About two hours later, Uchiha Xiao woke from his unconsciousness. He shook his head, took a deep breath, and looked around.
"Where am I?" Uchiha Xiao murmured. This wasn't his home, the training field, or the run-down little house he lived in at the clan compound.
Instead, he was in a spacious, brightly lit residence with a comfortably warm atmosphere.
"Boy, you're awake." Uzumaki Mito sat in a chair. She opened her previously closed eyes and looked at Uchiha Xiao on the bed.
Uchiha Xiao sat up and turned toward the voice, only to find a middle-aged woman sitting in a chair. She had red hair, a noble bearing, and beautiful features, and she met his gaze calmly.
His mind raced. Konoha, red hair, a middle-aged woman. Could it be...
Uchiha Xiao quickly rose, pulled back the covers, climbed out of bed, and knelt on one knee. "Thank you, Lady Mito, for saving my life."
Uzumaki Mito raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Boy, I don't recall telling you my name. How did you know who I was?"
Naturally, it was because she was a red-haired woman in Konoha, but he couldn't say that; it would sound too shallow. So he cleverly replied, "Lady Mito, just tell me: is there any woman in Konoha with such grace and beauty? Aside from you, I truly can't think of anyone."
Uzumaki Mito covered her mouth and laughed. "What a sweet-talking little rascal."
The Nine-Tails' voice rang out. "That kid's lying! He did that on purpose!"
Dividing her attention, Uzumaki Mito replied to the Nine-Tails, "I know. You don't have to tell me." She gave a snort.
The Nine-Tails: ...
Uzumaki Mito smiled. "Little one, I heard you awakened your Sharingan. Could you let me have a look?"
"Of course!" Uchiha Xiao closed his eyes. Yin Release Chakra gathered and connected to his optic nerves, and then he opened them.
Whoosh! His eyes snapped open. His blood-red Sharingan stared directly into Uzumaki Mito's eyes without moving.
Uzumaki Mito nodded. "Good. You awakened it perfectly. I can even sense a presence comparable to that of the Uchiha shinobi of the Warring States period."
She wasn't lying. The Sharingan awakened by the Uchiha during the Warring States period had been far stronger than the Sharingan of the present day.
Uchiha Xiao was stunned. The Warring States period? He had never expected such high praise. He had awakened his eyes at eighteen, and the Uchiha Clan considered him a failure. Yet in Uzumaki Mito's eyes, he was a genius.
Whether Uzumaki Mito's words were true or not, Uchiha Xiao was genuinely grateful to her.
"Thank you for the praise, Lady Mito." His voice was now even more sincere.
But Uzumaki Mito shook her head. "Don't thank me yet. Little Tsunade saw you collapse and carried you back. She just went out to attend a meeting."
Uchiha Xiao immediately understood. So that was what happened. Before he passed out, he'd thought he saw a flash of golden yellow. It must have been Tsunade's hair!
Thinking of Tsunade, his heart fluttered. When he'd watched the anime, he'd thought she was beautiful and peerless. Now, he couldn't help feeling a little excited.
Uchiha Xiao nodded. The meeting was probably about rallying the troops and dividing them into units before the war. Tsunade was eighteen and the Hokage's student, so she would surely be chosen to lead troops.
As a descendant of the Senju Clan and a student of the Hokage, this was something she would have to experience.
There was one thing he needed to keep in mind, though. A year after the war began, a meeting of the jonin would be held, and Tsunade would propose the idea of medical shinobi.
His task was to follow and support her with unwavering resolve. But first, he needed to reach jonin strength and make a contribution within the year, so he could attend the meeting.
Uzumaki Mito watched the boy's expression change and found it amusing. "Xiao, right? Please get some rest. You've only just woken up, and you're still weak. When little Tsunade comes back, you're the same age, so you should have plenty to talk about."
"Uchiha Xiao thanks you, Lady Mito!" With that, Uchiha Xiao cupped his hands.
Uzumaki Mito waved him off and left the room. Just as she was about to step outside, she paused. "Oh, by the way, this room you're staying in belongs to little Tsunade."
With a smile, she walked out.
Uchiha Xiao froze. T-this was Tsunade's room? No wonder... No wonder it smelled so nice. After Uzumaki Mito left, he lay back down and breathed in the faint fragrance, his heart filled with delight.
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out. "Ding! System binding complete. The Strongest Ninja System has been activated."
Uchiha Xiao froze, then sat up and looked at the panel that had appeared out of thin air. "Would you like to activate the system?"
Uchiha Xiao took a deep breath. He knew exactly what this was. Besides manga, he'd read plenty of system novels! This was his cheat!
Uchiha Xiao said, "Yes!"
Ding! System bound.
Host: Uchiha Xiao. Chakra: Genin. Combat strength: Genin. Skills: Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu, Uchiha Style Swordsmanship, C-rank ninjutsu: Great Fireball Technique, C-rank ninjutsu: Dragon Fire Technique, C-rank ninjutsu: Phoenix Flower Jutsu. Kekkei Genkai: One-Tomoe Sharingan (can grow).
Ding! A beginner's gift pack has been detected. Would you like to open it?
"Open it!" Uchiha Xiao grinned. With his current Genin-level combat strength, he'd be nothing but cannon fodder on the Second Shinobi World War battlefield. The beginner's gift pack had arrived at just the right time.
Ding! Beginner's gift pack contents: The host is awarded Chunin-level chakra and the B-rank ninjutsu Majestic Destroyer Flame (mastered instantly).
Ding! Since the host awakened the Sharingan independently, the original Sharingan reward has been canceled and is being replaced with an equivalent reward.
The host has been detected to possess Wind and Earth chakra natures, meeting the minimum requirements for a kekkei genkai. The host is awarded the Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai and the B-rank ninjutsu Sand Binding Coffin (mastered instantly).
Uchiha Xiao immediately felt his chakra rising rapidly, and his meridians expanding considerably. His face, which had been pale from awakening the Sharingan, gradually regained its color.
The methods for using Majestic Destroyer Flame and Sand Binding Coffin appeared in his mind. He moved his hand, and the sand in the room began to flow. Uchiha Xiao quickly stopped.
Lady Mito was here, after all. If he kept going, she might discover him!
What he didn't know was that the moment his chakra increased, Uzumaki Mito had released her Mind's Eye of the Kagura and begun observing Uchiha Xiao in secret.
She saw every move he made. Uzumaki Mito's eyes lit up, and she murmured, "Magnet Release? This little one has been hiding his abilities well!"
She withdrew her Mind's Eye of the Kagura, in a good mood. The boy seemed rather handsome, and he was the same age as Tsunade.
But matters between young people were best left for them to work out themselves. After all, you couldn't force a melon to become sweet.
Uchiha Xiao breathed a sigh of relief, then continued inspecting the system's functions.