Playing Ninjutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen!

Half a month's haul had been plentiful, but... the best part was still the card-drawing segment.

Hehehe!

Ninjutsu was so expensive. Only an idiot would buy it outright. Wasn't it better to be a gambling addict in peace?

Twelve draws.

Honestly, other than ninjutsu and ninjutsu shards, nothing else had ever come up.

Uh... except for "Thank You for Your Patronage."

After a quick wash, Natsu Hiraku grabbed the towel from the wall and walked out of the bathroom. After drying himself off, he plopped down onto the bed and began today's gambling session.

The moment he opened the Great Roulette, a system prompt appeared.

[Entering the Ninja World Great Roulette. Points -4.]

"..."

Natsu Hiraku's lips twitched as he gradually realized something was wrong with the roulette. He had originally thought each entry would cost one additional point, but that -4 told him he had been far too young and naive.

This thing straight-up doubled the cost...

The next entry would cost -8, then -16, -32, -64. At that rate, the cost of entering would be worse than directly buying a ninjutsu.

This gambling roulette was apparently meant to help him survive the difficult early stage when he had no ninjutsu. At most, he could enter six more times. After that, he couldn't use it anymore, or he would lose even his underwear.

Looking at the eleven draws he had left, Natsu Hiraku felt a headache coming on. If he had realized sooner, he probably would not have entered. He would have waited until he completed the next mission and drawn them all together.

"Ah, forget it. It's not too late now that I know. I'll go all in on these eleven draws first."

With a pained expression, Natsu Hiraku clicked on a single draw. After getting a "Thank You for Your Patronage," he immediately went for a ten-pull.

The roulette spun at high speed, its ten needles turning in the opposite direction so fast they left afterimages. To see clearly, Natsu Hiraku angrily activated his Sharingan, foolishly hoping to use something given by the system against the system itself.

In the end, the One-Tomoe Sharingan was just too weak. It simply could not keep up with the needles' speed. Even when things slowed down, all he saw were afterimages...

"..."

Natsu Hiraku was speechless. Another day of being punished by the damn system. His mentality instantly shattered, and he loudly complained, "Damn it, I can't live like this! Missions barely get issued, and ninjutsu is fucking outrageously expensive. Can't you let me have some fun for once?!"

"Other people transmigrate and start destroying heaven and earth. Me? I have to calculate this, calculate that, and even calculate the damn air. If any other transmigrator ended up as pathetic as me, they'd have killed themselves already."

As soon as he finished speaking, the system roulette stopped, and pop-up windows began appearing.

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Congratulations. You have obtained S-rank ninjutsu: Raikiri Shard. Forty shards are required to synthesize the ninjutsu.]

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Congratulations. You have obtained A-rank ninjutsu: Water Style: Great Waterfall Technique Shard. Twenty shards are required to synthesize the ninjutsu.]

[Congratulations. You have obtained C-rank ninjutsu: Summoning Technique.]

[Summoning Technique: You must form a Blood Pact with an animal. During the process, use your own blood to draw a circle on the animal's forehead and write your name within it. The animal must not struggle, nor may it resist internally, or the attempt will be considered a failure. Upon success, both parties can communicate with each other and share cursed energy. Only one animal may be contracted at a time. A new contract may be formed after its death. Consumes 50 points of cursed energy, with the cost increasing according to the distance between both parties.]

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Thank You for Your Patronage.]

[Congratulations. You have obtained C-rank ninjutsu: Substitution Technique.]

[Substitution Technique: At the instant of an attack, swiftly replace your body with a wooden plank and create white smoke to confuse the opponent. Consumes 30 points of cursed energy.]

"Holy shit! I actually got something!?"

Getting rewards was predictable, but he truly had not expected to get two.

"..."

That was fucking obvious...

There was nothing much to say about the Substitution Technique. It was a low-cost escape skill.

But the Summoning Technique was different, especially the fact that cursed energy could be shared. If he took in a pet with cursed energy, could he not use it as a reserve cursed energy battery?

It seemed that tomorrow, he would have to specifically adopt a special pet. It had to look imposing. Riding a dog down the street would be insanely cool, right?

At that moment, Natsu Hiraku was already imagining his future mount: two meters long, covered in flowing snow-white fur, massively muscular, and overwhelmingly strong.

He loved it. He absolutely loved it.

