Itachi and Sasuke, Sasuke of Course, Kana!

Uchiha Gin could finally start making some progress on his mission.

He decided to tackle the familiar mission first, since it was the easiest. He was still gathering materials for his Mystic Code, and the Uchiha Clan obtained its supplies through Ninja Cats.

The seller was a Black Market merchant, and the costs were considerable. Gin was nearly out of money, which was the main thing keeping him from completing his mission.

So he prioritized the familiar, which cost much less.

"My gem supply is running low. My wallet's shrinking fast."

Uchiha Gin opened the storeroom where he kept his gems. It was protected by a special barrier and seals that would alert him as soon as anyone touched them.

Even if someone tried to break in by force, the defenses would hold for quite a while.

"Found it. Blue, the color of wisdom: a sapphire."

The oval sapphire, two centimeters across at its longest point, had beautiful, symmetrical facets.

Uchiha Gin began pouring magic into the sapphire, carving a spell formula into it.

Though it was a way to save money, Gin had left room for it to evolve in the future.

After all, ordinary familiars weren't much help to him. But the highest form a familiar could reach might be a Servant.

Gin planned to turn the sapphire from an inanimate object into a familiar, then attach it to a living creature and use it to control that creature. As he reinforced the sapphire with other materials, the creatures it could control would grow stronger, too. It would cost a lot, but Gin was sure he'd have plenty of money later on, so he'd chosen this approach.

"The spell formulas are mental stun, suggestion, brainwashing, and control. They're pretty basic, but they're already the limit of what this gem can handle."

After spending about three hours on it, Gin picked up the sapphire and examined it carefully in the light of the setting sun.

Spell formulas carved into ordinary inanimate familiars were usually things like magic blasts, flight, or concealment.

"Summoning Technique!"

Gin summoned a crow he'd been feeding for the past two years, choosing the cleverest one.

As soon as it appeared, Gin used his Sharingan to hold it still. Then he made a silver setting for the sapphire and set the gem into it.

He fastened the sapphire to the crow's forehead.

"Lataib!"

The Sharingan's hold on the crow broke.

The crow cawed twice, feeling pain in its forehead.

It spread its wings, ready to take off.

But its head immediately spun. Gin controlled his familiar and chained the spells together.

Mental stun, suggestion, and brainwashing—together, they brought it under his control.

The crow, which had once been guided by its animal instincts, had become a familiar reduced to following a single line of commands.

"An inanimate object combined with a living creature—this is the perfect familiar!"

Uchiha Gin stroked the crow's head, sensing the presence of his magic in its body.

He could control the familiar and make it use the spell formulas he'd carved into it.

However, he had to replenish its magic regularly to keep it going. Since it wasn't truly alive, it couldn't recover on its own. A familiar made from a living creature could, though its owner's support would make it even stronger.

Besides using the carved spells, it could carry messages and deliver letters. Through their magical link, Gin could also see through its eyes, much like Gaara's Eye of Sand.

"I'll get you a stronger body someday. Make do with this for now. Maybe I can get a Tailed Beast and carve in a magic-conversion formula, so I won't have to keep recharging you."

"I'll call you Blue Star, to remember my home."

Uchiha Gin said to Blue Star.

But Blue Star had no consciousness and couldn't communicate. It was only someone for Gin to talk to.

[Find a familiar you can exploit]—Completed

Reward: One Magic Circuit

Once Uchiha Gin had named it, the Magician Teaching System displayed its notification.

His Magic Circuits increased from twenty-five to twenty-six.

Chapter 21: Itachi and Sasuke, Sasuke of Course, Kana!

Danzo gathered all the subordinates who'd been pushed aside. He was still Hokage Assistant, but he no longer had an official post. Even so, the Hokage Assistant could still give orders to the Anbu.

His subordinates now served as his personal guards. There were only eight of them, far fewer than he'd had in Root, though Danzo still had plenty of people working for him in secret.

Orochimaru hadn't left him a single researcher. He knew such talented people were far rarer than shinobi, and he wasn't putting all his hopes on the Uchiha, either.

Orochimaru had brought plenty of new blood into Root. He was famous, after all, and had fought in wars; plenty of people were willing to follow him.

Some of them hadn't been suitable before, and Orochimaru hadn't been interested in recruiting them. But things were different now. Root still had dirty work to do, so he'd brought in a few people to serve as his confidants.

Meanwhile, the new squad in the Military Police Force was having a rough time.

The job of policing the streets was undeniably difficult.

Once they'd been sent out, the Uchiha had breathed a sigh of relief. All they had to do was guard Konoha Gate and patrol the village, and their daily duties were done.

"Did Hyuga Himon use his Byakugan to peep into the women's bathhouse?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen set down the report in his hand.

