Deep in a dense forest outside Konoha.
Uchiha Rìtiān hid silently in a tree, observing the situation below with his Sharingan.
In the woods, two people in black cloaks were talking.
Red clouds were embroidered on their cloaks-the uniform of the Akatsuki.
However, these two had much weaker presences than the contact from before.
They were probably outer members.
"Well? Did you find anything out?" the taller one asked.
"I did." The shorter one nodded. "The Konoha Military Police Force has indeed been established. Uchiha Fugaku is its commander."
"What else?"
"Also... a company called 'Uchiha Rìtiān Technology' recently appeared in Konoha. It sells all sorts of strange things and has made quite a bit of money."
"Uchiha Rìtiān Technology?" The taller man frowned. "What sort of things?"
"Things like Chakra Flashlights and hand warmers. Apparently, they're selling like crazy." The shorter man shrugged. "All useless junk."
The taller man fell silent for a moment. "That owner... what's his name?"
"I think it's... Uchiha Rìtiān?"
The taller man's head snapped up. "Uchiha Rìtiān?!"
"Yeah, what about him?" The shorter man looked at him in confusion.
The taller man drew a deep breath. "The Uchiha prodigy who awakened his Sharingan at six?"
"I think so. I hear he's pretty good."
The taller man's expression grew grave.
"We have to report this to the boss."
"The boss said this Uchiha Rìtiān is a priority target for observation."
Listening from the tree, Uchiha Rìtiān raised an eyebrow.
A priority target for observation?
The Akatsuki thought that highly of me?
Ding! Akatsuki intelligence acquired: the Akatsuki is closely monitoring the host. Show-Off Points +80!
Uchiha Rìtiān curled his lip. How was being targeted by the Akatsuki a good thing?
Just then, the taller man suddenly looked up at the tree where Uchiha Rìtiān was hiding.
"Who's up there?!"
Uchiha Rìtiān's heart lurched. Had I been spotted?
No, he probably only sensed someone nearby and wasn't sure of the exact location.
Uchiha Rìtiān held his breath and stayed perfectly still.
The taller man stared at the tree for a long time without finding anything unusual.
"What is it? Is someone there?" the shorter man asked nervously.
"...Maybe I'm just being paranoid." The taller man shook his head.
Uchiha Rìtiān let out a breath of relief. That was close.
Just then, the branch beneath his feet suddenly cracked.
It broke.
Uchiha Rìtiān: "..."
Fuck! What kind of lousy branch was this?!
Both men looked up at the same time, just in time to see Uchiha Rìtiān fall out of the tree.
"Who are you?!"
Uchiha Rìtiān flipped over and landed steadily on the ground.
He brushed the dust off himself, looked up, and flashed a brilliant smile.
"Hi there, fellas!"
The two men froze for a moment.
A kid?
"Who are you? Why are you here?" the taller man asked warily.
"My name's Uchiha Rìtiān," Uchiha Rìtiān said with a grin. "I heard two people here were bad-mouthing me, so I came to take a look."
Both men's expressions changed.
Uchiha Rìtiān?!
He was Uchiha Rìtiān?
"You're Uchiha Rìtiān?" The taller man narrowed his eyes. "How did you find us?"
"I guessed." Uchiha Rìtiān shrugged. "I just came out for a walk. I didn't expect to actually run into you."
The two exchanged a glance, each seeing surprise in the other's eyes.
This brat... wasn't ordinary.
Ding! An impending battle has been detected. Host, please make a choice: Option one: turn and run. Safety first. Reward: escape speed +10%. Option two: fight them and test your strength. Reward: combat experience +1. Option three: talk them around and see if you can extract more intelligence. Reward: smooth-talking skill +1.
Without even thinking, Uchiha Rìtiān said, "Option three!"
Fighting was out of the question. Even if I could win, I wasn't fighting.
After all, why use my fists when I could solve a problem with words?
"Fellas, you're with the Akatsuki, right?" Uchiha Rìtiān asked with a beaming smile.
Their expressions changed. "How do you know?"
"I guessed." Uchiha Rìtiān pointed at their cloaks. "Those red cloud patterns on your clothes are way too conspicuous."
The two men: "..."
That... did seem to be true.
