He had expected an evenly matched, thrilling battle.
What he got instead was a completely one-sided slaughter.
Three veteran chunin were no match for Uchiha Shinsuke in a single exchange.
In their hearts, every senior officer of the Guard present silently concluded that Uchiha Shinsuke had already reached the level of a jonin.
"Uchiha Shinsuke, combat assessment, passed with full marks!"
Uchiha Tekka announced in a loud voice.
Next came the jutsu development demonstration segment.
Uchiha Shinsuke held nothing back and demonstrated his newly developed "Lightning Fire Rasengan" on the spot once more.
This time, Uchiha Shinsuke aimed at the massive boulder target set up in the corner of the training ground.
He held nothing back, striking with full force.
BOOM!
A tremendous explosion rang out.
Under the impact of the Lightning Fire Rasengan, that extraordinarily hard boulder target was blasted open, leaving a massive scorched crater.
Along its edges, traces of lightning and fire burns still lingered.
The power of the Lightning Fire Rasengan had unmistakably reached the threshold of an A-rank jutsu.
"A... an A-rank jutsu?!"
"It seems somewhat similar to the Fourth Hokage's Rasengan, but Shinsuke's release is a combined attack of fire and lightning attributes!"
"He independently developed an A-rank jutsu?!"
Twelve years old, independently developing an A-rank jutsu.
What monstrous talent was this?!
The outcome of the assessment left no room for doubt.
Uchiha Shinsuke passed the Elite Chunin assessment with an indisputable, overwhelming advantage.
In this assessment, Uchiha Shinsuke not only earned the title of Elite Chunin of the Guard but also gained the right to participate in certain decision-making matters within the Guard.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, on successfully advancing to Elite Chunin of the Uchiha Guard, greatly elevating your standing and prestige within the clan!]
[Reward issued: Clan Glory Points +! Personal chakra reserves greatly increased (advanced to jonin level)! Taijutsu strength further enhanced (jonin level)!]
Uchiha Shinsuke's gaze turned toward Uchiha Fugaku in his seat, his expression complicated.
'My goal is not merely this.'
'Fugaku, Clan Head, are you ready to welcome the arrival of a new era?'
After the gathering dispersed, Uchiha Shinsuke exchanged a few words with Tekka, then returned to his room, sat cross-legged on the floor, and began studying the system's new functions.
"System."
Uchiha Shinsuke recited inwardly.
A pale blue luminous panel suddenly expanded before his eyes.
Uchiha Shinsuke's gaze fell upon the system panel.
[Host: Uchiha Shinsuke]
[Status: Konoha Guard Elite Chunin]
[Power Level: Jonin (Early Stage)]
[Clan Glory Points: Points]
Over fifty thousand glory points!
[Family Skill Tree] — Activated!
'It has finally... unlocked!'
He opened the [Family Skill Tree] module.
A skill tree diagram as intricate as a star chart unfolded before Uchiha Shinsuke.
Countless nodes densely packed together, most of them darkened, with only the few basic branches at the very top glowing faintly, displaying their "unlockable" status.
[Bloodline Enhancement], [Jutsu Inheritance], [Resource Management], [Clan Member Cultivation]...
Every single branch represented a powerful direction capable of fundamentally elevating the foundation of the Uchiha Clan!
Uchiha Shinsuke's gaze locked onto the [Bloodline Enhancement] branch.
This was the very root of the Uchiha!
Without any hesitation, Uchiha Shinsuke selected the first node under the [Bloodline Enhancement] branch.
[Skill Name: Basic Chakra Affinity Enhancement]
[Skill Effect: Permanently grants the "Minor Chakra Affinity Increase" buff to all Uchiha clan members whose loyalty to the Host is 70% or above, permanently increasing their chakra refinement speed by 5%.]
[Unlock Cost: 10,000 Points of Clan Glory Points.]
[Unlock?]
Ten thousand glory points!
Just the most basic skill required the consumption of such an enormous number of points!
But in Uchiha Shinsuke's eyes, it was worth it.
It was absolutely worth it.
This was not an effect applied to him alone, but a group-wide enhancement benefiting the entire clan!
A 5% speed increase seemed trivial.
But for a large clan, accumulated day after day, what a terrifying improvement this would become?!
"Unlock!"
Uchiha Shinsuke recited inwardly.
[Ding! Consuming Clan Glory Points...]
[Clan Skill "Basic Chakra Affinity Enhancement" unlocked successfully! All Uchiha clan members (loyalty to Host at 70% or above) have had their chakra affinity enhanced, and their chakra refinement speed has been increased by 5%!]
With Uchiha Shinsuke's room as the center, an invisible, warm ripple quietly spread outward, instantly enveloping the entire Uchiha clan grounds.
At the same time, inside a training room of the Guard.
"Ha!"
Uchiha Tetsu slammed his fist hard into a training post, sweat soaking his hair.
But at that very moment, his movements paused, and an expression of startled uncertainty appeared on his face.
"Hm? What's going on?"
Uchiha Min and Uchiha Kai, who were resting nearby, opened their eyes at the same moment.
"You felt it too?" Min said with a furrowed brow, "Just now, I felt like... refining chakra became a little easier?"
"Me too!" Kai leapt to his feet, his face filled with disbelief, "Although it's very subtle, I'm certain it wasn't an illusion, my chakra flow speed seems to have gotten just a tiny bit faster!"
The three looked at each other, and each saw the same shock and bewilderment reflected in the others' eyes.
The sensation was as if a long-blocked river channel had been quietly widened just a little, and the water naturally began to flow more smoothly.
They didn't know what had happened.
But they were certain that this change was an enormous blessing for them.
This was it, this was the truly heaven-defying aspect of the system!
Mass-producing powerful warriors!
At the genetic level, at the very root of their bloodline, elevating the potential of the entire Uchiha Clan!
Moreover, this enhancement could only be enjoyed by Uchiha clan members loyal to the Host, which effectively blocked the emergence of ungrateful traitors.
In a large clan, a few clan members who betrayed those who raised them, or who could not tell right from wrong, would inevitably appear.
The most infamous example was Uchiha Itachi; his strength was undeniably beyond question, but someone capable of raising a blade and massacring the entire Uchiha Clan was the kind of ungrateful traitor Uchiha Shinsuke had no need for, and applying the system's bonuses to someone like him would be a waste of sentiment.
Uchiha Shinsuke's gaze shifted back to that brilliantly glowing skill tree star chart.
Following [Basic Chakra Affinity Enhancement] came [Sharingan Awakening Rate Increase], [Ocular Power Nurturing Speed Enhancement], [Fire Release Talent Strengthening]...
Every single skill made Uchiha Shinsuke's heart surge with excitement!
Taking a deep breath to forcibly suppress the excitement within, Uchiha Shinsuke began to calmly lay out his plans.
Going forward, steady development, and preparing to meet even more severe challenges ahead.