Gua: I've got cheats!

He had idled all night, for twelve hours.

Add the tenfold bonus to that.

That was equivalent to Uchiha Gua training for ten days straight, starting the moment he opened his eyes!

No matter how poor his talent was, he had to have made some progress.

Feeling the amount of chakra he had refined inside him, Gua frowned slightly.

Doesn't seem like much.

And this was with the system's tenfold bonus. Without the system, wouldn't he be utterly useless?

Gua was different from other people. He knew his own limits very well.

When other people were strong, they were strong. When he was strong, his cheats were strong.

But looking at it another way, weren't his cheats part of Gua too?

After checking the results of his idle training, Gua put his thoughts aside and looked toward the podium.

Funaya Daikoku was there, continuing his endless lecture on the history of the Shinobi World that he hadn't finished yesterday.

He seemed to have forgotten the homework he had assigned yesterday.

Gua had expected as much.

Refining chakra wasn't something you could accomplish overnight. Otherwise, the Ninja Academy wouldn't have a six-year curriculum.

Only after graduating in six years could they become Genin.

Clearly, building a ninja's foundations took a very long time.

Of course, geniuses like Uchiha Itachi were exceptions.

As was a certain guy who liked putting dog heads on everything.

He had heard that Kakashi had become a jonin a few years ago, when he was only twelve.

He should be fourteen now.

Sasuke was still wetting his pants, Naruto had just turned two, Itachi hadn't massacred the village yet, Shisui hadn't jumped yet, and Gua had cheats. They all had bright futures ahead of them.

However, because of the recent Nine-Tails rampage in Konoha, the Uchiha's reputation had been plummeting lately.

Gua had noticed that much.

The clan leader had summoned his father yesterday, most likely to discuss matters concerning the Uchiha's future.

Although his father, Uchiha Oyama, wasn't one of the higher-ups, he was still a member of the Uchiha Clan. At twenty-nine, he was in his prime, so there was no escaping clan affairs.

While Gua's mind wandered, Funaya Daikoku finished today's history lesson at the podium.

Just as Funaya Daikoku was about to leave with his textbook, a teacher's pet spoke up.

"Teacher, you haven't checked yesterday's homework yet!"

Funaya Daikoku stopped.

He turned back with a smile.

"Ah, right, right."

"Then check each other's work with your desk mates."

The teacher's pet spoke up again.

"Teacher, I think it would work better if you checked it yourself!"

Funaya Daikoku was all smiles on the outside and swearing up a storm on the inside.

I'm off the clock already, okay?

What could you possibly have refined in a single night?

Do you really need to show off that badly?

"All right!"

"Then you can go first!"

Funaya Daikoku pointed at the teacher's pet who had just spoken.

The "teacher's pet" stepped forward and smugly demonstrated his talent in front of Funaya Daikoku.

But a small mishap occurred midway through.

He couldn't refine chakra properly.

"Huh-hey! It was working fine last night! I spent the whole night grinding!"

"I grinded all night to make a big splash, and now all I can make is a big mess?"

Watching the "teacher's pet" grow increasingly frantic, Funaya Daikoku waved a hand with a smile. "It's fine, it's fine. Just go back and keep practicing."

"Next. Your turn."

Funaya Daikoku pointed at a girl in the front row.

The girl stepped forward and stood there straining for ages before finally scratching her head in embarrassment.

"Hehe."

Funaya Daikoku wasn't angry. He waved her off. "Come on, next."

The students came forward one after another, but none managed to refine chakra. Funaya Daikoku had been prepared for that.

The foundations of ninjutsu couldn't be built overnight.

Then Uchiha Itachi stood before him.

Funaya Daikoku placed a hand on Itachi's shoulder. Feeling the chakra inside his body, he sucked in a sharp breath.

"Hiss..."

Was this the genius of the Uchiha Clan? How terrifying!

"Excellent! Itachi, you're the most talented student I've ever seen!"

Funaya Daikoku patted Itachi's shoulder in satisfaction.

"Thank you, teacher."

Itachi nodded politely and returned to his seat.

"Gua, come give it a try too."

Believing that every student deserved an education, Funaya Daikoku invited Uchiha Gua, who spent all his time idling, to give it a try as well.

He knew that with Gua's talent, refining chakra would be impossible even if he trained for three days and nights without eating or drinking.

But as a teacher, he didn't want to crush his student's confidence.

"Oh."

Hearing Funaya Daikoku call his name, Gua answered and walked up to the front.

He wasn't as calm and composed as Itachi.

He simply closed his eyes.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Funaya Daikoku was just about to wave Gua back to his seat.

But a moment before he could, his pupils suddenly trembled.

He stared at Uchiha Gua before him in disbelief.

"Chakra?"

"Yeah."

Gua opened his eyes. His constant idling had left them somewhat vacant, but they were still very pretty.

His delicate features were almost girlish.

After two seconds of shock, Funaya Daikoku came back to his senses, barely able to contain his smile.

If Itachi refining chakra had been within his expectations, then Gua refining chakra was something he had never imagined.

After all, the talent Uchiha Gua had displayed was truly...

Abysmal.

That contrast actually made Funaya Daikoku happier than when Itachi had refined even more chakra.

"Gua! You're incredible! Had you already been training with your father?"

To Funaya Daikoku, that was the only possible explanation for Uchiha Gua being able to refine chakra.

Gua shook his head.

"Actually, I've got cheats."

Funaya Daikoku froze, then burst out laughing.

"Good for you! You've even learned to crack jokes. Yes, this is good. Don't look so bitter all day. Even an Uchiha can't keep everyone at arm's length and idle through everything every day, right?"

The corner of Gua's mouth twitched.

Just as he'd expected.

Even if he said he had cheats, nobody would believe him.

Gua returned to his seat.

Itachi gave Gua a strange look.

"Gua, tell me the truth. Did you start secretly training a long time ago? Everyone says you spend every day idling at home, but you've actually been training in secret, haven't you?"

Gua: "..."

"Didn't you hear what I just told the teacher?"

"Hear what?"

"I've got cheats."

"Haha."

Itachi chuckled too. "Gua, you seem to have changed a little lately. You're different from before."

Gua: "..."

You're still laughing!

Just wait until I idle-train my Taijutsu for a few more days. I'll go right back to being a time assassin.

I refuse to believe you're that hard to kill!

At that moment, Gua was sharpening his blade for Itachi's neck.