(Welcome, dear readers—may every page you turn bring golden days, perfect health, and endless life.)
—— Story Begins ——
Cold, jolting... a biting wind lashed Aoran's skin, forcing his dizzy mind to pry open his eyes.
He realized someone was slinging him over a shoulder and leaping between tree trunks.
The scenery streaked past; clearly they were moving at breakneck speed.
[What's going on? Why was I unconscious?]
Aoran had already been in this world several days and knew it was the Ninja World.
His new identity was anything but simple.
His mother belonged to the Uchiha Clan, his father to the Hyuga Clan.
Sharingan and Byakugan were famed Bloodline Limit throughout the Ninja World.
What kind of chemical reaction would you get by stacking those two bloodlines?
Their romance and marriage had obviously been engineered; Aoran's birth had drawn many watching eyes.
But the greater the hope, the harsher the disappointment.
Aoran hadn't inherited either bloodline; born frail, he was still a slow, mute child when the transmigrator arrived.
Forget becoming a ninja—merely surviving to adulthood would be a feat.
Sure enough, while Hyuga children awakened the Byakugan at one or two, Aoran showed no trace at thirteen—effectively ruling it out for life.
When a dual bloodline blended well you got a hybrid elite; when it didn't, you got an impure mongrel. Thus Aoran wasn't even granted the Hyuga surname.
His father, Hyuga Masahiko, was merely a Branch House member and had no right to bestow the clan name on an impure son.
As for his mother's Uchiha side...
His mother, Uchiha Ringetsu, had passed away, so he seldom returned there.
He combed through his memories, trying to see how he'd been captured.
Today Hyuga Hizashi summoned him and delivered grim news.
His father, Hyuga Masahiko, had died on the front; the body had just been shipped home.
Though his current self was a mute fool, he still had to mourn the cheap dad.
He remembered throwing himself over the corpse in fake tears...
Perhaps because the body was too weak—or the original soul dissipated—he fainted.
The next thing he knew, he was here.
How had he been kidnapped? Could the Hyuga be so miserable that even he could be snatched?
So what was the abductor's goal?
[The one carrying me—ANBU... or Root?]
He couldn't see his carrier, but the figure beside him wore a white hooded cloak and a fox mask.
That outfit was standard for ANBU or Root.
If it were ANBU he might live; if it were Danzo's Root, his life had already started ticking down.
As Aoran weighed this, the fox-masked man muttered, "Huh, the brat's awake."
"Tap, tap..."
Two landing sounds; both ANBU halted on a branch to check him.
Aoran stayed calm—no pleading. These were black-ops; besides, this life was borrowed anyway.
Moreover, this body was weak and no ninja; even a short dash left him wheezing—
no options at all.
"Is he an idiot?" The fox-mask muttered at Aoran's lack of response.
The carrier wore a cat-mask; he checked Aoran's vitals.
Then produced rope and a hood, binding hands and feet, covering head and gagging mouth.
Practised, professional—clearly veteran traffickers.
"He's a fool, can't talk."
"Then why gag him?"
"No room for error!"
The chatter ceased; Aoran was hoisted again and the dash resumed.
[Any way out?]
Hooded, his world spun in total blackness.
He brainstormed frantically for a breakthrough—
"Ding" — a crisp chime rang in his skull.
[Ding! System loading complete.]
[Strongest System will forge the host's path to supremacy.]
Please choose a template: Power, Bonds, Steel Fist, Gentle Fist, Swordsmanship, Archer.
Power and Bonds were greyed out—unselectable.
That left Steel Fist, Gentle Fist, Swordsmanship, Archer.
Steel Fist was out—Might Guy already owned that stage.
Among the remaining choices...
He carried Uchiha and Gentle Fist blood—so naturally... His gaze slid past Swordsmanship—
and locked onto the slot beside Gentle Fist: Archer.
Selected instantly.
With a Byakugan why fight hand-to-hand?
That'd be insane.
The click birthed a panel: [Strongest Archer Template].
Only a few lines showed.
Bloodline +0 Weapon +0
enhancement points left: 7
(Alter canon characters' fates to gain points and trait badges.)
Weapon Storage unlocked.
Contents: White Bow, Low-quality Arrows.
Aoran licked his lips in excitement and dumped his first point into Bloodline.
Bloodline +0 → +1. Cost: 1 point. Remaining: 6.
Chakra flowed; the frailty he'd always felt eased at once.
A healthy body is everything, and points still remained.
He tapped again.
+1 → +2 → +3. Total cost: 5 points. Remaining: 1.
He realized costs scaled with level—but three ranks of bloodline upgrade erased all weakness.
He was no longer the feeble pushover of minutes ago!
With a cheat in hand, why lie back and die?
Time to kick the coffin lid off!
He reined in his excitement, breathing slow; he was still a captive—
and could not afford discovery.
As the final rank settled, his right eye tingled—something inside it had changed.
Following muscle memory, he formed a silent seal.
Byakugan—activate!
...(I've got two other 2-million-word Uchiha novels on my homepage—check them out if interested.)