[Detected: Konoha small fry bullying Sakura Haruno in front of the host.] [Host, immediately strike back in anger and put a stop to this bullying.] [Mission reward: Kekkei Genkai draw ×1.]
Uzumaki Hayashi froze for a moment.
Then the little spark of anger that had just flared inside him was instantly drowned out by delighted surprise.
He had already been planning to take matters into his own hands-insulting his friend right in front of him wasn't something he would let slide.
But the system had beaten him to it and issued a mission.
So beating up these losers wouldn't just be justified-he would get a reward, too?
Could things really get any better?
Wait, wait, wait. What's a Kekkei Genkai draw?
[As the name suggests, the host may randomly draw one of the many Kekkei Genkai.]
Oh?
Had the sun risen in the west today? Normally, whatever he asked, the system just told him to "please explore actively." Today, it was actually answering his questions.
Apparently, when mission rewards were involved, this junk system suddenly got off its ass.
But none of that mattered.
What mattered was-the Kekkei Genkai!
Uzumaki Hayashi perked up on the spot. He turned to glance at Sakura Haruno behind him, and the more he looked, the more he liked her.
Damn, this girl is a lucky charm!
All she had to do was stand in front of him and say a few words, and she had dropped a Kekkei Genkai draw straight into his lap!
Yesterday, Naruto had been thrown around the training ground so many times, and the stingy system had only coughed up a fully mastered ninjutsu.
The difference in drop rates was downright ridiculous.
Then his mind really started working.
So, uh-is the Sharingan in the prize pool, too?
He was already gleefully calculating the possibilities. This body had a genuine uzumaki bloodline to begin with. If he drew a pair of Sharingan as well, combining Uzumaki and Uchiha, he might eventually awaken a Rinnegan. Then wouldn't he be...
[Searching...]
For once, the system paused.
[Sharingan: a bloodline of the Uchiha Clan, not a kekkei genkai. It is not included in this prize pool.]
Uzumaki Hayashi: "..."
He deflated instantly.
His dream of a Rinnegan had barely begun before a bucket of cold water put it out.
So this prize pool contained things like Scorch Release and Ice Release.
He mulled it over. Fine, that works, too. Pakura looked incredibly impressive wielding Scorch Release. Drawing that would still be a great prize.
Thinking bigger, weren't Dust Release, Boil Release, and even the First Hokage's Wood Release theoretically all kekkei genkai, too?
What if I got one of those?
He just wasn't sure whether he should wash his hands before drawing, to get rid of his bad luck.
In his previous life, he had been notorious for his terrible luck with gacha pulls.
Besides, the reward was free. What was there to be picky about? Whatever he got would be a win!
But it was too early to think about that. He had to complete the mission first.
While he was happily running through all those possibilities, the boy leading the group was still grinning, waiting for Sakura Haruno to move aside.
He had already figured out what these boys were after. They thought he now had "connections" and wanted to get acquainted so they could throw their weight around the class later.
Uzumaki Hayashi pushed out through the crowd and stepped in front of Sakura Haruno, blocking all the boys off.
Sakura Haruno still had his sleeve clenched in her hand, and his movement pulled her half a step forward.
"Sakura is my friend."
He spoke neither loudly nor quickly, but every word landed clearly. "Who gave you permission to talk about her like that? What does anything about her have to do with you?"
Sakura Haruno froze.
She had heard the nickname Forehead Girl ever since she was little. After hearing it so often, she had stopped bothering to take issue with it. It never helped anyway.
But when someone had pointed right at her and shouted it just now, it had still hurt badly.
Then this transfer student she had only met today had suddenly stepped in front of her.
Looking at his back, she immediately felt her eyes sting.
Somehow, the tightness that had been lodged in her chest suddenly eased.
Her grip on his sleeve tightened.
This time, it wasn't out of fear, but a budding sense that she could lean on him.
She raised her other hand and quickly wiped the corner of her eye, then sniffled.
"Hayashi is right!"
Ino Yamanaka snapped out of her daze and stepped forward as well. "Who do you think you are? What gives you the right to talk about Sakura like that?"
The other boys exchanged looks. One hunched his shoulders and stole a glance at their leader.
The leading boy's grin vanished.
Two girls had talked back to him in public. How was he supposed to save face? Everyone around them was watching.
He edged half a step closer, his finger almost poking Uzumaki Hayashi in the face.
"You're an outsider! What are you acting so high and mighty for? We're doing you a favor by wanting to get to know you! You think we won't dare insult you just because you've got a few connections in Konoha?"
After that tirade, he leaned even closer and lowered his voice, nearly spraying spit in Linshi's face.
"I'm warning you. If you keep being this stubborn, you'd better watch out during the matches in a few days! We'll beat the crap out of you, and then we'll see how cocky you are!"
Uzumaki Hayashi was utterly speechless.
Matches? What matches?
He had spent the whole day slumped over his desk in the classroom and hadn't taken in a single word the teacher had said. He genuinely hadn't known there were any matches coming up.
Besides.
These losers thought they could beat the crap out of someone?
Absolutely delusional.
But-there are matches in a few days?
Well, that's great. He had been wondering where he could properly test his fully mastered Vacuum Sphere.
And these losers had volunteered themselves.
He couldn't be bothered to waste any more words.
He lifted his right foot and whipped a kick straight into the leading boy's waist.
The boy didn't even have time to cry out. Both feet left the ground as he went flying, slammed onto the street, and rolled a long way before finally crashing into the leg of a roadside stall. He lay there, unable to get up for quite some time.
Startled, passing pedestrians stopped and turned to look. The middle-aged man behind the stall poked half his head out, glanced at the boy sprawled on the ground, then at Uzumaki Hayashi, and didn't dare say a word.
Every one of the remaining boys was dumbstruck.
Uzumaki Hayashi looked at the small fry lying on the ground and smiled.
That kick had been worth it-and damn, had it felt good.
He had made progress on his mission, taught the brat a lesson, and even secured targets for a few days from now.
Three birds with one stone. No matter how he looked at it, he came out ahead.
"I have no interest in getting to know a bunch of bullies like you."
"If you want to fight me right now-"
Standing there, he tilted his chin at the terrified boys.
They looked at one another and, without a word, all shuffled backward.
"Then come on over!"
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