Whizz—!
Sharp pieces of metal tore through the air with a shrill screech.
Nara Shikadan looked toward the sound—three black shuriken whirled toward him in a tight triangular pattern.
"Who threw those?"
He frowned slightly, but didn't flinch.
Thud!
All three shuriken struck the ground in front of him at nearly the same time. The sharp tips embedded deep into the dirt—one of them stopped just half a palm's length from his toes.
That throw alone showed the skill of the ninja behind it.
The first responder from the Uchiha Police Force looked to be only twelve or thirteen years old.
But the unmistakable green vest said it all—he was a Chūnin.
In most clans, a Chūnin that young would be called a "little genius."
But for the Uchiha?
That was standard fare.
The moment the red-eyed Uchiha appeared, Shikadan's system panel lit up.
[C-level Ninja Battle Task Triggered!]
[Task: Police Force Member]
[Objective: Defeat or kill the Uchiha Chūnin]
[Reward: C-level Ninja Secret Scroll]
[Note: Task can only be completed once every 10 days for the same target.]
So a ninja battle mission did trigger.
Shikadan's gaze sharpened.
This Uchiha... actually intended to attack me!
The boy in question, Uchiha Inahiro, gripped a short sword in one hand. His crimson eyes swept across the unconscious "civilian" and the black-haired youth beside him.
Two tomoe spun in his Sharingan. The pressure they emitted silenced the entire street.
"What happened here?"
If not for the fact that the black-haired boy hadn't dodged or blocked the incoming shuriken, Inahiro would've probably opened with a Fire Style jutsu.
"Executing a mission," Shikadan replied evenly, glancing around in search of a certain tiny someone.
Wasn't this the moment where the big boss came in to clean up?
But...
No sign of the flat loli.
Tsunade was gone.
Unreliable fat sheep!
Shikadan sighed inwardly and reached for the mission scroll in his pocket.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
Inahiro's Sharingan spun faster. He gripped his sword tightly, posture tense.
Shikadan paused mid-motion, then shot the boy a look of exasperation.
"Getting my mission scroll."
To be honest, Shikadan had no desire to fight this Uchiha in broad daylight.
Defeating a member of the police force in public?
He could imagine the trouble that'd bring.
Forget killing the guy—he'd never hear the end of it.
Shikadan wanted a peaceful, carefree life. For petty conflicts, he preferred talking things out over fists.
But he'd clearly overlooked one crucial fact—
The Uchiha didn't solve problems like normal people.
"Hands up. Squat down. Now!"
Inahiro drew his sword fully, pointing the shimmering blade straight at Shikadan's chest.
"An innocent civilian was injured during your 'mission.' That alone is enough to send you to the police department's prison!"
Shikadan narrowed his eyes.
"That man isn't a civilian. He's my target."
"I said: hands up! Squat down!"
Inahiro's Sharingan blazed brighter. The twin tomoe spun violently.
"Don't make me repeat myself again."
"I don't like repeating myself either."
Shikadan's eyes darkened as shadowy energy flickered in his gaze.
"Repeating things means your opponent's brain isn't working properly. So please don't make me say it twice."
"Resisting law enforcement? That's an aggravated offense!"
Inahiro's expression darkened.
Law enforcers don't need permission from the suspects!
Body Flicker Technique!
In a blur, Inahiro vanished. The crowd of onlookers gasped and instinctively backed away.
Ninja battles weren't something ordinary villagers wanted to get caught up in.
But Shikadan had been watching closely.
The moment Inahiro vanished, Shikadan activated:
[Lacquer Eye]!
Darkness flooded Shikadan's pupils. The shadows beneath him rippled and spread outward in a radial pattern.
[Shadow Gathering Technique]!
This "circular shadow net" wasn't a solid disc but a dense grid of ultra-thin shadow lines. The largest space between lines was barely the size of a palm.
Even if the Lazy Ghost System rated him as a C-rank, Shikadan knew how big the gap was between him and a real Chūnin—especially in speed and strength.
He had only one chance to win:
[Lacquer Eye] plus [Shadow Secret Technique].
Inahiro, mid-Body Flicker, was already analyzing the ground as he advanced. His Sharingan caught the sudden irregularities in the shadow patterns.
Shadows? That means... a Nara?!
His expression tightened.
Clan scrolls warned about the Nara clan's insidious secret techniques.
Best practice?
Keep your distance. Wear them down from afar.
But Inahiro had already dashed in. There was no turning back.
Wait... this guy isn't even wearing the clan emblem! What kind of lazy-ass Nara are you?!
Still, he adjusted. He carefully scanned for the gaps in the net.
As long as I don't touch the shadows directly, I can avoid being caught!
Normally, yes.
But even if he could precisely control his own footing...
He couldn't control his shadow.
Who said Nara jutsu required stepping on the shadows to activate?
Charging in a straight line had been his biggest mistake.
The moment his shadow overlapped with the grid—
[Shadow Binding Technique]!
The web of shadow sprang to life, seizing Inahiro mid-air like a net catching a fire moth.
The Uchiha boy's limbs locked up instantly. He dropped like a rock.
Thud!
"No way—I've been caught?!"
He struggled, but the grip was too tight. The clan's scrolls had escape techniques, but he didn't have the raw strength to pull free.
Still, he didn't give up.
Genjutsu! If I can trap him in genjutsu—
But then he noticed something.
Shikadan had shut his eyes the moment the jutsu landed.
Inahiro felt his last hope wither.
Even Sand Village kids knew not to meet the Uchiha's eyes.
You didn't fight Uchiha face-to-face. You flanked them, sniped them, anything to avoid the damn Sharingan.
Shikadan? He wasn't just prepared—he was expecting it.
Now, Inahiro had two options left:
Surrender and pray for an opening later.
Yell and summon his superiors.
He considered both.
His cheeks flushed red. The tomoe in his Sharingan spun so fast they nearly blurred.
"You're more stubborn than I thought."
Shikadan kept his eyes shut and spoke calmly.
"Alright then. Let's play the waiting game."
"We'll wait here together—until someone higher up comes to deal with it."
Of course, he meant Tsunade.
But to Inahiro, that meant... the deputy captain. Maybe even the captain.
I can't let them see me lose to some lazy Nara!
Inahiro was burning with humiliation.
Give me one more chance... I'll turn it around—
"What happened here?"
A second voice cut in.
Shikadan opened his eyes and turned.
Another green vest. Brown hair. Red eyes.
Another Uchiha from the police force.
The system panel remained silent, so Shikadan felt no hostility and quickly recounted the incident in detail.
"…That's the situation. This officer ignored my explanation and initiated an attack."
Shikadan handed over his B-rank commissioned mission scroll.
"So I had no choice but to subdue him."
"I didn't lose!" Inahiro growled, straining his neck. "He ambushed me!"
Shikadan smirked.
A sure-win combat mission turned into a stubborn stalemate...
[You quickly completed [C-rank Task: Police Force Member]!]
[You received a D-rank [Ninja Secret Scroll]!]
What a stingy system. This was supposed to be a guaranteed C-rank reward!