UK:GSW Chapter 391 – Reflections Sparked by the Illusion Network: The Joy of the Map Editor
On this day, Uchiha Sasuke finally understood what his good friend Naruto could become under the guidance and upbringing of his parents.
Concise in speech, clear in structure, logically sound, straight to the core.
This was Sasuke's reaction after hearing Naruto's analysis and suggestions. At the same time, Naruto, in the role of an advisor, presented all sorts of recommendations for directing the team—covering not just how to split up the people assigned to them and how to divide tasks, but also what special measures to take and how to respond if certain problems arose.
He laid everything out in complete clarity, to the point where Sasuke and Haruno Sakura felt as though they had suddenly been enlightened, like a veil had been lifted from their minds.
Sasuke's gaze toward Naruto grew more complex, while Sakura—having already witnessed Naruto's growth in recent days and his performance on many occasions—was not surprised. She only felt gratified by his progress, with a touch of emotion.
Afterward, Sakura also offered her own suggestion. She wasn't as comprehensive as Naruto, but she knew how to play to her strengths—she would form a battlefield medical squad, follow orders during operations, and lead her team members to provide medical support for the action group.
Essentially, it was like placing a highly mobile "super healer" on the battlefield. For a small but elite strike force, such support was top-tier, providing the ultimate level of aid.
Hearing the input from his two partners, Sasuke confirmed that Uncle Kei had asked him to bring these two specifically because their current abilities were powerful assets to him—things he himself lacked. Only by making good use of them could he fully bring out his own leadership potential without making fatal mistakes.
"As expected of Uncle Kei—just like the other clansmen say, every word and action of his holds deeper meaning, and his arrangements are always the best answer after careful thought!"
With that thought in mind, Sasuke felt invigorated, and immediately set out with his two partners to begin their mission.
While Sasuke was internally convinced—through his own imagination and the embellishments of others—that Uchiha Kei had deliberately given him this task to develop his command ability, in the main world's Hidden Leaf, Uchiha Kei rolled out a long-prepared new update for Ninja World War.
The long-awaited map editor had finally gone live!
Yes, the map editor for Ninja World War, the real-time strategy game.
Modeled after the map editor of Warcraft III on Earth, all sorts of powerful features were integrated into it to unleash the imagination and creativity of players.
And thanks to the Illusion Game and Illusion Network platform, its capabilities far surpassed the Warcraft III editor—functionality rivaling that of a full-fledged game development engine, only in a much more user-friendly form.
Players who mastered it could create their own entire game worlds within it.
This wasn't hype—it was a fact.
Of course, how well those functions could be used depended on the players themselves. All Uchiha Kei needed to do was point them in the right direction.
When the news broke, players were buzzing. Many rushed to connect to the Illusion Network and update Ninja World War to unlock the map editor.
They couldn't wait to jump in and try editing maps.
The feature had been announced long ago—this was simply its official release.
Because of the name, most thought it was just for making maps. But through the Illusion Network, they could upload their creations to the newly added Ninja Continent shared map pool for others to download and play.
Even better, the editor allowed collaborative editing—up to ten people could work on the same map together, making it a highly social experience.
After the update, many players eagerly grabbed friends or teammates to start co-editing maps.
It was a bit like the casual game Homeland, but far freer and more versatile.
With the Illusion Game's hyper-realistic quality, players could directly experience the feeling of being a creator god—effortlessly moving mountains, filling seas, reshaping the world, erasing all things and creating them anew. In "God Mode," what difference was there from a true creator deity?
Many fell in love with this power at first touch. The editor was complex, yes, but plenty of people preferred to dive into the map in first-person and alter the world directly.
That intoxicating feeling of having the entire world in one's hands was irresistible.
Of course, it was an early novelty—no matter how thrilling, people would eventually tire of it, just like using cheats in a single-player game.
(Online cheats were another matter—after all, stomping other players and watching them rage helplessly was a timeless joy.)
In any case, the map editor triggered a new craze. Even people who didn't play Ninja World War became interested, buying Ninja Continent to try it, or heading to game halls to experience it.
Soon, the map editor became the hottest Illusion Game.
