CHAPTER 11 — Good System
The Land of Fire, Valley of the End.
As the two Root ninjas kept slapping each other over their personal grudges, Asuka casually gathered up the three drenched Uchiha kids and started heading back toward the clan compound.
Not every Uchiha kid was an Itachi-level prodigy who pondered life, death, and the meaning of existence at age five.
Most of them were just… kids.
Uchiha kids, yes — but still just kids.
One of them, holding a dripping family bucket of fried chicken, looked up at him with sparkling admiration.
"Big Brother!"
It didn't matter that he didn't understand a single thing Asuka had explained earlier.
What mattered was simple:
The chicken wings were delicious, and Asuka had even refilled the bucket.
This was better than his grandpa.
Asuka sighed, folding his hands behind his head, staring up at the drifting clouds.
"Listen. Don't tell anyone what happened today.
If they ask why you're wet, say you fell into the river while fishing.
Most importantly—don't say I kicked you."
"Got it, Big Brother!" The kid nodded vigorously, then held his bucket forward. "Big Brother… can I have more? My grandpa's teeth aren't good… the meat is too tough for him. But the skin is soft, so… I'll eat the skin and save the meat for him."
Such filial piety.
And if Asuka hadn't seen the drool slipping down their chins, he might've believed it.
He refilled their buckets anyway and patted their heads.
"You came all the way out here today, so you must be admirers of Uchiha Madara's greatness.
Come to the Naka Shrine tomorrow night — bring your friends.
I'll tell you the real story: how Madara used the Will of Fire to convince the First Hokage, and how they fought side by side."
The kids tilted their heads.
"Will of Fire… Madara?"
"Wasn't he a rogue ninja?"
Asuka just smiled mysteriously.
"There will be fried chicken. And drinks."
"Yay!!"
They didn't understand the words.
But they understood the chicken.
And unlimited refills.
As the kids ran ahead, cheering, Asuka looked toward the village.
Since he wasn't defecting, he needed a plan to protect the clan.
At the very least…
they could avoid producing future maniacs.
"Will of Fire," he muttered. "I'll fix that for you."
Just as he stepped into his house, the system interface erupted into view.
Mission Completed.
Asuka raised a brow.
"…Already?"
[Congratulations, host, for defeating Uchiha Naoki after a hard-fought battle and successfully recruiting him as a subordinate. Would you like to settle the reward?]
Uchiha Naoki…
After thinking for three seconds, Asuka's eye twitched.
That was the kid he kicked off the cliff.
"Settle," he said.
A warm current surged through his eyes and vanished just as quickly.
He blinked.
"…This is the power boost? When Mikoto was pregnant, I heard the pain was a hundred times worse than that."
He mentally calculated the Sharingan progression.
Before warm current:
3000 / 10000
After warm current:
3000.5 / 10000
"…Meaning I need about fourteen thousand more missions to reach Mangekyou."
Even if he completed 5 missions a day, he'd need nearly 8 years.
The clan had roughly 6.5 years left before the massacre.
Asuka stared up at the ceiling.
"…good system."
As he stood, a scroll dropped onto his table.
He opened it.
And went silent.
"Chidori Senbon."
A-rank ninjutsu. Convert Chidori into thousands of lightning needles.
Requires lightning chakra.
Works great with Sharingan.
"You're kidding me…"
He had no lightning chakra.
And he didn't even know Chidori.
Was the system assuming he would magically learn it in the future?
He tossed the scroll into a cabinet.
He'd trade it someday.
Or use it to bribe a lightning-type ninja.
Whatever.
At least the system reward was technically completed.
Another notification appeared.
[New Task Issued:
The road to growth is full of challenges, but the challenges Heaven gave you are far too many.
Your disastrous defeat against Naruto in the future was due not only to your inferior cheat and the Sage of Six Paths' bias — but also because your friends lowered your average IQ.
While Naruto is currently being avoided by the villagers, please befriend Nara Shikamaru.
His intelligence perfectly complements your strength and will prevent him from tricking you in the future.]
[This task can be abandoned.]
[Rewards:
• Sharingan progress +1 turn
• Mysterious exchange voucher
• A letter from a stranger]
Asuka looked toward the direction of the Nara clan.
Shikamaru?
He knew him.
He'd shared drinks with Shikaku before.
If he remembered correctly…
Shikamaru was still inside his mother's belly right now.
Abandon the task?
He stared at the reward list again.
"…Accept."