Naruto: How to Be an Undercover Shinobi

Hearing Rie's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved her off irritably. "Go post your mission at the mission office." "They said A-rank and above mis

Hearing Rie's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved her off irritably.

"Go post your mission at the mission office."

"They said A-rank and above missions need to be approved by you directly. I had no choice but to bother you."

As she spoke, she pulled out a scroll from her ninja pouch and placed it on the desk.

"Lord Hokage, on behalf of the Daimyō of the Land of Rain, I'm issuing an A-rank mission!

The objective is to assist the Land of Rain in rebuilding Amegakure.

The reward is 100 million ryo, and the one taking the mission is…

Hehe...Your truly humble servant—me!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was left speechless.

Here we go again! Same act, same nonsense.

These siblings, using their wealth as an excuse to give themselves vacation days!

Utterly ridiculous!

Without a second thought, Hiruzen snapped,

"Denied!"

At that, Rie immediately pouted and muttered,

"Guess I'll just give the 100 million to Iwagakure. I heard they build houses pretty fast."

Hiruzen's face darkened in an instant.

That girl—he was hoping she'd be the rope to tie Reiji down. And now the rope was running off on its own!

What a fool I've been!

He took several deep breaths to calm his frustration before speaking in a stern voice.

"Konoha builds faster. The mission is approved!

But you're not going alone. Bring a few others with you!"

Rie thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement. She added,

"That's fine, but I only want people who know Earth Release: Tearing Earth Turning Palm. No one else."

Hiruzen grunted his reluctant approval.

Satisfied, Rie gave a pleased smile and turned to leave the Hokage's office...

Not long after, Fugaku Uchiha entered the office with the Uchiha clan head in tow.

The moment the two clan heads met, the tension in the room skyrocketed.

"Lord Hokage, what did you call me here for?" Fugaku asked calmly.

Before Hiruzen could speak, the Hyūga clan head snorted, pointing angrily at his two battered sons.

"What do you think? Are your Sharingan blind?! You can't see this?!"

"Blind? Even if we were, it's still better than being branded and having your life controlled."

Fugaku remained unfazed, scratching his forehead with a knowing look.

Nearby, the younger Hizashi Hyūga flinched hard at those words.

The fight with his older brother had stemmed from the rage he could no longer suppress.

After all, who would willingly accept such a humiliating mark? Even the calmest person would feel bitter resentment.

The Hyūga clan head, now trembling with fury, lost all composure and pointed a shaking finger at Fugaku.

"Since when is it your place to meddle in Hyūga clan matters?! Is this how the Uchiha Clan Head teaches your brats?!"

Fugaku's face immediately soured.

What do you mean, I taught him?

That kid was trained by Reiji Sakuhō! If you've got a problem, go yell at him!

And you, some nobody from the Hyūga, think you can yell at me—an Uchiha?!

With that, the Uchiha clan head folded his arms, stiffened his neck, and aimed his nostrils at the Hyūga head.

"How I train my people is none of your business!

Clean up your own mess before criticizing me!

The Uchiha clan may have its flaws, but we always stand by our own."

It was a fair point.

From a clan perspective, the Uchiha and Hyūga were worlds apart from Kaguya's lineage—the Uchiha really did treat their own as equals.

But from the village's point of view, the Uchiha were like a stubborn stone stuck in the gut—one blocking a vital spot.

Watching the two clan heads argue endlessly, Hiruzen Sarutobi could feel a migraine coming on.

And the instigator of it all—Fugaku Uchiha?

At some point, he had quietly settled onto the sofa and was even helping himself to a cup of tea.

Good kid. You really are Reiji's student.

This way of stirring up trouble—he definitely picked it up from his master!

His master lit a fire under the entire ninja world, and now he's picking up right where he left off! At such a young age, he's already got the heads of Konoha's two major clans at each other's throats.

Thinking of this, Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered Reiji's other disciple, Teuchi—nicknamed Ichiraku.

That one's no better.

Word is, the kid likes to knead ramen dough while activating the Eight Inner Gates, yelling things like "Long live youth!"—stuff nobody understands.

The most frustrating part?

I've actually tried his noodles... and damn it, they were good!

Reiji's three disciples—each more of a headache than the last.

One inherited his lazy streak, constantly giving herself time off.

The one standing in front of him now had been completely corrupted. The way his eyes glinted when scheming was exactly the same as that bastard Reiji.

And the last one—well, better not even go there.

Great. The so-called "Three Heroes of Konoha!" A new era of nonsense, and it all started with me!

At that thought, Hiruzen cursed Reiji a hundred times over in his heart.

That guy is nothing but a plague!

And just as he was mentally tearing Reiji apart, a bold idea suddenly struck him.

What if...

What if all the Uchiha clan's problem children were handed over to Reiji Sakuhō for training? What would happen then?

A case of turning trash into treasure?

No, no, no—he couldn't think that way about fellow villagers.

Would the Uchiha collapse from within?

Maybe. But more likely, the whole village would implode.

Just imagine it: a bunch of Uchiha brats, all preaching love and peace, walking down the street—then spotting two people brawling.

Then, kid A rushes over and knocks both fighters out.

Then kid B rushes in and demands, "Why did you hit them? I'll show you what love means!"

Then A and B start fighting, and kid C shows up to break it up—with his fists.

At that horrifying mental image, cold sweat broke out on Hiruzen's back.

No, no, no!

This would never end!

If those kids all knew how to pilot Gundams, the village would be obliterated for sure!

Still... this terrifying thought sparked a bold new idea.

From now on, if any problem teens popped up in the village, why not just dump them all on Rie?

...

While he was still thinking, the Hyūga clan head and the Uchiha clan head had worn themselves out from arguing. Both were panting heavily, still glaring daggers at each other.

Seeing this, Hiruzen knew it was time to step in.

"Ahem.

You've argued enough, made your scene—now it's time to hear me out.

Fugaku Uchiha is a disciple of Reiji Sakuhō, but at the end of the day, he's still a member of the Uchiha clan.

Here's what we'll do: the Uchiha will cover the Hyūga's medical expenses, and the Hyūga will drop the issue.

No matter what, we're all comrades of the same village. Fugaku stepped in to stop a fight—for your own good."

The message was clear.

Fugaku Uchiha was trained by Reiji Sakuhō. Everyone knew what kind of mess Reiji was. So Hyūga, cut the drama, take the money, and don't pick fights in front of this guy again.

Uchiha, don't get cocky. Fugaku got you into this situation in the first place.

And as for why he was taking Fugaku's side?

Simple. The guy might be difficult, and his temper's awful—

But when it comes to principle, there's nothing wrong with him.

In fact, he took the heat off everyone else and redirected the hostility toward himself, actually helping the village maintain peace in the process.