Mori Takuma had never imagined that he would say goodbye to his old life this way.
There was no flowerpot falling from the sky, no heroic moment where he shoved a child out of the way and got hit by a car, and not even a chance to shout, "I haven't paid off my Huabei yet!" before dying.
He'd just been walking to work as usual, carrying half a jianbing in his hand and wondering how he'd bluff his way through the morning meeting, when everything went black.
It was as if someone had flipped the world's power switch.
Takuma hadn't even had time to curse.
Fragments of information frantically loaded into his brain: the streets of Konoha, Kage Rock faintly visible in the distance, and the Konoha Forehead Protectors worn by passing ninjas.
He'd transmigrated.
And he'd done it with absolutely no fanfare. Takuma complained furiously to himself: What is this, some third-rate transmigration story? At least give me a dump truck! Or a summoning circle! Not one classic trope? Did an intern handle my transmigration?
Just as he was spiraling into the identity crisis unique to transmigrators, two childish voices filled with malice came from nearby...
"Hey, Byakugan freak, what are you doing here all by yourself?"
Takuma turned around and remembered he wasn't alone in the alley.
Two other children stood beside him, cornering a little girl against the wall—white eyes, short dark-blue hair cut to her ears, a timid expression, and a face Takuma knew better than anyone.
Hyuga Hinata.
He quickly surveyed his position. He was standing between the two brats, blocking Hinata's way out. In other words, he was now part of the "trio of brats bullying Hinata."
Takuma looked down at his short arms, then up at Hinata, who was cornered and on the verge of tears.
"...How much guts did the original owner have?
He'd dared to corner the Hyuga clan's young lady. If her father smacked him once, he'd probably be scraped off the wall.
A loud shout rang through the alley. "Stop!!!"
A little kid with blond hair, blue eyes, and three whisker-like marks on each cheek stood with his hands on his hips atop the wall. He wore a grimy orange jacket, and his eyes shone like light bulbs.
The future Seventh, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the Shinobi World's greatest master of Talk no Jutsu, and Konoha's number-one unpredictable ninja... Right now, he was just a fox-demon kid shunned by the whole village, trying to strike a heroic entrance pose.
Then his foot slipped.
Naruto flailed on the wall for a couple of seconds before tumbling off in an extremely undignified manner, landing face-first with a dull thud.
The scene was painfully awkward.
The two brats froze for half a second, then burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!" "You can't even stand on a wall, and you're trying to play hero?"
Naruto sprang up from the ground, dirt on his nose and a bump swelling on his forehead, but he didn't back down one bit. "Don't bully the weak! What kind of skill is it to gang up on someone?"
His words enraged the two boys. They rolled up their sleeves and headed for Naruto. The three of them soon got into a scuffle. Naruto took a punch, then slapped one of them back.
Hinata huddled in the corner, helplessly watching the fight.
Takuma stood where he was, locked in a fierce internal debate.
Should he help or not?
If he did, he was a transmigrator. Who knew what kind of butterfly effect meddling in the original story might cause? But if he didn't... He watched Naruto get pinned down and have his face yanked around, grimacing but refusing to admit defeat. That didn't feel right.
The official male lead was getting beaten up, after all. If Takuma, a transmigrator, just stood by and watched, he'd be a pretty pathetic protagonist.
Oh, well. I'm here now.
Takuma took a deep breath and charged into the fight.
He didn't attack directly. Instead, he grabbed the two boys by the backs of their collars and yanked them backward with a deft pull. They lost their balance and landed hard on their backsides. Takuma stepped in front of Naruto and Hinata.
"That's enough."
One of the boys got up, rubbing his backside, his face full of disbelief. "Are you crazy?! You're helping that fox demon?"
Before Takuma could answer, a voice suddenly rang out in his mind...
[Event detected: Naruto plays the hero]
[Witness status: Confirmed]
[Witnessing complete—Lottery draw opportunity ×1]
Takuma was ecstatic. The transmigrator starter pack had finally arrived. A lottery draw...
The system interpreted Takuma's thoughts as a request to start the draw. A wheel invisible to everyone else began to spin, and the pointer stopped on a golden slot.
[Congratulations, host. Reward obtained: Wolverine Healing Factor]
[Effect: Grants the host accelerated regeneration, allowing him to heal from most physical injuries, including but not limited to broken bones, internal organ damage, and puncture wounds. Healing speed depends on the severity of the injury. Minor injuries heal in seconds; recovery from fatal injuries depends on the host's current stamina. This ability stacks with the host's existing regenerative constitution.]
[Note: You are not immortal. You'll still die if your head is cut off, so don't do anything stupid.]
