What Utter Devotion!

In the "Genjutsu," Akashi Uchiha had arrived in a strange, bizarre world where ninja tools had developed beyond his understanding. He had taken on the identity of a young man named Hong Yan and begun his journey as a lovesick simp...

Akashi Uchiha hadn't wanted to follow the script, of course. But when he actually tried to control his body, he discovered that there was very little he could do!

[Warning! Please do not deliberately disrupt the plot!]

[Reminder: Please follow the system prompts and continue advancing the plot...]

After trying several times, Akashi resigned himself to it. To think they could control me with Genjutsu without my noticing... This must be some secret technique devised by that cunning Senju Old Ghost!

Could it be something designed to counter the Uchiha Clan?

Even that bastard Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't notice?

No!

Could Hiruzen Sarutobi himself be the one activating the secret technique left behind by the Senju Old Ghost?

After being set up by two Hokage, what could Akashi say?

He could only lie back and see what tricks they had up their sleeves...

He couldn't do anything to "disrupt the plot." Not only would his body be taken over, but... Akashi could feel his emotions being subtly manipulated during this so-called Immersion experience!

What kind of wicked forbidden technique was this?

[Huh? Why am I so old... I'm already twenty, and only just starting to date?]

[Why do I have to bring Tenten breakfast every day before work? Shouldn't it be the other way around?]

[What the hell? Is she from some great clan? How can she look down on me this much? Could I be a commoner in this world, while she's from the Uchiha Clan?]

[What? My family background is great, and hers is terrible?]

[What's wrong with this Genjutsu? It doesn't have even basic logic. How can it be so confident... isn't it afraid someone will realize it's fake?]

[You wretch! You still dare to claim that guy as your little brother? Just you wait... Huh? I can't kill those two adulterers? How does that make any sense?]

[Your best friend? She dares to talk about me like that behind my back, and I... Huh? Why can't I use a knife? Does that make sense?]

In the melodramatic series <I Chased Her for Ten Years, and She Ignored Me. Why Are You Crying Now That I'm Dead?>, the wealthy, high-achieving male lead spent ten years acting like a lovesick simp. During that time, the female lead ignored him and admired the second male lead, while her best friend constantly tried to set her up with the second male lead and slandered the male lead to no end.

The second male lead went abroad for several years, and the female lead began to show some signs of accepting the male lead. Her best friend kept nagging her that she was suffering. Then, in the final year, the second male lead returned to the country, and the female lead immediately rekindled their old flame. Her best friend also went on and on about how love came first...

Akashi couldn't understand why this rogue ninja dared to come back, but just looking at the romance plot...

That made even less sense!

But since it was an "Immersion experience," Akashi's actions were completely constrained. He had to follow the plot, and what's more... this plot went on for ten years!

Even when he was outside the "main plot," at work, for instance, his consciousness was less clear, and everything passed in "a flash." But from Akashi's perspective, it was still an incredibly long stretch of time.

Akashi wasn't worried about the passage of time. The Uchiha family teachings contained plenty of records about Genjutsu, and he knew very well that time in a Genjutsu didn't count.

It was just that the mental impact was far too much...

If Akashi didn't like the female lead at all and just thought of her as an "old woman," then fine. He could treat it as a Genjutsu mission.

But the problem was...

During the "Immersion experience," the short-drama platform could also automatically use its "stimulate the hypothalamus" permission!

At first, Akashi hadn't known what a "hypothalamus" was. He had only seen the prompts and learned that this "Genjutsu" could affect his brain.

Fortunately, only access to the "hypothalamus" was enabled by default. He rejected every prompt for access to the "hippocampus" and the "amygdala." He didn't know what those things were, but of course he'd refuse anything he could!

In other words...

The platform could only affect Akashi's emotions, forcing them to get swept up in the plot. It couldn't directly alter his memories or his deeper consciousness.

But even that shallow emotional immersion was enough to make Akashi miserable...

"Mikoto, what's going on with that boy from your clan? Was the Monkey Hokage's speech really that moving?" Kushina whispered to Mikoto.

"I... don't know either. Maybe... he really admires the Hokage... Hehehe..." Mikoto was about to lose her composure too.

It had been over an hour.

Ever since the Third had come in to give his speech, this clansman named "Akashi" had been crying and quietly sobbing the whole time!

The elders in their families had always said they should show respect for the Hokage in public and not display any dissatisfaction, but... they hadn't told them to go this far, had they?

As Hiruzen Sarutobi delivered his endless speech from the stage, he couldn't help repeatedly turning his attention to Akashi Uchiha. He didn't know Akashi, but the Uchiha Clan crest on his clothes told Hiruzen that he belonged to the clan.

This Uchiha Clan brat...

Ever since he'd seen me, the newly appointed Third, he'd been crying nonstop... What utter devotion!

Danzo, who had come with Hiruzen, glared at Akashi Uchiha. He thought the kid was overacting, practically treating that monkey like a fool!

Two hours passed. This was only happening because Hiruzen had just become Hokage that year; otherwise, he wouldn't have spent so long talking to a bunch of freshly graduated brats...

Danzo kept giving Hiruzen meaningful looks, and Hiruzen understood what he meant.

Danzo had been urging him to talk about the Valley of the End while speaking about the Will of Fire. He wanted to see how the Uchiha Clan brats reacted!

They might be young, but they were still shinobi and wouldn't easily let secrets slip.

Still, they were just kids, so they might not be able to hide their emotions all that well. If the Uchiha Clan really had begun speaking ill of the First and the Second, they would surely give themselves away when the Battle of the Valley of the End came up.

Hiruzen hadn't wanted to do it, but under Danzo's prompting gaze, he had no choice but to bring it up.

"The ancestor of the Uchiha Clan, Madara Uchiha, was also one of Konoha's founders. Unfortunately, in the second year after Konoha was established, he defected. At the time, the First, Lord Hashirama Senju, was deeply conflicted and pained. But when faced with Madara Uchiha, who had come to destroy Konoha... what do you think he should have done?" Hiruzen said, feeling a little awkward.

Even though it was the truth, encouraging a group of Uchiha children to criticize Madara Uchiha still made the kindly Hiruzen feel uncomfortable...

But just then...

Akashi Uchiha sprang to his feet, slammed his hand on the table, and shouted, "Kill!"

Hiruzen, Danzo, and the others: ???

"He actually betrayed us... Kill him and that fox woman too!" Akashi roared, his face furious.

Danzo had been about to scold him for overacting, but then...

Under the intense emotional stimulus, Akashi's eyes turned bloodred, and a tomoe appeared in each of them...

Hiruzen: !!!

Who said the Uchiha Clan had divided loyalties?

Just look at him...

He'd heard that Madara Uchiha had betrayed them, and he'd been so enraged that he'd awakened his Sharingan on the spot! How could that be fake?

Besides, I hadn't even mentioned that Madara Uchiha had returned with the Nine-Tails, yet he knew about the "fox." Clearly, the Uchiha Clan had been teaching their children about that, too...

Had we misunderstood the Uchiha Clan?