Chapter 1 - Welcome To The Elemental Nations

[Going Ape In The Cycle]

Chapter 1 - Welcome To The Elemental Nations

Location - Unknown/The Void?

One moment, I was at my desk watching yet another Naruto explained video as I completed some of my work, and the next, I found myself here, wherever here even is—floating in nothingness, surrounded by pitch black. The first thought that came to mind was that I was dreaming, but when nothing happened after what felt like hours, I came to one of two conclusions. Either I had lost my sense of sight and some of my sense of touch- I could still feel my body, just not the desk I was sitting on a moment ago, or  I had died, and this was some kind of afterlife. I just hope this is a waiting area and that there was an afterlife better than this, though, because…I’m religious.

[Welcome To The Elemental Nations!]

I spent a long moment just…staring at the words clearly plastered on the semi-translucent screen that just popped in front of me. Now, I needed to add the possibility that this could be a highly advanced version of those smart glasses….or the Matrix, for that matter.

“…What the fuck?” I barely even realised I had said those words when they left my mouth, still staring at the screen. “Elemental Nations? As in Naruto-Elemental Nations?”

[You have been chosen to be transmigrated into another dimension with gifts to aid you in your new life. The level of gifts provided will be determined by your deeds in your previous life. Bad/Evil deeds will not contribute to the gifts provided!]

[Calculating rewards.]

“What the fuck? Are you God? Or some automated system he created to transfer souls?” I asked and waited, hoping for some kind of response, but was met with silence. Based on the screen, this was clearly a system. Seeing that I was going to the Elemental Nations, Naruto, of all places, I would need it. Though it would be a lot better if it were like Great Sage from that slime anime I saw a while back.

[Calculation complete!]

“What was the total? And what can I get with that amount?”

[Rewards are now being used to obtain random rewards based on the value of deeds.]

I blinked in response as I stared at the screen once again. Normally, transmigrators and reincarnations get wishes. But I guess this system missed that memo. Not that I was complaining, I will still be getting gifts and that’s still better than nothing. But it would have been nice to choose. Here’s to getting a powerful Do-Jutsu from the get-go, I guess.

[You will be placed in a system-generated physical body at random according to the gifts proved. The body provided will have a backstory that will allow you to better integrate with your new life.]

“That’s good, but won’t people like the Yamanaka be able to just read my memories? And what about mind control? There are several ways to control a person in the Naruto universe, people will be able to find out about the system and force me to use it to do whatever they say.”

[The user’s mind is protected from mind control-related abilities due to the fact that a mind-controlled user may allow others access to the system, which can not be allowed under any circumstances.]

[If others delve into the mind of the user, they will only be able to see the origins provided by the system for the generated body, along with non-system-related thoughts and memories created after the user inhabits the new body.]

“Oh, thank you, I guess.” It wasn't quite Gamer’s Mind, but at least I won't have to worry about being mind-controlled. I will still have to worry about Genjutsu being used to mess with my mind, unfortunately.

[Damian Wayne (DC)]

[“Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.”]

[Description- Damian Wayne, son of Bruce Wayne (Batman) and Talia al Ghul, is the heir to Ra’s Al Ghul and became the fifth Robin, working alongside his father.]

[Character’s knowledge, skills and abilities fully assimilated into the users’s generated body]

[Character used as the physical appearance of the users’ generated body.]

[Parents of the generated character created to resemble the character's original parents.]

“Erm, system? As much as I like getting the skills and knowledge of one of the most overpowered, non-superpowered, kids in DC…He’s kind of a dick. Is there any chance of making sure I don’t get any of his personality? I still want to be, well, me.”

[Assimilated characters do not directly affect the user’s personality. However, the user may still be affected indirectly. For example, if the user were to assimilate an evil genius, the user would obtain the knowledge and skills but not the sadistic thoughts and tendencies.]

Yeah, definitely dodged a bullet there. From what I remember, Damian's greatest weakness and the only thing stopping him from basically being the next Batman was his arrogance. Without that, I have no doubt I will be a better Kakashi in this verse once I actually start using Chakra.

[Saiyan (Dragon Ball)]

[“Going Ape-Shit is an art form, I can prove it.”]

