(Brain storage ~ If you find your brain isn't enough halfway through, please be sure to come back and retrieve it ~)
"Mitsuki, remember to be on time for tonight's Clan meeting. This is the most important Clan meeting in the Uchiha's history, concerning the survival of the Uchiha."
"Understood, eight o'clock, right? I'll go to Nanga Shrine for the Clan meeting then."
After notifying Mitsuki, Uchiha Inaho turned and left, continuing to inform others who were eligible to attend tonight's Clan meeting.
Only Ninja of Special Jonin rank and above could attend the Uchiha Clan meetings. They were convened whenever important matters needed to be discussed within the Clan, to decide the Clan's choices and future direction.
Closing the reddish-brown door, he returned to the courtyard, watching the two goldfish swimming in the stone pond, free from the worries of life-and-death crises and schemes of the outside world.
As time passed, his parents successively died in the Third Shinobi World War.
Only Mitsuki, who was merely 5 years old at the time, was left behind.
Eleven years have passed, and now, Mitsuki's only companion is the ancient tree in the courtyard.
It was already September, the weather slightly cool, with gusts of evening breeze rustling through the treetops. Under the sunset, the leaves appeared even more withered and yellow. This sturdy old tree had been in Mitsuki's memory since his childhood.
Mitsuki walked to the dark brown recliner, lay down, and rested under the tree, quietly waiting for the evening Clan meeting, while recalling past memories.
On the day Mitsuki was born, when he opened his eyes and saw his tender hands, Mitsuki knew that he had transmigrated. The man and woman before him were likely his parents in this life.
"On the eve of the Uchiha Clan's extermination, the host successfully transmigrated into Uchiha Mitsuki, a member participating in the Clan meeting."
"System activating..."
"Timeline error @#&..."
"Activation failed. Will attempt to reactivate once the timeline is repaired..."
Mitsuki, who had just transmigrated, was also broken by this system. Could it be a second-hand one?
Over the years, relying on his experience and his parents' decent Ninja talent, the now 16-year-old Mitsuki had already awakened his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, becoming a standard well-rounded Uchiha Jonin.
He had also somewhat reined in his true nature and got along well with the Clan members.
In his previous life, he lived alone until he was 70. As for why he was alone, it was mainly because although he was handsome when he was young, during arguments between couples, the woman could never win against him, and he never wanted to give in on that front, so no girl could tolerate it.
This led to him having 9 relationships thanks to his handsome appearance, but all ended in breakups because his straightforward way of speaking was unacceptable to his girlfriends.
After retirement, he lived well on his corporate and national pensions. But with the rise of the internet, Mitsuki, then in his sixties, resolutely entered the internet industry based on his experience and became a streamer.
His unique way of speaking was liked by many young people in the new era. He originally thought he could quietly be a small Bilibili streamer and live out his golden years.
However, in 2020, an accidental cold shattered his plan to steadily become the first centenarian streamer, and he died prematurely at the age of 70.
The sunset slowly disappeared on the horizon as the full moon rose.
Opening his eyes, he looked at the risen moon; it was almost time.
Returning indoors, he changed into a brand-new, specially made combat uniform and Ninja blade.
Standing in front of the mirror, he examined the custom-made battle suit and the weapon at his waist.
The uniform was deep blue waterproof cloth, with slightly wide sleeves for concealing Ninja tools. On the back was the iconic red and white uchiha war fan. The fabric of the combat uniform was specially made from silk produced by a type of insect Ninja beast, possessing extremely high resistance to Chakra.
A white cloth at his waist held the Ninja blade he had custom-ordered from the Hatake blacksmith. It resembled a Miao Dao, with a 30cm hilt wrapped in black cloth and also adorned with the uchiha war fan symbol. The blade itself was 90cm long, forged entirely from Chakra metal, with a dark, almost black finish, and its Chakra conductivity loss was virtually zero.
