'Naruto?'
'That might be a bit tricky.'
'He is, after all, the Kyubi's Jinchuriki.'
'Even if Anbu aren't following him around constantly, Sandaime is definitely keeping a close eye on him.'
Takumi wasn't so sure.
If he could really con both Sasuke and Naruto over, then he would have truly performed a great service!
["Do you want to know who your parents are? Want to know why everyone hates you so much?" Your words, like a demon's whisper, entered Naruto's ears, affecting his ability to think.]
["Do... do you know who my parents are?" The question Naruto cared about most was raised, and he was desperate to get an answer from your mouth.]
["I can tell you. But you have to agree to one condition." You laid down the trap, and Naruto jumped in without a moment's hesitation.]
["Tell me! I'll agree to any condition!" Hope filled Naruto's eyes. He had always longed to know who his parents were.]
[You smiled slightly and told Naruto everything about his origins and the reasons he was shunned by the village.]
["You are the child of heroes, yet you haven't received the treatment you deserve. This is the Sandaime Hokage's scheme." You tempted him, planting seeds of hatred for Hiruzen in his heart.]
[The simple-minded Naruto, upon learning about his lineage and that all the suffering he endured over the years was connected to Hiruzen, completely turned to darkness.]
[You successfully brought Naruto to the Jashin Cult in the Land of Hot Water.]
["You've done well. This is the greatest contribution since the founding of our faith!" The high priest was both shocked and pleased with your success. Everyone else was dumbfounded. Someone actually managed to recruit the Kyubi's Jinchuriki and the last Uchiha? Their business skills were completely unmatched!]
[Then, under the high priest's guidance, the Jashin Cult performed the body modification surgery on you.]
'Success!'
Takumi's face lit up with joy.
The risky infiltration behind enemy lines actually succeeded in conning Sasuke and Naruto over!
Now he truly had an immortal body!
[You were transformed into an immortal body. Sasuke and Naruto were also brainwashed into becoming fanatical believers of the Jashin Cult.]
[But you felt it wasn't enough. Just recruiting two male rookies wasn't enough. You needed to recruit others. So, you took Sasuke and Naruto and returned to Konoha, preparing to recruit more people into the Jashin Cult.]
[Your first target was Sakura, a teammate of Sasuke and Naruto.]
["Sakura, join us. Join the big family of the Jashin Cult." Sasuke and Naruto's faces were full of fanaticism, startling Sakura.]
["You're crazy! You've been brainwashed! Snap out of it!" Sakura screamed, but alone, she couldn't resist the three of them and was forcefully captured and taken back to the Jashin Cult.]
[With the first success, you proceeded with the second, the third...]
[Hinata, Ino, Tenten, Choji, Kiba, etc., were all forcibly taken back to the Jashin Cult for brainwashing.]
[Only Shikamaru noticed something was wrong and reported your actions to Hiruzen.]
'It's bad!'
Takumi's heart sank.
'The secret was out!'
Although he had obtained an immortal body, aside from that, he had no other abilities.
Besides being tough to kill, it was basically useless.
Facing Konoha's Shinobi Army, there was simply no way to resist.
[Hiruzen assembled a force and cornered you.]
["Don't persist in your delusion. Jashin and the like are all lies. Wake up quickly." Hiashi said sternly.]
["Father, Jashin exists! You should believe in Jashin-sama too!" Hinata's face was full of fanaticism, completely different from her usual shyness.]
"Pfft!"
Takumi couldn't help but laugh.
["Jashin and such are just a scam. Don't be deceived." Inoichi tried to reason patiently.]
["The great Jashin is everywhere, Father. You too are under Jashin-sama's gaze. Come, join me in Jashin-sama's embrace!" Ino spread her arms, her face full of zeal.]
'Ah, this...'
'This brainwashing ability is absolutely incredible.'
["Don't be foolish. Come back quickly. Those words are just someone tricking you." Choza frowned as he tried to persuade.]
["Dad, come to the Jashin Cult. There's so much delicious food, munch." Choji kept stuffing his face with delicacies without a care.]
'Huh?'
'Was this guy brainwashed?'
'Or was he just lured by the food?'
["Subdue them first. Otherwise, this will just go on forever." Hiruzen gave the order, and the assembled Shinobi moved into action.]
[The rookie Genin were quickly subdued.]
["Jashin doesn't exist. Otherwise, why hasn't he come to help you?" Shikamaru tried to persuade his friends.]
["It's all a trick. There's no such thing as Jashin. If Jashin really existed, he would have already unified the Shinobi World!" The adults also tried to reason with them.]
[After being defeated and hearing the reasoning, Sasuke and the others gradually became a bit clearer-headed.]
[They realized Jashin hadn't appeared to help them, nor had they gained any increase in power.]
[Everyone's gaze focused on you.]
'Sigh.'
Takumi shook his head helplessly.
'It was all over.'
