"Ding! You have killed one jōnin. Reward: 100 points."
Naruto stepped forward and retrieved Raiga's twin lightning blades.
Kiba.
Together, they formed one of the seven legendary weapons wielded by the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
He had traded Zabuza's Kubikiribōchō back to the system for 100 points, but he had no intention of doing the same with these.
The blades contained substantial amounts of chakra-conductive metal, along with special materials capable of attracting and channeling natural lightning.
They were far superior to the Sword of the Thunder God he had taken from Aoi.
Raiga's strength had been amplified enormously by them.
What would happen if I fused these with the Sword of the Thunder God?
The thought intrigued him.
He would try it somewhere away from prying eyes.
…
With Raiga dead, the Kurosuki Family had lost its leader.
Its remaining members, however, were still ruthless killers.
They even attempted to ambush the four shinobi who had defeated him.
The man organizing it was Karashi—Sanshō's son, whom Lee had promised to bring home.
Karashi gathered a group of frightened villagers and forced them to line up as though they were welcoming their rescuers.
When the four shinobi approached, more than a dozen enormous boulders rolled down the adjoining hillside.
The rockslide crashed over them.
None of the four remained in sight.
Karashi burst out laughing.
"Raiga-sama may be dead, but this gold mine still belongs to the Kurosuki Family!"
"Does it?"
The amused voice came from behind him.
Karashi's laughter stopped.
He glanced down.
A lightning blade rested against his throat.
He recognized it immediately.
It was one of Raiga's swords.
"Y-you… Please, spare me! I was forced to do it!"
All his earlier arrogance had vanished.
Naruto's expression did not change.
"You can explain it to Raiga."
He drew the blade across Karashi's neck.
His head fell.
Naruto stepped back before the blood could reach him.
The surrounding villagers recoiled. Several turned away and vomited, unable to bear the sight.
Hinata, Lee, and Tenten arrived moments later, having dealt with the gang members responsible for the ambush.
"Karashi…?"
Lee stared at the body.
"Naruto!"
Grief crossed his face.
He remembered Karashi helping to feed him curry when he had collapsed during training. That kindness had saved his life.
"I promised Granny Sanshō I would bring him home!"
"And what about the innocent villagers he killed?" Naruto asked coldly. "What will you tell their families?"
The villagers began speaking over one another.
Some described relatives and friends Karashi had beaten. Others accused him of helping bury people alive.
Lee's expression froze.
Slowly, he lowered his head.
He had no answer.
He was only thirteen. Until now, his ideas of right and wrong had seemed straightforward.
This was the first time he had been forced to confront something like this: the man who had once helped save him had also helped destroy other people's lives.
Tenten wanted to comfort him, but she could not find the words.
Hinata stood silently beside Naruto and lightly caught his sleeve. Her expression was troubled, though she said nothing.
Naruto felt no such hesitation.
In this world of shinobi, he considered kindness toward an enemy a dangerous habit.
…
Once the mission was complete, Naruto led the team back toward Konoha.
Lee remained quiet throughout the journey.
He threw himself into training, keeping his head down. When they approached Sanshō's curry shop, he took a longer route around it.
He could not face her.
Naruto stopped there openly.
He ordered a meal and ate the curry, giving the old woman's shop some business.
Sanshō noticed that neither her son nor Lee had come.
Her expression grew sad.
She asked no questions.
At her age, she did not need anyone to explain what their absence meant.
Before leaving, Hinata and Tenten gave her all the money they had with them.
Naruto then left a shadow clone to accompany his teammates back to Konoha.
His real body quietly used the Flying Thunder God Technique to reach an isolated location.
It was time to test the weapon fusion.
System, can I combine Kiba and the Sword of the Thunder God into a single artifact?
"Ding! Both weapons must reach Level 3. A [Ninja Tool Fusion Scroll] can then combine them into a Level 4 artifact."
A second notification followed.
"Ding! Kiba is currently a Level 3 ninja tool. The Sword of the Thunder God is Level 2. Would you like to use a [Ninja Tool Upgrade Scroll] to raise it to Level 3?"
Yes. Purchase and use it. Then spend another 200 points on a [Ninja Tool Fusion Scroll] and fuse them.
The twin blades and the Sword of the Thunder God vanished from his hands.
A short while later, the system responded.
"Ding! Fusion complete. You have obtained the Level 4 artifact [Sky Thunder Sword]. Total cost: 300 points."
A long sword appeared in Naruto's hands.
According to its description, the [Sky Thunder Sword] amplified Lightning Release tenfold and could call down lightning from the sky.
It measured roughly 1.2 meters and weighed about ten kilograms.
Its purple blade was engraved with intricate lightning-shaped patterns. Faint electrical arcs flickered across the markings.
Naruto ran his fingers along the flat of the blade, admiring it.
He finally had an artifact he could keep for himself.
The first one he had acquired, the Sword of Kusanagi, remained with his female avatar.
He channeled lightning-natured chakra into the new sword and swung it.
A blast of lightning shot forward.
A tree ten meters away exploded into fragments.
The attack continued beyond it, tearing a huge hole in the ground.
Naruto stared at the damage.
A direct hit from that would be fatal.
After a moment, he raised the sword toward the sky and fed it another surge of lightning chakra.
Dark clouds gathered almost immediately.
Thunder rolled overhead.
A bolt of lightning struck the ground, blasting open a crater ten meters across.
Naruto's eyes widened.
With this sword and a [Lightning God Form]… wouldn't I practically be a god of lightning?
The more he considered it, the more tempting the idea became.
For a while, he wanted to postpone acquiring the [Senjutsu Body] and pursue the [Lightning God Form] first.
Eventually, he calmed down.
He needed to think carefully before changing his plans.
The [Senjutsu Body] offered a broader path, and obtaining it first would give him a solid foundation for everything that followed.
Before losing the benefits of his [Senju Clan Sage Body], he also needed to make full use of its [Ninjutsu Talent].
He would bring every Lightning Release technique in Orochimaru's scrolls to a proficient level.
That would save him a considerable number of points when he later raised those techniques to full mastery through the system and combined them to obtain the [Lightning God Form].
Soon.
He tightened his grip on the sword.
It won't be much longer.
…
A day later, Naruto and his three teammates returned to Konoha and submitted their mission report.
Naruto finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He had barely reached the training ground and prepared to practice Lightning Release when an ANBU shinobi arrived.
The Hokage wanted him back at her office.
When he entered, he found Shikamaru, Kakashi, and several others already there.
Every face was serious.
Tsunade looked at him, her brow furrowed.
"Naruto, I have bad news."
He waited.
"Sakura has defected."
"What?"