The training ground was in shambles.

The scorched earth, the smoke lingering in the air, and the five elites of the Military Police Force lying at the edge of the field, struggling but unable to rise.

Everything silently spoke of the brutality of the duel that had just taken place.

In stark contrast stood the thirty-man squad in the center of the field, still maintaining their complete formation, immovable like a rock.

They were unscathed.

Not even the rhythm of their breathing was the slightest bit disordered.

This huge contrast created a scene of great impact, deeply branded into the minds of every Uchiha clansman member present.

Time stood still at this moment.

On the stands, those thousands of Uchiha clansman members, whether they were the elite faction who had previously mocked Uchiha Kei's team, or the civilian faction who had been on edge the whole time, were now plunged into a deathly silence.

Their faces were filled with the same emotion.

Shock.

A shock that overturned their understanding of their decades-long Ninja careers, a shock beyond measure.

They had witnessed an incredible victory with their own eyes.

A victory achieved by thirty "mediocrities" forgotten by the clan against five "geniuses" standing at the pinnacle of the clan's strength—a victory that was crushing and without suspense.

This victory shattered not only the bodies of the Military Police Force elites but also the stale and arrogant values of the Uchiha clan, which had been passed down for hundreds of years and prioritized Kekkei Genkai and individual talent.

At the very back of the squad, Uchiha Kei's face remained expressionless, as if the earth-shattering Ninjutsu duel just now was nothing more than an ordinary training session.

His calm gaze swept over the flag ahead, which still stood tall amidst the aftermath of the explosion, embroidered with the huge Uchiha fan crest.

Then, he nodded slightly toward Uchiha Kenji at the front of the squad.

No words were needed.

A single look was the clearest command.

Uchiha Kenji took a deep breath.

The pent-up frustration in his chest, suppressed for a month—no, suppressed for half his life—turned into a scorching torrent at this moment.

He stepped forward, breaking away from the formation.

"Alert!"

Kenji shouted in a low voice.

The twenty-nine team members behind him instantly shifted formation.

In groups of ten, they split into three triangular defensive arrays, supporting each other and covering every corner of the training ground with their defensive range, vigilant against any possible accidents.

Their movements remained as uniform, calm, and efficient as ever.

It was as if winning this contest was not an end for them, but merely a beginning.

This level of discipline made everyone in the stands, who had just recovered from their shock, feel a renewed sense of awe.

After confirming that the defensive formation was foolproof, Kenji did not look back.

He strode forward, step by step, firmly, walking toward the flag in the center of the training ground that symbolized victory.

His pace was not fast, but every step seemed to land on everyone's heartbeat.

On the training ground, only the sound of his footsteps echoed.

All eyes were focused on him.

They looked at this former elite, this man who had been tortured to a mental breakdown by Uchiha Kei's genjutsu, this role model who had led by example and endured the most grueling training over the past month.

At this moment, he was representing those thirty companions, representing the thousands of civilian Ninja below the stage who, like him, had been oppressed by the clan's hierarchy and bound by the so-called "Theory of Talent," to reclaim the glory that should have belonged to them.

Finally, Kenji reached the flag.

He reached out and gripped the cold flagpole.

It felt hard and heavy with metal.

Slowly and forcefully, he pulled the flag out of the scorched earth.

With a soft "hum," the flag left the ground.

Kenji did not pause.

He used all his strength to raise the flag in his hand high above his head.

The huge Uchiha fan crest fluttered in the wind under the sunlight.

At that moment, Kenji stood with his head held high and chest puffed out in the center of the training ground, like a crowned king.

Behind him were twenty-nine companions with soaring morale.

Opposite them were the five elites, sitting or lying down, looking distraught.

An era came to a close at this moment.

Another era began its chapter at this moment.

The deathly silence was suddenly torn apart by an irrepressible cheer, laced with tears.

"We won!"

"We won!!"

The voice came from the civilian Ninja's viewing area.

An unknown youth, face flushed red with excitement and eyes brimming with tears, pointed at Kenji in the field and roared at his companions beside him.

This roar was like the fuse lighting a powder keg.

Boom!

A mountain-shaking, tsunami-like cheer instantly erupted from the area where the civilian Ninja gathered.

They jumped, shouted, hugged each other, and threw everything in their hands into the sky.

Many of them even shed tears of excitement.

What they were cheering for was not just the victory in a contest.

They were cheering because the mountain of "hierarchy" and "prejudice" that had been pressing down on them had finally been pried open.

They were cheering because that youth named Uchiha Kei had used an indisputable victory to prove to the entire clan that even without Three-Tomoe, and even with mediocre talent, they were definitely not trash!

They, too, could become the pride of the clan!

Compared to this ocean of fanaticism, the other side—the stands belonging to the Council of Elders and the families of the Military Police Force elites—was in deathly silence.

Elder Setsuna's hand, clutching his cane, was trembling violently.

His complexion had turned from iron-blue to deathly pale.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found his throat so dry that he couldn't utter a single word.

Lost.

Lost so thoroughly, so... ugly.

The elites he was so proud of, the traditions he believed in, were as fragile as paper in front of Uchiha Kei's disciplined team.

He felt every inch of skin on his face being whipped hard by the deafening cheers below.

On the main viewing stand, Uchiha Fugaku took a deep look at Kenji, who was holding the flag in the center of the field, and then looked at the youth at the back of the team, who had been terrifyingly calm from beginning to end.

He slowly closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, the dignity and decisiveness belonging to the clan head re-condensed in his eyes.

He knew he had to make a choice.

He stood up, walked to the front of the stand, and transmitted his voice, imbued with vast Chakra, to every corner of the training ground, clearly overpowering all the cheers and discussions.

"The contest is over!"

"The winner is..."

Fugaku's voice paused slightly.

His gaze met Uchiha Kei's in mid-air.

In those calm black eyes, Fugaku did not see the joy of victory, nor did he see any pride or complacency.

All he saw was a calmness like a deep pool, and an unshakeable, absolute confidence in the future.

There was no more hesitation in Fugaku's heart.

"The winner, Uchiha Kei!"

The moment his voice fell, a cold, yet incredibly pleasant mechanical prompt sounded in Uchiha Kei's mind.

【Ding!】

【Newbie Quest: The Beginning of Change, completed.】

【Quest Evaluation: Perfect.】

【Detected that the host won the contest with an absolute advantage, greatly boosting the morale of the Uchiha civilian Ninja, shattering the "Bloodline Supremacy Theory" within the clan, and causing a large number of clan members to highly identify with the host's philosophy.】

【Clan Cohesion has increased significantly from 35.2 / 100 to 55.2 / 100!】

【Rating increased from D (Collapse Critical) to C (Initial Integration)!】

【Quest Reward: 100 System Points have been issued.】

【System Mall module has been unlocked.】

A warm current surged from the system panel, flowing through every limb and bone of Uchiha Kei's body.