"Brat, you know too much." The taller man's gaze turned cold. "Since you've found us out, don't blame us for showing no mercy!"
He formed hand seals, about to unleash a ninjutsu.
"Wait!" Uchiha Rìtiān suddenly shouted.
The taller man paused. "What? Scared?"
"Scared? Not a chance." Uchiha Rìtiān curled his lip. "I just wanted to ask you a question."
"What question?"
"Do you... want to make money?"
The two men: "...Huh?"
They wondered if they had misheard.
What was this brat saying? Make money?
"I said, do you want to make money?" Uchiha Rìtiān looked completely serious. "You two don't look like you're doing that well. How about working for me?"
"I'll pay you a salary of over ten thousand a month, with food and lodging covered, plus five types of insurance and a housing fund!"
Both men were utterly bewildered.
What was going on?
We came to gather intelligence. How had this turned into recruitment?
Ding! Smooth-talking skill successfully activated. The opponents have entered a confused state. Show-Off Points +80!
Uchiha Rìtiān secretly rejoiced. Trying to take me on? You two were still too green.
"You... what nonsense are you spouting?!" The taller man finally recovered, his embarrassment turning to anger. "Enough talk! Die!"
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
A water dragon roared toward Uchiha Rìtiān.
Uchiha Rìtiān activated his Sharingan and swayed aside, narrowly dodging it.
"Hey, let's talk this out. Why get violent?" Uchiha Rìtiān said as he dodged.
"Shut up!" The shorter man attacked as well. "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A gale swept through, nearly knocking Uchiha Rìtiān off his feet.
Both of these men were around chunin level.
With Uchiha Rìtiān's current strength, he could handle one, but two were a bit of a struggle.
But... who was Uchiha Rìtiān?
He was someone who lived by his wits!
Uchiha Rìtiān formed hand seals. "Shadow Clone Technique!"
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Five shadow clones appeared at once, rushing at the two men from all directions.
"A cheap trick!" The taller man sneered. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
A massive fireball shot out, instantly blasting several shadow clones apart.
Just then-
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
An earthen wall suddenly rose from the ground, trapping the two men in the middle.
"What?!" Both men were shocked.
"And this!" Uchiha Rìtiān's voice came from above. "Water Release: Water Prison Technique!"
A massive sphere of water descended from the sky, trapping the two inside.
They struggled desperately within the water sphere, but the Water Prison Technique's binding force was strong, and they could not break free anytime soon.
Uchiha Rìtiān jumped down from the tree and dusted off his hands.
"Trying to take me on? You're still too green."
Ding! Defeated two Akatsuki outer members while outnumbered. Show-Off Points +200! Achievement acquired: defeating the strong as the weak. Effect: all attributes +5% during combat.
Uchiha Rìtiān nodded in satisfaction. What a haul.
Just as he was about to interrogate them, the two men in the water prison suddenly exchanged a glance.
Then black blood seeped from the corners of both their mouths at the same time.
Uchiha Rìtiān's expression changed. "Oh no!"
He rushed over to save them, but it was already too late.
Both men had stopped breathing.
They had killed themselves with poison.
Uchiha Rìtiān's expression grew grave.
The Akatsuki... really was ruthless.
Even its outer members were equipped with poison, choosing death over being captured alive.
Ding! Akatsuki intelligence acquired: all outer members are equipped with suicide poison.
Uchiha Rìtiān frowned. It seemed extracting intelligence from the Akatsuki would not be so easy.
He searched their bodies. Apart from some ninja tools and money, there was nothing.
"Tch, broke bastards." Uchiha Rìtiān curled his lip.
Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly sensed a familiar chakra.
Someone from Root?
Uchiha Rìtiān's mind stirred. Danzo had indeed sent someone to follow him.
His eyes shifted, and an idea came to him.
Deliberately pretending not to have noticed, Uchiha Rìtiān strolled leisurely toward Konoha.
Meanwhile, he quietly calculated in his mind.
Since Danzo had sent someone to follow me, that battle just now... must have been seen too.
Fine, this was the perfect chance to let Danzo see my value.
That would save me from that scheming old bastard spending all day thinking about how to plot against me.
The corners of Uchiha Rìtiān's mouth lifted into a playful smile.
Danzo, oh, Danzo. Let's take our time with this game.
Before you continue