Short-Term Goal

Short-Term Goal

Though Icarus looked like the sort who specialized in scamming newcomers, selling commonplace information, and moonlighting as a vendor of "beginner sets," making him seem rather low-class,

he was still in the intelligence business. The information and channels he knew far surpassed those of ordinary Reincarnators.

One became proficient in whatever field one worked in. No matter how unambitious he was, constant exposure had still given him much of the information Xu Yue wanted.

First was the overall structure and environment of the Reincarnation Space.

Several decades ago, Huaxia had still stood at the pinnacle as the world's number one. Even without an Industrial Revolution in reality, it was not something other countries could covet.

But after Huaxia's first Reincarnator legion, Dragon Soul—also the world's strongest Reincarnator legion—was targeted and nearly wiped out by a conspiracy, it suffered the ruthless siege and encroachment of the great powers.

Fearing Huaxia's resurgence, the foremost experts among the Reincarnators of other countries had even used special authority and methods to utterly destroy several of Huaxia's most important initial mission plot spaces at their roots.

The three-part war saga of Song-Liao, Song Jin, and Song-Mongol had originally been Huaxia's most distinctive newcomer spaces, providing a foundation for a growth path highly suited to Huaxia. But after their loss, that path had been cut off.

Some higher-difficulty mission spaces later on still contained similar types, but without the foundation—and with most people already set in their ways by then—it had become difficult to change course.

From then on, the Huaxia Reincarnation Zone declined completely and became a pasture for the great powers.

Today, even Huaxia Zone's strongest legion, the Far East Governor's Mansion, had chosen to attach itself to Britain. Among Huaxia's top ten legions, apart from the second-ranked Beiyang Army and the tenth-ranked Dragon Soul, the former number one legion in the world, the other eight were all proxy legions for the world's eight great powers.

Even though Xu Yue had worn a mask in his previous life and numbly pressed onward, never feeling much attachment to nation or country, he had ultimately been born and raised on this land twice.

The current state of affairs still made him feel an invisible oppression. Before his transmigration, although Huaxia had continued to face international targeting and exclusion, the rapidly rising Huaxia of that era had already gained considerable influence.

It had even possessed, to some degree, the ability to contend with the United States, the world's foremost great power.

But arriving in this unique place, in this special era, made Xu Yue feel that pressure even more keenly.

Only then did he truly understand the feeling that when the nest was overturned, no egg could remain intact.

As an orphan in his previous life, Xu Yue naturally understood that for ordinary people, the normal and stable lives they took for granted—the ability to complain about society, argue online for hundreds of pages over the pros and cons of the "system"—were only possible beneath the walls built with the blood of predecessors who had died on battlefields, and because they had grown strong under the protection of their parents' wings.

Shaking his head, Xu Yue cast the rare emotional turmoil from his mind. He knew this was not something he could interfere with right now.

But since his goal was to climb to the summit and see scenery he had never witnessed before, he would eventually cross paths with them...

Beep~ Detecting Second Lieutenant authority. Teleportation array access granted. Please select a destination.

"Special Auction House."

As a burst of light flashed, Xu Yue used the teleportation array in his area and, with the information he had pried out of Icarus, arrived in another district.

Twelve enormous heavenly pillars stood around the plaza, encircling it completely, while its interior was packed with people.

Compared to the people in Huaxia E-03 Zone, most of those here were extravagantly dressed, with all manner of ornate cold-weapon armor and powered armor on display.

Chunin vests, Wizard Robes, and Shinigami Shihakusho were all present.

There was no doubt that everyone who came here was an elite!

This was the Special Auction House within the space. A special auction was held once every month, and the items sold were unique goods unavailable at the Public Auction House.

Special goods that could not be sold at the Public Auction House also appeared at roadside stalls, but compared with this Special Auction House, they were worlds apart.

Most importantly, even Xu Yue's current Second Lieutenant rank did not grant him the authority to participate in the special auction!

He needed to reach Captain authority before he could enter and make purchases.

That explained the overall lavish equipment of the people here.

It could be said that Xu Yue was the first newcomer in history to come here.

He had not come to buy anything immediately, however. He wanted to see whether his idea was correct, so he could decide on his future route.

