Bai Ye
"Two thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight, two thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine..."
A young boy swung his sword for the 2,999th time, his trembling hands barely holding on. His exhausted body convulsed, finally collapsing with a dull thud that stirred a cloud of dust in the otherwise tranquil forest.
Beneath the scorching sun, the boy didn't rest for long. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself up and began doing squats, each one performed with exacting form. Sweat streamed down his face, dripping from his chin to the dry earth below.
"Damn it... I didn't hit three thousand. Fine—three thousand squats, then. If I fail that, three thousand side kicks!"
This boy was Bai Ye. He was only six years old, yet he had trained like this—desperately, relentlessly—for over three years.
Bai Ye wasn't from this world.
He had once lived in an orphanage, where the only entertainment was watching a single pirated disc of Naruto with the other children. Even though he had seen it countless times, he never missed a showing.
He envied the characters who lived bold, extraordinary lives—so unlike his own, where he had nothing and could only dream of changing his fate through study.
At school, which he rarely attended due to the orphanage's limited resources, he listened in silence as other kids boasted about getting pentakills in League of Legends or pulling legendary loot in gacha games. Bai Ye had neither the money nor confidence to join their world. He merely observed from the fringes.
When he turned sixteen, he was finally allowed to work. He used his first paycheck to buy a cheap knockoff smartphone. To him, it was a marvel.
One of the games he downloaded had a Bleach theme. He had heard from classmates that Bleach was one of the "Big Three" anime, alongside Naruto and One Piece—a nostalgic badge of honor among working-class kids.
The game ignited his interest in the world of Shinigami. Bai Ye, having known so little, was completely captivated, unaware that the game was designed to extract money. For him, it was pure joy.
But tragedy struck.
The orphanage enforced strict lights-out rules. Bai Ye, addicted, would play under his blanket, phone charging beside him. One night, the poor-quality device overheated and exploded.
Darkness consumed him.
When Bai Ye woke again, he was disoriented. His body felt strange—tiny, uncoordinated. He tried to move but couldn't even roll over. His short limbs flailed helplessly.
Eventually, he realized: he was an infant.
While he was still processing this revelation, a man appeared beside him. Bai Ye recognized him instantly—it was Might Duy, the Eternal Genin, father of Might Guy.
Despite his minor role in Naruto, Duy's legacy was unforgettable to Bai Ye, who had watched the show over and over.
Having grown up without parents, Bai Ye had always envied those with families. He especially admired figures like Duy and Minato—fathers who embodied love and sacrifice.
When he saw Duy cradle him with warmth and affection, calling himself "Daddy" in a gentle tone, Bai Ye's heart swelled with emotions he'd never known. He tried to speak, to express his excitement—but his underdeveloped vocal cords only let out high-pitched cries.
Was he... Guy? Had he reincarnated as Might Guy?
That didn't seem right. In the anime, Guy had no siblings.
Bai Ye was torn. He admired Guy deeply but was afraid of becoming him. Not out of disdain—but fear. Could he ever live up to that legacy? Would he disgrace the name of someone he admired so much?
But his worry faded when Duy carried him outside, and Bai Ye saw a boy—thick-browed, full of energy—training under the setting sun.
That was Guy. A young Guy, perhaps only a couple years older than Bai Ye's new body.
Relieved, Bai Ye realized he wasn't Guy—but someone else. Someone new, taken in by Might Duy.
Under Duy's care, Bai Ye experienced true paternal love for the first time. The kindness he had yearned for in his past life was now his reality.
He made a silent vow to grow stronger, to train harder than anyone else. He wouldn't let Duy die the way he did in the Third Great Ninja War—facing the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alone, sacrificing himself for the village.
Duy and Guy's burning spirit of youth took root in Bai Ye's soul. Though he was still only crawling, he already dreamed of sweating beside Guy, pushing his limits in the pursuit of strength and purpose.
In time, he learned more.
He wasn't Duy's biological child. On a return trip from a mission, Duy had found him crying alone in a field, with a strange knife lying nearby. Despite searching the area, no parents were found. After receiving permission from the Third Hokage, Duy adopted the boy as his own—and brought the knife back too, as it might have been a clue to Bai Ye's origins.
