Kushina had always been a fast cook. After Tsunade returned, it took less than fifteen minutes for a table full of delicious and aromatic dishes to be served.
Kei undid the genjutsu on Kakashi.
As Kakashi regained consciousness, there were still traces of tears at the corners of his eyes. Seeing everyone staring at him, he, who prided himself on being a mature young man, turned his head away to wipe his tears, adjusted his emotions, and took a seat at the lower end of the table.
"How are you feeling?" Kei asked about his condition.
"I'm fine. Thank you for your trouble." Kakashi paused his meal, sat up straight, and answered respectfully.
"Not bad, not bad. If you maintain this attitude, I'm sure your interpersonal relationships will greatly improve."
Kei nodded in satisfaction, signaling Kakashi not to be so restrained and to just eat.
"Thank you for your concern." Kakashi nodded, picking up his bowl and chopsticks again.
Tsunade, who was scarfing down her meal, furrowed her brows and looked up at Kakashi, who had resumed eating.
Kushina, on the side, cast a questioning glance at Kei. Although this kid had always been polite, phrases like "thank you for your trouble," "much obliged," and "appreciate your concern" had never come out of his mouth before.
Genjutsu therapy… Could it really be this effective?
After speaking, even Kakashi himself felt that his words didn't quite sound like something he would say. But recalling the vocabulary drilled into him during the genjutsu, he subconsciously attributed the change to the effects of the therapy.
Maybe… Pain really did make memories more profound?
This is just the beginning, Kei thought to himself, noticing the strange looks from Tsunade and Kushina.
This is Kakashi before he even met Obito, the ultimate chatterbox. Imagining the future, where Obito would ramble non-stop and Kakashi would dutifully respond to every single sentence, never letting a word go unanswered... He could barely hold back his laughter.
Giving Kakashi [Master of Banter] was truly a wise decision. Minato and Rin would definitely be pleased!
After an enjoyable lunch,
Kei, without hesitation, subjected Kakashi to another round of genjutsu training.
Kushina cleaned up the dishes and went to the kitchen to wash them. Tsunade, stuffed full, lay back on the couch like a heavily pregnant woman, clutching her stomach.
"Kei~ I am already in position. Hurry up and get started!"
"..."
Kei, who had just finished dealing with Kakashi and was sipping on post-meal tea, nearly spat it out upon hearing that.
What kind of scandalous words were these?!
You may not care about your reputation, but I care about mine!
Despite his internal complaints,
Kei still used the genjutsu on Tsunade, sending her off to the gambling paradise she had been longing for.
"Hahaha! I'm back, baby! Dealer, your luck's looking good! Twenty points? Too bad, I have twenty-one! I win everything!"
"You think you can out-gamble me? Are you even qualified?"
"Three consecutive wins! Nobody's getting away today! Hahahaha!"
Tsunade, lying on the couch, kicked and flailed wildly, shouting with excitement.
Kushina peeked over and nearly burst out laughing at how Tsunade was close to rolling off the couch.
She exchanged glances with Kei, her sparkling eyes curling into crescents as she recalled what happened the last time Tsunade was caught in a genjutsu.
System, alright, let's use the "Trait Upgrade (Green, Random)" now.
Kei was in a great mood.
With a flick of his toe, he nudged Tsunade's body back onto the couch before she could roll off.
Then, he turned his gaze to the system interface.
The previous green [Upgraded Expired Milk] had been upgraded to the blue [Medicated Milk], and [Master of Banter] had been assigned.
Now, out of the three green traits, only [Fate Alteration Apprentice] remained.
A 100% success rate!
Guaranteed!
---
[Upgraded Fate Alteration Apprentice (Green) into Fate Weaver (Blue)]
[Fate Weaver (Blue):
The fate of the living is turbulent, while the fate of the deceased shines like a meteor. Life is unpredictable, and destiny is ever-changing. By actively interfering with and altering others' destinies, one can absorb a small amount of the stray, ownerless fate energy that dissipates when a person's fate undergoes a significant change, thereby enhancing one's own luck. Within a ten-meter radius, can observe the depth of others' fortune.]
---
So "tiny" became "small," and now I can gauge luck too?
Kei raised an eyebrow, quite satisfied with the enhanced trait.
Don't underestimate the difference a single word can make.
Was a 1% probability the same as a 10% probability?
His gaze shifted to Tsunade and Kakashi. Using [Fate Weaver], he could clearly see both of them shrouded in deep purple luck energy.
As the future Fifth and Sixth Hokage in the original story, it was no surprise that they possessed strong luck energy, given their crucial roles in advancing the main plot.
However… this ability didn't seem all that useful to him.
Thanks to [Memory Master of the Shinobi World], he already remembered the entire Naruto storyline perfectly. If he encountered a canon character, he could just check his memory palace rather than relying on this observation ability.
As for characters who didn't appear in the original…
Wait… what the @#￥%*&… WHY AM I GREEN?!
Kei looked down at himself, radiating an unmistakable green glow. He nearly had a breakdown.
Luck and fate were not the same thing. They were connected, but completely different concepts. People with strong luck usually had decent fates—unless they were outliers like Tsunade, cursed with a negative luck trait.
So…
No matter how strong I am, I'm still just an unlucky scrub?
Kei gritted his teeth, eyes darting between Tsunade and Kakashi.
To change his luck from bad to good, he needed to alter someone else's fate. The more fate energy someone carried, the more excess fate energy would be released when their destiny was altered. And the more fate energy he absorbed through [Fate Weaver], the better his own luck would become.
Not only that, the system rewards were largely based on how much the altered fate affected the worldline.
If he managed to change their destinies… Forget about just boosting his luck, the system rewards alone would make him filthy rich!
But these two…
Where should I start?
Kei tapped his index finger against the couch's armrest. If he cured Tsunade's hemophobia early and got her to take the Hokage seat sooner… It would be a significant change, but not an earth-shattering one. The system would probably reward him, but not that much.
The same logic applied to Kakashi.
It's not like he could just kill them both for a bigger system payout! This wasn't some game where you could casually eliminate an NPC without any emotional weight.
He wasn't some Paradox Interactive strategy game player. No matter how tempting the reward, he wasn't insane enough to go that far.
Knock, knock, knock—
A sudden knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.
Kei set aside his wild ideas and got up to open it. A masked ninja in standard ANBU gear knelt on one knee, presenting a scroll.
"Root?"
Kei raised an eyebrow and asked in a low voice.
"Yes! Kei-sama, I am the captain of the second squad."
The Root ninja nodded stiffly. His tone was rigid, yet still carried an unmistakable sense of respect and reverence.
"This is the first time I've seen you guys being so polite."
Kei took the scroll from his hands and unrolled it.
A quick glance confirmed that the official appointment matched what the ANBU captain had previously told him.
He looked back at the Root ninja and said, "Go back and report. Tell Danzō that I'll report in tomorrow."
"Yes."
The Root ninja bowed his head, then vanished into thin air.
Since Tsunade and Kakashi are too tricky to start with... Looks like it's your turn.
Kei's lips curled into a smirk.
Just when he needed a new target, Danzō conveniently showed up on his doorstep. If he didn't mess with Konoha's "Darkness," then who would he mess with?
What else could he say?
Long live Danzō!