9 Research

Shino's eyes glinted with excitement. Commanding the drone to return and continue its exploration, Shino made sure no one was around before discreetly leaving once more.

Arriving at the training grounds, Shino sat on the ground. As he awaited the arrival of his team, he checked on his system.

[Acquired 10 Units of Biomass]

In just a few short days, he had amassed a passive income of 10 biomass. If he wanted to gain the same amount of biomass through food consumption, he had to eat for an entire week!

Of course, this is under the condition that he eats normally. If he could afford to eat at a buffet everyday, he could gain 10 biomass or more within hours, but that may raise a lot of suspicion if done too often. The original Shino was not a big eater...

He couldn't afford to draw too much attention to himself, not when the stakes were so high.

After all, the Aburame clan tends to be stared at by that bad old man. It was still safer to harvest slowly and cautiously with his drone. With each new acquisition, he grew stronger, more resilient. And one day, he would emerge from the shadows, a true dominator of the swarm.

Moving on to the next notification, Shino's glasses glinted with fervor.

[Research Progress Updated: Hatchery(0.1%), Zergling(22%), Hydralisk(1%), Baneling(0.5%), Roach(11%), Overlord(0.1%) …]

"With the gene samples collected by the drone, there is finally some progress towards new units. It will still take some time, but it will be worth it in the long run. Not only that…"

Although the Zerg Dominator was a powerful system, it was more apt to call it a hive mind. It didn't require a management system outside of its telepathic communication, so it didn't really understand systems such as graphical user interfaces, system functions, or human cognitive processes, such as cartography and depth perception.

Despite lacking understanding regarding the meaning of the term, it still used the word 'system' because this term bore an uncanny connection to the fragments of the host's memories that mirrored the enigmatic circumstances of its own mysterious birth.

Fortunately, it had the ability to communicate with the host through their mysterious psychic connection, allowing it to learn and transform from Shino's commands.

Being an upstart hive mind, many functions had to be 'unlocked' or 'programmed' by Shino's thoughts and memories. Even its previous status display was in lines of text with no particular interface.

And it wasn't until Shino manually took things into his own hands before he acquired a veritable system interface that showed much more data and was visually more appealing. This interface was finally formed after a lot of communication with the Zerg Dominator System.

Glancing at the newly optimized system interface in his mind that he organized, Shino couldn't help but have a sense of achievement.

The Zerg Dominator System Interface now featured a sleek and ominous interface that resembles a spider web. The center of the interface features a large, pulsating orb that represents the Hive Mind, and held within that orb was a 3D model of himself. Branching out from the center orb are various strands that lead to different sub-menus for units, evolution, research, and database.

The central menu is his status screen, displaying data regarding Shino himself, ranging from physical body data to mental stats and abilities along with their learning progress. This granted Shino a more intuitive approach to understanding himself.

Needless to say, the units menu displayed the details and status of his available bugs.

The database was an archive of important information he had collected, ranging from gene pool data to intel and memories. All of these are categorized and sorted for ease of access.

Functioning similar to an evolution chamber, the evolution menu was an assistive interface used to mutate his available bugs. Mutation options, derived from his gene pool, were displayed for each type of bugs, ranging from sensory organs to tougher shells for defense. The variations are limitless.

However, there were limited options at the moment because there wasn't enough gene data in the database. But it was clear that more options will be available in the future, allowing him to mutate his bugs accordingly and adapt to a wider variety of situations.

Finally, there was the research menu, which showed Shino's current progress on unlocking new units and mutations. In here, Shino's eyes fixated on the creation sub-menu located at the top, taunting him with its grayed-out button.

This was different from the evolution menu, which currently only allows for the mutation of his bugs, but still restricted to the same species. This creation menu will allow him to evolve his existing bugs into a new species and even research completely new units based on his needs!

He yearned to unlock this forbidden tab, but knew it was currently out of his reach.

As a rough estimate, he had to unlock most of the basic Zerg units, from the lowly Zergling to the gargantuan Ultralisk, before the creation sub-menu would unlock.

Outside of the weak drones, which were worker units evolved to adapt to any new worlds, the system required a vast amount of genetic data to be collected in its gene bank before it could begin researching new Zergs.

