The next day, at a restaurant.
"Roy, I know we haven't been eating or sleeping well out in the field, but this is a bit much, isn't it?"
"Your health matters. We can take our time eating. We've got three days off, after all."
"Yeah, Roy. We can all chip in our bonuses to treat you..."
Xiu, Naishiro, and Yoichi looked at Roy with concern.
Good grief. How had Roy turned into a starving ghost the moment their patrol duty ended?
He'd already eaten enough for four people, and he was still going.
"I'm fine."
"My body needs energy. We can't just leave it wanting, can we?"
Roy smiled and continued shoveling another plate of meat into his mouth.
More than two hours later, the four of them finally left the restaurant.
Not only had Roy's bonus disappeared, but the other three had chipped in their bonuses too.
"Boss, you're not going to eat this much at every meal from now on, are you?"
Naishiro watched Roy anxiously.
It wasn't that he was worried about his own wallet. It was that eating so much would become a daily problem for Roy.
"Not for now. My body couldn't handle eating like this at every meal."
"You've got three days off. What are you planning to do?"
Roy changed the subject.
His body was mainly worn out because using the Lightning Style Improvement Card yesterday had given him another Devil Fruit ability.
It had taken a lot out of him.
That was why he needed to replenish himself with so much food.
"I'm going to get some proper rest at home and spend time with my family."
"Same here, more or less. Of course, I won't skip my daily training."
"Roy, have you got something special planned?"
As they spoke, the three of them turned their attention to Roy.
To be honest, they had all joined Konoha's Military Police Force at the same time.
Their strength should have been about the same.
But as fellow members of the Uchiha Clan, the three of them had keen instincts.
Roy was definitely stronger than all three of them now!
He might even be able to hold his own against the three of them working together.
"I'll train, then find Captain Natsume for some sparring."
"At night, I'll extract chakra instead of sleeping. Pretty boring plans, right?"
Roy thought for a moment, then answered casually.
After all, Roy didn't have any friends of his own yet.
Natsume and the others were only teammates.
His family, meanwhile, had already become heroes during the Third Shinobi World War.
"Boss, you're even training while you sleep?"
"Don't they say extracting chakra in your sleep is half as effective?"
Naishiro asked, confused.
"It still improves my chakra. That's better than not training."
"Besides, extracting chakra while I sleep greatly improves my sleep quality and my awareness of what's happening around me."
The four of them chatted as they walked toward the compound.
A few minutes later, a familiar figure appeared in Roy's line of sight.
Roy even saw him raise a hand and wave.
"You three head back first. I'm going to buy a few things to keep at home."
"If you want to train later, come find me."
After exchanging a few words with the others, Roy turned right.
He soon disappeared into an alley.
"You were looking for me?"
Roy stood in the shadows, his expression calm.
"Impressive. The Uchiha really do have plenty of geniuses!"
"Uchiha Roy, a Konoha Chunin and a member of Konoha's Military Police Force."
"What makes you so sure I was looking for you?"
A sinister figure appeared before Roy.
It was Orochimaru.
"I wasn't sure. But now that you've shown up here, I am."
"Lord Orochimaru, what do you want with me?"
Roy was wary of Orochimaru.
He'd come because he was certain Orochimaru wouldn't attack him lightly.
At least, not now.
And he had even less to worry about in the future.
Once Roy had more time to improve his physical strength and chakra reserves, Orochimaru wouldn't be a threat.
"Nothing."
"I just wanted to see what kind of person the ninja who's given the Third Hokage and Danzo so much trouble really is."
As he spoke, Orochimaru licked his lips.
His cold eyes sized Roy up and down.
"Looks like you'll have one more target."
"Giving up on Itachi's eyes?"
Leaning against the wall, Roy spoke with a hint of amusement.
Orochimaru's expression froze at Roy's words.
The eyes he wanted most were naturally Uchiha Itachi's.
But since he hadn't had the opportunity, he'd kept his desire suppressed.
How did this Uchiha brat know what he was thinking?
"Lord Orochimaru."
"If you're planning to leave, you'd better hurry."
"Otherwise, you might get killed."
"The Uchiha have plenty of ways to kill you."
As Roy spoke, he walked straight toward the exit.
"Of course, you can take that as a friendly warning."
As he passed Orochimaru, Roy spoke again.
"Rustle, rustle..."
A swarm of snakes surged out at once, binding Roy tightly.
Their terrible strength made his bones creak.
"Confidence is a good thing, but sometimes..."
"Crackle..."
A wisp of smoke rose, and the snakes instantly turned to charcoal and fell to the ground.
"Lord Orochimaru, I have no intention of attacking you."
"If you ever need help, you can come to me."
"I imagine you've already started planning certain things, haven't you?"
"Destroying Konoha..."
After saying this, Roy ignored Orochimaru's horrified expression and turned to leave.
Roy could say all this because he knew Orochimaru wouldn't spread the information.
He might even use special means to turn Roy into an ally.
Snake Master was clever. There was no way he'd miss the implications.
"What a terrifying brat..."
Only after Roy disappeared from sight did Orochimaru notice a bead of cold sweat on his face.
At the same time, a strange glint returned to his cold eyes.
"Uchiha Roy... The Uchiha..."
"Looks like I'll have to change my plans a little."
"I can't put my trust entirely in those people."
When Orochimaru finished speaking, the ground opened into a huge mouth and swallowed him.
After returning to the Uchiha Compound, Roy headed straight for the training ground.
"Big Brother Nagasawa?"
"Captain Natsume?"
Seeing the two of them there, Roy looked surprised.
Hadn't he only arranged to meet Uchiha Natsume?
"Roy, I came to see how you train, too."
"Don't want me here?"
Uchiha Nagasawa said with a smile.
"No, no. I was just joking, Big Brother Nagasawa."
"Then let's get started."
Roy spoke and walked straight to the center of the training ground.
Before you continue