Sparkle had already come up with a small plan. But this wave of rewards made her realize she might be able to play something bigger.
"Then let's all go find some fun together~"
"Let me think... saving the world sounds like a pretty good theme."
Sparkle had no way to destroy the world, but she certainly had the nerve to use the pretext of destroying it to gain some popularity.
As long as the readers knew such a thing had happened and the Protagonist Group solved the problem, that was enough.
That was called a narrative trick.
"And dear Madam Kushina must really want to see her child too, right~?"
Author's Note:
Chun from Wuthering Waves has a pretty nice combat stance with her ropes, but in my opinion, it'd look even better if the ropes were wrapped around her feet~.
It's not just battle series. Oshi no Ko, Love Live!, Uma Musume, and so on have also been used as inspiration, though they might not necessarily become filming locations.
Older anime like The Infinite Stratos and Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry are actually pretty good too. Too bad hardly anyone has seen them, 2333.
The First Step Toward Superstar!
"Sasuke, reach Point B."
"Sparkle, reach Point C~"
"Naruto, reach Point A!"
"Good, Team 7... move out!"
Black shadows darted through the forest, accompanied by music with an unsettling air.
[First!]
[Episode Eight, here I come.]
[Tch, Naruko turned back into Naruto.]
[Looks like we've reached the first major event.]
[Seven years... I waited a whole seven years!]
[Episode Eight is already here. Where's Molotov's Ninja Path commentary?]
[He lives across the sea. Heard he got caught up in a zero-dollar shopping spree, so his hospital stay got extended.]
[Huh? I heard he streamed an anime that wasn't allowed to be streamed and got retaliated against by the little broken site?]
To the viewers, only seven days had passed between Episode Seven and Episode Eight.
But for Team 7, it was already spring of the following year.
During that time, Naruto and Sasuke learned how to climb trees and walk on water. Though they had not learned any powerful Ninjutsu, their Taijutsu had improved considerably, and they had become much more adept at using Chakra.
Sparkle, meanwhile, conducted quite a bit of research during that period.
For example, how to wield dual swords. Both Jingliu and Ryougi Shiki believed Sparkle would be stronger fighting with two swords.
Unfortunately, Sparkle could only study that on her own. She could learn through resonating with Jingliu in dreams, but Jingliu's swordsmanship was not something that could be fully mastered in half a year. Even with Sparkle's talent, it was difficult to discuss such "extracurricular" material during her once-a-week lessons.
The weapons of the Attack on Titan World were mostly dual blades, but they were techniques for dealing with Titans. When Sparkle entered the Attack on Titan World for the third time, she learned how to use dual blades to cut down Titans, but that was ultimately not combat doctrine for fighting people.
Still, Sparkle had gained quite a few insights into the improved "Omni-Directional Mobility Gear," and her control over ropes had become as natural as moving her own limbs. Those ropes could also replace bandages and similar items, allowing Sparkle to use forbidden Taijutsu techniques like Lotus attacks.
The technology of the Attack on Titan World was not much help to Sparkle when it came to fighting people. But after it had been stylized and improved, she felt that she could try using it if she encountered large beasts... Special attack against Tailed Beasts?
Well, that was not realistic. Tailed Beasts and Titans were not on the same level in terms of strength. But if it was just for looking cool, it was more than enough.
Aside from that, Sparkle also went looking for the scrolls of Warring States Sealing History.
As a result, she discovered there was more than one scroll, and they contained quite a lot of information. The people sealed within were all murderers and similar figures who could not be killed directly.
However, finding Uchiha Hikari among them was not particularly difficult. It was just that Uchiha Hikari's condition was poor. Her body had long since been overdrawn and damaged beyond repair.
So although Sparkle already knew the location of the seal, she had not gone to find Uchiha Hikari yet.
Besides, such a great subject would be wasted if she did not use it to film an OVA episode.
At the very least, she needed to finish the script first.
The viewers' perspective switched again, this time to Sasuke. He was currently hiding in the bushes, his gaze solemn.
Naruto, meanwhile, was concealed behind a tree, observing the situation.
Finally, the shot naturally shifted to Sparkle. Her "art style" seemed a little different. She sat smiling atop a treetop, her feet swinging. Beneath the long hem of her kimono, her white stockings swayed. The Red Rope stood out sharply against the white stockings, while the bells above jingled along with her swinging little feet.
[Popsicles, popsicles!]
[White stockings, red rope, bells—the lethality is way too high.]
[My bro said he's done for.]
[Cameraman, give him an extra drumstick!]
[A close-up with very clear intent.]
Among everyone's tense expressions, Sparkle's conspicuous presence felt rather subtle.
She was even casually holding a plush toy.
"Operation begins!"
"Got it!"
A kitten with a bow tied around one ear was caught in Naruto's arms, struggling desperately.
The tense atmosphere from before immediately vanished, leaving everyone with the feeling that they had been fooled.
The comedic effect was first-rate too.