[Description: A Saiyan is of a warrior race with a humanoid appearance with the exception of a monkey-like tail. They are 10x stronger and more durable than regular humans due to their home planet having 10x the gravity of Earth. They also heal from injuries at a faster rate than normal human beings, along with an extremely high pain tolerance, immune system and senses. Additionally, when looking at a full moon Saiyans grow into a giant ape beast and tenfold in strength. In this state, they generally lose most, if not all, control of themselves, with their minds being filled with pure aggression, causing them to lose all rationality to primal instinct. However, this can be mitigated if they are advanced enough.]

[Bloodline Assimilated]

[Chakra Coils are no longer necessary and therefore removed from the generated body. User can use both Chakra and Ki abilities.]

“I love it, I really do. But, is it possible to get full control over the Great Ape transformation at the start? I don’t really want to have to constantly worry about the full moon everywhere I go, or people hunting me because I destroyed their village without even realising it.”

[No]

“Fuck,” I cursed. I could always cut off my tail to deal with that problem, but the idea of losing the benefits of having a tail just wouldn’t let me go that far. I’ll just have to try and deal with it. Hopefully, it won’t take long for me to master the transformation. “Do I at least have the same protection that I have on my mind, on my body and DNA? Because, I have no doubt Orochimaru will be trying to get his hands on me at some point after seeing what I can do. And if he does, then that would technically be indirect use of the system.”

[Similar protections apply. User cannot have his DNA tampered with or cloned unless user does it himself.]

Well, that’s Edo Tensei and Orochimaru covered. No doubt he’s still going to try, but I could at least destroy any chance of success. I have a knock-off Gamer’s Body. Damian is supposed to be a genius, I will just need to get my hands on Kabuto and/or Orochimaru’s knowledge, to fast track my ability to give other people Kekka Genkai.

[Essence of Blank]

[You gain but one benefit: Your potential becomes limitless. You can learn any discipline or skillset, even if you shouldn't be capable of it, without forgetting it and practice them into mastery, no matter how much you learn. Any abilities you have from other Essences will increase where possible and develop in ways beyond their initial purposes.]

[Essence Applied]

Yeah, I’ll definitely be able to use Kekkei Genkai, especially with the addition of this [Essence], so fuck those snakes. On top of that, I’ll be able to master Chakra Control to the highest degree and bat them aside like adult Sakura or even better.  “Thank you. Also, are you giving me gifts based on what I’m thinking about or?...” I trailed off, hoping for some kind of response.

[Inventory (Gamer)]

[“Where else would you keep your stuff?”]

[Description: The Inventory is a storage space that exists in a separate dimension linked with the system that can only be accessed by the user. The Inventory has a large but limited number of slots or spaces where items can be stored. Each slot can hold a specific type of item, regardless of its size or weight. Items stored in the Inventory do not experience the passage of time. However, it cannot store living creatures or entities.]

Right, that covers the makeshift Gamer’s Mind and Gamer’s Body and Inventory. All I’m missing now is Observe or Appraisal, and I’ll have the full set.

[The user will be able to access different aspects of the systems by simply thinking of them. This can be toggled on and off at any point. Think ‘Status’]

I blinked, before doing exactly that. 

‘Status.’

I felt the world, the void, pause, which didn’t even make any sense because there was nothing actually here. 

[Status]

[Name: Ena Narabushi]

[Age: 8]

[Sex: Male]

[Bloodline(s) Assimilated: Saiyan (Dragon Ball)]

[Character(s) Assimilated: Damian Wayne (DC)]

[Essence(s): Blank]

Squinting my eyes, I noticed a few words that would normally appear on a Gamer's Status were missing. The lack of words like Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence etc, was enough to let me know I wouldn't be able to increase those stats the same way they would, which was unfortunate.

[Other options include ‘System Prompts’, which allow the user to toggle when the system can give the user information to avoid distraction during daily life or combat. ‘System Shop’, which allows the user to purchase different Items, Bloodlines, Abilities, and Characters for assimilation. ‘Skills/Abilities’, which will allow the user to look through his current skills and abilities. And ‘Help’…which can help.]

Immediately opening up the System Shop, I started scrolling to see the different things that were for sale. I saw Bloodlines, Techniques, Technology and Items from several fictional works I remembered from my past life. Naruto, Bleach, Dragon Ball, DC, Marvel, and even some that I didn't recognise.

