A new month arrived, and the Superpower Roulette refreshed once again.
[Eavesdropping Honest Little Gentleman]:You can overhear what others are thinking in their hearts—but you can only speak the truth from your own heart.
What kind of ability was this?
At first glance, it looked extremely useful, but that last restriction—being unable to lie—gave it an undeniably unpleasant edge.
Uchiha Yoichi immediately became wary. After using the Superpower Roulette for nearly a year, he had gained a solid understanding of how these random abilities worked.
The stronger the ability, the greater the price.
If one day the roulette refreshed an ability that could instantly kill an opponent, Yoichi suspected that after using it, he'd probably be left with just one last breath himself.
This newly refreshed ability was undeniably powerful. No matter how skilled someone was at lying, it was nearly impossible to deceive their own heart. If Yoichi could hear people's inner thoughts, then in front of him, almost no one would have secrets.
But at the same time, it meant that in front of others, he himself wouldn't be able to lie either.
After thinking it over, Yoichi decided it wasn't unbearable. If he couldn't lie, then he simply wouldn't speak much—at worst, he'd be mute for a month. As a Chunin, there was no way he couldn't endure something like that.
With that thought, Yoichi relaxed slightly, though he still remained cautious of the ability. Fortunately, he already planned to train alone this month anyway.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode.Swordsmanship.And attempting to stimulate the evolution of his Sharingan.
Thanks to the Konoha leadership's passive tolerance of rumors, Uchiha Yoichi effectively had no friends left—his social life had already been cut off.
And with the Third Shinobi World War approaching, the pressure on him was far from small.
With that in mind, Yoichi began his swordsmanship training.
When he left the Police Force earlier, Uchiha Mabayashi had given him several basic sword manuals, including chakra flow techniques and fundamental sword movements.
Mabayashi had even offered to introduce him to a skilled swordsman within the clan, but Yoichi had declined.
Uchiha-style swordsmanship mostly combined sword techniques with Fire Release or Wind Release. None of that suited him, so there was no need to learn it.
As for sword forms, there wasn't much worth learning anyway.
As long as you could control your weapon and kill your enemy, that was enough. Even sword forms themselves were often unnecessary. Ninja abilities were incredibly versatile—rigid attack patterns would only push one into a dead end.
Yoichi stared at the sword manuals for a long time before coming to a conclusion.
He only needed to master two things.
One was killing the enemy.The other was blocking attacks.
The former would naturally come with proficiency in using a ninja sword. What he truly needed to practice was the latter.
As for how to train—it was already clear in his mind.
————————————
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
When Uchiha Mabayashi arrived at the place where Uchiha Yoichi often trained, he immediately heard the sound. After seeing what was happening, he couldn't help but ask:
"Yoichi… are you using shuriken throwing techniques to practice swordsmanship?"
"Mabayashi-senpai, it's you."
Yoichi answered calmly.
"That's right. I want to train my reaction speed. Once I'm familiar with it, I'll have one more way to stay alive in real combat. The only downside is that training alone is a bit troublesome."
He first used shuriken throwing techniques to make the weapons ricochet back toward himself, then used a short blade to deflect them one by one—simulating an enemy attacking him with shuriken.
At the beginning, blocking was quite difficult. Yoichi had set a strict rule for himself: his feet must remain planted, and he had to block every attack using only the blade in his hand.
"I'm thinking of posting a commission—hiring a few ninja to continuously throw shuriken at me. That would save time."
Mabayashi asked,
"Why not ask clan members? When it comes to shuriken throwing, our people are the best."
"That's exactly why I'm looking for outsiders," Yoichi replied honestly."Mabayashi-senpai, I'm still a beginner. If I trained with fellow Uchiha, one mistake and I'd be heading straight to the hospital."
A single Uchiha could throw shuriken with the effect of two people. If two Uchiha trained together like this—standing still and blocking—his one-tomoe Sharingan simply wouldn't be enough. Lasting half an hour would already be pushing his limits.
Mabayashi nodded in understanding, then said,
"That makes sense. Yoichi, come to the clan assembly tomorrow as well. You know the location—Naka Shrine."
[Sigh… sorry about this, Yoichi. But you have to understand the clan head.]
As soon as Mabayashi finished speaking, Yoichi suddenly heard another sentence.
It was clearly Mabayashi's voice—but it echoed directly inside his head.
And the meaning of it made Yoichi realize that being summoned to the assembly had another purpose entirely.
"Mabayashi-senpai, why are you suddenly calling me to the clan assembly? Don't tell me the clan head wants me to make another sacrifice? Let me think… since I returned, the only thing that happened was that incident at the Hokage Building. Don't tell me the clan head plans to punish me over that?"
Yoichi wanted to test the waters and ask about the assembly—but his mouth suddenly felt out of control, blurting out exactly what he was thinking.
"If it's not that, then there's nothing else. Honestly, the clan head really is Konoha's loyal watchdog. Not even asking about the cause and already planning to sacrifice me? This is already the second time."
Yoichi immediately forced himself to shut up.
Even if he thought that way, saying it out loud was far too awkward!
"Yoichi, how can you speak about the clan head like that?"
Mabayashi said sternly.
"This is because the clan head sees that you're already close to having Jonin-level strength. He wants to cultivate you—that's why he asked me to notify you about the assembly."
[How did Yoichi figure it out? Was I too obvious just now? But what he said was far too excessive… The clan head wants him to apologize purely for the sake of the entire Uchiha clan. How can he not understand that at all?!]
"Mabayashi-senpai, let him figure it out on his own. I have things to do—I won't be attending the clan assembly."
Only now did Yoichi truly understand what "honesty" meant.
As long as he spoke voluntarily, whatever came out would be exactly what he was thinking. And even when answering questions, if he replied out of habit, the words that slipped out would still be the truth.
Since speaking was often instinctive, he'd need to find ways to control his mouth.
"Uchiha Yoichi, everything the clan head does is for the better development of the Uchiha clan!"
Mabayashi said angrily.
This time, Yoichi didn't hear any inner thoughts—apparently, what Mabayashi said aloud was exactly what he believed.
"Alright, alright, Mabayashi-senpai. I still need to train. If the clan head wants to hold a meeting, there's no need to drag me into it. I don't like his ideals anyway—don't try to persuade me."
With that, Uchiha Yoichi turned around and left.
He felt that if he stayed any longer, he might end up saying something he really shouldn't—like certain words involving the Uchiha clan's most infamous "filial son."