"Can't we have even one mission with some tension?!"
Naruto could not hold it in any longer.
Over the past half year, he had been training diligently. Especially with the Transformation Jutsu—so he would not become a pervert, Naruto had remained transformed whenever he wore women's clothing.
The results were naturally excellent. By now, Naruto's Chakra control was already outstanding.
Not long ago, Sparkle had finally announced that the two of them could temporarily bring their training to an end.
But precisely because of that, Naruto felt even more dissatisfied now.
I've already become the Sword God of Ten Miles Slope, and I still have to do cat-finding missions?!
He was still far from that level, of course, but that did not stop Naruto, who wanted to flex his muscles, from being impatient.
But Sparkle knew that the so-called "gears of fate" had already begun to turn.
The cat Naruto had caught was Little Tiger, the famous cat from Naruto, Madam Shijimi's pet. It could be called the unluckiest little fellow in Naruto. Basically, as long as a Naruto fanfic featured Team 7, this poor creature had to be caught once.
But there was something else that Sparkle cared about more.
She looked toward the stage notification.
Promotion Test Activated Test results and Filming Fee Reward will be released after the conclusion of the Land of Waves major event
This was the first step from extra to superstar.
Many of Sparkle's system permissions had not yet been unlocked. Only after becoming a supporting character would she gain access to more functions.
For example, fans.
—What idol did not have fans of their own?
"Team 7's next mission is... helping Elder Lord look after his children... running errands in the neighboring village..."
"No!"
After handing in the mission, the Third Hokage began assigning Team 7 new ones.
But Naruto finally exploded, unable to endure it any longer.
He firmly refused.
"I'm already really strong, Third Hokage Grandpa! I want tougher missions, tougher missions!"
"Everyone starts by building experience through simple missions. It's too early for you!" Before the Third Hokage could speak, Umino Iruka beside him slammed his hand on the table and stood up. Iruka was genuinely worried about Naruto.
"But I'm already really strong! I can already climb trees and walk on water!"
"Nani?! You can already do that?" Iruka was surprised, but he still said, "That desire to show off is even more unacceptable. Arrogance and complacency will bring disaster, understand?!"
"But, but—" Naruto was extremely unhappy.
At that moment, the Third Hokage also stepped forward and began explaining ninja missions to Naruto.
But Naruto was clearly unconvinced, and he began debating the Third Hokage.
Sasuke did not say anything, but it was obvious that he was equally dissatisfied.
The two of them had undoubtedly grown much stronger, yet they were still doing D-rank missions. What kind of nonsense was that?
Sparkle's attention, however, was on the waiting room next door.
An old man was sitting in the waiting room, drinking heavily.
Tazuna, the famed bridge builder of the Land of Waves.
Just as Sparkle had previously told Neji, Gato had allowed the Land of Waves to prepare bridge-building materials and construct the bridge.
By now, the bridge in the Land of Waves would likely only need about another month to be completed. That was when Gato made his move.
The bridge-building funds had already been exhausted, and their manpower and resources had reached their limit.
At that point, Gato only needed to give them a gentle push from behind to send them falling off the cliff.
Some conspiracy theories claimed that Tazuna had squandered the money meant to hire ninja on drinking, leaving him able to post only a C-rank mission.
But in reality, Tazuna was drinking cheap, inferior liquor with a low alcohol content.
Rather than drinking himself into a stupor, he was using the identity of a "drunkard" to prevent people from asking about the details of the mission.
It was easy to understand when combined with the "original work." After Tazuna appeared, he started picking on Naruto. But if one thought about it carefully, once Tazuna began bickering with Naruto, no one would ask about the details of the mission anymore. In the later story, Tazuna was actually quite respectful toward Naruto.
At that moment, Naruto's argument with the Third Hokage finally came to an end.
The Third Hokage set down his pipe. "All right, I understand. Since you insist, I'll give you a C-rank mission."
—The Land of Waves mission had begun.
Huh? How did it already reach over a thousand blades? I was planning to add another bonus update for recommendation votes, but never mind, I don't dare anymore.
_(:з"∠)_
The stockpile can still hold up. Should've set it at one update per hundred blades... .
The reader group opens on Friday.
She Really... I'm Crying My Eyes Out
"Come in."
At the Third Hokage's call, Tazuna, who had been waiting in the waiting room, pushed open the door and walked in with a bottle of liquor in hand.
"What's this? They're all just kids?" Tazuna pushed open the door and saw Sparkle's group. He took a swig of liquor. "Especially that shortest one. He looks super dumb. Are you really a ninja?"
Tazuna's verbal tic upon his first appearance was that he liked using the word "super."
Just like a certain girl in A Certain Magical Index who also liked saying "super."
"Who are you calling the smallest, shortest one~?" Naruto put his hands on his hips.
Sparkle and Sasuke silently moved closer to him.
"Huh?"
Then Naruto realized that Sasuke and Sparkle... both seemed taller than him?
Before you continue