From what I could tell, the items varied in price based on their rarity and capability. Some even looked made up, like the Meta-Uchiha Bloodline, which basically gave you a version of the Sharingan that didn't need you to kill a loved one to unlock the Mangekyo and also had most of the Rinnegan abilities built into its evolution. It was like someone just wanted to create something so overpowered they could end the story as soon as they transmigrate.

The downside of things like that though, was that they were so expensive it wasn't even funny. Whoever was in charge of balancing out the pricing in the Shop definitely didn’t want a first-month victory. It was only a couple of minutes in, when I looked at the Shop Points rectangle in the corner and saw it had a big fat zero that my eye started twitching in irritation.

“System, how do I earn System points?” I asked impatiently. “Is it like other gamers? Killing enemies and doing missions and such?”

[System points are earned based on the user's deeds, specifically through good and/or neutral deeds. Points total vary based on the deed. The system does not provide missions.]

Well, that’s ‘murder-hobo’ tactics out the window—not that I planned to employ those tactics, but at least I know the system isn't just out here creating villains. They just want to get a regular dude, make him a menace to society, and send him on his way.

"Are there any other reincarnators of transmigrators in the world I'm going to? And do I have to worry about crossovers with other realities?"

[No.]

“Alright cool, System, can you now at least tell me how I actually died?”

[Good luck and enjoy your new life.]

As soon as I read this, though I couldn’t see it, I could feel a giant hand grab a hold of me. At first, I thought I was about to be carefully placed in my new body, but I was wrong. Turns out, it was a person winding up a throw.

[Go now Ena, I choose you!!!]

“Ahhhhhh!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs as I was practically catapulted like a Pokeball towards a small speck of light that appeared in the distance.

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The Elemental Nations - Land Of Hotsprings

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I immediately ‘woke up’ to a massacre. A quick look around showed body parts of shinobi strewn around me in pools of red, staining the forest floor. Looking down, I was greeted by a disgusting sight of blank eyes staring up at me with my finger buried knuckle-deep in a man's head.

I wasn't a psychopath in my past life, so the fact that I wasn't freaking out either meant I was in some kind of shock or Damian's mindset was already at work. Ah, there we go. Memories of this body's experiences were easily accessed in my mind. They also seemed to slowly integrate without my input. But I could decrease the time it would take by manually going through them.

Taking a quick glance through, I also seemed to have the option to toggle the immersion and have me in place of the body to actually feel what the training was like. Turning it on, I tried it for a short while before turning it right back off. Yeah, fuck that, it was way too painful to do right now. I couldn't even last a few seconds. No wonder Damian turned out to be a sociopath.

Removing my finger from the man's head, I clenched and unclenched my muscles to get a quick feel of my body while I took in more details of my surroundings. Quickly moving to one of the bodies lying on the floor in a pool of their own blood, I almost tripped due to not being quite used to my enhanced speed.

After retrieving Damia- my katana that was impaled in a man's skull, I lightly threw it in the air and tilted my body to align the sheath strapped to my back—letting the sword impale itself most of the way into the scabbard. Skilled or not, an 8-year-old still has shorter limbs so I couldn’t do the normal sheath motion just yet.

Pushing the sword the rest of the way in, I made off in the direction Ena- I sent Hinata off to, putting some of the dismembered body parts and corpses in my [Inventory] on the way. It would be a waste to just leave them here. For all I know, they could have bounties I could cash in. While I was at it, I was sure to put my sword in my [Inventory], too. I could always summon it mid-fight to catch someone off guard.

Seeing objects just disappear right in front of me and automatical knowing I can summon them back at any time was a little weird. But it seems like the least stange thing happening right now considering all that has happened within the last few minutes.

As I delved further into the forest to catch up, I used the time to get more information on what the fuck was going on. Much like the League Of Shadows in the animated movie, my clan was massacred, and my mother took me to my father to raise. The main difference is my age and the fact that it was actually the Raikage himself and a fuck-tone of Hidden Cloud Ninja that did the dirty work.

They found out I was able to turn into a massive ape and wanted another weapon to use in war, but this universe's version of Ra's Al Ghul essentially said, 'Over my dead body’. The Raikage basically replied by mobilising his army to do just that. My mother, Taruya Bushi, escaped under my grandfather's orders as he took on the Raikage himself.

