Nine days had passed since Naruto killed the last dogs in the burrow.
He hadn't found the last one, but at least he was using this time to practice more. Since he got the ability to cover his body with chakra and not get hurt in the process, he lost his focus.
After all, that's something he had seen people in the village do and most important, Gai-sensei's instructions. So, meanwhile he was just increasing the amount he could move .
The other thing is that he didn't know how to increase his stats as fast as before. He only got small feedback over time but it wasn't the same as when he used fragments to increase them.
The exception was Dexterity; he only had to continue training his chakra manipulation to increase it even though it was slow.
It grew slower than the first floor but as long as he could see the progress, it's enough.
After he organized the things that had changed in these months, he returned his focus to another matter.
"I understand that my basic stats haven't increased that much, but why have I had these three at Yellow since the first time I got here?"
[Vitality(Yellow)]
[Adaptability++(Yellow)]
[Mind+ (Yellow)]
Naruto was confused. He thought that he could only increase the tier with the fragments, but then why did he have 3 stats at yellow even before arriving at the tower?
It isn't possible that he was born with that, right?
Then there will be only one explanation.
"It can advance by itself, but--- Is there any difference from the others? I used Soul Fragments to increase it... Agh, how annoying."
Scratching his head, Naruto took out those thoughts and continued searching. There are things he didn't understand, and probably only Corvinus can tell him about that at this moment.
"But that message... First step, huh. Anyway."
With nothing more to do, Naruto started to run. He hadn't found the boss but there was only time until he did.
Running in the passages gave him another feeling. It wasn't the same freedom he had in the village, but in this place he didn't have to be worry about others seeing him with bad intentions.
It has advantages and disadvantages, but it was a good deal though.
No, right now I don't need to think about that... But, I hope they're fine
Without the pressure of dying at any time, images of his friends and the people close to him came to his mind.
He didn't remember what happened at the end, but he hoped that they would be fine.
"Ugh, since I increased my Intelligence stat I get distracted more often"
Shaking his head, he continued his path. The only thing he did was run on the same route for 30 minutes before he goes to the next area.
That was his routine these days, but today it was a bit different.
The mess on his mind distracted him and this time he continued running past his usual time.
Getting back on track, he was ready to go to the next area.
When he was about to leave the area, Naruto noticed something from the corner of his eye.
The moment he ran through the hall, he could see how the grass moved a bit.
It can't be, right?
With doubts, but following the clue, Naruto went back and approached the grass patch.
Once he got close, he started to search for it but he didn't find anything.
Looking at the dirt, Naruto had an absurd thought.
It can't be underground, that stupid dog isn't a rabbit. But what if?...
Without a second's thought, Naruto started to rip off the grass batch.
As he continued pulling up the grass, he noticed that some of them were easier to pull out.
Holding his breath, Naruto took out a stick from his inventory. Using it as a shovel, he started to dig around the spot. The farther he was from the spot, the harder it was to dig.
Once he removed most of the dirt around it, at least 5cm, he started to dig in the designed spot. With the first hit, the dirt gave away and a faint smell of rotten meat assaulted his nose.
At the same time the dirt spot collapsed, a shadow charged against Naruto.
Naruto was prepared, the smell didn't bother him and his enhanced senses were alert the whole time.
Taking a step back, he didn't have enough time to recover the stick and instead of that, he landed a kick against it.
The shadow wasn't fast enough and it couldn't dodge it.
[??? Takes 34 dmg]
It wasn't much dmg, but it was enough to force it to retire.
The shadow wasn't happy that his surprise attack didn't work and growled.
It tried to attack again, but Naruto had already taken several steps back.
With enough distance, he could see the appearance of the attacker.
Strong paws with nails longer than 2 cm covered its toes.
Its fur was grey and it was covered in dirt. Clearly it was hiding in that small spot.
It wasn't as big as Naruto expected, but it was tall enough to reach his torso.
Fangs were showing in the dog's muzzle and dark eyes fixed on the enemy who dared to destroy his house.
It was filled with rage.
[You have encountered the second floor-boss. The pack leader.]
[Pack leader- 966/1000 HP]
Naruto fell stunned, but he quickly recovered his senses. This one doesn't have a proper name.
So, he also refers to this when he tells me that the first floor is special?
He was surprised, but the dog's name caught his attention.
"Pack leader? This hare dares to call himself a pack leader?"
Naruto couldn't help but laugh because it sounds so stupid that it hadn't appeared even after he killed all of the floor dogs.
