“Th-The winner is…
Ryuha Uchiha!”
The proctor’s voice trembled slightly.
He swallowed hard before managing to announce the outcome.
With that proclamation, the long-suppressed tension in the stands instantly detonated.
“Is this a joke?
Setsuna actually lost?”
“What kind of sorcery did Ryuha Uchiha use?
Was Setsuna fighting a ghost just now?”
“No hand seals, no eye contact, he barely even moved…
Is this still the dead-last we knew?”
Countless gazes locked onto Ryuha Uchiha.
There was shock, wariness, and curiosity, but most prominent of all was the scrutiny and suspicion coming from the Uchiha Clan members.
In a clan that worshipped raw power, the sudden emergence of a clansman wielding an unknown and bizarre ability was not merely a pleasant surprise—it was a threat.
Ryuha remained completely indifferent to the commotion.
In his mind, a crisp system notification chimed:
[Ding!
Novice Quest Complete!]
[Evaluation: S-Rank (Flawless domination, inflicting a massive cognitive discrepancy).]
[Rewards Issued: Maximum Spiritual Pressure increased by 100%, Zanpakuto · Kyoka Suigetsu synchronization increased to 10%.]
[Acquired Karma Points: 100 (Can be used for System Mall exchanges or card draws).]
A warm current instantly coursed through his entire body, and Ryuha felt his internal strength elevate to a whole new level.
His previously depleted chakra—or rather, Spiritual Pressure—welled up so abundantly that it felt ready to overflow.
*So this is Spiritual Pressure?*
Compared to chakra, it was heavier, denser, and far more imposing.
In short, it was exceptionally well-suited for projecting an air of absolute dominance.
Just as he turned to leave the arena, a stern, authoritative voice rang out.
“Hold on.”
From the stands, a figure blurred forward in a Body Flicker and blocked Ryuha’s path.
It was a middle-aged man with a stern visage, deep nasolabial folds, and the distinct scent of blood that only a battle-hardened Jonin possessed.
Yashiro Uchiha—a squad captain in the Military Police Force and a prominent figure among the clan’s radical faction.
“Ryuha Uchiha.”
Yashiro looked down at Ryuha from above, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in his eyes slowly spinning as he attempted to exert mental pressure on this branch-family youth.
“What was that technique you just used on Setsuna?”
His tone was less of an inquiry and more of an interrogation.
“No hand seals, evading the insight of the Sharingan, driving Setsuna into madness…
That was certainly no ordinary Genjutsu.
The clan’s records contain no mention of such a Ninjutsu.”
The surrounding air instantly froze.
Everyone could hear the hostility in Yashiro’s words.
The Uchiha Clan possessed a near-pathological desire to control power; they would never tolerate an uncontrollable anomaly rising within their ranks.
Ryuha halted and looked up at Yashiro.
Facing the oppressive weight of the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he did not shrink back in the slightest.
Instead, his eyes narrowed slightly behind his lenses.
“Yashiro-sama, that was an ‘original Ninjutsu’ of mine,” Ryuha lied smoothly with a gentle smile, his face not betraying a hint of guilt.
“I call it…
‘Complete Hypnosis.'”
“An original Ninjutsu?” Yashiro scoffed.
“A dead-last who couldn’t even cast the Great Fireball Jutsu can invent a Ninjutsu of this caliber?
Hand over the ninja tools on your person for inspection!
I suspect you used some form of illicit poison or a cursed seal!”
With that, Yashiro reached out, grasping directly for the Kyoka Suigetsu at Ryuha’s waist.
In his eyes, Ryuha Uchiha was merely a brat who had gotten lucky.
Faced with the authority of the Military Police Force, the boy had no choice but to submit.
However…
The moment his fingers were about to graze the hilt.
*Smack.*
A fair, slender hand lightly clamped down on Yashiro’s calloused wrist.
Yashiro froze.
He was a Jonin!
Even a casual grab from him was not something a newly graduated Genin should have been able to react to!
What shocked him even more was the staggering force radiating from that seemingly delicate palm.
It clamped around his wrist like an iron vise, leaving him utterly unable to budge.
“Yashiro-sama.”
The smile on Ryuha’s face remained gentle, yet deep within those dark brown eyes, a terrifying, bone-chilling glint surfaced.
At that moment, he no longer suppressed his Spiritual Pressure, allowing a mere sliver of it to leak out.
It was only a fraction, yet it carried an oppressive, higher-dimensional weight that struck straight at the soul.
*Boom!*
Yashiro’s vision blurred, and for a fleeting instant, he felt as though an immense, world-striding deity was gazing down upon him.
The suffocating terror nearly caused his heart to stop.
“Who permitted you to touch my blade?”
Ryuha’s voice was soft, yet it resonated with absolute clarity in the ears of everyone present.
“You…” Cold sweat instantly beaded on Yashiro’s forehead.
His instincts screamed at him to retreat, yet he found himself pinned in place, rendered completely immobile by the sheer weight of the boy’s presence.
“Stop!”
Just as the confrontation was about to escalate, a low shout cut through the tension.
Fugaku Uchiha appeared between the two in a flicker of movement.
As clan leader, he could not permit his clansmen to engage in public infighting, nor could he allow outsiders to watch them make fools of themselves.
“Yashiro, stand down.”
“Laying hands on a newly graduated clansman—what kind of conduct is this?” Fugaku said in a heavy voice.
Feeling as though he had been granted an amnesty, Yashiro hastily pulled back his hand.
He cast an unsettled, suspicious glance at Ryuha, then gritted his teeth and retreated behind Fugaku.
Fugaku turned around, his deep, brooding eyes regarding Ryuha intently.
The burst of chakra from an instant ago…
that cold, dark, yet vast and boundless sensation had sent a shiver through even him.
Had this youth, who had always lingered on the clan’s fringes, hidden his strength so deeply?
“Ryuha.” Fugaku’s tone softened slightly, carrying a hint of solicitation.
“Since you have graduated, report to the Military Police Force tomorrow.
The clan has need of talent like yours.”
This was both an acknowledgment and a means of surveillance.
Naturally, Ryuha understood this well.
He released his grip, pushed up his glasses, and returned to his harmless, scholarly demeanor.
“It would be my honor, Clan Leader.”
He bowed slightly, then turned around.
Under the complex, heavy gazes of the entire crowd, he unhurriedly walked out of the examination arena.
The lingering rays of the setting sun cast a long shadow behind him.
Once past the academy gates, the smile on Ryuha’s lips gradually faded.
He glanced back at the Hokage Rock, then turned his gaze toward the Uchiha clan grounds.
“The Military Police Force, is it?…
That works too.”
“If I am to find a stage in this world of shinobi, taking control of the Uchiha Clan is as good a place to start as any.”
He gently stroked the Kyoka Suigetsu at his waist.
“After all, admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding…
Wouldn’t you agree, people of Konoha?”
Meanwhile, in the shade of a large tree opposite the Ninja Academy…
A masked Anbu operative was furiously recording notes onto a scroll.
A moment later, the operative dissolved into a black streak, racing at full speed toward the Hokage Residence.
[Intelligence Level: S.] [Target: Ryuha Uchiha.] [Characteristics: Suspected awakening of an unknown Kekkei Genkai; extremely dangerous.]