The Terrifying Will of Fire

[System successfully bound]

[Currently bound world: One Piece]

[Host has successfully bound to the system. Choose one of the following templates to bind]

[Tremor-Tremor Fruit (undeveloped)]

[Dracule Mihawk (swordsmanship)]

[Beast Kaido Template (extremely rare)]

Looking at the options that appeared, Zi Xu chose the third one without hesitation.

"Bind the Beast Kaido Template!" Zi Xu didn't need to think twice. The Tremor-Tremor Fruit was certainly powerful, but it placed a tremendous strain on the body. He didn't have a physique like Whitebeard's. Mihawk's swordsmanship was also formidable, but even if Zi Xu mastered it, he'd still be a fragile fighter with plenty of offense but little health, liable to drop dead at any moment. The Kaido Template was different. Beast Kaido was known as "the world's strongest creature."

Even when sentenced to hanging, he'd snap the chains. Even when led to the execution block, he'd shatter the blade. Even when stabbed with spears, the spears would break before they could kill him. He'd sunk as many as nine giant prison ships, and no one had ever managed to kill him. With Kaido's template, Zi Xu finally had at least a sliver of confidence that he could escape this terrifying cult.

[Beast Kaido character template selected]

[Merging...]

[Merge complete]

[Notice: The Kaido Template is an advanced template. Its subsequent abilities must be unlocked by the host. For now, only part of Kaido's physique has been merged.]

[Kaido's Physique merged: 5%]

"Unlocked? What can I unlock? How do I do it?"

[Abilities available for future unlocking: Devil Fruit Ability, Haki, Advanced Haki Techniques, Chakra Fusion Techniques, and more. The host can earn unlock points by changing the course of the Ninja world...]

Seeing the system's answer, Zi Xu understood how he would grow stronger from now on. As for changing the course of the world, although he hadn't watched much of Naruto, surely all he had to do was bring peace to the world, keep children off the battlefield, and let the people live and work in peace.

"Good, the merge is done. But why don't I feel any change in my physique..." Though Zi Xu was puzzled, he didn't show it. He continued listening to Hiruzen Sarutobi's speech with a serious expression, planning to examine his physique once he returned to his room.

The things Hiruzen Sarutobi said sounded like the same old rhetoric that capitalists had used before Zi Xu crossed over: if your life was miserable, it was because you didn't work hard enough; you should realize your self-worth by working overtime, and so on.

Still, Zi Xu carefully committed every word to memory. Hiruzen Sarutobi might quiz them on his speech later to weed out anyone disloyal to Konoha.

Just like a top leader giving a speech, Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke for a full three hours before finally finishing. The teachers were going to have a meeting, while the students were told to go to their assigned classes according to their admission notices. Hiruzen Sarutobi, meanwhile, took the parents on a cheerful tour of the school.

Zi Xu had been assigned to Class B, first grade.

The classroom's overall layout reminded Zi Xu of the lecture halls at his university. It was arranged in a semicircle of ascending rows, but the desks weren't connected. Instead, they were divided into small tables that could seat three. At the very front of the room stood a huge blackboard, with several large words written on it in chalk:

"Students, please read your textbooks on your own."

Zi Xu found his seat by checking the markings on his admission notice. It was by the window in the very last row.

He'd arrived early. For now, he was the only one at the table, which could seat three, so he sat down and followed the blackboard's instructions, beginning to read the textbook in his hands. He suspected this might be a test of their obedience.

There were plenty of textbooks, but after flipping through some of them, Zi Xu found that most were for general education. There was only one book on ninjutsu, and it seemed to cover only the most basic techniques, such as "Chakra Extraction Technique," "Clone Technique," "Transformation Technique," and "Substitution Technique." Not a single one could inflict damage!

As for the general-education books, there were titles like Inheritance of the Will of Fire, The Importance of the Village, Loyalty—A Ninja's Most Basic Virtue, and Hiruzen Sarutobi—The Strongest Hokage in History...

Zi Xu picked up Hiruzen Sarutobi—The Strongest Hokage in History. To defeat an enemy, he first had to understand him.

He opened the book and began reading carefully. The further he got, the more alarmed he became, and sweat kept breaking out on his palms.

"The Professor of Ninjutsu. He commands all five chakra natures and has mastered the transformations of countless techniques. His strength is unfathomable."

"Because Hiruzen Sarutobi stands guard over Konoha, his overwhelming military might deters the other villages from invading."

"Hiruzen Sarutobi possesses a Crystal Ball that can protect the village at any time and expose spies"...

"This guy's hard to deal with. I can't confront him head-on... I'll definitely die..." Zi Xu's estimation of Hiruzen Sarutobi rose higher and higher in his mind.

Zi Xu picked up Inheritance of the Will of Fire. The first page read: "Wherever the leaves dance, the fire burns on."

Withered old leaves turned into flames that illuminated the village and helped new leaves sprout. The new leaves would keep burning, in an endless cycle.

