Ten Thousand Mud-Sipping Steeds

Setsuna stood right in the center of the clan assembly, facing a young Madara Uchiha, and having just cursed the patriarch's eighteen generations of ancestors to his face.

He finally understood what the phrase players often threw around-"ten thousand mud-sipping steeds stampeding across"-actually meant.

Where was this?

A new story instance?

Even if he had entered an instance, he should have gone through the game lobby interface first.

Since when did clicking the exit button in the arena drop you straight into an instance?

Where was the loading screen for this game? Did a dog eat it?

Setsuna frowned tightly, his mind in complete chaos.

Are you kidding me? He was the guy who used C-rank ninja to fiercely brawl against Super Kage lobbies with the Stubborn Ironhead; though this scene was bizarre, it wasn't enough to cause him to lose his composure.

He raised his head, meeting the gazes cast at him from all directions.

Madara Uchiha sat at the head of the room, looking right at him.

There was no anger on that young face. Unlike the Six Paths Madara in the game who casually brought out Susanoo at the drop of a hat, the Madara before him looked younger, steadier, and more dangerous.

He just sat there quietly, propping his chin with one hand, like he was looking at something that had slightly piqued his interest.

Meanwhile, Izuna by Madara's side was glaring at him with pure murderous intent.

That gaze, sharp enough to practically slice open skin, was just like the hand resting on his sword hilt-both were naked threats.

Setsuna glared right back.

He knew Izuna. Madara Uchiha's younger brother, the Warring States' Greatest Swordsman. In the game, his rank was slightly higher than Setsuna's, but not by much-he was just an A-rank ninja, not an S-rank.

"Biting Style Ancestor" was the nickname players had given Izuna, because this character fought like a rabid dog; all his skills were high-speed dashes combined with consecutive slashes, and getting caught in close quarters meant getting comboed straight to death.

But that was about it.

In the game, he fought tooth and nail with S-rank characters every single day. Madara Uchiha's Susanoo, Hashirama Senju's Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands, Kaguya's Expansive Truth-Seeking Orb-were not all of those monsters capable of flipping the entire arena upside down? What was there to be afraid of from the murderous aura of a mere A-rank ninja?

Besides, Izuna's fate ended just like his own-both of them had been slaughtered by Tobirama Senju.

One had been hacked to death by the Flying Thunder God Slash, and the other had been counterkilled after a failed assassination attempt.

It was just the difference between fifty steps and a hundred steps.

Madara Uchiha watched his reaction, the fingers supporting his chin twitching slightly.

"Interesting."

"Setsuna! Kneel and apologize to the patriarch!"

The Great Elder, sitting at the head of the lower rows, spoke up.

He first scolded Setsuna sharply, then turned to Madara Uchiha, lowering his voice:

"Please calm your anger, Patriarch. Setsuna's parents spoiled him rotten, and he has just suffered a tragedy, leaving his mental state unstable. By blood relation, Setsuna is still your distant nephew..."

The Great Elder's words were watertight, both making excuses for Setsuna and giving plenty of face to Madara Uchiha. After finishing, he turned his head and saw Setsuna still standing stiffly in place, his expression immediately sinking.

"Kneel!"

Setsuna didn't move; in the subconscious of him as a game character, this action module simply didn't exist.

The player Stubborn Ironhead had bought taunt actions, middle-finger emotes, victory poses, and even bought a goofy idle action where he spun in place and held up a kunai.

But a dogeza? Kneeling? Apologizing?

You've got to be kidding me!

The Stubborn Ironhead's gaming philosophy was never to yield; even if his head got blown off, he would go down with his middle finger raised. There was no such option as begging for mercy in his keybind settings.

Therefore, Setsuna stood right where he was, his body unmoving.

"Ding!"

The mechanical voice in his mind rang out once more.

-"Refused the elder's order to kneel and apologize to Madara Uchiha-Rebellion Points +1."

