Dusk settled over Konoha's gate.
A black-haired youth stood at the entrance.
His green flak vest was scored with cuts, dark red bloodstains dried in several places.
It wasn't hard to guess what kind of battle he'd been through.
"Uchiha Eiya, reporting back from the mission."
The chūnin on records wore an odd look. His pen paused, then he wrote the entry.
Eiya had considered not returning to Konoha.
But life outside the village was harsher still—bandits everywhere, safety resting solely on one's own strength.
Infrastructure and supplies in small nations were unreliable, and as for the great nations, a defected Uchiha was a walking Sharingan. Having his eyes gouged out might be the best outcome.
Unless he had power on par with Itachi.
Power…
He was still far from it.
Besides, there were things he had to do in Konoha.
Once he finished them, his strength would surge as well.
After that, where in the ninja world would be off-limits?
Maybe even…
After signing in, Eiya headed toward the Uchiha compound.
Turning a corner, his steps slowed.
Evening.
A street that was usually crowded lay empty.
And—
Too quiet.
Even the cicadas and birds had vanished.
Eaves to the left, an alley to the right, a restaurant's second floor straight ahead—
Hostile gazes came from every direction.
Eiya stopped and frowned.
"Come out."
Three masked figures from the ANBU appeared without a sound.
He recognized them at once.
The Hokage's direct-command covert corps—ANBU.
And it wasn't just the three before him; plenty more were hiding, not yet revealed.
As he gauged the surroundings, the silver-haired youth in a fox mask—apparently the captain—stepped up, voice cool.
"Uchiha Eiya. You're coming with us."
"And if I refuse?"
A beat of silence. "Here's some advice. Don't make this hard on yourself."
At his words, several undisguised killing intents speared toward Eiya, drawing a knit to his brow.
A moment later his expression loosened. He smiled and asked,
"Even the ANBU…"
"Wouldn't dare attack a member of the Uchiha in broad daylight on the street, would you?"
"If anything happens, aren't you afraid the Hokage will pin the blame on you afterward?"
The two ANBU to either side faltered and glanced at their captain.
The silver-haired youth said evenly, "We can't kill you here, true. But I can promise to break your four limbs and take you in."
"Is that so?"
Hands in his pockets, Eiya dipped his chin.
"Then before you start, I think you should notify the hospital."
"No need to go too far and make this bigger than it needs to be."
A man on the right said coldly, "Relax. We're ANBU. We know our limits."
"Don't get me wrong," Eiya's smile barely showed. "I'm worried I might slip and kill everyone present."
"Explaining that to the Hokage later would be a pain."
At that, the ANBU reflexively took two steps back.
They watched like facing a mortal enemy as three black tomoe slowly surfaced in Eiya's eyes.
They knew exactly what that meant.
The silver-haired captain hesitated, then raised his right hand.
Ten shadows dropped in a rush, sealing the street completely.
Eiya's expression didn't change.
"Everyone's here?"
"Then I trust you're ready to say goodbye to your careers as shinobi."
[Ding! Indulgence successful.]
[Despite being surrounded, host remained brazen and unruffled. Indulgence level: C.]
[Issuing reward…]
[Obtained: physique strength +20%.]
A warm tide surged through him.
Eiya nodded inwardly. He could clearly feel it—his body lighter, his strength markedly up.
C-level or not, it equaled years of taijutsu training.
"Looks like I bet right."
The system's boosts were immediate. If he wanted to grow fast, he had to seize every chance to indulge.
But only after reading the field and setting the bounds.
Otherwise, without brains to leash indulgence, trouble would come crashing down.
One day he might die without knowing how.
Luckily, Eiya knew the story well enough. Even ringed by ANBU, he wasn't too worried.
The Uchiha were in decline, yes, but their foundation remained—one of Konoha's foremost clans.
Without hard proof of a clan revolt, the leadership wouldn't dare strike such a giant directly.
So without a clear order from the Hokage, these ANBU wouldn't go all out to kill him.
If they chose to act, it would be by another's hand, from the shadows.
If he died here for no stated reason, conflict would explode, poisoning the village's atmosphere.
If the Uchiha could be killed at will, what would the other clans think?
Watching the silent ANBU, Eiya let his smile fade.
He'd gotten his "indulgence" reward; he had no interest in playing this game any longer.
"Say it. What's so important that the ANBU needed to come in force?"
Maybe it was his imagination, but the captain's taut frame seemed to ease a hair. His tone remained flat.
"Come to the Hokage's office. When you see the Hokage, you'll understand."
"Move."
…
Two minutes later, with ANBU "escorting" him, Eiya entered the Hokage building.
Knock, knock, knock.
"Enter," came a steady, authoritative voice within.
"The Hokage is inside. Don't try anything," the silver-haired ANBU warned in a low voice.
Eiya gave a small shake of his head and stepped into the office.
Three sharp gazes hit him at once.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat behind his desk, pipe in hand.
Smoke curled upward, yet the eyes in that seemingly clouded face held a gripping weight.
Beside him stood the village elder Shimura Danzō, leaning on his cane, the eye beneath his bandages cold on Eiya.
On the other side—
Captain Satō, who had fled the field, watched him with an unreadable look.
"Uchiha Eiya."
Hiruzen spoke slowly, voice low.
"Your squad went to the Land of Fire's border to retrieve a report from the garrison. Three days after departure the mission failed. Two dead."
"Do you have anything to add about the details?"
Eiya's gaze slid to Satō. He snorted.
"Our intel was exposed. We were ambushed by Cloud. Lacking strength, a teammate was captured."
"And most important of all—the captain abandoned his comrades and fled."
Silence fell. The air grew heavy.
After a moment, Hiruzen spoke again, voice suddenly severe.
"Yet the information I received says you contacted Kumogakure in secret and lured your squad into their ambush."
"You took the chance to murder two teammates, but failed when you turned on Captain Satō."
"Uchiha Eiya."
"You are a spy for Kumogakure."
A crushing pressure dropped with the words.