Locked Up in the Detention Center

Uchiha Yang watched as he held the upper hand in Taijutsu but still couldn't secure a decisive victory. He stopped directly and spoke.

"Uchiha Tianqi, I'm a ninja. Ninjutsu is my main focus. You stop right here."

With that, he immediately began forming hand seals.

Tianqi watched Uchiha Yang's hand seals without any hesitation, rapidly forming his own as he replied.

"You're right. A ninja should use ninjutsu."

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique."

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique."

Both unleashed their attacks almost simultaneously. The two fireballs collided, sending a wave of scorching heat rushing outward.

Heh, my ninjutsu was directly granted by the system, with maxed-out proficiency and skill. You're just a genin trying to compete with me—pure masochism. Tianqi smirked inwardly.

Gradually, Uchiha Yang began to lose ground in the ninjutsu clash. His Great Fireball started shrinking. Seeing his opponent faltering, Tianqi poured on more power. In an instant, his massive fireball overwhelmed the Great Fireball and surged straight toward Uchiha Yang.

"How is this possible?!"

Uchiha Yang stood frozen, staring at the fireball hurtling toward him.

At that moment, the Anbu monitoring the scene saw that lives were at stake and stopped watching. They Shunshin'd out and rescued Uchiha Yang.

The massive fireball slammed into the trees behind, blasting several of them apart.

"I... I... I actually lost. Lost to a waste," Uchiha Yang muttered, still unable to believe he'd been beaten by Tianqi, who had never received formal training.

"You two brats. The Uchiha are supposed to handle village security, and now you're breaking the law yourselves. This time, you're not getting off easy," the Anbu captain declared.

"He started it..." Tianqi tried to explain, but the Anbu captain bound them both and immediately separated them into different cells in the Temporary Detention Center.

In the Hokage's Office, the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, was buried under a mountain of paperwork.

"Sigh. Ever since my brother passed, and the First Hokages of other villages followed, the Second Hokages of the three great ninja villages have been testing Konoha with localized skirmishes. The ninja world is about to get turbulent. At least the Sand Village isn't involved."

Tobirama was lamenting in his office when an Anbu appeared before him. Looking at the Anbu kneeling in front of him—the one monitoring Tianqi—he asked directly.

"What is it? Did something happen to that brat?"

"Yes, Lord Hokage. That brat got into a full-blown fight with an Uchiha in the village, even using ninjutsu," the Anbu captain reported truthfully.

Tobirama rubbed his forehead and sighed.

"Tch. What a reckless little bastard. The villages are stirring, and he jumps right in. No idea where he stole that ninjutsu from."

"Ah, forget it. This time, I'll prove to my brother that Madara was no good, and neither is his son. Since I can't stop him from getting stronger, I'll just let him loose. Let's see how much trouble he can stir up."

"From today, the Anbu will stop monitoring that brat. Head to the Border and gather intelligence instead," Senju Tobirama decided, directly instructing the Anbu ninja.

"And the two brats locked up..."

"Keep them for two days. Teach them a lesson."

"Yes." With a whoosh, the Anbu vanished from the office.

Watching the Anbu leave, Tobirama felt another headache coming on. "Just letting this brat grow unchecked won't do. I need to find someone utterly loyal to Konoha to guide him. Let me think who to pick."

Soon, Tobirama thought of his disciple, Sarutobi Hiruzen. "This disciple is completely loyal to Konoha and strong enough. He's young and has never mentored anyone, but everyone has a first time. Having him guide the brat is probably the best choice."

"No time like the present." Tobirama immediately sent someone to summon Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Meanwhile, locked up, Tianqi summoned the system, opened the Shop, and exchanged for a Single-Tomoe Sharingan.

[Ding! Exchange successful.]

Instantly, Tianqi felt his mind go blank, like a dead man's, nearly ceasing to function. Then two streams of special energy flowed from around his brain toward his eyes.

"Ah!!" In that moment, Tianqi felt a swelling pain in his head and a stabbing pain in his eyes. He closed his eyes and clutched his head with both hands to ride out the agony.

A minute passed. The pain faded. Tianqi knew the Sharingan had awakened. He opened his eyes slightly. His once-black pupils were replaced by a field of crimson. At the edge of the red pupil, a single black tomoe rested silently.

Though there was no mirror, he could imagine what it looked like.

Tianqi looked at a fly buzzing in the cell. Instantly, the trajectory of its wingbeats was crystal clear. Seeing this, Tianqi smiled faintly.

"Sharingan, oh Sharingan. With you, I can finally chase the path of the strong."

Back in the Hokage's Office, Tobirama was looking at his disciple. Sarutobi Hiruzen was still a young man of twenty, his strength not yet at its peak.

"Monkey, guess why I called you here this time."

Sarutobi Hiruzen thought for a moment and said, "Is it about the probing from the great ninja villages at the Border?"

Senju Tobirama shook his head. "Don't worry about the Border. Even if war breaks out, we old-timers will handle it. I called you here to give you a mission."

"A mission? What mission?"

"You know Uchiha Tianqi, right?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded. The son of Uchiha Madara, notorious throughout the village—hard not to know him.

"Monkey, you've never taken on a newbie before, have you? I'm planning to have you guide that brat."

"You want me to take him as my disciple?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, stunned.

"Not exactly. Just treat him as a member of your squad. I want you to teach him while slowly guiding him. I want to see whether, once he gains power, he'll turn out like Madara—or like Kagami."

"What if he turns out like Madara?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked cautiously.

"If he turns out like Madara, hmph! Don't blame me for sending him straight to meet Madara."

"Monkey, that brat is currently locked up in the Detention Center's cell. Two days from now, you go and fetch him out. From then on, the brat is your responsibility. Don't disappoint me."

"Yes, Teacher."

Two days later, only Tianqi remained in the prison. As for Uchiha Yang, he had been fished out by the Moderate Faction a day ago. Tianqi was the only one being targeted, and the Militant Faction hadn't sent anyone to retrieve him.

"Damn it! Still not released—this is definitely that old bastard Tobirama Senju's doing. You old bastard, you're ruthless. Just you wait. Let's see how long you can keep kicking. Don't let me develop. Once I'm strong enough, I'll loiter in front of you every day and make you know what it's like to hate me but not be able to kill me."

Just as he finished his complaint, a figure appeared outside the cell, staring at him. Tianqi looked at the young man and said, "If you're looking for someone, try somewhere else. It's just me in here." Tianqi thought the guy was searching for someone, so he vaguely gestured elsewhere. After all, who would come looking for him, the son of Madara, for no reason?

After Tianqi spoke, the young man still stood motionless, staring at him. "Why haven't you left yet?" Tianqi walked up to the young man, tilted his head, and studied him. He looked pretty familiar, like he'd seen him somewhere before, but he couldn't recall where.

Then he waved his hand in front of the young man's eyes. "Huh, no reaction. Is he blind? Or deaf and blind? How pitiful."

Sarutobi Hiruzen heard Tianqi's words and was instantly covered in black lines. He spoke directly: "I'm not deaf or blind. I'm here to take you out. Come with me." With that, he opened the cell door and walked out first.

"Taking me out? What the hell? Did he mistake me for someone else? Whatever, I'll get out first and figure it out later."

And so Tianqi followed the young man out of the Detention Center. As he walked, he kept staring at the young man. Who the hell is this? He looks familiar, his voice is familiar too, and he even got me released.