Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night.
The [Heaven and Earth Battlefield] had opened for the first time, and more than half of the players across the Ninja World had formed their own organizations, clashing fiercely within Heaven and Earth.
The battle lasted only half an hour.If one side's score reached 5000 first, the match would immediately be locked in as a victory.
It didn't last long—not even as long as a single class session at the Ninja Academy.
But the experience it brought... would linger for a long time.
[First Place: 10020]
[Second Place: 9100]
[Third Place: 8724]
"We won."
Shikamaru exhaled and put down his phone.
The three organizations—Ino–Shika–Cho—had all been matched together.He seriously doubted whether that was really random.
Fortunately, regardless of raw power, the Nara clan definitely held the upper hand when it came to strategy.
He and his father, Shikaku, had each led a team on the Heaven and Earth sides.Both reached the maximum score early, leaving no suspense for the outcome.
Choji had taken a more laid-back approach, while Ino was rather serious about it—earning her group second place.
"Shikamaru, how did it feel?" Shikaku asked, sitting beside his son.
"Nothing much. Compared to shogi, the Heaven and Earth Battlefield isn't that complicated. Honestly, brute force alone is enough," Shikamaru replied calmly.
He wasn't wrong.Technical skill outweighed everything else—if a team had ten highly skilled players, victory was practically guaranteed.
But Shikaku suddenly smiled.
"Brute force? You mean technical skill?"
"Isn't it?" Shikamaru frowned slightly.
"You didn't notice, huh? Well, it's understandable—after all, everyone's current combat power isn't that far apart yet," Shikaku said meaningfully.
Combat power?
Shikamaru's eyes narrowed as realization dawned.
So that's how it was—the Heaven and Earth Battlefield incorporated combat power into its mechanics.
He recalled how each battle felt slightly different—damage dealt and damage taken fluctuated in subtle ways, depending on the opponent.
That wasn't like the Duel Arena at all.
Most players wouldn't notice, but Shikamaru was extremely sensitive to numerical variations.
With identical ninja, that kind of fixed-damage difference shouldn't exist—unless critical hits were excluded.
[98774]
That was Shikamaru's current combat power—almost breaking into six digits.
"When the storyline opens, just keep progressing. Do your daily squads, Prosperity, Point Battles, Survival, and Secret Realms—even if you lose, it doesn't matter," Shikaku said, standing up to leave.
Shikamaru glanced at his father's back, folded his hands behind his head, and lay back on the tatami with a sigh.
"So he came all the way here just to say that? Tch."
...
"We... we won!"
Inside the Hyūga heiress's room, Hinata wiped the thin layer of sweat from her forehead, finally letting out a breath of relief.
The Hyūga organization had won. Who the opponents were didn't matter—what mattered was that they'd won.
The Hyūga clan had many members, and thus, many organizations.
Hinata didn't know how the other groups had fared, but at least hers and her father's had both secured victory.
"Sister, I beat several opponents!" Hanabi threw herself into Hinata's arms.
"That's amazing, Hanabi," Hinata praised gently.
And she meant it—her younger sister, despite being smaller in age, possessed greater strength and even better skill in the Ninja Mobile Game.
Hinata didn't know whether to feel proud or a little sad.
Hanabi, oblivious to her sister's thoughts, lifted her head from Hinata's chest.
"Then Father will reward us, right?"
"We mustn't ask for rewards," Hinata said, patting her sister's head.
"As members of the Hyūga clan, this is our duty."
"Eh? Sister, you sound like one of the old men in the clan already."
Hanabi's teasing struck right at Hinata's heart.
She thought of her cousin Neji, who had refused to join the Hyūga organization and chose instead to stay with his teammates.
She didn't know whether he had won or not, but he was surely much happier than she was right now.
And Naruto...
When Naruto invited Team 8 to join his organization, Hinata hadn't received the message in time. She'd regretted it for days afterward.
But even if she hadn't been knocked out by that cup of coffee—would she really have had the courage to say yes?
A soft melancholy welled in her chest, her brows curving gently.
She couldn't help but think, If it were Naruto-kun, he definitely wouldn't be sulking like I am now.
...
"What?! How could we lose, damn it!"
Naruto slammed his phone down on the table, fury written all over his face.
No one in the room spoke.
Konohamaru and his two teammates looked utterly ashamed, wishing they could crawl into a hole. Teuchi and Ayame were just as awkward.
Sasuke remained silent, staring coldly at his phone, at the final leaderboard.
The [Uzumaki Naruto] organization had lost. The massive point gap in the Earth Battlefield couldn't be made up by the Heaven Battlefield.
For Naruto, it was like falling straight from heaven into hell.
"Dammit! I swore I'd win—to make them stop looking down on me!" Naruto clenched his fists, unwillingness burning in his eyes.
He had every right to be angry—his organization ranked second in total points, only behind Kakashi's.
Seeing the mood turning sour, Sakura forced a laugh.
"Um, the rules said it's once a week, right? Heaven and Earth opens every week—we still have plenty of chances."
"So what? You wanna lose every week?" Sasuke muttered, folding his arms and leaning against the wall with his eyes closed.
Sakura's smile froze. That wasn't good.
"Sorry, it's our fault," Konohamaru said suddenly, before running out with his head down.
Moegi and Udon bowed to the others and hurried after him.
"Ah, right... tomorrow's ramen still isn't prepped. I'd better head back," Teuchi scratched his head with an awkward smile.
"Dad," Ayame said, startled.
"Sorry, we'll be going."
Teuchi took her by the hand and left. In just a moment, all five Earth Battlefield members were gone.
Naruto stared at their retreating backs, hand half-raised, lips trembling, but he didn't know what to say.
In a moment of anger, he'd ruined the atmosphere.
At that point, Mikoto sighed softly and stood up, pulling both Sasuke and Naruto toward her.
"Tomorrow, you're going to apologize to them."
"Why? They were useless anyway!" Sasuke muttered, scowling.
"Without them, the Heaven and Earth Battlefield wouldn't even open. Or do you plan to go recruit new members yourself?" Mikoto shot back calmly.
Sasuke froze. Recruit? He couldn't possibly lower himself to do that.
Though, if he had, plenty of people would have flocked to join his organization in an instant.
"And you, Naruto," Mikoto turned to him. "Konohamaru and the others were your recruits. Losing is one thing, but taking it out on your teammates? That's not what a leader should do."
"...I understand," Naruto muttered quietly.
He didn't know why, but looking at Mikoto gave him a strange sense of blood-deep pressure—like being scolded by his own mother.
Even though... he'd never known what having a mother felt like.
"Naruto?!" Sasuke's eyes widened in shock. He'd never seen Naruto so obedient.
But with Mikoto's expression that serious, there was no room to bluff. He could only lower his head as well.
"Got it."
Beside them, Sakura smiled warmly.
So this was Sasuke's mother... Gentle, but firm—a perfect image of what a true mother should be.
"Excellent!" Kakashi suddenly clapped his hands, stepping forward with a bright grin.
"Apologizing to your comrades is one thing, but to grow stronger, Team 7 needs special training."
"Starting tomorrow—Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura—you'll each fight ten one-on-one matches against each other. Whoever wins the most gets to challenge me."
"This'll be a long-term challenge. There'll be rewards for winning."
"Are you confident?"
Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a grin.
"Yeah!!" x2