Chapter 2

I opened up my status screen one more time to see if I had missed anything. And I effectively did miss something.

For one, I was not five years old. I vividly remembered the status screen I opened in the white expanse, and it clearly stated that I was five years old. But now, I somehow turned eight. Somehow, I felt like it was related to my rocky entrance into this world.

Secondly, after the memory integration, the previous host’s skills were passed on to me and listed on the system’s skill tab. The skills themselves were nothing special, but they were essential for my survival. Without the memories or the skills, I wouldn’t know how to communicate with the people of this world. After all, I was not a native. Furthermore, without the host’s skills, I wouldn’t know how to perform the tasks assigned to me as an orphan, which could lead to potential problems.

I heaved a small sigh of relief after seeing the language, calligraphy, and reading skills listed in my skill tab. Anything else could be ignored, but not these. I needed to deepen my knowledge of this world. And without those skills, I might as well give up.

Feeling slightly refreshed by this realization, I moved on to my next plan: What could I do now to get a head start?

From the memories I inherited, I learned that the Hokage would be visiting the orphanage this month. If I’m correct, he usually makes an annual visit to give the children a speech, followed by less frequent visits every three months. This was a significant event for the orphanage, and the matrons were enthusiastically preparing the kids for it. So, it made me think.

What could I get from the Hokage exactly? Honestly, instead of feeling excited about the potential gains, I was more scared of him finding out about me and my unique circumstances. Actually, I wouldn’t even try to get anything from the old man. Aside from getting a look at how strong someone at the top of the village is, I will make sure not to attract any unwanted attention or suspicion. My best bet would be to lay low and grow on my own.

I found myself pondering whether I could hide from him, but I swiftly pushed those thoughts aside. While it was a valid concern, it was beyond my control.

I decided to just sit on my bed for a moment, my eyes drifting towards the other sleeping kids. They looked peaceful. I also wanted to relax. But I was afraid of overthinking—about my past life, about how I would live, about everything. I knew I had to face these feelings one way or another. But for now, I just didn’t have it in me. It would just make a mess out of me. Considering the fact that I had just transmigrated, it was just not safe.

I needed to find a distraction.

On impulse, I got off the bed, folded my blanket, and tidied up the sheets. Then, without a second thought, I removed my shirt and dropped to the ground to do push-ups. I didn’t know why, but I felt like exercising would be a good idea.

As I began to move, the physical exertion of the exercise took over and I found myself lost in the rhythm of the movements. With each repetition, I felt the tension in my body start to ease and my mind begin to clear. It was as if the act of pushing myself physically was helping me to push past my mental blockades as well.

With my current stats, I only managed to do fifteen push-ups before my arms started shaking. My body heated up, and I started to sweat. My breathing became heavy, but I held strong. I gritted my teeth and pushed on. Sixteen, seventeen... eighteen—

My left arm suddenly gave out, no longer able to bear the exertion. I started to fall face-first onto the wooden floor. Fortunately, the impact was cushioned by the planks, sparing me any injury. After a moment of disorientation, I rolled onto my back and gazed up at the ceiling, my mind targeting the system now that I was temporarily unable to exercise.

Eighteen reps with my current stats. That gave me an idea about how to quantify strength. But the problem was that my system didn’t have a ‘Strength’ stat. So, I could only guess that strength is a result of a combination of physical stats.

In a sense, it felt logical. Strength is actually the application of power. How much strength I have or can show depends a lot on the way I apply my power, for how long I have been exerting myself, and how much my body could actually produce. A lot of factors were taken into account. For now, I’ll settle with that explanation. I won’t try to piece everything together at once.

Sensing that I had recovered enough to keep on exercising, I once again started doing push-ups. This time, I only managed to do sixteen. My muscles were still sore, leading to my arms giving out sooner than I expected.

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Thus, I deduced that despite possessing Gamer’s Body, I could still function like a normal human being. Which was a relief. It meant that I could train to get into shape and not just rely on level-ups to improve.

Even with my little experiment done, I kept on doing push-ups until I could do no more than five reps. Then I started doing sit-ups and squats until exhaustion. By the time the sun had risen, I was practically covered in sweat and starving.

It was then that one of my roommates woke up. He started turning around in his bed before giving out a loud yawn while sitting up, his still drowsy blue eyes turning towards me.

“Good morning, Ando,” he greeted lazily. “What are you doing so early in the morning?”

