Chapter 1: The Battlefield Awakening
"Come on, take this! Rasengan!"
A young man lay on his rumpled bed, thumbs flying across his smartphone screen as he played the newly downloaded Naruto mobile game.
"No, no, no! I'm dead! This is impossible! My stats are too low, I can't even beat this guy by spamming basic attacks!"
As his character's health bar emptied and the screen faded to gray, he tossed his phone onto the mattress in frustration.
Thump!
The careless throw knocked over a half-finished soda can on his nightstand. Liquid poured onto the power strip where his phone charger was plugged in. Reacting on instinct, he lunged for the phone.
BZZZZZT!
A violent, sharp jolt of electricity shot up his arm. His world dissolved into blinding white pain, and then, into nothingness.
...
"Someone, hurry! We need a medic-nin over here, now!"
"The relief medical team hasn't arrived! My chakra reserves are almost depleted, I can't keep up!"
…
"So… loud…" a groggy thought surfaced in the murk of his mind. "What… happened to me?"
[Host's physical condition critical. Life signs failing. Activate automatic recovery?]
A flat, mechanical voice echoed in his skull, cutting through the fog of confusion and agony.
Host? Dying? Recovery? His brain struggled to form a coherent question. But the pain was a relentless, overriding fire. "Just… do it! Make it stop! Use the recovery!" he mentally screamed, his will focused solely on escaping the torment.
[Recovery Technique successfully administered. Novice Gift Package consumed. Pickup System binding complete. System panel generating… Basic attributes compiled. Host may now review status.]
Over the next several minutes, the searing pain receded, replaced by a dull, full-body ache and then a strange, artificial sense of wholeness. As his senses returned, the mechanical voice fell silent. He blinked his eyes open, ignoring the translucent blue screen that hovered in his vision. His attention was snatched by his surroundings: the acrid smell of smoke and blood, the groans of the wounded, and the sight of broken bodies lying on cots around him in a large, dusty tent.
"I was electrocuted… and I ended up here?" he whispered, his voice hoarse. He took in the archaic armor and the distinctive, high-collared uniforms of the people moving through the tent. "This… this looks like the world of Naruto."
[Host, please review your status panel.]
Ignoring the system's prompt, he pushed himself up on unsteady legs and stumbled toward the tent flap, needing to see more.
"Uchiha Raizen! You're up! I knew you were too stubborn to die!" A boy with dark, spiky hair and the unmistakable red-and-black uchiwa fan on his back clapped him on the shoulder, a grin splitting his grimy face.
"You… who…" The question died in his throat as a stabbing pain, far worse than any physical wound, lanced through his mind. He cried out, doubling over and clutching his head as a flood of foreign memories forced their way in.
A few seconds later, the pain subsided, leaving him breathless and pale, but with a terrifying clarity. It was the year 131 of the Warring States Period. He had crossed worlds. This body's name was Uchiha Raizen, and the cacophony outside was the sound of a brutal battle between the Uchiha and Senju clans.
His eyes, wide with shock, finally focused on the persistent blue screen before him.
Host: Uchiha Raizen
Age: 15
Pickup Level: 1 (Daily Pickups: 3)
Chakra: 100 / 140 | Evaluation: Not Yet Academy Graduate Level
Physical Skills: 10 / 12 | Evaluation: Not Yet Academy Graduate Level
Mastered Ninjutsu: None
Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan (Unawakened)
Novice Gift Pack: Used
Pickups Available Today: 0 / 3
A cold dread settled in his stomach as he read his pathetic stats. This is the level of a kindergarten student! he thought, a wave of panic rising. And they sent me to a battlefield like this? His eyes lingered on the "Pickup" function. What in the world does that even mean?
"Uchiha Raizen, stop spacing out! If you're okay, let's go! We have enemies to fight!" The boy in front of him—Uchiha Ryoken, according to the new memories, his closest friend in this life—urged, his hand resting on the hilt of his ninjato.
"N-no, I still feel dizzy. You go on ahead, I'll catch up," he stammered, taking a step back. It was pure suicide. Others in the clan could rely on the power of the Sharingan, but his eyes were still plain black. Charging out there with his meager chakra and pathetic taijutsu was nothing but a death wish.
[Attribute clusters detected in high-density areas. Would you like to check the pickup map?]
The system's voice was an unwelcome intrusion. "Check it," he thought grudgingly.
A new, semi-transparent map overlay appeared on his vision. His heart sank. The glowing points indicating the so-called "attribute clusters" were concentrated squarely in the most violent, chaotic heart of the battlefield.
Is this a pickup function or a delivery service? he wondered, his fear turning to bitter frustration. Is the system trying to get me killed?
