[Congratulations, Host, for acquiring the Blue-Tier Skill 'Silent Walker,' the Green-Tier Trait 'Straight Man Expert,' and the Gray-Ranked Trait 'Complete Childhood.']
"Huh?!"
Kei Yamanaka instantly brightened upon hearing the system notification.
He immediately focused on viewing the detailed descriptions of the three traits.
**Silent Walker (Blue):** One who walks beneath the cover of night and hides within shadows, silent and traceless. Enhances abilities in hiding aura, stealth, camouflage, and movement speed while reducing detection probability from sensor ninjutsu.
**Straight Man Expert (Green):** A professional straight man never lets words fall to the ground. Slightly improves eloquence and debating skills during conversations; slightly enhances flattery, praise, and sycophantic abilities when talking with superiors; slightly improves encouragement, complimenting, and consoling techniques when speaking with subordinates.
**Complete Childhood (Gray):** A complete childhood isn't without its fair share of tough love. Before the age of eighteen, increases the likelihood of mischief, mistakes, non-fatal mishaps, stubbornness, rebellious behavior, and severe beatings from parents or elders.
"Not bad at all!"
Kei Yamanaka let out a brilliant grin.
Earlier, when he entered the Mountainous Grave Site, he had been in stealth mode since five kilometers outside the perimeter.
Not only did he use the Chakra Suppression Art taught at the Ninja Academy to suppress his chakra signature,
he also specifically used the ninjutsu technique *Camouflage Concealment* to mask his silhouette.
Although he barely managed to deceive the scattered dormant White Zetsu throughout the Mountainous Grave Site,
the moment he stepped into the cave, he was instantly detected by Madara Uchiha.
Next, he had plans to cooperate with Nonou Yakushi, the Nomadic Shrine Maiden, in infiltrating Kumogakure to assassinate important figures from other hidden villages.
Stealth-related traits like this were a godsend!
After all, Kumogakure is no shortage of sensor-type ninja.
Even if discovered, he could still escape quickly using the Flying Thunder God Technique and avoid being surrounded.
But that would mean complete mission failure.
Come on—he'd already become an elite ninja surpassing Kage level!
Could he really afford to fail such a minor mission?
"Pfft~ The effect, the name—it's leagues ahead of 'Chrysalis User!'"
The more Kei read about **Silent Walker**, the more satisfied he became.
The name sounded cool, the effects were strong.
And unlike the **Chrysalis User**, it didn't risk significantly damaging his image.
Needle not prick~ (a play on the phrase meaning 'It's hard to be foolish') [explained note]
"System, activate 'Silent Walker.'"
As soon as Kei spoke, a mysterious force swiftly merged into his body.
Just like the time when he fused with the Blue-Tier Skill **Water Release Mastery**.
A flood of memories related to practicing stealth and suppression techniques surged uncontrollably into his Memory Palace.
Already experienced from two previous instances, he simply sat cross-legged on the ground.
Carefully integrating the influx of new memories.
Advanced breath-hiding techniques, breath-stopping arts, chakra-suppressing jutsu, and specialized methods to slow heart rate and blood flow by over tenfold.
The odor-eliminating ninjutsu—*Odor Smoke Prison.*
[Heatwave-Camouflage Polarized Sand Array] was more suitable for dry-weather concealment, while [Frost Concealment Jutsu] worked better in snowy conditions, and [Raincoat Invisibility Jutsu] performed best in rain...
Hmm... actually, the [Water Mimicry Jutsu] might be even more useful.
In just a short moment, Kei Yamanaka seemed as though he'd spent years training relentlessly.
When he opened his eyes again,
his once piercing gaze had dulled into something utterly mundane.
His presence had faded entirely—like an ordinary tree that no one notices.
Even without using techniques like [Camouflage Concealment] to mask his form, his presence had diminished dramatically.
"This feeling of being less 'human'... is this something from Root?"
Kei Yamanaka frowned.
Minimal presence, barely perceptible aura—without even moving, no trace of hostility could be felt.
