Return of the Swallow - Chapter 43: Gifts

Reborn as the ill-fated Third Kazekage from the original series, I am determined to rebuild Sunagakure into the strongest Hidden Sand Village through tireless effort and visionary leadership. My goal is to survive and thrive in the recurring Shinobi World Wars.I will show these ninja, who are obsessed with slaughter and conspiracy, what true 21st-century wisdom and modern governance look like.The world of ninja is not a story written solely by Konoha.

Five years ago, Qiao Nian was schemed against by her sister, Qiao Xin. After spending a night with a stranger, Qiao Nian got pregnant. She did not know who the father of the child was, and eventually gave birth to a stillborn. Under the machinations of her mother and sister, Qiao Nian was stripped off of her shares in Qiao Group and sent to a mental hospital.Five years later, her younger sister, Qiao Xin, was going to be married off to the Second Young Master of the Gu family. He was rumored to be extremely ugly. On the day he was born, the doctor predicted that he would not live past twenty years old. Her mother could not bear to see Qiao Xin marry such a person and thought of Qiao Nian, who was still locked in the mental hospital. Overnight, Qiao Nian was taken out of the hospital to replace Qiao Xin in her marriage into the Gu family.Her mother said, “It's a good thing that Qiao Nian, this good-for-nothing, can replace Xin'er to be a living widow in the Gu family. If Xin'er were to marry into that family, I would be heartbroken.”Qiao Xin said, “Mom, don't say that about Sister. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't know what to do. I'm just worried that Sister wouldn't agree.”Her father said, “Xin'er, you're too kind. Have you forgotten how Qiao Nian slandered you five years ago? She has no self-restraint. She got pregnant before marriage and even gave birth to a stillborn child. We're treating her well enough by letting her marry someone from the prestigious Gu family! What right does she have to be picky?”Qiao Nian sneered. Back then, the scheme against her had only succeeded due to a freak combination of factors, causing her to suffer. She was going to get back at all of them! Everyone thought that her actions were borne from a combination of a loser's mentality and mental illness, but little did they know that this marriage would be a strong union as impactful as Mars crashing into Earth! Taking advantage of her brilliant skills in medicine, Qian Nian made various trashy people and scumbags eat their words. In the blink of an eye, her multiple identities shocked the world as each of them got exposed. It turned out that she was rich enough to rival a country!Later on, Second Young Master Gu placed a pair of Qiao Nian's miniature clones in front of her. Faced with these two children who resembled her and Gu Zhou, Qiao Nian blinked in shock. “When did I give birth to your children?”

Ethan Carter never thought much about heroism—until the night he pushed a girl out of the way of a speeding truck and felt cold steel and shattering bones instead of pavement. He expected to die. Instead, he woke up in a hospital, completely healed, with a strange blue screen floating in front of him.[System Activated.][Welcome, User. Your journey begins now.]At first, he thinks he's hallucinating. But when his body starts changing—his strength skyrocketing, his reflexes sharpening—Ethan realizes this is real. The System grants him quests, skills, and rewards, pushing him to break human limits. And yet, there’s more. Locked away in his interface is something called *World Travel*—but it remains inaccessible, its conditions unknown.As he grows stronger, Ethan catches the attention of powerful forces—some eager to recruit him, others determined to stop him. And amidst the chaos, women drawn to his power and charisma begin to enter his life, each with their own mysteries.But one question haunts him: *Why was I chosen?*The answer lies beyond this world. And when the time comes, Ethan won’t just step into new worlds—he’ll conquer them.

Year 20XX, the world was thrown into chaos when the Tower of Yxthar appeared...A colossal structure reaching beyond the sky, its countless floors each a gateway to a different world. These realms, seemingly connected to distant universes, spilled their dangers into Earth, unleashing monsters, invaders, and unknown horrors that threatened humanity’s survival.But from this catastrophe emerged an era of superhumans.... individuals awakened with extraordinary abilities.They became known as Stream Hunters, a title with dual meaning:“Hunter” for their combat prowess and “Streamer” because they broadcast their battles not just to Earth but across the multiverse.Through their streams, Stream Hunters gained viewers from other worlds, earning gifts and, if fortunate, the backing of a powerful Main Sponsor.Adam, an average ranking Stream Hunter, was just a background figure in their adventures... until the unimaginable happened.He woke up fifteen years before the catastrophe that would doom the world!Resigned to enjoying what little time he had left, Adam prepared for an arduous journey...But fate had another twist: he unlocked the Multiversal Livestream System...Granting him the power to copy the skills of his viewers.