Beat You Until You Submit!

"The Military Police Force is on the job. Now, tell me what happened." Li frowned as he looked at the two drunkards. They were middle-aged men in simple kimonos, their cheeks flushed from drinking, their eyes bleary, and the reek of alcohol hanging heavily around them.

The two men, who had been arguing, showed their displeasure at the words "Military Police Force." They turned around and saw a kid barely half their height, and both burst out laughing.

"Kid, you say you're with the Military Police Force? What, is the Uchiha Clan short on people now? They're sending little brats like you?" The speaker was a middle-aged man with a black horseshoe mustache. Squinting through his drunken haze, he pointed at Li and laughed. Normally, he would never dare to be so rude. It wasn't the fact that Li was a kid that mattered; just the words "Uchiha" would be enough to make him swallow his anger. But now that he was drunk, he said whatever he pleased.

"Exactly! If you're just a kid, go home and get to bed. Otherwise, your uncle here won't care that you're an Uchiha. I'll beat you senseless! Hahaha!" Apparently amused by his own words, the other drunkard burst into laughter. Perhaps he'd always wanted to string up someone from the Uchiha Clan and give them a beating.

The onlookers pointed and whispered, smiles on their faces. Though they didn't dare say it aloud, they couldn't deny that a kid trying to subdue two drunkards was pure fantasy. Some knew that one of the men was an elite Genin and the other a Chunin. Either one could crush the child with ease.

"I'll say it again: the Military Police Force is on the job. Are you coming with me, or do I have to knock you both down and drag you there?" Li frowned, enduring the foul stench of alcohol. He didn't take their drunken words seriously. Only someone with nothing better to do would argue with two drunks.

"Quit yapping! Don't think you can meddle in other people's business just because you're from the Uchiha Clan. I'll teach you arrogant types a lesson!" The mustached drunk suddenly shook his head, glared at Li, and roared before throwing a punch at him.

"That kid's in for it. That man's a Chunin!" The onlookers shook their heads slightly, making no move to intervene. They were more than happy to see someone from the Uchiha Clan make a fool of himself.

"What's Li doing? Fighting with someone?" A small figure squeezed through the crowd, immediately spotting Li and the two drunks. It was Kushina Uzumaki, whose long red hair stood out among the onlookers.

Li hadn't seen Kushina. Watching the drunkard's punch come at him, he shook his head slightly. The man was so drunk he'd forgotten even the basics of fighting. Li surged forward, dodging the Chunin's punch, then bent his legs and sprang upward. As he rose half a meter into the air, he drove his knee into the man's lung. The drunkard's breath caught, and the impact sobered him up—but Li gave him no chance to react. Bracing one hand on the man's shoulder, Li vaulted over the nearly six-foot-tall brute and landed behind him, then kicked him in the back of the knee. The blow, strengthened with chakra, sent the man flying. He landed face-first, cracking his head against the ground and passing out on the spot.

"Oh! Nice one!" Kushina still hadn't figured out what was going on, but with her love of chaos, seeing Li stylishly take down such a burly middle-aged man made her leap with excitement.

"Kid, even if you're from the Uchiha Clan, you can't just go around hitting people! I won't stand for this! I'm going to report you to Lord Hokage. Let's see whether Konoha belongs to you Uchiha or to Lord Hokage!" Perhaps the other drunk had sobered up a little. He pointed at Li with bloodshot eyes and shouted, but soon clapped a hand over his mouth, clearly about to throw up.

"You won't stand for it?" Li narrowed his eyes slightly and darted forward, reaching the drunkard in an instant. Before he could react, Li punched him in the face. The man was only an elite Genin, no match for Li even when sober; drunk as he was, he had no chance to fight back. Li grabbed him and pummeled him until he passed out.

"If you won't stand for it, I'll beat you until you do!" Li curled his lip. He'd already given them two chances to settle things without a fight. They hadn't appreciated it, and instead kept insisting they wouldn't stand for it, even throwing a few insults at him. If they hadn't been drunk, passing out would have been the least of their worries.

Suddenly, someone flew at Li from behind. He reacted to the sound and spun around quickly, only to find someone clinging to him. Once he realized what had happened, he looked down and saw Kushina, her face flushed and her eyes sparkling with excitement, hanging from him like a koala.

"Li, you're amazing! I can't believe you took down those two scary-looking guys so easily!" Kushina climbed down and then gesticulated wildly as she poured out her excitement.

"Kushina!" Watching her jump around with joy, Li smiled helplessly. What other girl would throw herself at someone in public and admire violence so much? There probably wasn't another one in all of Konoha. Well, she certainly lived up to her future title, the Bloody Habanero!

"By the way, shouldn't you be at home right now? What are you doing here?" After bouncing around for a while, Kushina calmed down and asked curiously.

"I'm with the Military Police Force now!" Li pointed to the Forehead Protector on his forehead, then continued, "I passed the Genin exam yesterday and became a ninja. The clan assigned me to work with the Military Police Force. My job is to keep the peace in Konoha!"

Following his finger, Kushina's eyes lit up. Only then did she notice the Forehead Protector on Li's forehead, and she grew excited again. Reaching for it, she exclaimed, "Is this a ninja's Forehead Protector? You don't mind if I try it on, do you?"

"You're already reaching for it, and now you're asking?" Li rolled his eyes at Kushina, but didn't mind. He let her take the Forehead Protector off. To Li, it wasn't important. All glory was fleeting; only one's own strength was real.

Kushina happily put the Forehead Protector on her head, planted her hands on her hips, and said to Li in a carefree manner, "Li, do I look like a ninja?"