Konoha: Preparing to Defect, the System Arrives

The clear blue sky looked like a giant canvas, dotted with a few white clouds, making the day feel calm and peaceful.

In the Uchiha compound, within one of the courtyards—

Sigh!

Asuka let out a heavy sigh. He knew Uchiha Fugaku wouldn't call for him unless something went wrong.

Sure enough, it was about the test he gave his students. Someone had reported him.

And to make matters worse, he happened to run into the Great Elder.

The old man was looking at him like he'd seen a rare treasure, his eyes practically glowing. Then he stole the spotlight from the clan leader and started lecturing him nonstop.

"Even though your medical skills are excellent, that doesn't give you the right to test your students with such extreme methods!

The bell test not only builds teamwork but also strengthens bonds between teammates.

Most importantly, the only danger in that test is the teacher.

But your test? What does it teach? How to resist poison?

Or maybe how to bond over taking turns in the bathroom?"

The elder paused for breath before continuing, his voice growing louder.

"Do you know why we hardly have any teachers from the Uchiha Clan?

It's because of teachers like you! Teachers who don't follow the rules and keep dragging our clan's reputation even lower—so low that you're digging a hole under it and pushing it even deeper!"

Seeing that the elder had no intention of stopping, Asuka wiped the spit off his face and tried to explain patiently.

"Elder, my method had a clear purpose. I just wanted to test—"

Bang!

The elder slammed the table, cutting Asuka off and shouting again.

"Test what? Their diarrhea endurance?"

Heh...

Asuka smirked coldly, then simply closed his eyes, deciding to block out the rest of the rant.

The elder had a bad heart and no children. If Asuka pushed him too hard, the man might drop dead right there.

And if that happened, Asuka would probably have to deal with accusations of murder.

The sun slowly dipped toward the horizon. Five pots of tea had already been refilled.

Smelling the faint aroma of dinner, the elder finally finished his last cup of tea. He looked at Asuka's troubled face and felt completely satisfied.

It had been years—many years—since he felt this good.

The last time he felt this great was when Lord Madara himself praised him as a newly graduated ninja.

"I've already promised the parents of those students that you'll teach them properly in the future. Just stick to the standard methods—no more crazy ideas."

The elder stood up, ready to head home for dinner. But the moment he got to his feet, his leg suddenly gave out.

Buzz!

A sharp pain shot up his leg, and he immediately realized what happened.

Numb legs. He had been sitting cross-legged for too long.

Losing his balance, the elder dropped his cane and fell straight toward Asuka.

Asuka's eyes widened in shock.

Seriously? After lecturing me all afternoon, now you're going to fake an injury?

And with no one else around, it'll look like I pushed him!

Thinking fast, Asuka lifted his leg and kicked the elder right in the face.

The elder's eyes bulged as the kick sent him flying backward.

Crash!

He smashed through the guest room door in Fugaku's house.

Step! Step! Step!

Hearing the commotion, Fugaku appeared in a flash, holding a plate of food.

He stared at the human-shaped hole in the door, then turned to Asuka.

"What happened?"

Whew!

Asuka took a deep breath, faced the elder, and formed a hand sign for peace.

"Elder, thank you for the match."

Then he turned to Fugaku and said:

"Clan Leader, the elder wanted to test my skills. We may have gone a bit overboard.

I'll take my leave now."

"Not staying for dinner?"

"No, but thank you."

Whoosh!

Asuka disappeared in a flash just as Mikoto appeared, still wearing her apron. She held a frying pan in one hand and a spatula in the other.

Seeing the hole in the door, Mikoto looked worried.

"Elder, are you okay?"

"I'm fine! Perfectly fine! Today was a great day!"

The elder dusted off his clothes and walked out of the room, smiling.

Noticing the footprints on his face, Mikoto hesitated before asking again.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Absolutely fine!"

The elder straightened his clothes, glanced at Mikoto's pregnant belly, then looked in the direction Asuka had left. A thoughtful look crossed his face.

TAP!

He tapped his cane lightly against the stone floor and said slowly:

"Ever since Tsunade developed hemophobia, that boy has been the best combat medic in the village.

And lately, the Fourth Hokage has been looking for bodyguards.

I think he's the perfect choice.

The Uchiha Clan has been suppressed for too long. It's time we got something good for once."

Clang!

A kunai suddenly struck the spot where the child had been standing before being kicked off the cliff. The other two kids, still crying, peeked through their fingers at the kunai glowing with a dark light, and their tears froze in their eyes.

