章 104: System Mission #2
Haruto relaxed into the ice bath, letting the cold water numb his bruised muscles. It had been a grueling week of training, and despite his Tier 2 stamina, bruises still covered his body from head to toe. The ice bath was essential at this point. He had crafted a simple seal to negate heat in the box, creating a makeshift cold bath that sped up his recovery. For a moment, he allowed himself to sink into the relief it brought, his mind wandering away from the exhaustion of training.
But then, out of nowhere, he felt it—the system was activating.
Wait… what?
His body tensed, eyes snapping open. It hadn't been more than two weeks since he graduated. He still had a couple of weeks before he expected to receive his next reward. Why was the system activating now?
Mission: Thoroughly Offend Danzo or Orochimaru within the year.
Penalty: No system rewards for 2 years.
Reward: Silver reward.
Haruto's brain froze as he read the message.
"Thoroughly offend Danzo or Orochimaru?" His voice echoed in the small room. What the hell?
He bolted upright in the ice bath, water sloshing over the sides as his heart began to race. Danzo and Orochimaru. Two of the most dangerous men in Konoha. Offending either of them was a death sentence. His mind flooded with terrifying images—Danzo's shadowy ROOT agents dragging him away, or worse, Orochimaru experimenting on him in some twisted underground lab.
"Fuck me," Haruto cursed, his heart pounding in his chest.
The penalty was no less terrifying. Two years without system rewards? That wasn't just inconvenient—it would stall his progress completely. Haruto had relied on the system to enhance his growth, to give him an edge over everyone else. Two years without rewards would cripple him. And the reward for all this? Only a silver reward? He expected more for something this dangerous.
For a few moments, Haruto could do nothing but stare blankly at the air in front of him. Why would the system give me this mission? His mind spun with a mix of panic and disbelief. There was no way he could just walk up to Danzo or Orochimaru and offend them. Not directly. That would be suicide.
His fists clenched, his mind racing with a million worst-case scenarios. This mission was beyond anything he had prepared for. Danzo and Orochimaru—two powerful figures, both capable of wiping him out if he stepped even slightly out of line. And yet, the system was demanding that he do exactly that.
"This is insane," he whispered, his heart still hammering in his chest. Why? Why is the system doing this?
Realizing he was spiraling into panic, Haruto took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He wasn't going to get anywhere by freaking out. He closed his eyes, slowly merging his Two Minds into one, entering his hyper-focused state. Focus. Think.
Everything around him faded as his hyper-focus took over. The numbing cold of the ice bath, the sound of dripping water—all of it became background noise as his mind zeroed in on the problem. Why this mission? Why these two people?
The system never gives random tasks, he reminded himself. There's always a purpose.
And slowly, he began piecing it together. The system was pushing him. It was forcing him to get involved in something bigger than just training. He'd been content to focus on his growth, to stay in the background, but this mission was forcing him out of his comfort zone. The system wants me to get involved in Konoha's dynamics, he realized. It's pushing me to make a move, to take a side.
It wasn't just about offending Danzo or Orochimaru. It was about picking a side in the village's shifting power structure. Danzo and Orochimaru were key players in Konoha's future, and if the system was pushing him to offend one of them, it was because he needed to stop hiding from the political forces shaping the village.
But how?
Haruto's mind worked furiously as he analyzed the problem from every angle. The mission didn't specify that he had to confront them directly. He didn't need to walk up to them and shout insults to their faces. No, the wording was clear: Thoroughly offend them. There were ways to do that without ever being in the same room.
Maybe it was about choosing sides. Danzo represented control, manipulation, and a harsh vision for Konoha's future. Orochimaru was driven by power and his own dark experiments. Opposing one of them didn't have to mean direct confrontation—it could mean supporting the people who stood against their ambitions. Perhaps siding with Tsunade, someone with values opposed to Danzo's, could be enough. Maybe it was about aligning with the right people, making strategic moves that opposed their interests.
Haruto smirked, remembering the saying, "The pen is mightier than the sword." He didn't need to fight them directly. Sometimes the greatest offenses were made with words, with influence, not force. Perhaps the system was pushing him to navigate the political landscape of Konoha, to make subtle moves that would put him in opposition to their plans.
As his mind dove deeper into strategies and possibilities, Haruto completely lost awareness of his surroundings. The ice bath had gone from cold to near unbearable, but he didn't notice. His focus was entirely on the mission and how to fulfill it.
It's not about brute force. It's about influence, he thought. I don't need to walk up to Danzo or Orochimaru and pick a fight. I just need to stand in their way.
Power of the pen. The right alliances, the right actions—it could be enough to thoroughly offend them without ever throwing a punch.
Haruto's mind raced through scenarios, piecing together how he could maneuver through Konoha's shifting dynamics. He would need to be careful, but this wasn't an impossible mission. The system wasn't setting him up for failure—it was pushing him to engage with the forces shaping the village.
Suddenly, his awareness snapped back into place. His body shivered violently as the cold water bit into his skin. Shit, he thought, realizing he'd been sitting in the ice bath far too long. His skin had gone pale, and his limbs felt numb. He climbed out of the tub, gripping the edge for support as his legs shook from the cold.
Wrapping a towel around himself, Haruto breathed out slowly, his mind still buzzing. The system had made its intentions clear: no more hiding. He couldn't turtle his way through this. Konoha's future was being shaped right in front of him, and whether he liked it or not, he was going to be part of it.
"Power of the pen, huh?" Haruto murmured to himself, shaking off the chill. "Guess it's time to start writing my own chapter."
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