"It was that fast?"
Shinichi's heart skipped a beat. After all, the generation of the [Sword Apprentice] trait hadn't happened overnight.
That came only after he joined the kendo hall and spent months casually mentioning and demonstrating his training results during conversations at the orphanage, the blacksmith shop, and the restaurant, gradually solidifying that perception.
Yet this [Ninja Academy Student] trait—how long did that take?
It generated the moment he finished the enrollment procedures.
Shinichi's thoughts raced.
The key difference perhaps lay in the perceiver.
Today, a crowd had gathered at the school gate—parents, teachers, new students—the base number was already significant.
But more importantly, it was the "weight" of the individuals among them.
Kakashi was present.
His father, the Konoha White Fang who shook the ninja world—Sakumo Hatake—was also present.
Even...
Shinichi recalled that when he arrived at the school and quickly scanned the Hatake father and son, the White Fang, who had been observing him, suddenly glanced upward.
Yes, the Third Hokage. That ninja, accustomed to using the "Telescope Technique" to look down upon Konoha Village, was very likely watching the events of the opening day as well.
For these figures standing at the apex of the ninja world or Konoha, their perception and gaze—even if only for a fleeting instant and without much thought—carried an influence far beyond that of ordinary people!
The speed of trait generation was indeed closely tied to the "strength and status of the perceiver."
Shinichi's gaze fell upon the two Profession traits coexisting on the panel: [Sword Apprentice] and [Ninja Academy Student].
As Shinichi had previously surmised, before a Profession trait could be generated through "perception," one first needed to be "acknowledged" and "accepted" by a specific system, tradition, or authority.
Although his swordsmanship instructor, Yamashita Shuji, had settled in Konoha early on, he was originally from the Land of Iron and was a formal samurai. He represented a heritage of "Samurai" and "Kendo" even older than the ninja system.
Gaining his approval and entering his tutelage was equivalent to receiving official endorsement for the "Swordsman" profession within that system.
As for the Konoha Ninja Academy, it was the orthodox official starting point for nurturing ninjas, recognized by the entire village and indeed the entire ninja world. The moment he completed enrollment and formally entered the school, he was inducted into the lowest tier of the grand professional system known as "Ninja," obtaining the most basic official certification of identity.
"Then why didn't blacksmith or chef work?"
A new question arose in Shinichi's mind. Blacksmithing and cooking were also stable, inherited professional systems, predating ninjas by a long time.
Was it that the system required a heritage involving supernatural powers, or specifically the application of chakra, to form a corresponding profession?
Yet, as far as he knew, the ninja world did indeed have "Artisan Ninjas" and "Cooking Ninjas" who utilized chakra for forging and cooking.
"Is it because I haven't received recognition from a corresponding authority? Or is it..."
His gaze narrowed slightly as he grasped a key difference. His train of thought cleared, but Shinichi did not delve deeper; there were more practical matters at hand.
The answer might be revealed when he entered the Konoha Hospital to formally study pharmacology, medicine, and medical ninjutsu.
He walked out of the school gates, hoisted that conspicuous giant boulder onto his back once more, and began his weighted run around Konoha. The heavy sound of his footsteps once again struck the ground, drawing gazes filled with curiosity or surprise along the way.
"I must level up as soon as possible."
As he ran, his mind swept over the column of white trait on his personal panel: [Diligence (White)], [Robust (White)]. They were the results of years of effort and the foundation for leveraging greater power in the future. Every drop of sweat, every time he pushed past his limits under the gaze of others, served to consolidate and strengthen these impressions.
An hour later, an exhausted Shinichi returned to his new residence.
A week ago, he had moved out of the orphanage and rented this slightly dilapidated small apartment.
Moving out was not just for the sake of convenience; it meant the stage for "crafting his persona" had officially expanded—from the vicinity of the orphanage to the area surrounding the Ninja Academy, eventually radiating throughout the entire Konoha Village.
Closing the door to shut out the outside world, he leaned against the wall to slowly steady his breathing. The calm expression he had deliberately maintained finally relaxed, revealing his true fatigue, though his eyes remained clear.
Shinichi walked into the cramped kitchen. He had years of cooking experience in his past life, and in this life, he had helped in the orphanage kitchen from an early age. Combined with a solid year of part-time work at a restaurant later on, he possessed impressive and professional culinary skills.
He handled the ingredients efficiently, and before long, the aroma of a simple meal filled the air.
Sitting at the table with his bowl, Shinichi ate quickly, yet his body seemed to instinctively know how to more fully and efficiently extract every bit of heat and nutrition from the food.
By the end of the meal, although it had been brief, his overdrawn stamina had actually recovered somewhat, and even his mental weariness had abated significantly.
[Glutton (White): You possess an enthusiasm and appreciation for food beyond the ordinary. You can absorb nutrients from food more efficiently and derive a slight amount of extra satisfaction and energy recovery from it.]
That night, after returning from another round of training, Shinichi washed up carefully, changed into clean clothes, and then turned his attention back to the personal panel deep within his consciousness.
His gaze fell upon the [Draw Attempts] column.
[Draw Attempts: 1 (White)]
The generation of a Profession trait, in addition to granting training buffs related to that profession, also rewarded an extra opportunity to draw a completely random Talent trait, independent of external perception.
Two months ago, when the [Sword Apprentice] trait coalesced, he had obtained his first draw opportunity, from which he received the "Calm" trait .
[Calm (White): When encountering crises, battles, or sudden situations, it is easier for you to calm down, thereby allowing you to think of countermeasures without external interference.]
Shinichi's feelings about this result at the time were somewhat complex. The value of the trait itself was undeniable; being able to remain composed and think clearly during a crisis was an extremely important quality for a ninja.
However, he believed he could have generated this trait simply by crafting his persona.
It was just that he had too little time. Earlier, in order to grind out traits like [Diligence], [Robust], [Tenacity], and [Agility] as quickly as possible, he had been forced to engage in behaviors that felt erratic, or even worrying to others.
This was especially true for [Tenacity]. To generate this trait quickly, he had even positioned himself at the entrance of the street to take beatings, just so more people would see and form an impression. Such overly eccentric behavior naturally did not align with a "Calm" persona.
And now, the second draw opportunity had arrived, sourced from this morning's [Ninja Academy Student] trait.
"What will I draw this time?"
Shinichi took a deep breath, calming his slightly accelerated heartbeat, and focused his mind on the faintly glowing text: "1 (White)."
There were no flashy special effects, nor was there a long wait.
As if a faint ripple had merely brushed across his vision, the text on the panel changed.
[Draw Attempts: 0 (White)]
And in the Talent trait column, following closely after [Calm (White)], a new line of text quietly emerged amidst a white glow.