At a major internet company, at 7 PM, senior programmer Ling Yun finished his day's work and was about to go home.
But then, his colleague Xiao Liu ran over like a pug.
"Brother Yun, help me out! I still have a piece of code to write. Help a brother out."
"Get lost! I've already worked overtime for four straight days. I'm going to sleep early tonight."
"Brother Yun~~ I've got a date with my girlfriend to see a sewer, and if I stand her up again, she'll run off with someone else."
Xiao Liu looked like he was about to cry, and Ling Yun glared at him exasperatedly.
"She'll run off with someone else just for a movie? Brother, I advise you to break up with her sooner rather than later, lest she give you a cuckold's hat next time because you took a step with your left foot first."
Xiao Liu pestered him relentlessly, and in the end, Ling Yun's heart softened and he agreed. After all, he was a single dog, and going home early meant being alone anyway.
"Thanks, Brother Yun! Lunch tomorrow is on me."
"Tomorrow, I want roast duck!"
Xiao Liu gave an OK sign, then took off running.
Ling Yun sighed and started typing code. He finished in just an hour, a task that would have taken Xiao Liu three hours.
The incredibly fast typing and mental exertion made Ling Yun break out in a sweat. He reached up and pulled off his wig, revealing a shiny, One-Punch Man-esque bald head under the lights.
"Finally, done coding. Was Xiao Liu slacking off during the day? He left so much work! No way! One roast duck isn't enough; at least three."
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Ling Yun reached for his bag, ready to go home.
Suddenly, a sharp pain in his chest struck. Ling Yun's expression changed. He occasionally had chest pains before, but he'd always endured them and hadn't paid much attention. This time, however, the pain was continuous, and in the end, Ling Yun couldn't even stand, collapsing directly to the floor.
The most critical thing was that he was the only one left working overtime today; no one would find him.
"Damn it~~ A roast duck for a life? What a loss!"
Amidst the intense chest pain, Ling Yun's vision went black, ending the life of a 'tool man'... When Ling Yun opened his eyes again, he saw a man with sharp eyes. He looked very handsome and wasn't very old, the kind of chosen one who could buy a three-bedroom apartment in a first-tier city based on his looks alone.
At the same time, a beautiful woman, whose looks could also buy a three-bedroom apartment, was holding Ling Yun.
"Wait... I'm being held by a beautiful woman right now? And in front of another handsome guy? One woman, two men? Are people playing so wildly these days?"
Ling Yun subconsciously raised his hand to push the handsome guy away. After all, as a single dog, he couldn't handle such an exciting game.
The next moment, a pair of delicate little hands appeared in front of Ling Yun.
Ling Yun was stunned, and a "Holy crap" escaped his lips, but the sound that came out was more like a cute "*sobs*" sound...
Konoha Year 45. This was the year Ling Yun transmigrated to the world of Naruto. At the same time, two major events occurred in Konoha that year.
The first was the suicide of Hatake Sakumo, known as Konoha's White Fang, making the future 'Ninja First Technician' Hatake Kakashi an orphan.
The second was the birth of Uchiha Itachi, the ninja world's greatest filial son, marking the countdown to the Uchiha clan's demise.
Originally, these two events had nothing to do with Ling Yun, but when he learned that his 'convenient' dad was named Uchiha Tachibana, he couldn't remain calm...
Konoha Year 50. Ling Yun was five years old this year. His name should now be Uchiha Ling Yun.
He stood by a small lake in the Uchiha clan's compound, the same small lake where Uchiha Itachi first used the Great Fireball Jutsu in the Naruto anime.
As the son of an Uchiha jonin, Ling Yun's family naturally had a scroll for the Great Fireball Jutsu. Not only that, but due to the pressure of the clan's impending demise, Ling Yun had been training diligently like an ascetic monk since he could walk. While his peers were still peeing in the mud, he was practicing taijutsu. While others were shooting birds with slingshots, he was refining chakra. In short, Ling Yun had completely given up on play and had been constantly training.
Finally, at four years old, Ling Yun successfully refined chakra. Now, at five, he was preparing to perform his first ninjutsu, however...
After forming the hand signs for the Great Fireball Jutsu at a snail's pace of one sign per second, Ling Yun took a deep breath. Chakra gathered in his mouth, then he spewed it all out.
"Whoosh!"
A stream of flame shot out, quickly expanding into a basketball-sized fireball, then exploding on the lake's surface.
Ling Yun looked at the faint steam rising from the lake, speechless for three seconds.
"A true Great Fireball Jutsu should at least spew out a fireball with a diameter of two meters. Mine, let alone killing someone, probably couldn't even kill a dog. It seems the talent gap between me and the great filial son is quite significant!"
Ling Yun believed that he had worked harder than anyone else in his five years of transmigration. After all, with an adult soul and knowing about the future night of the clan's massacre, he dared not relax for a moment, even the great filial son couldn't compare to him in terms of effort.
But the great filial son could use a complete Great Fireball at five, while he could only produce a half-finished one. This could only mean there was a talent gap between them.
"Naruto is a world that values bloodlines. My dad in this world is an Uchiha jonin, but my mom is just an ordinary chunin and not from the Uchiha clan. My bloodline isn't pure. I probably shouldn't even dream of catching up to the great filial son; whether I can even awaken the Sharingan is a question. As expected, I have to take another path..."
Ling Yun took out a black iron pipe from his pocket. It was only ten centimeters long, like a miniature flute.
Ling Yun took another deep breath, without forming any hand signs, then put one end of the black pipe into his mouth and blew hard.
With a whooshing sound, a flame shot out from the other end of the black pipe, then quickly expanded into a fireball over two meters in diameter, which lasted for nearly five seconds on the lake's surface before dissipating. It was a complete Great Fireball Jutsu.
"Indeed... Using ninja tools not only allows me to easily use ninjutsu, but it also reduces the amount of chakra consumed by nearly 30%. Since my talent in ninjutsu isn't as good as the great filial son's, I'll just compensate with ninja tools."
Ling Yun looked at the black pipe in his hand, his eyes somewhat complex.
"I never thought that even after reincarnation, I'd still be a programmer. Is this what they call destiny? Forget it, whether it's destiny or not, without a golden finger or a system, this is the only way I can surpass the great filial son. I have no choice but to take it."
He tossed the black pipe into the air, then caught it as it fell.
"With my current understanding of sealing formulas, it takes about a month to create one ninja tool. This is equivalent to mastering one ninjutsu per month. This progress is nothing to a genius like the great filial son, but for an average ninja, it's already very fast."
"What's more, using ninja tools to perform ninjutsu only requires refining chakra and then channeling it into the ninja tool. There's no need for hand signs, it can be cast instantly, and it saves 30% of chakra. In a battle of equal strength, this is a huge advantage!"