Naruto: How to Be an Undercover Shinobi

The sun was shining brightly, and Konohagakure was brimming with life.

Reiji returned, dust-covered and weary, with the three young ones in tow.

In the three years since they'd left, the village had grown to more than double its size, with a towering wall now enclosing its perimeter.

As Konoha gradually overlapped with his memories, Reiji stretched lazily.

"Alright, dismissed! Meet at the Hokage Building in three days to collect your mission reward!"

With that, he strolled into the village. Behind him, Tsunade quickly followed.

Watching their teacher and Sister Tsunade walk away, the three exchanged glances.

"Rie, where are you going?" Teuchi asked meekly.

To be honest, they had spent nearly every moment of the past three years together. Now, suddenly having to part ways, none of them wanted to.

Rie scratched her head helplessly as she glanced at her two teammates.

"Nowhere in particular. I'm planning to eat a huge meal, soak in a hot spring, then crash at a hot spring inn for a full day and night. I'm gonna sleep till I can't sleep anymore!"

At that, Teuchi's eyes lit up.

This! Is this what rich people live like?

Without hesitation, Teuchi shouted, "Rie, take me with you! I'll pay you back as soon as I get my reward!"

Hearing that, Rie nodded sagely and turned to look at Fugaku Uchiha.

Fugaku nodded coolly. "Count me in. I need to rinse my eyes."

"Aren't you going back to report to your clan?" Teuchi asked, curious.

Fugaku rolled his eyes and let out a huff.

"Can't you see these dark circles? If I go back, they'll just bombard me with questions—I'll lose it!"

Seeing this, Rie swung her arm forward, just like she had on so many mornings before.

"Let's go! First stop, barbecue restaurant!"

"Yeah!"

...

In a flash, three days passed. After collecting their rewards, the trio said their goodbyes and returned to their homes.

Uchiha Clan District, central courtyard.

Three elders sat at the head, their faces as dark as burnt pots. Beside them was the legendary Uchiha Clan Head.

Around them, Uchiha clan members stood packed in thick layers, surrounding the courtyard in a dense circle.

All eyes were fixed on the boy with the backpack at the center.

"Three years! I've never heard of such nonsense—taking three years to complete one mission! Why not make it a lifetime assignment while you're at it?!"

One elder slammed the table and shouted angrily.

"Exactly!" a younger elder immediately echoed.

"You didn't even push back! A mission like this is clearly unreasonable!"

And to be fair, they weren't wrong. Missions that dragged on for three years were almost unheard of, except for rare pursuit missions.

Even squads tasked with hunting rogue shinobi wouldn't stay away from the village that long.

"Seriously, what kind of brainwashing did your teacher use on you? Disappearing for three years without a word...

You clearly have no regard for the Uchiha Clan."

As soon as the Clan Head finished speaking, Fugaku, who had been silent until now, suddenly lifted his head, raised an eyebrow, and scoffed.

"No wonder Sensei said most of the Uchiha are hopeless.

At first, I didn't believe him—I even talked back and got beaten several times for it!

But now I get it. You really don't know anything.

So what if it was a three-year mission? Better that than rotting away in this village doing nothing. What a bore!"

"Enough!" a loud voice cut him off. The Uchiha Clan Head stood up, full of fury.

If he let this brat keep spouting off, how would he maintain control of the clan?

"Fugaku Uchiha! Have you forgotten your surname? Is that how you speak to your Clan Head?!"

One of the elders snapped from the side.

A wave of murmurs and chatter rippled through the crowd.

"This kid used to be pretty decent, but he came back a completely different person."

"Yeah, must've been corrupted by that Reiji guy."

"I say it's the village higher-ups who are up to no good!"

"Wouldn't be surprising—it's been building up for a while now!"

The voices of accusation grew louder. Fugaku swept his gaze across the crowd with disdain and sneered.

"I'm speaking my mind—got a problem with that? Clan Head? Who gave you that title, Lord Madara?"

"You little brat!"

The Uchiha Clan Head's eyes bulged in fury as he roared and charged at Fugaku.

Fugaku's grin slowly faded. He closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, the three tomoe in his Sharingan had merged into a mesmerizing pattern.

"Susanoo."

With a low command, a dark blue skeletal frame surged upward, enveloping his body. The massive arm of the skeletal construct swung forward and, in an instant, sent the stunned Clan Head flying.

"What... what is this?!"

"This kind of power—who did you kill to awaken it?!"

An uproar broke out.

Fugaku frowned at the elders, who stood frozen in shock, and let out a long sigh.

"Do you have any idea what these past three years were like for me?"

The noise gradually died down. The crowd fell silent, eyes fixed on the young figure standing in the center.

"Three years ago, when I told Reiji-sensei I wanted to get stronger, that was the start of the nightmare.

Every single day, I got no more than six hours of sleep. Sounds like a decent amount, right? But that's assuming you actually get six full hours.

Me? I never made it past one. Sensei would wake me up—by shouting, by hitting me, sometimes dumping water on me.

Then it was straight to chakra extraction, hand seal practice, or just getting beaten again.

Do you have any idea what that feels like? That bone-deep exhaustion? That rage, that frustration, the kind that makes your body tremble, makes you want to tear the world apart?

When my parents died on the battlefield, I thought my world collapsed. But sleep deprivation? That made me want to bring the whole damn sky down with me.

And that was just nighttime.

During the day, we fought Kusa ninja in kill-or-be-killed battles. One wrong move, and we were dead.

Rie's arm got chopped off three times. Teuchi didn't have a single uninjured spot on him. I was the youngest—I took the least damage.

But even I nearly died at least five times."

As he spoke, Fugaku dispersed his Susanoo and yanked open his collar.

His chest was riddled with scars, and one jagged wound ran dangerously close to his heart.

The entire courtyard gasped in unison.

"But we were lucky—Sister Tsunade healed us. And every time we were on the brink of death, Sensei showed up just in time.

Do I hate him? I did, at first. But not anymore.

If you have a dream, you have to work ten, a hundred times harder than people who don't. We're still alive—we're still chasing our dreams. That's a gift."

Fugaku sat down cross-legged, just like Reiji often did, and adjusted his clothes.

"Rie's dream is to eliminate every evil person in the world.

Teuchi wants to open a ramen shop, and when danger comes to the village, be strong enough to stand and protect it.

My dream... used to be reviving the Uchiha Clan. But now I see how wrong I was.

Are these eyes really our clan's greatest pride? I don't know. I think it should be love. The will to protect those we care about.

Sensei once said, people are selfish creatures. But it's reason and emotion that make us human.

Everyone needs an anchor. Without one, you'll drift until you disappear.

I don't fully understand it, honestly.

Maybe I'm just too simple-minded. But what I want to ask is—why can't we love the village the way we love our clan?

When danger strikes, our clan shields our backs. But don't our comrades in the village do the same?"

At that, Fugaku let out a self-mocking chuckle.

"Maybe Sensei's right. Maybe I really do need to become as strong as Uchiha Madara to change the fate of our clan."