When he sparred with Fushiguro the day after tomorrow, he would rub it right in his face. They would see whether Megumi's dog was stronger or his dog was stronger.

For some reason, an inexplicable competitive urge surged within him. After thinking for a long time, Natsu Hiraku finally closed his eyes and planned his dog-training regimen in his dreams.

The next day.

Before the alarm could ring, Natsu Hiraku had already woken up. Though he had slept for less than five hours, it did not dampen his determination to find his beloved dog early in the morning.

He had already imagined the training plan. He had to find a dog that worked as hard as he did. Otherwise, how could it surpass its peers? And if it could not surpass its peers, what right did it have to form a Blood Pact with him?

He did not care about talent, but it had to possess an ambitious, positive spirit. Dogs did not need to learn any cursed techniques anyway. More importantly, it had to be able to brawl with him hand-to-hand. Only then would it qualify.

He took the clothes that had been drying on the balcony for fifteen days and put them on, then took the clothes from the washing machine out to dry. After a quick wash-up, he rushed out the door.

"Woohoo! Takeoff!!"

He probably would not have been this happy even if he had obtained an S-rank ninjutsu. Those things consumed a ridiculous amount of cursed energy, but if he trained the dog properly, he could keep drawing cursed energy from it. Nothing could make him happier.

One of his weaknesses finally had a remedy.

"Hahaha! My precious dog, just wait for me. Daddy's coming!"

Hearing that familiar voice, Maki Zenin, who was up early exercising, looked over. Seeing Natsu Hiraku sprinting toward the school gate, she complained, "What the hell? Did he go crazy after being away for half a month?"

Since it was too early and there were no cars, Natsu Hiraku ran down the mountain road toward the city. It took him over an hour to arrive.

The animal could not struggle during the Blood Pact, but how could an adult dog possibly not struggle? It was not like he had raised it from a pup. Ordinary people might choose to raise one from a young age, but Natsu Hiraku did not want that. He wanted the fiercest dog possible.

As for struggling, one Sharingan glance would shut down its brain on the spot. Forget resisting—it would take at least several dozen seconds for it to recover.

"Hmm, why do I feel like my heart's getting a little dark? Forget it. I'll check out the dog market first. If there aren't any large dogs worth considering, I'll raise a small one instead. Dogs grow up pretty fast anyway."

Since the map did not mark any so-called dog market, Natsu Hiraku could only ask around. In the end, he walked for half an hour before finding the place.

It was 6:40 in the morning. A group of dog sellers were showing off their beautiful pet dogs, skillfully explaining their dogs' advantages and bringing them out for passing customers to pet.

It was Natsu Hiraku's first time here. Looking at all the several-month-old, newly weaned puppies in the market, he found himself in a dilemma. They all looked silly and not particularly intelligent.

They could be educated later, sure, but none of them looked like fighting material!

But his puzzled expression immediately made the nearby dog sellers see a business opportunity.

A plump middle-aged woman called out, "Young man, young man, come look at my dog! A purebred Siberian sled dog."

The moment Natsu Hiraku heard that name, he was drawn over. Looking at the dog in the woman's hands, he did not know why, but its eyes seemed full of curiosity—and a bit of stupidity.

Then, as if remembering something, he asked, "Isn't a Siberian sled dog just a husky?"

"Uh, that's not wrong. But mine is different. It won't tear up your house!"

"If it doesn't tear up the house, why would I want a husky? Are you sick?"

After complaining, Natsu Hiraku directly left. After all, who raised a husky without wanting to see that dumb look on its face? If it did not wreck the house, how could it be called a husky?

"Hahaha, I'm dying! Young man, come look at mine."

A bald man beside him laughed. "Judging by your expression, young man, are you looking for a special kind of dog?"

"Oh? Uncle, do you have any good stock?" Natsu Hiraku asked with interest.

"Of course. Looking at you, young man, you seem like a refined scholar. You must want a dog that suits your tastes."

As he spoke, the bald man lifted the black cloth covering a dog cage and introduced, "Then take a look at this purebred golden retriever pup. Its fur is gentle, it's incredibly smart, and it has a mild temperament. With special training, it can even be taught to do housework. The ultimate workaholic of the dog world."

"Huh, that's kind of interesting."

Natsu Hiraku looked at the golden retriever in the cage. Compared with that not-so-bright husky, its eyes were especially clear. He asked, "Is this dog good at fighting? If it is, I'll take it."