After taking me to my father, Takeshi Nara—because apparently, this universe's Bruce Wayne was part of the Nara Clan— the three of us moved from place to place, furthering my education as we went. It was on the way we saw a group carrying what looked to be a small child, when my parents decided to intervene. After killing the team and freeing the girl, we started on our way to return her to Konoha but were ambushed when their reinforcements arrived. Unfortunately, there were too many of them, so I was to get her back while my parents stayed behind.

While they were fighting to take out the more dangerous shinobi, a few Genin made it through and, well, I dealt with them rather unceremoniously after telling Hinata to run. It's not even funny how dangerous a Robin can really be when they're not holding back. Imagine a Robin with [Chakra] and an increased base strength as a result of being a Saiyan. It was not a pretty end.

According to the [Help] tab, unfortunately, or rather fortunately, when people delve into my mind, they won't have the option to turn the immersion off. It will be all pain, physical, mental and emotional. Hopefully, the details of my life that they actually get will be worth it. For the other aspects of my memory or any intelligence that can't explain away the things I know, well, a feral Ape would literally pop out of nowhere and either force them out or maul them into insanity.

My enhanced hearing picked up the sound of rustling leaves and soft footsteps before I actually saw a mop of dark indigo hair swinging from side to side as its owner tried to quickly stumble her way through the forest, I shook my head out of my thoughts and channelled a little more [Chakra], speeding up a little to make this quick. She was creating too many tracks.

“Girl,” I instinctively spoke Japanese but could understand the language as well—or even better—than I understood English in my past life. My voice, however, startled Hinata, causing the girl to immediately stop her run and turn backwards in a battle-ready stance, Byakugan activated and everything. Her pale lavender eyes softened the moment they met my gaze, deactivating her eyes and relaxing a little.

I looked at the girl from head to toe as her chest rose and fell with quick breaths while she bent over slightly to rest her hands on her knees to catch a break. But aside from the little bruising here and there, some probably from when I threw her from my back when some of our assailants caught up and others from tripping as she ran, she seemed fine. It was kind of smart to conserve her energy by not keeping her Byakugan active, I would give her that.

“You're slow, too loud and leave too many traces,” I calmly admonished, causing the girl to grimace at my words as I walked towards her. Crouching down to continue her piggyback ride. “We will have to change directions and make false tracks as we go. Get on.”

Tiredly, Hinata climbed onto my back, her arms wrapped gently around my shoulders as she settled in. After adjusting her weight a little to make sure she was secure, I then stood, took a deep breath, and started channelling [Chakra] again and started running, slowly increasing my speed.

“...T-thank you,” Hinata mumbled into the crook of my neck. She may have been around my age, but it wasn't as much of a problem carrying her on my back due to the increase in strength from [Chakra] and being a Saiyan. So, all she would need to do is hang on.

The girl was clearly still in shock from the whole thing, so much so that she hadn't even been freaked out by the fact that I was covered in blood. She just hopped onto my back without processing the fact I had just killed a bunch of people, and was covered in their blood. Granted, they were trying to kidnap her, but still.

Then again, it might be the ninja upbringing. I would have to look out for the specific differences this world has compared to the original Naruto verse.

After several minutes of darting through the dense forest, putting more and more distance between us and any reinforcements that made it through my parents’ delaying tactics, I slowed my pace. I narrowed my eyes as I caught sight of movement up ahead—a large wolf prowling just beyond some bushes. Hinata, still holding on tight, felt the shift when I came to a stop, glancing over my shoulder. When she caught sight of the wolf’s silhouette her breath quickened as she tightened her grip around my neck.

“Relax,” I whispered quietly, keeping my gaze locked on the wolf, which hadn’t noticed us yet. Freeing one of my hands from bracing Hinata, I summoned a few of the severed limbs from the [Inventory] and hurled them in the wolf’s direction. The wolf’s nose twitched, and it immediately pounced on the fresh offering, savagely tearing into it. As distractions go, it would have to do for now. It wasn’t like they had Inuzuka with them, so this would be enough to throw off our scent.