Is he going to eat us?

Before they could even figure out how to escape, they felt a sudden smack on their backsides, and their feet left the ground.

Asuka glanced at the kids falling toward the water below, then turned to face the forest behind him with a frown.

"Come out!"

The moment he spoke, two masked ninjas appeared in front of him.

Fox mask. Tiger mask. Black tight suits. White straps.

As soon as Asuka saw their uniforms, he knew who they were.

Either ANBU or Root.

But since they attacked first, they were probably from Root.

"Hey, hey!"

Asuka rubbed his forehead and quickly calculated the timing before asking with confusion:

"Shouldn't you have said, 'Danzo-sama wants to see you' before attacking?

Why skip straight to fighting?"

The two Root ninjas exchanged glances, drew their short blades, and charged at him from opposite directions.

Clang!

Asuka blocked the first strike with a kunai, his usual grin fading as his voice dropped.

"Twenty seconds."

He shoved the kunai upward, pushing the short blade aside, then spun to block the second strike.

Clang!

After deflecting the second attack, he kicked the attacker in the chest and used the momentum to create distance.

"Fire Style..."

Asuka inhaled deeply, puffing out his chest as his Sharingan flared red. The air around him shimmered with heat.

"Great Fire Annihilation!"

Flames erupted from his mouth, engulfing the area in a sea of fire.

The two Root ninjas' eyes widened as the wall of flames rushed toward them. They quickly formed hand seals.

"Water Style: Water Formation Pillar!"

Water surged from the air, forming protective pillars around them just as the flames reached them.

Sizzle!

As the fire clashed with the water, thick steam filled the area, blanketing the battlefield.

Feeling the heat of the steam, the two ninjas removed their melting masks and looked around cautiously. The dense mist blurred their vision, leaving them unsure where Asuka might attack next.

Ptoo!

Asuka spat on the ground and picked up a rock. He dove into the mist without hesitation.

Smack! Smack!

Two loud impacts rang out almost immediately.

"Good heads."

Asuka examined the cracked rock in his hand and the two Root ninjas, who wobbled but refused to fall. He smirked and gathered chakra in his palms.

"Chakra Scalpel!"

With surgical precision, he sliced through the muscles in their arms and legs, ensuring they couldn't move but wouldn't die.

As the two collapsed, he dislocated their jaws and jumped down into the water to fish out the kids.

It had only been about ten seconds. They shouldn't be dead, right?

When Asuka finally found the three kids, their eyes were rolled back, and water sprayed from their mouths.

They really drank a lot of water.

After stabilizing the kids, Asuka returned to the two Root ninjas, crouching down to examine them.

Honestly, this wasn't his first run-in with Root.

Ever since he graduated, he had faced Root ambushes at least ten times.

Sometimes they talked first. Sometimes they fought after three words. Other times they lured him into the woods and attacked.

But attacking without a word?

That was new.

Asuka leaned closer to the female ninja and pulled out her tongue, confirming the curse mark engraved on it.

"Yep, the Tongue Curse Seal.

Your department's skills are getting sloppy—attacking first without saying anything."

He shoved her tongue back and wiped his fingers on her uniform.

"Don't give me that 'ready-to-die' look. I'm not here to get information."

The ninjas' eyes widened in surprise before going dull again.

No interrogation?

Then he's going to kill us outright?

"Relax."

As if reading their thoughts, Asuka casually picked his nose and said:

"I don't spill the blood of fellow Leaf ninjas.

Even if you attacked me, we're still from the same village. There's no point in wasting our own forces.

Our weapons should be aimed at enemies outside the village."

The two Root ninjas looked even more confused.

Did we just run into some kind of saint?

An Uchiha who's actually... nice?

After treating their wounds and reattaching their arms, Asuka sat them down facing each other with just enough distance to keep them from helping one another escape.

Sigh!

Asuka sat down next to them, activated his Sharingan, and waved the three kids over.

"Alright, listen up.

I'm Uchiha Asuka, and today's lesson is one you won't learn anywhere else."

One of the kids sniffled and asked with teary eyes:

"Then why did you kick me?"

Asuka looked at him like he was an idiot and replied confidently:

"Because I didn't want you distracting me during a fight."

Smack!

He flicked the kid's forehead before turning back to the Root ninjas.

"I see the fear in your eyes. Don't worry—I'm not someone who kills fellow villagers."

