Factions!

"Is this the little genius who has been the talk of the clan lately? He certainly has guts, daring to go head-to-head with Uchiha Lin. I'm impressed!"

"Tch, he's a genius, so he naturally has his pride. Look, look at Uchiha Lin's face!"

The clansmen who had been chatting nearby noticed Mirai Uchiha and Uchiha Lin locked in a standoff, and one by one, they wore expressions of anticipation for a good show. Externally, the Uchiha Clan might appear united, but internally, there was constant strife; no family could ever be completely harmonious.

"Brat, watch your tone. Don't think that just because you've earned the title of 'genius' you can look down on others. A brat like you? I could crush you with a single finger!" Uchiha Lin's face darkened, his black pupils dyed into a blood-red hue as two tomoe manifested within them. It was a Two-Tomoe Sharingan.

Uchiha Lin was furious. Ever since he heard the Great Elder's instructions last night, he had been seething. Before Mirai Uchiha gained his reputation as a genius, Lin had been the talent the Great Elder focused on cultivating. At ten years old, he had awakened his Two-Tomoe Sharingan and was hailed as a prodigy by the Great Elder. Although four years had passed and he remained at the two-tomoe stage, the Great Elder had not abandoned him. Yet, just last night, the Great Elder had approached him, saying a six-year-old brat would be joining the Military Police Force today and instructing him to look after the boy and win him over. The Great Elder's intent was clear: he wanted to pull Mirai Uchiha into his own faction to cultivate him as a tool against the opposing faction. Uchiha Lin felt as though something of his had been stolen, which was the root of his deep hatred for Mirai Uchiha.

"Two-Tomoe Sharingan?" Mirai Uchiha was slightly surprised. Within the Uchiha Clan, there were fewer than twenty people who had awakened the two-tomoe stage at Uchiha Lin's age. With hundreds of members in the entire Uchiha Clan, one could imagine how rare that ratio was. It was no wonder this guy was so arrogant.

However, to Mirai Uchiha, this level was incomparable. His own black pupils instantly dyed into blood-red, and two tomoe appeared within them as well. He glared coldly at Uchiha Lin and said indifferently, "To only awaken the Two-Tomoe Sharingan at your age, what right do you have to shout at me?"

"You..." Uchiha Lin was shaking with rage, but the task the Great Elder had entrusted to him kept surfacing in his mind. He trembled for a long time, unable to utter a single word. After taking two deep breaths, Uchiha Lin stared coldly at Mirai Uchiha and said again, "Brat, you are too arrogant. Sooner or later, you will regret this!"

After delivering this threat that wasn't much of a threat at all, Uchiha Lin left in a huff, fearing that if he stayed any longer, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from attacking Mirai Uchiha.

"Tsk tsk, Uchiha Lin actually backed down. That's a rare sight!"

"Tch, I guessed this would happen. This Mirai Uchiha is the clan's rising genius; the Great Elder must want to win him over. Even if Uchiha Lin is bold, he wouldn't dare defy the Great Elder's wishes!"

Mirai Uchiha was not standing far away. Although the two clansmen were speaking in low voices, he still caught a bit of their conversation. His brows furrowed slightly; he felt his understanding of the Uchiha Clan was still lacking.

"Shh, stop talking. That brat probably heard us!"

Seeing Mirai Uchiha's furrowed brows, the two clansmen exchanged a few furtive words before leaving together. The work of the Military Police Force was just wandering the streets all day to maintain order; the only reason they could chat for so long was because they had just started their shift.

"Interesting. Based on my judgment, there seem to be two factions in the clan. If I'm not mistaken, one is led by Uchiha Hao, and the other is likely led by this so-called Great Elder!" Mirai Uchiha rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He thought of some amusing possibilities. He hadn't noticed it before, but upon closer inspection, he had a preliminary understanding of these two factions. If his understanding was correct, even though Madara Uchiha had been betrayed by the clansmen back then, there was still a group that revered him deeply and had always wanted the Uchiha Clan to be the strongest in the ninja world. Even after the founding of Konoha, their views had not changed; these people were known as the Hardline Faction.

There was another faction that was tired of war and longed for a peaceful, comfortable life. They had betrayed Madara Uchiha and willingly submitted to Hashirama Senju. These people were known as the Moderate Faction.

The leaders of the two factions were likely Uchiha Hao and that Great Elder he had yet to meet, though he didn't know which faction each represented.

Of course, the Moderate Faction wasn't having an easy time either. The Konoha Hokage faction held too deep a prejudice against the Uchiha Clan and was constantly suppressing them, especially after the Second Hokage took office and directly ousted the Uchiha from the political center. This had caused dissatisfaction among many in the Moderate Faction, so today, the Moderate Faction wasn't necessarily all that "moderate" anymore.

"But these aren't things I should be worrying about right now. The top priority is to increase my strength!" Mirai Uchiha shook his head, casting these factional issues aside. He believed that with the Life Potion, his chakra reserves would surely increase rapidly. When that time came, whether it was the Hardline Faction or the Moderate Faction, who would dare to piss on his head?

After pinning the Military Police Force armband to his left arm, Mirai Uchiha also left the station. The job was easy enough; he just had to wander around. It was called maintaining order, but in reality, no one dared to cause trouble in the village. The only things to watch out for were the occasional drunks.

He spent the day wandering the streets, and until nightfall, there was nothing to do. Konoha's management was quite competent—a credit to the Third Hokage—and no one dared to cause trouble in broad daylight.

As night fell, the streets of Konoha became even livelier. Ninjas returning from missions called out to their companions to drink at snack bars or barbecue joints, and the sound of laughter filled the air.

"You bastard, I just got back from a mission and wanted to have a drink to relax, only to run into a jerk like you. Let me tell you, don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're a chunin!"

Judging by the voice, it was clearly someone talking drunkenly. There were many conflicts between ninjas; they might be able to restrain themselves normally, but once drunk, they lost all control. Almost every night, a few drunks were dragged into the Military Police Force.

Hearing the drunken rant from afar, Mirai Uchiha knew someone was causing trouble. Seeing a crowd gathered not far ahead, he walked over. Upon reaching them, he used both hands to push through the onlookers, which immediately drew their dissatisfaction. However, once they saw the Uchiha emblem on his uniform, they all shut their mouths and cleared a path for him.