Naruto: Uchiha Madara's Cousin

"Ding! The system has detected the host encountering a plot character. Mission issued."

"Mission Activated: Defeat Uzumaki Mito, who dreams of being a heroine, and make her understand the dangers of the world and the treachery of human hearts. Reward: 10 points, 1 random orb. If the host is defeated, the mission will be considered a failure."

The young girl in front of him had a cute, round face with fair skin, bright eyes, and cherry-like lips. Her fiery red hair was tied into two playful buns, making her look lively and adorable.

Uchiha Gin was momentarily stunned by her appearance.

She showed her small, sharp canine teeth like a baby beast, her large eyes filled with dissatisfaction, looking like an angry kitten.

Feeling underestimated, Uzumaki Mito was about to say something harsh, but she hadn't finished chewing the pancake in her mouth.

As the girl opened her mouth, air rushed in, forcing the unchewed food into her small esophagus, choking her.

Her little hands quickly abandoned the food and pounded her chest in an attempt to swallow the stuck food.

Seeing the girl struggling and thumping her chest, Uchiha Gin sighed, took out his water flask from his backpack, opened it, and handed it over.

The girl, almost rolling her eyes from being choked, grabbed the flask like it was a lifeline and gulped it down.

A series of gulping sounds followed.

The girl, as if surviving a disaster, looked at the flask and was about to thank her savior.

However, when she raised her head and saw Uchiha Gin smiling kindly, she screamed and jumped a few meters away, her face full of suspicion.

"Is this how you treat your savior?" Uchiha Gin squinted his eyes, a teasing smile on his face.

"Though I do thank you, you should surrender now, kind-hearted trafficker." The girl frowned slightly, thinking for a moment before speaking.

"Trafficker? You mean this little brat?" Uchiha Gin lifted the unconscious Senju Itama.

"I could release him, but you'll have to defeat me first."

To complete the mission, Uchiha Gin was ready to fight the cute little girl.

Uzumaki Mito showed a face of realization upon hearing his words.

She set down her enormous backpack, stretched her delicate arms and legs, and struck a cute fighting pose, saying seriously, "Please, advise me!"

Uchiha Gin kicked the unconscious Senju Itama aside, sending him rolling far away.

The still-unconscious kid let out a weird "aaah" sound as he was kicked.

"Bring it on," Uchiha Gin said with a challenging wave of his hand. "I won't even need my blade to deal with you."

The disrespect in Uchiha Gin's actions made Uzumaki Mito furious, a flame of anger rising behind her.

With a powerful push of her legs, she shot forward like a cannonball, making Uchiha Gin's eyelid twitch at her speed.

"Take this punch!" she yelled, her fist flying toward him. Caught off guard, Uchiha Gin crossed his arms, preparing to take the blow head-on.

The impact made his arms tingle, and he flipped backward in midair before barely landing on his feet.

Shaking his slightly trembling arms, Uchiha Gin was shocked, "No wonder she's the future Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails. Such strength at such a young age."

Uzumaki Mito, surprised by her own punch, looked at her small fists in disbelief.

This man had taken her punch and only stepped back a little. She had awakened a rare talent for super strength at the age of five, and most Chunin couldn't withstand her full force. Realizing she had underestimated him, the fighting spirit in her eyes ignited.

"Again!" she cried, channeling chakra into her fists.

Suddenly, her small, delicate hands glowed with a faint blue light. Seeing those tiny fists, Uchiha Gin felt his scalp tingle.

This was Tsunade's monster strength!

Imagining the consequences of being hit by those small fists, his heart sank.

He had thought he could overpower her easily, but now realized he was in deep trouble.

As the girl charged again, Uchiha Gin backed away, activating his newly awakened Sharingan.

With just one tomoe, the Sharingan granted him enhanced perception, allowing him to barely keep up with her movements and avoid her attacks.

The swirling tomoe let him slowly adapt to her speed, predicting her next move as she raised her fists.

"These cheating eyes… No wonder people covet them," Uchiha Gin thought as he dodged another punch.

As her graceful arm brushed past his face, Uchiha Gin began to consider how to counterattack.

He couldn't bring himself to draw a blade against a child—not because he was soft-hearted, but because the little girl, now panting from exhaustion, had never really tried to kill him.

"I'll have to outsmart her."

With a subtle movement of his wrist, a thin transparent wire was flicked toward his sword, which lay stuck in the ground nearby.

As Uzumaki Mito continued throwing her chaotic punches, Uchiha Gin purposefully circled her, leading her around in circles.

