Hidden Mist Village, Yuki Clan.
"Brother! Brother!"
A young girl with a sweet and delicate appearance ran toward him, her face glowing with excitement as she closed the distance in a few quick steps.
"What is it, Haku?" the young man asked, smiling gently as he looked at his clan sister.
"I–I think I awakened our clan's ability!" Haku said, her cheeks flushed red, her eyes wide with barely contained excitement.
"You awakened it? The Ice Release Kekkei Genkai?"
Haku nodded vigorously. "Yes! Look, brother!"
She softly extended her small hand, carefully refined her chakra, and released it. In the next instant, a tiny sphere of ice formed in her palm,clear as crystal, piercingly cold, radiating a faint chill into the surrounding air.
The young man felt a complex surge of emotions, but he forced a smile nonetheless. Reaching out, he gently patted Haku's head. "Haku, you're amazing."
Her face turned even redder, joy overflowing from her expression. "Thank you! Brother Chiba, you'll definitely awaken your ability too!"
The young man named Chiba let out a faint, bitter smile. He was not originally from this world,he had transmigrated here. But unlike most transmigrators who seemed to gather in Konoha, he had arrived in the Hidden Mist Village, and worse, as a member of the Yuki Clan, a clan capable of awakening the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai. On top of that, he had become the older brother of Yuki Haku.
What shocked Chiba most was that, in this world, Yuki Haku was truly a girl,and she was extremely close to him. Looking at her flushed, excited face, he genuinely felt happy for her. Yet when his thoughts drifted to the fate awaiting the Yuki Clan, that happiness could not fully take shape.
Where was this place? The Hidden Mist Village. And what era was this? The era of the Bloody Mist,the darkest, bloodiest, and most brutal period among the Five Great Ninja Nations. After the Yondaime Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, fell under the genjutsu control of Uchiha Obito, the Hidden Mist descended even further into madness. Ninjas slaughtered one another, uprisings were constant, and the village became closed and oppressive to the outside world while its internal terror surpassed imagination.
Countless ninjas defected, while those who remained were dragged into endless internal conflicts and frequent coups. Above all, the Hidden Mist feared and despised those who possessed Kekkei Genkai,and it was precisely for this reason that the Yuki Clan would eventually be wiped out.
"Power… in the end, power is still necessary," Chiba thought. "In a village like this, in a world like this, only strength can solve anything."
Haku looked up at him, puzzled. "Brother Chiba, why do you look unhappy?"
Chiba smiled faintly and ruffled her long, soft black hair. "It's nothing. Go play, Haku."
"Okay!" Haku replied cheerfully, running off with carefree innocence, eager to boast to her mother about awakening Ice Release.
Chiba watched her retreating figure and sighed. He wanted to protect that adorable sister, to protect the entire Yuki Clan,but unfortunately, he lacked the power to do so.
At that moment, a mechanical sound echoed in his mind.
Ding!
"Congratulations, Host. The Deduction System has been successfully awakened."
Chiba froze for a moment before overwhelming joy surged through him. His cheat had finally arrived.
"System, explain your abilities."
"As the name suggests, this system can deduce and develop any ability possessed by the host to its ultimate limit. Naturally, the final ceiling depends on the host's creativity and cultivation."
Chiba nodded slowly. "So it's a Deduction System… As long as I possess an ability, I can push it to the extreme,though I still need to actively cooperate in its development."
A confident smile appeared on his face. "In this world, who could possibly surpass me in development potential?"
He was not boasting. He possessed deep knowledge of every ability in the ninja world,and even abilities from countless other worlds. In terms of imagination, creativity, and deduction, he truly had no equal.
"As the host has just awakened the system, a Beginner's Gift Pack has been granted. Would you like to receive it now?"
Chiba's heart stirred. A beginner's gift,what kind of reward would it be?
"Yes. Receive it now."
"Congratulations, Host. Beginner's Gift Pack opened successfully."
"Congratulations, Host. Ice Release Kekkei Genkai awakened!"
"Congratulations, Host. You have obtained a Devil Fruit: the Ice-Ice Fruit (Logia)!"
Chiba stood frozen for a brief moment before bursting into ecstasy. This beginner's gift was outrageously powerful. Not only had it awakened Ice Release, it had even granted him the Ice-Ice Fruit,the power once wielded by Aokiji, one of the greatest Admirals of the One Piece world. A fruit that allowed complete elemental transformation, immunity to nearly all physical attacks, and absolute freezing power capable of annihilating any enemy. Once fully awakened, it could permanently alter terrain and climate,freezing entire oceans with a single Ice Age.
Compared to this, the Yuki Clan's Ice Release was insignificant. Even Haku, in the future, would only reach mid-chūnin level at best. With the Ice-Ice Fruit, the Deduction System, and his own unparalleled development ability, this ninja world would be nothing more than something to trample underfoot.
With a thought, the Ice-Ice Fruit appeared in his palm. Without hesitation, he took a bite.
"Puh!"
"This tastes awful!"
Chiba froze for a brief moment, then a surge of wild exhilaration rushed through him. Wasn't this beginner's gift far too powerful? Not only had it awakened his Ice Release Kekkei Genkai, it had also granted him the Ice-Ice Fruit. This was the power once wielded by Aokiji, one of the Navy's highest combat forces in the One Piece world,a power that allowed complete elemental transformation, granting near-total immunity to physical attacks and the ability to freeze and shatter any enemy through absolute cold alone.
The unbearably foul taste still exploded across his tongue, making his expression twitch. Fortunately, a Devil Fruit only required a single bite to take effect; after that, no matter who consumed the rest, it would be useless. With that thought, Chiba casually tossed the remaining Ice-Ice Fruit into the system space, no longer giving it a second glance.
