Omni-Anime: I Stand at the Forefront of Popularity

Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Oh No—My Heart Did a Thing

[Oh come ON, she’s still hiding her face?!]

[Umbrella, then a mask under the umbrella—is this normal? Is this legal?]

[Oh no. My heart did a thing.]

[New wife unlocked, new wife unlocked~]

[She’s mine. That’s my future wife right there.]

[BLACK HAIR LONG HAIR BLACK HAIR LONG HAIR BLACK HAIR LONG HAIR]

[Someone get me her full bio in three minutes.]

[Hold on—were those white stockings under those sandals? Not tabi—actual white stockings?!]

[Cinematographer deserves a bonus.]

[Bros I am not okay right now.]

[The person above has entered word salad mode.]

[Classic.]

[The last time a kimono girl was this pretty it was Shiki Ryogi.]

Just when everyone thought they’d finally get a clear look at her—the eyepatch under the mask had not been anticipated.

The red ensemble, the layered reveal, each piece slowly removed only to find another—it had the audience eating out of her hand.

And right before Hanabi’s eyes, her popularity points were surging.

It started slow—+1 here, +1 there. But as the camera spiraled upward and she finally removed the fox mask, the numbers erupted. The ticker blazed past 10,000 before slowing—then crested near 20,000 before it finally eased.

That Close-Up Card had been well spent.

”Naruto?”

Naruto startled at the voice.

He relaxed when he recognized her. The two of them were on decent terms—Hanabi never cared what people thought, and she’d made a habit of treating Naruto to Ichiraku Ramen, listening to him boast about his pranks. Over time, Naruto had grown more and more comfortable showing off in front of her.

Just like now. He waved at her: ”Hanabi, Hanabi! Those guys I had on my tail? I had them running in circles! Ha ha ha~”

Hanabi had wandered into the camera’s frame more or less by accident—one breathtaking moment for the audience, then the lens drifted naturally back to Naruto. Once the shot shifted away, her popularity point intake dropped off again. The series had only been running for two minutes.

”Wait—Hanabi, aren’t you supposed to be in class?” The scatterbrained Naruto had apparently just remembered this detail.

”Yes—and so are you.” Another voice cut in, the fury practically radiating off it. Iruka-sensei, fury gauge at maximum.

”I-Iruka-sensei!”

Naruto was caught red-handed by the irate teacher.

”And you, Miss Hanabi.” Iruka turned to her, his tone softening. ”If something came up, you could have had Hinata pass me a note. You don’t need to push yourself.”

”Yes, Sensei.” Hanabi fell into step behind Iruka, the three of them heading off toward the Academy together.

[Double standard right there.]

[Wrong word. That’s called contrast.]

[So the girl’s name is Hanabi—nice name!]

[Lady Hanabi, I’m your devoted servant!!]

[Something happened to her, didn’t it? You can tell.]

[She’s the female lead, right?]

[The first girl to appear in these stories is always the rival love interest. The actual heroine always shows up out of nowhere later. Everyone knows this.]

The comments kept rolling in, more than a few speculating about Hanabi’s backstory—until the broadcast window went dark and paused entirely.

”So the Stage can manage the pacing between the two worlds after all,” Hanabi noted. ”Interesting.”

The screen stayed black until the three of them reached the classroom and Iruka began scolding Naruto—then it lit back up.

”Listen up, Naruto—you’ve failed twice in a row now. This is not the time for pranks. Understood?!”

”Hmph~” Naruto turned away with a scoff. That clearly pushed Iruka past his limit.

He spun to address the whole class: ”Today’s lesson will be a review exam—Transformation Jutsu! Even those who’ve already passed, get in line!”

A wave of groans rolled through the room.

The screen cut again, staying dark until everyone had lined up and Hanabi stepped forward—then it came back on.

Hanabi was ranked first in her year. Naturally, she went first.

[Lady Hanabi!!]

[Her whole aesthetic is just on a different level!]

[She’s stunning!]

Amid a sea of ordinary streetwear, Hanabi’s red furisode stood out like a signal flare.

She was also notably small in stature, which made the massive butterfly obi behind her look even more dramatic by contrast.

The effect was undeniable.

And crucially—every scene featuring Hanabi rendered in crisp, high definition.

”Hyuga Hanabi—ready~” She didn’t form a single seal. Instead, she raised the fox mask, and at the moment of putting it on, a single pivot—Hanabi had become Iruka-sensei.