It was a matter of survival. Without sufficient data collected from creatures of the world, the spawned Zergs may fail to adapt and would be rejected by the world. This rejection could potentially lead back to him, the host.

Shino was not one to take such risks. He knew the consequences of being rejected by the world could be disastrous.

If he were a powerful host, he could lead his Zerg army to conquer the world that was rejecting him, but as a newcomer, he didn't have the strength nor the desire to find out what the consequences of rejection might be.

Then again, if it was a powerful Zerg host, it wasn't necessary to go through the troublesome process of gene collection for most worlds because their gene bank was already vast enough to spawn zerg variations that wouldn't be rejected by the new world.

On the other hand, his startup zerg system had its limitations, but Shino was determined to work within them.

He reminded himself that while he couldn't create new Zergs yet, he could still evolve his Aburame clan bugs through the clan's techniques.

Not only that, his special bio-energy could be applied to both his drones and bugs. It had a lot of potential yet to be discovered!

The natural evolution of the bugs in the world would naturally not face rejection.

These would grant him new genetic data to add to his gene pool and bring him closer to the self-evolution he sought.

Shino's mind raced with the possibilities that awaited him once he unlocked the creation sub-menu.

Would he be able to create Zergs that could journey through space, or ones that could control minds? Maybe he'll develop an ultimate new species by merging zerg with chakra or immortal mode?

His imagination ran wild with the possibilities, and he couldn't wait to uncover them all as it meant that he was one step closer to self evolution into a perfect god-like existence!

Ah, he went on wild fantasy ride again. Ahem. Focus on the present...

Shino Aburame stood silently in the training ground, watching as his opponent, Kurenai Yuhi, approached him. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

Although the original Shino certainly had an advantage in the early games in the anime, Shino knew his growth speed would eventually be surpassed by other characters, leaving him in the dust as a gag character.

He knew that he needed to improve his strength if he wanted to keep up with his batch of graduates, especially with Team 7 going on a mission to the Land of Waves.

As Kurenai came closer, Shino took a deep breath and focused on his surroundings. He could feel the presence of his insect companions, ready to assist him in battle.

"Ready to begin, Shino?" Kurenai asked, a small smile on her face.

Shino nodded, his eyes meeting hers. He had been training hard for this moment, and he was determined to put his new skills to the test.

Hinata and Kiba watched from afar, the latter cheering in his usual comedic tone. "Go get 'em, Shino! Show Kurenai sensei what you're made of!"

Shino ignored Kiba's comments and focused on the battle ahead. He knew that Kurenai was a skilled ninja, and he couldn't afford to underestimate her.

The two opponents took their positions, and the battle began. Kurenai was quick to attack, using her genjutsu to try and confuse Shino. But Shino was prepared. He used his new ability, where he used his illusion immune bugs to break free from the genjutsu.

"Very impressive, Shino," Kurenai said, a hint of surprise in her voice.

Shino didn't respond. Instead, he summoned his insect replicas and sent them towards Kurenai. She was quick to dodge, but Shino wasn't done yet. He created an insect wall, trapping Kurenai inside.

"You're improving, Shino," Kurenai said, her voice muffled by the insects.

Shino nodded, a small smile on his face. He was learning to use his insect shapes to cast genjutsu. Although he wasn't at the point where they can actually cast any genjutsu, the disorienting patterns the insect moved in was enough to give some ninjas headaches.

Of course, he knew that this wouldn't be too effective on Kurenai sensei. After all, she was the one that taught him this and she herself is a master of illusions.

Kurenai struggled against the insect wall, trying to break free. But Shino was one step ahead. He sent another wave of insects over, layering on top to form a thicker wall. He also gradually shrunk the box, enclosing the victim within.

When he felt the chakra being drained by his bugs, for a moment, Shino thought he had won.

But Jonin's were never that simple. He felt the chakra signature within his entrapment disappear!

Clone? Substitution technique? No, was it Kurenai sensei's ability to move through surfaces?

Before Shino could think further, he felt a kunai place on his neck, signaling the end of the battle.

