Unexpectedly Simple Training

Pedestrians on the streets moved at a leisurely pace in the early morning; all those coming and going were Uchiha clan members.

The roads within the clan grounds differed from those in the village. The ground was paved with floor tiles cut from Large Bluestone, flat and sturdy, with many patterns carved into them. On either side of the rather narrow roads stood the courtyard homes of Uchiha Clan members.

Most of the houses looked quite similar, much like the Clan Crest Vest every Uchiha ninja owned or the Great Fireball Technique.

The atmosphere within the Uchiha Clan grounds always seemed somewhat desolate.

Uchiha Tokimitsu did not care about such an atmosphere, nor did he think there was anything wrong with the obvious barriers and sense of distance between families. He even found an environment free from interference by outsiders very comfortable. After all, in the current Konoha, aside from the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, there was also Shimura Danzō, the "Pot Kage," who bore deep hostility toward the Uchiha Clan. Even when Tokimitsu went outside the village to daydream, he made sure to remain within the Konoha Military Police Force's line of sight.

Moreover, as someone who had transmigrated and been reborn, Uchiha Tokimitsu was somewhat different from others his age. Whether in his usual words and actions or in the ninjutsu talent he had displayed recently, these were things he could not hide even subconsciously. But as long as he kept his daily movements within the clan's sphere of influence, he would not need to worry too much about some inexplicable danger.

Lost in thought, Uchiha Tokimitsu arrived before Elder Setsuna's residence.

Perhaps someone inside had sensed his arrival, for Captain Kamon, whom he had met only yesterday, flashed out the door.

"Morning, little Tokimitsu!"

Uchiha Kamon greeted Uchiha Tokimitsu with a brilliant smile.

"Good morning, Lord Kamon!"

At this moment, Uchiha Tokimitsu could not have looked more well-behaved.

"Haha, I'm not some lord. If you don't mind, little Tokimitsu, you can call me Captain Kamon too."

The smile on Uchiha Kamon's face grew even broader.

"The Great Elder is already up. Let's go in."

Uchiha Kamon led Tokimitsu inside. They passed through a corridor and arrived once again before the hall from yesterday.

"Great Elder..."

"Is that little Tokimitsu? Come in."

A deep, resonant elderly voice came from inside. It was Elder Setsuna.

Pushing open the door, Tokimitsu saw Elder Setsuna seated upright on a cushion in the middle of the room, dressed in an Uchiha vest. Another cushion had been placed before him.

"Sit, little Tokimitsu."

Elder Setsuna looked kindly at Uchiha Tokimitsu as he entered.

"Let's begin your first lesson."

According to Elder Setsuna's original plan, the first stage of instruction was supposed to focus on a moderate amount of academic study, such as Ninja World General Knowledge, Various Countries' Scripts, Cipher Codes, and foundational ninja knowledge like Chakra manipulation. After all, although the Uchiha Clan, as the Number one clan in the Ninja World, did not necessarily need to be as refined and aristocratic as the Hyuga Clan, they could not be as crude and uncultured as the Kaguya Clan of the Land of Water, who played with bones. Otherwise, no matter how strong they were, they would have No Choice but to struggle to connect with distinguished figures such as Daimyo, Great Lords, and Great Merchants.

Teaching academic subjects in the first lesson had initially gone well. Although Uchiha Tokimitsu Appeared to possess excellent memory and comprehension, and could occasionally draw inferences from one example, while such performance could be called genius, it was still understandable within the Uchiha Clan. But when Elder Setsuna began teaching Chakra manipulation techniques that afternoon, he was truly shocked once again.

"So this is Chakra manipulation?"

Elder Setsuna stared at the cat formed from Chakra Emission in Uchiha Tokimitsu's palm. Beyond astonishment, he was at a loss for words.

Elder Setsuna had merely intended to use this as a prelude to the lesson on Chakra manipulation techniques. With a touch of playfulness, he had wanted to show off his skills before Uchiha Tokimitsu, this exceptionally intelligent junior. Thus, he displayed the Chakra manipulation he had cultivated for decades, releasing Fire Style Chakra to create a Fire Crow, then casually explained a few techniques for Chakra Emission. Seeing Uchiha Tokimitsu imitate him, he had inwardly laughed at the child for not knowing his limits—only to be slapped in the face a moment later.

