Everyone's Constitution Is Different

[System Notice: Successfully killed Uchiha Atsushi. Earned 3,400 Points.]

A perfect set of stats appeared before him.

By Sosuke's estimate, he would've considered himself lucky if the system awarded him 2,000 Points. He hadn't expected it to be so generous this time.

"Could there be some reward rule I haven't thought of?"

The boy didn't yet know that another soul was hidden inside Uchiha Atsushi.

The reason the Points had exceeded expectations by so much was that the enemy hadn't been able to control his body properly. Despite possessing formidable strength, he'd only been able to bring sixty percent of it to bear in combat.

Sosuke could only say that he'd gotten incredibly lucky without even realizing it.

"Looks like my little goal of earning 10,000 Points won't be too hard after all."

Besides the Points he'd earned from Uchiha Atsushi, he'd also made quite a haul from the fighting at the academy.

Together, those gains had pushed little Sosuke's total assets past the 5,000 mark.

He cheerfully opened the system menu, but the smile on his face froze solid the next second.

[Name: Uchiha Sosuke (Slightly Disabled)]

[Age: 7]

[Physical Strength: Genin]

[Spiritual Strength: Chunin]

[Chakra Reserves: Genin]

[Special Ability: Sharingan (One-Tomoe)]

[Ninja Tool: Short Sword]

[Summoning Beast: None]

[Points: 5280]

He rubbed his eyes instinctively, but the four glaring characters still wouldn't disappear.

If he hadn't known the system was never wrong, he would've thought he'd developed the fabled Sharingan Presbyopia.

"I wake up from a nap and I'm disabled?"

Though he had his doubts, the stabbing pain in his body seemed to prove otherwise.

"Can't be helped."

Whatever happened, Sosuke wouldn't allow himself to lose his status as a ninja.

If his injuries wouldn't heal on their own, he'd use medicine from the system to help treat them.

After a quick search, he found a suitable item.

[Body Recovery Potion (Small), Item Grade: D, Exchange Cost: 1,000 Points]

[Item Description: Slowly repairs all injuries.]

The description was simple and clear, and the price was just as brutally straightforward.

He'd barely had time to enjoy his Points, and now he had to hand some of them right back to the system.

Examining the little bottle in his hand, Sosuke slowly opened his mouth.

He'd thought it would be some kind of liquid, but the so-called recovery potion was just like jelly.

He tipped his head back, and the stuff slipped straight down his throat.

"Mm." Sosuke smacked his lips and looked at the little bottle regretfully. He hadn't tasted a thing.

"Oh well. When I'm rich someday, I'll eat this stuff like jelly whenever I feel like it."

As a growing warmth spread through his body, the boy continued waiting for the maid to bring him something delicious.

But no food arrived. Instead, the two Dancing Kings showed up, forcing smiles.

"Sosuke, you're awake." Izuna tugged at the corners of his mouth, managing a smile more miserable than a sob.

Anyone who didn't know better would've thought he was mourning at his own grave.

Izuna wasn't the only one looking grim. Uchiha Madara's expression was just as bad. It only took Sosuke a moment to figure out why they were feeling that way.

The system could display his condition, and the clan's medical ninjas could assess the exact state of his injuries too.

For a genius ninja, there was no word more terrifying than "disabled."

After a brief greeting, a suffocating silence fell over the room.

The strange atmosphere made Sosuke uncomfortable all over. He'd rather have Izuna go back to acting like himself than sit there like a miserable wife whose husband had cheated on her.

"I..."

"I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

Sosuke stared at Izuna as he lowered his head, a huge question mark appearing over his own.

Was the kid apologizing to him?!

Under Sosuke's questioning gaze, Izuna finally revealed what he'd been thinking.

In his eyes, Sosuke had ended up disabled because he'd been looking after him during the fight.

If Izuna had been a little stronger, perhaps Sosuke wouldn't have lost his status as a ninja.

"Uh, you really don't need to take it so hard." Sosuke gave a bitter smile. He couldn't exactly tell them that he'd fought so desperately just to keep the brothers from stealing his kills.

And even if he did, they wouldn't believe him.

Seeing his friend's "forced smile," Izuna bit down hard on his lip, his nails digging into the flesh of his palm.

"How could I... how could I not take it hard?" Just before the tears spilled over, Izuna abruptly turned and rushed out of the room.

Even from far away, the two people inside could hear his stifled sobs.

"Alas." Uchiha Madara lowered his head, no longer displaying any of his former pride.

Faced with such a despairing truth, even someone as proud as him could only silently lament how unpredictable life was.

He shared Izuna's grief. The only difference was that Madara could hide his feelings better.

When the young maid returned with the food, Madara smiled and said, "Get some good rest. I'll come see you again in a couple of days."

"Oh."

After the two brothers left, Sosuke embarked on a grand eating spree.

For the next half month, all he did was eat and sleep. With the help of the recovery potion, his injuries healed slowly but surely.

During that time, the brothers came by to visit now and then. Izuna, especially, showed up almost every other day.

Though he said nothing, Sosuke could feel how quickly Izuna's strength was growing.

During one casual conversation, Madara let slip that his younger brother had awakened his Sharingan. He didn't explain exactly what had triggered it, but the source was very likely Sosuke himself.

Sosuke didn't quite know whether to laugh or cry. At the same time, he gradually realized that his arrival was quietly changing the course of the ninja world.

At the very least, the brothers had awakened their Sharingan much earlier than they otherwise would have.

To keep Izuna from feeling guilty, Sosuke called over the most authoritative medical ninja in the clan after he'd fully recovered.

The old man had a white beard. After examining Sosuke thoroughly, he sprang several meters into the air, exclaiming over and over about the unbelievable "miracle of medicine."

Before long, word that Uchiha Sosuke had made a full recovery spread throughout the clan.

The two brothers, who'd been training hard, rushed to his house at almost unbelievable speed.

Seeing his friend up and about, Izuna's mouth fell open so wide he could've fit a cucumber inside. "Sosuke, y-you're really better?!"

"Of course I am. I told you not to take it so hard."

"But..."

He was overjoyed that his friend had recovered, but the whole thing was just too strange.

How could injuries that severe heal just like that?

Faced with the brothers' questions, Sosuke hesitated briefly before finally offering an explanation.

"You have to understand: everyone's constitution is different."

After seeing off all his visitors and finally getting some peace and quiet, Sosuke prepared to use his Points to strengthen himself.

"So, what would be the best thing to exchange for?"