For several seconds after the fight ended, the entire playground remained silent.
All eyes were fixed on the defeated Hyuga Homon.
Dust still clung to his clothes as he slowly pushed himself up from the ground. His chest rose and fell with uneven breaths, and the humiliation of the moment hung heavy in the air.
The Hyuga prodigy—who had entered the arena with his Byakugan activated and absolute confidence—had just been defeated by someone who used nothing but the Three Basic Jutsu.
The silence stretched on.
Then finally—
Homon lowered his head.
"…Yes," he said quietly. "I lost."
Ren stood calmly above him.
But he didn't move aside.
Instead, he asked another question.
"And what else?"
Homon blinked.
"What… what else?"
For a moment he looked completely confused.
Was admitting defeat not enough?
Did he really have to apologize to the Three Basic Jutsu, those supposedly insignificant E-rank techniques?
The thought made his stomach twist.
That would be unbelievably humiliating.
But Ren's expression was serious.
There wasn't the slightest hint of joking in his eyes.
And Homon remembered something clearly.
Ren had made that condition before the duel even started.
If he backed out now—after losing in front of so many witnesses—not only would he lose his own dignity, but he might even drag the reputation of the Hyuga Clan down with him.
The Hyuga Clan valued pride and honor above all else.
If someone used this incident to claim that a Hyuga member broke his word…
The consequences would be disastrous.
After a long moment of internal struggle, Homon clenched his teeth.
Then he forced the words out.
"…S-sorry."
"I shouldn't have looked down on the Three Basic Jutsu."
Only then did Ren nod.
"That's more like it."
---
At that very moment, a stream of notifications exploded inside Ren's vision.
[Transformation Technique]: As expected of little Ren! That strategy just now was brilliant. Watching it was dazzling! That Hyuga kid will probably be depressed for quite a while after going home.
[Clone Technique]: Ren, you rascal… Fine, fine. I admit I underestimated you before. Seeing how hard you fought for us sisters today, I'll treat you a little better in the future. But listen carefully—you must stay away from that red-haired technique from now on!
[Great Fireball Technique]: ?
[Substitution Jutsu]: Mr. Ren is truly gentle…
Then the system notification appeared.
[Ding! Special Event: "Defending the Dignity of the Three Basic Jutsu" completed!]
A series of rewards followed immediately.
[Transformation Technique Favorability +10]
Current Favorability: 70 / 100 (Intimate)
[Clone Technique Favorability +10]
Current Favorability: 37 / 100 (Friendly)
Stage Reward Obtained
Physique +1
Trait: Visual Sharing
Your Clone Technique now possesses partial vision ability. When concentrating, your main body can connect with one clone and share its field of view.
More notifications appeared.
[Substitution Jutsu Favorability +10]
Current Favorability: 47 / 100 (Friendly)
[Great Fireball Technique Favorability +4]
Current Favorability: 28 / 100 (Friendly)
Stage Reward Obtained
Physique +1
Trait: Spirit of Fire
Your affinity with Fire-attribute chakra has increased slightly. The power of Fire Release ninjutsu is enhanced by 30%.
---
"…Holy crap."
Ren's eyelids twitched slightly.
Visual Sharing?
Firepower amplification?
These abilities sounded suspiciously familiar.
They reminded him of techniques used by legendary figures like Madara Uchiha or the vision-sharing abilities of the Pain (Nagato) Six Paths.
No wonder the favorability for these techniques was so hard to increase.
If the rewards were this powerful, it made perfect sense.
After the initial shock passed, Ren quickly analyzed the situation more calmly.
The ability granted by the Clone Technique wasn't quite as overwhelming as the Six Paths of Pain.
The Six Paths worked because each body possessed immense strength—at least elite jonin-level combat ability.
The academy's basic Clone Technique, however, created illusions without physical substance. They couldn't fight, attack, or perform complicated tasks.
That meant the visual-sharing trait would function more like a stationary surveillance camera.
Still…
A sudden thought crossed Ren's mind.
What if this ability worked with the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique?