Then, a brand-new official event was launched: "Wild Imagination: The Way of the Ninja", created specifically for the new feature. The rules were simple—players could unleash their creativity to make maps, upload them to the shared platform for public review and voting, while official judges also scored them.
Player votes and official scores each counted for half. Combined, they made up the map's total score.
The event would last two months, with the top ten maps winning prizes and receiving the prestigious title of "Master Creator" from the Hidden Leaf Game Association.
The announcement set off a wave of excitement and a map-making frenzy. Even those who only thought the editor was fun now wanted to make great maps.
After all, the Hidden Leaf Game Association was known for its generosity. This kind of open event would never skimp on rewards. Even without knowing what the prizes would be, people's imaginations were running wild.
Wealth has always moved hearts—and beyond the prizes, the Master Creator title was a coveted honor many in the ninja world couldn't refuse.
While such contests had been overdone on Earth, in the ninja world it was a true, era-defining innovation. Backed by the Hidden Leaf Game Association—a giant spanning nearly the entire ninja world—the news spread quickly.
Major powers, villages, and countries all heard of it and showed interest.
However, since the Illusion Network had so far only been established throughout the Land of Fire, with only a few small allied states having it, most of the world was left out. For players in other nations to participate, they'd have to travel to the Land of Fire or one of those small networked states—like the fully-aligned Land of Snow.
But the Land of Snow's network was isolated due to its distance, linked only internally until neighboring countries like the Land of Wind or the Land of Demons connected and bridged it to the Leaf's main Illusion Network.
Thus, only the Land of Fire and a few small neighbors could currently join.
This sparked discontent elsewhere. Why should players in the Land of Fire get access to the network while others didn't?
"It's unfair! We want the Illusion Network too!"
Protests, shouts, even curses erupted—all over the lack of network access.
The Hidden Leaf Game Association issued a sincere apology, explaining that the reason they hadn't set it up beyond their allied sphere was respect for other nations' security concerns—they would only expand once those countries were ready.
They even held a press conference—another brand-new concept for the ninja world—with invited publishers and merchant representatives.
The explanation made attendees pause and think.
Respect for sovereignty and national security?
Indeed, that had always been the Leaf's stance. The Hidden Leaf and Land of Fire were peace-loving; though always victorious in the ninja wars and unmatched in martial strength, they had never started one—the blame always lay with others and their ambitions.
Yes, the Leaf was a force of justice and greatness—a breath of fresh air in the ninja world.
How had this view become so widespread?
Never mind that the Leaf had founded the first ninja village and pioneered many systems that shaped the world—now they had also created Illusion Games, transforming the culture.
Take, for example, the wildly popular magazine Public Knowledge, which spread advanced thinking and civilized ideals while introducing every facet of Leaf culture. It led trends across the ninja world.
Many said that before reading it, they didn't even know what "civilization" meant—nor "propriety, justice, integrity, and shame," nor "humanitarian care."
Afterward, they knew. The Land of Fire was the nation of civilization, and the Hidden Leaf was its heart—a lighthouse for the ninja world, shining the light of human progress.
So how could something so good as the Illusion Network be a threat to national security?
And besides—plenty of wealthy people had tried it themselves in the Land of Fire; they knew its convenience and brilliance.
Clearly, it wasn't the Leaf's or the Land of Fire's fault.
Then whose fault was it?
The answer came quickly:
"It must be the other countries—jealous of the Leaf's creation—blocking the network because they can't control it!"
"Yeah! Those barbarians in the Hidden Cloud have always had their eyes on the Leaf—they must be behind it!"
"I bet the Hidden Stone's the same—the Land of Earth is full of stubborn fools, resisting progress and denying others the chance for a better future!"
"What about the Hidden Sand? I heard they're on good terms with the Leaf—so why no network?"
"Actually, they were planning to bring it in—but the Wind Daimyo strongly opposed it. Totally irrational!"
"Seriously? Does the Wind Daimyo have rocks for brains?"
"Who knows what these big shots think?"
"Ugh—so infuriating! How could it end up like this?!"
Like this story Leave a review ; it would really help me out a lot.
Want to Read Ahead in Advance?
Join my Patreon!
+75 Chapters
Support me in
Patreon.com/BestElysium