Just as the Chakra blade was about to slice through Ino Rinya's throat,
Ino Rinya's rising figure suddenly lurched. His legs gave way, and he toppled over.
He'd actually sprained his ankle while standing up!
By sheer luck, Ino Rinya dodged the fatal Chakra blade.
Only then did Ino Rinya seem to realize what had happened.
Panicking, he reached for his neck. His fingers came away with a trace of blood.
The Chakra blade had cut his skin.
So that's how it is.
Nara Dan opened the Cheat System interface he hadn't seen in ages and looked at Ino Rinya's Talent Entry.
Ino Rinya
Male
Talent Entries:
(Blue) Turn Danger into Safety: An extraordinary sensitivity to danger. In dangerous situations, you often have better luck than ordinary people, allowing you to escape danger and turn misfortune into fortune.
That was why Nara Dan had been willing to plant a seed in him.
Although it's only a blue Entry...
In terms of rarity and usefulness,
it's probably no less valuable than a purple Entry.
Nara Dan quietly considered this.
He really had rarely seen a Talent Entry like this outside of characters from the story.
Even when he had, they were usually common Entries like Ninja Talent (Blue) or Resilience (Blue).
This Talent Entry was also why Ino Rinya had survived the crisis that wiped out his teammates last time.
An extraordinary talent like this is well worth developing.
Then I can wait for it to bear fruit.
Before Ino Rinya could ask, dumbfounded, why Teacher Nara had attacked him,
Nara Dan struck again, fast as lightning.
This time, unlike his previous attack, which had gone unnoticed, the movement seemed slow but was actually swift.
As Ino Rinya stared wide-eyed, an index finger slowly grew larger in his field of vision and pressed against the center of his brow.
Ino Rinya felt a cool sensation emanate from Teacher Nara's fingertip.
It reached deep into a mysterious spot behind his brow.
A sudden ache and sharp sting welled up. It felt as though some kind of seed were taking root and sprouting within his brow.
A tingling sensation spread through Ino Rinya's whole body, like an electric shock.
That spot between the brows was, of course, the Pineal Gland,
said to be humanity's third eye and the seat of the Sixth Sense.
Nara Dan had used his own Jin Force in tandem with Chakra, drawing on his understanding of the human body to help him develop his Pineal Gland.
In turn, Ino Rinya's perception underwent a complete transformation.
A whole new sensory system began to sprout within his body.
Ino Rinya felt as if the world had changed.
He slowly extended a hand and gently closed it,
then opened his palm.
"Buzz, buzz."
A black insect flew from Ino Rinya's palm.
"What is this...?"
Ino Rinya couldn't describe the feeling. It was as though a new sense had formed beyond the five he already had.
Like growing a third pair of hands, he could direct it as easily as his own limbs, yet couldn't touch anything with it.
This sense was sharper and more sensitive than all the others.
With just a glance, he could sense the insect's flight path.
Looking up, he could predict which leaf would fall the very next second.
"This is the Sixth Sense."
Nara Dan smiled as he watched Ino Rinya experience the world anew, like a newborn baby, and explained,
"Ordinary people have only five senses: hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch."
"They live and fight using only those five senses."
"But in ancient times,"
"when humans lived in an extremely dangerous environment and weren't yet at the top of the food chain,"
"they had an additional sense that helped them survive."
"It existed between their brows."
"Later, humans gradually learned to cooperate and built imagined communities like societies and nations."
"Use it or lose it."
"Living in a peaceful environment caused the Sixth Sense to atrophy."
Nara Dan paused, then continued,
"But some ninja spend their lives walking along the edge of a blade."
"They can develop part of their Sixth Sense and sense danger ahead of time on the battlefield."
"But such development is only superficial. It's a passive ability."
Naturally, as a powerhouse at the God-Seeing Indestructibility level, Nara Dan had developed the Sixth Sense housed in his Pineal Gland long ago, when he broke through.
It was thanks to that uncanny Sixth Sense that he could "see" the Anbu squad approaching from several miles away.
In fact, when it came to developing the Sixth Sense, no one in the Ninja World could match him.
He had reached the level described in his previous life as "perceiving danger and avoiding it without seeing or hearing."
Not only could he sense danger in advance, but his Sixth Sense could even subtly guide him toward the right choice.
"The true use of the Sixth Sense,"
"lets you perceive danger and avoid it without seeing or hearing."
"Even if you haven't seen or heard the danger,"
"your Sixth Sense can warn you in advance and make you dodge."
"In combat, that means predicting every move and tactic your enemy uses,"
"so you can always remain undefeated."
Nara Dan gave Ino Rinya a meaningful look.
"At that point, staying alive becomes the easiest thing in the world."
"Because by then, you'll know in advance whenever anyone tries to harm you."
Ino Rinya listened to Nara Dan,
pondering as he felt the wonders of the Sixth Sense.
"Perceive danger and avoid it without seeing or hearing..."
"I've only helped you develop this sense to some extent."
"But further progress will depend on your own efforts."
Nara Dan patted Ino Rinya on the shoulder in encouragement.
"Thank you for nurturing me, Teacher Nara!!"
Ino Rinya wasn't stupid. He promptly prostrated himself in gratitude.
"Just tell me what you need, Teacher Nara! I'll do it!"
In this cruel world, an ability like this was undoubtedly precious. Even Forbidden Techniques and Secret Techniques, with their high barriers to entry,
were hoarded tightly by the higher-ups.
And yet this "technique" had no barrier to entry and could be learned directly.
Ino Rinya had never heard of anyone like Nara Dan casually passing on such a powerful trump card.
As for whether Nara Dan had some ulterior motive,
Ino Rinya didn't think it mattered at all. As a civilian ninja, he understood perfectly well:
You needed to be useful to be exploited, and you needed to be given value.
Besides, he'd never met a good person like Teacher Nara, who gave you something first and discussed terms afterward.
Even Danzo kept dangling promises in front of him every day.
He knew perfectly well who truly had his best interests at heart.
Nara Dan showed no reaction to Ino Rinya's gratitude.
He didn't care about Ino Rinya's thanks.
What mattered to him was whether he could achieve his goal.
"You're too kind."
"My training alone won't be enough."
"Your talent matters too."
Nara Dan stated the facts calmly.
"I don't need you to do anything right now."
"Just as you said, all you need to do is stay alive."
"Best of all, you should master the power I've given you as quickly as possible."
A short and punchy second update is here!
Long and punchy readers, surely you won't skip it?
No way, right!?
Before you continue