Tsk... Even that counted?

Setsuna's head was hurting like crazy right now.

On one hand, a jumble of messy information was churning around in his head, and on the other hand, this inexplicable Rebellion Value System kept popping up with endless notifications.

Right at that moment, a gentle force pulled on his arm.

It was the Second Elder.

Compared to the Great Elder, the Second Elder looked much more benevolent. He gently pulled Setsuna to his side, settling him into a kneeling seated posture right beside him, and lowered his voice to say:

"Do not be mischievous and rebellious; do not defy the patriarch. This is not the time for you to be willful."

Setsuna was passively arranged into a kneeling seated posture, and the Second Elder's hand gently pressed on his shoulder, signaling him not to move around.

Yet at that very moment, another flood of information poured into his brain.

That belonged to the complete memories of "Uchiha Setsuna".

Five-and-a-half-year-old Uchiha Setsuna and his father Uchiha Huo Rong, Madara Uchiha's cousin and field second-in-command, died in battle three days ago.

His mother hailed from the Hagoromo Clan, an arranged bride married into the Uchiha. Upon hearing the news of her husband's death, she suffered severe shock, went into premature labor with her five-month pregnancy while hemorrhaging heavily, and neither mother nor child survived.

In a single day, Setsuna lost his father, his mother, and his unborn younger brother entirely.

Today, at this clan meeting, the elders had gathered for two reasons: first, to discuss the tactical review of the recent campaign; second, to deliberate on the arrangements for the orphans of the fallen.

Furthermore, neither Madara Uchiha nor Izuna had children.

Setsuna thus became the sole remaining seedling of the patriarch's lineage, holding absolute importance in the eyes of the elders.

The Council of Elders hoped that Madara Uchiha would cultivate Setsuna as his successor.

"How old is Setsuna?" Izuna asked with a cold voice.

The second elder bowed slightly. "Four months past five."

"Not too young; Uchiha children go to the battlefield at six," Izuna's gaze swept past the crowd, landing on Setsuna. "Let him survive the battlefield first before talking about succession. The young patriarch cannot simply vanish a few months after being appointed."

The first elder's expression shifted. "Lord Izuna! This is the sole surviving seedling of this generation in the patriarch's lineage!"

Setsuna had originally been held down by the second elder, still digesting the original owner's memories, but hearing Izuna's words made his temper flare up instantly.

He simply could not stand Izuna's sarcastic attitude.

The foul-mouthed instinct drilled into him by players activated instantly, bypassing his brain entirely as the words tumbled out of his mouth:

"You aren't much better yourself. Losing to Tobirama Senju-anyone who didn't know better would think you were hopelessly infatuated with him. Once I hit the battlefield, if I don't chop his head off, consider me your grandson!"

The great hall fell instantly silent.

The hand the second elder had pressed on Setsuna's shoulder froze.

Even the corner of the first elder's eye twitched violently.

All the clansmen shifted their gazes away from Setsuna, glancing cautiously toward Izuna.

Tobirama Senju-he was Uchiha Izuna's greatest lifelong nemesis and the Uchiha second-in-command.

"Ding! Personal attack on Uchiha Izuna, mentioning Tobirama Senju-Rebellion Points +5." The system's bonus chime rang in Setsuna's mind once again.

The points awarded this time were much higher than before.

Madara Uchiha's eyes narrowed slightly, and a pure, heavy wrath silently radiated from his casually seated posture.

For Madara Uchiha, anything went-they could hurt him, insult him, or even challenge his authority, but no one could touch his younger brother!

Setsuna felt that oppressive weight, but what was on his mind was something else entirely.

The acquisition mechanism for Rebellion Points:

The first time he gained one, it was because he cursed Madara.

The second time he gained one, it was because he refused to kneel.

The third time he gained five, it was because he talked back to Izuna.

The gap between these values was vast.