As though he could understand, the dog growls and charges against Naruto.
It was fast, but it wasn't enough. Naruto easily dodged it and kicked him again, this time he covered his leg with chakra.
"Ey, don't get mad."
[Pack leader takes 71 dmg]
The boss's groan echoed through the room.
Seeing the numbers, Naruto nodded satisfied.
It wasn't as much dmg as when he hit the other dogs, but it was enough.
At least the boss' defense wasn't that much and it didn't have special effects.
The dog crouched and growls at Naruto, warning him to not continue.
"???"
But his warning had no effect on the kid.
Naruto didn't understand what he wanted until he saw him slowly retreating to the hall's exit.
Now Naruto can understand why he hasn't shown up until now. It was because the dog knew that he wasn't an opponent even though he was with his subordinates.
Coward, but smart enough to avoid enemies it couldn't fight against.
The dog wanted to go unnoticed and wait until Naruto left, but even though he was smart, the dog couldn't know that his death was necessary for that.
The dog's intentions were now clear, but Naruto didn't want to waste time and charge against him.
Channeling even more chakra than the previous blow, Naruto went straight for the dog's head.
The speed difference was way more noticeable once he used chakra.
Even the rough enhancement was enough to increase the already remarkable attributes difference.
The dog growls again, in a last attempt to warn the kid, but the only thing he received was a punch on his head.
In the last second before he got hit, the dog raised its paw and hit back.
[Pack leader takes 93 of dmg]
The long dog's nails managed to reach his arm, causing a minor injury.
[You take 41 of dmg]
Using his other arm, Naruto grabbed the dog's paw before it can go deeper and channeling a bigger amount, he tried to crush his limb.
"Ow!"
System messages continue appearing as Naruto applies more strength.
[Pack leader takes 3~4 of dmg]...
In an awkward position, the dog tried to flee his paw but Naruto wouldn't let go of him easily.
As the pressure grew, the pain got worse and the dog's groans got louder.
In the relaxed ambience, Naruto had enough time to pay attention to something else.
This is way easier than I thought, but this can't happen next time.I can't waste my time searching for the last monster every time.
[Pack leader takes 5~6 of dmg]...
The constant pain erased the dog's sanity and the only thing that remained on his eyes was violence.
He will die here if he doesn't try to attack.
Without any chance to escape and cornered, the dog rushed forward to bite Naruto. The pestilent smell awakened Naruto and his expression changed, but it was too late.
The moment he noticed it, the dog's fangs were in front of his head. Letting go of his paw, Naruto took a step back and moved his head to the left. It was enough to avoid the fatal injury, but the dog wouldn't let him go without taking anything.
His shoulder was the victim the dog took.
Looking how the dog went directly to bite him, He prayed that the armor would work.
But...
[You take 235 of dmg]
It wasn't enough.
The armor was easily pierced by the dog' fangs.
"Agh! Damn it!" The pain erased the last relaxed nerves in Naruto and now he remembers where he is at.
He survived the first floor because he was cautious, but the time he was there was enough to make him forget some lessons he learned with his life in line.
The pain made him unable to stand and the dog took the advantage to knock him down. His back made a dull noise and the dog's fangs went deeper on his shoulder. The system messages didn't stop and the dog continued applying more strength.
[You take 11~12 of dmg]
With the dog on top of him, Naruto tried to gather strength to break free from his bite. The pain of getting rid of his fangs made his hands shake but he managed to do it, at the price of losing a piece of flesh.
His other arm was disabled, but he didn't wait and moved his body to get on top of the dog and began to hit his head repeatedly.
[Pack leader takes 71 of dmg] [Pack leader takes 77 of dmg]...
The dog's groans continued but Naruto didn't stop. After so many hits, the dog lost one of his fangs and his mouth was filled with blood.
But as the same as the previous floor, the moment his HP goes below a certain value, the mechanism was activated. The dog took strength from nowhere and managed to escape Naruto's assault.
[The Pack leader enters on his second phase][Now it deals x3 dmg and it's faster][Pack leader HP 300]
Taking several steps back, Naruto used his Red to heal his injuries.
[Naruto 744/1290 HP][+3HP][-2HP]
His HP was recovering but his shoulder was still a bloody disaster. Taking a potion, he drank it and the bleeding stopped for the most part. Only using the fountain he could get a full heal, as far as he knew.
The pain got better, but he still had problems moving his arm.