“I was training,” I replied with what I hoped to be a light smile. I paused for a second to think before I continued. “You see, I had a really cool dream!”

The boy, Isobe, perked up at my words. He had short, dirty blonde hair, and a slightly darker complexion than me. “What dream?”

“I dreamed I was a legendary ninja fighting against an army of bandits to save the village,” I lied. But I had to somehow explain why I would suddenly start acting out of character. “I was like a hero, you know.”

“Wow, really? Tell me about it!” The boy got excited, and his voice started getting louder, rousing another kid from his slumber.

“Quiet down, you two. I am trying to sleep here!”

I smiled as Isobe made a sheepish expression and moved to my bed. I then proceeded to make up a story for the boy as I recovered my energy. It was only a few minutes later that the two other kids decided to get out of bed. The girl headed straight for the bathroom, while the other kid decided to join me and Isobe to talk about random things.

A little while later, a caretaker, Daisuke, walked into the room to wake us up. She was a slim, tanned woman in her early forties. Her dark hair was combed into a ponytail, and she gave off the vibe of a strict, no-nonsense person. Seeing that we were already awake, she told us to get in the shower. Most kids were actually scared of Daisuke. So, when she gave the orders, we immediately obliged.

Even though it felt weird to do it, I followed the kids to the shower, passing by Suda and giving her what could only be described as a nervous smile. She merely glanced at me before heading towards the other rooms. I started walking on autopilot as I reminisced about the usual routine that the old Ando had to follow until I took over. Wake up at around 6:30, shower, then eat at 7:00.

The kids would then be taken into the gathering hall to learn. We were divided into groups by level and age and were taught how to read and write, along with basic etiquette and skills. Most of the lessons in the gathering hall were mandatory.

After completing our morning routine, we were expected to take care of various tasks assigned to us by the caretakers. If there was nothing to do, we were allowed to play or visit the small library located within the orphanage premises. However, the books mostly remained untouched since the majority of the kids lacked interest in reading. The previous Ando often wondered why they kept it there in the first place.

In the afternoon, we had structured lessons and activities. Sometimes, we were taken for a walk around the village or engaged in a variety of activities. Apart from that, we were mostly left to our own devices, which resulted in most of us spending time playing in the courtyard until evening.

Overall, it was not bad at all. The orphanage was well-funded, so we, the residents, did not lack much. At least, our basic needs were tended to.

Of course, in such a big orphanage, the caregivers did not have the time to tend to all children. They mainly focused on the most troublesome ones. And sometimes, as humans, they got tired or just got lazy. So, they did not supervise us that much, which meant we were free to do whatever we wanted as long as we did not cause trouble.

As for me, an adult spirit stuck in the body of a child, I found it meaningless to socialize or play with the other kids. Don’t get me wrong. They can be fun, but being forced to act my age is tiring.

After spending the entire morning engaging in child’s play, I was completely drained. Without a second thought, I made my way to the library. Even though it would seem out of character, I just didn’t care. No one was paying attention, and I was tired of pretending. So, I spent the rest of the day holed up in the library.

It was that very afternoon when I discovered that aside from my two native gamer perks, I was also granted another skill, “Observe.”

Observe is a skill that gives me a basic description of anything I try to observe. It surprisingly did not have a level and only showed me some basic information. It was weird, but it was still a gain.

After dinner, we were told to shower, then sleep. The curfew was at 7 p.m.

After what might be labeled as a stressful first day in this new world, I attempted to rest. However, sleep proved elusive as my mind was filled with too many thoughts—thoughts that I still was not willing to acknowledge. So, I once again tried to distract myself.

My thoughts shifted to the mysterious force within me known as chakra. I realized that now might be the optimal time to attempt unlocking it—during the tranquil hours of the night when I could fully concentrate.

Turning my head to the side, I glanced at the forms of the other kids to ensure they were all asleep before making my move. I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing. Then, I shifted my focus to my chest. I didn’t really know where chakra was located in the body. I knew it was in the upper part, but I didn’t know the exact location of the source. I don’t know how long it took me, but I eventually started feeling something. But before I could grasp what it was or focus on it, it just disappeared, as if it was an illusion.

This cycle repeated itself several times throughout the night, each attempt making me feel like I was close to unlocking my chakra, only for it to slip away once again. Despite the setbacks, I persisted.

As the night wore on, I continued to meditate, growing more and more exhausted with each passing moment. Eventually, I fell into a deep slumber, my mind and body finally at rest.