The three were already warming up in the training field when Uchiha Mei strolled over at a leisurely pace.
He watched them for a bit, nodding in approval before finally speaking up. "Not bad. You all seem pretty fired up. Looks like that last mission did you some good. Alright, take a break. I've got three chakra test papers here. I want each of you to channel your chakra into them."
The three took the papers and did as they were told. The reaction was almost immediate.
Mei began explaining, "Alright, listen up:
Fire: The paper catches fire.
Wind: The paper splits down the middle.
Lightning: The paper wrinkles.
Water: The paper gets wet.
Earth: The paper crumbles.
If you somehow have all five, you'd see the paper split into five sections—one burns, one tears, one wrinkles, one gets wet, and one crumbles. But honestly, that kind of thing is so rare it's basically a fair—"
He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes going wide as saucers. He was staring straight at Uchiha Haruki's chakra paper.
Haruki's paper was doing exactly what Mei had just described as "basically impossible":One part was burning, one part was split, one part was wrinkled, one part was wet, and the last part was crumbled into pieces.
Haruki just glanced at it, completely unfazed. Honestly, he was kind of bored with it. He had tested it himself ages ago after crossing over to this world. He already knew he had all five chakra natures. On top of that, his spiritual power was through the roof—his memory was nearly perfect, he learned things ridiculously fast, and his chakra control was flawless. He could climb trees and walk on water without breaking a sweat. If anything, he was even better at it than Sakura was in the original story.
Ignoring the gobsmacked expressions of the others, Haruki casually peeked over at his teammates' results.
Uchiha Retsu had Fire, Earth, and Lightning.Uchiha En had Fire, Wind, and Earth.
Haruki stared at Retsu's results with a bit of confusion. What the hell is he doing? The guy didn't even have a Water attribute, but he was running around using Water Prison Jutsu. And despite having Lightning Release, he barely even used it in fights. The guy just spammed Fire Release all day like he was getting paid for it.
Uchiha Mei finally recovered from his shock and took a look at the other two's chakra papers. After a bit of thought, he asked, "Alright, you three now know your own elemental attributes and each other's. What are your thoughts? Since I need to plan your training, I want to hear your ideas first."
Uchiha En immediately jumped in. "I'll go first! I want to learn more defensive and control-type ninjutsu. I kind of see myself as the team's support guy, you know? I've actually tested my chakra attributes before, so I've been practicing those kinds of jutsu already."
"Right now, I know Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall, Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu, and Wind Release: Great Breakthrough. For ninja tools, I only know Uchiha Shuriken Jutsu."
Uchiha Haruki followed, "I prefer close combat and mixing up different ninjutsu. Right now, I can only chain different jutsu one after another, but I haven't been able to really combine them into something new."
"My current jutsu are Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu, Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu, Fire Release: Phoenix Fire Crimson Claw, Fire Release: Dragon Fire Jutsu, Earth Release: Hiding in Rock Technique, Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall, and Wind Release: Gale Palm. For ninja tools, I've got Uchiha Shuriken Jutsu and Manipulated Shuriken Technique. Also, I'm learning swordsmanship from my dad."
Both of them turned to look at Uchiha Retsu, who was practically sweating under their stares. He scratched his head and finally spoke, "I'm good at setting traps and confusing the enemy. I've got a bit of everything when it comes to elements.
I know Water Release: Water Prison Jutsu, but only if there's water nearby. I'm still working on Wind Release: Great Breakthrough. I've got Lightning Release: Ground Walk, but I don't really like using it. For Earth Release, I've got Earth Release: Hiding in Rock Technique and Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall down pretty well.
My favorite is Fire Release. I know Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu and Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu. For ninja tools, I can use Uchiha Shuriken Jutsu and Manipulated Shuriken Technique. Right now, I'm practicing Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu."
En burst out laughing and clapped him on the shoulder. "Man, Grandpa really spoils you. You train like you're at an all-you-can-eat buffet!"
Haruki couldn't help but chime in. "Honestly, you're basically the five-element guy here, not me. You've got a little bit of everything. You're like a jack-of-all-trades!"
Uchiha Mei watched them banter for a bit before clearing his throat. "Alright, I think that's enough. For today, just continue with your previous training routines—except you, Uchiha Retsu. Drop your Wind Release: Great Breakthrough for now and focus on Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu."
He paused for a moment and continued, "Also, tell your families that I've called in two friends of mine to help with your training. They don't have much time, so we'll be doing a one-week, closed training session. Bring all your supplies, and meet me here tomorrow morning. You're free to go for now."
With that, he turned and walked away.
Uchiha Mei left the training grounds and used the Body Flicker Technique to arrive at the Uchiha Police Force headquarters. He found the handsome Uchiha Ieyasu joking around near the entrance.
"Follow me. I need to talk to the clan leader about your son," Mei said seriously.
