The farce finally came to an end after the Third Hokage was so thoroughly angered that he fainted on the spot.
For a brief moment, Ren even wondered whether the old man might just be carried straight out of the Hokage Tower and never return.
To be fair, Ren admitted that what they did might have been a little excessive—but still, it was your own disciple leading the team!
Couldn't you at least show a bit more grace?
"Being Hokage really isn't as broad-minded as I imagined."
Ren shook his head as he bade farewell to Jiraiya, whose face was deathly pale.
It was hard to tell whether Jiraiya looked that bad because his teacher had been angered into unconsciousness, or because of Ren's casual remark about a Fifth Hokage.
Either way, it had nothing to do with Ren anymore.
After watching Jiraiya and the others leave, Ren turned around and headed home at a leisurely pace.
He had plenty to sort through this time.
"Sixty-five Freedom Points… absolute profit."
Freedom Points were something you could never have too many of—especially when Ren himself had no upper limit.
And over the years, he had gradually noticed something rather interesting.
His own state seemed… locked.
"In short, aside from injuries and chakra consumption, my abilities don't degrade?"
Hard training and study could still improve him—this much he had confirmed long ago. It was just that, due to talent limits, the returns from pure grinding weren't particularly high.
As for learning, many techniques were ones he'd mastered on his own. The system had given rewards as well, of course.
But after his attributes reached a certain level, aside from learning a few specific techniques and reading materials, he had focused far more on missions.
And focusing on missions naturally meant less time for cultivation.
The ninja profession was never something you could get away with by slacking off—three days fishing, two days drying nets simply didn't work.
Only constant, daily training kept one at peak condition.
And yet—
"I've been slacking, prioritizing missions, barely training outside of combat… but my overall condition hasn't dropped at all."
Ren's expression turned faintly amused.
The lower bound of his strength was fixed—completely tied to his status panel.
The upper bound, meanwhile, could be pushed higher indefinitely through point allocation.
That really was absurdly powerful.
"Now I'm even more motivated."
Ren clenched his fist.
But when he reached home, he froze slightly.
The courtyard was empty—aside from a single pink pig lying in the sun.
No Tsunade.
No Shizune.
No Yūgao.
Ren looked around, then walked over.
Tonton lifted her head, saw Ren, then flopped back down lazily.
"You sunbathe every day like this—aren't you afraid you'll roast yourself?"
Ren's mouth twitched as he asked maliciously.
"Snort—snort!"
Tonton immediately raised her head in protest.
She was a ninja pig, but unlike Kakashi's dogs, she couldn't speak human language.
Even more outrageous—Tsunade, Shizune, and Yūgao could all understand her perfectly.
Only Ren couldn't.
At best, he could vaguely guess.
"Is there actually a 'Beast Language' course in the shinobi world?"
Ren was baffled, but didn't dwell on it.
"Why's nobody home? Yūgao should've been back already. And where are Teacher Tsunade and Sister Shizune?"
He squatted in front of Tonton.
The mission report had been handled by Jiraiya and Ren—Yūgao naturally returned earlier.
As for Tsunade… she was famous for slacking off while Shizune handled everything.
All three being absent was strange.
Tonton suddenly sprang to her feet, eyes alert, then pointed her hoof toward the distance.
"That's the Medical Department."
Ren immediately understood.
His expression turned awkward.
"Right… Sarutobi Hiruzen."
No surprises there.
"Alright, then—"
Just as he turned back to say a few more words, Tonton was already gone.
Ren shrugged, muttering that the pig had no manners, and went back to his room.
"Let's spend the points first."
No one was home—perfect timing.
After all, he'd had Yūgao return early so he could explain the Kirigakure situation.
Now the Third Hokage was in the hospital.
Saved him a lot of explaining.
"System, open the panel."
The familiar interface appeared before his eyes.
[Shihara Ren]
[Overall Physical Quality: LV11]
[Chakra: LV10]
[Abilities: Wood Release LV7, Flying Thunder God LV7, Taijutsu LV7, Curse Mark LV7, Yin Release LV7, Scorch Release LV7, Yang Release·Chakra Mode LV1 (LV7)]
[Special Abilities: Kaguya's Child, Shinobi World Scientist]
[Freedom Points: 65]
Ren stroked his chin.
