The 46th Year of Konoha.
Somewhere in the Land of Fire, on the road leading to the Hidden Leaf Village...
An oxcart creaked along a dusty trail. Inside it, a handsome young man with messy black hair groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. His head throbbed painfully.
"Hiss... my head… Where am I?"
Leo opened his eyes to see the back of a silver-haired child sitting at the front of the cart, holding the reins. The boy turned slightly, sensing movement behind him.
"You're finally awake. I thought you might not make it to the village," the child said in a flat, emotionless tone.
Leo squinted, blinking as he tried to sit up. His eyes widened the moment he saw the masked face. "You… you're Kakashi?"
Before he could say anything else, a sharp pain shot through his skull. He gritted his teeth and collapsed back onto the cart, clutching his head.
"Hey! Why are you lying down again?" Kakashi said, alarmed. He immediately pulled the cart to a stop and leapt to Leo's side.
At that moment, a strange voice echoed in Leo's mind.
> [Ding~ Host consciousness detected. Entry Extraction System charged. Welcome, user.]
Leo froze. "A system? Did I transmigrate?"
Suddenly, a flood of information surged into his mind. After a few moments, Leo understood everything.
His name was now Uchiha Leo. In his previous life, he had lived a miserable, laborious existence. A mudslide had ended his life. Just before death, he had been tricked by something called the "Entry Extraction System."
Now, reincarnated into the world of Naruto, he had been given a second chance—this time, as a member of the Uchiha clan.
He was currently twelve years old. Orphaned. A Genin.
Before awakening his past memories, he had lived as a completely average Uchiha. His talents were uninspiring, even by civilian standards. In a clan like the Uchiha—renowned for their natural talent—he was nothing more than a background character.
Like Obito before awakening his Sharingan, Leo had been placed into a mediocre three-man Genin squad. And now, after a failed mission, he was the only surviving member—aside from the team's temporary leader, Kakashi Hatake.
"All my teammates are dead. Only Kakashi and I survived... This must have been that tragic mission the anime hinted at."
Leo let out a long breath.
"Well, it's the 46th year of Konoha, which means I have roughly two years until the Third Great Ninja War. That's enough time to make something of myself."
He closed his eyes briefly, allowing his mind to process everything. One thought stood out above the rest:
> The Entry Extraction System
It allowed him to extract special "entries" from others through direct contact. Each person could only provide one entry, but it could be of any rarity. The system divided entries into six levels: White, Green, Blue, Purple, Gold, and Red—Red being the most powerful.
Right now, Leo was at rock bottom. His current system panel looked like this:
> Host: Uchiha Leo
Gender: Male
Age: 12
Strength: Genin
Entries: [Uchiha (White)], [Fire Style (White)], [Wind Style (White)], [Uchiha Style (White)], [Yin Style (White)]
Leo looked at the panel and winced. "Tch... Is this what they call a Wu Bai Jushi? Five entries, all white rank... pathetic."
Still, there was hope.
"If the system allows me to extract entries through contact... I can turn things around."
Of course, each person could only give him one entry. He had to choose wisely. Still, that was a small limitation compared to the power of the ability itself.
"I can level up these entries using combat value later... but right now, let's test the extraction function."
Leo didn't waste time. He groaned again, raising a hand to his forehead in a dramatic display of weakness. Slowly, he sat up and looked toward Kakashi.
"Kakashi... can I get some water?"
Kakashi blinked, then knelt down beside the cart and pulled a water bottle from his ninja pouch.
As Leo reached out to accept the bottle, his fingers brushed against Kakashi's.
Suddenly, his vision lit up with color.
A cascade of entries burst into view—white, green, blue, even purple and gold. The only rank missing was red.
> As expected of Kakashi... He's not even a Chūnin yet and already has entries at every level!
Leo's heart raced. He had to choose. He couldn't waste this chance.
His eyes locked on the golden glow. Without hesitation, he gave the command in his mind.
> System, extract!
In that instant, the golden light was absorbed into Leo's system.
Pretending to sip the water calmly, Leo opened his system panel again. A new entry appeared:
> [Genius (Gold)] — Drastically enhances comprehension, creativity, and adaptive ability across all ninja disciplines.
Leo's heart nearly leapt out of his chest.
"Comprehension means faster learning. Creativity... well, Kakashi's nicknamed the Copy Ninja for a reason. And adaptive ability? That's exactly what saved him again and again throughout the war arc."
"This... This entry is insane. It's the perfect starting boost."
He whispered in his heart, "System, install the Genius entry."
> [Buzz~ Genius (Gold) installed.]
The effect was immediate.
Leo felt clarity wash over him. His chakra control improved dramatically. The techniques passed down by his parents—Shurikenjutsu, Genjutsu, basic ninjutsu—suddenly made sense. Movements he'd struggled with now felt natural. Concepts that once seemed out of reach were now within his grasp.
Even his reflexes and awareness improved noticeably. His thoughts were sharper. Quicker.
> This is what it feels like to be a genius...
For the first time in this life, Leo could feel the difference. He wasn't struggling to keep up anymore—he was rising above.
"Now," he muttered to himself, "I need resources."
Despite his talent, Leo knew the village wouldn't waste resources on him. Unlike Obito, he wasn't blindly loyal to Konoha or its ideology. The Will of Fire meant nothing to him.
> The Uchiha clan... that's where I'll get what I need.
He'd have to play smart. The clan only invested in true geniuses. With his newly gained gold-ranked entry, Leo was confident he could pass as one—and get access to the advanced techniques and tools he'd need to survive the coming war.
Two years. That's all the time he had before the Third Great Ninja War would erupt and tear through everything.
He had to get stronger. Fast.
No more mediocrity. No more playing by the rules.
From now on, he would take what he needed to rise to the top.
While Leo plotted out his future, Kakashi returned to his seat and began driving the cart again. The high walls of Konoha gradually came into view in the distance, outlined against the morning sun.
"We're almost there," Kakashi said without emotion, glancing over his shoulder. "Once we report back and recover… we'll see what happens next."
Leo leaned back and narrowed his eyes as the village gates approached.
pàtréóñ(Gk31)