Exhaling a cold breath, Naruto was ready to put an end to this farce. The second phase only increased stats he wasn't worrying about.
Channeling chakra in his fist until it was hard to endure the pain, Naruto charged.
He's faster, stronger and most importantly, now he didn't underestimate him. Immediately after he was in position, Naruto used for his skill Rage of the Weak for the first time.
The change was instant as he felt new strength on his body.
Showing a twisted smile, Naruto was ready.
The dog perceived the change in the atmosphere and tried to respond but it was too slow. He could only watch how Naruto was on his side and landed a kick to his torso. The dog didn't have any opportunity to make a sound as the sudden impact sent him flying.
[Pack leader takes 107 of dmg]
Chasing him, Naruto channeled his chakra on his leg and stamped it in the same position as before.
[Pack leader takes 131 of dmg]
Naruto's leg was strong, but his shoe wasn't and the impact broke it. His feet met the freedom once again.
Without bothering with such trifles, withdrew his leg and instead used his knee as he fell against the same spot in the dog's torso.
[Pack leader takes 148 of dmg]
[Pack leader has died]
[You have won against the Pack leader] [You obtained 750 gold] [Your strength permanently increases by 5%. Your agility permanently increases by 5%] [You have achieved a feat(unrated) in your history]x1 [You have obtained the teeth of the Pack Leader] [Return to the safe zone to continue to the next floor]
When the message appeared, the dog stopped his groans and fell silent. Naruto's knee broke the dog's rib cage, and the broken bones hurt a bit when he pulled his leg out.
It was a mess.
Seeing the spectacle, he just wanted to return to heal his shoulder. Nothing here moved him.
Taking the loot, his mission was finished.
"Huf... everyone had to fight as hard as I do? Well, let's go."
Leaving the hall, he didn't start to run. The pain into his shoulder was bad enough and he didn't want to make it worse.
The good thing it was he began to feel a warm steam throughout his whole body and the pain slowly goes away, but at the minor price of higher energy consumption . It seemed that Resilience was doing a better work than he thought.
20 minutes later he arrived at the safe zone.
Without greeting the Dwarf, Naruto lay down directly in the fountain. As the water entered on his shoulder, he could feel how it twisted as it healed. Groans of pain escaped from his mouth.
"Huh?" That sound was enough to wake up the Dwarf. He rubbed his eyes while he waited for the kid to heal.
A few minutes later, Naruto felt that it stopped and his face was pale like a ghost. His already pale skin looked even worse.
Getting up from the fountain and sitting on the corner, Naruto shivered from the cold.
"It was easy, right?" The Dwarf's voice sounded as he approached the kid and offered him hot tea.
"Ah-haha, yeah, it was easy." Naruto showed a bitter smile.
"Then why are you injured?"
"... I was careless. I don't know why but since I raised my [Intelligence] I get distracted easily."
"Is that so?" The Dwarf said thoughtfully.
Naruto was a bit worried, this time he could win because he had an abysmal difference of stats against the boss. But then what will happen the next time?
"Shouldn't I have done that? I thought it was fine."
"It was the correct decision, but you cannot take all the benefits right now because you are worried about too many things." Looking into the kid's eyes, the Dwarf continued.
"You are still a kid and you will continue growing for a while."
"And? Is that important to this?"
"I have seen what you do, that meditation. You must do that more often, or it will get worse the more you grow. Your intelligence was exceptional from the beginning and it will continue growing. Learn your lesson and make sure that doesn't happen again."
"Mm! I will!" Naruto grinned, he felt better knowing a solution.
"Hahaha, that's better. Let's get out of here." The Dwarf ruffled Naruto's hair.
"Okay!"
System, give me my reward.
[You have cleared the second floor] [Calculating the rewards]
[Your stats will be increased by 3%] [You obtained 5 Soul Fragments(empty). You can use them to increase your stat tier with 5 of them(doesn't work with yellow tier or higher)] [You have obtained a Skill Fragment] [You obtained 1500g]
[The third floor is now opening]
[Vitality: 91% (yellow)]
[Strength: 30% (yellow)]]
[Dexterity: 40% (yellow)]]
[Agility: 32% (yellow)]]
Time to leave this place.
2 months and 11 days until Naruto's tenth birthday.
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Naruto has grown faster since he got the Yellow tier and now he's 1.49cm tall and since he haven't to be worry about food as the firsts months, he's eating well.
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Thanks for reading.
Have a nice day and good luck everyone!