Though he could not participate in the auction, according to Icarus's intelligence, he could still check the contents of the next auction through the Shopping Guide Directory beside it.

Arriving at a self-service inquiry booth resembling a phone booth, Xu Yue closed the door and directly entered the three characters for "Kakashi," his goal crystal clear.

The result did not disappoint Xu Yue.

Kakashi's Mask: A mask belonging to Konoha Technician, Copy Ninja Kakashi. Effect unknown. (Mission item.)

Starting bid: One C-Rank mission, 1,000 Reincarnation Points.

Times unsold: 12

Sharingan (Kakashi's Left Eye): The left eye of Konoha Technician, Copy Ninja Kakashi. Effect unknown. Suspected to be an important mission item.

Holder's note: An important item brought back by the third strategy group of Wings of Freedom, Huaxia Zone's third-ranked legion, at the cost of near-total annihilation. Soon after killing Kakashi, the mission team was attacked by the Nine-Tails, and only one person escaped. It is suspected to be related to the Nine-Tails. This is already the lowest price—absolutely no cheap sale!

Starting bid: One A-Rank mission, 10,000 Reincarnation Points, or an important item may be offered for an on-site exchange. It must be an item of A-Rank mission quality or above, or a special B-Rank mission-quality item.

Times unsold: 12

Xu Yue was quite satisfied after seeing the information. Though the price was extremely high, if he worked hard, he should still be able to save enough over the course of two space missions.

The auction was held every month, and spending two missions saving money would mean this item went through another two auctions.

But since it had already failed to sell twelve times, clearly no one was interested in it. No matter how fiercely its holder touted it, no one was willing to trade an A-Rank Plot mission and ten thousand Reincarnation Points for it.

Perhaps Kakashi's Sharingan had appeared before, but no one had discovered its use.

Xu Yue, however, naturally knew the secret hidden beneath that seemingly ordinary Sharingan.

Kamui!

Xu Yue had initially hesitated over the source of his first Mangekyo Sharingan, wondering whether he should target Kakashi, who was relatively the easiest to deal with. But provoking Kakashi would come at too great a cost.

It was not merely Kakashi's own strength. The key was that fellow's terrifying "connections." If anything went wrong, he would truly be courting death.

It would practically mean making an enemy of the entire plot's will in Naruto.

Both heroes and villains would come after him. There would be no path to heaven and no gate to earth...

Now, however, since the problem could be solved with money, things were much easier. Even if the price was high, at least there was a way.

Xu Yue had also decided on the direction of his subsequent mission spaces.

According to the intelligence he had obtained, newcomer probationary Reincarnators had three opportunities to adapt to mission spaces. Though the latter two did not have the bonus of the first, their difficulty was relatively low. The fourth mission would be a promotion "assessment" mission, and completing it would make one an official Reincarnator.

After becoming an official Reincarnator, one would undergo another three missions. The fourth would again be a promotion assessment to become a Veteran Reincarnator, and beyond that there seemed to be Elite Reincarnators.

If one failed a promotion assessment mission, aside from the Reincarnation Points deducted as punishment, one skill would be randomly selected and lowered in level, while one's potential evaluation and military rank would also be reduced.

If a Reincarnator repeatedly failed assessments and merely wanted to muddle through, they would sooner or later be crushed beneath the endless cycle of missions. That was the true meaning of the word "reincarnation."

With that in mind, Xu Yue set his goal: before his fourth promotion assessment mission, he would acquire Kakashi's Mangekyō Sharingan. Even with only one eye and no ability to use Susanoo, Kamui alone would greatly enhance his strength.

Under these circumstances, he would need to put considerable effort into "making money" in the next two newcomer missions. If those two mission spaces lacked potential and had little chance of leading to higher difficulties later, then he would engage in "destructive extraction," prioritizing maximum profit in all things.

After making his decision, Xu Yue left this area, which was not yet suitable for him, and returned to the streets of E-03 Zone.

Ignoring the seductive woman beckoning to him from the mouth of an alley, Xu Yue headed directly toward the uniquely styled courtyard among the identical wooden houses.

E-03 Zone's Beginner Training Ground...

I went to the hospital to get a medical certificate and prepare to apply for a workplace injury assessment. My poor knee~