After watching Kakashi's graduation examination, Gen Uchiha left the Academy and wandered through the streets of Konoha, glancing at the roadside vendors and the crowds passing by.
Hmm. At least one thing had not changed: Konoha's fearless civilians still possessed the Will of Recklessness.
They seemed to have no sense of self-preservation whatsoever. No matter who you were, they would still dare to run their mouths at you, and if their tempers flared, they might even throw a few rocks.
Gen continued home in silence.
Uchiha Compound, Gen's house.
He pushed open the door. The empty house was dark and silent. After switching on the lights, Gen headed straight for the bathroom and took a shower.
Ever since his memories had fully awakened, he had lived without parents. He had been raised by elderly caretakers in an orphanage operated specifically for children of the Uchiha clan.
As for his parents, he had been told they died together on a mission.
Gen did not feel much about that.
At the very least, they had left him a house that he could apply to live in independently once he reached school age.
Orphans were hardly unusual in the shinobi world. After all, four people could barely scrape together two complete sets of parents.
Right, Team Seven?
...
After his shower, Gen sat cross-legged on his bed.
Thinking back to the battle between Kakashi and the examiner, a faint smile appeared on his face.
This shinobi world might be abnormal, but fortunately...
'Check in.'
[Ding! Congratulations. You have obtained a small amount of ocular power.]
'Ocular power again. Better than nothing, I guess. At least it isn't more useless cola or instant noodles.'
Hearing the familiar electronic chime and feeling a faint cooling sensation spread through his eyes, Gen remained completely calm.
The Check-In System was the cheat he had awakened at age three, the same year his memories returned.
It was not particularly complicated. Every day at six in the evening, he could check in and receive something.
The reward might increase his chakra or ocular power. It might be an item. It could even be an ability.
As for everything Gen had received over the last two years...
'Status.'
He raised a hand and silently called for it.
A translucent screen visible only to him unfolded before his eyes.
[Host: Gen Uchiha]
[Gender: Male]
[Age: 5]
[Identity: Youngling of Konoha's Uchiha Clan]
[Potential: Currently Unknown]
[Special Talent: One-Tomoe Sharingan]
[Abilities: Armament Haki, Seventh Sense: Pyrokinesis]
[Items: Thousand Demon Daggers, Totem of Undying, Cola x43, Master Kong Pickled Mustard Beef Noodles x113, Sprite x1, and various others]
"Looking at it like this... I guess I'm pretty broken too."
...
The following morning, when the first ray of sunlight shone through the window of Gen's house, he had already finished washing up and been gone for quite some time.
As for why he had left so early...
The morning bell had already rung, and Sarutobi Ichinori, the teacher of Class A, had begun taking attendance.
Then the classroom door suddenly flew open.
A boy wearing goggles and a blue shirt bearing the Uchiha crest stood in the doorway, panting heavily.
"Hah... I'm sorry! Ichinori-sensei, I'm late!"
The newcomer was none other than Obito Uchiha, the boy who would one day seek to create a world where Rin still existed.
Ichinori's expression did not change. He merely rubbed his forehead.
"Go on. What's today's excuse?"
He had long since grown used to Obito being late, and by now he had developed enormous patience toward the boy.
After all, when dealing with a problem student like this, a teacher without patience would probably develop high blood pressure.
"I... I ran into an old lady on the way to school today. She was carrying this huge package and looked like she was struggling, so I helped carry it back to her house. That's why... that's why I'm late."
Obito scratched his head awkwardly.
"Mm. That's the twenty-eighth time you've used 'helping someone carry something' as your excuse. Not bad. At least it's better than the black cat blocking your path, which you've already used nearly a hundred times. Go sit down."
Ichinori nodded calmly. Rather than being harsh, he simply pointed toward Obito's desk.
If a student was late once, a teacher might get angry and warn him not to do it again.
But if a student was late every single day, always because of bizarre reasons that somehow turned out to be completely true...
At some point, the teacher would begin wondering whether the student himself was cursed.
The Uchiha were rather strange to begin with, after all.
"Yes, sensei!"
Obito reacted as though he had received a pardon and hurried into the classroom before dropping into the seat beside Gen.
...
"Why did you leave so early again without calling me?"
The moment Obito sat down, he leaned over and whispered into Gen's ear.
Gen, who had been bored enough to doodle '7 + 2 = mouse' in his workbook, stopped his pencil and looked over with a flat expression.
"Because I don't want to be late with you."
Gen and Obito were members of the same clan and classmates, so naturally they knew each other.
That did not mean Gen wanted much to do with him.
It was not because he feared Madara Uchiha lurking somewhere behind the scenes.
Gen simply found Obito genuinely annoying.
Unfortunately, Obito was the sort of person who could become familiar with someone whether they wanted him to or not.
As for why he expected Gen to call him so they could walk to school together, their houses were less than ten meters apart.
"But that's all—ow!"
"Obito Uchiha!"
Before Obito could finish, an angry shout rang through the classroom.
A piece of chalk struck him squarely in the forehead with a thunk.
The pain made Obito snap upright, and he immediately found himself locked in an intense stare with the furious Ichinori.
"I'm sorry, Ichinori-sensei! I'll shut up right now!"
Realizing that he had been caught talking in class, Obito immediately bowed and apologized at the top of his lungs.
The classroom finally became quiet again.
Looking at Obito's expression that practically screamed, 'See? I'm behaving now,' Gen found himself wondering what sort of changes the future wielder of Kamui would undergo in this bizarre shinobi world.