It's Not Time to Pop the Champagne Yet

The blinding white light of the screening room had yet to fully fade from Shigure's retinas.

Shigure abruptly sat up from the creaking wooden bed.

His chest heaved violently, as though his heart were about to leap out of his throat. His entire body trembled slightly with uncontrollable ecstasy.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!"

Shigure nearly blurted out the cry as he summoned the system panel visible only to him.

[Emotion Value Balance: 48,800 points!]

"Forty-eight thousand eight hundred...?"

He stared at the number on the panel, his eyes nearly popping out. He hurriedly rubbed them, unable to believe he was seeing correctly.

Then, overwhelming delight crashed over him.

"I'm rich! I'm rich! This time, I've really struck it big!"

The gains from the second dream had far exceeded his expectations.

Shigure had originally estimated that even if the dream's content had improved, earning a little over ten thousand Emotion Value points would have been pretty good.

After all, he had only gotten a little over six thousand the first time.

Yet he had never imagined that Minato and Kushina's appearance would trigger such intense emotional fluctuations, causing his Emotion Value to explode.

Especially Kakashi.

That guy was practically a walking super-sized Emotion Value ATM.

And Naruto.

Although the kid had been grinning foolishly for most of the dream, he had somehow triggered a special reward for having his dream fulfilled at the end, bringing in a full ten thousand points at once!

Sasuke and Sakura had not contributed much, but even a mosquito leg was still meat. It was better than nothing, and it all added up.

Hehehe...

He was another huge step closer to exchanging for the Rinnegan, Ōtsutsuki bloodline, and even his ultimate goal of helping Uncle Teuchi open ramen shops across the entire shinobi world.

"Calm down! Calm down!"

Shigure sharply shook his head, forcing himself out of his ecstatic state.

"Now isn't the time to pop the champagne!"

"No matter how much Emotion Value I save up, if I don't turn it into strength quickly, it's just a pile of numbers that could be wiped clean the moment I kick the bucket!"

Shigure knew better than anyone just how dangerous the shinobi world he currently lived in was.

Its death rate would absolutely rank among the highest in all the myriad worlds.

Without sufficient strength, there was no sense of security at all.

Forget protecting his own little patch of land; he might not even be able to protect his own life.

"I need to convert all these points into combat power as soon as possible!"

Determination flashed through Shigure's eyes. With a thought, he reopened the dazzling marketplace interface.

The various exchange options were clearly displayed: Bloodline Limits, ninjutsu scrolls, taijutsu secret techniques, tools and equipment, special abilities...

Shigure skipped over the absurdly expensive Bloodline Limit section and opened the "Ninjutsu" and "Special Abilities" categories.

"Last time, I randomly received affinity for Water, Lightning, and Yang Chakra natures..."

Rubbing his chin, Shigure muttered, "Yang nature mainly leans toward support and medical use. It can speed up recovery, but it lacks offensive methods. So... at this stage, Water Release and Lightning Release should be the priority."

Just as he was about to carefully browse the enormous list of ninjutsu like last time—

A sparkling new icon suddenly popped up in the upper-right corner of the interface!

Cool animated lettering flashed repeatedly across it: "Weekly Sale! Limited-Time Discount! Don't Miss Out!"

"Damn, there's even something like this?!"

Shigure's eyes lit up, and he clicked the promotion icon without hesitation.

Whoosh!

A brand-new marketplace page appeared.

Several enticing special-value bundles were listed on the page, each marked with eye-catching tags like "Limited-Time Massive Discount" and "Buy It and You Profit."

Shigure eagerly swept his gaze over the dazzling array of bundles.

[Wood Release Starter Gift Pack: Feel the power of the Senju of the Forest! Includes "Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees (Trial Version)," "Wood Release: Wood Clone Technique (LV1)," and "Wood Release: Four Pillars House Technique (LV1)," and slightly increases Wood Release Chakra affinity! Limited-time special price: 88,888 Emotion Value points!]

"Holy shit! Wood Release... wait, eighty-eight thousand?!"

Shigure nearly drooled.

"I don't even have a Wood Release bloodline, so I couldn't use it even if I bought it... Damn it, I want it so badly! Stupid system, all you do is dangle bait in front of me!"

He forcibly tore his reluctant gaze away and continued looking down.

[Uchiha Fire Release Mastery Gift Pack: Let the world experience the art of flames! Includes "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique (LV1)," "Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique (LV1)," and "Fire Release: Dragon Flame Technique (LV1)." Also includes Uchiha Style: Shuriken Throwing Technique (LV1) as a bonus. Note: More effective when used alongside the Sharingan. Limited-time special price: 50,000 Emotion Value points!]

"Fire Release... Uchiha... Still no good, I can't use it. Next!"

