First Move

"Big Brother Yun Xi, the fish is grilled! Come and eat!"

Just as Yun Xi stood up, Naruto had already walked over.

He held two plump, succulent carp in his hands, and from the even char marks on the fish, it was not hard to tell.

Naruto was clearly very skilled at the art of grilling fish.

"Thanks, then I'll dig in."

From the entrance exam in the morning to meeting the Third Hokage in the afternoon, after all that, Yun Xi's stomach was naturally empty.

Faced with the fragrant and appetizing grilled fish, Yun Xi certainly wouldn't refuse.

Taking the grilled fish Naruto handed him, he took his first bite and found the taste surprisingly good.

"Big Brother Yun Xi, how does the grilled fish taste?"

Seeing Yun Xi finish his first bite, Naruto took the initiative to ask, his face showing a hint of nervousness.

"Not bad, it's great!"

Yun Xi praised while eating the grilled fish.

At the same time, he asked Naruto, "Do you grill fish often? Your skills are amazing!"

"Yeah, because most of the time I'm alone, and when I have nothing to do, I come to the Back Mountain to grill fish."

Seeing Yun Xi asking him, Naruto answered honestly, his expression carrying a touch of pity.

"Mm, I understand."

After hearing Naruto's answer, Yun Xi's heart was filled with emotion. After a moment of silence, he said, "From now on, we are friends. You can call me next time you grill fish."

In truth, whether looking at the original story or the present, Naruto was a tragic character in the early stages.

His parents died when he was young, and as he grew up, he was misunderstood and even bullied...

He could be considered one of the more miserable protagonists.

"Really?"

Naruto looked at Yun Xi in disbelief after hearing his words.

Although he longed for friends and hoped to have friendships in his heart, the insults and exclusion from his peers had made Naruto somewhat fearful.

And these words from Yun Xi made Naruto feel completely incredulous...

"Mm, let's come back tomorrow. For now, let's head back."

Glancing at Naruto, Yun Xi nodded again.

After finishing the fish, he first took Naruto back to his home before returning to his own.

After greeting the neighbors nearby, Yun Xi returned to his bedroom.

"Should I teach the Multi-Shadow Clone Technique to Naruto?"

At night, this thought suddenly sprouted in Yun Xi's mind.

"No, the origin of the Multi-Shadow Clone Technique is quite special. Teaching it to Naruto might affect Uncle Heiwa..."

In the end, Yun Xi dismissed the idea.

However, the intention to increase Naruto's strength remained unchanged; Yun Xi simply swapped teaching the Multi-Shadow Clone Technique for preparing to teach Naruto how to control his chakra!

Actually, this wasn't Yun Xi being a saint, but rather having other plans.

Aside from the previous considerations, the reason Yun Xi had this intention was actually Naruto's identity.

The son of the Fourth Hokage.

The descendant of a Konoha hero.

He was also one of the biggest "cheaters" in the later stages of the series.

Most importantly, Naruto was one of the protagonists of the original story.

As long as he maintained a good relationship with Naruto early on, Yun Xi's safety in Konoha would rise to another level.

And there was another objective reason: all the funds provided by the Third Hokage had been spent by Yun Xi on microtransactions.

If he didn't take Naruto to grill fish, how else could he complete the Third Hokage's mission...

"Who's there?"

Just as Yun Xi was calculating, a faint sound suddenly appeared within the silent room!

"It's you guys again!"

After activating his Sharingan, he was surprised to find two ninjas wearing black robes and masks.

They were currently scouting outside Yun Xi's house, unaware that they had already been discovered by him.

"Root again... since you've come this time, don't even think about leaving!"

Discovering that it was Root ninjas scouting him, Yun Xi felt a surge of anger.

He had already given Root a chance before, but he hadn't expected them to dare to come back!

"Sharingan!"

"Heaven Curse Mark: State One."

Since he had decided to strike, Yun Xi naturally chose a thunderous blow.

As chakra radiated from Yun Xi's body, his physique underwent a massive transformation.

His originally fair skin was instantly covered by black runes, and the black-winged curse mark on his shoulders and neck snapped open.

At the same time, a six-pointed star Mangekyo Sharingan appeared in Yun Xi's left eye!

Can the Heaven Curse Mark State One really amplify chakra and strength by this much?

Yun Xi had clearly underestimated the effects of the Heaven Curse Mark.

Merely by activating the Heaven Curse Mark in State One, the chakra within Yun Xi's body surged hundreds of times over!

It skyrocketed directly from the level of a Chunin to that of an average Kage.

He was an absolute human-shaped Tailed Beast!

"I hope you don't come to provoke me again!"

After grasping the extent of his own strength, Yun Xi no longer hesitated and launched his attack.

Since it was already night, using Fire Style ninjutsu would inevitably attract the attention of the surrounding Anbu ninjas.

Therefore, Yun Xi activated his Mangekyo Sharingan directly.

"Amaterasu!"

With a soft shout, a purple-black flame instantly emerged from Yun Xi's left eye.

What is going on?

Seeing that his Amaterasu seemed somewhat different from the one in the original story, Yun Xi felt a flicker of doubt, but he didn't dwell on it for long.

He immediately controlled the purple Amaterasu to surround the two Root ninjas.

"Ah..."

Almost without making a sound, the two Root Chunin were directly consumed by the Amaterasu.

Where they had stood, only a pile of dust remained...

Can it kill a Chunin in seconds?

After using Amaterasu once, Yun Xi gained a deeper understanding of his own strength.

Although this first battle was a sneak attack, the enemy's strength was not to be underestimated.

Everyone who managed to enter Root was, without exception, a genius disciple from one of the major clans.

Among their peers, their strength was definitely top-tier.

The two Root ninjas who had come to scout Yun Xi were both at the level of elite Chunin.

This showed just how powerful Amaterasu was...

"Ding, the purple Amaterasu was formed by the automatic fusion of the Mangekyo Sharingan and the Heaven Curse Mark."

As Yun Xi cleaned up the traces of the battlefield, the system suddenly provided an explanation.

"Then how is it different from the Amaterasu in the original story?"

Seeing the system answering him, Yun Xi continued to ask.

Clearly, Yun Xi was still quite curious about this mutated Amaterasu.

"Compared to the original Amaterasu, the synthesized version is more powerful and possesses an added dark attribute, capable of affecting the enemy's spirit..."

This time, faced with Yun Xi's question, the Pay-to-Win System did not play dead.

Instead, it explained the reason for the change in Yun Xi's Amaterasu and detailed its primary functions.

An enhanced version of Amaterasu? Yun Xi muttered to himself after hearing the system's explanation.

But the system did not reply this time, so Yun Xi had to study it himself.

After summoning Amaterasu again, Yun Xi indeed discovered something amiss.

Aside from the difference in color compared to the original, the Amaterasu he summoned also carried a slight genjutsu effect.

Even Yun Xi himself felt the influence of it after obtaining the Mangekyo Sharingan...

A combination of Amaterasu and a low-tier Tsukuyomi?

After a brief guess, Yun Xi couldn't be bothered to think about it further.

After observing the battlefield to ensure no traces of himself remained, he returned directly to his room...