It sounded somewhat reasonable. But based on what Zi Xu had learned about history recently, it seemed that those old-timers had started the previous Ninja World Wars. Yet they were still alive and well, while the younger generation who'd fought in the wars...

Just as Zi Xu was criticizing this hollow, performative ideology in his mind, a timid girl's voice came from beside him.

"Um... are you okay, classmate...?"

Zi Xu jumped in fright and turned toward the voice. A girl with very pale skin and light red glasses stood there. She had her hands clasped together and seemed easy to talk to.

"Ah, it's nothing. I'm just a little hot." Zi Xu wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

"Hello, my name is Uzumaki Zi Xu. I guess we'll be classmates from now on. I hope we get along." Zi Xu introduced himself first. It made him seem well-adjusted, rather than withdrawn because he'd grown up in an orphanage, and would reassure the people around him.

"...Hello... I... I'm Aburame Hatsumi. P-please treat me kindly..." The girl relaxed and sat beside Zi Xu, then followed the instructions on the blackboard and began reading.

Zi Xu returned to the book in front of him, but skipped over the Chicken Soup and went straight to the lessons on ninjutsu.

"Chakra Extraction Technique: Draw upon the body's physical energy and the mind's spiritual energy. Depending on the technique to be performed, gather the amount of energy required, then form hand seals to perform the ninjutsu..."

Zi Xu read it again and again. He understood every word, but not when they were put together.

Seeing Zi Xu looking troubled, Aburame Hatsumi spoke softly.

"Chakra Extraction Technique? Usually, the elders of a clan teach it to their descendants..."

"Ah... I'm an orphan."

"Ah, I'm s-sorry! I'm really sorry!" Aburame Hatsumi realized she'd said the wrong thing and hurried to apologize.

"I... I can teach you. Consider it an apology..." She offered to teach Zi Xu the Chakra Extraction Technique. He was delighted at the opportunity and was about to accept...

"Clack." The chair beside Hatsumi was pulled back, and a girl who looked aloof sat down.

She had a stylish short bob of bluish-black hair and was exceptionally pretty. Her eyes, however, looked strange—pure white, with an ethereal yet icy quality.

That brought Zi Xu and Hatsumi's conversation to an end. He greeted the girl first.

"Hello, I'm Uzumaki Zi Xu, and this is Aburame Hatsumi. I hope we get along..."

"Hyuga Chino," the girl replied flatly. She didn't seem inclined to say more. She sat there without looking at the books on the desk, hands clasped together as she stared at the ceiling, lost in thought.

Zi Xu wasn't discouraged by missing his chance to learn the Chakra Extraction Technique ahead of time. After skimming through the ninjutsu book, he went back to the general-education books. He wanted to memorize as much as he could, figuring they'd probably be tested on it later.

He picked up a book called The Establishment of Konohagakure. But the more he read, the more something seemed off.

The book said the First and Second Hokage had established the village to keep children off the battlefield. But by the time of the Third, how had it become a matter of children willingly giving their lives for the village?

He'd also read an article about the Ninja World Wars. It said the villages had gone to war because of a lack of resources. But with so many useful techniques, they could easily produce plenty of food by developing agriculture—Water Release and Earth Release alone could do the job.

Yet these people had still launched wars that engulfed the world, founded ninja academies to teach children how to kill, then sent generation after generation to the battlefield to seize resources through plunder.

Zi Xu thought this place was more than just a cult. Even the terrorist organizations he'd known before crossing over wouldn't dare operate like this. The more he read, the more alarmed he became. Perhaps the First Hokage's Will of Fire had begun with good intentions, but by the time of the Third, it might already have strayed from its original purpose.

Zi Xu had always believed that everything changed and advanced over time. Perhaps the Will of Fire needed some fresh blood.

Hyuga Chino glanced at Zi Xu, puzzled. Through her Byakugan, she could clearly see that he was deeply unsettled and seemed extremely nervous.

She looked at the book he was reading, saw nothing unusual, and paid him no more attention.

"This era is sick..." Zi Xu thought to himself. Without realizing it, he lightly tapped the desk with his left hand.

"Huh? Why does it feel so itchy..." Zi Xu felt a tickling, prickling sensation in his palm. He lifted his hand to see what he'd touched.

Maybe the desk had simply fallen into disrepair, or perhaps some mischievous child had been playing a prank. A few sharp nails protruded from the gaps in the wooden tabletop.

But now the nails, which looked sharp enough to cut skin with ease, had been flattened from top to bottom into little iron wafers by that one light tap. He finally understood why his palm had felt so strange.

Beast Kaido's physique was terrifying! And this was only the result of a partial merge. If he completely merged with Kaido's physique and mastered all of his abilities... Yikes...

Without drawing attention to himself, Zi Xu pocketed the flattened nails. Even so, he didn't dare let his guard down. Plenty of things in this ninja world might be able to kill him, so it never hurt to be careful.

And so Uzumaki Zi Xu, Aburame Hatsumi, and Hyuga Chino sat quietly, each with different thoughts on their minds, waiting for their teacher to arrive.