Just like that.
After Asuma was taken away, Qing Xuan turned around and headed straight back to the Uchiha Clan. Then he swaggered around the clan grounds for the entire day.
When he saw Asuma again the next day, the other man still looked a little irritated, as if he'd just finished an argument.
"What's up, bro? Get into a fight with someone? Want a cigarette?"
Qing Xuan produced a pack of cigarettes with practiced ease and offered him the whole pack.
Asuma took it and saw they were high-end cigarettes. He looked at Qing Xuan in surprise.
"You smoke these?"
"No."
Qing Xuan shook his head. "I swiped them from my uncle. They're a special gift for you, big bro."
A man had to be prepared when he went out. Even if he didn't smoke, he should carry a few cigarettes.
Qing Xuan had learned back in his previous life to offer cigarettes to his driving instructor when taking his test. How could he possibly forget the unspoken rules of the Hokage household while learning ninjutsu?
This time, Asuma scratched his head, marveling at how well-mannered the children of Konoha's great clans were. Even at such a young age, Qing Xuan knew exactly how to handle social niceties.
Except...
"Weren't you the Uchiha Young Clan Head? When those Uchiha took me away yesterday, why didn't you speak up for me?" Asuma complained, holding a cigarette between two fingers.
That's right. The ninjas who'd hauled him off to the old man yesterday were all members of the Uchiha Police Force!
The old man already had it in for him, so the outcome had been easy to imagine.
"Bro, that's not fair."
Qing Xuan's expression immediately turned serious.
Of course he'd seen his own police force step in. In fact, he'd secretly sent Uchiha Jin to report the incident. After all, he'd only just been promoted to Young Clan Head. Even with his uncle backing him, he still had to prove himself.
It was a way of showing the clan where he stood.
The Uchiha Clan had been pushed around by the Hokage faction for years. They wouldn't pass up a chance like this to embarrass the Hokage.
How could a mere cigarette butt amount to arson? He'd seen an Uchiha use a Great Fireball after everyone had left to fan the flames and cement the evidence.
Of course, as soon as the evidence had been established, they'd put out the fire. They'd only wanted to make the Hokage look bad; there was no need to damage public property in the village.
So he began to spout nonsense with a straight face.
"The Uchiha Police Force has always been known throughout Konoha for enforcing the law impartially and strictly. I'm the Young Clan Head, but I don't hold any position or authority in the force. If I interfere at will, wouldn't that be abusing public office for private gain? If they listened to me, would you call it the village's police force or the Uchiha's police force?"
Asuma was so stunned by this that he didn't even notice the cigarette burning his fingers. Only when the pain hit did he hurriedly drop it, then awkwardly grind it out underfoot beneath Qing Xuan's gaze.
To be honest, he hadn't thought that far ahead. He'd only been grumbling. But after hearing Qing Xuan's explanation, he suddenly realized the situation was far more complicated than he'd thought.
Something that seemed trivial to him was full of restrictions.
If that was the case...
The old man's disappointed gaze rose in his mind, making him reconsider his past.
He'd always done whatever he wanted, acting whenever he thought he was right. But had things really been as simple as he'd believed?
Could the old man really have been wrong?
[Plot Mission: Asuma Sarutobi's way of thinking has changed greatly, and his fate has undergone a major deviation. Reward: one Silver Treasure Chest. Congratulations, host, you have obtained—Heroic Spirit: Yuki Haku!]
ID: Yuki Haku
HP: 100%
MP: 100%
Status: Good
Affiliation: A certain point-based derivative fanfic Naruto: ***
Age: 6 years old
Gender: Female
Level: Genin
Ability: Ice Release [Awakened]
What the hell?
Staring at the black-haired girl in white on the Heroic Spirit screen, Qing Xuan was completely stunned.
What was going on?
He realized he had absolutely no idea how this godforsaken system worked.
What had he even said to earn a Silver Treasure Chest?
Was Asuma really that easy to fool? Had a little smooth talk really turned his fate around?
The last time he'd gotten a Silver Treasure Chest was when he and Qing Long had stolen sheep in the Land of Wind...
And then there was Itachi, who'd only earned him three Bronze chests after Qing Xuan had spent so long patiently trying to persuade him.
In that moment, Qing Xuan finally understood!
People really did experience completely different joys and sorrows. The system's true purpose was to keep squeezing the honest ones!
If Asuma's fate had just changed drastically, then what if Qing Xuan turned it back again? Would that count as another change?
Could he exploit a bug in the system?
"Actually, you weren't wrong, either!"
Having made up his mind, he immediately took out a lighter and lit Asuma's cigarette. Through the curling smoke, he continued to spin his tale.
"After all, wherever there are people, there are personal relationships. Nobody can be completely fair and impartial. Sometimes, even the Hokage can't avoid letting personal feelings get in the way..."
Asuma's original fate should have involved a falling-out with the Hokage, followed by him leaving the village in a fit of anger and wandering on his own. The reason his fate had changed wasn't hard to guess.
All Qing Xuan had to do was make him fall out with the Third Hokage again.
Qing Xuan plotted to himself, while silently apologizing to Asuma. Sorry, I'm just sending your fate back where it belongs. I'm definitely not trying to cause trouble between you and your family.
Sure enough, Asuma's brows furrowed again at Qing Xuan's words. Then Qing Xuan lowered his voice and said, "Take Orochimaru's defection, for example..."
Before he could finish, an exclamation cut him off.
"What?"
Asuma's eyes widened, shock filling them.
"Orochimaru defected? When? How come I didn't know?"
"Come on!"
Qing Xuan said with a laugh. "He experimented on the village's ninjas, trying to transplant First Hokage cells. It caused an uproar at the time. How could you not know? Kakashi hunted him down for ages..."
Qing Xuan's laughter abruptly died away when he saw the bewilderment in Asuma's eyes.
A sudden thought made his heart skip a beat.
His stiff little face forced a smile as he cautiously asked, "Don't tell me he hasn't defected yet?"
Asuma nodded gravely, and Qing Xuan felt his heart sink.
"That joke isn't funny at all..."
He sounded rather sheepish.
"Indeed. That joke isn't funny at all."
A hoarse voice suddenly came from behind him. Qing Xuan jolted and turned around, stiffly.
Long black hair, purple eye shadow, and eyes gleaming with amusement.
That icy sense of pressure.
Gazing at those slit pupils, Qing Xuan felt as if the other man were looking at him like a fascinating work of art.
Damn it!
Had the plot gone off the rails again?!
What was going on? At this point in the story, Snake Uncle should've already defected, shouldn't he?
Qing Xuan cursed inwardly, but had no idea who to vent to.
Before you continue