Chapter 2: Uchiha Shisui: Want to Die? Have You Asked Me First?
Konoha Police Force Headquarters.
Beneath the red-and-white ping-pong paddle-like Uchiha clan emblem.
A crowd of Uchihas stood in the hall, selecting missions.
A handsome youth squeezed through the throng, gazing up at the mission board covered in task scrolls.
Normally, missions were assigned at the mission desk in the Hokage Tower.
But Uchiha Takanotsume wasn't a registered Konoha ninja.
He was like the fodder ninja coalition thrown together by the Five Great Nations during the Fourth War.
He was a clan ninja, belonging solely to the Uchiha.
Though he wore Konoha's dog tags, there were differences.
For instance, missions were typically assigned to the clan by the village, then posted internally like this.
The vibe was all about participation and knowing your limits.
But—
This clearly didn't meet Uchiha Takanotsume's expectations.
"Damn it, not a single mission near the border?"
Uchiha Takanotsume was dumbfounded.
At this time, the most dangerous places were the border zones between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind—especially places like the Land of Rain or the Land of Valleys.
But the mission board?
Not a single task involved border patrols, cross-country supply escorts, or assassinating enemy officials.
Every single one could be completed within the Land of Fire.
There were even D-rank missions like finding cats, delivering letters, or plowing fields to pad the list.
Among the C-rank missions he was eligible for, the most dangerous one was—
Driving a giant wild boar that had wandered out of the Forest of Death back into it, just outside the village.
"Damn it, I thought leaving the village would let me get killed," Takanotsume muttered, on the verge of tears. "How is this any different from before?"
His face ashen, he shook his head and decided to take the "most dangerous" C-rank boar mission.
Maybe he could get lucky and become the boar's lunch.
But just then, a slightly youthful hand snatched the mission scroll before he could.
"Sorry, please leave this mission to me."
A refined-looking boy in a black high-collar short-sleeve outfit and pants, with a tanto strapped to his back, smiled at Takanotsume.
His distinctive dumpling nose instantly gave him away to Takanotsume as the not-yet-famous Uchiha prodigy.
Uchiha Shisui.
Takanotsume: "…"
What the hell? A registered Konoha ninja stealing a clan mission from me?
"Sorry, Uchiha Takanotsume.
This mission will help me hone my swordsmanship. I'll give you the reward money, but please let me have this opportunity!"
Shisui smiled earnestly, his sincerity palpable.
Under such a bright smile, Takanotsume had no grounds to refuse.
It was just a C-rank mission—probably wouldn't kill him anyway. With the Ninja World War looming, there'd be plenty of chances to die later, so he didn't care too much about this one.
He was more surprised. "You know me?"
Of course, he knew Uchiha Shisui.
But Shisui knowing him caught Takanotsume off guard.
"Yeah, we did a D-rank mission together once. Forgot?" Shisui grinned, casually fibbing.
"Maybe," Takanotsume mumbled. He'd done so many missions, he couldn't keep track.
He had no interest in bonding with Naruto's canon characters. If he accidentally altered the future and stopped Naruto from saving the world, that'd be a massive sin.
Right now, he just wanted to die and go home.
Ignoring Shisui, Takanotsume turned back to the mission board.
In truth, Shisui had just looked up Takanotsume's name in the mission logs.
And he was floored by what he found.
Uchiha Takanotsume: Genin, 1 year as a ninja. Missions completed: 855 D-rank, 0 C-rank.
This obscure peer was a mission maniac, averaging 2-3 D-rank missions a day, not taking a single day off in a year.
Utterly terrifying!
Takanotsume had no idea his record would shock Shisui. He'd been grinding missions hoping to die from overwork.
If he knew this was why Shisui respected him, he'd probably twist his limbs in anguish and scream, "What a travesty!"
This only solidified Shisui's belief that Takanotsume wasn't some ordinary Uchiha.
A genin reaching these heights!
He was truly burning himself out for the village!
Because of this, Shisui didn't mind Takanotsume's cold shoulder.
Instead, he stepped closer, practically shoulder-to-shoulder.
"You—what are you doing?!" Takanotsume yelped in a panicked, almost comical tone.
Who'd have thought?
Big-eyebrowed, wholesome Shisui—into that kind of thing at such a young age?
Shisui, assuming his peer was just socially awkward, gave a knowing smile and leaned in to whisper, "Takanotsume-kun, I know what you're thinking."
Takanotsume's eyes widened.
You—you know I'm trying to scam the insurance?
"There's a mobilization meeting with the Great Elder soon, and two extremely dangerous missions will be announced," Shisui said gravely. "But don't worry—I won't let you take them!"
Like a devil's whisper, the words sent a shiver down Takanotsume's spine.
He stared at Shisui in horror.
Is this guy using some mind-reading cheat to mooch off my payout?
But the mention of two missions sparked Takanotsume's interest.
"What missions?" he asked quietly, not wanting others to overhear. Their hushed exchange looked like a shady deal.
"As expected, you're that kind of guy!" Shisui blinked, then grinned in awe.
His respect for Takanotsume grew even stronger!
He silently vowed to keep Takanotsume from dying in a dangerous mission.
Someone like him—
He should be a bridge between the village and the Uchiha!
Just then—
An old man with spiky white hair, wearing a cold half-face mask and the Uchiha's high-collar black robe without a Konoha headband, stepped onto the platform in the Police Force hall.
His hawk-like gaze was so sharp no one dared meet it.
Takanotsume froze.
This was none other than the Uchiha clan's last Great Elder—
Uchiha Setsuna!
A man who'd once plotted to assassinate the Second Hokage and lived to tell the tale, he was, unsurprisingly, the Uchiha's hawkish leader.
The gathered Uchihas turned their eyes to the elder, their gazes a mix of respect, hatred, or indifference.
"You all likely know why you've been summoned," Setsuna began, his voice echoing through the hall.
"Indeed!"
"The war is coming!"
"Since the Third Kazekage's disappearance, the ninja world's balance has been sliding into chaos."
"Here in the Land of Fire, border skirmishes are intensifying.
Word from the Land of Rain says small-scale battles have already begun.
And beyond, the grudges between Iwa and Kiri are on the verge of erupting into war.
Those barbarians from Kumo aren't sitting still either, probing into the Land of Fields multiple times."
"The entire ninja world is hurtling toward an era of war!"
"However—"
Setsuna's tone turned icy. "The Uchiha have endured a thousand years of war. These petty threats are nothing!"
"Now, the Land of Rain's battlefield and the Hell Valley outpost in the Land of Hot Springs—
They require two teams, each with one jōnin, one chūnin, and one genin, to provide support."
"Genin aren't required to volunteer. Jōnin and chūnin can choose freely. If we don't meet the quota, I'll personally assign people to go."
Silence fell over the room.
At the mention of those two locations, many faces paled.
Takanotsume, standing in the crowd, was about to raise his hand and shout, "To restore Uchiha's glory, I volunteer!"—
When his vision blurred, and his body trembled.
A cold, emotionless voice echoed in his mind:
[Talent has arrived.]
[Heart of Steel (SSS): Please, let me steel myself one more time! — 'Steel, Gate']
With a resounding clang, a deafeningly clear sound snapped Takanotsume back to reality.
But hearing the talent's name—
His heart sank with a thud.