The blinding white light from the cinema hadn't yet completely faded from his retinas. Shigure suddenly sat up from the creaking wooden bed.
His chest heaved violently, as if his heart would burst out of his throat, his entire body trembling with uncontrollable ecstasy.
"Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap!"
Shigure nearly cried out in shock as he pulled up the system panel visible only to him.
[Emotion Balance: 48,800 Points!]
"Forty-eight thousand eight hundred points...?"
He stared at the numbers on the panel, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. He rubbed his eyes, unable to believe he was seeing things. Then, a huge surprise hit him.
"I'm rich! I'm rich! I'm really rich this time!"
The rewards from his second dream far exceeded his expectations.
Shigure had originally estimated that even with the upgraded dream content, earnings of just over ten thousand points would be a good result. After all, the first time, he had only earned a little over six thousand points.
However, he never expected the appearance of Minato and Kushina to trigger such a surge of emotions, his Emotion Points exploding. Especially Kakashi. That guy was a walking Emotion Points ATM.
And Naruto. Though he'd been mostly in a state of utter mirth throughout the dream, he'd finally earned a special reward, a dream come true, earning him a whopping 10,000 points! Sasuke and Sakura's contributions weren't significant, but even a small contribution is still worth a little, and a little is better than nothing. A little adds up.
Hehehe... He's one step closer to his ultimate goal of acquiring the Rinnegan, acquiring the Ōtsutsuki bloodline, and even helping the old man open ramen shops across the ninja world.
"Calm down! Calm down!"
Shigure shook his head violently, forcing himself to calm down from his ecstasy. "Now's not the time to pop the champagne!"
"No matter how many Emotion Points I accumulate, if I don't quickly convert them into strength, they'll just be a pile of numbers that could vanish at any moment if I die!"
Shigure knew better than anyone how perilous the ninja world he currently inhabited was. The mortality rate here is undoubtedly among the highest in fiction.
Without sufficient strength, there's no sense of security. Forget protecting one's own little piece of land; even one's life is in jeopardy.
"I need to quickly convert all my points into combat power!"
Shigure's eyes flashed with determination. With a thought, he reopened the dazzling online store. The various redemption options were clearly displayed: Kekkei Genkai, Ninjutsu scrolls, Taijutsu secrets, gadgets and equipment, special abilities...
Shigure skipped the ridiculously expensive Kekkei Genkai section and clicked on the "Ninjutsu" and "Special Abilities" sections.
"Last time, I randomly awarded three chakra affinities: water, lightning, and yang..." Shigure rubbed his chin and pondered. "The yang attribute is primarily for medical assistance and speed recovery but lacks offensive capabilities. So... for now, I'll focus on water and lightning Jutsu."
Just as he was about to carefully select from the extensive list of ninjutsu, as he had last time, a new, gleaming icon suddenly popped up in the upper right corner of the screen! The icon flashed in a flashy, animated font: "This Week's Sale! Limited-Time Discount! Don't Miss Out!"
"Holy crap, there's even such a good deal?!"
Shigure's eyes lit up, and he clicked on the sale icon without hesitation.
Swish!
A brand-new store page popped up. Several tempting special offer packages were listed, each prominently labeled "Limited-Time Special Offer" and "Buy Now, You're a Winner."
Shigure scanned the dazzling array of packages with great interest.
[Wood Release Beginner's Gift Pack: Experience the Power of the Thousand Hands of the Forest! Contains "Wood Release: Tree World Advent (Trial Version)", "Wood Release: Wood Clone Jutsu (LV1)", "Wood Release: Four Pillars Family Jutsu (LV1)", and slightly increases Wood Release Chakra Affinity! Limited-Time Offer: 88,888 Mood Points!]
"Holy crap! Wood Release... wait, 880,000?!"
Shigure practically drooled.
"I don't have the Wood Style bloodline, so I can't use it even if I buy it... Damn it, I'm so greedy! That jerk system, it just keeps me tantalizing!"
He forced his reluctant gaze away and continued reading.
[Uchiha Fire Style Mastery Pack: Let the world experience the art of fire! Contains "Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu (LV1)", "Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu (LV1)", "Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu (LV1)", plus the Uchiha Style: Shuriken Throwing Jutsu (LV1) (Note: For best results when used with the Sharingan). Limited-time offer: 50,000 Mood Points!]
"Fire Style... Uchiha... Still not working; I can't use it. Next!"
