Though not everyone was as powerful as Namikaze Minato, sheer numbers mattered. Even Genin were practically superhuman compared to average Earthlings.
And it wasn't just shinobi—many civilians in the shinobi world had also cultivated chakra and gained supernatural abilities.
All of them could be counted as super players. Even the ordinary people of the shinobi world, while weaker than shinobi, were still biologically enhanced—having twice the cells of a "normal person" and capable of offering much more emotional value, at least by the system's metrics.
So as long as Uchiha Kei could get powerful individuals to experience the game, the system's mission could be completed relatively easily.
And the rewards would follow.
Once again, Uchiha Kei fell into a hopeful daze, fantasizing about using system rewards to break through mediocrity, unleash his bloodline's full potential, and become an Uchiha so powerful he could control the Nine-Tails with just a glance!
Just the thought of it made his heart race a little.
Kekekeke!
...Hmm, getting kind of tired...
Suddenly, a wave of intense exhaustion hit him—a backlash from overusing his dōjutsu and chakra.
This caused instability in the game world, which then began to collapse.
Namikaze Minato, still immersed in the thrill of battle, was stunned as the red landscape and his enemies disintegrated before his eyes. A moment later, he felt the world sway, and his spirit reeled.
When he came to, he realized he was lying in bed. Uchiha Kei was seated nearby, rubbing his temples, looking visibly fatigued.
Concerned, Minato asked, "Kei, are you alright?"
Uchiha Kei waved it off. "It's nothing. Just overused my eyes. Running the game constantly consumes chakra. I set a threshold for myself—once it hits that, the system shuts down automatically."
"Still, it's pretty tiring."
Minato nodded in understanding and waited quietly for Kei to recover.
Once Kei seemed better and lowered his hand, the two resumed their conversation.
Naturally, the topic was the game.
Minato held the genjutsu game in high regard, calling it an unprecedentedly wondrous technique with immense potential. If developed properly, he believed it could rival the Wood Style used by the First Hokage to bring peace to the world.
He assumed Kei's genjutsu game was an innovative technique developed from Sharingan genjutsu—like how the Wood Style was a unique kekkei genkai exclusive to Hashirama Senju.
Kei scratched his head awkwardly. "Sure, the genjutsu game is impressive, but comparing it to Wood Style? Aren't you overestimating me a bit?"
Minato shook his head earnestly. "No, I really don't think that's an exaggeration. Forget the fantastic scenery inside the game—just the hyper-realistic experience alone surpasses any genjutsu I know."
"When everything inside feels indistinguishable from reality, the line between real and illusion blurs. And if you die in there, it's not hard to imagine you might die in reality too. That's something no known genjutsu can do."
Indeed, the idea that illusion could affect reality—that if the mind is tricked into believing death is real, the body might follow—did exist in the shinobi world.
But as far as Minato knew, no current genjutsu could achieve that.
Traditional genjutsu was all about manipulating chakra flow to disturb the target's senses and mind. Breaking out of it meant disrupting that flow—something even Jinchūriki could do by using their tailed beast's chakra.
But Kei's genjutsu game was different.
"Even though the activation conditions are strict and it fails with any resistance, once it works, all conventional countermeasures become useless. Kei, I actually tried disrupting my chakra during the game to break the illusion."
"But I failed. I'm not a master of genjutsu resistance, but I'm no amateur either. Kushina and Jiraiya both trained me—but their techniques were ineffective here."
"Which means even someone like Lord Third probably couldn't break the game world once caught inside."
"If you could simplify the activation process and avoid the side effect of being immobilized during activation, this would be a battlefield superweapon."
By the end, Minato looked both amazed and genuinely respectful. "Kei, you really are a genius—like Lord Second, Tobirama Senju himself!"
Hearing that comparison, Kei felt speechless.
Only Minato could be so clueless as to not know that for an Uchiha, comparing them to Tobirama Senju was practically an insult. If anyone else said it, Kei would've thought he was being mocked.
Kei replied, "You're giving me too much credit. I'm no creative genius, and I can't compare to the Second Hokage."
Minato, however, looked firm. "No, I've always believed you're only limited by your ninja talents. If your abilities matched your intellect, you wouldn't lose to Lord Second."
"Like how you helped me develop the Rasengan two years ago. If it weren't for you, I might never have created it. Not to mention all the enhanced versions that followed."
Kei: "Uh... Maybe you would've developed it eventually even without me?"
Minato chuckled. "Kei, you're overestimating me. People call me a genius, but that's mostly my ability to learn quickly. When it comes to creativity, I can't hold a candle to you."
He said it with total sincerity, utterly convinced he was the average one between them.
Kei had no words. Minato's rose-colored glasses were too strong.
But what could he do? Kei, the underhanded transmigrator, had befriended Minato from childhood. As someone who stood out early on, even a few casual remarks or insights had been enough to leave young Minato in awe.
Back then, Kei had believed in his transmigrator halo—thought he was destined to be a genius with a limitless future. Wanting Minato's admiration and support, he deliberately built up an image of greatness.
But over time, as reality set in and Kei realized he was painfully average, he gave up those fantasies. He genuinely became Minato's friend, hoping the future Fourth Hokage might have his back someday.
He also didn't want Minato to die because of that traitorous student.
So when they were sixteen, Kei helped Minato finish developing the Rasengan ahead of schedule.
Originally, that technique was created during the Third Great Ninja War, after Minato saw the Tailed Beast Bomb firsthand. It took him three years, with Jiraiya's help, to develop the Rasengan.
That was near the end of the war.
But for Kei, it was just copying homework. As the future signature move of Naruto Uzumaki, it had a fully documented training process and upgrade path.
So all Kei had to do was keep feeding Minato "ideas," acting like a genius inventor, and guide him through the entire development process.
Perhaps that display of "creativity" was too convincing. With his pre-existing bias, Minato became completely convinced that Kei was a top-tier genius—a true inventor like Tobirama.
A massive misunderstanding, no doubt.
Especially now, after Kei had "developed" the genjutsu game. There was no explaining that away—Minato was already comparing it to Wood Style!