The Anbu had gathered this information about civilians, since some people wouldn't speak openly to the Hokage.

"Yes, but our investigation suggests the rumor was started by the Uchiha Clan."

Kakashi answered.

Sarutobi Hiruzen picked up his pipe and took a puff.

He already knew through his spies that the Uchiha Clan was unhappy. He wasn't surprised that Hyuga Himon's squad had been assigned to street patrol duty.

He also knew about the exams being held within the Uchiha Clan.

"It's too peaceful."

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt that something was off.

He'd also realized that his student Orochimaru had joined forces with the Uchiha.

Was Orochimaru trying to placate him and show goodwill?

Or did he have something bigger in mind?

He'd met with Orochimaru two days ago and asked him about it. Orochimaru had only said that they were going to work together to develop new ninja tools, nothing more.

He didn't think his student was a fool. The Uchiha Clan was proud, too, and the clan had a high-ranking spy in Shisui.

He could detect even the slightest hint of something amiss.

"I hope you don't disappoint me, Orochimaru!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen decided to strengthen the security around himself.

If Orochimaru and the Uchiha allied, the only way to change the situation would be to kill him. But the Uchiha and Orochimaru were acting far too peacefully, with no sign they intended to do that. Even so, he couldn't let his guard down!

At the Uchiha Police Force.

The top ten examinees had gathered there.

Itachi, Yashiro, Izumi, Shisui, Kaseki...

With a perfect score of two hundred, the gap between first and last place was more than fifty points.

Itachi had taken first place.

"Congratulations. You're the ten brightest people in the Uchiha Clan."

Uchiha Gin began with a compliment.

What surprised him most was Uchiha Izumi, Itachi's childhood friend. She hadn't graduated as a Genin yet, though she was already capable of doing so, and he hadn't expected her to know so much.

The Uchiha Clan wouldn't have thought much of a written exam. They could've used the Sharingan to copy answers first, but the questions on this exam weren't in any book. Many of them were based on Orochimaru's own ideas.

Izumi was a girl who wasn't even ten, yet she'd placed ninth. Clearly, she'd worked hard to keep up with Itachi. He liked reading, after all, and it was only natural for her to study hard for someone she liked.

"I've selected you for something very important, something that concerns the future of the Uchiha Clan."

"You'll work with me and one of the three—Orochimaru—to develop a new generation of ninja tools. I call them Scientific Ninja Tools."

"..."

Uchiha Gin began his speech before the onboarding training.

It was meant to get their attention, but it also contained plenty of substance, laying the groundwork for the Scientific Ninja of the future.

"Our Scientific Ninja Tool office should be ready in about three days. These next few days are for you to wrap up your duties. Shisui is the squad leader, so he'll be a part-time member. Everyone else will join the project full-time."

Uchiha Gin gave them their assignments.

No one objected. The Uchiha already saw Gin as the man who would lead their clan to a revival, and they felt honored to follow him.

After he finished, they were dismissed and told to take care of their duties, then gather again in three days.

On the way out, Uchiha Gin walked home with Itachi and Izumi.

After they parted ways with Izumi in the clan district, Itachi finally spoke up.

"Captain Gin, is this related to Sasuke?"

Itachi had been studying constantly for the past few days, barely taking a break. He'd even neglected his usual training.

"No. This is just fairly simple work. The task I have for you is more important. For now, it looks like you'll be the only one involved."

"For the sake of the Uchiha Clan and Sasuke, can you keep a secret?"

Uchiha Gin asked Itachi in an empty alley.

"Yes. I'm willing to give my life for the clan and Sasuke!"

Itachi answered with complete seriousness.

He also felt that the weight on his young shoulders was getting a little heavy!

Uchiha Gin patted Itachi on the head, then walked him home.

Once they arrived, Gin pulled Sasuke over and ruffled his hair, satisfied at last.

"Come find me at two tonight. Tell your father first, then make your way to me without being seen. Can you do that?"

Uchiha Gin asked.

Itachi nodded.

Then they parted ways.

Itachi watched Uchiha Gin walk away, his expression complicated.

"Is Captain Gin wary of me? But he seems to like Sasuke more."

Itachi sensed that Uchiha Gin treated Sasuke better, as though they were characters in a game with different affection levels. It felt like Gin favored his younger brother over him.

"Itachi, have you been working too hard lately?"

Uchiha Mikoto asked him.

She'd noticed that Itachi had barely rested these past few days.

"No, I've just been studying."

Itachi shook his head.

"Gin is a very capable person, though he can be rather strict. Your father sometimes scolds him, but he praises him much more often."

"Follow Gin's orders seriously, and don't get upset if he reprimands you."

Uchiha Mikoto advised Itachi.

"Yes!"

Itachi replied loudly.