In other words, earning Rebellion Points did not depend on the action itself, but on the opponent's reaction. The angrier the other party and the more intense their emotional fluctuation, the more Rebellion Points were awarded.

Then the question arose-what on earth were these Rebellion Points?

Were they a hidden mechanic in a new dungeon? Something similar to achievement points?

Or were they a currency that could be exchanged for upgrade materials?

It was precisely this momentary distraction by Setsuna that was captured by Madara Uchiha.

Madara Uchiha raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

Given his battle-commander killing intent, let alone a five-year-old child, even the adult clansmen present might not have been able to endure it.

Yet the child before him was spacing out right in front of him under his sheer pressure.

"You've got some nerve." A hint of genuine amusement entered Madara's voice.

The second elder keenly caught the shift in atmosphere and quickly chimed in, "Patriarch, Setsuna has great talent; he has already awakened a One-Tomoe."

Madara Uchiha raised a brow slightly.

This brat awakened his eyes at age five?

In the history of the Uchiha Clan, those who unlocked their eyes at this age could be counted on one hand.

In other words, this kid truly possessed extraordinary talent.

Yet hearing these words, Setsuna's rebellious young face bore a blank expression, as if he had been struck by lightning.

One-Tomoe? What did One-Tomoe mean?

He turned his head to look at the second elder beside him, asking blankly, "I... only have a One-Tomoe?"

Although Setsuna used to despise his own Two-Tomoe for being useless, he certainly didn't want to be demoted into a One-Tomoe!

The second elder's gaze landed on the Sharingan eyes that Setsuna had autonomously activated.

Within that small, chubby face, a single tomoe floated quietly inside a pair of blood-red sanpaku eyes.

The Second Elder nodded. "Mhm, One-Tomoe."

The Second Elder sighed softly in his heart; this child-on the very same day, his father died in battle, his wife died in childbirth, and his younger brother was stillborn-such trauma had forced a five-year-old child to awaken his eyes.

A child like that would naturally have unstable emotions, and the uncalled-for words and actions just now could not be blamed too harshly.

Madara looked into Setsuna's eyes and finally smiled. "Indeed, it's quite impressive."

Seizing this opportunity, the Second Elder pulled the conversation back. "Patriarch, after all, you and Izuna are Setsuna's closest blood relatives. Setsuna's mother was from the Hagoromo Clan, so he had no backing within the clan to begin with. Now that his father is dead, this child can only rely on you."

Madara did not speak; he turned his head and looked at Izuna beside him. "What do you think?"

A trace of lingering anger remained on Izuna's face, but when his older brother's gaze fell upon him, his expression softened slightly.

"If he can do well in tomorrow's mission, transporting supplies and medical goods to the Hagoromo Clan's encampment..."

He sneered and continued, "I'll cast a vote for him in the heir election."

The Great Elder's brow furrowed slightly.

The Second Elder sighed.

He knew this moment would come sooner or later. Setsuna had to go to the battlefield eventually; whether he awakened his eyes at five years old or not, Uchiha children ultimately had to face those swords and shadows.

The mission to transport supplies was dangerous, to be sure, as supply lines were always the enemy's primary target for strikes.

Yet compared to the front lines, this was indeed a more suitable choice for a child first entering the battlefield.

Just as the Second Elder was about to open his mouth to offer a few more words of caution-

"Who are you looking down on?!"

Uchiha Setsuna jumped up instantly, crossing his arms and lifting his chin, his One-Tomoe Sharingan flashing with a cold light in the candlelight.

Transport supplies?

He thought it was some high-difficulty instance mission, and it turned out to be running errands?

In a game character's worldview, there was never an option to "avoid combat." So what if he was a C-rank ninja? C-rank ninja players still managed to push their win rates in Super Kage arenas to sixty-three percent.

The Second Elder opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, he only sighed again.

Madara looked at Setsuna, the corners of his mouth slowly rising. "Stay alive first, then we'll talk."