Sunward Home and Kakashi Hatake

Sunward Home orphanage was located in a relatively quiet southeastern area of the Hidden Leaf Village, made up of several plain two-story buildings and a small courtyard. Compared with the solemn, stifling atmosphere of the Uchiha Clan Compound, this place was filled with the clamor of children. Though simple, it had an added sense of life.

The chunin escorting Uchiha Ling completed the handover procedures with the person in charge of the orphanage—a gentle woman named Nono Yakushi. Nono wore round-framed glasses and had a warm smile, but when she saw the surname Uchiha, an almost imperceptible trace of pity and understanding flashed through her eyes.

"Welcome, Ling," Nono said, crouching down to look Uchiha Ling in the eye. "Here, you can live in peace. I'm Nono Yakushi. You can call me Director Nono."

"Thank you, Director Nono." Uchiha Ling bowed slightly, behaving like an ordinary child who was a little reserved but well-mannered. He could sense that this director was no ordinary person. There were faint, disguised chakra fluctuations about her, and the surname "Yakushi" was not meaningless in the Hidden Leaf Village, either.

He was assigned to a four-person room. The other three children were civilian orphans who had lost their parents to war or missions. They were both curious about and somewhat afraid of this new Uchiha companion with a noble surname. Uchiha Ling did not deliberately try to get close to them, nor did he act aloof. He simply maintained basic courtesy and distance, which instead allowed his roommates to gradually relax.

After settling in, life seemed to temporarily return to "normal." During the day, he still went to the ninja academy for classes, and after school he returned to the orphanage. The clan's pursuit of him seemed to have temporarily stopped because of the village's intervention, but he could feel eyes watching him from the shadows all along—eyes from the Hokage's faction, and possibly from... Root.

He knew this full well, and made full use of this period of "relative safety" to frantically improve himself.

The [Chakra Refinement Technique] made his progress astonishingly fast. His total chakra steadily increased, gradually approaching chunin level. His combination of [Wind Release: Speed Attack Technique] with taijutsu and shurikenjutsu grew more and more proficient, and both his movement and attacks carried the swiftness of the wind. He repeatedly studied the knowledge from the [Basic Medical Ninjutsu Manual] and the [Gentle Fist Basic Deconstruction Diagram]. Though he lacked practical experience, his theoretical foundation grew increasingly solid.

Within his consciousness space, his resonance with the Asauchi also deepened by the day. That cold touch was no longer unfamiliar, and the pulse of the blade gradually synchronized with the rhythm of his heartbeat. He even began trying, in reality, to use chakra to simulate that faint "severing" concept of the Asauchi. Although it was far from taking shape, it added a unique sharpness to his use of shuriken and kunai.

However, the peaceful days were soon broken.

About a week later, the ninja academy announced the graduation team assignments. Because of Uchiha Ling's special circumstances, his assignment drew a great deal of attention.

On the afternoon of the second day after the graduation ceremony, Uchiha Ling was informed to go to an empty classroom at the school. When he pushed open the door and entered, he saw a familiar figure leaning lazily by the window. The man had striking silver hair, a mask covering most of his face, and his only exposed right eye curved into a crescent. In his hands, he held a copy of Make-Out Paradise and was reading it with great interest.

Kakashi Hatake!

Uchiha Ling's heart shook. He had not expected that he would actually be assigned to Kakashi's team! Was it because of his Uchiha identity? Or had the previous escape incident drawn special attention from the higher-ups?

"Yo." Kakashi did not even lift his head as he greeted him lazily. "You're one of my new subordinates, Uchiha Ling, right? Wait a bit. There are still two troublesome little brats who haven't arrived."

His tone was casual, but Uchiha Ling could sense that deep within that seemingly languid gaze, an extremely sharp scrutiny flashed past.

[Ding! Sign-in target detected: Kakashi Hatake.]

[Interaction level: Cooperation (become his team student).]

[Sign-in rewards being issued...]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: Sword Art Online: Basic Dual-Wielding Technique (knowledge infusion)!]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: Sharingan usage consumption reduced by 5%! (Can stack with previous rewards)]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: 200 system points!]

A unique set of techniques and footwork related to fighting with dual weapons instantly flooded his mind. It was completely different from a ninja's usual use of a single kunai or short blade, and it was full of variation and unpredictability! The further reduction in Sharingan consumption was even more of a timely blessing!

Just then, the classroom door was knocked open with a bang.

"Haha! As expected, I, the great Naruto Uzumaki, am a genius! I graduated successfully!" A blond boy bursting with energy charged in. It was Naruto Uzumaki.

Immediately after, a pink-haired girl also walked in, her face carrying anticipation and nervousness. "Naruto! Don't be so loud!... Um, hello, Kakashi-sensei. I'm Sakura Haruno."

Last came a black-haired boy with both hands in his pockets. He walked in expressionlessly, his cold gaze sweeping over the people in the classroom. When he saw Uchiha Ling, his eyes paused slightly, carrying a trace of something complicated and hard to read—it was Sasuke Uchiha.

Uchiha Ling, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha.

Team 7 had assembled in this manner.

Kakashi finally closed Make-Out Paradise and swept his signature dead-fish eye over the four people before him, his tone still lazy. "Mm, everyone's here. I'm your jonin instructor, Kakashi Hatake. Tomorrow morning at five, gather at Training Ground Three. Remember not to eat breakfast. You'll throw up."

After saying that, he ignored the four's reactions, waved his hand, and vanished from the spot with a bang using the Body Flicker Technique.

The classroom fell into a brief silence.

Naruto was the first to jump up, pointing at Sasuke and Ling. "Aaaah! Why do I have to be on the same team as these two stuck-up Uchiha?!"

Sakura, meanwhile, had a lovestruck expression. "Kakashi-sensei... so handsome..."

Sasuke gave a cold snort. His gaze locked mostly onto Uchiha Ling, carrying undisguised scrutiny and... a faint, hidden sense of competition. What exactly was so special about this clansman who had suddenly left the clan compound and was said to be under the village's protection?

Uchiha Ling calmly met his gaze, while waves rose in his heart. Being on the same team as Naruto and Sasuke meant he had officially stepped into the core plotline of the original story. And with Kakashi Hatake as his jonin instructor, this Copy Ninja who possessed the Sharingan was undoubtedly one of the best teachers he could have at this stage, especially in the application of the Sharingan and swordsmanship.

Crisis and opportunity existed side by side. Not only did he have to survive in this squad destined for disaster after disaster, he also had to use every opportunity to obtain the resources to grow stronger from Kakashi and from his teammates.

Team 7's story was about to begin. And his sign-in journey would certainly become even more exciting because of it.

(End of Chapter Eleven)