'But getting this achievement was pretty good.'
'Starting with that kind of talent and still managing to obtain such a powerful ability.'
'If it weren't for the limitations of strength, the simulation definitely wouldn't have stopped there.'
[Kakashi instantly appeared behind you. With a swipe of the sharp kunai in his hand, your head fell to the side.]
["Heh, that really hurts." Your head fell to the ground, but you still hadn't died. You even spoke.]
[Everyone stared at you in shock, screaming internally that it was impossible.]
['Does Jashin really exist? Was father lying to me?' Ino and the others were full of doubt.]
["Kill him!" Hiruzen immediately sensed danger and ordered your complete destruction.]
[Kakashi used Chidori to blast your heart to pieces, but you still didn't die.]
["Jashin-sama truly exists!" The subdued Sasuke and the others struggled frantically, their faces once again showing fanatical fervor.]
["Quick, burn him to ashes!" Hiruzen's eyelid twitched as he issued another command.]
[Several Shinobi simultaneously used Fire Release, thoroughly burning your body to ashes.]
The simulation's images plunged into darkness.
Takumi was stunned.
'Huh? It's over? Hmm... It seems even an immortal body has its limits.'
'But that made sense.'
'If you could survive even being completely pulverized, that would be too bizarre.'
'But with that, would the rating be good?'
Takumi was a bit worried.
[Ding! Simulation ended!]
[Calculating results...]
[Please wait...]
[Ding! This simulation's rating is S!]
'Huh?!'
'S?!'
Takumi was completely dumbfounded.
'This gets an S rating?'
He only lived for a few years. In terms of achievements, he just learned an immortal body, conned Konoha's rookies, and didn't even finish conning all of them.
And that still got an S rating?
'Why?'
Takumi simply asked the system.
[Starting with extremely low talent, you not only obtained the extremely rare immortal body but also caused a severe impact on Konoha's next generation.]
[Although you only lived for a few short years, the impact you caused was not insignificant.]
[This is the best example of achieving much with little.]
'Oh, right.'
Takumi suddenly understood.
This time, he only drew one talent, and it was the lowest-level white one.
So the difficulty of obtaining a rating would be correspondingly lower.
Looking at it that way, getting an S rating wasn't so incomprehensible after all.
Achieving much with little.
'Does that mean I'm going to get the immortal body?'
Takumi couldn't help but widen his eyes, his breathing starting to become rapid.
[Ding! In light of your S rating for this simulation.]
[You may select 2 rewards from the following:]
[1. Obtain the Immortal Body.]
[2. Obtain the years of accumulated knowledge and experience in making breakfast.]
[3. Obtain the years of accumulated Chakra.]
The first one, no hesitation.
But the other two...
The second one is somewhat useful.
Waking up every morning to make the girls a delicious breakfast would definitely make them like him more.
But the third one, does it even exist?
The Takumi in the simulation was either conning people or on his way to con people.
He never learned Chakra Extraction Techniques at all.
What 'years of accumulated Chakra'?
How do you accumulate something you don't have?
It seems this is a trap!
'I choose the first and the second.'
In an instant, countless breakfast-making tips and techniques merged into his mind.
All sorts of breakfast dishes appeared in his thoughts.
He made his choices, but there was no way to test them immediately.
But there's no rush. Testing the immortal body could be done anytime.
However, tomorrow morning, he could make a delicious breakfast for the girls.
It would surely make Sakura and the other three like him even more.
Who wouldn't love a man who can whip up a delicious breakfast?
…
The night passed uneventfully.
Early the next morning,
Takumi immediately showcased his newly acquired breakfast skills.
"Wow—"
Ino and Sakura gasped in admiration.
Their eyes sparkled as they looked at the steaming, delicious spread of breakfast dishes on the table.
Drool escaped the corners of their mouths.
"Wow—"
Naruto's eyes shone brightly as he looked at the full table of breakfast, his drool already a veritable waterfall.
Even Sasuke looked at the huge table of delicious food with surprise.
Then, he looked at Takumi with a complicated expression.
'What is it that you can't do?'
Sasuke, who had already set his mind on catching up to Takumi as one of his goals, felt extremely conflicted at this moment.
Itachi was distant and unreachable.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't tell if the gap between them was narrowing at all.
But Takumi was different.
Takumi's strength was obvious to all.
He had also repelled members of the Akatsuki multiple times.
If he could catch up to Takumi, he would surely surpass Itachi.
Sasuke firmly believed this.
"Don't just look. Let's eat."
Takumi smiled warmly.
Before, when on missions outside, he could only eat those not-so-tasty soldier pills.
Now, he could gather enough ingredients anytime, anywhere, and process them into a delicious breakfast.
No more torturing his taste buds.
"Let's eat—"
Everyone clasped their hands together and said loudly.
At this moment, they completely forgot they were on a mission.
To an outsider, it would look like they were having a picnic.