---
Harper puffed out his chest and spoke with righteous indignation.
"You underestimate the people of the Hidden Leaf! I may not be a ninja yet, but I will never allow anyone to threaten my village! Even if it costs me my life, I will not yield! So, I refuse!"
Ding!
[System]: Refused [A Tempting Choice]. Hidden Leaf Reputation +100.
Ding!
[System]: Ibiki Morino's Affinity +10.
"Ibiki Morino?" Harper blinked, confused. "Why did his affinity go up?"
Whoosh!
A towering figure appeared beside Harper out of thin air.
Harper looked up. Beneath the Hidden Leaf forehead protector was a face covered in horrific scars. It was none other than the Special Jonin and Captain of the Hidden Leaf Torture and Interrogation Force, Ibiki Morino.
"Well said. Truly worthy of someone the Third Hokage has his eye on," Ibiki said, his voice cold and gravelly.
Thwack!
With a swift chop to the neck, Ibiki knocked the Smoke Genin unconscious.
"I'm taking this one back for interrogation. I will also relay your words to Lord Third."
What the...?!
The duck was cooked and on the table, and now it just flew away?!
Harper stared in disbelief. Was all that running for nothing? Sure, he just "found" the guy, but he still put in the work! He chased him! He sweated!
Looking at Ibiki's stone-cold face, Harper tried to think of a way to ask for compensation without getting tortured.
"These things are useless to me now. Take them," Ibiki said.
He stripped the unconscious ninja of his gear—vest, kunai, and shuriken—and tossed them to Harper.
[Smoke Ninja's Kunai] (Silver)
Requirement: Level 10
Type: Sword/Dagger
Attack: 32-64
Strength: +5
Crit Rate: +3%
Attack Speed: +7%
Block Chance: +10%
[Smoke Ninja's Shuriken] x10 (Silver)
Type: Throwing Weapon
Attack: 16-32
Crit Rate: +5%
[Smoke Ninja's Genin Vest]
Requirement: Level 0
Type: Cloth Armor
Defense: 20
Constitution: +4
Harper looked at the stats and drooled.
These items were infinitely better than his current trash gear!
The most shocking part was the [Smoke Ninja's Genin Vest]. It had no level requirement.
Harper equipped it immediately.
His Defense skyrocketed to 47. His HP jumped to 230.
With 47 Defense, unless a player of the same level had a high-tier weapon, they couldn't even scratch him. He was practically invincible in PvP.
Ibiki grabbed the unconscious ninja and vanished with a Body Flicker.
Then came the system notifications.
Ding!
[System]: Player [Harper the Great] assisted Ibiki Morino in capturing a Smoke Village spy. Hidden Leaf Reputation +200. Affinity with all Hidden Leaf NPCs +50.
Ding!
[System World Announcement]:
Sensing a threat from foreign nations, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, has decided to open the Ninja Academy to the public. Players who have reached Level 5 and have at least 100 Hidden Leaf Reputation may now enter the Academy to accept Ninjutsu Scroll quests.
Ding!
[System]: Completed Hidden Scenario: [A Tempting Choice]. Reward: 30,000 XP.
Ding!
[System]: Congratulations! You have leveled up. Current Level: 6.
All Stats +1.
Harper laughed out loud. He never expected such a massive payout from a random encounter.
He checked his status panel.
Character: Harper the Great
Faction: Hidden Leaf Village
Level: 6 (10%)
HP: 240
Chakra: 170
Strength: 17
Agility: 17 + 5 (Gear)
Constitution: 17 + 7 (Gear)
Ninjutsu: 17
Defense: 47
Melee Damage: 50-66
Ranged Damage: 50-66
With these stats, Harper was basically a walking Bronze Boss. If other players saw this, they'd report him for hacking.
At the same time, similar events were happening in other ninja villages. Smoke Ninja spies had appeared everywhere.
But not everyone made the same choice.
Some players, tempted by the immediate reward of three Ninjutsu scrolls, betrayed their starting village and joined the Smoke Ninja faction.
Others simply failed to catch the spy.
But regardless of the outcome, every village opened their Ninja Academy to players. The age of Ninjutsu had officially begun.
---
After the distraction, Harper resumed his search for Kenta's hideout. He went back to where he first spotted the spy and ventured deeper.
Sure enough, after walking a bit further, he found a cave.
A transparent barrier of light blocked the entrance, separating the instance from the open world.
Harper walked up to the barrier.
Ding!
[System]: Discovered [Kenta's Hideout].
Objective: Enter the cave, eliminate the rogue ninja Kenta, and retrieve his experimental weapon for the Third Hokage.
Time Limit: 24 Hours.
Harper checked his inventory one last time. Supplies were good. Gear was good.
He stepped forward.
A flash of white light enveloped him as he entered the dungeon.
As soon as he loaded in, he received a buff.
Ding!
[System]: Applied Buff: [Blessing of the Third Hokage]. All stats increased by 30%.
"Nice."
Harper looked around. The cave was surprisingly well-lit.
Standing guard a short distance away were two massive snakes.
[Kenta's Test Subject] (Elite)
Attack: 90
Defense: 30
HP: 900
Description: Venomous snakes modified by Kenta's experiments. Highly toxic.