"Very good performance, Shino. I did expect more from you, but this should be enough," Kurenai complimented as her red eyes stared at Shino with a smile.

"As expected. I can't fool Kurenai sensei…"

With his words trailing off, the 'Shino' in front of Kurenai turned into a mass of bugs, sending shivers down Hinata and Kiba's spines as they recalled some unpleasant memories.

"Well done, Shino," Kurenai said as her red eyes locked on the kunai placed on her neck, a small smile on her face. "You're ready to start accepting C-level tasks."

Shino felt a surge of pride as he heard those words. He had been training hard for this moment, and he knew that he was finally ready to take on real missions.

"But never let down your guard, Shino."

Shino's eyes shrunk as he watched the Kurenai in front of him transform into a tree! The branches and leaves of the tree extended out to wrap around Shino's body. He wanted to escape, but his body was disobeying his command. In fact, Shino began to feel sleepy… it's the pollens!

Shino was hoping his bugs would break him out of the illusion, but for the first time, they didn't respond! This wasn't a low-level illusion! It was clear that his bugs were still not at the level where it can break free from this.

Just when Shino thought he was going to fall into eternally sleep, he found himself awake once more, standing in place.

With a slight smile, Kurenai sensei stood in front of him and lectured, "Don't always rely on your bugs to break free from illusion. Don't forget what I taught you."

Shino was silent for a moment before he nodded solemnly.

"Okay. You passed."

"Thanks, Kurenai-sensei," Shino said, a small smile on his face. "I couldn't have done it without your-"

"Yo, I knew you could do it Shino! What'd I say? Yahoo! Now we can go on a real mission!" Kiba interrupted as usual while running over.

Kiba was still speaking in his usual comedic tone, but Shino didn't mind. He was just happy to have his teammates by his side. Hinata also came over to congratulate him on his victory.

Although he technically lost, but according to Kurenai sensei, he had passed with flying colors, compared to the other two.

Shino didn't know if this was just a compliment for the stoic Shino or if he really surpassed the other two. Although the original Shino made it to the finals in the Chuunin exam, it had a factor of luck and it didn't really mean he surpassed the other two.

However, it matters not. After all, Shino knew his strength was still weak when it comes to the real deal. Instead of comparing his strength with children, he should set his goal high. Even Jonin isn't enough for the coming dangers.

Meanwhile, Kurenai gave her final lecture and precautions for their next mission. She told them to prepare well and explained what supplies to bring.

As the sun began to set on the training ground, Shino couldn't help but feel grateful for the opportunity to grow and learn. He knew that he still had a lot to learn, but he was ready for whatever came his way.

Kurenai nodded, a proud look on her face. "You have all have a bright future ahead of you. Keep up the good work, but as a ninja, remember to keep a level head. I don't want to see any of you dragging your own teammates into danger due to your own recklessness and overconfidence, understood?"

"Yes, Kurenai sensei!" (x3)

Kurenai sensei nodded, "Good. Meet at the Konaha Gates tomorrow. Don't be late."

After the announcement, Kurenai sunk into the ground and disappeared.

Watching this, Kiba put his hands on his head as he casually muttered, "Is there really a need to disappear like that every time? Can't Kurenai sensei just walk away like normal?"

Shino glanced over and adjusted his glasses like a scholar. His eyes glinted with intelligence as he had a speculation that Kurenai sensei did so because she didn't want anyone knowing where she is going to meet next. So, he spoke out, "Perhaps Kurenai sensei is going to meet-"

"Yahoo! It doesn't matter! We are finally going on a real mission, Akamaru! Are you excited?!"

"Arf! Arf!"

Shino's hand stiffened a bit before he calmly lowered his hand. Well, he already had gotten used to it.

On the side, Hinata twiddled her thumbs as her Byakugan shyly peeked into the distant forest, but no one knows what she was looking at because she didn't say anything.

In the end, the team headed back to the village together, excited and ready to take on whatever challenges came their way. After bidding goodbye, they headed their separate ways.

When Shino returned home, he found his father, Shibi Aburame, waiting for him in their family's estate with a stern face.

Could there be trouble? Did his father discover something and is he finally going to have the talk with him?