Making the Best of It

(No brain storage here; this isn't a brainless story...)

The bustling streets, the classical buildings interspersed with modern facilities, and the four statues on the distant mountainside left Cheng Xuyuan looking glum.

"Ah! Maybe this is what Ye Gong felt like when he actually got his wish. I kept imagining what I'd do if I ever got transported to another world, and now here I am—with a Uchiha identity, no less." From the original owner's memories, it was September 2, Year 48 of Konoha. He'd been born in Year 32, making him sixteen now. He'd survived the Third Great Ninja War at the cost of a body covered in scars and a teammate's life. His parents had also died near the end of the war.

The war had brought Uchiha Gen endless pain. All he'd gained from it was a decent set of combat skills and a pair of Three-Tomoe Sharingan. Feeling the ocular power in his eyes—far beyond that of an ordinary Three-Tomoe Sharingan—finally gave Uchiha Gen a little peace of mind.

"Gen, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and report to the Security Force. It won't look good if the squad captain sees you're late." Uchiha Zaohuo urged him on after noticing him staring at Kage Rock.

Why was he rushing him? Uchiha Gen was already dead. His parents and teammates were all gone, and with no hope left in life and lingering psychological problems from the war, he'd taken his own life one quiet autumn night. Otherwise, how would I have ended up in his body? Uchiha Gen grumbled to himself, but outwardly he just placated Zaohuo. "All right, all right, I know. I planned my timing; I've got it under control. Anyway, why do we have to go through all this trouble? Why not just send a Shadow Clone to work?"

"Heh, what do you think this is, school? After we report to the Security Force, we have to go on patrol. If there's a dispute, can your Shadow Clone handle it? What if someone catches us? Those civilians already have plenty of complaints about the Uchiha Security Force." Uchiha Zaohuo looked indignant.

"Then why did we take on such a thankless job? We make enemies and waste our youth. Name one other major clan in Konoha that patrols the streets and stands guard!" Uchiha Gen sighed helplessly.

"We're not standing guard! We're patrolling and keeping watch! And we don't guard Konoha Gate. We're responsible for stopping intruders from getting in elsewhere!" Uchiha Zaohuo shouted in protest.

"It's still pretty much the same as standing guard. Maybe the people actually guarding the gate have it easier. It's not like some idiot intruder would charge straight through Konoha's front entrance," Uchiha Gen muttered, exasperated.

"Ah, what can we do? We don't have a seat among the High Command. We have to take what we can get. Otherwise, what will the Uchiha Clan have left in Konoha?" Uchiha Zaohuo was just as helpless. The Security Force wasn't a great job, but it was better than nothing.

Quite a few members of the Uchiha Clan felt the same way. Everyone understood the situation, but unless Konoha High Command changed its stance, the Uchiha Clan had only two ways to change things: become Hokage or rebel.

The two walked to the Security Force, chatting along the way.

"Zaohuo, Gen, why do you always show up at the last minute? Can't you have any sense of time?" Their squad captain, Uchiha Kudai, bellowed at them.

"We made it right on time, so I'd say my sense of time is pretty solid," Uchiha Gen muttered.

"You're proud of that? Should I give you a medal? You're only a few minutes ahead of Obito!" Uchiha Kudai raged.

"How is that the same? Obito was a few minutes late; we're right on time! Besides, Obito's already dead. Captain Kudai, don't joke about him!" Uchiha Zaohuo chimed in to defend him.

"It was just a comparison!" Uchiha Kudai explained with a couple of awkward coughs.

If you knew that Obito wasn't dead at all and planned to come to Konoha in a month to party by launching a Tailed Beast Bomb, I wonder what you'd think. Ah, this was tough.

Once the two stopped arguing, Uchiha Gen got started on his day's work.

Clock in! Change into uniform! Patrol the streets! Eat lunch! File a report! Clock out!

On the way home, he grabbed a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen. The Security Force didn't provide breakfast or dinner, after all. There was no woman at home to cook for him, so he had to rely on ramen to get by. That was the life!

That night, a crimson moon hung high in the sky before a few clouds soon veiled it. The whole village of Konoha looked as if a storm were about to break...

Uchiha Gen had just gotten home and taken off his jacket when heavy rain began to fall outside, accompanied by rumbling thunder.

"Phew, good thing I got back in time, or I'd be soaked! Getting drenched wouldn't be a big deal, but changing and washing clothes is a pain. Last week's laundry is still soaking over there—I haven't even washed it yet!" Uchiha Gen said to himself, looking rather pleased with his cleverness.

After washing up, Uchiha Gen stood in front of the mirror to admire his stunning looks. There was practically no entertainment in the world of Naruto. Its technology was bizarrely uneven: they had communication devices and computers, but no phones or video games... If you wanted to play games, you'd have to wait until Boruto. And who knew whether he'd even live long enough to see Boruto?

As he studied his reflection, he started to look more and more familiar. Hm? There was only one explanation: the little detective from the Shinigami elementary school! Wasn't this just a grown-up Conan? Uchiha Conan? Hm? On closer inspection, there were some differences. He was obviously more handsome than Conan!

Ignoring the resemblance, Uchiha Gen silently stirred his ocular power. The dark pupils in his eyes slowly transformed from One-Tomoe to Three-Tomoe. Hm, even more handsome!

He continued to channel his ocular power, and the blood-red Three-Tomoe in his eyes spun rapidly... Eventually, they transformed into Mangekyō Sharingan!!!

Hm? What was this... stars in his eyes?

Five-pointed-star Mangekyō???

All right, Uchiha Itachi had three points, Shisui had four, I had five, and Sasuke had six. That completed the set!

The original owner's dying will had combined with his own spirit to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan. At last, he had a trump card to protect himself. Otherwise, life would be impossible. He couldn't expect an ordinary nine-to-five homebody like himself to face the bloody turmoil of the Ninja World as calmly as a ninja. Luckily, he'd started off with a golden-rank lifesaving reward. In the original story, every pair of Mangekyō Sharingan came with three divine abilities. Everyone got Susanoo as one of them, while the ocular techniques in each eye were different. His left-eye technique was Tsukuyomi, the same as Uchiha Itachi's. His right eye, however, had a support technique called Divine Grace, whose effect was Dojutsu Transfer. Holy crap! This technique had a ton of potential!

With this technique, he wouldn't have to worry about going blind. There were so many people in the Uchiha Clan; if he ran out of ocular power, he could just find someone to absorb it from. Could he use Three-Tomoe ocular power as fuel to activate Mangekyō techniques? And would his clanmates even agree? It should be fine, though. Three-Tomoe Sharingan didn't cause blindness, and ocular power could recover after being drained. As long as he appealed to their emotions and reason, they'd have no reason to refuse, right?

That was the plan. In another month, Obito would bring the Nine-Tails to Konoha to party. His Mangekyō in both eyes was definitely better than Obito's one-eyed version, but Obito also had Wood Release and the Nine-Tails, and he wasn't worried about running out of power. Uchiha Gen couldn't compare to that. He'd better prepare early and stockpile as much ocular power as he could!

That night... At half past two in the morning, after resting for a few hours, Uchiha Gen got up, put on the night clothes he'd prepared earlier, and quietly slipped outside!