How Dare You Be So Selfish! Damn It!

He pulled up the system panel:

[Host: Qingyu Uchiha]

[Age: 12]

[Strength Assessment: High-end Chunin (Combat)/Special Jonin (Tactical)]

[Skills Mastered: Water-Fire Rotation Series (Proficient), Uchiha Style Shuriken Advanced (Mastered), Desert Adaptation (Novice), Puppet Master Countermeasures (Basic)]

[Special Status: Dancer on the Wire (Active)]

[Uchiha Internal Balance: 55% (Safe Zone)]

Not bad, at least there is progress.

"Qingyu-kun." A voice suddenly rang out.

Qingyu was startled, turning his head to see Shisui had appeared beside him at some point.

"Shisui-senpai, how did you..."

"Just came to see you." Shisui sat down beside him. "You're training quite hard."

"No choice," Qingyu gave a wry smile. "I'm afraid of dying."

Shisui laughed: "Afraid of dying? That's a good thing! The most important thing for a ninja is to stay alive."

It doesn't matter if Uchiha's words are a bit blunt; just wait for the Sharingan to save you.

He paused, then suddenly said: "Itachi told me everything."

Qingyu's heart tightened.

"About Elder Setsuna seeking you out and giving you intelligence." Shisui looked up at the starry sky. "And the analysis Itachi gave you."

Qingyu remained silent.

So, is Shisui here to... warn me?

That shouldn't be right, you aren't a piece of cake!

"Don't be nervous." Shisui patted his shoulder. "The Clan Head knows as well, and our stance is... we don't oppose it."

Qingyu was stunned: "Don't oppose it?"

"The Uchiha isn't a monolith; this is normal." Shisui said calmly.

"The Clan Head hopes to change the status quo through moderate means, Elder Setsuna wants to be more radical, and others have their own ideas... but as long as the goal is the future of the Uchiha, differences can be tolerated."

Qingyu listened, feeling a bit dazed.

This perspective... is it really that broad?

No wonder he took the lead during the New Year's greetings...

"Of course," Shisui's tone shifted.

"The premise is that you don't do anything to harm the interests of the Uchiha. If you sell intelligence to outsiders or collude with external forces to deal with your own people... that would be a different story."

Qingyu shook his head quickly: "I wouldn't!"

"I know." Shisui smiled.

"So the Clan Head asked me to tell you to prepare well for the joint activity and show off the excellence of the Uchiha. As for the rest... we'll talk when you get back."

He stood up: "Oh, right, one last piece of advice."

"Please, go ahead."

"In the desert, the most dangerous thing isn't necessarily the enemy." Shisui said meaningfully. "It's also the environment, and... your own people."

With that, he used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished.

Qingyu lay on the training ground, ruminating on Shisui's words.

His own people... does that mean within the Uchiha?

Or does it refer to his companions from Konoha?

Or perhaps... both?

The stars in the night sky twinkled, like countless eyes watching him.

Qingyu took a deep breath and climbed to his feet.

No matter what lay ahead, he could only keep moving forward.

On the morning of the assembly, Qingyu stood at the gates of Konoha, looking at the lineup before him, his heart frantically complaining:

On the left, Sasuke Uchiha—the aloof genius, arms crossed, with eyes that screamed, "Everyone here is trash."

On the right, Neji Hyuga—the serious honor student, Byakugan slightly narrowed, radiating an aura of "I have already seen through everything."

In front, Naruto Uzumaki—the hot-blooded idiot, jumping up and down, in a state of "Let's go! Off to Sunagakure to eat ramen!"

Good grief, what kind of divine lineup is this?

An arrogant Uchiha, a cold-faced Hyuga, and a scatterbrained Jinchuriki, plus a transmigrator like me who has "two old grandpas living in his head."

Could this team even survive three chapters in a manga? Does anyone else get how I feel!

Ahhhhhhh!!!

[System: My bad, my bad, I forgot to turn it off!]

"Is everyone here?" The team leader, Jonin Kakashi Hatake, arrived fashionably late, still clutching that copy of Icha Icha Paradise in his hand.

"Then let's set off. Mind your discipline on the road, especially a certain blond-haired kid!"

"I won't cause any trouble!" Naruto protested, "I'm the man who's going to become Hokage!"

Sasuke let out a cold snort.

Neji remained expressionless.

Qingyu... Qingyu just wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.

I regret this, I want to get off the bus!

[Ding!]

[System Prompt: Team assembly detected.]

[Team Name: Konoha Problem Child Squad (Automatically named by the system)]

[Team Members: Sasuke Uchiha (Tsundere representative), Neji Hyuga (Calm representative), Naruto Uzumaki (Atmosphere representative), Qingyu Uchiha (Snark representative)]

[Team Rating: S-rank potential, F-rank synergy]

[Friendly Reminder: Please strive to survive, host. This system does not provide team resurrection services (lol)]

Qingyu looked at the system prompt, his mouth twitching.

Damn you, how can you be so selfish! Ptooey!

"Alright, let's go." Kakashi closed his book with a satisfied expression and led the way out of the gate.

"The journey is expected to take five days, with a rest stop at the border of the Land of Rivers. Keep up, and don't fall behind."

The four of them followed.

No sooner had they left the gate than Naruto entered chatterbox mode:

"Hey, hey, does Sunagakure really have that much sand?"

"I heard they live in castles!"

"Is there any Sunagakure-style ramen? I wonder if the flavor in the Land of Wind is different!"

"Shut up," Sasuke said coldly, "travel quietly."

"What did you say, you bastard Sasuke! Want to fight?"

"Bring it on, dead last."

Neji rubbed his temples.

Qingyu silently quickened his pace, trying to put some distance between himself and the battlefield.

Kakashi didn't even turn his head: "You can fight, but the loser is responsible for tonight's watch."

The two of them went silent instantly.

Qingyu gave Kakashi a mental thumbs-up: As expected of a seasoned Jonin, he really knows how to handle problem children!

The first day of the journey went fairly smoothly.

All four were elites among Genin (Naruto: ?), and their stamina was good, so they traveled at a fast pace.

During the lunch break, Kakashi explained the precautions for desert survival:

"The temperature difference between day and night in the desert is huge. Keep warm at night and protect yourself from the sun during the day."

"Water sources are the most important. Each person is rationed two liters per day; drink sparingly."

"If you encounter a sandstorm, find cover. Don't try to tough it out..."

Qingyu took notes diligently.

This was all life-saving knowledge; he couldn't afford to be careless.

Naruto raised his hand: "Kakashi-sensei! What do we do if we encounter a scorpion!"

"Stab it with a kunai."

"What about a venomous snake?"

"Stab it with a kunai."

"What about a Sunagakure ninja?"

"Stab it with a kunai... wait, you can't just stab those!"

Qingyu facepalmed.

Naruto, are you here just to be the comic relief!

They continued their journey throughout the afternoon.

The further west they traveled, the sparser the vegetation became, and the air grew increasingly dry.

Qingyu felt his lips beginning to parch, so he quickly took a sip of water, following the method Kakashi had taught him: small sips, taken frequently.

Sasuke remained silent the entire time, yet his eyes constantly scanned their surroundings, the Sharingan occasionally flickering with a faint glow.

Neji's Byakugan was also activated from time to time to scout the path ahead.

Only Naruto... after nearly tripping for the third time because he stepped on a rock, was finally tethered by the wrist with a chakra thread by Kakashi.

"Is this walking a dog?" Naruto protested.

"This is to prevent you from getting lost," Kakashi said calmly.

"It's not easy to find someone if they get lost in the desert."