[Map viewed successfully. Commencing automatic navigation to the nearest high-density pickup zone.]
"Wait, what? No! Cancel!" he mentally shouted, but it was too late. A terrifying sensation of losing control washed over him. His legs moved on their own, carrying him out of the relative safety of the medical tent and straight toward the roaring din of combat.
"Hey, you say no, but your body's plenty honest! That's the spirit, Uchiha Raizen! Wait for me!" Uchiha Ryoken laughed, mistaking the forced march for courage, and fell into step beside him.
As his traitorous body carried him forward, Uchiha Raizen felt a surge of pure, unadulterated rage. Other people who transmigrate get to be lucky or overpowered! My system's first act is to march me to my death!
Within moments, they reached the edge of the battlefield. The air was thick with the smell of ozone from lightning techniques, charred earth from fire jutsu, and the coppery tang of blood.
[Destination reached. Automatic navigation disengaged.]
"You stupid, worthless, piece of junk system!" he screamed internally, finally regaining control of his limbs. "You tricked me into… huh? What is all this?"
His internal tirade cut short as he truly looked at the ground around him. His anger vanished, replaced by stunned disbelief.
Scattered across the churned-up earth, glowing with a faint, ethereal light visible only to him, were… things.
[Sharingan Proficiency +1]
[Chakra Reserves +5]
[B-Rank Ninjutsu: Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique]
[B-Rank Ninjutsu: Water Release: Water Fang Projectile]
…and more, dozens of them, littering the ground like glowing treasures.
His jaw dropped. This… this is what 'picking up attributes' means? You literally just… pick them up?
"System," he whispered, a slow, disbelieving grin spreading across his face. "Can I… use these things after I pick them up?"
The system remained silent.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have yelled! You're the best system ever, now please, tell me!" he pleaded, his previous fury completely forgotten.
[Acquired items are directly integrated into the host. Current Pickup Level: 1. Daily Pickup Count: 3.]
His eyes widened, shining with a new, fierce light. This was real. This was his chance. "The Naruto world…" he murmured, his voice gaining strength, "I'm really here! And I'm going to conquer it!"
"There's a lone Uchiha here! Let's take him out!" his shout had drawn attention. Two Senju clansmen, their faces set in grim determination, broke from the skirmish line and charged straight for him.
The reality of his situation crashed back down. He was still on a battlefield, and he was still weak.
"Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb!" one of the Senju roared, his hands flashing through a series of seals. A massive orb of superheated fire hurtled toward Uchiha Raizen's position.
"You dishonorable Senju dogs! Two against one?!" Uchiha Ryoken's voice was a welcome roar as he appeared in a blur of motion, shoving Uchiha Raizen aside and forming his own seals. "You'll have to go through me!"
"Uchiha Ryoken!" Uchiha Raizen gasped, his heart hammering against his ribs. He had never been so happy to see someone. Without that intervention, he would have been a scorch mark on the ground.
As he scrambled to his feet, his eyes caught a flicker of intense red light at his feet. A glowing orb, pulsating with heat.
[Discovered B+ Rank Ninjutsu: Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb. Does the host wish to pick it up?]
His breath hitched. Yes! Now, pick it up, pick it up!
[Congratulations, Host. Acquired Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb (One-time use).]
The knowledge of the jutsu flooded his mind, settling into his being as if he had practiced it for years. More importantly, his system panel now listed it under his available techniques. It required no hand signs, no chakra cost from him. It was just… there. A single, devastating gift.
A wild, triumphant laugh burst from his lips. He pointed a trembling finger at the two recovering Senju. "You think you can kill me? You two Senju scum! Taste my Fire Release: Great Flame Bomb!"
The Senju sneered, seeing no preparatory hand seals. They thought it was an empty bluff.
They were wrong.
A torrent of fire, identical in scale and ferocity to the one just launched at him, erupted from Uchiha Raizen's outstretched hand. It roared across the short distance, a wave of pure destruction. The Senju's eyes widened in shock and terror, diving frantically to either side to avoid the inferno.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" Uchiha Ryoken shouted, not missing a beat. His own massive fireball shot forth, perfectly timing his attack to intercept the Senju who had leaped to the right.
Caught between the two pillars of flame, the two mid-level Chunin of the Senju clan didn't even have time to scream. Their world ended in a blaze of searing heat, their bodies crumbling to ash in the heart of the conflagration.
Silence fell in their immediate vicinity. Uchiha Ryoken stared at his friend, his Sharingan spinning with a mixture of shock and awe. Uchiha Raizen stood panting, his hand still smoking, staring at the space where two powerful enemies had just been utterly erased. A slow, real smile, one of survival and dawning power, finally spread across his face.