The three of them reached the village gates and waited for the inspection.
Night Namikaze was prepared. If the scroll in his vest was at risk of being discovered, he would pawn it via the system immediately.
However, the guard only glanced at them indifferently and waved them through. Clearly, orders had already come down from the Hokage Tower.
Just as they entered the village, an ANBU appeared, blocking their path. Night's heart, which had just settled, jumped into his throat again.
"Night Namikaze, Minato Namikaze. For your meritorious service in rescuing Konoha ninja Kushina Uzumaki, submit a mission report tomorrow. This action will be recorded as a collaborative A-rank mission completion."
"Also, just so you know, those Cloud ninjas have been 'escorted' back to the Land of Lightning overnight under Lord Hokage's orders."
The ANBU gave them an approving look before vanishing. In his eyes, these kids had upheld Konoha's honor.
Night was bewildered.
He had braced himself for interrogation. He figured rescuing Kushina would balance out any trouble he caused, at best. He didn't expect Hiruzen Sarutobi to start handing out freebies like this.
Looking at Minato and Kushina, their faces were glowing with excitement and admiration for the Hokage. Ah, so that's Hiruzen's game. Buying loyalty.
The ANBU left to rejoin the search teams. Tonight, many people in Konoha would not be sleeping.
Night offered a silent apology to them. Maybe when the "Golden Flash" takes office, I'll give you guys a nice long vacation as compensation.
The three went their separate ways. As soon as Night got home, he focused on his "harvest."
The system interface had changed significantly.
[The Multiverse Rare Pawn Shop]
[Host: Night Namikaze (Gold Card)]
[Current Pawn Points: 2910]
[Note: Cumulative pawn value exceeded 6000. Membership level upgraded automatically. New features unlocked.]
[Multiverse Credit (New): Current Limit 1000]
[Redeem Pawn (New): You can now buy back pawned items. Service Fee: 5 Points/Transaction]
[Redeemable Items:]
[... (Collapsed) ...]
Looking at the dazzling interface, Night felt a sweet headache.
Not only did he get exactly what he needed, but the upgrade opened up so many possibilities. If there was a Gold Card, did that mean there were Platinum or Diamond levels too?
Using the new feature, he pawned the items hidden in his vest, eliminating any evidence. Exhausted from days of plotting and executing, he finally slept peacefully.
The mastermind slept like a baby, but Konoha was noisy all night long.
To protect the village's reputation, even the Uchiha Police Force was mobilized for a village-wide search.
Unfortunately, it was a fruitless night. Night had left too few clues. They turned the village upside down and found nothing.
Dawn broke. Night was woken by noise outside.
Operating on muscle memory, he groggily washed up, put on his loose training clothes, and went to the training grounds with Might Duy.
Thanks to the Kaguya bloodline he redeemed yesterday, his bone density and muscle strength had increased significantly. Today's training felt surprisingly easy.
Duy was shocked, calling Night a taijutsu genius.
Night scoffed internally. Genius just sees the threshold. I'm not just a genius; I'm a cheater.
Even when Duy ramped up the intensity, Night kept up easily, his mind already calculating his next upgrade.
[Redeemable Items:]
[Uzumaki Clan Sealing Techniques — Cost: 4000 Points (Split purchase available)]
[Forbidden Jutsu: Flying Thunder God Technique — Cost: 200 Points]
[Forbidden Jutsu: Impure World Reincarnation (Edo Tensei) — Cost: 200 Points]
[Uchiha Bloodline Product (Three-Tomoe Sharingan) — Cost: 100 Points]
(Note: Without corresponding bloodline, full power cannot be utilized, and deactivation is impossible.)
[High-Concentration Senju Bloodline Tissue (Trace Amount) — Cost: 20 Points]
(Note: Quantity insufficient for bloodline redemption.)
[Rest collapsed...]
"Tsk."
He couldn't use the Sharingan, and he couldn't get the Senju bloodline. Night was disappointed.
In this world of "Legendary Eyes and Village Brawls," chakra volume determined the floor, but bloodline determined the ceiling.
"I kind of want to go grave robbing..."
If a scrap of flesh was worth 20 points, he couldn't imagine the astronomical value of Hashirama Senju's corpse.
Of course, it was just a thought. He suspected that Hashirama's cells were already being wholesaled in labs across the ninja world. He had strong reasons to believe the "God of Shinobi" had been chopped up by his evil brother Tobirama for "science."
"Deep Blue, add points... wait, wrong system."
"Redeem: Flying Thunder God, Bringer of Darkness, Water Severing Wave, Majestic Destroyer Flame."
The system deducted 320 points instantly.
[Current Pawn Points: 2590]
Danzo Shimura really lived up to being the Second Hokage's fanboy.
The collection in the ROOT base was beyond imagination. He had hoarded almost all of Tobirama's signature moves.
Too bad Danzo was just an old windbag who couldn't master them himself.
Feeling the knowledge flooding his brain, Night felt a surge of arrogance. He almost wanted to put on a black cloak with red clouds and declare war on the world.
Although he was itching to try the legendary Flying Thunder God, he knew better. Hiruzen might be peeping with his crystal ball.
He suppressed the urge. At noon, Night said goodbye to Duy and ended training early.
After half a month of grueling workouts, his control over his body and chakra had improved drastically. Continuing basic training now had diminishing returns.
He grabbed a bite to eat and headed to the Ninja Academy to pick up Minato.
Minato, who had taken leave and been waiting for ages, ran out as soon as he saw Night.
"Night-nii! You're so late! Let's go to the Hokage Tower!" Minato complained immediately.
"Going early won't get you extra money."
They had agreed last night to submit their report today. For a student who hadn't even graduated, having an "A-rank Mission" on his record was a golden ticket.
Even with Minato's calm nature, he was buzzing with excitement. Combined with his progress with Kushina yesterday, the kid probably hadn't slept a wink.