure.
And yet, by sheer will and unyielding spirit, Kazama had managed to survive in this perilous shinobi world.
But tonight, he faced the greatest crisis of his life.
His clansmen were slaughtered, his parents lay gravely wounded, and now he himself was pinned beneath the boot of a Root shinobi named Katō Taka.
"You Sanada are truly ungrateful! Lord Danzō sought to ally with you out of good faith, yet you dared reject him? You deserve nothing but death!"
With a vicious flurry of blows, Katō Taka struck Kazama until his body was battered and broken. For the first time, Kazama felt the overwhelming might of Root firsthand.
And still, he refused to submit.
"Danzō only wants to use the wealth of the Sanada clan to strengthen his private forces and overthrow Lord Third's rule. Our Sanada clan will never betray the Hokage!"
"Hmph! You—who can't even mold chakra—dare to raise your voice to me?"
Katō Taka's boot slammed into him again, hurling Kazama dozens of meters across the blood-soaked ground.
"This trash isn't even worth the trouble. One shuriken would finish him—why waste words?"
Two other Root shinobi, having finished plundering the Sanada's treasures, walked over with mocking smiles.
"You don't understand. It's exactly these stubborn little brats who resist that are worth tormenting the most."
Katō Taka sneered, his hands already forming seals as he laughed cruelly.
"Watch closely, and see how I burn this brat alive, slowly."
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
The blazing inferno surged toward him.
"Is this… the end?" Kazama muttered as he stared at the oncoming sea of flames.
"No! I refuse to surrender! If I die here, who will avenge my clan, my parents? I will not accept this fate!"
His roar tore from his throat as the fireball engulfed him.
Ding! Absorbed Fire Release jutsu. Burning Judgment System successfully bound!
Just when Kazama thought his death was certain, a divine voice echoed in his mind.
"This system can absorb any ninjutsu and convert it into a higher-level technique! At the same time, it generates a corresponding Heavenly Flame! From this moment, all of the host's attacks will carry the damage of Heavenly Flame."
Ding! Congratulations, host has obtained the first Heavenly Flame: Gen'ō Flame!Gen'ō Flame cloaks the host's body, enhancing defense. All of the host's subsequent attacks will be imbued with its power!
Ding! C-rank Fire Release absorbed. Congratulations, host has gained B-rank ninjutsu: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!
As the Burning Judgment System surged into motion, Kazama not only gained the Gen'ō Flame and mastered a B-rank fire jutsu—his grievous wounds also vanished in an instant.
The boy who had been clinging to life now stood tall once more, vigor and power surging through him.
Not far away, Katō Taka froze in disbelief. The brat hadn't been burned alive?
"Katō Taka, what's going on with your Fire Release? Don't tell me you can't even finish off a failure like him?" one of his comrades sneered.
But Katō himself was shaken to his core.
"Impossible… I am a Root shinobi! How could I fail against a worthless piece of trash like you?"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Once again, Katō spat forth a blazing inferno, hurling another massive fireball straight at Kazama.
But now—Sanada Kazama had no need to dodge.
With the simplest motion, a mere wave of his hand, he absorbed the massive fireball into his body.