---
Night lay heavy over the Uchiha Territory.
The clan compound, usually restless with patrol steps and distant training clashes, was subdued beneath a low blanket of cloud. Lanterns burned along the walls, their flames wavering like uncertain thoughts. Wind whispered through the banners marked with the Uchiha crest—fan and flame, pride and destruction intertwined.
Keiji Uchiha stood alone on the roof of his residence.
His cloak stirred softly behind him. His gaze was distant—fixed not on the visible world, but on what was coming.
War currents. Clan alliances. Political axes forming. Bloodlines repositioning.
And beneath all of it—
A system window only he could see.
[Pokémon Integration Progress: 11%]
[Warning: Delay increases instability between timeline branches]
He exhaled slowly.
"Pressure tactics," he murmured. "You're getting impatient."
A ripple moved beneath his feet.
His shadow thickened.
Then rose.
Two crimson eyes opened inside the darkness, followed by a wide, mischievous grin. The air temperature dropped several degrees as Shiny Gengar emerged halfway—upper body floating free, lower half still merged with Keiji's shadow like ink refusing to separate from paper.
"Gengaaaar," it hummed softly.
Keiji didn't look down. "You've been waiting for this talk."
Gengar's grin widened.
---
The Opening Move
"You want them revealed," Keiji said calmly. "Integrated. Visible. Daily life."
Gengar nodded slowly, exaggeratedly, like a teacher pleased with a student's delayed realization.
Keiji folded his arms.
"Too early."
Gengar's eyes narrowed.
A pulse of ghostly chakra rolled outward—not hostile, but emphatic.
Keiji felt the meaning clearly through their system bond.
Wrong.
"Too risky," Keiji corrected.
Gengar rose fully from the shadow now, floating beside him, arms folded in mock imitation. It tilted its head and projected a memory-image into the shared system space—
—Uchiha children training alone
—medics overwhelmed
—scouts dying to ambushes
—night patrol casualties
Then overlays:
—Pokémon partners intercepting attacks
—ghost scouts
—fire partners amplifying jutsu
—healing support
—mobility boosts
Keiji clicked his tongue. "Selective evidence."
Gengar placed a claw dramatically on its chest, offended.
"Yes, selective," Keiji continued, finally turning. "Because you're arguing outcome without accounting for reaction."
He pointed outward—to the dark beyond the compound walls.
"The Senju and Uzumaki are consolidating. The Hyūga and Kaguya are coordinating. The Ino–Shika–Chō are already planning counters to unknown variables."
His Sharingan glowed faintly.
"If Pokémon become daily Uchiha assets now, we stop being a clan."
A pause.
"We become a threat category."
---
Gengar's First Argument — Destiny
Gengar drifted closer until they were eye to eye.
Then it pushed a system prompt directly into Keiji's mind:
[Core Mission: Distribute all 18 Pokémon types among all shinobi clans]
[Deviation beyond threshold = timeline collapse probability increase]
Keiji's jaw tightened.
"Don't quote the mission to me."
Gengar pointed downward emphatically.
Now — not later.
"Later is safer."
Gengar shook its head violently.
A new image formed in the bond—
A dam holding back a flood.
Hairline cracks spreading.
Pressure building.
Then explosion.
Keiji went silent for three seconds.
"…You're saying delay increases backlash."
Gengar snapped its fingers and pointed.
Correct.
---
Keiji's Counter — Social Physics
"Power systems aren't tools," Keiji said quietly. "They're cultures."
He paced the roof edge.
"Chakra isn't just energy. It's doctrine. Training philosophy. Inheritance. Identity."
He tapped his chest.
"Uchiha power comes from emotional ignition and ocular evolution. Pokémon power comes from partnership resonance."
He looked at Gengar.
"Those are not compatible without friction."
Gengar's grin softened.
It floated backward and created another projected scene—
A lone Uchiha child crying after training failure.
A Gastly drifting near.
Watching.
Waiting.
Comforting.
Training together.
Evolving together.
The child stronger.
More stable.
Less alone.
Keiji's expression shifted slightly.
