Reviewing her stats through the system interface, Maya found that her chakra had grown considerably throughout this entire stretch of research—but what surprised her even more was that her ninjutsu score had more than doubled. Apparently, jutsu evaluation wasn't just about how many techniques you knew; understanding the underlying principles mattered far more.
The appearance of her first Diamond-tier skill sent the President into barely-contained elation. Not because she was dazzled by the rating itself—she'd already suspected that her Shadow Clone variation was comparable to, if not stronger than, the Leaf Village's own Forbidden Technique. A Diamond-tier evaluation wasn't a surprise.
What had her spinning was the system's footnote: further development possible.
That meant her theoretical framework was sound. It meant this wasn't a fluke. The Wavelength Theory underpinning the Hansen Three-Body Technique had real legs.
She'd barely scratched the surface of the Wavelength Theory, and already produced an S-rank forbidden jutsu. High school, then university, would accelerate her knowledge growth dramatically. With deeper scientific and jutsu foundations to build on, where could this research possibly go?
An investment vehicle didn't need to be generating huge returns right now. It just needed good prospects. The hard part wasn't finding a difficult path—it was making sure the path didn't end in a cliff.
The system had validated her direction. That was the real prize. The stat increases and tier-ups were secondary.
Since unlocking her chakra, Maya had cut her weekend shifts from two days down to one. She understood clearly: earning money wasn't the point at this stage. Part-time work was simply a way to sharpen her social skills and stay grounded in the world around her.
Before chakra, she'd had endless free time—nothing much to do besides read. Running odd jobs at Mr. Huang's had kept pocket money coming in and given her real exposure to 1990s American society, useful grounding for someone whose soul had arrived from a completely different era. But now she had chakra to cultivate, mystical theory to work through, and the foundations of her entire future to build. Sacrificing all of that for a few extra dollars was not an option.
So this Sunday, Maya had planned to stay home—reading, refining her chakra, drilling jutsu, and running her first real test of the dual-core setup.
She didn't even make it an hour before Natalie called.
"Hey, Maya! Are you free this afternoon?"
"Nothing major planned—was thinking about catching a few movies at the theater. What's up?"
There was a stunned pause on the other end of the line. Then Natalie Portman started stammering. "M-M-Maya! No way—you actually have a boyfriend?!"
Maya nearly choked. She pressed her hand to her forehead. "I don't have a boyfriend. I'm thirteen. Can't a person go to the movies alone?"
Natalie pressed a hand to her chest in relief—a chest that was, if anything, slightly flatter than Maya's own. The difference, roughly speaking, was between a small steamed bun and a regular-sized one.
"Going to the movies alone without a boyfriend? That's even sadder."
"Ahem—do you have a boyfriend?"
Natalie's cheeks went faintly pink. A certain tall, good-looking, roguishly smiling upperclassman drifted through her mind. Any guesses who? Here's a hint: also a superhero.
"No! I'm only thirteen too!"
"Okay, Nat. What did you actually call me for? Should I just swing by the set and visit you? It's not far."
"No, no, don't do that! Maya—Jack mentioned yesterday that he's going to try directing his own film, right?"
Maya's expression flattened. Jack was really asking for trouble. The guy had zero progress to show and was already running his mouth so loudly that even Natalie had heard about it. He'd have some serious explaining to do when it all fell apart.
"I don't give him much of a chance. And even if he does make a film—are you thinking of going for the female lead? Nat, I'm going to be straight with you: Jack has no experience. He's going to crash and burn. You'd be better off with a more established director."
Maya had assumed Natalie was angling for a favor—trying to land a role through back channels. She genuinely didn't think Jack was going to pull this off, and she wasn't about to let her little sis get dragged down with him when she'd barely started building momentum from Léon.
Natalie pressed her lips together, privately thinking: Do I look that stupid? Go star in some flop? With her connections, she had no shortage of better options.
"That's not why I'm calling. Jack mentioned that Lucas is rebooting Star Wars—he's writing a script for the pitch."
Natalie let the sentence hang there, clearly expecting Maya to connect the dots.
And she did. Immediately.
She wants to latch onto Lucas. She's trying to board the Death Star and ride it straight to the top.
"Well, Nat—Jack is writing a Star Wars script, but it's just a submission. There's no guarantee Lucas will even look at it. Jack barely has any confidence in it himself. He literally asked me, his student, to help him work out the worldbuilding. That's why I'm going to the theater this afternoon—to rewatch the original trilogy."
Maya gave Natalie the full, unvarnished picture.
A flash of calculation crossed Natalie's eyes. "Maya, I want to be in Lucas's Star Wars. From what's leaked, they're doing a prequel—which means it'll be about Luke Skywalker's parents. The role of Queen Amidala is perfect for me."
"Nat, it's only 1993. Even if they greenlight it, shooting probably won't start until '96 or '97. Isn't this a little early to be strategizing?"
"It's not early at all. The announcement hasn't even been made yet, and girls born in the late '70s and early '80s are already circling that role. Look—I don't have much going on today, and sitting in the hotel room is mind-numbing. Why don't I come with you to the theater? Come out now, and lunch is on me. I already got part of my paycheck."
Having company at the movies was objectively better than going alone, and Maya had no reason to say no.
She changed quickly and headed to a pizza place near the corner of the block.
By the time she arrived, Natalie was already seated, with a pizza and two glasses of fresh orange juice already on the table.
Pizza had been Maya's choice. Natalie could absolutely afford somewhere fancier, but Maya had to think about returning the favor someday. Pizza worked for everyone—no awkwardness about price or status, and the cost was something Maya could actually match when her turn came.
"So Jack asked you to help him develop the worldbuilding?"
"Yeah. His prose is solid, but his thinking is too rigid. His imagination doesn't stretch far enough." Maya said this with complete shamelessness. "Star Wars isn't hard sci-fi either. I'm pretty sure I could pull it off."
Natalie's pizza was dotted with colorful vegetables. No meat. Maya's, by contrast, was stacked with every cut of sausage and ham the place offered.
Natalie took a delicate sip of freshly-squeezed orange juice. "Maya, do you really think I have a shot at being cast?"
"You'll definitely get cast." Maya said it with absolute certainty.
In her past life, she might have chalked Natalie's casting up to luck. Now that she actually knew her, she understood: this was someone who worked for every break she got.
Natalie's cheeks flushed pink. "Maya, you can't just go around saying the quiet part out loud! Even if I've already decided I'm going to land this role—you can't just say it like that!"
Maya, fully occupied with demolishing her meat-loaded pizza.