Had the world changed, or had I already fallen behind?
The ninja's eyes were filled with confusion.
Even the son of the Uchiha Clan leader probably wouldn't get such good treatment, would he?
In the ninja world, aside from their own teacher, people rarely helped others take on missions.
Rather than doing missions, ninjas preferred to improve their own strength, so they usually took missions to earn a living.
Once they had enough money to live on, most people chose to improve their strength. That was why ninjas rarely helped others take on missions—unless they were especially close!
And yet this Uchiha brat looked so self-assured, even wearing an expression of disdain.
What the hell? This was Body Flicker Shisui!
During the Third Shinobi World War, he had struck fear into countless enemies. He could even use Sharingan Genjutsu from an extremely long distance to kill two Kirigakure Ninjas in an instant!
It was simply unbelievable.
In this ninja's eyes, this was even more terrifying than the Fourth Hokage's Yellow Flash!
The Fourth Hokage's Space-Time Ninjutsu at least took some time to use, but Uchiha Shisui only had to look at you once, and you were dead.
Anyone would be terrified!
And yet, at that moment, Uchiha Shisui was watching Uchiha Gray cautiously, afraid he might be refused.
"Sure, no problem at all!" Uchiha Shisui gave him his trademark gentle smile.
Uchiha Gray chuckled. This was exactly what he'd been aiming for. He'd known from the very beginning that a Genin couldn't take a mission and leave the village alone.
So whether he'd been talking to that ninja or muttering to himself just now, it had all been to lure Shisui out.
In fact, even this morning he'd deliberately gone out of his way to pass Uchiha Shisui's house and catch his attention, drawing him in.
In short, Uchiha Gray had gone to an unbelievable amount of trouble to leave the village!
Uchiha Shisui watched Uchiha Gray looking like he'd just pulled off a scheme.
A feeling suddenly stirred in his heart.
Could it be that Uchiha Gray had planned from the start to get him to take him out of the village on a mission?
Uchiha Shisui looked at Gray's youthful face, already showing signs of handsome features, and was suddenly struck by a chilling thought.
Gray had never passed by his house before!
So he was like a fish following a carefully plotted route, obediently taking the bait just as Uchiha Gray had planned!
If that were true, then Uchiha Gray was terrifying.
Just what kind of scheming ability was this?
Almost monstrous!
Uchiha Gray glanced at Uchiha Shisui, taking in every detail of his expression.
He didn't care that Uchiha Shisui had seen through his intentions. As long as he'd achieved his goal, that was enough.
Besides, he had plenty of time along the way to "guide" Uchiha Shisui's thinking.
[Chime, trigger sign-in mission: Stay in the Land of Waves for ten seconds!]
[Mission reward: Kizaru's Glint-Glint Fruit Ability Template 10%! Sage Body!] ```
Uchiha Gray froze. A smile immediately curled at the corner of his mouth. He was overjoyed!
This was a great deal!
When he signed in inside the village, his Kizaru Glint-Glint Fruit Ability Template had only progressed by 7%. Outside the village, it went up by a full 10%.
Once he completed this sign-in, he'd have his original 14% progress plus the new increase. That would give him 24% of Kizaru's Glint-Glint Fruit Ability Template.
In other words, he'd have nearly a quarter of Kizaru's peak combat strength in Glint-Glint Fruit abilities!
As for the other reward, the Sage Body, it made him even more ecstatic!
What did a Sage Body mean?
It meant an inexhaustible supply of chakra and an almost terrifying ability to recover. For the Uchiha Clan in particular, having a Sage Body or its genetic cells could perfectly solve the problem of blindness caused by the Mangekyō Sharingan!
And once he had a Sage Body, perhaps he could figure out how to use Wood Release!
This was a huge win!
"Then let's take this mission!" Uchiha Yeyu tore a mission slip from the board.
Only then did the ninja on duty at the mission hall snap out of it. He glanced at the mission slip Uchiha Gray had handed over.
"It's a C-rank mission, so that's fine, but it needs a Jonin's signature."
"Would you mind signing here?"
Uchiha Shisui signed, then glanced over the mission slip.
[Guard Mission: Ensure the client returns safely to the Land of Waves!]
It wasn't a difficult mission.
Protecting an ordinary person on the way back to the Land of Waves was about as simple as missions came.
That was why it was only C-rank.
But why had Uchiha Gray taken this mission?
Was it really just as he'd said—that he simply wanted to see the world outside?
Uchiha Shisui looked a little puzzled. But if he couldn't figure it out now, he could just keep an eye on him. Whatever Uchiha Gray wanted to do would eventually become clear!
"Then let's not waste any time. We'll set out now," Uchiha Gray said calmly.
"Sure!"
Ninjas didn't need to pack much food for a nearby mission.
Soon, the two of them were introduced to their client.
Dolif!
Uchiha Gray was a little disappointed. He wasn't Tazuna from the original story, though that made sense. The story wouldn't begin for another five years.
The chances of running into Tazuna were practically zero.
"Are you two supposed to be my bodyguards?" Dolif asked arrogantly, looking down at Uchiha Gray and Uchiha Shisui.
He pointed at Uchiha Gray. "This brat hasn't even grown any hair yet. How could he possibly protect me?"
"This ninja seems passable, at least. He looks like he might have some skill."
"Get me a different ninja, now! I paid for this! If anything happens to me, can your Leaf Village take responsibility?"
His arrogant, overbearing manner was exactly like Tazuna's later on!
A flicker of displeasure crossed the mission hall ninja's eyes!
He snapped, "The Leaf did accept your mission, but the money you paid only covers a Genin!"
A flash of fear crossed Dolif's eyes, but it quickly vanished. He shouted unreasonable demands, "I don't care! I've already paid the Leaf! If you try to fob me off with a brat like this, I'll make sure the whole world knows how the Leaf treats its clients!"
The ninja at the mission hall looked helpless.
This was exactly the kind of client he dreaded dealing with.
They had hardly any money, yet still wanted the best service. But the Leaf was a major power and couldn't bully them. If they spread stories like this, it could easily damage the Leaf's reputation.
The ninja's face darkened.
"I don't have time to fool around with you." Uchiha Gray stepped forward, his gaze icy.
In an instant, a killing intent like something straight out of hell burst forth!
Dolif was so frightened that he nearly wet himself, his eyes wide with terror.
For a moment, it was as if he'd gone through death and rebirth. The sight of himself dying appeared in his mind over and over, and, for some reason—
He felt the agony of his body being torn to pieces!
"I was wrong! I was wrong!" Dolif instantly lost all his earlier arrogance, his face full of panic and pleading.