Chapter 1: My Name is Uchiha Kaito
I'm Kaito, and I never expected to be transmigrated, especially not into a world as messed up as this one.
In this life, my parents died in battle shortly after I was born, making me an orphan. Now, my name is Uchiha Kaito. I'm three years old, adopted into my great-uncle's family. I have a cousin named Uchiha Madara and a cousin my age named Uchiha Izuna. Besides them, there are three younger kids: Uchiha Fei, Uchiha Hen, and Uchiha Ryo.
Madara always looks like he's about to take over the world. I've never seen him smile. He only ever says one thing to me: "Have you trained today?" It's as frequent as asking if I've eaten.
Train, my foot! Does he think everyone's as obsessed as he is? I'm only three! Intense training would kill me!
As for Izuna, for some reason, we can't stand each other. We fight almost every other day, rain or shine. Of course, I'm a little stronger, so I always win.
But every time he loses, he goes running for backup. Madara, being the overly protective brother he is, always takes Izuna's side. In the end, I'm the one who suffers.
Sitting by a slowly flowing river, a three-year-old child hugged his knees, watching the water and lamenting his tragic fate.
"Naruto… the Warring States… the Uchiha… Is this a joke? Are you trying to kill me?" Kaito tossed a pebble into the river, his brow furrowed with worry.
Before transmigrating, he had watched Naruto. He knew the plot, or at least the part that happened decades after the Leaf Village was founded, which was completely irrelevant right now. As things stood, just surviving until then was a major concern.
The Warring States period was only briefly mentioned in the source material, mostly in flashbacks of the First Hokage.
Even from those scant descriptions, one thing was crystal clear: the Warring States period was brutal. The death rate was unbelievably high. Even children were sent to the battlefield.
In the original story, Uchiha Madara mentioned that he originally had five brothers but was now left with only one. That one, of course, was Izuna.
Wait…
Thinking about it, Kaito suddenly remembered something that he had previously missed.
He had always assumed that, as a transmigrator, he wasn't counted among Madara's brothers. Adding Izuna, Fei, Hen, and Ryo made five, along with Madara. He had overlooked the obvious.
In the original story, Madara said, "I used to have five brothers." That meant that Madara wasn't counting himself in that number. There were six brothers in total.
Suddenly, a cold sweat broke out on Kaito's back. Five brothers… now only four. Clearly, Madara had a cousin in the original story. Unfortunately for that Kaito, he died before Madara ever met Hashirama, and he didn't even get a name.
Taking a deep breath, Kaito forced himself to calm down. He was an adult, after all. He wouldn't panic over a mere guess.
"If my assumption is correct, then based on the story, Madara's first encounter with Hashirama happened when he was around eight or nine years old. Madara is already six. At worst, my predecessor will be dead in the next two years."
Kaito's eyes turned cold, his pupils shifting to a blood red. A single tomoe slowly rotated within, reflected in the river.
He had awakened his Sharingan when he was one year old. No one but him knew. In this dangerous Warring States period, he needed a trump card to survive.
The Uchiha clan's Sharingan increased in power the earlier it awakened. Uchiha Itachi, who awakened it at eight, was considered a once-in-a-century genius.
During the Warring States period, most Uchiha clan members awakened it in their teens. Those who awakened it before ten were considered prodigies. Madara awakened it at five and was hailed as the hope of the Uchiha clan. Someone like Kaito, who awakened it at one, was unheard of. If word got out, it would cause a massive stir.
Seeing his Sharingan, he felt a little relieved. "Ever since I awakened it two years ago, I've been stuck at a single tomoe due to a lack of chakra. I should reach two tomoe next year. If Uchiha Kaito dies in the next two years, I need to train harder."
Ding!
"Mastermind Behind the Shadows System initiating. Binding to host, Uchiha Kaito."
"What?" A sudden headache overwhelmed Kaito. A massive influx of information flooded his mind, only gradually subsiding after an hour.
"Binding complete. World identified: Naruto. Main quest issued: Become the ultimate big boss of this world and unify the world. Reward: Ownership of the Naruto world! Time limit: Until the end of the story. Failure: Elimination!"
"Hey! Don't just issue quests without explaining! I haven't even figured things out yet," Kaito cried in his mind, clutching his head.
"This system only issues quests. It does not provide explanations. Please figure things out on your own."
Kaito gritted his teeth and began to sort through the information. In short, it was a system designed to make him a boss. It had various functions and could exchange for anything from the world of Naruto… provided he had enough points. Points were earned through system-issued quests.
After slowly sorting everything out, Kaito was overjoyed. This was the classic transmigrator's cheat! It might have been three years late, but it was here nonetheless. He couldn't complain.
With that thought, Kaito opened the exchange menu, eager to see what was available. The first item made him gasp.
Rinnegan. Item Rank: SSS. Cost: 1,000,000 points.Sage Body. Item Rank: SSS. Cost: 1,000,000 points.Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. Item Rank: SS. Cost: 500,000 points.
After counting all the zeros, Kaito's lips twitched. Was he supposed to save up for eternity?
"Hey, system, isn't there any beginner's bonus?" Kaito asked inwardly.
"In response to host's inquiry, a one-time bonus can be provided: a C-rank ninjutsu or one upgrade to the Sharingan. Please choose."
Kaito's eyelids twitched. "In response to host's inquiry"? So, if he didn't ask, the system wouldn't have given him anything?
He didn't need a C-rank ninjutsu. The Uchiha clan was a large clan. S-rank ninjutsu might be out of reach, but as long as you were strong enough, C-rank techniques were easy to learn.
"Upgrade the Sharingan once."
As soon as Kaito finished speaking, a surge of heat emerged from within his body, flowing into his Sharingan. His eyes burned. After about a minute, Kaito quickly looked into the river. Reflected in the water, two tomoe were clearly visible.