At Uchiha Kei's house, the five members involved in development had all gathered and shared a meal prepared by Uchiha Kei and Minato Namikaze.
After the enjoyable meal, Kikyo Uzumaki and Uchiha Jiri volunteered to handle the dishwashing. The two of them entered the kitchen together—Kushina Uzumaki also wanted to join in, but the kitchen wasn't very big. Even with two people inside, it was already cramped, so a third person would have made it difficult to even move.
The atmosphere between the two girls in the kitchen was surprisingly pleasant. Although Uchiha Jiri was a proud Uchiha, she wasn't the cold and aloof type—she smiled, though it was more of a reserved kind. Kikyo Uzumaki, being the classic passionate and outgoing type of the Uzumaki clan, took the initiative to chat, making their interaction lively and cheerful, with laughter from time to time.
Anyone watching would've thought they were long-time sisters—though in reality, Kikyo had been quite nervous and wary when she first met Jiri . After all, she was a stunning woman appearing beside Uchiha Kei. But once Kikyo learned Jiri was sent by the Uchiha clan to protect Kei, her attitude instantly changed.
Outside the kitchen, Kushina saw this scene with a complicated expression, then quietly slipped out to the balcony.
There, Uchiha Kei and Minato Namikaze were lazily lounging in chairs, sipping sake and enjoying the night breeze.
Kushina's arrival disrupted the peaceful atmosphere.
Seeing her, both men turned around curiously, and Kushina leaned in conspiratorially toward Kei and asked in a hushed voice, "Hey Kei, what's your plan with those two girls? Are you trying to marry them both?"
Thunder struck. Gossip ignited.
Uchiha Kei was speechless, while Minato, understanding exactly what his girlfriend meant, looked on curiously.
Though shinobi usually practiced monogamy, the shinobi world wasn't strictly monogamous. If someone had the means and desire, taking multiple wives was not unheard of—especially in a world with daimyō and rigid social hierarchy. You couldn't expect fairy-tale romance ideals here.
Few shinobi had multiple wives because they were responsible for their offspring's future, and raising children cost a lot. On top of that, shinobi had to pay for their own equipment and tools, making them major spenders. So most preferred to focus their resources on one family.
But few didn't mean none. If Uchiha Kei really decided to marry both Jiri and Kikyo, their friends Minato and Kushina would support him. At most, Kushina, as Kikyo's clanswoman, might express some symbolic disapproval.
Glancing toward the kitchen, Kei swirled the sake in his cup and said, "I've always been the go-with-the-flow type. Think about it—you've known me since we were kids. Have you ever seen me actively pursue a girl?"
Both thought it over and realized he was right. Even now, with Kikyo clearly having feelings for him, it was always her taking the initiative. Kei never made a move.
Kei gazed up at the night sky above the Hidden Leaf Village. "When it comes to relationships, I've always been pretty zen about it. Just let things take their course. Kikyo only likes me because of some childhood rescue—classic suspension bridge effect. Whether we end up together in the future… who knows?"
"As for Jiri-senpai, the clan does want me to pair with her to produce excellent offspring, but like I said, I don't focus much on this stuff."
"Compared to romance, I care more right now about promoting and launching the genjutsu game."
That was such a career-driven thing to say it left Minato and Kushina momentarily speechless.
They clearly wanted to say something, but hesitated. Kei knew what they were thinking—before the system awakened, he had been a laid-back slacker in the Konoha Police Department. Now suddenly, he was a workaholic with intense career ambitions. It was a bit much.
Still, they understood. Back then, he hadn't developed the genjutsu game nor tapped into his monstrous talent for creating secret techniques.
Now that he had the chance and the tools, the three-day process of porting the genjutsu game had revealed just how terrifying Kei's abilities were.
Even Minato, who knew Kei best, began to suspect Kei had been hiding his brilliance. Behind that lazy front might have been a mad genius grinding in silence.
Even before this, Kei had shown amazing talent by helping develop the Rasengan.
Now, he probably felt there was no need to hide anymore. He had the results, the platform, and the backing of the Uchiha clan. So he began to let his talents shine.
As Kei's close friend, Minato was actually thrilled. He had always believed Kei was a genius whose brilliance was buried in a village that only valued shinobi talent.
So, Minato followed Kei's lead and asked about the game's release and voiced his concern:
"Kei, we've solved the issue of porting the genjutsu game to sealing scrolls, but those scrolls are still really expensive."
"I know you want even the common folk in Konoha to play these games, but if costs stay this high, that's going to be really difficult."
Kei nodded. "Don't worry! I've considered that and already have a plan."
"Sure, right now the cost is steep—a single scroll can only store one game and be used once. But that's just a technical limitation. Once we have enough funding, we can keep investing in research and development. Eventually, we'll solve all these problems."
"Right now, what we need to do is make the term 'genjutsu game' known far and wide. We need to generate enough attention to raise the money needed for R\&D."
"At the very least, we need to make sure all the major shinobi clans know about it. That way, we can expand the market and get everyone involved, turning this into a big industry."
"So, our lifetime brand ambassador for the Genjutsu Game Guild—Minato Namikaze-dono—are you ready to promote it?"
Minato scratched his head awkwardly. "I don't really get the business side of things. But you just want me to play the game in front of people, right?"
"And you'll somehow show them my gameplay as it happens?"
Kei nodded. "Yeah. I plan to use the projection feature we discovered yesterday during the porting process to livestream it. It's not as immersive as watching someone directly inside the game via genjutsu, but the goal is to let more people see it."
"So yeah, a live broadcast is a good idea."
As everyone knows, new research often leads to unexpected yet useful discoveries. That's true for tech development on Earth, and it's also true for secret jutsu development in the shinobi world.
Yesterday, Kei and his team had developed a truly amazing projection technique. It let a player's genjutsu game session be projected for others to see—essentially a real-time livestream feature.
After Kei's explanation, Minato nodded. "A live stream, huh? That's a pretty accurate term. So, you want me to stream 'Homecoming'?"
Kei shook his head. "No, I want you to stream a different new game."
Minato was surprised. "Huh? A new game? When did you make another one?"
Kei: "Yesterday. I've been developing a new genjutsu game at home these past few days. I finished it last night."
Minato: "As expected of you. You spend your days working on secret jutsu and your nights making games. Your energy is unreal."
After sighing in admiration, he asked, "So, what's the new game? Is it like 'Homecoming'?"
Kei smiled. "No, it's a different kind. Very simple. No puzzles—just fast, straightforward action. It's called 'Fruit Ninja.'"
Of course, it was a super hardcore, hell-difficulty version customized for the shinobi world.