"Emotional buffering," he admitted.
Gengar bowed theatrically.
---
The Fear Argument
"Control," Keiji said. "That's the real issue."
Gengar rolled its eyes.
"Yes," Keiji continued. "Not yours. Theirs."
He gestured toward the clan district.
"Pokémon are independent wills. Tactical assets that feel, choose, refuse."
He met Gengar's gaze.
"Shinobi command structures are not built for equals."
Gengar floated upside down, grinning.
Then projected a battlefield memory—
Keiji and Gengar fighting together.
No orders.
Only synchronization.
Victory through trust, not command.
Keiji looked away first.
"That works for us."
Gengar flipped upright and pointed at him.
Start with us. Then scale.
---
Logic vs Timing
"Adoption curves matter," Keiji said. "Phase introduction prevents rejection."
He raised fingers, counting.
"Step one: rare summons."
"Step two: elite partnerships."
"Step three: controlled training cohorts."
"Step four: normalization."
Gengar listened.
Then erased the list with a swipe of ghost energy.
And wrote instead:
War won't wait for your rollout plan.
Keiji's eyes narrowed.
"Fear tactic."
Gengar's stare hardened.
Prediction.
A system window opened automatically.
[Conflict Probability — Major Clan Clash: Rising]
[Time Horizon: Shortening]
Keiji did not like that.
---
Emotional Core
Gengar drifted closer, voice finally entering the bond clearly instead of images.
You are thinking like a strategist, it said.
"Correct."
But you were reborn as a disruptor.
Keiji froze.
The night wind stilled.
You didn't come here to optimize the old world, Gengar continued softly.
You came to change it.
"That doesn't mean recklessness."
It means courage at the right moment.
Keiji laughed once. No humor.
"Ghost giving speeches about courage. That's new."
Gengar grinned.
Ghosts understand regret.
That landed harder than expected.
---
Risk Ledger
"Fine," Keiji said. "We quantify."
System interface opened between them.
Risks of Immediate Integration:
Clan panic
Elder resistance
Political suspicion
External espionage
Kidnapping attempts
Weaponization pressure
Internal faction split
Gengar added more:
Delay instability
Mission deviation
Timeline fracture
Opportunity loss
Preventable deaths
Keiji stared at the combined list.
"…You're weighting lives saved higher than political stability."
Gengar nodded once.
Without hesitation.
---
The Destiny Strike
Gengar placed a claw over Keiji's heart.
You didn't choose me, it said quietly through the bond.
You recognized me.
Keiji didn't answer.
Recognition is destiny acknowledged.
"That's philosophy, not strategy."
Strategy without destiny becomes fear management.
That one hurt.
Because it was partially true.
---
Breaking Point
Keiji activated Sharingan fully now—reading Gengar's chakra flow, emotional waveform, intent structure.
No manipulation.
No coercion.
Only conviction.
"You believe delay causes more death than exposure," Keiji said.
Yes.
"You believe Uchiha emotional volatility makes them uniquely compatible with Pokémon bonding."
Yes.
"You believe the clan must adapt now or be overtaken by alliance blocs forming around them."
Yes.
Silence stretched.
Lanterns flickered below.
A patrol passed—unaware history was being argued above their heads.
---
The Decision
Keiji looked at the compound.
At the training yards.
At the hospital wing.
At the children's dormitory.
Then at Gengar.
"You win," he said quietly.
Gengar blinked.
"You're right," Keiji continued. "Controlled delay was correct before."
He exhaled.
"But the board changed."
Gengar's grin returned—slow, victorious, but not mocking.
"Pokémon integration into daily Uchiha life begins now," Keiji declared softly. "Not publicly announced. But operationally real."
Gengar pumped both fists.
"However," Keiji added sharply, "we do this my way."
Gengar groaned theatrically.
"Pilot households. Combat pairs. Medical pairs. Scout pairs. Emotional compatibility screening."
Gengar gave a reluctant thumbs up.
"Phase name," Keiji said.
Gengar leaned forward eagerly.
Keiji smiled faintly.
"Project Living Flame."
---
End of the Chapter
---