The little cat Uchiha Tokimitsu created through Chakra Materialization was vividly lifelike and full of spirit. Lying in his palm, it licked its little paw with its tiny mouth, its tail lazily flicking now and then.

Had he not personally witnessed the entire process of Uchiha Tokimitsu's Chakra Emission and shaping, and sensed that Chakra fluctuation himself, Elder Setsuna would never have believed this was the performance of a four-year-old child learning Chakra control for the first time.

"This... this is simply too..."

Elder Setsuna was somewhat incoherent.

After all, while the ninjutsu talent Uchiha Tokimitsu displayed was unmatched among his generation of clan members, in the thousand-year history of the Uchiha ninja clan, it was rare but Not to the extent of being unprecedented. But Chakra manipulation was pure painstaking practice, built up through slow, steady training. Uchiha Tokimitsu's skill was truly terrifying. Let alone young Uchiha children of his generation, even among the Uchiha Clan's active registered ninja, one Cannot Find a second clan member whose Chakra manipulation was so refined.

"You... how did you do that...?"

Elder Setsuna lifted his teacup and took a sip, attempting to calm his surging emotions.

"Uh... I just followed what you said. Release the Chakra, then use Mental Control to control the released Chakra, imagining its shape in my mind and Shaping it—"

Uchiha Tokimitsu blinked his large eyes as he replied, looking slightly confused.

Elder Setsuna had no response.

After transmigrating into this world, Uchiha Tokimitsu had never discovered whether he possessed any cheat ability or special advantage. However, based on his intelligence and powers of observation, both greater than those of children his age, combined with the evasive conversational skills he had developed as a finance grunt in his previous life, he gradually discovered the ways in which he differed from his peers.

Aside from the wisdom of his past life and those plot developments he did not know were true or whether they would occur again, Uchiha Tokimitsu gradually realized that his brain—or rather, his control over his body—far exceeded that of ordinary people. The simplest example was that his hands were steady. Extremely steady. Moreover, his perception of the Outside world was remarkably sharp. Perhaps this was a small benefit brought by the soul of an otherworldly visitor transmigrating here. He had also tried simple carving and discovered that as long as he had a concrete concept in his mind, his hands could carve it out. Even if a fly flew through the air, if he wanted to cut off its wings, he could do so without ever striking its legs. He had truly achieved, "What the heart desires, the eyes see; what the heart contemplates, the body follows." In his previous life, that would have been the treatment of a Level 8 Fitter. With the aid of other tools, even handcrafting chips might not have been difficult.

But then again, compared to the so-called systems in so many webnovels from his previous life that randomly handed out "execution"-level punishments, or those mysterious, sinister old men who tagged along with the protagonist, this completely controllable talent was far easier for Uchiha Tokimitsu to accept.

After all, he had already transmigrated and been reborn in such an unreasonable fashion. If he did not let himself go, he would have lived this life for nothing. There was no reason to willingly let some unknown so-called "system" parasitize and control him.

Elder Setsuna remained stunned for a long while before finally recovering. He could also sense the Chakra fluctuation of the guard concealed on the roof, who had likewise been too shocked to control himself.

He took a deep breath and tried his best to control his facial muscles To Prevent a Loss of Composure from overwhelming delight. Then he softly asked, "Little Tokimitsu, is there... anything else you want to learn?"

Uchiha Tokimitsu blinked, putting on a thoughtful expression. From time to time, he looked up at the roof as though there were something novel up there.

Seeing this, Elder Setsuna said nothing and merely clapped his hands.

Clap! Clap!

As the applause fell, there came a whoosh. Accompanied by a wisp of smoke, a ninja dressed in black and wearing a mask appeared, dropping to one knee on Elder Setsuna's left. From his chest, still faintly heaving, and the Three-Tomoe spinning wildly in his eyes, it was clear that he was far from calm.

Uchiha Tokimitsu was overjoyed. Pointing at the Three-Tomoe in the black-clad ninja's eyes, he said to Elder Setsuna:

"Elder! That looks good! I want to learn that!"