---
POOF!
A cloud of white smoke erupted. From within the mist, a scantily clad, voluptuous beauty appeared right in front of Harper.
Harper froze.
And then, his nose exploded like a broken faucet.
Ding!
[System]: Status Effect Applied: [Charm] (4 seconds).
[System]: Status Effect Applied: [Bleeding] (4 seconds).
-20 HP
-20 HP
-20 HP
-20 HP
Four seconds later, Naruto released the Sexy Jutsu, transforming back into his grinning self. "So, Big Bro? What do you think?"
Harper shook his head, snapping out of his stupor.
Ding!
[System]: Congratulations! You have learned Naruto Uzumaki's skill: [Basic Sexy Jutsu].
[Basic Sexy Jutsu]
Effect: Charms surrounding male humanoid enemies for 2 seconds. Also triggers [Bleeding] status on the user.
"Damn it!"
Harper checked his health bar. It was half empty.
"I almost became the first player in history to die from a nosebleed."
The [Sexy Jutsu] was exclusive to Naruto and Konohamaru. It wasn't in the player skill tree, meaning no other player could learn it.
Harper hadn't even checked for it in his GM account because he assumed it wasn't a "real" skill.
But looking at the description now, he realized something terrifying.
This skill was broken.
The bleed damage was irrelevant. What made it OP was the [Charm] effect. Naruto had just hard-crowd-controlled him for four full seconds.
In a high-level PvP fight or a boss battle, a four-second stun was an eternity. It was enough time to cast an A-Rank or even an S-Rank jutsu and wipe the enemy off the map before they could even move.
"Did you learn it, Big Bro?" Naruto asked, seeing Harper staring blankly into space. "If not, I can show you again!"
"Stop! Stop! Stop!"
Harper waved his hands frantically.
"I learned it! I learned it!"
If Naruto did that again, Harper would literally die of blood loss.
"Really?" Naruto beamed. "You're amazing, Big Bro! Come on, show me!"
Harper went to activate [Basic Sexy Jutsu].
But then he hit a snag.
Chakra: 0
Even if he knew the jutsu, he couldn't cast it without Chakra.
"Big Bro?" Naruto asked, tilting his head. "Why aren't you doing it?"
"I... uh... I don't have any Chakra right now," Harper admitted.
Naruto stumbled, almost faceplanting into the dirt.
It was embarrassing. Harper had just bragged about learning it, only to fail at the execution.
"But I'll be able to do it tomorrow," Harper added quickly.
He was Level 4. Tomorrow, he would hit Level 5. That was the magic number where the Chakra system unlocked and his stats would take a leap.
"Okay! I believe you!" Naruto said. Though internally, he was thinking, Chakra training is way harder than that...
"It's getting late. We should head back to the village," Naruto said, looking at the darkening sky. "Where do you live, Big Bro?"
Harper paused. He realized he didn't actually have a home. The loneliness of being stuck in the game hit him again. "Well, nowhere, actually."
"Then stay at my place!" Naruto grinned. "I live alone too! We can train together!"
Harper thought about it. He didn't really have a choice. "Alright. Thanks, Naruto."
They walked back to the Hidden Leaf Village together.
Naruto's apartment was exactly like it was in the anime. Messy, cozy, and sad.
Harper took a quick look around. The fridge was full of expired milk, and the cupboards were stocked with nothing but cup ramen.
Naruto insisted on giving Harper the bed while he slept on a futon on the floor. Harper tried to refuse, but Naruto was stubborn.
Lying in bed, Harper tossed and turned. He wondered if he fell asleep here, would he wake up back in the real world? Was this all just a crazy dream?
Eventually, listening to Naruto's soft snoring, Harper drifted off.
---
The next morning.
Harper woke up and felt a wave of disappointment. He was still in the game.
He checked his status panel. The [Fatigue] debuff was gone. His XP gain was back to normal.
He looked over at Naruto, who was still sound asleep, drooling on his pillow.
Harper grinned mischievously. He walked over and shook the boy awake.
"Naruto! Wake up!"
Naruto cracked one eye open. "Big Bro? It's like... 5 AM..."
"Naruto, the early bird gets the worm!" Harper sat down and activated his 'Life Coach' mode. "If you sleep in, how are you going to beat the geniuses? How are you going to become Hokage?"
That woke him up.
"You want the village to acknowledge you? Do you think they'll acknowledge a guy who sleeps till noon?"
Boom.
Naruto shot out of bed like a rocket. To Harper's shock, the kid was dressed and ready in three seconds flat.
"Let's go, Big Bro! Training time!"
They left the apartment and headed to the training grounds. The streets were empty. Because of the server's fatigue system, most players were forced to log off for 8 hours, so Harper had the world to himself.
At the training ground, Harper gave Naruto some "sage advice"—which was basically telling him to practice his basics again—and then sat down to watch.
He watched his own skill proficiency bars fill up.
[Basic Kunai Mastery] +100...
[Basic Shuriken Mastery] +100...
Harper sat there, grinning like an idiot, leeching XP off Naruto's hard work.
By 8:00 AM, Naruto had to leave for the Academy.
Harper checked his skills. Both [Basic Kunai Mastery] and [Basic Shuriken Mastery] had leveled up to Intermediate.
[Intermediate Kunai Mastery]
Effect: Increases accuracy. Can deflect incoming projectiles. Damage +6%. Crit Rate +2%.
[Intermediate Shuriken Mastery]
Effect: Throw 4 Shuriken simultaneously. Damage +6%. Crit Rate +2%.
Harper read the descriptions and laughed out loud.
Just then, players started logging back in.
They saw Harper sitting alone in the dirt, cackling at nothing.
"Look at that guy," one player whispered to his friend. "Poor dude. Another grinder who lost his mind."