Uchiha Jin

Hidden Leaf Village Ninja Academy

The teacher was enthusiastically lecturing the future heirs of the Will of Fire, while the students below listened with rapt attention.

Only one student was the exception. He propped his chin on his hands, his gaze wandering out the window...

"Uchiha Jin, why aren't you paying attention again?" The teacher casually tossed a piece of chalk onto Jin's desk. "Pay attention! You'll all be heirs of the Will of Fire one day!"

"Yes, yes. All right, teacher," Uchiha Jin replied listlessly.

Seeing that he seemed genuinely sorry, the teacher continued the lesson. Jin stared at the blackboard and fell into thought again...

He'd been having a great time watching Boonie Bears on Blue Star. Then, after taking a sip of coffee from a Naruto collaboration, his head had started feeling terribly heavy.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw a pale white ceiling, while a jumble of voices reached his ears...

"He's awake! He's awake!"

"That kid's really lucky to be alive. How did he survive that?"

"Which family is he from? Does anyone know..."

"Your name is Uchiha Jin. From now on, the clan will give you a monthly allowance. I'm Uchiha Mikoto." A little girl handed Jin a heavy envelope.

She also sized up the boy, who was a head and a half shorter than her and still had a bit of baby fat on his face. She couldn't help recalling what her mother had told her.

"The clan head looked into it. This child's parents died not long ago. Poor thing..."

After Mikoto left, Jin sat in the courtyard, staring into space... Why had he been transported to the world of Naruto? And wasn't this around the time the Second Shinobi World War had just begun?

Most importantly... why did he have to be an Uchiha?! Sure, every Uchiha was handsome, but that didn't change the fact that the clan was destined to become history!

And so, four-year-old Uchiha Jin spent two years drifting aimlessly through the Uchiha Clan Compound, occasionally stopping by Mikoto's house to mooch a meal... When he turned six, the clan arranged for him to attend the Ninja Academy.

At the teacher's dismissal, the students streamed out of the classroom and hurried off in every direction toward home.

Jin, on the other hand, ambled along at the very back. What was the point of getting home so early? There wasn't a hot meal waiting for him there.

With his hands in his pockets, he kicked little stones along the road. When he reached the gates of the Ninja Academy, he spotted a girl standing some distance ahead.

A boy stood beside her, saying something to her, but she paid him no mind. She kept looking toward the academy gates.

"Jin, over here!" the girl called, waving both hands. Jin went from strolling to jogging.

"Mikoto, what are you doing here?" Jin asked curiously, then glanced at the boy beside her.

Uchiha Mikoto smiled and flicked Jin on the forehead. "My mission's over, so I came to pick you up after class. Oh, this is Uchiha Fugaku. Fugaku, this is the little brother I told you about, Uchiha Jin."

"Nice to meet you, Fugaku," Jin greeted him politely. Fugaku gave a cool nod.

That made Jin take another look at Fugaku. He thought to himself, Tsk, no wonder he's Sasuke's dad. They really do have the same icy demeanor.

"Come on, Jin. I'll make your favorite dumplings tonight," Mikoto said with a smile as she took Jin's little hand and led him away, completely ignoring Fugaku.

"Really, Mikoto? That's great!" Jin said, hopping excitedly as he went. He ignored Fugaku, too.

Fugaku: Right, right. Just keep treating me like that!

At Uchiha Mikoto's house

"The last dish! Here comes the braised carp!" Mikoto cheerfully carried the plate to the table.

Jin and Fugaku sat at opposite ends of the table. When Mikoto came out of the kitchen, both of them stood to take the plate, but Fugaku was a step too slow, and Jin got to it first.

"Thanks for the hard work, Mikoto. Let me help," Jin said with a grin.

Fugaku: ? Kid, are you trying to steal my wife?!

After the three of them finished eating, Mikoto suddenly turned to Fugaku. "Fugaku, could I ask you for a favor?"

At her sudden request, Jin looked at her curiously. He had a feeling it probably had something to do with him...

Fugaku seemed surprised and a little excited, though he maintained his cool expression. "Oh? What is it, Mikoto?"

"Um..." Mikoto glanced at Jin before continuing. "Could you teach Jin some basic ninjutsu?"

"Teach him ninjutsu?" Fugaku's brow furrowed slightly. "The clan has instructors, and he's still so young. Wouldn't it be better for him to start with what they teach at the Ninja Academy?"

Jin quietly lowered his head, making himself as inconspicuous as possible. At the same time, he felt deeply grateful to Mikoto... He'd only mentioned it casually once before, but she'd remembered.

"I can't always be there to protect Jin. I'll only feel at ease if he can grow strong on his own. Besides, the clan instructors aren't all that great..." Mikoto pouted, then looked at Fugaku with hopeful eyes.

"Fugaku, you're a genius of the Uchiha Clan. I'd feel better if you were the one teaching Jin."

"But I'm very busy..." Fugaku said reluctantly. Then he saw Mikoto's hopeful expression and immediately changed his tune. "But since you've asked, Mikoto, I'll personally teach the little guy!"

Jin: Huh? I never knew Fugaku was such a wife guy. Interesting.

Still, Jin stood up and said solemnly, "Sorry for the trouble, Fugaku."

"Little guy, I'm going to be very strict," Fugaku said coolly. "I'm only doing this because of Mikoto, but I... well."

From that day on, Jin's life became much more fulfilling. He attended classes at the Ninja Academy during the day, then learned to control his chakra with Fugaku in the evenings.

One evening, three months later

Uchiha Training Ground

"You've mastered the basics of chakra control over the past three months. Today, we'll test your chakra natures." As he spoke, Fugaku handed over a sheet of chakra paper.

Jin took it and, with Fugaku's guidance, began testing his chakra natures...

"Fire, lightning, wind, water, earth?" Fugaku was quite surprised. After a moment's thought, he continued, "I recommend focusing on fire and using your other natures as support."

"Okay, Fugaku," Jin replied with a naïve nod. All he knew was that, in the original story, the Third Hokage was said to have mastered jutsu of all five chakra natures... Did that mean he was a genius?

"One of the Uchiha Clan's basic techniques—the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique." Fugaku explained as he slowly formed the hand seals, then exhaled a massive fireball.

He then gestured for Jin to give it a try. Jin formed the seals: Snake—Ram—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Seeing that Jin's Great Fireball was almost identical to the one he'd just performed, Fugaku secretly nodded in approval. But all he said was, "It's average. You still need to practice."

Mikoto couldn't help protesting. "Honestly, Fugaku! Jin did great! Jin, come over and eat your lunch!"