17 - The White Trait's Cruel Joke
Kei marked the coordinates of his exclusive space.
Feeling pleased, he once again examined his personal panel.
[Spatial Insight]!
Once he fully mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, he would be unstoppable. We would be able to attack and retreat at will, engage in combat, escape, support allies, or break through enemy lines.
His survival ability would skyrocket.
Why worry about the Third Great Ninja War now?
"If I could get another chance to copy an ability, duplicating [Ultra-Fast Reactions] would be even better," he muttered to himself, feeling unsatisfied.
Noticing he still had one more chance to extract a trait, he casually clicked to draw.
---
[Obtained:
- Why Are You Gae? (White)]
[Why Are You Gae? (White):
♂ Upon acquiring this trait, interest in ♀ decreases over time, while attention toward male peers continuously increases. The effect strengthens the longer one interacts with ♂, ultimately leading to a strong attraction.]
---
...???
This damn system.
When it came to being disappointing, it never failed to deliver.
Kei's mouth twitched.
One moment, he was fantasizing about [Ultra-Fast Reactions], and the next... this?!
This?!
Sure, he knew white-tier traits had the highest probability of appearing. But this wasn't just a matter of bad luck—it was downright cruel!
"Kei? Did you overuse your chakra?"
Hearing Minato's concerned voice, he looked up, surprised to see his friend observing him with a worried expression, so he quickly walked over from the window.
"I'm fine. I need you to have the toads deliver this intelligence scroll."
Taking a deep breath, Kei handed Minato a scroll filled with valuable information, though it contained some personal additions.
It was still accurate intelligence, just framed with a different emphasis.
"Alright. Rest a bit. Don't push yourself too hard," Minato reminded him as he took the scroll. Then, he pulled out a small tube identical to Kei's.
He dipped his finger in fresh blood and activated the Summoning Jutsu.
There was no other choice.
Ever since he saw Kei using this method, he had realized how foolish it was to keep injuring his own finger for summoning.
After suffering through it several times, he asked Kushina to make him a blood-storage tube inscribed with sealing formulas.
The seals kept the blood fresh for an extended period. As long as it wasn't opened frequently, it could be stored for a year without any issues.
Poof!
As the summoning smoke cleared, a red-colored toad wearing goggles appeared in the room. It wasn't too large—one of the communication toads.
"Yo~ Minato, good evening! Jiraiya just dropped by Mount Myōboku as a guest. Fukasaku and Shima made a big feast—wanna come?" The toad, Kōsuke, greeted Minato cheerfully with a raised palm.
"Hmm? Where did Jiraiya-sensei get reverse-summoned from?" Minato paused, quickly asking for details.
"From Konoha. He went back yesterday but didn't see you—said it was a pity." Kōsuke mimicked Jiraiya's expression and tone with exaggerated gestures.
"In that case, please deliver this scroll directly to Jiraiya-sensei. Let him know..."
A gentle smile appeared on Minato's face.
Normally, the toads of Mount Myōboku used a special portal called Distant Body Water to deliver messages to Konoha.
This mystical liquid allowed small toads to travel swiftly through underground water veins, making it an essential part of Mount Myōboku's information network.
With it, the toads could transmit messages far faster than messenger hawks, delivering intelligence to Konoha in under an hour.
But if Jiraiya had been reverse-summoned from Konoha to Mount Myōboku, then dispelling the summoning would allow him to return instantly.
Not just within an hour—less than a minute.
"Minato, you should head to Mount Myōboku directly. Have Jiraiya-sama deliver this to the analysis team, and while you're at it, transfer these two through the toads back to Konoha as well."
Kei pulled out a scroll containing the sealed heads of Kiri ninja and shoved it into Minato's arms.
"Uh... actually..."
Minato's face turned slightly green at the thought of Fukasaku and Shima's so-called "feast." But glancing at the two severely injured captives nearby, he let out a soft sigh.
Even though Kei had read their memories, time constraints meant he had only extracted part of the information. These two still held valuable intelligence.
If they weren't transferred through Mount Myōboku, the only other way to maintain secrecy would be to eliminate them on the spot which was a waste of potential intel.
"I get it. You're actually looking forward to Mount Myōboku's grand feast, aren't you? Go on, I can handle things here alone!"
With a beaming smile, Kei flashed a Might Guy-style thumbs-up.
That bright, enthusiastic grin almost made Minato lose his composure.
Too cruel.
Way too cruel!
He knew Minato wouldn't dare complain about Mount Myōboku's food in front of the toads.
But he really didn't want to eat bugs! Those were insects, for crying out loud!
"So you have been looking forward to it? I'll go tell Shima-sama right away~" Kōsuke cheerfully responded, not even giving Minato a chance to protest before vanishing in a puff of smoke back to Mount Myōboku.
"Wait, no—" Minato stood there, frozen, his hand half-raised in protest.
What did he even say?!
Nothing!
"Hold onto that scroll. And make sure to eat well and drink plenty," Kei said with a grin, waving him off with a look of pure amusement.
"I... sigh..."
Minato let out a deep sigh, resigned to his fate as he summoned Gama, a massive toad that took up most of the room.
The toad swallowed the two wounded captives whole before disappearing with a released summoning, taking them straight to Mount Myōboku.
Before Minato could say anything else, the sensation of a reverse summoning took hold.
With a pained expression, he took several deep breaths, preparing himself mentally.
At least Jiraiya would be there with him.
Clenching his teeth, he agreed to the summoning.
Poof!
As Minato disappeared from sight, Kei smirked before eagerly turning his attention back to testing the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Following the method he had learned from the scroll, he closed his eyes, attuning himself to the power of space and guiding his chakra to merge with it.
Moments later, he pressed his palm against the outer surface of a nearby teacup.
A circular marking appeared on the cup. It was a cross with arms bent at right angles, each arm rotating 90 degrees in a clockwise direction. The symbol was symmetrical, with arms of equal length rotating from a central point.
Compared to Minato's space-time coordinates, this marking felt far more distinct, the spatial connection much clearer.
His lips curled into a satisfied smile.
But the longer he stared at it, the more he felt something was off.
This marking...
"Dammit! Isn't it ... I need to change the design!"