BlackStar_BH:
More Power Stones and comments, guys!
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"Are you really going alone? Let me come with you…"
Tsunade spoke calmly. From her posture alone, it wasn't clear if she was truly worried about his safety or not.
But her words were clear. She wanted to accompany him to protect him.
"Tsunade-san, I appreciate your concern, but there's no need. You have many tasks to handle, and now that you're a Sannin, protecting Konoha falls on your shoulders along with the other two."
"As for me, there's no need to worry about me. I can take care of myself." Rob smiled confidently, though he genuinely felt warmed by Tsunade's concern.
'This rascal! If anything happens to him, who will finish the Naruto manga!?' Tsunade shouted internally, revealing the real reason for her worry.
"Alright, take this with you. It's a chakra seal. Infuse it with your chakra before you leave. When you open it, I'll know you're in danger, and I'll know your exact location."
Tsunade said calmly as she handed Rob a tightly sealed scroll. Her grandmother had made the seal, thanks to her incredible mastery of sealing techniques… and since Rob was an Uzumaki, he could perceive its depth as well.
The scroll Tsunade gave Rob wasn't just a regular chakra seal; it was much more sophisticated, allowing the user to communicate over long distances without written words or encrypted messages.
Only by opening the scroll after merging one's chakra with it would it activate and enable long-distance communication.
"Alright, I'll take it." Rob accepted the scroll and set it aside.
Tsunade assumed Rob had placed the scroll in his ninja pouch, but he had put it somewhere else.
It had been 15 days since his arrival in this world—half a month.
In that time, Rob had accumulated enough Art Coins by spreading the impact of the first seven chapters of his Naruto manga to every household in Konoha and the surrounding villages, even beyond the Land of Fire to distant lands.
Within just half a month, thousands of new readers had read his manga, and he gained enough experience to upgrade the system to Level 3!
Rob smiled at the thought.
Tsunade thought he was smiling at her, so she playfully slapped his shoulder.
"Don't underestimate those scoundrels from Sunagakure… and whatever happens, don't reveal that you're a shinobi from Konoha! Understand me?"
Her loud voice snapped Rob back to reality, and he nodded repeatedly… her slap nearly drove him into the ground like a nail being hammered.
Just as Kakashi had done to Sasuke in Volume One.
"I'm no longer a shinobi, but I'm still a civilian from Konoha, and that won't change," Rob said calmly.
"You abandoned your Konoha headband, but that doesn't mean you've abandoned your chakra or the skills you learned in the academy, with the ones I taught you, right?"
Tsunade said, frustrated. She didn't like that Rob had abandoned his shinobi identity, but she understood his motivation: he wanted to remain a manga seller, far from dangerous ninja missions.
Tsunade didn't see this as cowardice but as a personal choice. Others, however, didn't see Rob's stance the same way.
"Alright, that's good. Take care of yourself… I'll wait for the new manga update." She paused thoughtfully before speaking.
"It will come in half a month," Rob said with a gentle smile.
"That's a long time… but it's fine, I've already waited halfway," Tsunade added as she left.
...
Back at the art store, Rob examined the white room, which had no windows or doors and was designed to maximize internal space to 50 cubic meters.
This was because the Level 3 of the system upgrade unlocked the Storage Feature…
[System Level 3]
[Unlocked Feature: Spatial Storage: The limit on spatial storage in the art store has been removed. From now on, you can design spatial rooms in your personal area and use them as a storage space at will.]
Rob felt immense joy when this ability was unlocked.
Now everything was extremely practical; he could store anything inside. The storage wasn't just in a space separate from the world—it existed within his art store! He could even store living bodies, including himself! And what did that mean?
It meant that no matter how far he traveled from Konoha, he could return to the art store via his storage ability.
"What an amazing, powerful ability!" Rob was overjoyed, as it had arrived just in time.
He would be traveling to distant lands, and with this power, he could retreat no matter how dangerous things became.
"Alright then… let's see what we have for this journey."
This time, Rob would maintain his merchant persona. He had abandoned the Konoha headband for this reason and retired from his role as a medical shinobi. He wanted to prioritize his single mission in this world… which is why he had challenged and threatened Hiruzen and Danzō half a month ago.
Knowing they wouldn't let it pass peacefully—not because he retired as a shinobi, but because his new identity as a manga seller was far more dangerous—they had realized the shocking political messages he'd displayed in just the first volume, let alone what was to come…
"I bet Danzō will test the waters with me after I leave," he said.
"System, show my status," Rob said happily.
It wasn't the first time he had checked it, but he was pleased with every improvement after investing coins to strengthen himself.
[User Status]
[Name: Uzumaki Rubiro / Robinson Howard]
[Title: Beginner Mangaka, Art Seller, Strongest Man in the World]
[Age: 20 (20/95)]
[Affinity: Water + Lightning + Yin]
[Rank: Chunin (Power Level: +B)]
[Specialization: Skilled Medical Shinobi]
[Abilities: Photographic memory, Paper Manipulation, Medical Ninjutsu: Healing & Regeneration, Mysterious Key Technique, Chakra Scalpel, Wound Repair Technique, Regeneration Acceleration, Poison Cloud Technique, Sealing Techniques (…) ]**
This was his status as a medical shinobi with added abilities from the Divine Network and the titles that made him a mangaka, most notably the art store.
Rob's gaze went directly to the (+) that appeared after his previous B rank, which hadn't existed before.
"And why?"
Rob's attention fell on the new ability at the end of his status.
[Skill: Hie Hie no Mi (Ice Ice Devil Fruit) Power (+S)]
[Mastery: Beginner (Overall Level B → +B)]
It was a Logia devil fruit, the Ice-Ice Devil Fruit, which he purchased from the system shop.
Upon eating it, his power rating increased slightly. His strength wasn't just a normal expert Chunin; the Ice Fruit gave him control over ice at will and the ability to transform into ice to evade physical attacks.
Taijutsu would no longer work on him; only strong chakra attacks could affect him.
"Unfortunately, the sea curse remains… I'll need a lot of Art Coins to remove it… sigh…"
Rob sighed as he considered how much money he had spent on this deal.
Initially, he planned to buy the Sand Fruit, which cost 2 million, but after gathering 3 million in this period, he bought the more powerful Logia fruit decisively.
The most important thing was his safety; money would come later, and abundantly.
The Ice Fruit fortified him against all types of physical damage and increased his durability to unprecedented levels. Even the Kage level would not be able to defeat him, though they could fully suppress him.
"But I still need to test it in battle. My combat skills are almost nonexistent; all I have is what I learned in the academy. But that's fine—I'll learn over time. I'll make sure to become an incredible force in this world, not just a merchant spreading manga."
Rob understood that in this world, people like Danzō wouldn't leave him alone until he displayed a stronger fist… just like any other world. Only the one with the bigger fist had the right to speak, and Rob understood this logic well.
His current level wouldn't allow him to freely operate in the political arena or safeguard his manga's dissemination… but he wouldn't stay at this level for long.
He still had the title of "The Strongest Man in the World", dormant and unused.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 46: Rob vs. Danzō's Root!
Chapter 47: The Third Kazekage!
Chapter 48: The Kazekage's Retreat.
Chapter 49: The Puppet Market
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 65.
There are 21 advanced chapters available now:
5 chapters in the Silver tier ($5 subscription), 5 more chapters in the Gold tier ($10 subscription), 5 more chapters in the Platinum tier ($15 subscription), and 5 more chapters in the Diamond tier ($20 subscription).
On Patreon and Ko-fi, too.
In the coming days, chapters will be made available for all tiers, reaching up to 50 advanced chapters… Enjoy!