Uchiha Genmei

(Brain storage!)

Konoha, Year 28.

Konoha,

inside an unremarkable training ground.

BOOM!!!

Two figures clashed more than a dozen times in the blink of an eye, sending gravel spraying across the ground.

A tall, handsome figure

leaped high into the air, rapidly forming Hand Seals.

[Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!]

Flames illuminated the world in every direction.

A blazing fireball, fast and concentrated with heat, plunged from the sky like a falling sun, hurtling toward a beautiful purple figure in the training ground!

"Not bad, Genmei!"

the beautiful purple figure praised.

She formed three Hand Seals.

[Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!]

A water dragon surged from her lips, formed from a torrent of water.

BANG!!!

The fireball and water dragon collided violently.

Steam and flames intertwined.

In an instant, the area became a steaming hell.

The intense heat and steam pressed the air outward in every direction.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!

The two figures quickly disengaged, each taking a stance and watching the other intently.

The tall, handsome figure wore Konoha's standard green flak jacket.

The beautiful purple figure wore traditional Uchiha clothing.

A moment later,

the beauty opened her mouth. "Genmei, let's call it here for today. We have to go on patrol soon."

"Let's call it a draw."

At that,

Uchiha Genmei lowered his guard.

He took a deep breath.

"Phew~"

"Chiri, you're still as strong as ever!"

he thought.

Though neither of them had used the Sharingan to fight seriously,

this had only been their usual sparring match.

But!

The beautiful woman standing before him was none other than—

the powerful woman who, according to Uchiha Itachi in the original story, ended the Uchiha Clan's internal strife and developed Izanami.

Uchiha Chiri! She was eighteen.

To be able to hold his own against her in her normal state—

once he activated his Sharingan, his strength would be no worse than Kakashi's when he first appeared in the later story.

With strength like this, he was more than capable of making big plans. He just had to wait...

The beauty in front of him watched Uchiha Genmei lost in thought, looking puzzled.

She tilted her head and waved a hand. "Moshi moshi?"

"Genmei, what have you been thinking about all the way here? Did you hear my question just now?"

The young man blinked,

then immediately lied:

"Chiri, I was thinking about the situation in the clan. How should I put it? The atmosphere's not good."

"I'm sorry."

The girl furrowed her brow and sighed.

"You don't have to apologize. I was just asking you the same thing."

"Elder Setsuna and Clan Head Hi-no-Kaku are about to..."

Oh, hell!

Was everyone in the Uchiha Clan this reckless about politics? This wasn't the training ground. They were almost at the Military Police Force headquarters.

And the headquarters was inside the clan compound.

As it happened, before the Nine-Tails' rampage, the Uchiha Clan's territory had always been in the center of Konoha.

Here was the problem.

The Second Hokage, that evil old Senju, had—

always kept the Military Police Force under surveillance.

The Third Hokage, Monkey, had followed suit.

How could they discuss this here?

If Anbu overheard them—

Given that the Uchiha Clan was already like a powder keg, that could...

The young man made a stopping gesture.

Then he laughed casually.

"Hey! Chiri, you never used to tell me these things."

The girl took the hint and raised an eyebrow.

"That's because you're so strong now, Genmei!"

At that,

the young man looked disgusted. "So, Chiri, you thought I was weak before?"

"I'm sorry~! I'm sorry~! That's not what I meant, Genmei."

The girl clasped her hands together, looking apologetic.

Looking at the handsome young man before her,

the worry between her brows eased, and her expression gradually softened.

Her face—

was like a beautiful flower blooming, gentle as jade.

She reached out and gently stroked the young man's black hair.

"I just don't want you to get hurt, Genmei. The little boy from back then has grown so capable!"

Looking at the beautiful, gentle girl in purple before him, Uchiha Genmei froze.

Something seemed to fill his heart.

An inexplicable emotion wrapped around him.

But he quickly came to his senses.

Smack!

"I'm an adult already. Stop patting my head!"

"Eek~! That hurt!"

The girl lightly shook her hand, looking at the young man as if it hurt.

Suddenly her eyes lit up, as if she had noticed something.

"Oh~"

"Are you embarrassed, Genmei?"

"No! Cut the chatter. We're going on patrol."