Before Takuma could process the information, a searing rush of heat suddenly erupted from his lower abdomen and spread through his entire body along his chakra pathways. His bones gave a faint series of cracks, his muscle fibers tore and reformed on a microscopic level, and every cell in his body tingled and swelled as though immersed in warm water.
The whole process lasted only a few seconds, but to Takuma it felt like being tossed around in a washing machine.
When the heat faded, he looked down at the back of his hand... The small cut left by a fingernail was healing at a visible speed. In less than a second, it had vanished completely, without leaving even a scar.
Wolverine's Healing Factor.
One of the most unreasonable abilities in the X-Men series. Logan had lived for centuries thanks to it, fighting from the American Civil War all the way into the future. Even a nuclear bomb couldn't kill him.
Takuma's heart pounded, but he forced down the urge to throw his head back and howl.
If anyone found out he had an absurdly powerful healing ability, Danzo might drag him away to dissect and study him.
He took a deep breath, pressing his euphoria into the deepest recesses of his mind.
The two boys got up, cursing under their breath. Seeing Takuma staring blankly at his hand, they got spooked and ran off after throwing out a couple of threats.
Naruto got to his feet and dusted himself off. He flashed Takuma a toothy grin. "Hey, you're pretty strong! I'm Uzumaki Naruto. What's your name?"
"Mori Takuma."
Naruto tilted his head. He clearly didn't recognize the surname, but that didn't stop him from beaming. "Takuma! I'll remember you!"
Takuma turned to look at Hinata. The white-eyed girl had gotten up from the corner and was clutching the hem of her clothes, her cheeks flushed. Her gaze lingered on Naruto for a moment before she murmured, so quietly it was almost inaudible, "Th-thank you... both of you..."
Then she ran off like a startled rabbit, nearly tripping as she left the alley.
Takuma watched Hinata disappear around the corner and marveled: So the young lady was this shy as a child. You'd never guess she'd grow into a heroine who could stand in front of Pain and say, "I love Naruto-kun."
Naruto scratched the back of his head. "She sure runs fast."
Takuma didn't reply, because he was checking the new line of text on the system panel.
[The system does not provide a quest panel, issue mandatory quests, offer a newbie gift pack, or enable a shop function. The host is responsible for making his own life plans.]
Takuma: "..."
Confirmed. This system was truly stingy.
Still, drawing a legendary ability like Wolverine's Healing Factor right out of the gate offered some consolation amid his complaints.
He gave the system panel one last look and was about to close it when the corner of his eye caught a tiny line of text at the very bottom, so small it was almost impossible to make out.
[Current host identity information: Mori Takuma. Father: Mori Kazuki. Mother: Morimiya Yumi. The Morimiya clan was originally part of the Senju Clan. After First Hokage Senju Hashirama's death, the clan members gradually changed their surnames and assimilated into Konoha's civilian population. The host has inherited the basic traits of the Senju Bloodline: chakra reserves far greater than those of his peers and a notable talent for physical recovery, but no Wood Release Kekkei Genkai.]
Takuma stopped in his tracks.
The Senju Clan that had founded Konoha, the Senju Clan of Senju Hashirama, the God of Shinobi who had ended the Warring States Period.
He was descended from the Senju Clan.
Takuma shoved his hands into his pockets and headed home along the stone-paved road. Behind him, Naruto called out loudly, "Let's play together next time!" Takuma didn't turn around, just raised his right hand and waved casually.
He didn't know what would happen next. The original story wouldn't begin in earnest for several more years. But he also knew this safety was temporary. The Shinobi World was never gentle. Death and parting were commonplace, and the shadow of war had never truly left this land. All he could do now was use this relatively peaceful stretch of time to figure out his abilities, plan his future, and then... survive.
Live long enough to witness those legendary scenes with his own eyes.
Takuma turned into an alley and stopped in front of the third house. A small sign hung on the wooden door, bearing the words "Morimiya Bookstore." Warm yellow light spilled through the gap beneath it.
He pushed open the door. Three pairs of shoes sat neatly in the entryway.
"I'm home."
His mother's gentle voice came from inside. "Welcome home, Takuma. Wash your hands and get ready for dinner."
Takuma took off his shoes and walked down the hallway, lined with stacks of old books, into the brightly lit living room.
A steaming meal was laid out on the table. His mother, Yumi, wore an apron and was serving soup, while his father, Kazuki, sat at the table reading the day's newspaper, a pair of reading glasses perched on his nose. He looked every bit the owner of a bookstore in peacetime.
Takuma sat down at the table and took the bowl his mother handed him.
"Did you have fun playing outside today?" Yumi asked.
Takuma thought of the two brats he'd scared off, Naruto sprawled face-first in the dirt, and Hinata running away with a red face.
"It was all right."
He picked up a bite of food and stuffed it into his mouth, his cheeks bulging.
"Just a little tiring."
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