A vast, white world stretched infinitely in all directions.
Silent. Still. Empty.
Except for it.
A towering construct of intertwining light stood before Ren like the skeleton of a cosmic tree. Roots of shimmering threads spread beneath his feet, pulsing softly with every breath he took. Branches rose toward a pale sky, veins of energy branching and weaving like living circuitry.
A skill tree.
Ren's eyes widened as he stepped closer. Some branches shimmered faintly. Others were dim, dead, asleep.
But the center—
Floating in the very heart of the tree was a cracked, glowing pearl.
Purple. Pulsing. Breathing. Alive.
Ren felt his entire body stiffen.
"…The Hōgyoku?"
He recognized it instantly. He'd only watched Bleach up to the Soul Society arc and the first showdown with Aizen, but this thing was unforgettable—a mythical cheat, a reality-warping monstrosity in the shape of a jewel.
To see it here…
His hand moved instinctively, fingers reaching toward the pearl—
The world screamed.
[ACCESS DENIED]
A shockwave slammed into his chest, hurling his hand back. Ren staggered, clutching his ribs as invisible static shocked his fingertips.
"Argh—! Okay, okay, I get it! No touching."
He glared at the Hōgyoku. The cracks on its surface pulsed again, a rhythmic violet glow, as if mocking him.
"Great. I've got a cheat item I can't even use. Figures."
He forced himself to look away from the forbidden core and examine the tree itself. It was clearly divided. Three major branches extended from the trunk:
Quincy — glowing faintly, like a heartbeat. Shinigami — dark, covered in crystal-like seals. Hollow — dead silent, encased in pitch-black stone.
He approached the glowing one first.
The Quincy branch pulsed gently, tiny motes of white-blue reishi swirling around it. Skills were etched along the bark like fruit hanging from spectral branches:
Reishi ManipulationHirenkyakuReishi AbsorptionHeilig Pfeil
…and others, locked further up the dizzying height of the tree.
He touched the branch.
Warm. Responsive. It accepted him.
A tiny notification shimmered into view:
[Quincy: Base Compatibility — 32%][Skill Tree Partially Accessible]
Ren exhaled, relief trickling in. Okay. So this part I can use.
He turned toward the other two branches.
Shinigami. Hollow.
They looked dead. Not just sealed—dead.
The Shinigami branch was encased in jagged black crystal, as if petrified mid-growth. A faint purple aura—the Hōgyoku's aura—clung to it like tar.
Ren pressed his finger against the Shinigami crystal.
Nothing.
He pressed harder.
Still nothing.
Finally, he rested his palm on it—
A cold whisper brushed his ear: "Not yet."
Ren jerked his hand back, heart pounding.
"...Right. Definitely not touching that again."
So only Quincy was available. Shinigami and Hollow were sealed. The Hōgyoku was cracked, ominous, and locked away.
Ren took a slow breath, trying to organize the chaos in his mind.
"Think," he muttered to the empty void.
The memories of the outside world were stabilizing. He remembered the calendar in his house.
Konoha Year 35.
"If I remember correctly," Ren mused, pacing around the glowing roots, "Naruto canon doesn't even start until well after the Kyuubi attack in Year 48. The Fourth Great Ninja War is decades away."
He stopped pacing.
"And the Massacre... Itachi isn't even born yet. Sasuke is just a concept. The clan is still standing strong."
A wave of relief washed over him, far stronger than the fear. He wasn't helpless. He wasn't staring down the barrel of a gun. He had time.
"I was born into this world fifteen years ago," he realized, looking down at his hands. "But my adult consciousness... my soul... it was too strong for an infant's brain. That's why I was 'normal' Ren until now. The Tree sealed my memories to keep my head from exploding."
The seal had broken tonight. The emotional trigger of seeing his parents, the fear of the future—it had cracked the dam.
"I have fifteen, maybe twenty years before the Uchiha are doomed," Ren said, his voice hardening. "And I have standard cheats for a transmigrator."
He looked back at the Quincy branch. The power to manipulate spiritual energy. The power of the destroyers.
"I can become strong enough. Strong enough to protect my mother. Strong enough to stop Itachi, or Danzō, or whoever comes for us."
He reached toward the Quincy branch again, no longer hesitant.
"Let's begin."
The moment his fingers brushed the glowing bark—
White light exploded outward.
The world shattered like glass