In Konoha, inside a house at night, Shin lay on his bed with a book in hand, though his attention was actually fixed on a glowing screen before him. On it played the scene of Naruto running around after vandalizing, leading a group of shinobi in circles before finally being captured by the Uchiha clan's police force. What followed, however, surprised Shin—Sasuke Uchiha was the one who brought Naruto out.
At the very moment the final scene ended, lines of text appeared.
[Popularity Rating: S]
[Overall Evaluation…]
[Congratulations! You have advanced to: S-Rank Golden Supporting Character]
[Reward Obtained: Actor's Basic Training – Ninjutsu Chapter]
[Ninjutsu Training Module Unlocked.]
In the next instant, the familiar interface appeared.
[Ability Training]
[Unlocked: Actor's Basic Training – Ninjutsu Chapter]
[Duration: Permanent]
Ninjutsu training!
Shin's eyes lit up, and excitement surged through him.
He needed this too badly!
So-called ninjutsu training might only provide foundational techniques and knowledge, much like the taijutsu module. But to him, even these basics were treasures he normally had no access to. Compared to a direct upgrade card, this was far more valuable.
Suppressing his excitement, Shin focused his thoughts and quickly entered the familiar training space.
As for the taijutsu module, he was already close to mastering it. Though he still couldn't defeat the young Might Guy, as Guy had said, he had already learned most of the technical aspects. What remained was integration, digestion, and improving his physical strength and speed. Returning to that space would at most serve as combat practice.
Ninjutsu training, however, was different.
Even if it only covered fundamentals, he was practically starting from zero in ninjutsu, relying entirely on his own understanding. With "Basic Training," his efficiency would skyrocket.
Shin waited in anticipation.
Moments later, lines of text appeared in the empty space.
[Scanning…]
[Detected trainable ninjutsu: Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique.]
Soon, a figure materialized before him.
Konoha's Copy Ninja—Kakashi Hatake.
"Hello. I'll be in charge of your ninjutsu training."
"All your jutsu… can be learned here?" Shin asked in surprise.
"Kakashi" shook his head. "Only basic elemental ninjutsu. And I'll only teach you theory and foundational techniques. Anything deeper, you'll have to develop yourself."
He glanced around.
"However, you can freely practice ninjutsu here."
"Understood."
Shin nodded.
It was similar to the taijutsu module, but more practical. After all, using a single ninjutsu in reality consumed a large amount of chakra. Physical stamina could be restored with soldier pills, but mental energy required rest.
Not everyone was Naruto Uzumaki.
But in this space, things were different.
He could use ninjutsu freely without worrying about exhaustion.
"Kakashi" began explaining, "The Great Fireball Technique is C-rank. It's not particularly difficult. The key lies in maintaining chakra extraction and output…"
He started with theory.
Shin listened intently.
After finishing, Kakashi said, "Try it once."
"Alright."
Shin nodded and formed hand seals.
Flames surged from his mouth, rolling forward and forming a massive fireball that roared through the air.
Kakashi nodded in evaluation.
"Very proficient. But your chakra refinement, control, and hand seals are lacking. These are the fundamentals of ninjutsu—you need to improve them."
As he spoke, Kakashi formed seals at blinding speed, his hands becoming a blur.
In an instant, the jutsu was completed. Flames burst forth, forming a massive fireball of the same scale—but far faster than Shin's.
In real combat, even the slightest time difference could determine victory.
Shin's expression turned serious. "Can I use Shadow Clone Jutsu here to train?"
"You can."
Kakashi nodded.
To avoid risks, Shin created only one shadow clone for his first attempt.
Then Kakashi began explaining hand seal techniques, chakra refinement, control methods, and training approaches.
Shin repeatedly practiced hand seals and chakra manipulation, while his shadow clone trained the Great Fireball Technique beside him.
The training was dull and repetitive, but there were no shortcuts in mastering ninjutsu.
After a long while, Shin dispelled the clone.
The surge of feedback made him dizzy for a moment, but compared to his first attempt, the impact was significantly reduced despite the longer duration and greater information load.
He was adapting.
This meant he didn't need to worry about stamina—only the aftereffects of dispelling clones.
"If my Shadow Clone Jutsu weren't already at the proficient level, even one clone's feedback would knock me out," he muttered.
"But now…"
"Two should be manageable."
Shin's eyes gleamed.
Triple the training efficiency—even with average talent, he could improve rapidly under these conditions.
…
The next morning, Shin woke up with a faint headache.
He had no idea how long he trained the previous night. He only remembered pushing himself until complete exhaustion before exiting the space.
Now—
He summoned the interface, and his eyes lit up.
[Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique: Mastery]
In just one night, he had reached mastery.
Of course, that wasn't the most important part.
What truly mattered was the foundational knowledge Kakashi had taught him—hand seals, chakra refinement, and jutsu execution.
Without guidance, even with memories from his past life watching anime, it would have taken him a long time to figure these things out.
"It seems only S-rank rewards unlock modules like this."
Shin came to a realization.
Then he fell into thought.
Compared to the second episode, his attitude toward Naruto had changed in the third.
This confirmed his hypothesis.
At this stage in "Prequel," his role as a villain was firmly established. Surface-level good or evil no longer mattered.
A deeper villain didn't appear evil on the surface. Instead, they concealed themselves beneath layers of disguise.
Like Kabuto Yakushi. Like Aizen.
Moreover, he couldn't be purely malicious. He needed a grand goal, a compelling purpose.
Shin tapped the table lightly, ideas forming in his mind as his eyes gradually brightened.
He took out the notebook the Third Hokage had given him and began studying it carefully.
After reading it once, he understood.
It was indeed a training manual.
But not for ninjutsu—it focused on taijutsu and swordsmanship.
He grabbed a notebook and read through it again from the beginning, jotting down insights and personal interpretations as he went.
In just over an hour, he had filled an entire page.
Completely absorbed, Shin was interrupted by a gentle voice from downstairs.
"Teacher, are you home?"
?
He froze for a moment upon hearing it.
Then he recalled the owner of the voice.
Ino Yamanaka.
The girl often hovered around him, so she left a strong impression.
He leaned out the window.
"Ino? What's the matter?"
Ino looked up, her face instantly brightening with delight.
She raised the basket in her hands.
"Teacher, my mom taught me how to make sakura dango this morning. I made a few that turned out really nice, so I brought them for you to try."
"You…"
Shin paused, then said, "Wait a moment. I'll go wash up first."