Ieyasu looked puzzled. "Did he cause trouble again? Did he hit someone? No, that's not right... he's usually pretty well-mannered. He didn't sneak out of the village again, did he?"
He kept muttering to himself as he followed Mei. Before long, they arrived at Uchiha Nobunaga's office. The secretary at the door saw Ieyasu and immediately opened the door. "Lord Nobunaga is inside. He just got a fresh pot of tea."
Ieyasu chuckled. "Well, then, we'll head in. Thanks, Hoshi."
"Not a problem. Oh, and before you leave at noon, remember to grab the sweet buns for Sister Ran," Hoshi said, pointing to a delicate little box on the desk.
Inside the office, Uchiha Nobunaga poured tea for Ieyasu and Mei. The three of them quietly drank tea for half an hour without a word.
Finally, Ieyasu finished his cup, exhaled, and said, "So, my boy caused some trouble, huh? Sorry to put you through the trouble."
Uchiha Mei quickly replied, "No trouble at all. But I do think there's something you should know. This morning, at the training grounds, I did a chakra nature test with the kids. Your son, Uchiha Haruki, has all five chakra natures. He's got the full set. I felt it was important to tell you."
Ieyasu stared into his teacup for a moment, silent. Finally, he spoke slowly, "Actually... there's a bit of a story behind that. To be honest, Ran and I almost forgot about it. Even Haruki doesn't remember."
He continued, "I remember it was Haruki's fifth birthday. We all went for a picnic to celebrate him starting at the academy. Everyone gave their blessings, and we had a good time.
His mother and a few of her friends took the kids into the woods to pick some fruit. You know those ladies—each of them is strong, so there were no safety concerns. All the kids went too, Haruki included.
The adults were picking fruit and keeping watch, while the kids just ran wild through the forest. Haruki climbed up a tree and found this strange fruit. It was different from all the others—it was golden, with weird markings on it.
He brought it down to show Ran and asked what kind of fruit it was. Ran didn't recognize it, but she told him not to eat it, just in case it was poisonous. But Haruki, being the kid he was, started showing it off to the other children.
Of course, all the other kids wanted to take a look, and before anyone could stop him, Haruki panicked and just ate it. Right after he did, he looked like he was in serious pain. Ran saw him and rushed over, planning to take him to the hospital. But Haruki just gagged for a bit and said the fruit tasted awful—like crap.
Everyone laughed at him for eating weird stuff and made sure to tell the other kids not to eat strange things they found in the woods. We finished our picnic, and Ran still took Haruki to the hospital just to be sure. Everything seemed fine, so we went home."
Ieyasu sighed and continued, "But the real problem came the next day. No matter how much we tried, Haruki wouldn't wake up. Ran found out he was running a high fever. We rushed him to the hospital, but for days the fever wouldn't break. Sometimes he would mutter strange things in his sleep—words we couldn't understand.
By the seventh day, we were preparing ourselves for the worst. Ran hadn't left his side once. She was completely devastated, blaming herself for not watching him closely during the picnic.
You both remember that, right? You and your wife came to visit, and Fugaku too. We all thought it was time to say goodbye, but then out of nowhere, the fever just broke. One second it was there, the next it was gone—completely. It was so sudden we couldn't even process it. I even called Tsunade over to check him, and it wasn't cheap either."
Ieyasu let out a bitter laugh. "Haruki came out of it perfectly fine. There was just one weird thing—he didn't remember anything from that picnic until he woke up. Tsunade and the medical ninja said it was some kind of selective amnesia. They thought the experience was so painful that his mind just blocked it out as a self-defense mechanism."
He looked up and continued, "Honestly, Ran and I were just happy he was alive. And then something odd happened. As I started training him, his talent... it was frightening. So I decided to test him again. He had all five chakra natures. His spiritual strength was way above normal. His memory was practically photographic, and his chakra control was insane. He could walk on trees and water at an age when most kids can barely mold chakra."
"I discussed it with Ran, and we thought it must have been triggered by that strange fruit and the high fever. Maybe it just unlocked something in him. After that, he became so mature, almost like an adult in a kid's body. We just figured it was a blessing after a near tragedy."
Uchiha Nobunaga took a deep breath. "I remember that incident. I even asked the Third Hokage to have Koharu come to check on him. Haruki really was in bad shape. But I never imagined it would turn out like this. It seems that five-element chakra affinity is truly a unique case. Mei, let's just leave it at that. If Haruki doesn't remember, that's probably for the best. What do you think?"
Uchiha Mei, who had been listening quietly the whole time, nodded. He understood the clan leader's intentions. It was better to keep this matter under wraps.
He stood up and said, "I agree. I'll head back and start arranging their training. Oh, by the way, I invited Uchiha Ze and Uchiha Sa to assist with their special training. It'll be a week-long closed training session. I'll make sure everything is prepared."
After he finished speaking, Mei flashed a grin at Ieyasu, bowed respectfully to both men, and then turned to leave.