"..."

The bald man felt insulted. So after all that introduction, this guy had not listened to a single word. You wanted a gentle golden retriever to fight? Why didn't you just go die?

"Get the hell out! Don't fucking ruin my dog. I'm not selling it to you today!"

As he spoke, the bald man moved to grab a stick from his vehicle.

Natsu Hiraku wisely hurried away, complaining, "I've never raised a dog before. Why are you acting like this?"

"Golden retrievers are gentle and don't fight. You don't even know that, and you dared come to a dog market?"

The man's face had turned red with anger.

"Hahaha, I'm dying! A golden retriever fighting!" A woman nearby laughed cheerfully.

After walking around the huge dog market, Natsu Hiraku had found not only no big dogs, but not even one that caught his eye. It gave him a terrible headache. It seemed he could only ask Megumi Fushiguro.

After all, Megumi's dogs were genuinely big and genuinely fierce. Their speed and strength were beyond question.

Just as he took out his phone to call Megumi Fushiguro, a low, mournful whimper came from a nearby alley, sounding like a puppy. Natsu Hiraku did not pay it much attention. This place was very close to the dog market, so it might have been some dog with no trade value. Dog noises were normal.

"Hello, Brother Hiraku. What's up?"

Compared to the embarrassment he had felt when first calling him Brother Hiraku, Megumi Fushiguro had clearly gotten used to it. Natsu Hiraku did not waste any time and asked,

"I want to raise a brave, battle-ready dog, or maybe a wolf. Preferably an adult. Of course, if I really can't find one, a pup is fine too."

"A battle-ready dog or wolf? Brother Hiraku, why do you want to raise something like that? Are you planning to make it into a Shikigami?"

Megumi Fushiguro asked doubtfully.

"Uh, just raising one for fun. Do you know of any?"

How could Natsu Hiraku possibly tell him the truth? He had to keep his information under wraps. Otherwise, Megumi might pick out some ridiculous dog for him, like one that looked fierce but was actually lazy as hell.

After all, he had beaten Megumi. Maybe the kid was still thinking about getting revenge on him someday.

"I see. Then I'll ask around, but there might not be any."

"It's fine. If there aren't, forget it. I'll look somewhere else. Sorry for the trouble."

"Okay."

After hanging up, Natsu Hiraku sighed in relief. When he looked toward the nearby alley again, he saw a canine pup lying on the ground, starved to the point where it was little more than skin and bones.

It wearily opened its eyes and stared at him, letting out a soft whimper before closing them again.

Seeing this, Natsu Hiraku hurriedly picked the dog up. Due to malnutrition, nearly all the fur on its body had fallen out.

Having studied medicine, Natsu Hiraku did not panic. He placed his right hand against its chest, felt that its heart was still beating, and quickly got up to take it to a nearby pet hospital.

"It's nothing serious. It's just severely malnourished and fainted from hunger. Though it has grown teeth, it can only drink goat's milk for the next few days. Also, if you want to raise this breed, you'll need to register it with the police department."

Hearing the veterinarian's advice, Natsu Hiraku asked in confusion, "Why? Isn't it just a dog?"

"It is a dog, but it's a Tibetan Mastiff pup, famous for being extremely fierce. I'm only giving you advice: don't raise it just because you feel sorry for it, or someone might die later. If you insist on raising it, keep it chained up and leave it at home."

Damn, this little guy would grow up that fierce!?

Natsu Hiraku looked with interest at the Tibetan Mastiff frantically lapping up goat's milk inside the cage. He normally did not raise dogs, so he knew nothing about these things. The only dog breed he knew was Liu Yang's husky, whose house-wrecking skills were truly first-rate.

It spent all day bouncing around, radiating stupidity. It was incredibly entertaining.

"How big can a Tibetan Mastiff get?"

The veterinarian explained, "A giant Tibetan Mastiff can reach around seventy-five centimeters at the shoulder. Anyway, it can bite you to death in one bite. Do you still want this little guy? If not, I can only hand it over to the police."

"Yes, yes, of course I want it. How much was the treatment just now? I'll pay right away."

Natsu Hiraku hurriedly followed behind the veterinarian and pulled out his wallet.

"No need to pay. I just fed it some goat's milk. If you're going to raise it, then take responsibility as its father. Dogs are loyal. Don't let it down. That's all."