[You have obtained the Art Publishing System! Completed…]
Rob was mentally prepared for this special "reward" he had requested, so he wasn't surprised when a strange screen appeared before his eyes.
[Initializing Art Publishing System… 10%… 55%… 79%… 100%…]
[Setup complete.]
Several notifications appeared one after another on the system interface, all in English — the language he was most familiar with, though he had also grown more fluent in Japanese thanks to his fusion with Rubirō.
"So, can I know what exactly this Art Publishing System does?"
That was the most important question to address before worrying about anything else.
The answer came straightforwardly through a system prompt. Rob felt relieved to know the system could interact and respond to questions — not just operate automatically.
[The Art Publishing System has one purpose: to make the host a world-renowned artist known by all conscious beings in existence.]
"Oh, great! And how does it—"
Before Rob could finish his second question, it seemed that 60 seconds had passed, and the annoying voice returned again.
[You have obtained a special talent: Perfect Mastery of Drawing! Completed…]
[Perfect Mastery of Drawing: A unique talent that allows its owner to unleash 200% of their senses when focusing on drawing, doubling their creative potential. The owner can draw anything so realistically that it becomes indistinguishable from reality.]
The moment this talent took effect, Rob felt an overwhelming urge to draw. His heart burned with passion for art; his eyes were captivated by the green world around him, and all his senses united, yearning to capture it all on a canvas.
He shook his head, suppressing the overwhelming sensory rush caused by the talent.
"What an incredible talent… For a moment, I really believed I could draw something and breathe life into it…"
Even though Rob knew it was just an illusion, that single thought alone showed how powerful this new talent was.
"I won't breathe life into my drawings — I'm not a god after all — but I can make them move with my paper manipulation ability, right?"
Rob smiled, already imagining countless ways to combine this new talent with his existing powers — ways to enhance his manga production, make scenes more vivid, and correct the original author's mistakes.
[Congratulations, Rob. You have successfully participated in the survey, and all your requests have been fulfilled by the Divine Network. We don't wish to be cruel to an exceptional man like you, but necessity has its laws. Just as we have given you everything, we can just as easily take it all away. You are free to act as you please — however, you must accomplish the goal you proposed in the survey. If you fail to do so, your soul will perish and vanish forever.]
___
"Hey! You're threatening him again!?"
The cute loli goddess slammed the table furiously in protest.
"Calm down, (&$@). We're just teasing him so he stays as sharp as the first Rob… A human can't function properly without pressure."
The god beside her tried to calm her, but it didn't work.
"Rob can work seriously without any pressure at all. We all know how much he loves drawing manga — he's someone who could keep going endlessly without stopping."
The gods exchanged awkward looks. They all knew it was true, but they were simply too used to doing things this way. They had dealt with countless failures — candidates who never met expectations or gave up halfway through their divine missions. Yet Rob was the only one who had never faltered.
"There's no point in arguing about such a trivial matter, (&$@). The rules are fixed and can't be changed just because someone stands out. And besides, we can't assume this second Rob will be as capable as the first one. His connection to the Naruto world is far weaker than his link to the One Piece world. So a warning is necessary."
When the King of Gods spoke, the young goddess fell silent.
___
[Once again, thank you for participating in our survey. We trust we'll see positive results from your work in this world.]
Rob felt a wave of pressure and a threat from those who had sent him here. To them, he was like a fish on a chopping board. They had dragged him from the real world into a fictional one just so he could draw manga… Didn't that mean his purpose was to entertain these gods or die trying?
What was the difference between him and a circus monkey?
He felt his self-respect dropping fast, but he stopped those foolish thoughts. After all, these same gods had saved his life from arrogant humans and brought him into a world he had always dreamed of living in.
So what if he had to entertain them in return?
At that moment, Rob clenched his fists and bowed deeply — a gesture of pure, heartfelt gratitude.
"Thank you for saving my life. I'll repay this debt in the best way I can."