Sixty-five points really were dazzling.
He'd already planned how to use them on the way back.
This was a massive power spike.
"…But what exactly is this 'Shinobi World Scientist'?"
Ren raised an eyebrow.
His recent special abilities had all been interesting.
Kaguya's Child didn't give him eyes, but the effect was excellent—and thankfully didn't actually make him Kaguya's offspring.
As for Shinobi World Scientist…
Most likely a drop from Orochimaru.
"Pretty random, considering I didn't even fight him."
Ren clicked his tongue.
Then again, he hadn't fought Black Zetsu either—he'd only beaten Obito again.
Orochimaru had mostly been dealing with Jiraiya.
But considering Orochimaru was an enemy, looting him felt perfectly reasonable.
"And Orochimaru's drops have always been good. The Curse Mark alone was huge."
Ren was genuinely grateful for Orochimaru's support of his career.
The Curse Mark had been invaluable.
Now—
[Shinobi World Scientist]
[Allows the user to design and create techniques suited to themselves, within reasonable rule limits, based on specified compatible abilities]
[Remaining Uses: 2]
"…?"
Ren's eyes went wide.
Was this 'I thought it would work, so it did' power?
No—this was more like customized development.
"Based on specified compatible abilities…"
He immediately understood.
This ability let him take something he already possessed and develop a stronger, more specialized technique from it.
"That's… interesting."
Ren had always acknowledged one weakness—his finishing moves.
He lacked a true, decisive single-target technique.
Rasengan counted, sure.
Naruto had proven its potential countless times.
But without elemental infusion, its raw lethality was still somewhat limited.
Its true strength lay in infinite scalability.
Of course, Ren's physical strength was already monstrous—he could brute-force victories if needed.
But a truly devastating technique would be ideal.
"Especially something usable in the late game… against the Ōtsutsuki."
Ren unconsciously looked up at the sky.
Even in broad daylight, a certain lunar technique surfaced in his mind.
If compatibility was the key, then his first thought was—
Yang Release·Chakra Mode.
"System, upgrade Yang Release·Chakra Mode."
The cost hurt.
LV1 to LV7 required 21 points.
Even with optimizations, that was brutal.
Still—he could afford it.
The moment the upgrade began, his mind buzzed violently.
Information flooded in.
Understanding.
Experience.
Mastery.
It felt as if he had spent years refining and using the technique.
Previously, his usage had been crude—pure brute force.
Now?
Higher endurance.
Greater burst.
Lower consumption.
Far more terrifying destructive power.
"And it's linked to physical stats…"
Ren clenched his fist.
He was suddenly very glad he'd always prioritized physical quality.
A weak body couldn't handle this power—either it wouldn't work, or it would destroy the user.
[Upgrade Complete]
[Yang Release·Chakra Mode: LV7]
[Remaining Freedom Points: 44]
Ren nodded.
"Use Shinobi World Scientist. Compatible ability—Yang Release·Chakra Mode."
[Ability Activated]
[Remaining Uses: 1]
[Designing and developing technique…]
As it ran, Ren noticed something else.
His abilities overlapped.
Wood Release already contained Yang Release.
Would upgrading one force double costs on the other?
Would imbalance weaken techniques?
The answer came swiftly.
No extra cost.
No forced imbalance.
No penalty.
LV8 abilities could freely operate at LV7 output.
"Good system," Ren muttered. "You really do understand working people."
By the time he finished, most of Konoha's immediate chaos was no longer his problem.
With his reputation climbing toward infamy, people would think twice before dragging him into trouble.
"…And if not, there's always Danzo."
As he thought this, the system reacted.
[Technique Completed]
A vision exploded in his mind.
Golden chakra.
The sky.
A colossal blade of light formed entirely from chakra.
Then—
One swing.
The world split.
"…That's it."
Ren's eyes gleamed.
"Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion."
Yes.
He'd just stolen Ōtsutsuki Toneri's move.
And he had no regrets.
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