At dusk, the setting sun was as red as blood.

Inside Konoha,

Uchiha Genmei and his teammates made their way along,

carrying out their routine patrol without incident.

It really was peaceful.

He sighed inwardly.

In his previous life, he'd been crossing the road when an oil tanker accidentally sent him to this world.

He'd become an Uchiha. His parents had died on a mission, and he was fifteen this year.

No older brother, no younger sister, no older sister, and no younger brother.

The year was—

the height of Konoha's prosperity.

The First Shinobi World War didn't require children who were too young to fight on the front lines.

He'd safely made it through childhood and his student days, graduating properly and joining the Military Police Force.

In a word: steady!

Just like his parents in his previous life, who'd always drummed that advice into him.

He'd gone straight into public service after graduating, hadn't he?

Now,

his strength was decent, but he'd never been through any real, high-quality combat. It was hard to say how good he really was.

He'd developed to a certain point and could afford a little freedom now.

A display appeared in his mind, visible only to him.

Uchiha Genmei

Life Form Level: LV3 (Jōnin)

Energy Attributes: Fire, Yin

Talent: Sharingan (LV3)

Skills: Uchiha Style Ninjutsu-Taijutsu (Fire + Yin), several standard Fire Release techniques, Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu, Summoning Technique (Meow~!)

Aura: 1 wisp

He sighed inwardly.

Sparring with Chiri this morning had earned him 0.1. At last, he'd scraped together one whole wisp of Aura and reached a nice, round number.

He currently had three tomoe. He'd need about five units to evolve into the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Sigh! He wondered how much Aura he could gain from real combat.

This was still too slow. He also had his work with the Military Police Force.

Sparring with people weaker than him no longer earned him Aura. He needed a life-or-death struggle.

He didn't want to take risks, but sparring meant he had to find someone stronger than him, or at least someone close to his level.

Still, if he sparred every day and neglected his duties, he'd probably be dismissed and investigated.

This was tough!

And was his imagination really that poor? He'd used one wisp of Aura from his cheat to cobble together such a bare-bones panel.

He'd bought this cheat in an antique shop in his previous life.

The shopkeeper had said it was obviously genuine, a Persian dagger passed down since the Tang dynasty.

He'd also claimed it was a Manichaean ritual object, a divine weapon, and a bargain.

Who would've thought it was actually the real thing? What a find!

In his consciousness, a golden curved blade etched with flame patterns appeared.

This cheat had crossed over with him. As long as he initiated a struggle, it could draw power from the sea of cosmic energy.

That power could be transformed into a wisp of wisdom, an Aura.

A single wisp could make his mind surge with wisdom, letting him achieve sudden enlightenment.

He could instantly learn any skill and even develop it further.

The first time he'd used it, he'd cobbled together a panel and been absolutely amazed!

So he'd given the blade the elegant name Blade of Wisdom.

With the Blade of Wisdom, he'd constantly sparred with his classmates during his student days.

Now he even pestered Uchiha Chiri to spar with him.

Though he gained pitifully little Aura from struggles that weren't to the death, he'd accumulated it over the years.

That was how he'd acquired the skills he had now.

After all, you couldn't expect just any ordinary person—

someone who'd spent their whole previous life in a peaceful world—to suddenly grow by leaps and bounds and gain such power during their youth.

Thinking of that gentle, beautiful girl, who'd also disappeared from the original story after her brief appearance,

she'd most likely die in the Uchiha Clan's internal strife, which was about to erupt.

I don't like that ending!

If I want the rest of my life to go the way I want, I need power.

If I want to grow stronger, I need to figure out how the Blade of Wisdom gains Aura.

No matter what.

First, I had to rise to a high position within the clan. That would give me more room to maneuver.

After all, I was already a fairly well-known prodigy within the Uchiha Clan.

The higher-ups would certainly carry out the Second Hokage's policies to the letter. They absolutely wouldn't let me suffer too much provocation.

Under normal circumstances, I could forget about getting missions outside the village unless something major changed.

As for the Uchiha Clan's political armed force, the Military Police Force, I was already a captain.

If necessary...

Just then.

BOOM~!

A flare lit up the sky ahead!

"Captain, it's near the area we're responsible for!"