On screen, the camera managed the transformation through clever sidesteps and cuts, never revealing the actual mechanism.

”Seal-free Transformation. However many times I see it, it never gets old, Hanabi.” Iruka dipped his head in acknowledgment. ”Very good. Next.”

”Yes~”

Another turn—mask off, herself again.

Transformation specialist and genjutsu prodigy—these were the traits Hanabi was carefully layering into her reputation. They didn’t need to be true in every technical sense. They just needed the audience to believe them.

Transformation required no explanation—it came with the Character Inheritance.

But the genjutsu talent from the Sparkle card was genuinely unusual. Different in nature from the Naruto world’s standard genjutsu—closer to instinct, or innate gift. She couldn’t match something like Tsukuyomi yet, but she had a clear edge over most practitioners.

”Sakura Haruno—ready~” A pink-haired girl stepped forward. The girl who had spent years trailing just behind Hanabi’s written exam scores.

She formed the seals and transformed into Iruka. Passed without incident.

Sakura immediately looked sideways at Sasuke. ”Did you see, Sasuke-kun?”

The broadcast window gave Hanabi a brief cut to Sakura’s internal monologue.

This viewing window might actually be useful for intel work and reading opponents, Hanabi thought.

”Next. Uchiha Sasuke.”

One by one, the exam continued. Third in was the resident cool-guy, the designated brooder, Uchiha Sasuke.

After transforming, he stuffed both hands in his pockets and drifted coolly to the side.

[Ten out of ten for the attitude. Full marks.]

[So he’s the male lead’s rival. Obviously.]

[Wait—did anyone else catch that? Everyone else used hand seals. Hanabi was the only one who didn’t.]

[Because she’s SPECIAL. Obviously.]

[Lady Hanabi could be my mother and I would still—]

[Anyway, so her last name is Hyuga, noted.]

[Doesn’t matter. She’ll have my name soon enough~]

The comments were buzzing.

Hanabi nodded privately. Stacking 45% Attention hadn’t been wasted—she was beginning to understand how it worked. The higher her Attention, the more naturally the audience’s gaze gravitated toward her, which in turn accelerated popularity point accumulation.

Then Uzumaki Naruto stepped up, and the audience’s attention swept right back to the protagonist. Especially when Naruto deployed his Sexy Jutsu—the comment section erupted into a chorus of ”she’s the real female lead actually,” which was, somehow, a thing people were saying.

Hanabi was also giving the question some serious thought.

She hadn’t started making moves yet—but she was already running the scenarios. What if she nurtured her friendship with Naruto first, then drove a blade straight through him and walked away with a parting line: ”Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding”—wouldn’t that be something?

Honestly, that had real potential.

”Achoo—!”

Naruto, fresh off Iruka’s scolding, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and sneezed.

”Even an idiot can catch a cold, huh.” Nara Shikamaru glanced over.

”I’m gonna be Hokage someday, you hear me? Guys like me don’t get colds!” Naruto bellowed.

”Naruto!” Iruka’s roar followed immediately, and the classroom dissolved into chaos again.

Hanabi’s gaze drifted to the ”male rival”—Uchiha Sasuke—on the other side of the room.

What if she pulled Sasuke close, then smiled and told him: ”Let’s burn Konoha to the ground together”—wouldn’t that be interesting too?

Sasuke stiffened. He looked up—then chalked it up to the noise Naruto was making.

”Idiot,” he muttered, propped his chin on both hands, and closed his eyes to wait out the rest of the exam.

”Decided. The card matters more right now. Neither [Jingliu] nor [Sparkle] gives me direct combat power—what I need most is popularity.”

[Jingliu] boosted cultivation efficiency. [Sparkle]’s genjutsu was more versatile than anything the Naruto world offered natively.

But popularity came first. Everything else was secondary.

Hanabi spent the remaining points on a third Character Inheritance Card.

A card materialized in her consciousness—its face depicting a red combat outfit.

[Character Inheritance Card]

[Shiranui Style: Mai Shiranui — LV1]

[Rarity: Four-Star]

[Talents/Skills: Fire Affinity, Shiranui Style Inheritance]

[Bonus: +5% Attention when role classification is shinobi-related]

[Keepsake: Shiranui Style Ninja Suit]

[Keepsake Effect: While worn, Fire Release power slightly increased; when worn as an undergarment beneath regular clothes, allows instant costume change]

[Invest popularity points to level up; each milestone unlocks a unique ability]

[At LV10, may enter a Dimensional World using this character as a template]