Konohagakure, Ninja Academy.
Afternoon sunlight slanted through the windows into the classroom, where Iruka-sensei stood at the front with a piece of chalk.
He was drawing a chakra extraction diagram of the meridian network on the blackboard, droning on about basic theory.
Yet Wang Xin, seated in the throne-like spot beside the window in the back row, felt cold all over, as though he had plunged into an ice cellar.
He had transmigrated.
There had been no dump truck or electrocution. He had simply stayed up all night reading Naruto fanfiction.
He had closed his eyes, opened them again, and arrived in this familiar yet danger-filled world.
Even his name had barely changed. He had become a six-year-old orphan of the Uchiha Clan-Uchiha Xin.
At first, when he learned that his surname was Uchiha, he had secretly rejoiced for quite a while.
The Uchiha! The most famous cheat clan in the Naruto world.
All they had to do was awaken their eyes to gain power far beyond that of ordinary people.
If he could advance all the way to the Mangekyō and pilot a Gundam-like Susanoo, wouldn't he be able to do whatever he wanted in the Shinobi World?
But then he got a good look at the spiky-haired boy at the next desk, who was propping his chin on both hands and trying to look aloof.
And at the blond kid in the front row, who had six whisker marks on his face and was sleeping soundly.
That little bit of secret delight in his heart was instantly doused with icy water.
Sasuke Uchiha! Naruto Uzumaki!
The two chosen ones from the original story were sitting right beside him, and both looked only about six years old.
What did that mean?
It meant there was less than a year left until the night of the massacre that would stain Konoha with blood!
Uchiha Itachi, that ultimate little-brother fanatic, would act the year Sasuke turned seven.
He would raise his butcher's blade and slaughter the entire Uchiha Clan, sparing not even a dog.
Given Uchiha Xin's current identity and age, if he couldn't find a way to protect himself within that year.
There was only one end awaiting him-becoming another soul claimed by Uchiha Itachi's blade.
Or nourishment inside Obito's Kamui Dimension.
Are you kidding me... I only just transmigrated, and now I'm supposed to wait for death?
Uchiha Xin clenched his fists so tightly that his nails nearly dug into the flesh of his palms.
Run away? Impossible.
Konoha's Barrier Team and Anbu were no pushovers.
If a six-year-old Uchiha orphan tried to flee the village, he would be arrested as a missing-nin before he even reached the gates.
Go to the Third Hokage or Danzo and spill the secret?
That would get him killed even faster. Danzo would probably gouge out his eyes at the first opportunity, then throw him into Root as experimental material.
I can't just wait to die! Absolutely not!
Uchiha Xin growled under his breath in his mind.
Just as he sank into despair, a mechanical voice rang out deep inside his mind without warning.
[Ding! Host's powerful will to survive detected. Ultimate Sharingan System officially activated!]
System?!
Uchiha Xin's eyes widened, and his heart began to pound.
As a veteran webnovel reader, he knew all too well what that sound meant.
The standard equipment for transmigrators-a cheat that could defy heaven and change his fate!
[System binding successful. Generating host attribute panel...]
A second later, a translucent blue screen that only he could see appeared before his eyes.
[Host: Uchiha Xin] [Age: 6] [Kekkei Genkai: Limit Sharingan (level 0)] [Proficiency: 0/10] [Skills: None] [Chakra reserves: 20 (civilian standard)] [System evaluation: Young man, you're a weakling through and through. Your chakra reserves are pitiful, and any random genin could grind you into the dirt.]
Reading the brutally pointed evaluation on the panel, Uchiha Xin couldn't help the two twitches at the corner of his mouth.
This system has quite a sharp tongue... he grumbled inwardly.
But he quickly focused his attention on its core functions.
System, what can you do? Is there a beginner's gift pack? Can you just give me a Sage Body or a Rinnegan or something?
[Ding! This is the Ultimate Sharingan System. Its sole function is to assist the host in evolving the Sharingan without limit.] [This system provides no items or cultivation methods that directly enhance strength, much less an unearned beginner's gift pack or an aura of overwhelming dominance.]
Just evolving the Sharingan? No gacha? No exchanging for ninjutsu? Uchiha Xin was a little disappointed. This cheat sounded somewhat monotonous.
But then another thought struck him, and he hurriedly asked, Can it evolve into a Rinnegan, then?
[Yes.]
The system's answer was crisp and decisive.
[When the Limit Sharingan reaches level 6, it can transform into the Rinnegan.] [If it continues to level up, at higher levels it can even evolve an ultimate dōjutsu powerful enough to "blow up the heavens."]
Blow up the heavens?!
Uchiha Xin's eyes lit up.
The Rinnegan already represented godlike power in the Naruto world.
If he became even stronger than the Rinnegan, wouldn't he be able to tear the Otsutsuki apart with his bare hands?
Then how do I level up? How do I gain proficiency? he pressed eagerly.
[Reaching level 1 requires 10 proficiency points. As for how to obtain proficiency, please explore that yourself.]
After saying that, the system went completely silent.
No matter how Uchiha Xin called out to it in his mind, there was no response.
Figure it out myself? What kind of nonsense is that?!
Uchiha Xin felt a little frantic.
But he soon forced himself to calm down.
He stared at the words [Limit Sharingan (level 0)] on the panel and sank into thought.
According to the Uchiha Clan's traditional understanding.
The Sharingan had one tomoe, futatsudomoe, mitsudomoe, and the legendary Mangekyō.
There was no such thing as a "level 0 Sharingan."
A level 0 Sharingan with no tomoe... Since the system recognizes it as a Sharingan.
Does that mean I can use it right now?
A flash of inspiration struck Uchiha Xin.
Following the chakra-guiding method taught in the Uchiha Clan's basic lessons.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
He began laboriously mobilizing the pitiful amount of chakra inside him, slowly gathering it toward his eyes.
The instant chakra flowed into his optic nerves.
Uchiha Xin felt a faint warmth in both eyes, followed by a slight stinging sensation.
He abruptly opened his eyes.
The world had changed.
The somewhat dim classroom now looked incredibly clear to him.
The tiny specks of dust drifting through the air, the trails of chalk dust as Iruka wrote swiftly at the front.
Even the quivering of the snot bubble at the tip of Naruto's nose as he slept in the front row was clearly visible to him.
His eyesight had been greatly enhanced, and his ability to track movement had improved significantly too!
Even his teacher's movements seemed just a little slower to his eyes.
So this was the power of the Sharingan? Even at just level 0!
Uchiha Xin was ecstatic, but before he could enjoy it for long, a powerful wave of dizziness suddenly struck him.
The chakra inside him was draining at a terrifying rate, like floodwater surging through an opened sluice gate.