Konoha: Preparing to Defect, the System Arrives

Uchiha Fugaku watched as the clan members left the hall. He let out a deep sigh.

As the clan leader, he knew his people well. No matter what they did, he had to let it go.

A leader couldn't be petty, especially not an Uchiha leader.

But these people... Just moments ago, they looked so serious. Now they were arguing about whether kids should eat fried chicken.

Watching Asuka walk out side-by-side with an elder and stuff a bucket of something into his arms, Fugaku sighed again.

Being a clan leader was exhausting.

Outside.

Asuka had a chicken bone in his mouth as he glanced at Elder Ryoichi, who was walking beside him. Lowering his voice, he asked:

"Hey, Elder Ryoichi, when are we starting the coup?"

"Coup?!"

Ryoichi froze, glancing around nervously before lowering his voice.

"What?! Are you guys leaving me out of the loop?"

"No, we're not."

"Then why don't I know about this coup?"

"The Hokage seat keeps slipping away from us. Aren't we going to do something about it?"

Ryoichi stared at Asuka in shock. Was this how young people thought these days?

Seeing Asuka's curious expression, Ryoichi quickly shook his head. He tightened the lid on the fried chicken bucket Asuka had given him, then looked him in the eye and said quietly:

"Asuka, I'm your uncle.

Your parents passed away early, but I'm still here. Next time you start thinking dangerous thoughts like this, think about your uncle."

"Tch."

Asuka looked at his uncle's serious face and said softly:

"I know you're my uncle.

But Uncle, when do we start thinking about a coup?"

You little...!

Ryoichi glared at Asuka. What was with this kid and coups? Couldn't he just live peacefully?

Was it because he lost his comrades during the war and felt empty inside?

Well, he was 18. Maybe it was time for him to get married.

After a moment of silence, Ryoichi patted Asuka's shoulder, shook his head, and walked away.

Men needed weaknesses, he thought. Those without any tended to have dangerous ideas.

Asuka rubbed his chin as he walked home, thinking about what he remembered from his past life.

From what he could tell, the Uchiha Clan had no plans for a coup right now. Things were a little tense, but not bad enough to justify rebellion.

Hmm... Could it be that Fugaku decided to act on his own?

Asuka squinted toward the Naka Shrine, remembering what an elder had hinted at in a previous conversation.

Fugaku cared more about the future of the Uchiha Clan than his own life.

He took pride in their legacy and held himself, his family, and his friends to high standards, always sacrificing for the clan's prosperity.

Maybe he started thinking about a coup because he saw no future for the clan.

And with those eyes he awakened... it wouldn't be surprising if his mental state was a little off.

Maybe I should focus on Danzo instead, Asuka thought.

The Next Day - Ninja Academy

"Iruka!"

A purple-haired girl looked at Iruka, glancing toward the classroom door every few seconds. Her face was full of excitement as she asked:

"Do you think we'll be in the same team?

Who do you think our teacher will be?"

"No idea."

Iruka shook his head, then turned to the purple-haired girl, looking just as curious.

"Maybe a chunin, or maybe a special jonin. We might even get a jonin."

"Ha!"

A cold laugh came from the side.

A dark-haired girl with pale eyes glanced at the door and said smugly:

"The war isn't over yet. Most jonin are busy with missions. There's no way one would come here to teach us."

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Before she could finish, someone knocked on the door. Without waiting for a response, the door opened.

A man with short black hair walked in, wearing a black combat suit and a green jonin vest.

Holding a piece of paper, he stepped up to the podium and looked down at the small group of students.

After scanning the list, he called out:

"Umino Iruka, Uzuki Yugao, Hyuga Hana."

The three students nervously stood up.

Asuka smiled at them and said:

"Follow me."

Watching the jonin's back as he walked out, the three exchanged uneasy glances. Their teacher had the Uchiha Clan symbol on his back.

Everyone in the ninja world knew the Uchiha were strong but... unstable.

A jonin teacher was impressive, but did it have to be an Uchiha?

When Asuka led the three to the rooftop, he turned to face them and introduced himself:

"I'm Uchiha Asuka, a combat-type jonin from the Hidden Leaf Village. I like cooked food, but raw food is okay too. My recent hobby is journalism, and my dream is to live a safe and peaceful life.

Now it's your turn to introduce yourselves."

Gulp.