At that moment, he suddenly felt a profound change within his body.
"Hm?"
It was as if all one hundred and thirty trillion cells in his body were stirring at once. An unfamiliar, bone-chilling cold seeped outward from deep within his flesh, spreading through his limbs and veins. Chiba exhaled lightly, and the moisture in the surrounding air instantly condensed, crackling with sharp, icy sounds as frost bloomed visibly in front of him.
With a casual wave of his hand, he released the cold outward. In an instant, the fallen leaves and wild grass around him froze solid, merging together as if sculpted by an invisible hand, forming a crystal-clear, razor-sharp blade of ice.
The Ice-Ice Fruit ability,Ice Blade.
Gripping the frozen weapon, Chiba swung downward in a decisive arc.
Crack!
A small tree ahead of him was cleanly severed at the waist, the cut smooth and precise.
"So sharp… so powerful!" Chiba murmured, joy surging through him.
Calming his breathing, he began manipulating the Ice-Ice Fruit's power further. It was time for his first attempt at elementalization. With a mere thought, half of his body transformed into solid ice, crystalline and flawless. In this state, any physical attack was utterly meaningless,even if his body were pierced through or shattered, it would instantly regenerate and restore itself.
This was exactly how Admiral Aokiji had fought during the Summit War, enduring even Whitebeard's overwhelming assaults.
Another thought crossed Chiba's mind, and his body returned smoothly to its original form. A faint, confident smile curved his lips. Among all Devil Fruits, the greatest advantage of a Logia in the ninja world was elemental transformation itself. With this power, he was immune to most forms of physical damage,and ninjas, by nature, possessed terrifying offensive power but notoriously fragile defenses. Even someone as powerful as Uchiha Madara could be slain by Senju Hashirama's blade.
But now, Chiba's defensive capability and margin for error had already surpassed nearly every ninja alive.
Beyond that, he could clearly sense another awakening within him,the stirring of the Yuki Clan's bloodline. A Kekkei Genkai: Ice Release. Though in terms of raw, ultimate power it still fell short of the Ice-Ice Fruit, Ice Release possessed its own unique advantages. It could be used to perform secret techniques exclusive to the ninja world and could be combined with other forms of ninjutsu to dramatically amplify their effectiveness.
More importantly, Chiba could now fully merge Ice Release with the Ice-Ice Fruit, developing both simultaneously and pushing them toward their absolute limits. When that happened, just how terrifying the final result would be was impossible to imagine.
"System, display my current status."
A soft chime echoed in Chiba's mind as a translucent panel unfolded before his eyes, lines of information cascading down with mechanical precision.
Name: Yuki Chiba
Age: Fifteen
Identity: Genin of the Hidden Mist Village, member of the Yuki Clan
Abilities:
Three Basic Techniques LV10 (100,000 / 100,000) , Maxed
Shuriken Technique LV8 (29,402 / 80,000)
Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique LV3 (4,215 / 30,000)
…
Ice Release Kekkei Genkai LV1 (1 / 10,000)
Hie Hie no Mi (Logia) LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Natural Elementalization LV5 (100 / 50,000)
Ice Saber LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Ice Ball LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Ice Time Capsule LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Ice Block: Partisan LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Ice Block: Pheasant Beak LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Ice Age LV1 (100 / 10,000)
Points: 0
Chiba studied the panel quietly, then nodded in satisfaction. Before awakening Ice Release, he had trained relentlessly in every other aspect available to him. The Three Basic Techniques, shurikenjutsu, and the Water Release techniques mandatory for shinobi of the Land of Water had all been pushed to remarkably high levels through sheer persistence.
Now, although both Ice Release and the Hie Hie no Mi were still only at level one, their potential alone was enough to place him far beyond ordinary standards. He had already grasped the fundamentals of the Devil Fruit's abilities, even if this was still only a beginner's stage,nowhere near Kuzan's terrifying feats of freezing entire seas in an instant.
But Chiba possessed the Deduction System.
And with it, the ceiling of his growth was no longer comparable to that of anyone else.
As for the points displayed at the bottom of the panel, their purpose was obvious. They could be obtained through combat or special tasks, then used to strengthen abilities, converted into deduction points for deeper development, or even spent to unlock the system shop and draw even more powerful abilities.
Chiba closed the system interface, a confident smile slowly forming on his face. Although he was still officially only a genin, his true strength had already surpassed that of ordinary jōnin. If a real battle were to break out, relying solely on the Logia properties of the Hie Hie no Mi, even elite jōnin would struggle to put him down.
At last, he had obtained the power to rise in this world.
Just then, Chiba noticed Haku running toward him once more, skipping lightly across the ground. Beside her walked another woman,Yuki Yuki, Haku's mother. Haku's face was glowing with excitement as she waved enthusiastically.
"Brother Chiba! I told Mom that I awakened Ice Release!" she said proudly.
Yuki Yuki's expression, however, was complicated. Chiba understood her concern instantly. The Hidden Mist Village had always suppressed bloodline clans and Kekkei Genkai users, and Haku awakening her power in this era was not necessarily a blessing.
Looking at the beautiful mother and daughter before him, Chiba sighed inwardly. No wonder Haku was so snow-pure and delicately beautiful,she had clearly inherited her mother's looks. Haku was still a child, but Yuki Yuki carried the quiet elegance of a mature woman, her figure and features refined and graceful.
"Chiba…" Yuki Yuki asked hesitantly, worry evident in her eyes. "Haku awakening Ice Release… is that really a good thing?"
Chiba smiled calmly.
"What a coincidence," he replied. "I woke up today as well."
He extended his hand, and a perfectly formed Ice Ball condensed in his palm, clear, crystalline, and radiating a bone-deep cold.
In that instant, both mother and daughter froze in shock.