Naruto Card King

Afternoon, in a secluded alleyway in the northern civilian district of Konohagakure.

"Taijutsu: Twin Blade Two-Stage Strike!"

Kunai flew through the air, followed by the glint of a blade slicing through its target!

A young shinobi, only fourteen years old, codenamed "Suita," trained in the assassination tactics unit of Amegakure, had his shoulder pierced by a kunai and his throat slashed by a katana! His eyes widened in disbelief as his weapon slipped from his grasp. He clutched his bleeding neck with both hands before collapsing to his knees.

Haruto Saito stood over him, his katana dripping with blood, his expression cold and indifferent.

Suita fell forward, his body twitching twice before going completely still. Blood pooled beneath him, spreading across the ground.

SWOOSH!

A flash of light!

Three glowing cards emerged from Suita's lifeless body.

Haruto casually reached out and collected them, seamlessly slipping them into his inventory.

This was the second assassin from Amegakure he had killed today. The one at noon, Kaze, had been a Chunin, whereas Suita was merely a Genin with a reputation score of 600. Killing him had been easy.

Haruto wiped his bloodied blade with a cloth retrieved from his pocket.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

Four gusts of wind heralded the arrival of four ANBU Jonin, led by Chikawa.

"He's yours," Haruto said with a snap of his fingers, sheathing his clean katana before turning to leave the alley.

Chikawa's eye twitched. Haruto killed, and they cleaned up the mess. They no longer felt like ANBU tasked with protecting and monitoring him but more like janitors assigned to do his dirty work. Still, they had no choice. White Fang's orders had to be followed.

Haruto wandered through the streets and alleys of Konohagakure, ignoring all the whispers and rumors, focused solely on his search.

Hunting down assassins and spies from Amegakure!

At three o'clock in the afternoon, in front of an abandoned warehouse hidden within a grove in the southern part of the village, Haruto killed his third target!

Another Genin with a reputation score of 766!

Konohagakure, the most powerful hidden village in the Shinobi World, housed over 14,000 professional shinobi. Nearly 150,000 civilians held residency, with the ratio of ninjas to civilians being approximately one to ten.

Merchants, wandering samurai, rogue shinobi, small-time vendors from other Fire Country villages, laborers seeking work, tourists—the village was a melting pot. This influx of outsiders made it easy for spies from other nations and factions to blend in and gather intelligence unnoticed.

Now, with the Second Great Ninja War on the horizon, espionage activities had surged, with nations sending operatives to monitor each other's every move.

To Konoha, these spies were a threat.

To Haruto?

They were treasure troves!

By 4:30 PM, near the Medical Corps building in the western sector of the village, Haruto killed another spy from Amegakure—yet another Genin with a reputation score of 779!

Unlike assassins, spies came for intelligence gathering rather than combat. Their strength wasn't in battle but in observation, analysis, and deception.

For instance, noticing a minor confrontation between Hyuga and Uchiha clansmen on the street? That was valuable intelligence. If enemy forces learned of growing tensions, they could exploit the situation, inciting further division within Konoha.

Or worse—an enemy could assassinate a Hyuga clan member and frame the Uchiha, plunging the village into internal conflict.

Haruto's elimination of these spies wasn't just for personal gain; it genuinely benefited Konoha. Setting aside his goal of obtaining more ability cards, he also sought to prove his loyalty. He had latched onto a powerful faction, and he intended to stay.

By dusk, Haruto returned to the bustling marketplace.

Since noon, he had eliminated four Amegakure operatives. He had spotted more, including spies from other villages and even some high-ranking targets.

But taking them down wasn't feasible—not yet.

The former would be too difficult to explain.

The latter?

He wasn't strong enough.

In total, Haruto had acquired eleven new cards. He had yet to check what they contained, keeping them safely stored.

Echikawa Cuisine.

Seated by the window, Haruto ordered a bowl of noodles and started eating. The tavern buzzed with conversations, most of which revolved around him. The rumors of his exploits had only intensified.

He ignored them all.

Until—

"Hey! I heard you harassed Uzumaki Kushina! Is that true?"

A clear, playful voice cut through the noise.

"Huh?" Haruto looked up from his meal, mildly surprised.

A girl, around eleven or twelve years old, sat across from him. She had fair skin, long black hair, and wore a forehead protector—already a full-fledged Konoha shinobi rather than an academy student.

But most notably—

She had the Sharingan.

A single tomoe.

An Uchiha!

Name: Uchiha Mikoto

Identity: Granddaughter of the Uchiha Clan Elder, Member of the Konoha Police Force Investigation Unit

Reputation: 850

Relationship: Neutral

Uchiha Mikoto—the future wife of Uchiha Fugaku.

The mother of Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke.

A woman who would eventually die alongside her husband during the Uchiha Massacre.

Haruto remained expressionless.

"Do we know each other?" he asked bluntly.

"Let's fix that. Uchiha Mikoto," she said with a charming smile, extending a fair, delicate hand across the table.

Haruto glanced at her outstretched hand, then back at her face.

"What do you want?" he asked flatly.

Mikoto's expression froze momentarily but recovered smoothly. She retracted her hand, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Then, resting her elbow on the table, she leaned forward slightly, her voice lowering to a playful whisper.

"I'm here to invite you to the Uchiha Clan. Come with me."

Again.

First, it was Uchiha Fugaku at noon.

Now, Mikoto.

Haruto didn't respond immediately. Instead, he scrutinized her.

Something felt… off.

As a former world-class magician, he had been trained in psychology, deception, and audience manipulation. He knew how to misdirect attention and control perception.

And now?

He could see it.

Mikoto was nervous.

Her friendliness, her confidence—even her smile—felt rehearsed. Forced.

She had been sent here.

Not voluntarily.

Interesting.

The Uchiha were playing their hand carefully.

Haruto had a strong suspicion that Mikoto had been chosen because of the rumor that he had "harassed" Kushina.

A calculated move—sending a girl his age to entice him.

Of course, at this point, Mikoto had no romantic connection to Fugaku. She was still just a twelve-year-old girl.

"I'll consider it," Haruto said, pushing his bowl aside.

Then, mimicking her posture, he leaned in close.

Too close.

The table was narrow. Their faces were mere inches apart.

Mikoto smelled faintly of floral perfume.

Her smile faltered slightly.

"But," Haruto continued, his tone playful, "I have one condition."

Mikoto forced a smile.

"What condition?"

Haruto grinned.

"Marry me."

Mikoto's smile froze.