[Wind Release: Raging Gale Gift Pack: Feel the power of the raging wind! Includes "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough (LV1)," "Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere (LV1)," and "Wind Release: Blade of Wind (LV1)." Greatly enhances the cutting power of Wind-nature Chakra! Limited-time special price: 30,000 Emotion Value points!]

"Wind Release? Pass!"

[Earth Release: Immovable Mountain Gift Pack: The secret of absolute defense! Includes "Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall (LV1)," "Earth Release: Hardening Technique (LV1)," and "Earth Release: Earth Spear (LV1)." Doubles Earth-nature defensive effects! Limited-time special price: 35,000 Emotion Value points!]

"Tch... Looks like this week's promotional bundles have nothing to do with me."

Somewhat disappointed, Shigure was about to close the promotion page and return to the ninjutsu list to browse slowly when he suddenly noticed a page-turn button on the interface.

His heart stirred, and he quickly switched to the next page.

The moment he saw it, his previously dim eyes blazed with heat.

His gaze locked tightly onto the first bundle after the page turn.

[Water Release: Hidden Mist Demon Selection Pack: A silent killing intent from the Village of the Bloody Mist! Command flowing water and become an Asura of the night! Includes "Water Release: Water Prison Technique (LV1)," "Water Release: Water Clone Technique (LV1)," "Water Release: Hiding in Mist Technique (LV1)," "Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique (LV1)," and "Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique (LV1)." Also includes the top-tier assassination technique "Silent Killing Technique" (LV1) as a bonus! Limited-time massive discount price: only 8,000 Emotion Value points!]

The Hidden Mist Demon? Zabuza?

That man who had nearly pushed the future Sixth Hokage into a desperate situation early in the original story?

All of his signature Water Release techniques... were here?!

Water Prison Technique! Trap the enemy and secure victory, with control at maximum!

Water Clone Technique! Real and fake indistinguishable, perfect for disrupting vision!

Hiding in Mist Technique! Conceal one's body—paired with assassination, it was practically unbeatable!

And Water Dragon Bullet and Great Waterfall—two incredibly powerful Water Release offensive ninjutsu!

More importantly... this bundle even came with the Silent Killing Technique!

Zabuza only seemed weak later on because he had gotten killed off too early in the story.

But his combat mindset and assassination techniques were the closest to a ninja's true essence.

If he trained this entire set of abilities to Tobirama Senju's "Sea Release" level...

Tsk, tsk. This bundle was practically tailor-made for Shigure!

And that price...

Buying everything separately would cost at least twenty thousand points at full price, but the bundle only cost eight thousand now?

Not buying it? Only an idiot would pass this up!

"Bought! I have to buy it!"

Shigure was unable to contain his excitement. Without hesitation, he clicked the confirm purchase button.

[Ding! Successfully purchased "Water Release: Hidden Mist Demon Selection Pack." Consumed 8,000 Emotion Value points.]

Buzz!

Accompanied by a low hum, an immense amount of knowledge about Water Release ninjutsu flooded into Shigure's mind at an unimaginable speed.

The principles behind constructing Water Prison Technique, the tricks of Chakra usage for Water Clone Technique, the casting methods for Hiding in Mist Technique, the hand seal sequences and power control for Water Dragon Bullet and Great Waterfall...

In an instant, all experience and insights regarding those five Water Release techniques transformed into instinct, deeply imprinted upon his soul.

Not only that, but his body also seemed to undergo subtle changes.

A bloodthirsty instinct for assassination lurked within every limb and bone, vastly heightening his sensitivity to the surrounding auras, sounds, light, and shadows.

How to move silently through stillness, how to take a life in darkness...

Even though the Silent Killing Technique was only LV1, he had already gained a preliminary grasp of that invisible killing intent.

After obtaining the Water Release bundle, Shigure immediately turned his attention to the Lightning Release promotion pack.

[Lightning Release: Lightning-Fast Starter Pack: Swift as lightning, strike where they least expect it! Includes "Lightning Release: Earth Flow (LV1)," "Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Discharge (LV1)," and "Lightning Release: Chakra Flow (LV1)." Limited-time special price: 3,000 Emotion Value points!]

"I need some Lightning Release too." Shigure grinned and muttered, "Earth Flow can paralyze enemies at mid-range, Electromagnetic Discharge is good for close-range sneak attacks, and Lightning Release: Chakra Flow can be applied to weapons or used to enhance taijutsu... It's only a starter pack, but three thousand points isn't expensive. I'm buying it!"

[Ding! Successfully purchased "Lightning Release: Lightning-Fast Starter Pack." Consumed 3,000 Emotion Value points.]

In an instant, knowledge about using Lightning Release flooded into his mind.

A moment later, Shigure slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath of stale air.

His remaining Emotion Value balance was now: 37,800 points.