"I suppose I am."
Ren nodded.
Even if Hatake Swordsmanship had not entered his conquest list, he still needed to address his shortcomings in close-quarters combat.
Taijutsu and the Eight Gates required years of conditioning before their full power could be displayed. A weapon, on the other hand, could immediately increase its wielder's reach, defensive options, and killing power.
That did not mean swordsmanship was easy to master.
However, it offered faster practical improvement than rebuilding his entire close-combat system around unarmed fighting.
Kakashi was still determined to inherit and perfect the swordsmanship of the White Fang. Allowing such an excellent training partner to go unused would be a terrible waste.
"I see," Kakashi replied.
His voice remained indifferent, as though he were discussing something unimportant.
"Come with me later. I have several old swords at home that I'm not currently using."
Ren blinked.
Kakashi continued, "They're only gathering dust, so I can lend you one. Return it after you've earned enough money to buy your own."
Ren had not expected the offer.
Ninja tools were among a shinobi's greatest regular expenses. Kunai, shuriken, wire, explosive tags, smoke bombs, and medicine all needed to be replaced constantly.
A well-forged blade was even more expensive.
An ordinary weapon could cost tens of thousands of ryō. A high-quality sword crafted from chakra-conductive metal might cost several times that amount, depending on the quality of the material and the skill of the blacksmith.
With Ren's current savings, he could afford only a basic iron blade.
If Kakashi was willing to lend him a proper sword for free, refusing would be foolish.
"Then thank you, Assistant Instructor Kakashi," Ren said.
Kakashi gave a faint nod.
"Mm."
Obito, who had been listening nearby, immediately became dissatisfied.
"Wait! Why didn't you offer me a sword?"
Kakashi looked at him.
"You?"
"Yes, me!"
"You should concentrate on learning how to use the ninjutsu you already have."
Obito's mouth opened.
No response came out.
For once, Kakashi had silenced him with a single sentence.
By late afternoon, Ren followed Kakashi to the Hatake residence.
The old house stood in a quiet section of Konoha, far from the lively markets and busier residential streets. Its courtyard was clean, but the building carried a loneliness that was difficult to ignore.
There were no voices from inside.
No family members came to greet Kakashi when he returned.
Kakashi asked Ren to wait near the gate, then disappeared into the house.
Several minutes passed before he emerged again.
He carried a short sword with a pale handle and matching scabbard. The fittings showed signs of age, but the weapon had been meticulously maintained. Not a single spot of rust marked the blade when Kakashi drew it several inches from the sheath.
He held it out to Ren.
"This sword was forged at the same time as the one I carry," Kakashi explained. "It served as a secondary weapon used by my father."
Ren's gaze changed.
This was not merely an unused sword gathering dust.
It had once belonged to the White Fang.
Kakashi's visible eye sharpened.
"You can borrow it," he said. "But don't disgrace it."
Ren accepted the sword with both hands.
The weight felt perfectly balanced. Even without drawing it fully, he could sense the quality of the blade.
"That goes without saying," he replied. "I'll take care of it."
The instant his fingers closed around the scabbard, a notification appeared.
[Ding! Compatible gift detected.]
[Target: Hatake Swordsmanship.]
[Available gift: Old Sword of the Hatake Family.]
Ren stared at the message.
This can be used as a gift?
He almost selected the option instinctively, but stopped before making the decision.
The sword did not belong to him.
Kakashi had only lent it to him, and Ren would eventually have to return it. Treating a borrowed family heirloom as a gift to the System felt both risky and dishonest.
A ninjutsu scroll was different. Once Ren learned the technique, he could copy the written information onto a blank scroll and return the original content without loss.
A physical sword could not be replaced so easily.
Even if he ignored its history as a weapon once carried by the White Fang, its material and craftsmanship made it far more valuable than anything Ren could currently afford.
He dismissed the prompt.
However, the discovery revealed something important.
If an old Hatake sword qualified as a gift for Hatake Swordsmanship, other objects connected to the style might work as well.
Training notes.
Records of the White Fang's battles.
Written insights regarding footwork, breathing, timing, or killing intent.
The Hatake residence might contain several items compatible with the System.
Ren glanced toward the silent house.
He had no intention of stealing anything, but there was nothing wrong with asking Kakashi to let him study old training records in the future.
With enough trust, more opportunities would naturally appear.
Ren thanked Kakashi again before returning home.
The sun had nearly disappeared by the time he entered his courtyard. Aoi was preparing dinner inside, leaving him enough time to complete one final practice session.
He placed the borrowed sword safely beneath the covered walkway, then moved to the center of the yard.
His hands formed a seal.
"Water Release: Water Clone Technique!"
Pop! Pop!
Water gathered from a nearby barrel and rose into two identical copies of Ren. Both clones landed smoothly on the ground and turned toward him.
Ren adjusted the chakra within them, moved them through a short combat routine, and practiced switching his awareness among their different perspectives.
That completed the day's Practice requirement.
A brilliant notification filled his vision.
[Water Clone Technique—Clone Technique form.]
[Favorability: 100/100—Deep Connection.]
[Fourth-stage reward obtained: Physique +4.]
[Trait—One-Man Army has reached Transcendent mastery.]
[You may now freely determine the amount of chakra distributed to each clone. All clones share complete sensory information and awareness with the original body.]
[New effect—Victory Over Death: Whenever one clone is destroyed, all surviving clones and the original body receive one temporary enhancement stack. Each stack significantly increases speed, strength, and neural reaction speed.]
Warm energy spread through Ren's body.
