Konoha, Year 46.
The Third Shinobi World War. The Land of Fire's border, at the front lines of the Iwagakure battlefield.
In a makeshift infirmary, Qingye lay pale-faced on a bed, bandages wrapped around various parts of his body.
After his squad had been wiped out for the third time, he had at least managed to complete the mission and make it back alive.
"Uchiha Aoya."
"Fractured left arm, burns on your right calf from an Explosive Tag, and this slash from your shoulder to your chest. You lost over a liter of blood... Hmm, nothing serious."
The medical Jonin spoke in a flat tone.
What kind of situation hadn't he seen before?
Injuries like these were nothing.
Qingye's eyes shifted slightly. He rallied his strength and tried moving his right hand, confirming it was unharmed.
"Sir, how long will it take me to make a full recovery?"
"With my level of Medical Ninjutsu, ten days or so, two weeks at most... Hmm, rest up properly for now, then go back to taking missions in half a month."
"Half a month?!"
Qingye's expression darkened.
The medical Jonin looked helpless. "I know it's not much time to rest, but there's no other choice. You know we're short on manpower at the Iwagakure battlefield. We can't let you rest for long."
Konoha was being attacked on all fronts.
On the Iwagakure battlefield alone, there were over a thousand Iwagakure Ninja in the neighboring Land of Grass.
Meanwhile, Konoha Ninja Camp had fewer than five hundred shinobi...
"That's too long!"
"Huh? What?"
The medical Jonin stared at him, bewildered.
"I can't rest for that long! Help me recover faster. As soon as my injuries heal, I can go right back to the battlefield and take missions!" Qingye said urgently.
"..."
Good grief!
Maybe take another look at the state you're in?
His Medical Ninjutsu could heal Qingye completely, but it couldn't bring him back to full health on the spot!
The medical Jonin was baffled.
He'd seen plenty of people pretend their injuries weren't healed so they could avoid the battlefield.
But someone who'd just suffered serious injuries, lost his whole squad, and still wanted to rush straight back to the battlefield to get himself killed? This was a first.
The Iwagakure battlefield needed more people, sure, but not so badly that they'd treat their own shinobi like this!
Or were all members of the Uchiha Clan this crazy?
The medical Jonin thought for a moment, then asked, "I heard your squad ran into a team led by an Iwagakure Tokubetsu Jonin, but you still managed to kill them all by yourself?"
"I was lucky. My teammates did a lot, too." Qingye shook his head.
"You're too modest. With your talent, you're practically on par with that genius, Kakashi Hatake."
The medical Jonin couldn't help sighing in admiration.
"...I'm nowhere near Kakashi."
This time, Qingye wasn't being modest at all.
He knew better than anyone how wide the gap between his talent and Kakashi's was.
"But still, you're not that far behind."
Before leaving, the medical Jonin gave him one last piece of advice. "I'll see what I can do to help you recover as quickly as possible. But think it over: even geniuses have to grow up first. Getting enough rest is essential if you want to perform at your best on your next mission."
Qingye lay on his back, staring at the ceiling. He rubbed his eye and couldn't help sighing.
With the situation as it was, he couldn't afford not to hurry.
Things weren't looking good on the Iwagakure battlefield.
At any moment, Minato Namikaze's squad might be sent to blow up the bridge!
Although it was Team Kakashi that handled the demolition during the Battle of Kannabi Bridge, Qingye remembered clearly that other parts of the Iwagakure battlefield were also seeing fierce fighting at the same time.
Including the battle where Minato Namikaze fought fifty opponents alone and made his name across the Shinobi World!
By the time Minato Namikaze arrived at that battlefield, Konoha's side had already been reduced to just four survivors...
Qingye had no confidence he could survive a battle with that kind of casualty rate.
He had to seize this last chance to find a way to grow stronger!
But sure, he had some talent—just not much.
He'd been reincarnated into the Naruto world, and into the Uchiha Clan, no less. His parents had died when he was young, and he'd awakened the memories of his past life at age three.
With Uchiha blood and decent talent, he'd thought he had a bright future ahead.
When he'd just started learning ninjutsu, he'd mastered the Three Basic Techniques with ease and even became rather pleased with his own talent.
But then, during his first year at the Ninja Academy, the teacher tested everyone's Clone Technique. Kakashi Hatake had stepped up and used Multiple Shadow Clone Technique!
Not the Clone Technique. Not even Shadow Clone. Multiple Shadow Clone!
Qingye had been completely dumbfounded!
Was that even human?
He was five years old!
Later, Qingye went back and pestered the Great Elder of his clan, begging to try learning Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. But he couldn't even pull off the Shadow Clone Technique.
He didn't have enough Chakra to meet the minimum requirement!
It really proved that the gap between people was greater than the gap between people and dogs.
After reality had doused him in cold water, Qingye hadn't given up. He'd kept training hard, watching Kakashi graduate early at five and become a Chunin at six...
Meanwhile, he didn't graduate with his peers until he was nine. He'd spent a few months on C-rank and D-rank missions, then the Third Shinobi World War had broken out, and he'd begun his career as cannon fodder.
And here he was.
He'd fought for his life on the battlefield for two and a half years, awakened the Sharingan, and advanced to Two Tomoe. He was probably about as strong as a Tokubetsu Jonin.
But that wasn't nearly enough!
"I'm not asking for Mangekyo. At least let me reach Three Tomoe, right?" Qingye thought gloomily.
After everything he'd been through, Qingye had realized there was something he lacked when it came to the Sharingan.
He wasn't crazy enough!
Everyone knew that the crazier an Uchiha was, the greater their talent with the Sharingan!
If you weren't crazy, how could you awaken the Mangekyo?
But Qingye didn't think he could ever measure up to those crazies, beasts, and things that barely counted as human. And there was no one important around him who could serve as a catalyst for awakening his eyes.
So there was only one way forward:
Fight! Keep fighting!
The Uchiha Clan was supposed to awaken their eyes in life-or-death battles!
That was how Qingye had awakened his Sharingan and gained Two Tomoe in the first place.
But this time, it hadn't worked.
He'd escaped death once again, but his Sharingan hadn't advanced.
"Man, if only I had a cheat."
Then he wouldn't have to risk his life over and over just to awaken his eyes.
Forget it.
Even without a cheat, he could still survive the Third Shinobi World War!
Lying in bed, Qingye decided to practice one-handed Hand Seals with his still-healthy right hand. Then a voice suddenly rang out in his mind.
[Future Loan System loaded. Bind now?]
"???"
He sat bolt upright.
He checked carefully and confirmed it wasn't Genjutsu!
[Bind now?]
"Yes, yes, yes!"
Qingye hurriedly replied in his mind.
Come to think of it, not having a cheat didn't mean he couldn't survive—but with a Golden Finger, the sky was the limit!
[Name: Uchiha Aoya]
[Age: 12]
[Bloodline Limit: Sharingan (Two Tomoe)]
[Chakra Nature: Fire, Lightning]
[Stats: Spirit 6, Body 7, Strength 5, Speed 8, Ninjutsu 7, Hand Seals 6, Genjutsu 7, Intelligence 9]
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