He Tricked Me Again

(Chapter 12: He Tricked Me Again)

"Fourth Hokage...sir? What brings you here?" Mirai was surprised to hear those first four words. Then he realized that calling him by his title alone might be improper, so he drew out the word "sir." To anyone watching, he seemed genuinely astonished.

Namikaze Minato smiled. "Why shouldn't I come here? I used to eat ramen here all the time. But then I got busy, so I rarely have time to stop by."

Just then, the red-haired beauty beside Minato asked him, "Minato, who's this child?"

"Kushina, I met him today when I went to the Ninja Academy. Today's the first day of school, after all."

"Oh, right. I nearly forgot that today was the first day of school. I haven't been there in ages. That's where we first met, too," the woman beside Minato said.

As soon as Mirai heard the Fourth Hokage mention her, he knew who she was: Naruto Uzumaki's mother, Kushina Uzumaki, and the Fourth Hokage's wife.

She seemed to be the second Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails. But fate had been cruel; they had both died in the disaster when the Nine-Tails attacked Konoha. Uh, how long until that attack?

Minato smiled. "Our child will be attending the Ninja Academy someday, too. Then you'll be able to go there to pick him up."

Their child? Then there probably wasn't much time left. The Nine-Tails could attack Konoha within the year. There was no point getting involved with the two of them. He might even be mistaken for a monster.

"Oh! Since we've run into each other, why don't we ask Mirai to help us pick a name for our child? We can consider it when the baby is born." Kushina clapped her hands and smiled at Chen Fan. She was so impulsive. He'd heard Naruto's mother was lively, but he hadn't expected her to be lively enough to ask a child she'd just met on the street to name her unborn baby.

"Sure. Running into each other like this must be fate. Let's have Mirai think of a name," Minato said, beaming.

Hey! You don't have to indulge your wife this much, do you? Are you showing off your love in front of me? No wonder the old saying went, "Couples who flaunt their love die young." The ancients had been right.

Minato and Kushina both turned to look at Mirai. He had no way to refuse them. "Then how about... Naruto?" he said hesitantly. He hadn't expected to end up naming the protagonist himself. Fate really did have a sense of humor.

"Naruto... Naruto. That's a wonderful name! I hope our child is as clever and adorable as you, Mirai!" Kushina ruffled his hair with a smile.

[ Ding! Nine-Tails relationship mission triggered. Optional Mission 1: For the host's safety, eliminate the Nine-Tails before it attacks Konoha. Kill Kushina Uzumaki. Mission reward: 00 Points. Difficulty: SSS rank! ]

Mirai's expression froze. What the hell? Do you really think this is for my safety, or are you just trying to get me killed? Even if he didn't have to deal with the Fourth Hokage, a Kage Level ninja, Kushina herself was at least a Jonin. He was just a kid who'd recently awakened his Sharingan—not even a Genin. How was he supposed to pull that off? He'd be as good as dead. Pass!

[ Ding! Nine-Tails relationship mission. Optional Mission 2: For the host's safety, obtain a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra during its attack on Konoha. Mission reward: 50 Points. Unlock the Rare Beast Pavilion. Difficulty: A rank! ]

Mirai was taken aback by the second optional relationship mission. Rare Beast Pavilion? From the name, it sounded like some kind of pet shop. In the Naruto world, pets could only mean Tailed Beasts or the gigantic creatures summoned with the Summoning Jutsu, like Jiraiya's Gamabunta or Orochimaru's Manda. Either way, they could increase his combat strength.

The Summoning Jutsu offered a quick way to gain allies, while a Tailed Beast could become a Jinchuriki's source of chakra, seemingly inexhaustible. Later in Naruto, plenty of characters without a Tailed Beast were little more than extras.

Looks like he had to accept this mission. It still carried plenty of risk, but it was much more reasonable than killing the Fourth Hokage's wife. This System Shop didn't care about his safety at all. It was just trying to force him into a dead end.

[ Ding! Host accepted Nine-Tails relationship mission 2: Obtain a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra during the attack on Konoha. Mission success reward: 50 Points and unlock the Rare Beast Pavilion. Mission failure penalty: 10 Points. Abandoning the mission penalty: 5 Points. If Points fall below 0, the host will be killed! ]

Fuck! You keep handing out forced-choice missions, then take away Points if I fail or give up. And you still have the nerve to claim it's for my safety? Mirai cursed the Mall System in his mind. This wasn't a mall system at all. It was a death system.

It looked like he couldn't take things easy anymore. The thought sent a chill down his spine. Thank goodness he'd accepted the mission. He had 0 Points right now; losing 5 would put him at -5. His life would be over before it even began. Forget the Nine-Tails or the Ten-Tails. His own Mall System was the real threat.

He had to get stronger. If he kept abandoning missions because he wasn't strong enough, his life would be in danger. Only by growing powerful could he take control of his own fate. A determined light suddenly shone in Mirai's eyes.

Minato and Kushina exchanged puzzled looks. They couldn't understand why a child like Mirai would make such an expression. But soon, they sat down beside him and ordered two bowls of ramen as well.

They chatted with Mirai over their meal. They both clearly liked children, which left him feeling helpless. Still, in the end, he didn't have to pay for his own food. They counted it as a fee for naming their child. Mirai was happy to get a free meal, since he didn't get much money each month and had to save wherever he could.

After returning home, Mirai began training. The ease he'd felt after awakening his Sharingan had vanished. Danger was always looming over him. The only way to survive in this world was to work hard and grow stronger as quickly as possible.