"Uchiha Ci, the Clan Head, has ordered all clan ninja to report to the Security Hall immediately."
"Understood, I'll head over right away."
Uchiha Ci nodded calmly, fishing an empty can out of the river as he replied.
The Uchiha Chunin delivering the order looked at him strangely and reminded him quietly before turning to leave:
"Kid, the Third Kazekage has gone missing. Tensions are rising at the border, and a ninja war is about to break out."
"You're still just a Genin—don't show off and take on missions beyond your abilities!"
Then, the Chunin frowned at what Uchiha Ci was doing and said helplessly,
"As an Uchiha, what you should be doing now is training hard and improving your strength. Don't waste time on these garbage cleanup tasks."
With that—
Whoosh—
As the Chunin left,
A flash of irrepressible joy suddenly lit up Uchiha Ci's eyes. He tossed aside the trash-picker he'd been using to clean the river, stepped lightly across the water, and flipped back onto the riverbank.
He tossed the can into a sack lying on the shore.
"Damn, is the Ninja War finally starting?"
Uchiha Ci looked excited.
"Finally, I can leave the village and die properly. I've been worried all year!"
"Picking up trash, catching cats, babysitting, dredging rivers…"
"How am I supposed to die doing these worthless chores?"
Uchiha Ci sighed in relief, his hands trembling with excitement:
"I can finally go home!"
It wasn't hard to tell—the current Uchiha Ci was no longer the Uchiha Ci from the original history of the ninja world.
He was a time traveler.
But not just any time traveler.
He was a Chosen One, singled out from among thousands by the Will of Heaven!
What did it mean to be a Chosen One?
Simply put:
He would be randomly assigned a talent.
Then, he'd be sent to various turbulent eras, relying on his own abilities and efforts to rewrite tragic destinies and push society toward a happy ending.
After completing the mission, Uchiha Ci would receive huge rewards and return to his original world.
Conversely, if he failed or acted against his mission, he would be erased by heavenly judgment when the story concluded.
Of course, as a legit Chosen One, Uchiha Ci was also covered by insurance.
If he died accidentally during his mission to save the world, he would receive compensation—
A generous insurance payout (¥500 million) to return to his original world.
The only condition was that the outcome couldn't be worse than the original history, and intentional suicide wouldn't be covered.
Uchiha Ci had been waiting for this moment.
The original Uchiha Ci had lost his parents young and was often bullied by his clan due to his mediocre talent. Even now, he was still just a Genin.
He'd never heard of such a character in Naruto—he'd probably either died in the Third Ninja War or during the Nine-Tails Attack or the Uchiha Massacre.
Pure cannon fodder.
And what was a cannon fodder's destiny?
Uchiha Ci didn't even need to think—
The battlefield!
As long as he could die on the battlefield…
No matter how stingy the Heavenly Dao Insurance Company was, they'd have to pay up!
Coincidentally, it was now the eve of the Third Ninja War.
Having lost the Third Kazekage, Sunagakure would soon formally declare war on Konoha and push the front lines forward.
What would follow—
The Battle of the Green Lair Reef and the Mist!
The Invasion of the Land of Heaven!
The Third Raikage's Last Stand: One Against Ten Thousand!
In the Land of Rain, Outer Path Demons and Dragon Souls Mowing Through Foes!
The Battle of Kannabi Bridge!
The Battle of Mt. Platycodon!
All those legendary ninjas!
The most brutal war yet!
All the secret conspiracies, all the greed crisscrossing the map—
Everything would erupt during this period!
Uchiha Ci thought about it—with so many classic battles, as long as he could get into any one of them, a weakling like him would be done for!
Being cannon fodder = dying quickly!
Even if these wars were incredibly dangerous, with survival rates of one in ten thousand, Uchiha Ci could face it all with a calm heart.
After all, what came after were the Nine-Tails Attack and the Uchiha Massacre!
Of course, it wasn't that Uchiha Ci had never considered actually being the Chosen One and rewriting history.
He had plenty of regrets about Naruto, after all.
But when he took stock of the situation, he realized—
With his abilities, achieving a happier ending than Naruto's was basically a pipe dream.
Cheats like the "Prodigy Prince Package," "Daddy's Boy Package," "Ancestor's Blessing Package," and "Talk No Jutsu Package" all fell short against the top-tier powerhouses in the Naruto world.
And he was just a weakling who couldn't even awaken the Sharingan.
He had no way to trace his bloodline and gain the power of Indra or Six Paths mutations.
Nor did he have the knowledge to develop his own Gundam and ascend through technology.
What could he rely on?
Sure, there were tricks like "Deduct 1 HP to Awaken the Mangekyō," but for a formal company like Heavenly Dao, such cheats were too flimsy. So far, the talents he'd rolled hadn't even been activated.
Aside from being cannon fodder, he couldn't see how a mere mortal like him could turn things around.
So once Uchiha Ci realized he could legitimately cheat the system and claim insurance, his mindset did a complete 180.
Five hundred million—wouldn't that be sweet?
As for saving the world…
Well, let's just say—
Trust in the Prince!
As for his identity as an Uchiha on the eve of this treacherous war—
He'd find a place to die first and rest in peace!
Just think—if Sarutobi Hiruzen heard this, he'd be moved to tears!
He might even burn offerings for us at the memorial stone!
"This has to be a war mobilization meeting. The clan is gathering at a time like this—there aren't many dangerous missions to begin with. I can't let anyone snatch them away from me!"
"I have to hurry!"
"This is me giving my all for Konoha!"
"Totally worth going all out!"
Uchiha Ci's eyes shone with determination. He kicked off his rain boots and sprinted toward the Security Department!
He didn't even bother with the sack and trash-picker on the shore.
Nearby—
Uchiha Shisui happened to be leaping across rooftops, also heading to the Security Department.
By chance, he overheard Uchiha Ci's words below.
He froze for a long moment, nearly missing his footing and tumbling off the roof.
Then, his eyes lit up:
"Is there someone in the Uchiha clan who thinks the same way I do?"
Uchiha Shisui watched Uchiha Ci running against the setting sun and rubbed his chin.
"But the mission the Clan Head is about to assign is way too dangerous."
"No—I can't let such a young, enlightened comrade die!"
With that, Uchiha Shisui's gaze turned resolute.
As a fine young man who loved the village, he completely understood Uchiha Ci's passion to fight for Konoha.
But that kind of passion often led to hot-headedness—taking on missions no one else would dare touch, just to prove oneself.
Too many good men had lost their lives for such foolish reasons.
What a waste.
And Uchiha Shisui—
He would never let such a tragedy happen before his eyes!
Especially since—
The two missions about to be assigned were practically suicide!