Even the scabbard was made from medicinal wood of the Nara Clan, which prevented the blade from oxidizing. Because of this, Nara Shikaku had even complained, "Rich people have such strange ideas." Although regular maintenance could achieve the same, Mitsuki simply didn't want to spend time on such trivial matters.
This entire set of equipment, along with various Ninja tools, had almost depleted Mitsuki's accumulated wealth.
However, Mitsuki didn't feel bad, after all, good steel is used on the blade, and a person is judged by their clothes, just as a horse is judged by its saddle.
His height of 1.85 meters, combined with his well-defined, robust physique, the standard handsome Uchiha face, and the spiky long hair at the back, this wasn't just handsome, this was devastatingly handsome!
Mitsuki had made all these preparations to welcome tonight, to activate the system.
Sixteen years! Do you know how I've lived these sixteen years?! Without strong power to support him, Mitsuki couldn't even speak freely, fearing offending someone and being targeted.
Although this led to Mitsuki being pursued by many female classmates during his time at the Ninja Academy, and even though Mitsuki himself enjoyed it, experiencing a joy he hadn't had in his previous life, he still had to admit that not being able to expose his true nature was truly unbearable!!!
As long as the system activated during tonight's Clan meeting, his future strength would surely skyrocket.
Then, he could finally take off the mask he had worn on his face for sixteen years! He could be a bright, cheerful boy who was true to himself, inside and out!
Mitsuki moved quickly across the rooftops, heading towards Nanga Shrine.
The Shrine's architecture had lost its former splendor due to the wear of time, and so had the Uchiha. Ever since the night of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's Attack, they had been barely surviving under the Village's oppression, even being forced to relocate their entire Clan to the Village's outskirts.
Lifting a floorboard in the Shrine, Mitsuki arrived at the secret location where the Clan meeting was being held.
Inside the meeting room, candles lined the surrounding walls. Clan members who had arrived early sat on the floor, awaiting the arrival of their fellow kin.
Everyone was silent. Under the light emitted by the orange-yellow candlelight, looking from the back of the meeting, the shadows on the ground appeared even darker, and the atmosphere felt even more somber.
Mitsuki entered the Clan meeting by descending the stairs from the entrance.
He was about to walk to his seat in the middle.
"Uchiha Madara!!! How are you here?!"
Elder Setsuna immediately jumped to his feet, his eyes filled with wariness and terror. The man he had once betrayed had left an indelible mark on his heart, like a god.
"Who?!"
"Where?"
The rest of the younger Clan members were bewildered, as the name Uchiha Madara was a taboo existence in the Village, known only to the elderly who had lived through that era and a very small number of Jonin.
Mitsuki was also startled by the shout, turning around with a look of confusion.
Elder Setsuna saw Mitsuki's full face and realized he had been mistaken; it was just that his figure and attire were too similar.
From behind, only the Ninja blade at his waist was different from Uchiha Madara's. Madara's back bore the Uchiha Clan's ancestral divine weapon, the uchiha war fan, but it had been taken away with Madara's defection.
"Uchiha Mitsuki! How can you be dressed like that?!"
Uchiha Setsuna pointed an accusing finger at Mitsuki.
"Is there something wrong with the combat uniform I'm wearing?"
Mitsuki's expression was amiable as he looked at him.
The young Ninja sitting below also didn't understand; this combat uniform was so cool, it made them want to get one custom-made too. Elder Setsuna's aesthetic, well, could only be described as unique.
Facing Mitsuki's retort, Setsuna found it hard to answer. He couldn't very well say he had been scared witless by Mitsuki's back, could he?
"Hmph! Never mind, it's nothing."
He turned his head away, not wanting to see Mitsuki.
Mitsuki walked to his seat.
"Time correct, location correct, event correct. Breakpoint system activated."
"By making the opponent break, you gain their talent. Choose whether to copy."
Mitsuki sat on the cushion, a slight smile playing on his lips, making him look even more benevolent!
Mitsuki mused inwardly, "Uchiha Setsuna, huh? I wonder what notable talents you possess..."