The female ninja frowned, her voice sharp with suspicion.

"What are you planning? We won't talk no matter what."

"I'm not asking for information."

Asuka signaled the kids to pay attention, then pulled out paper and a pen from his pocket.

"I mean, you guys did attack me, so of course, I feel a little upset about it.

Here's what we'll do—you two are going to drink some sake and play rock-paper-scissors. Whoever wins gets to slap the other. We'll do this for a hundred rounds.

When it's over and I'm in a good mood, we'll all go home. But listen carefully—if the winner's slap isn't loud enough, then I'll slap the loser instead. Got it?"

"That's it?"

The two root ninjas stared at Asuka in disbelief. They couldn't believe he was going to let them go so easily.

A hundred slaps? No interrogation? Just that?

"Yeah, that's it."

Asuka nodded and pulled a few bottles of sake from a sealing scroll. Raising his hand in the air, he spoke with a serious face.

"I swear on the honor of the Uchiha clan that I mean what I say. Now, start!"

Hearing this, the two root ninjas suddenly felt hopeful. They never expected to get off so easily.

What kind of guy was this?

Slapping each other? That's nothing.

The female ninja looked at her partner and said, "I'll count to three. Let's go at the same time."

"Got it!"

1... 2... 3!

She played scissors, and he played paper.

Smack!

A sharp slap echoed in the clearing. Asuka looked at the red handprint on the male ninja's face and shook his head.

"Tough luck."

He handed the guy a bottle of sake and patted his shoulder.

"Drink up. If you're drunk enough, you won't feel your face."

"Huh?"

The male ninja sniffed the sake, then looked at Asuka like he was crazy.

"You're surprisingly nice."

"Of course!"

Asuka grinned and summoned three buckets of honey mustard fried chicken for the kids nearby. While they munched on chicken, the root ninjas continued their ridiculous slap game.

No matter who lost, Asuka always handed them a drink and gave encouraging words.

One of the kids took a bite of chicken and looked at the slapping ninjas with a blank expression.

"What's wrong with them?"

"No idea," said his friend, equally confused. "But this chicken is really good."

Smack!

A particularly loud slap made the male ninja wince and glare at his partner.

"What the hell?! Why did you hit so hard?"

"My hand slipped!" The female ninja smiled awkwardly, clearly tipsy from the sake.

"Ugh!"

The male ninja took a deep breath and turned to Asuka. "How many rounds are left?"

"Seventy-eight. Still a long way to go."

"Alright!"

The guy rolled his shoulders and jumped back into the game.

Time passed.

Smack!

The female ninja's head tilted sharply from the impact. She rubbed her stinging cheek and glared at her partner.

"That was way too hard!"

"I—I couldn't control my strength!"

"Tch."

She grabbed the sake from Asuka, took a big gulp, and growled, "Let's go again!"

Smack! Smack!

The slaps grew harder, and soon they were rolling across the ground after each hit. By the end, they were even spitting out teeth.

Asuka called over the three kids, pointing at the two ninjas still going at it.

"So, do you guys get it now?"

"Nope."

The kids shook their heads. They were still completely lost but could at least tell the slaps were getting worse.

Seeing their confusion, Asuka dusted off his clothes, stood up, and pulled the kids aside.

"Listen closely," he whispered. "Those two? They're loyal to Konoha and Danzo. It's almost impossible to get information from them.

But 'almost' doesn't mean 'never.'

Sometimes, all it takes is a small crack to bring everything down.

They'll never sell out their boss. But they might talk about their enemies.

And here's the trick—I'm not asking them to sell info to outsiders. That would make them traitors, and traitors carry huge guilt.

But we're Uchiha. We're Konoha's police force. If they give us information, it's not betrayal—it's just routine inspection.

Get it?"

The kids' eyes lit up as admiration filled their faces. Asuka stood proudly, hands on his hips.

Of course, he couldn't share this method with the other Uchiha elders. They'd lose their minds.

Collecting intel on 'Root'? That was just as risky as spying on the Anbu.

But Asuka wasn't worried. With enough time and effort, he'd dig into Danzo's entire network.

Danzo might act tough, but half of his confidence came from his loyal subordinates, thirty percent from Hiruzen's backing, and the last twenty percent from his own strength.

Once Asuka had all their names, weaknesses, and secrets, he'd know everything.

Even what kind of underwear Danzo wore that day.