Unaware of being led by the nose, the girl continued her futile attacks.

The Uzumaki clan's bloodline gave her incredible vitality, much like the Senju, making her excellent at prolonged battles.

"You slippery eel! Are you a coward? Fight me head-on like a man!" Uzumaki Mito shouted in frustration, having missed again and again.

"Alright," Uchiha Gin suddenly stopped and nodded, seemingly seriously.

"Here I come!"

Seizing the opportunity, Uzumaki Mito gathered strength in her fists and stepped forward.

At the same moment, Uchiha Gin jerked his wrist, and a transparent wire coiled around the girl, tangling her in an instant.

Caught off guard, Uzumaki Mito struggled violently but quickly realized that the more she fought, the tighter the wires became.

"I'd stop struggling if I were you. These wires will only tighten the more you resist, and your thin clothing might get cut." Uchiha Gin's voice was calm as a tearing sound echoed.

Several small cuts appeared on her clothes, exposing her smooth white skin beneath, which was already marked by red lines from the wires.

Her pale skin, contrasted by the red marks, made the girl's face flush with embarrassment.

She stopped struggling, tears welling up in her eyes, looking pitiful and fragile, a stark contrast to the fierce fighter she had been moments before.

"You despicable guy, let me go!" she cried, her voice trembling.

"Then surrender."

Despite the pitiful sight of the girl, Uchiha Gin remained unfazed.

Of course, if she were seven or eight years older, it might have been harder to stay composed.

"You'll let me go if I surrender?" Uzumaki Mito asked, still tearful, clearly not trusting him.

"I swear on the honor of the Uchiha ancestors!" Uchiha Gin declared solemnly.

(A few days ago, in the midst of sparring with a bowl-cut boy, a spiky-haired figure suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

"Madara, are you alright?" the bowl-cut boy asked with concern.)

Seeing how serious Uchiha Gin seemed, the girl had no choice but to relent.

"I surrender!"

"Ding! Host has defeated Uzumaki Mito. Mission complete. Reward: +10 points, 1 Blue Orb."

Tears of joy almost flowed from Uchiha Gin's eyes.

After all this time since his transmigration, he had finally completed a mission. He eagerly checked out his rewards.

As he reopened the system, Uchiha Gin noticed that the previously empty space in his mind had been replaced by a chessboard-like platform.

He now had a physical form within this space and, following the guide, stepped onto the chessboard, where his mission rewards were displayed. A treasure chest labeled "Heart of Steel" sat on the left side, with a set of numbers rolling above it.

"Host has successfully accumulated 14 Heart Energy. 'Heart of Steel' treasure chest reward unlocked. (Current Heart Energy: 14)."

With the delayed notification, Uchiha Gin saw the numbers above the chest stop at 14.

1 + 10 - 10 + 12 + 1 = 14

Due to a glitch punishment, the accumulated Heart Energy had dropped to just 14 layers.

With a powerful click, Uchiha Gin opened the chest. The familiar, hypnotic sound of background music played, and two brightly colored orbs with the "Heart of Steel" logo tumbled out.

Nervously, Uchiha Gin clicked one of the orbs, and with a flash of light, a gold bar appeared in his hand.

[Gold Brick x1] Universal currency. Can be used for real-world transactions.

"Wait, it actually gives money?" Uchiha Gin was shocked as he weighed the hefty gold bar in his hand. This much gold could cause quite a stir. Eyes gleaming with excitement, he quickly looked at the second orb.

"Could it be more gold?" he wondered.

With that, he clicked the second orb.

[Uzumaki Clan Physique x1] Grants the host a small portion of Uzumaki bloodline, slightly boosting attributes.

The second orb had granted him bloodline power.

Seeing the word "Uzumaki," Uchiha Gin couldn't help but feel excited.

Many key characters in the series were descendants of the Uzumaki clan.

Nagato, the hidden leader of the Akatsuki, relied on his Uzumaki bloodline to sustain Madara's Rinnegan, first defeating the Toad Sage and then leveling Konoha with a single move.

Without a doubt, he was one of the top-tier fighters during the mid-story phase.

Not to mention the prince himself—Naruto—even without the Nine Tails, he's a chakra powerhouse with top-tier stamina and recovery.

"Attributes?"

Though the bloodline was tempting, that attribute also piqued his curiosity. Following the usual system trope from his previous life memories, Uchiha Gin tried to summon the attribute panel.

As soon as he spoke, a glowing screen appeared over the chessboard, and sure enough, Uchiha Gin's avatar was listed.