[Wind Style: Raging Storm Pack: Feel the power of the gale! Contains "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough (LV1)", "Wind Style: Vacuum Ball (LV1)", and "Wind Style: Wind Blade (LV1)", significantly increasing the cutting power of wind-attribute chakra! Limited-time offer: 30,000 emotion points! ]
"Wind Style? PASS!"
[Earth Style: Immovable Gift Pack: The secret of absolute defense! Contains "Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall (LV1)", "Earth Style: Hardening (LV1)", and "Earth Style: Earth Spear (LV1)", doubling the earth-attribute defense! Limited-time offer: 35,000 emotion points! ]
"Tsk... Looks like I'm not going to get the promotional gift pack this week."
Shigure was about to close the promotion page in disappointment and was about to go back to the list of ninjutsu to slowly select, but suddenly found a page-turning button on the interface.
A thought struck him, and he quickly flipped to the next page.
His previously downcast eyes suddenly heated up. His gaze fixed on the first gift pack after turning the page.
[Water Style: Demon of the Hidden Mist Featured Pack: Silent Killings from the Blood Mist! Control the flow of water and transform into the Dark Night Shura! Contains "Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu (LV1)", "Water Style: Water Clone Jutsu (LV1)", "Water Style: Mist Hidden Jutsu (LV1)", "Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu (LV1)", "Water Style: Great Waterfall Jutsu (LV1)", and the bonus top-tier assassination technique "Silent Killing Jutsu" (LV1)! Limited-time special offer: only 8,000 Emotion Points!]
Demon of the hidden Mist? Zabuza?
The man who nearly cornered the future Sixth Hokage early in the original story? His signature Water Style techniques... all here?!
Water Prison Jutsu! Trapping the enemy for victory, control at full power!
Water Clones! Real or fake, hard to tell, obscuring vision!
Mist Hidden Jutsu! Conceal your form, and perfect for assassinations!
Plus Water Dragon Bullet and Great Waterfall—two incredibly powerful water-based attack ninjutsu! Even more crucial... this gift pack even includes the "Silent Killing Jutsu"!
You see, Zabuza's lackluster late-game performance stems from his early demise. But his combat strategy and assassination techniques are truly in line with the essence of a ninja.
If this set of abilities could be cultivated to the level of Senju Tobirama... This gift pack is practically tailor-made for Shigure!
And the price... Buying it individually would have cost at least 20,000 points, but now it's only 8,000 points?
Not buying it? You'd be a fool!
"I'm buying it! I have to!"
Shigure, overcome with excitement, clicked the purchase confirmation button without hesitation.
[Ding! Successfully purchased the "Water Style: Demon of the Hidden Mist Featured Pack," costing 8,000 emotion points.]
Buzz!
With a deep roar, a flood of knowledge about Water Style ninjutsu flooded into Shigure's mind at an unimaginable pace.
The principles of Water Prison, the secrets of chakra manipulation with Water Avatar, the techniques for performing Mist Hidden Gem, the order and power control of hand seals for Water Dragon Bullet and Great Waterfall...
Instantly, all the experience and understanding of these five Water Style ninjutsu became instinct, deeply etched into his soul. Furthermore, his body seemed to undergo subtle changes.
A bloodthirsty assassination instinct lurked in every part of his body, significantly heightening his sensitivity to the surrounding atmosphere, sounds, and light. How to sneak silently in silence, how to strike in the dark... Even though his "Silent Killing Jutsu" was only at Level 1, he had already mastered the intangible Bloodlust Zabuza and Orochimaru used.
After acquiring the Water Style gift pack, Shigure immediately turned his attention to the Lightning Style promotional pack.
[Lightning Style: Lightning Flash Starter Pack: Swift as lightning, strike by surprise!] Includes "Lightning Release: Ground Run (LV1)", "Lightning Release: Electric Discharge (LV1)", and "Lightning Release: Chakra Flow (LV1)". Limited-time special offer: 3,000 emotion points!
"I need some Lightning Release too," Shigure grinned and muttered. "Ground Run can paralyze enemies at mid-range, Electric Discharge is good for close-range sneak attacks, and Lightning Release: Chakra Flow can attach to weapons or enhance physical skills... It's just a starter pack, but 3,000 points isn't bad. Buy it!"
[Ding! Successfully purchased the "Lightning Release: Lightning Bolt Starter Pack", costing 3,000 emotion points.]
Instantly, knowledge about the use of Lightning Release flooded into his mind.
After a moment, Shigure slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath.
His remaining emotion balance was now 37,800 points.