Now that Bai Ye could crawl, curiosity got the better of him. One day, when no one was watching, he wriggled over to inspect the knife.
It looked familiar—eerily like a weapon from the Bleach game he used to play.
When he touched it, something incredible happened. Information flooded his mind:
> Zanpakutō: Unlocked (0/1000)
Hadō: Unlocked - Hadō #1: Shō (0/1000)
Bakudō: Unlocked - Bakudō #1: Sai (0/1000)
Hakuda: Proficiency (0/1000)
Shunpo: Proficiency (0/1000)
Bai Ye was stunned. It wasn't a game interface—it felt real. He hesitantly chanted the incantation for Hadō #1: Shō.
A small burst of energy fired from his fingertip.
He wasn't imagining things. He had really brought Bleach powers into the world of Naruto.
Rush
Bai Ye felt as if his entire body had been hollowed out, like he had just completed a hundred consecutive push-ups—just like he used to do in his previous life.
But despite the exhaustion, he couldn't help the ecstatic expression spreading across his face. He wanted nothing more than to run and train with Might Guy immediately. For the first time, he felt his potential might reach the same heights as Naruto and the others. With renewed confidence, he even believed he could one day save Duy-sensei in the Third Great Ninja War.
As soon as Bai Ye was able to stand and walk normally, he threw himself into intense physical training under Guy's guidance. After each brutal session, he was so worn out he looked half-dead, forcing Guy to carry him home on his back. Guy, of course, declared it extra training and wept tears of youth every time.
The training was grueling, but Bai Ye felt fulfilled. Each day brought measurable growth. He believed this was the life he had been searching for—one with purpose, progress, and a path forward. With every session, he felt closer to catching up to Guy's monstrous strength.
But this passionate life lasted only a year before reality dealt him a cruel blow.
One day, for the first time, Bai Ye initiated extra training with Guy. Normally, it was the ever-enthusiastic Guy dragging him along. Because of his relentless day-and-night training, and his deliberate control over the Zanpakutō's energy, the experience bar had reached (999/1000). Seeing it on the verge of overflowing, he couldn't calm down and wait until the next day. He had to push through.
With one final burst of effort, Bai Ye once again surpassed the limits of his body—and the experience bar finally maxed out.
But nothing happened.
No transformation, no awakening. Just the cold, static display: (1000/1000).
Except for Hado and Bakudō—which, as per Bleach lore, could function without incantation if mastered—none of his Zanpakutō's other functions exhibited any new abilities. There was no Shikai, no spiritual resonance, no release command... nothing. Despite all his grinding, the blade remained dormant.
Unwilling to accept defeat, Bai Ye pushed himself even harder, hoping something had been missed. But there was no reaction. Disheartened, he returned home to rest, planning to investigate again the next day.
The following morning, Bai Ye woke up earlier than Guy for the first time ever. He dragged the still-groggy Jonin to the training grounds. Guy actually stared at him in suspicion, wondering if this was a clone or someone using the Transformation Jutsu.
At first, Bai Ye's spirits remained high, excited to begin a new day. But by sundown, nothing had changed. No sign of growth. No resonance from his Zanpakutō.
Two days passed. Then three.
To Bai Ye, the days dragged like weeks.
And then, finally, he realized what had changed—but it wasn't what he'd hoped.
His chakra reserves, which had previously grown steadily with each round of training, had barely increased. A week of intense effort had yielded a negligible gain, unlike the explosive growth he'd enjoyed before. His focus had been so fixed on the Zanpakutō that he hadn't noticed earlier.
Panicked, Bai Ye threw himself into even more brutal training, seeking any sign of change. Another year passed.
At the age of four, he met the minimum requirement to enroll in the Ninja Academy.
But in that year of obsessive, borderline self-destructive effort, his chakra reserves had grown by less than a tenth of what he had gained the year prior.
He had hit a ceiling.
His Zanpakutō—his greatest asset—had become a shackle.
Without hesitation, Bai Ye made a decision: he would enter the Ninja Academy at age four. If this system, this world, offered any hope of breakthrough, it would be there. He had to find a way to progress—even if it meant walking a path no one else had.