Adjusting my hold again, I  launched forward once again, this time veering to the left towards where I knew would apar a shoreline. I needed to rinse off the blood on myself, and the sound of water and the shifting winds by the shore would help mask our trail even further. It didn’t take long for the sound of crashing waves to greet us as we finally broke through the tree line and arrived at the shore. I slowed to a halt, quickly scanning the open space to make sure we were alone before making my way to the water.

“We need to quickly rinse off the blood,” I told the girl as I crouched slightly to allow her to slide off my back. “And leave our clothes behind. The sea will take them, and it’ll throw off anyone trying to track us.”

It'll also allow me to catch my breath.

“But... my clothes?” Hinata whispered as she hesitated, maintaining her grip around my neck. The idea of letting go, even for a moment, seemed terrifying to her. Now that I think about it, I could have worded that much better, but Damian’s blunt words were having an effect on my behaviour and thinking in a way.

“Fine, girl,” I spoke firmly. She hadn’t given me her name, so I couldn’t just call her Hinata. “I have significantly more on me than you. Keep yours on. But you need to release me right now so I can remove mine. We don’t have time for this. The longer we stay here, the closer they get.”

Hinata swallowed hard and slowly loosened her grip to stand on her own, her hands trembling as they fell to her sides. I gave a small nod of approval and immediately began walking into the water, stripping off my bloodied clothes, and throwing them into the sea and letting the waves pull them into the horizon. Without wasting any more time, I knelt by the water’s edge, cupping it in my hands and splashing it over my skin to rinse away the remnants of the fight.

The less said about my brightly coloured monkey-themed boxers that I kept on, the better.

Once I was satisfied that the blood was washed away, I stood up and summoned a fresh set of identical black garbs from the [Inventory] and materialised them straight onto my body as I walked back toward Hinata. I was about to speak when a massive plume of smoke that curled up aboth the treeline caught my eye. It came from the direction we had just escaped from. The ground trembled slightly beneath our feet as the shockwave of an explosion reached us moments later, with Hinata clinging onto me the moment she felt it.

I knew that kind of explosion all too well—my mother’s ultimate technique, one the Bushi Clan had devised for emergencies, a devastating suicide explosion designed to take out one’s self and their enemies if escape wasn’t possible. Those mad bastards created a mini-nuke Fuin-Jutsu as a suicide technique like it was nothing. I wouldn't be surprised if the system somehow tied some Uzumaki into my origin.

“We need to keep moving,” I said bluntly. They were dead. There wasn’t an actual connection to Ena’s parents, at least not until I went through the memories of the body properly, so it was easier for me to stay on task. Turning my back to the mushroom cloud and into a crouch for another piggyback ride. “Get on, we need to move.”

Despite having high [Chakra Reserves], I didn’t arrive with a full tank, and I ended up using more with the amount of running I had just done the past hour or so. We needed to get out of the Land of Hot Springs and into the Land of Fire before I ran out of [Chakra]. Hinata blinked, still shaken by the technique she had just witnessed, but she didn’t hesitate. She stepped forward, her hands gripping my shoulders as she climbed onto my back. Her hold was gentler than before, as if she didn’t want to burden me, but I wasn’t having it.

“Tighter,” I ordered, feeling her tentative grip. “I don’t want you slipping off while I'm running.”

Hinata, flustered, quickly tightened her arms around him, nodding against my neck. “S-sorry.”

With her secure, I wasted no more time, channelling [Chakra] to my legs as I surged forward, pushing my body into a [Chakra Enhanced] sprint.

[Going Ape In The Cycle]

“Forgive me, Father. For I have sinned.”

—Damian Wayne, covered in blood with two fingers pierced through a man's skull.

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Author Notes

Here we go again, yet another overpowered character. Enjoy!

Instead of having a few prologue chapters like I did with Playing With Magic, I went for a much quicker start. Dropped him right in the thick of it. He's still young, but when comparing him to people like Kakashi, who was Chunin at six and Jonin at nine, it makes sense to have him at around eight.

And 4k words instead of 3k, I'm trying to get myself to write more.

What do you think?

Essense used: [Essence of Blank] By NorthSouthGorem (Because it's awesome.)

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Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC and original ideas. All credit goes to their respective owners.

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Thank you for reading.

As always, stay awesome.

Until next time, Light's out.