At the border of the Land of Fire, there was an open space in the forest. Li Ming felt a sharp pain in his head, and his whole body felt like it was falling apart.
"Ah…" he groaned. "What happened to me? Was I beaten up in my sleep last night?"
He held his head and slowly sat up, feeling intense pain throughout his body—as if it were about to collapse and his muscles were being torn apart. As soon as he got up, countless unfamiliar memories flooded his mind. He froze in shock.
"Land of Fire… Third Ninja War… Uchiha…"
"I transmigrated? And became a member of the Uchiha clan—Uchiha Riku?"
Li Ming felt like fate was playing a joke on him. He never imagined something like transmigration would happen to him—let alone time travel into the Naruto world, as an ordinary member of the Uchiha clan.
But what could he do? After a short moment of confusion and panic, he sighed and accepted the truth.
"Fine. Let's just treat it as a new life. Nothing wrong with the name Uchiha Riku."
As someone from the 21st century who grew up reading web novels, he naturally knew that time travelers usually came with a cheat ability—a golden finger. And right at that moment, a clear, electronic voice suddenly echoed in his head.
[Ding! Time Traveler's Benefit Activated]
[Congratulations! Heaven-Defying Comprehension Unlocked]
The sudden voice made Riku's body tremble. He held his breath, waiting for more… but nothing else came.
"…That's it? What does 'Heaven-Defying Comprehension' even mean?"
Before he could think it through, a wave of energy swept through his body. The fog in his head cleared instantly, and the overwhelming fatigue that had weighed him down disappeared without a trace. His mental clarity returned in full. But the physical pain remained, especially the sharp sting in his chest and the pounding in his skull.
He looked down and saw a large wound in his chest. That… was the fatal injury that had killed the original Uchiha Riku.
It wasn't hard to guess what happened.
This was the late stage of the Third Ninja War. Although peace negotiations were already underway, all the major villages had increased their military efforts on the battlefield to gain a stronger position at the table. The fighting had only become more brutal.
Konoha—the strongest of the five great shinobi villages—was no exception.
Under the clan leader's orders, Uchiha Riku and other clan members were sent to the eastern battlefield to reinforce their forces. But unfortunately, Riku, who had no real strength or status, died in the chaos—just another nameless casualty.
Even being part of the prestigious Uchiha clan didn't guarantee survival. Not every Uchiha awakened the Sharingan, and not every Uchiha was a genius.
Riku, who was now inside this body, understood the Naruto timeline clearly. He knew this was only the beginning.
Even if he somehow survived this war, the real nightmare would follow soon after—the Nine-Tails Rebellion. Konoha would come to believe the Uchiha clan had used the Sharingan to control the beast and attack the village. This would worsen the deep-rooted distrust toward the Uchiha that had existed since the Second Hokage's era.
Shimura Danzo, head of Konoha's hawk faction, had already set his sights on destroying the Uchiha clan. And the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, would quietly allow it to happen.
In the near future, the Uchiha would face genocide.
Knowing all this, Riku realized that even if he could survive the war now, there were far more terrifying challenges waiting ahead. He wasn't even a side character in the original story—just a background corpse. If he couldn't rise above that fate, he'd be swept away like the rest.
And what made things worse was the obvious political trap he had already walked into.
Everyone in Konoha knew the Uchiha clan specialized in Fire Release ninjutsu. So why had the Third Hokage sent them to the eastern battlefield—to fight against the Mist Village, whose ninjas were masters of Water Release?
Not everyone in the Uchiha clan had awakened the Sharingan. Many of them, even those ranked as Chūnin, had no access to the clan's legendary bloodline powers. And as everyone knew, Water naturally countered Fire.
Riku didn't believe that someone like Hiruzen, known as the Professor, would make such a mistake.
"How many Uchiha have died because of that decision…?"
The thought made his fists clench. But there was no time to dwell on it. He had more pressing matters to deal with—starting with understanding his so-called golden finger.
He took a deep breath and focused his thoughts.
"How do I use this Heaven-Defying Comprehension…?"
Complaining was meaningless. If he wanted to survive, if he wanted even the faintest chance of changing the fate of the Uchiha, he would need strength—real strength.
From the name alone, the meaning wasn't too hard to guess. Heaven-Defying Comprehension was likely a talent-based ability—maybe super learning, photographic memory, instant mastery of jutsu, that sort of thing.
Realizing its potential, Riku felt a spark of hope in his heart.
"I only know basic Fire Style techniques right now. Let's start with the Great Fireball Technique."
With that, he began forming hand seals for the jutsu. As his fingers moved, the chakra within him responded, flowing through his meridians in a smooth and natural rhythm. The knowledge of chakra control, hand seals, fire transformation—all of it surged into his mind one after another.
But something felt different.
In addition to the memories that originally belonged to this body, there seemed to be more—information that didn't exist before. And it was growing rapidly, flooding his mind, clearer and clearer.
He didn't fully understand it, but he knew one thing for sure: these memories weren't his.
Just then, the mechanical voice in his mind spoke again.
[You tried hard to recall the hand seal sequence for Fire Release Ninjutsu and suddenly comprehended the entire Fire Release series.]
[You have mastered all Fire Release techniques—from D-rank to S-rank—including hand seals, chakra control ratios, jutsu power levels, and usage methods.]
Riku's eyes widened.