This sensation felt exactly like that of a Root ninja.
As for why it didn't resemble Anbu—
Konoha's elite Anbu were directly under the Hokage and often carried out missions for him. Over time, they grew less adept at total concealment.
Eventually, they truly lagged behind Root in terms of stealth!
While experiencing the boost granted by [Silent Walker],
Kei glanced sideways at the two remaining skill listings: [Straight Man Expert] and [Complete Childhood].
The former, [Straight Man Expert], wasn't even worth as much to him as a White-Rank Skill.
Although he wasn't exactly a master of verbal arts, he certainly wasn't tongue-tied or unable to speak properly.
Plus, he loathed the thought of having to constantly flatter people. The skill simply held no value for him.
As for the latter...
Did he currently dislike any annoying brats in Konoha?
Kei pondered for a moment.
Regarding the Ino–Shika–Cho triad clans: Sanyo Yamanaka, Fu Yamanaka, Tohito, Sindo, En'en Nara, Maguen Nara…
They were all good and obedient kids!
Bestowing this skill on them would be outright cruel!
Obito?
Kei instinctively thought of Obito Uchiha.
After all, among the young children he knew, there really seemed to be only one kid like that.
Wait...
He nearly forgot—Asuma Sarutobi was also quite mischievous.
It's just that he rarely saw Asuma, and the latter's personality wasn't nearly as erratic as Obito's.
Who else?
Anko Mitarashi? Iruka Umino? Shisui Uchiha?
Except for the fact that Shisui had awakened his Mangekyō and still mistakenly considered Danzo Shimura a decent person due to deluded perception,
it seemed like none of Konoha's new generation had major problems?
Hold on...
Hadn't he recently heard that Fugaku Uchiha had a child?
Though the mother was supposedly the daughter of a Uchiha elder rather than Mikoto, it was said the boy's name was still Itachi?
The universe's self-correcting force...
Ugh... Not the time to joke about that!
A new skill listing—he clearly found the perfect candidate now!
Some say certain people spend their whole lives recovering from their childhood, while others spend theirs healing the rest of their life.
In the original story, wasn't it because Itachi Uchiha was overly mature for his age that he went down the wrong path? After all, he was only four years old when Fugaku Uchiha took him to the battlefield, which left him with deep psychological scars.
Of course, Fugaku Uchiha had his own share of problems too.
What kind of parent would bring their four-year-old child to witness a bloodbath like the battlefield?
You should know there's a limit to how hard you should push your kid!
Just because you couldn't fly yourself doesn't mean you should force the next generation to soar for you?
Giving [Complete Childhood] to Itachi Uchiha would just let him stir up more trouble—and get beaten up even more.
It's basically letting him live through 'A Father Finds His Son Alive, then beats him like he's fighting off Seven Wolves.'
This way, Fugaku Uchiha could realize his son isn't as mature as he thinks, while largely preventing Itachi from turning into a vengeful beast-slayer in the future.
Perfect!
Man, I really am a saint!
"I wonder if this counts as changing Itachi Uchiha's destiny path. He is an important character, right? Shouldn't the reward be bigger than the effort I put in?"
Kei Yamanaka pondered for a moment before shifting his gaze back toward his System Interface.
...
[Host: Kei Yamanaka]
[Occupation: Ninja]
[Activated Traits: World Traveler (Red), Instant Action (Red), Sage Transformation (Red), Master of Yin Techniques (Purple), Master of Water Techniques (Purple), Temporal Insight (Purple), Ninja World Know-It-All (Blue), Silent Walker (Blue), Handsome (Blue), Omen of Misfortune (Black)]
[Inactive Skills: Chrysalis User (White), Fragile Skin, Tough Life (White), One Pregnancy Nine Treasures (Blue), Own Nothing (Gray), Expired Milk (White), Straight Man Expert (Green), Complete Childhood (Gray)]
[Trait Replication: 1]
[Trait Bestowal: 6]
[Skill Reduction: 2]
[Trait Reset: 1]
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