The Exam Ends, Graduation Means the Third Great Ninja War

"Who knows?"

He answered indifferently. The black and crimson intertwined in his eyes, and the strange, intricate Mangekyō quietly vanished.

Name: Uchiha Huayue

Kekkei Genkai: Mangekyō Sharingan

Identity: Nine-Tails Jinchuriki

Tailed Beast: Black Nine-Tails

As a prospective member of the Konoha Orphanage, Uchiha Huayue's parents had both tragically died in the Second Great Ninja War.

Having been cared for as if he were their own child since infancy, it was inevitable that the sight stirred up old feelings. After all, he was not Uchiha Sasuke. He had received death notifications twice, and after two such shocks, he had successfully awakened the Mangekyō.

Still, he preferred this version of the story.

His biological parents had been forcibly discarded in the graveyard. After a special sacrifice, he activated a permanent Field Spell: the Three-Tomoe Sharingan and the expendable Magic Card, the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Huayue snatched the two bells from Orochimaru's hands, glanced at them disdainfully, then tossed them to Uzuki Yugao and Anko. He pressed his palms together.

"Release!"

"Now the two of them have passed the exam. Hurry up and let me return to the Ninja Academy, please, Teacher Orochimaru."

Orochimaru awoke from the Genjutsu, cold sweat streaming down his forehead. His snake-like icy pupils flickered wildly as he took in everything around him.

Nothing changed. There are no traces of ninjutsu? Was it Genjutsu from the very beginning? This brat...

His cold vertical pupils stared deeply at the bells in Anko and Yugao's hands, and Orochimaru's expression turned complicated.

"Why? You knew that losing the bells meant losing your qualification to graduate from the Ninja Academy, yet you gave that opportunity to someone else?"

"When asking a question, don't let your pupils waver, Teacher Orochimaru! Are you... afraid?"

His thoughts had been exposed. The hard lines of his face twisted faintly, while those clear black-and-white eyes before him seemed to contain some unknown power that left Orochimaru shocked and trembling.

This brat, this brat, this brat... Such potential, such talent...

"Hehehe, congratulations. You have all passed. What terrifying talent—talent so enviable that even I am jealous. Are you interested in becoming my disciple, Uchiha Huayue...?"

Before he could answer, eagle cries rang across the sky. Orochimaru slowly raised his head, and the shock and smile vanished from his face.

"You lot are unexpectedly unlucky. Is war starting again?"

With a deep sigh, his plan to sneak back to the Ninja Academy went up in smoke.

What kind of nonsense is this? My goal was the Ninja Academy, but if I can't go back, it's straight to the Third Great Ninja War?

As his figure gradually disappeared into the distance, only the bewildered Anko and Yugao remained, along with Uchiha Huayue, who stared at the sky with a look of utter despair.

"I don't want to be cannon fodder, you damn pervert."

"Does this mean we've graduated?"

Yugao, still unclear on what was going on, looked from side to side at the two companions who were about to enter a new stage of life with her and asked timidly.

"That's right. I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"

Without waiting for either of them to speak, Huayue continued on his own.

"The good news is that we graduated. The bad news is that we'll be heading to the battlefield soon. Remember to write your wills in advance. I'm leaving."

Watching him turn and leave as well, the two exchanged speechless looks. After agreeing on a meeting place for tomorrow, they finally went their separate ways.

On the Uchiha Clan's streets, members of the Konoha Military Police Force wore grave expressions throughout every avenue and alley. They had clearly received news of the coming war and entered a state of combat readiness.

At the edge of the streets, inside an ordinary little house, Huayue lay on his soft, comfortable bed and returned to the Inner world once more.

"You're back, brat? Good. This Lord has decided that it should be changed into a forest villa style after all. The potato chips have to be Fish Cake-flavored. Hurry up and make them for This Lord!"

"You're so annoying. Do you even understand the situation? We'll be heading to the battlefield soon. If I die, you'll die too, you bastard Kurama!"

Furious, Huayue could not take it anymore. From yesterday until now, Kurama had done nothing but eat and sleep. Even if this Nine-Tails had the opposite personality, surely he had not turned from a fox into an orange pig?

"Uchiha brat, have you forgotten something? This is the Inner world. This Lord can hear your thoughts. Who are you calling an orange pig?!"

The Black Nine-Tails bared his fangs and brandished his claws. His mountain-like tails whipped up crashing waves, but they had no effect on Huayue.

"If you're not an orange pig, then be more useful. Give me the power to keep myself alive on the battlefield. Hand over what's in your belly."

"Tch, troublesome brat. With This Lord helping you, are you still worried that you won't survive?"

Huayue's mouth twitched as he looked at the disdainful Black Nine-Tails. Could he really reveal the existence of the Black Nine-Tails so casually just because he possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan?

Judging by the current point in time, Uchiha Madara was not dead yet!

If Madara discovered that he had the Nine-Tails inside him, there was no telling whether Madara would set his sights on him. Although Uchiha Madara was currently old, weak, and crippled, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path was the natural nemesis of Tailed Beasts.

"Other than Tailed Beast Chakra, don't you know any other ninjutsu? Things like Sage Arts?"

"Like Sage Mode or the Flying Thunder God Technique—high-powered ninjutsu that won't draw too much attention..."

Before he could finish, obvious impatience appeared on the Black Nine-Tails' face, and he waved his paws repeatedly.

"You brat sure have a lot of demands. Fine. Although This Lord does not know much about human ninjutsu, This Lord was forced to listen to the ninjutsu Namikaze Minato taught Menma."

"If you want something from this fox, show some sincerity. Hurry up and present the offerings. With This Lord's help, mastering the Flying Thunder God in one day will be a piece of cake!"

That fox face was full of cunning, making one question just how trustworthy those words were. Yet time was pressing, so Huayue had no choice but to believe him once.

"Seriously, my eye technique does not exist just to make snacks for you."

The tomoe spun, and the intricate, exquisite Mangekyō appeared in his eyes. The pale blue surface of the water boiled continuously, turning illusion into reality.

"Your Fish Cake-flavored potato chips, with Otaku Happy Water thrown in, plus a Forest Garden. Please accept them."

Beneath the water's surface, countless streams of pale blue chakra gathered and took shape. An enormous bag of potato chips nearly a hundred meters tall and Otaku Happy Water as tall as a water tower emerged from illusion.

"Oh! As expected of the Mangekyō Sharingan's eye technique. You truly are an impressive brat! Hahahaha..."

"Compared to your praise, I want ninjutsu and forbidden techniques more. Stop focusing only on eating, bastard!"

Countless potato chips as large as carriages gave off crisp crunch, crunch sounds as they were chewed between sharp fangs. From time to time, accompanied by bubbling happy water, the Black Nine-Tails let out cries of unprecedented delight.

"This Lord does not actually know the Flying Thunder God Technique, but there is a ninjutsu better suited for you than the Flying Thunder God Technique. Learn it yourself."

A scroll as tall as a person fell from the sky and landed in the pale blue lake of his heart. Huayue raised his brows, and an unusual glimmer of delight flashed through his eyes.

"Is it this forbidden technique?"