I Really Deserve to Die (Please Keep Reading)

First, there was Konoha.

Setting aside the Will of Fire, this village truly was a place teeming with talent.

Among the older generation were Konoha's Twin Heroes, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō, one in the light and one in the shadows.

The middle generation had the Konoha Sannin—Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru—each at the forefront of Sage Jutsu, Medical Jutsu, and science respectively.

Among the younger generation were the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato; the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Kushina; and Hatake Kakashi, who had been promoted to Chunin at the youngest age in history.

They were practically treasure vaults, one after another.

And beyond Konoha, the Ninja of every village had their own signature techniques.

The Third Raikage's Lightning Body Technique, the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release, the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki's Dust Release...

Taking a huge bite out of his beef pancake, Uchiha Chi narrowed his eyes in pleasure as tender juices spread through his mouth.

He wanted all of them. He did not want to let a single one slip away.

After all, he had never been the type to complain about having too much stuff. Perhaps because he had been afraid of poverty, in his previous life, no matter what game he played, his favorite thing to do had been collecting everything.

"Now that I think about it, these few points of mine are nowhere near enough..."

"Looks like I'll have to keep making more friends..."

Thinking about this on and off, Uchiha Chi unknowingly returned to the vicinity of his residence.

Looking somewhat conflictedly at the last pancake in his hand, he thought briefly before deciding to save it for later.

Then, he crumpled the other four empty paper bags into four paper balls. The moment he turned beneath the eaves, he raised Both Hands and lightly tossed the paper balls and pancake upward.

As the paper balls and pancake slowly rose into the air, Uchiha Chi's hands began rapidly forming seals.

Rat—Tiger—Dog—Ox—Rabbit—Tiger.

As the final Tiger seal was formed.

Four fireballs shaped like phoenix flower fruits, carrying scorching, distorted air currents, shot from Uchiha Chi's mouth into the air.

Without looking back, he walked forward, one hand rummaging through his pocket for the key while the other steadily caught the falling pancake.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

The instant he pulled the key from his pocket, the four fireballs behind him struck their targets with perfect accuracy, reducing the falling paper balls to ash in the blink of an eye.

That's art. Uchiha Chi thought.

However, just as he was admiring his growing control over Ninjutsu, a sudden thud came from beneath the eaves.

"Eek—!?"

Then he heard the system's mechanical voice.

[Detected fright from Nohara Rin!]

[Received 10 points and increased Defense by 2%!]

What was going on?

Uchiha Chi was a little puzzled and quickened his pace, circling around to the front door.

At a glance, he noticed someone on the ground.

It was a pretty girl with short brown hair—the very Nohara Rin Obito dreamed about day and night.

Nohara Rin was currently sitting on the ground, pouting as she rubbed her backside pitifully. Clearly, the fall had hurt quite a bit.

"Classmate Nohara Rin?" Uchiha Chi blinked in confusion.

Nohara Rin looked over. Once she saw who it was, she immediately pushed herself up and hurried over to Uchiha Chi in tiny steps.

"Good morning, Chi-kun!"

She greeted him in a cheerful tone, though tears still glimmered in her eyes. It was obvious her butt still hurt.

Uchiha Chi wanted to laugh a little, but he ultimately held it in.

"Classmate Nohara Rin." His expression seemed somewhat cold, but there was a faint trace of concern in his voice. "How did you fall?"

Feeling the concern in his tone, Nohara Rin felt a slight warmth in her heart.

But when she looked up and saw Uchiha Chi's distant gaze, the joy in her heart was like a bucket of cold water had been poured over it, leaving only bitterness and guilt.

This was all my fault...

"I'm fine." She forced a smile and waved her hand. "Someone used Fire Style Ninjutsu nearby just now. It looked really powerful and scared me."

"I see." Uchiha Chi nodded, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "I was startled too."

"Exactly!"

Sensing that Uchiha Chi was in a good mood, Nohara Rin nodded in eager agreement, puffing out her cheeks indignantly.

"Using that kind of Ninjutsu in a residential area so early in the morning is practically disturbing the peace. They really have no sense of public decency at all..."

Uchiha Chi stopped smiling.

He took a light breath, glanced at Nohara Rin, and asked in an indifferent tone, "What did you need from me, Classmate Nohara Rin?"

Nohara Rin looked cautiously at Uchiha Chi, unable to understand why his tone had turned cold again.

Like a quail, she lowered her head to stare at the ground, twisting her cold little hands together. Her Lips moved faintly, but no words came out. She looked like a soft, fluffy cake.

Uchiha Chi calmly watched the silent Nohara Rin until he noticed that her face was somewhat pale.

His eyes darkened slightly as he noticed that both her exposed thighs and calves were trembling. One of his brows lifted faintly.

It seemed Nohara Rin had been waiting here for quite a long time.

Uchiha Chi said nothing. He turned and unlocked the door, then looked at Nohara Rin from the side. "Come in first."

With her head lowered, Nohara Rin obediently followed him into the entryway.

Uchiha Chi gave a slight nod and raised his chin toward the living room, signaling for her to follow.

Nohara Rin took off her shoes, her small feet in white socks lightly stepping on the floor. Looking at Uchiha Chi, who had already walked into the living room, she softly said, "Sorry for intruding..."

Uchiha Chi ignored her and pointed expressionlessly at the sofa. "Wait here for a moment."

So Nohara Rin obediently sat on the sofa, exactly where Uchiha Chi had pointed.

Seeing her comply, Uchiha Chi nodded lightly and turned into the bedroom.

As his footsteps receded, the empty living room abruptly fell silent.

In the tranquil atmosphere, feeling the sofa's comfort and softness, Nohara Rin's slightly tense body gradually relaxed. She curiously looked around the living room.

The living room was decorated in a typical Japanese style, though a three-meter-long brown sofa had apparently been added for comfort.

The walls looked old, and the mural hanging on them had weathered somewhat, but the place was fairly clean overall. There was no dust on the tea table either, so the room was probably cleaned from time to time.

It was just that the items were arranged rather messily, as though the owner had casually placed them wherever they could be easily reached.

Any one of those details made it clear that only a man probably lived here.

Combined with the rumors that Uchiha Chi was an orphan...

And remembering how she had questioned him back then.

Nohara Rin felt her heart clench painfully.

I'm truly a terrible woman...

Just then.

A somewhat cold voice rang out.

"Here."

Nohara Rin hurriedly rubbed the reddened corners of her eyes and looked up.

Uchiha Chi had emerged from the bedroom and placed a fluffy blanket beside her.

Looking at Uchiha Chi, whose expression remained blank, Nohara Rin's nose stung, and she hugged the blanket as she began to sob.

"I really deserve to die..."