That technique created physical clones capable of independent action.
If visual sharing combined with that…
It would truly resemble the Six Paths system.
Of course, Ren quickly dismissed the thought.
The Multiple Shadow Clone Technique was a forbidden technique stored in the Scroll of Seals.
Learning it wasn't something an academy student could do casually.
Even ordinary ninja could only use the simpler Shadow Clone Technique, splitting their chakra into two or three bodies at most.
Before even dreaming of forbidden techniques, it was far more realistic to continue improving the Three Basic Jutsu first.
Ren smiled faintly.
Let's see just how far you three can go.
---
In addition to the traits, the system also added two more points to his Physique.
At that moment, Ren felt a warm current spread through his body.
It flowed through his muscles, bones, and limbs like a gentle spring rain nourishing the earth.
The fatigue from the battle with Homon quickly faded.
His breathing steadied.
His body felt lighter again.
After confirming everything, Ren jumped down from the arena.
---
Rin Nohara was the first to approach him.
She stepped forward with a bright smile and reached out to support him.
"Congratulations, Ren-kun!"
"I didn't expect you to be this amazing already!"
Her eyes were filled with excitement.
"I was really worried you might lose just now."
She laughed softly.
"But as expected, Ren-kun is very clever. You just hadn't discovered your potential before."
Ren glanced briefly at her extended hand.
Then he noticed something else.
A few steps away—
Obito was staring at him.
Very intensely.
Ren's heart skipped a beat.
Oh no.
Rin helping me up in front of Obito…
He's not going to awaken a two-tomoe Sharingan right here, is he?
Fortunately, Obito's emotional state during this time was still relatively stable.
Although he looked extremely unhappy, his reaction stopped at a sour expression.
He didn't explode.
---
Meanwhile, the surrounding students had already erupted into excited discussion.
"Did you see that?! Hyuga Homon actually lost!"
"The Byakugan lost to the Three Basic Jutsu!"
One girl clasped her hands dramatically.
"I just realized something… Ren is really handsome."
"And he's talented too."
"He's basically the perfect husband candidate!"
"Just like Kakashi Hatake!"
Another girl giggled.
"If I could marry someone like that, I'd give up becoming a jonin forever!"
Nearby, someone shouted loudly.
"Wow! Watching a fight like that…"
"Even repeating a year would be worth it!"
Not everyone agreed, however.
A few students whispered among themselves.
"Wait a second."
"Hyuga Homon fell off the stage, but he could still fight."
"Does that really count as a loss?"
Another student shook his head immediately.
"Of course it does."
"If Ren had used a real knife during that kidney strike earlier…"
"Homon would already be dead."
The debate continued.
---
Amid the noisy crowd, one figure stepped forward.
A tall boy in a bright green training suit.
Might Guy.
His eyes shone with excitement as he grabbed Ren by both shoulders.
"Ren!"
"You rascal!"
"I never imagined you had pushed your youth this far!"
Guy grinned widely.
"I knew those 200 laps we ran before were not your limit!"
His enthusiasm grew stronger.
"Ren!"
"I challenge you!"
"Let me experience the youth you have awakened!"
Before Ren could answer, Rin immediately stepped forward.
"Guy-kun!"
She frowned slightly.
"Ren-kun just finished a match."
"He needs to rest."
"It's not appropriate to challenge him now."
Guy blinked.
Then he scratched his head awkwardly.
"…Ah."
"You're right."
"That was inconsiderate of me."
He suddenly raised a fist.
"To apologize!"
"I will run two hundred laps around the playground right now!"
Before anyone could react—
Guy had already sprinted away toward the running track.
Leaving the rest of the students staring in stunned silence.
---
In the end, it was Mr. Oki who stepped forward.
"Ahem."
He clapped his hands to regain control of the crowd.
"Everyone return to the testing area."
"We will continue the examination."
"Other matters can be discussed later."
Then he turned his gaze toward Ren.
"Ren."
"You stay behind after the test."
"Mr. Himura and I would like to ask you a few questions."
Ren nodded calmly.
"…Alright."
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