Iruka swallowed nervously, took a tiny step forward, and said softly:

"I-I'm Umino Iruka. I just graduated from the academy. I like eating ramen from Ichiraku Ramen. I don't like wasabi. My hobby is soaking in hot springs, and my dream is to become a teacher."

"Hmm."

Asuka nodded and looked at the purple-haired girl.

"I'm Uzuki Yugao. I just graduated from the academy. I don't like greasy food. My hobby is flower viewing, and my dream is..."

Yugao suddenly felt her cheeks burning. She covered her face with both hands and whispered nervously:

"Can I skip saying my dream?"

"Sure."

"Huh?"

Seeing how easygoing her teacher was, Yugao's eyes widened. Was this Uchiha really that easy to talk to?

"What about you?"

"I'm Hyuga Hana. I just graduated from the academy. I like bananas, hate milk, and my hobby is daydreaming. My dream is freedom."

Looking at the girl with white eyes and the seal on her forehead, Asuka immediately understood what she meant by "freedom."

A caged bird, huh? What a sad fate.

Thinking about it, Asuka casually formed a hand sign and summoned three buckets of fried chicken. He smiled and said:

"Usually, teachers give students boring tests to teach teamwork, like fighting over bells.

But I'm different.

To earn my approval, you just have to finish these three buckets of chicken.

If you can't finish, I'll send you back to the academy. I'm a combat-type ninja, and being your teacher wasn't my choice—it was the Hokage's order."

"That's it?"

The three students stared at the chicken buckets in disbelief. This test seemed...

"Of course, it's not that simple."

Asuka suddenly vanished and reappeared holding extra supplies—milk, mustard, and oil.

Seeing these items, the students felt a wave of dread.

These were all their least favorite foods.

Bang!

Asuka bit open a carton of milk and poured it into one of the buckets until the chicken was submerged.

Glug! Glug! Glug!

Watching the milk soak the chicken, Hana's eyes filled with tears. She mumbled:

"Stop... Stop already. That's too much..."

After drowning the chicken in milk, Asuka put on gloves and smeared thick layers of mustard on each drumstick.

Finally, he dipped a brush in oil and splattered it over the chicken.

"Ugh."

Asuka shivered at the sight of the oily chicken but handed the buckets to the students with a serious expression.

"This is your first lesson.

Ninjas can't afford to be picky eaters."

"Oh, and one more thing."

Sitting down on the railing, Asuka looked at the struggling students as if he had just remembered something.

"I'm very skilled at medical ninjutsu. I promised myself I wouldn't use it again, but if you get food poisoning, I might make an exception.

After all, promises are mostly for show."

"Eat up. Even if you want to repeat the academy for another year, you're finishing this today."

The three students glanced at Asuka's serious expression, then back at the buckets. Their stomachs churned.

Milk-soaked honey mustard chicken covered in oil—what even was this?

Half an Hour Later

Gag! Gag!

Ugh! Ugh!

Cough! Cough!

Asuka, who had dozed off, was woken by the sound of retching. He looked at his students hunched over in pain and then at the empty buckets in front of them.

Smiling, he said:

"Congratulations. You're officially genin now."

"S-Sensei, my stomach really hurts..."

Asuka jumped down and knelt beside Yugao, who was clutching her stomach in pain. He formed a green glow in his hand and pressed it against her abdomen.

After a moment, he scratched his head awkwardly and muttered:

"Damn it. That shady vendor actually gave me fish oil instead of regular oil."

Seeing Yugao's pained expression ease, he took off his combat vest and tied it around her waist, patting her head apologetically.

"Sorry about that. Since you ate fish oil, your stomach couldn't digest it properly. You'll probably have diarrhea later.

Go wait in the school bathroom for a while. I'll walk you home tonight.

Oh, and don't touch the oil stain on your clothes—it's hard to clean."

Yugao stared at Asuka, confused about why he tied his vest around her waist. But when he mentioned the oil stain, curiosity got the better of her.

She touched the back of her pants.

"So much oil..."

Looking at her greasy hand, Yugao froze. After a long silence, she gave Asuka a pitiful look before running straight for the bathroom.

"You drank too much milk. Go wait in the bathroom too."

"And you ate too much mustard. You don't need the bathroom, but you'd better buy a laxative—tomorrow will be rough."

After treating the other two students, Asuka wiped the sweat off his forehead and stared at the setting sun.

"Being a teacher is exhausting. This is just the beginning, and I already feel like hiding away."