Sasuke Sandbag - You Deserve It

"This Seat is a conscientious system that has always been fair and honest. When have I ever scammed anyone? Do not slander my innocence. Do you believe I will issue you a mission to hunt down Pain right now?"

The system spoke up, sounding dissatisfied.

Regarding this, Uchiha Chen was quite curious: if this guy had a physical body, would it blush while saying such things?

Future events proved that this guy, the system, could spout lies without even a hint of a blush.

"Big boss, I was wrong. My eyes were blind, alright?"

Ignoring the system, Uchiha Chen directly unleashed the Great Fireball Technique.

Although it wasn't very obvious, Uchiha Chen still noticed a reduction in his chakra consumption.

Two percent wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. Moreover, for those ninjutsu that consumed massive amounts of chakra, even two percent was quite useful.

Seeing that the time was gradually approaching evening, Uchiha Chen stood up and walked over to the exhausted Sasuke.

"Second Pillar, you're really not up to the task. You've only run a little over one lap of the three-lap mission. It's one thing to have poor strength, but how can your physical stamina be this pathetic?"

Uchiha Chen wore a look of disdain, while Sasuke gritted his teeth in frustration.

Sasuke wanted to retort, but he was truly too exhausted. At only three years old, he hadn't even begun formal ninja training; being able to run a kilometer was already quite impressive.

Although he didn't like Sasuke, Uchiha Chen didn't intend to run him to death. After all, if Sasuke died, Itachi would likely fight him to the death.

And so, picking Sasuke up with one hand, Uchiha Chen headed toward home.

"Chen? What is that thing you're carrying?"

Upon returning to the vicinity of his home, he happened to run into Izumi. Because the sky had already darkened, although Izumi saw that Uchiha Chen was holding something, she couldn't see clearly what it was.

"Him? He's not a 'thing,' he's Itachi's silly younger brother, Sasuke."

"You're the one who's not a thing!"

"Oh, so you're saying you are a thing? Then what kind of thing are you?"

"I..."

Poor Sasuke was stumped by Uchiha Chen's question, unable to figure out how to answer for a moment.

"Chen, you really are something else. Why are you bullying Sasuke for no reason? If Itachi finds out, he definitely won't be happy."

Izumi stood to the side, feeling somewhat helpless. She knew about Sasuke, after all, Itachi doted on this young brother of his very much.

"I'm not bullying him. He's just too weak and begged me to train him. You saw the result yourself—it's only been one afternoon, and he's already turned into this."

As he spoke, Uchiha Chen loosened his grip and dropped Sasuke onto the ground.

"I really doubt if this guy is actually Itachi's brother. How can he be so different from Itachi? Sister Izumi, do you think this guy was picked up by Itachi? Otherwise, how could there be such a huge gap between brothers?"

"You're the one who was picked up! Your whole family was picked up! I challenge you! Uchiha Chen, let me tell you, I've learned the Clone Technique, and today I will definitely defeat you!"

"Uh..."

Both Uchiha Chen and Izumi were speechless. While learning the Clone Technique was impressive, could learning that alone really defeat Uchiha Chen?

But thinking about it carefully, it seemed like every time Sasuke learned something new, he felt like he was capable again.

"Since you want a beating, I'll grant your wish."

"Hmph, you're the one who's going to get beaten!"

As he spoke, Sasuke charged toward Uchiha Chen.

Then...

"Ah!!!!"

After a shrill, miserable scream, Sasuke was once again flying through the air in spectacular fashion.

"Konoha's secret taijutsu, One Thousand Years of Death complete!"

Uchiha Chen maintained the posture of the One Thousand Years of Death, while Izumi, standing to the side, blushed in helplessness. As a girl, she understood all too well that if this move were used on a girl, it would be far too powerful.

"Chen, when did you learn such messy, nonsensical things?"

"Sister Izumi, you don't understand. This move is known as one of the signature techniques of the Copy Ninja, Kakashi. Furthermore, the person who created this move was Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo, who is Kakashi's father."

Izumi shook her head helplessly, clearly not believing that such a move could have originated from such a person.

Uchiha Chen didn't bother explaining further, while Sasuke, pitifully clutching his backside, headed home alone.

A single day was not enough for Chen to easily master a B-rank ninjutsu, so for the next few days, Chen poured the vast majority of his energy into learning ninjutsu.

"Hey! I've finished running, hurry up and teach me ninjutsu!"

Sasuke walked over, panting heavily; after a few days, he had finally managed to 'run' the three kilometers.

Seeing that it was already noon, Chen decided to take a break.

"Ninjutsu can wait, learn taijutsu first. From now on, I'll be in charge of attacking and you'll be in charge of defending. Once you can block my attacks, I'll teach you ninjutsu."

As he spoke, Chen charged directly at Sasuke.

The next second, poor Sasuke went flying and slammed into a tree behind him.

"You cheated! You didn't say 'start' yet!"

"Are you a moron? Will your enemies shout 'start' before launching an attack? I'm genuinely curious, are you really Itachi's brother? Or did you grow up by burning through your IQ?"

"I did not! Today, I will definitely defeat you!"

Like a little puppy, Sasuke charged at Chen, but even without considering ninjutsu, Chen could still thrash Sasuke with taijutsu alone.

There was no helping it; even in taijutsu, Chen was at the level of a Chunin.

Of course, this definitely excluded a certain big shot who wore a green spandex suit.

After all, that was a ruthless man who nearly kicked the series to its finale with a single blow.

The Eight Inner Gates are strong, should I learn them too? Even if I don't open the eighth gate, the first few seem quite useful, right?

While using Sasuke as a punching bag, Chen pondered.

Chen had long since learned from the system that as long as he wanted to, the system could issue missions related to the Eight Inner Gates.

However, Chen was worried that the system might be a scam, and on the other hand, he was concerned that the Eight Inner Gates might not suit him.

Forget it, I have ninjutsu and Kido, plus a Zanpakuto; my taijutsu doesn't need to be that strong. Better to focus on ninjutsu.

After much hesitation, Chen finally made up his mind, while poor Sasuke, under Chen's subconscious attacks, was already black and blue.

"Uh... who are you? Where's Second Pillar?"

Looking at the kid in front of him who looked like a pig's head but vaguely resembled Sasuke, Chen was startled.

"I'm not Second Pillar, my name is Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke."

Holding back tears as he explained, Sasuke felt incredibly aggrieved, yet in order to learn ninjutsu and make his brother look at him with new eyes, Sasuke still gritted his teeth and persisted.

"Damn, you really are Second Pillar. You look terrifying, go play by yourself."

Chen turned and left, leaving Sasuke standing in the wind, disheveled and confused. Why exactly had he spent all day getting beaten up?

Just like that, studying ninjutsu every day, and using Sasuke to stretch his limbs when tired, half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and Chen had truly and thoroughly mastered the Fire Release, Fire Dragon Flame Bullet.

"Ding, system notification: Side quest complete. Learned B-rank ninjutsu Fire Dragon Flame Bullet. Mission reward: Jiraiya's original..."

"System, screw you!"