His muscles tightened before relaxing, and every sensation became sharper. At the same time, the barrier separating his awareness from the two Water Clones disappeared.
Ren could see himself through both sets of eyes.
He could hear the courtyard from three different positions.
He could feel the evening breeze against three separate bodies without the sensations becoming confused.
The experience should have been disorienting.
Instead, it felt natural.
The Clone Technique had finally reached maximum favorability.
With this, all Three Basic Techniques—Transformation, Clone, and Substitution—had reached their highest level.
Ren focused on the evolved One-Man Army trait.
Freely distributing chakra was useful, though not entirely unique. Shadow Clones could already receive different amounts of chakra when created.
Still, the ability gave Ren far greater tactical flexibility.
He could create several weak clones for scouting, or concentrate most of his available chakra into one powerful clone capable of fighting independently.
Complete sensory sharing was even more valuable.
Ordinary Water Clones required the user to divide attention between separate bodies. Ren's clones now shared his consciousness seamlessly, allowing every copy to respond as though it possessed the original's full awareness.
The final effect was the most interesting.
Victory Over Death.
Whenever one clone was destroyed, all remaining bodies—including Ren himself—would receive a temporary physical enhancement.
Ren looked at the two clones standing across from him.
"If I create ten clones and deliberately destroy nine of them…"
Would the final clone and his real body receive nine simultaneous enhancement stacks?
Could he manufacture a massive physical boost before entering battle?
Theoretically, yes.
However, creating clones required chakra. Deliberately sacrificing them would consume a considerable amount of energy before the real fight even began.
The strategy would only be worthwhile if the enhancement exceeded the cost.
Ren considered testing it immediately.
One of the Water Clones seemed to understand his thoughts and took a cautious step backward.
The other folded its arms.
Ren stared at them.
They stared back.
Destroying copies of himself solely to gain a temporary buff suddenly felt strangely uncomfortable.
He decided to test the effect against Kakashi during their next training session instead.
Another question remained.
Now that Transformation, Clone, and Substitution had all reached maximum favorability, why had the System not unlocked a combined technique?
The three were collectively known as the Three Basic Techniques. Ren had expected some hidden reward for mastering all of them.
No notification appeared.
Perhaps a special condition had not yet been fulfilled.
Or perhaps the System expected him to create the combination himself.
Ren considered the possibilities.
His Substitution Technique could activate in approximately one-fifth of a second and function across a range of eighty meters.
If he filled that area with clones, he could exchange positions with any of them almost instantly. Complete sensory sharing would allow him to perceive the battlefield from every angle, making it extremely difficult for an enemy to identify or corner his real body.
Transformation could add another layer of deception.
Each clone could assume the appearance of Ren, his teammates, an enemy, an animal, or even an ordinary object. The true body could transform as well.
Within the technique's effective range, Ren could be everywhere.
And nowhere.
His enemies would never know which target was real or where the next attack would originate.
It resembled Shisui Uchiha's famous Body Flicker afterimage tactics, but Ren's version would rely on genuine physical clones and instantaneous exchanges rather than mere speed.
The idea deserved a name.
After several seconds of thought, Ren made his decision.
Death Mark Formation.
The name sounded slightly excessive, but any technique capable of surrounding an enemy with dozens of interchangeable Rens deserved something dramatic.
He dispersed the Water Clones and opened his current priority list.
[Current Priority Targets]
[Fire Release—Great Fireball Technique: 81/100—Attachment.]
[Healing Technique: 13/100—Acquaintance.]
[Eight Gates: 8/100—Stranger.]
[Hatake Swordsmanship: 1/100—Stranger.]
Phoenix Sage Fire and Wild Water Wave remained on the complete conquest list, but Ren did not intend to divide his attention too widely.
His immediate priority was Great Fireball.
At eighty-one favorability, she was closest to reaching the next stage. Completing the time-limited mission to restore her reputation might provide enough points to push her considerably higher.
After that, Ren could focus on Healing Technique and Wild Water Wave.
Taijutsu training would continue regardless. Between the Eight Gates and Hatake Swordsmanship, Ren suspected the sword style would be easier to improve.
The Eight Gates had rewarded an entire sparring session with Guy with only a single favorability point.
Hatake Swordsmanship was arrogant, but at least she seemed willing to acknowledge skill and determination. Regular sparring with Kakashi should provide steady opportunities to increase her favorability.
Ren closed the interface.
Just then, a gentle tapping came from the fence separating his home from the neighboring Nohara residence.
"Ren? Are you still outside?"
He turned.
Rin stood in the neighboring courtyard with both hands hidden behind her back. The last light of sunset illuminated her face, and she wore a slightly nervous smile.
Ren walked toward the fence.
"What is it?"
Rin hesitated.
Her fingers tightened around whatever she was hiding. Then, as though afraid she might lose her courage, she quickly brought one hand forward and pushed a small object into Ren's palm.
It was a cloth amulet.
Several green leaves had been carefully embroidered across the plain fabric. Beneath them, Ren's name had been stitched in neat, delicate thread.
The work was not perfect, but every stitch showed patience and care.
Rin looked away.
"I made it myself," she said softly. "Since we're leaving the village the day after tomorrow, I thought… maybe it could bring you good luck."
Ren opened his palm and examined the amulet.
It was warm from her hand.
"An amulet," he murmured.
Rin nodded.
Ren looked from the embroidered name to her increasingly nervous expression.
"Did you make one for everyone on the team," he asked, "or is this only for me?"
Rin's smile froze.
For one heartbeat, the entire courtyard became silent.