Three days passed in the blink of an eye. During that time, Uchiha Haruki spent his days either lying in bed or sitting on the big tree in his yard, reflecting on his recent experiences and thinking about his future path and training direction.
Every day was pretty ordinary—except for the second day. His father rushed back home around noon, charged into the kitchen, and whispered something to his mother. After that, Haruki witnessed firsthand why the Uchiha Clan stood tall in the ninja world.
Even with just her three-tomoe Sharingan and a frying pan, his gentle mother was able to fight an Elite Jōnin to a standstill, forcing him to run off with his hands over his head. It wasn't just a saying: one-on-one, no one is a match for an Uchiha.
Haruki and his two friends arrived at their usual meeting spot. Mei handed each of them a short stick and announced the training content for the next month: patrol duty...
Wait, what? Patrol duty? What happened to personalized training? Scientific methods?
Looking at Mei's absolutely deadpan face, the three friends were clearly nervous. After what he put them through in the forest, none of them dared to ask questions.
And so, the "City Patrol Squad" began their very first street patrol... in the Food District.
"From here all the way to the end of the street, that's your training course for today," Mei announced.
The three of them stood there, black lines practically running down their faces. Is this guy joking...?
"Of course, just walking around isn't training. By nightfall, I want you to tell me which store had the most customers, which shops had the most ninja visitors, and collect information about each shop owner. I want to know their approximate daily earnings, the number of outsiders, who the merchants are, which countries they come from, who might be spies, where the Anbu are stationed, and how many secret Police Force outposts we have."
Hearing this, the three of them dropped their lazy attitudes and adopted serious expressions.
This... this is intelligence-gathering training. For three rookies, this was no easy task. They immediately split up the work and began their day of "training."
"Man, you really don't hold back. Aren't you afraid these kids are gonna break? This street may not be the longest, but it's definitely in the top three for traffic in all of Konoha. Those tasks you gave them aren't easy," one of the Police Force members nearby commented to Uchiha Mei.
"I know they won't be able to do it. Three young geniuses, all spoiled and pampered. Last time, the survival training was to teach them that a ninja can die from the smallest mistake. This isn't a game.
This time, I want them to understand that their previous 'common sense' is nothing in the ninja world. If they want to be excellent ninjas, they need to start with patrol duty," Mei explained as he casually sat down at a nearby sushi shop.
The Uchiha officer next to him chuckled, muttering, "This is gonna be interesting... those kids are in for a rough time, hahaha."
As the lights of the Food District flickered to life, the three regrouped to share their findings. They looked a bit defeated, but still, they nervously handed their report over to Uchiha Mei.
Mei glanced at the report and sneered, "What is this? A pile of crap? You hand me this garbage and call it the pride of the Uchiha Clan? What am I supposed to do with it? Use it as fertilizer?"
The three of them turned bright red from embarrassment. It was honestly humiliating. They wanted to bury their faces in their chests... unfortunately, their heads were too big, and their chests were too small.
"Heh, at least you still know how to feel shame. Good. Today's over. Tomorrow, we continue." With that, Mei's body vanished with the release of a Shadow Clone.
Only then did the three of them realize that the guy hadn't even bothered to come in person. It was just a clone the whole time!
They decided to find a place to regroup and asked a nearby clansman to send a message to their families, saying they'd eat outside and come home later. And so, they walked into Ichiraku Ramen.
As they ate, they chatted, quickly summarizing the lessons learned. While eating and discussing, they wandered up and down the Food District, finally deciding on a more focused approach.
First Step: Identify the Anbu positions. There were only a few spots where they could monitor the entire Food District, and also some easy-to-overlook hidden corners.
Second Step: Under the guise of inspection, they would ask each shop for information about their owners, their daily and monthly earnings, and request that shopkeepers be on the lookout for foreign visitors, especially merchants. They would also keep track of where these visitors came from.
Third Step: Observe those who acted strangely or frequented the Food District too often.
They decided to start with these three steps before planning their next move.
The next day, the three of them took the initiative, going door to door, walking the streets, and gathering information. They really looked the part now. But as expected... they failed again.
And so, their training continued like this for three whole months.
"Boss, I'll have an eel rice bowl. Business really has been picking up lately, huh? It's all thanks to the war ending. If it weren't for certain 'help' on the trade routes, I wouldn't even dare travel," a burly man dressed like a merchant sat in a shop, muttering to himself.
Sensing that something was off, Haruki quickly signaled to the other two. They regrouped quietly.
Uchiha En spoke first, "Something's not right with that guy. He's been in the same restaurant for three days straight, always sitting in the same spot, always saying almost the exact same things: 'picking up,' 'war,' 'trade routes,' and 'help.'
Then, at night, he goes to the izakaya across the street. Orders a cup of sake and a plate of grilled sanma fish, same routine every time. When people talk to him, he just chuckles and doesn't say much. He often stares at the fishball shop across the street.
Before he leaves, he buys three sticks of fishballs, always picking the third skewer from the left. He only eats two; the third one he leaves in a paper cup at the corner of the street."
"Oho~ that's interesting," Uchiha Retsu said, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Looks like he's waiting for some kind of message. We might finally get to catch something. Maybe this means new training is coming up. I'm sick of patrolling!"
Haruki thought for a moment and then said, "The owner of that restaurant is Tanaka Kunie. He used to be a merchant in the Land of Fire and has been living in Konoha for ten years. He also owns the izakaya across the street. His grilled sanma fish is a specialty from the Land of Lightning.
The third skewer at the fishball stand is always hollow. They sometimes hide small items inside. The owner's name is Kizaru, and he only moved here two years ago.
En, you keep watch here. Retsu, watch the fishball stand and check where they get their supplies. I'll tail the bearded guy."
"Got it. Be careful, Haruki. Retsu, make sure to track the fishball deliveries," Retsu nodded.
"Understood. I'll head to the marketplace and take a look," Haruki replied confidently.
"From what I've observed, I think they've already gotten the information they wanted. The bearded guy left yesterday. The fishball stand switched the third skewer from fishball to squid balls. When I asked why, the owner said it was for 'changing the recipe.'
Yesterday, the bearded guy only ate one skewer. No... not even that. He only ate two pieces off of it," Haruki reported.
"And it's not just that. The fish supplier at the market is fine, but the delivery person is suspicious. It's a young orphaned girl. A single girl hauling around that much fish? She shouldn't have the strength. Plus, the fishball shop assistant always helps her halfway.
The owner invites her in for one of those hollow fishballs each time. Even today, the hollow fishballs sold out, and the boss is saying he has to restock," Retsu added.
"So this means they're running a long-term message-passing operation," Haruki smirked, his eyes sparkling with excitement. I can't wait to meet them again.