Chapter 2: Lifting Chakra Restrictions
Iruka awkwardly said to Adrian, "Adrian, don't worry. Naruto just has a bad memory."
Even as he said this, Iruka felt that his reason was ridiculous. No matter how bad someone's memory is, it's impossible to forget a classmate you've been with for six years.
To Iruka's surprise, Adrian wasn't angry. He smiled and said, "It's okay. I'm not very good at socializing."
"Don't say that," Iruka said seriously. "Naruto just has a bad memory."
Naruto finally noticed Adrian for the first time. "Iruka-sensei, did Adrian pass the graduation exam?"
Iruka turned to him with a smile. "Of course! You're the only one in our class who failed. What have you been studying all these years?"
Naruto scratched his head in embarrassment. "Iruka-sensei, I'm just not good at the cloning technique. But my Sexy Jutsu is top-notch!"
When Naruto mentioned the Sexy Jutsu, Iruka's face turned red with anger. "Don't mention that ridiculous technique!" he shouted.
Naruto shrank back, muttering under his breath, "But your nose bleeds whenever you see it."
"Shut up! Don't say another word!" Iruka's face flushed even redder.
Adrian just smiled and ignored the banter, turning to Teuchi, the ramen shop owner. "Uncle, a bowl of tonkotsu ramen, please."
Teuchi smiled as he prepared the ramen. "Adrian passed the Ninja Academy exam and will soon become a ninja. I'll add two eggs for you today."
Teuchi and Adrian were well-acquainted, as Adrian often ate at Ichiraku Ramen.
"Thank you, uncle," Adrian replied with a smile.
At that moment, Ayame, Teuchi's daughter, brought him a bowl of beef ramen. "Congrats on graduating, Adrian! I'm so happy for you!" she said with a bright smile.
Because of Adrian's politeness and frequent visits, Ayame had a good impression of him.
As Iruka and Naruto continued their conversation, Adrian finished his meal much faster than usual. With them around, he ate quickly and prepared to leave. He stood up and said, "Iruka-sensei, Naruto, enjoy your meal. I'm heading out."
Iruka blinked in surprise, not expecting Adrian to eat so quickly. However, seeing how awkward the situation might have been for him due to Naruto's presence, he didn't say much. After all, Adrian's parents had died in the Nine-Tails incident, so it was understandable if he wasn't fond of Naruto.
Naruto, clueless about the whole situation, waved enthusiastically and said, "Goodbye, Adrian! Let's hang out sometime!"
Adrian smiled slightly, giving a polite but distant farewell, and left. Naruto didn't notice, but Iruka could see the subtle detachment in Adrian's manner.
"He's much better than most," Iruka thought. "At least he doesn't show obvious dislike for Naruto."
What Iruka didn't know was that Adrian simply avoided Naruto to keep out of trouble.
When Adrian returned home, he lay in bed and closed his eyes, wondering when his reward from the AFK system would arrive. Was the system even real?
In the early hours of the morning, just as Adrian was about to drift off, the system's voice sounded in his mind.
"You've been idle for a day. Congratulations on lifting the chakra restriction."
Adrian frowned, unsure what that meant. Suddenly, he felt a faint blue light emerge from his body. He knew this was chakra, but he was shocked by the sheer concentration of it. The chakra was so dense it had become visible.
"What a rich amount of chakra… This is a hundred times more than what I had before," he muttered, amazed. "Is this the reward?"
The chakra quickly poured into Adrian's body, and he felt an overwhelming sense of comfort. It was so intense that Adrian almost screamed. If he hadn't been biting his blanket, his neighbors might have gotten the wrong idea.
After what felt like a long time, Adrian finished absorbing the chakra. "Incredible... I can absorb chakra from the environment!"
Typically, a ninja's chakra is drawn from their own cells, but this was something new. Adrian felt the power of the external chakra flowing into him, and he realized this ability was unique.
Many ninjas worry that drawing too much chakra weakens the body, but in this world, that wasn't exactly true unless it was overdone. However, one's physical constitution still limited how much chakra they could extract from their body.
Adrian's chakra levels had always been average because his parents, though ninjas, weren't from any special lineage. His previous chakra reserves couldn't compare to Sasuke's, and the difference was immense—Sasuke had ten times as much chakra as him.
When compared to Naruto, the gap was even more staggering, with Naruto possessing tens of thousands of times more chakra due to his Uzumaki bloodline, not even counting the Nine-Tails' power.
In this world, bloodline meant everything. Without it, you could only achieve so much, like Might Guy, whose intense dedication made him shine briefly. Now, Adrian's chakra reserves were a hundred times stronger than before, almost at the level of a Jonin.
Even better, he could continuously draw chakra from the environment, something few ninjas could do.
Adrian felt the energy of the outside world pouring into him, and what he didn't realize was that he was actually absorbing natural energy—something far superior to ordinary chakra. In addition to fueling his strength, this natural energy also nourished his body.
His physical condition wasn't great, but now the natural energy was revitalizing him. With a stronger body, he'd be able to absorb even more chakra. If he had Naruto's physique, his chakra levels would be astronomical.
"This system is amazing," Adrian thought, grinning. "It gave me such a huge boost on the first day!"
However, he had to be patient. "It's too bad I don't know any ninjutsu except the basic techniques."
Adrian's parents hadn't left behind any advanced jutsu scrolls. After all, they were just ordinary Chunin.
"I'll take my time," Adrian thought. "Maybe the system will help me with that later. For now, it's enough that my chakra has increased a hundredfold. I've even surpassed Sasuke in chakra now."
Sasuke had always had much more chakra than the average student, but he still didn't come close to Naruto, who stood in a league of his own. The Uchiha clan was known for their large chakra reserves, but they couldn't compare to the Uzumaki or Senju clans.
Now that Adrian had this massive chakra boost, his potential had increased dramatically, but he still had much to learn.
As he drifted off to sleep, Adrian knew his journey had only just begun.