The one thing that still annoyed Uchiha Leon was simple:
He'd unlocked too little of the Whitebeard Template.
Which meant the real prize—the Gura Gura no Mi's quake power—was still out of reach.
But even without it…
His body had already changed dramatically.
No rush. Slow and steady.
First—report in.
WHOOSH!
A sharp crack split the air.
Leon's figure blurred into an afterimage as he shot forward—fast enough that if anyone had been watching closely, they would've noticed something odd:
He wasn't using chakra to "flash" around.
This was pure explosive footwork—rapid, repeated stomps in a fraction of a second. Recoil force built, then released, launching him forward like a human projectile.
Konohagakure — North-Central District
Whoosh… whoosh… whoosh…
One after another, shinobi in dark uniforms and cat-pattern Police masks appeared at high speed, converging on a single building and filing inside.
On the front, bold lettering stood out clearly:
Konoha Military Police Force
This was the Police headquarters.
Years ago, the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, had established the Konoha Military Police Force and placed it under Uchiha control.
Officially, it was an honor: trust, authority, responsibility.
In practice… it was also a leash.
The Police handled internal security—maintaining order, enforcing village regulations, investigating disputes, and arresting criminals (including rogue shinobi). But they had no jurisdiction over ANBU, who answered directly to the Hokage.
Sometimes the Police cooperated with ANBU on security.
But the moment a case crossed into black-ops territory, the Police were expected to step back.
A perfect arrangement, from Tobirama's point of view:
Give the Uchiha status… while keeping them in a role where they could be watched.
And for a time, it worked.
The Uchiha's influence inside Konoha reached its peak.
"Made it."
—Whoosh—
Leon appeared right in front of the building, the wind of his arrival stirring dust around his boots.
He looked up at the headquarters and let out a quiet, amused breath.
"This place is practically… respectable," he murmured. "Compared to ANBU and Root."
If he remembered right, both ANBU and Root operated from underground—like people allergic to sunlight.
Then his expression shifted slightly, the amusement fading.
"Too bad."
He could already see the future coming.
It was still Konoha Year 47.
The Nine-Tails incident wasn't far off.
And after that night… everything would change.
After the Nine-Tails attacked, suspicion would fall on the Uchiha. Tension with the village leadership would spike. And the Police Force would take the hit with them.
Before the incident, the Uchiha Police were "the village's law."
After the incident, they'd be treated like a nuisance people tolerated at best—isolated, restricted, quietly pushed aside by the top brass and the major clans.
For now, though, it hadn't happened yet.
The relationship between the Uchiha and the village leadership was still… manageable.
Leon exhaled and cut the thought off before it could sour his mood.
"System," he said under his breath, "sign in at the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters."
Ding… Sign-in successful.
Congratulations, User: acquired Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique and 0.12% progress.
Ding… Rewards stored in system inventory.
A moment later, the details surfaced in his mind.
Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique (Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu) — Fires multiple small fireballs in rapid succession. Their trajectories can be subtly guided mid-flight with chakra, making them difficult to predict.
(Upon claiming: instant mastery. No hand seals required—just a clap of both hands.)
And then—
Whitebeard Template progress: 40.12% unlocked.
Leon scanned it and nodded.
"Not bad."
A new jutsu—and another sliver of progress toward the template.
That was enough.
Just then, two cat-masked officers hurried over and stopped in front of him.
"Leon—move!" one of them said, clearly excited. "Captain's back today."
"And it sounds like he's announcing something big," the other added, voice tight with urgency.
Leon blinked. "Captain's back?"
His brows knit slightly.
"You mean Uchiha Fugaku? Wasn't he still out in the Third Shinobi World War? He's already returned?"
The two who'd come to get him were familiar faces—some of the few people Leon actually got along with in the Police Force:
Uchiha Tyler.
Uchiha Ian.
"Yeah," Tyler said with a half-laugh. "You're always off training taijutsu. The war's basically at the finish line. Konoha's already locked the advantage."
Ian looked even more pleased, chin lifting like it was personal glory.
"Hah! Kirigakure took such a beating they're still crawling."
Leon let out a small, silent chuckle.
Sending an Uchiha-heavy force—known for Fire Release—to fight a village famous for Water Release…
Yeah. 'Love,' Konoha-style.
"Come on," Tyler said, turning. "We'll talk on the way."
Neither of them noticed Leon's expression shift for that instant—so brief it was almost imaginary.
"Alright," Leon said, shrugging, and followed them into the building.
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