Unlike the first Rob, who had been terrified in such a moment, the second Rob absorbed the shock perfectly, and his sincere thanks pleased the gods greatly. Even the King of Gods, who rarely smiled, did so for the first time in ages.
Rob rolled up his sleeves. From now on, he had to become a mangaka and draw Naruto Manga within the Naruto world — his ultimate goal.
That's all there was to it.
…
After the divine thunderous voice faded from his mind, Rob snapped out of his mysterious state and fully regained awareness of his surroundings, like a prophet who had just finished receiving a revelation.
That's what Rob thought as he gazed upon the famous Konoha Mountain. He knew exactly where he was — outside the village, on a vast grassy plain where villagers graze their sheep, right between the great forest behind the village and the open fields before it.
"Before heading back to the village, I need to sort myself out first… This world has deadly ninjas, sealed gods, underground legends preparing to rise, and even aliens lurking from afar. It's far more dangerous than it seems at first glance."
Despite that, he felt nothing but gratitude. He wanted to scream with joy — after all, he had finally escaped that miserable federal prison, where every meal might've been his last because of assassins among the inmates.
He truly wanted to shout at the top of his lungs — but he held back, sighing softly in the end.
"Sigh~ Life really is mysterious… Who would've thought fantasy and reality could merge in such strange ways? Should I just throw my atheism out the window now…?"
Rob manipulated paper, forming a scythe that looked exactly like a real Shinigami's weapon — sharp, elegant, and perfectly shaped.
"What if I become a god myself?"
With the powers granted by the "Divine Network" and the unique resources of this world, it wasn't impossible for him to reach the heights of a transcendent being that could be called a god.
He didn't know that, in another timeline, another Rob was already close to achieving exactly that.
If he knew, he would've been even more fired up to work harder — since he had nearly everything the first Rob had acquired… well, except for immortality. He wasn't lucky enough to receive that.
Of course, if Rob found out his other self had become immortal, he'd instantly take back his gratitude and start complaining.
A sheet of paper appeared in Rob's hand, showing a picture of his current body — drawn exactly as he imagined it in his mind, brought to life through his paper manipulation ability.
The current Rob was an Uzumaki, with crimson hair tied back like Shikamaru's, sharp blue eyes resembling Naruto's, and thin red eyebrows. His toned, muscular physique and handsome face gave him an aura of masculine charm — he truly looked like a magnet for women.
"Who would've thought I'd be this good-looking even in the ninja world…"
Rob was a Chunin-level ninja, twenty years old. His ninjutsu talent was rather poor, but as an Uzumaki, he was warmly welcomed in Konoha thanks to his clan's extraordinary talent for sealing techniques.
After graduating from the Academy, the village had offered him many jobs — he chose the safest one: medical ninja. Yet that hadn't spared him from injuries in battle, slowly leading him down a dead-end path.
In the real world, he had been thirty-seven years old. Returning to age twenty again was an incredible shock, even for someone as calm as him — especially in a world he had always dreamed of living in.
As a medical ninja from Konoha, he had built a wide network of connections, having saved countless lives and earned immense respect.
Of course, that had been as Rubirō, not as Rob.
"Still, I'll gladly make use of this good reputation…"
"No doubt, this sudden change around me will catch the attention of Konoha's leadership — and Danzo — soon. I need to be careful."
Rob began walking slowly to adjust to his new body, then started running, leaping between trees with incredible speed. For the first time, he was experiencing what it truly felt like to be a ninja.
Even as a medical ninja, the basic movements were the same for all shinobi.
Soon, a large gate came into view — wide open, with the famous emblem of the Hidden Leaf engraved above it.
Rob walked inside, a smile never leaving his face. Finally, he was here.
This step forward would change the fate of the entire world.
The guards had no idea that the medical ninja they had just greeted had entered the village carrying with him a storm that would shake the entire ninja world to its core.
And Konoha would be the heart of it all!