It really exists!

Host: Uchiha Gin

Ninjutsu: 5

Taijutsu: 4

Intelligence: 9

Stamina: 3

Charm: 1

Dojutsu: 5

Skills: Basic Taijutsu, Fireball Jutsu, Uchiha Basic Sword Technique, Intermediate Shurikenjutsu.

Overall Evaluation: A somewhat clever but punchable Uchiha Genin with a single-tomoe Sharingan.

"??? What do you mean by punchable? And why is my charm only 1?"

Uchiha Gin was so angry his dead-fish eyes almost rolled back.

Next, Uchiha Gin clicked to activate the Uzumaki Clan's constitution. Instantly, a warm current spread from his heart to his entire body. The previously slow drip of chakra turned into a rushing stream, and the warmth of the chakra made him feel comfortable all over, with boundless energy coursing through him.

After feeling this transformation, Uchiha Gin remembered the attribute panel promised a slight increase, so he checked his stats again:

Host: Uchiha Gin

Ninjutsu: 7

Taijutsu: 8

Intelligence: 9

Stamina: 6

Charm: 1

Dojutsu: 5

Skills: Basic Taijutsu, Fireball Jutsu, Uchiha Basic Sword Technique, Intermediate Shurikenjutsu.

Overall Evaluation: A somewhat clever but punchable Uchiha Chunin with a single-tomoe Sharingan.

The Uzumaki Clan's bloodline mainly increased Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Stamina. Both Taijutsu and Stamina doubled, which should correspond to his physical constitution and chakra.

After studying his attributes, Uchiha Gin noticed a strange device on the right side of the chessboard.

It resembled the arcade machines he used to play in his past life. He tried clicking the power button, and as the screen lit up, a big "10" appeared, followed by a message:

[Shop Arcade Machine. Accumulate points to unlock big prizes.]

Beyond that, there were no further instructions. After fiddling with it without results, Uchiha Gin temporarily gave up and curiously asked the system,

"Why did so many things appear this time?"

"Because the host completed a prerequisite task. System loading: +10%."

"This isn't the system's full display?"

Staring at the now lavish system space, Uchiha Gin asked in disbelief.

"The system is still loading. I cannot answer at this time."

It seemed like this system still had many locked functions, boosting Uchiha Gin's confidence in surviving until Konoha's founding.

"Maybe I can even survive until Boruto's timeline."

Uchiha Gin began to daydream.

"Hey, hey, you said you'd let me go! You can't go back on your word!"

Just after Uzumaki Mito admitted defeat, she saw Uchiha Gin daydreaming and couldn't help but shout.

As soon as she finished speaking, Uchiha Gin snapped back to reality. Though he'd spent a lot of time in the system, only an instant had passed outside.

"Alright, alright, I'll untie you now."

Uchiha Gin, who had gained so much, looked at the person responsible for his windfall, grinning ear to ear.

"Ew, why do you look so creepy when you smile?"

Uzumaki Mito cringed at Uchiha Gin's grin, twisting awkwardly.

The threads binding her couldn't be cut by ordinary tools; you had to find the end to undo them. Uchiha Gin didn't hesitate and started feeling around her body.

Of course, as a gentleman, Uchiha Gin was focused purely on finding the thread end with no ill intentions.

However, as his familiar-feeling hands brushed across her back, Uzumaki Mito's small body began to tremble uncontrollably.

"What, do you need to use the bathroom? Hold on a sec, I'm almost there."

Completely misunderstanding, Uchiha Gin hurried his efforts.

"Why do I feel something familiar from this guy?"

Uzumaki Mito, being touched all over, began overthinking things. But she wasn't wrong—Uchiha Gin had just fused with the Uzumaki Clan's bloodline, so the shared blood naturally created an innate connection.

Just as Uchiha Gin was looking for the thread end, the amulet on Uzumaki Mito's chest caught his attention. The grim-faced design piqued his curiosity, and he asked,

"That's a pretty unique charm you've got there."

Still in a daze, Uzumaki Mito absentmindedly explained,

"This is my father's concealment talisman. It contains a sealing technique that hides my chakra. I used it to escape my clan's search when I ran away."

"Impressive. As expected from the Uzumaki Clan," Uchiha Gin sincerely praised.

"It's not as great as you think!"

"Ah, finally found it!"

After searching for a while, Uchiha Gin finally found the thread end at Uzumaki Mito's waist and reached out to grab it.

"Beast! What are you trying to do?"

A voice roared, and a red-glowing figure descended from the sky.