235 I Became a Jonin

Private booking—Hotel Swimming Pool No. 4.

Splash—!

Kushina leapt from the three-meter diving board, her body twisting gracefully through the air in a double spin before slicing into the water with a near-perfect splash.

She glanced at the screen near the pool, which was showing a diving competition, then smirked as she climbed out of the water, rubbing her soaked red hair with a towel.

"Heh, I think I've already surpassed the pros."

...

"Four days... and she's still not tired of this?"

Uchiha Hikari sat cross-legged on a beach chair, sipping a fresh fruit juice. She wore an ultra-conservative, dark blue one-piece swimsuit with a modest skirt attached. Her tiny feet, still glistening with water droplets, swayed idly in the sun.

"It's over."

Yamanaka Shinno let out a long yawn, reclining lazily with one leg propped over the other, savoring an expensive glass of liquor.

On the first night they arrived here, Tsunade's green trait [Gambling Mastery] got utterly wrecked at the city's largest casino.

Despite being one of the oldest and most established casinos in the region, with a sophisticated operation model, once the house caught on to Tsunade's skill at gambling, any chance of a clean sweep was out the window.

Winning small amounts was possible, but dreaming of a massive payday? Forget it.

The real issue was Tsunade's stubborn insistence on fair play. She never used her abilities to cheat—something that seemed almost pathological.

Sure, she had her fun. But that small chest of gold…

Well, whatever. Four days of throwing money away was still way better than her old black trait, [Reverse Gambling Saint].

Shinno chuckled quietly, clearly not caring about the gold bars at all.

With his current strength, even without the support of the Hidden Leaf or the shinobi world, he could casually mine a gold vein and, with a single use of Magnet Release: Sand Gold, rake in more wealth than most countries.

Gold meant nothing to him now.

...

Returning to the modern world had its perks.

While Tsunade lost herself in the chaos of the casino scene, Shinno, Kushina, and Hikari spent those days exploring nearly every corner of the city.

For ordinary people, 2011 marked a boom in information technology.

All sorts of electronic conveniences had completely reshaped everyday life.

And in a city like this, where the currency exchange industry was wildly efficient, you could turn just about anything into cash—foreign currency, gold, jewelry, antiques—you name it.

With no shortage of funds, Shinno and the others had been living it up in absolute luxury.

Phones, clothes, bags, shoes, home appliances…

All piled up into a literal mountain inside the Primordial World Sovereign.

But from the perspective of the Marvel timeline, 2011 was a pivotal year.

That was when Thor's coronation was interrupted by the Frost Giants, prompting him to storm into Jotunheim in revenge. For nearly starting a war, Odin banished him to Earth.

Odin entered the Odinsleep. Loki seized the throne of Asgard and tried to have Thor killed.

Eventually, Thor came to understand the value of life, earned back Odin's trust, lifted Mjolnir once more, defeated Loki, and destroyed the Bifrost.

The Cosmic Cube (Tesseract) appeared in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s possession.

Meanwhile, a Russian oil expedition uncovered the frozen body of Captain America in the Arctic.

...

"Wait... was I being used by that old geezer Odin...?"

Shinno's expression twitched as he recalled Odin's sudden appearance in Jotunheim.

They always say the older you get, the shrewder you become. Maybe Odin wanted to lure out that idiot Laufey.

Otherwise, why would he let Loki run wild right under his nose? He's a god-tier being—surely he's not that blind!

BANG—!

"I'm back~!"

Lost in thought, Shinno was jolted out of it as Tsunade burst through the pool doors, practically glowing with energy.

Still wearing the same hoodie she'd had on for four days, she didn't even bother to take it off—she just dove headfirst into the crystal-clear water with a massive splash.

Sure, she lost everything again. But hey, four days of straight gambling was still a win in her book!

A whole chest of cash gone in four days?

She never even dreamed of such luxury back in the day!

...

"No wonder you're a VIP."

Shinno's forehead twitched.

Strictly speaking, the amount Tsunade lost wasn't even enough to qualify for VIP status at the city's top casino.

But the manager saw her coming a mile away.

Anyone who could lose millions without even flinching—and actually seem to enjoy it more the longer they played—was definitely not your average guest.

He upgraded her to VIP on the spot.

Free meals, free accommodations, access to exclusive lounges... the works.

...

"Tsunade-san, are you heading home soon? You've been away from work for days now."

Kushina stood by the pool, handing Tsunade a towel as she emerged.

"Kushina, can I ask you for a favor?"

Tsunade casually peeled off her soaked hoodie and tossed it aside, taking the towel while staring seriously at Kushina.

"…No."

Kushina reflexively stepped back, shaking her head like a drum.

She could already tell where this was going.

Now that Tsunade had cooled off, she was clearly planning to rope her into handling a mountain of paperwork.

But Kushina was retired, damn it!

If she had to dive back into admin work, what was the point of retiring at all?

"What kind of bestie are you?! I'm telling you, we just brought in several lost members of the Uzumaki clan from Kusagakure. Don't you want to help settle them in?"

...

"Ah? I… I mean…"

"Relax, it won't take long. The portal's connected directly to your house, right? You can come and go whenever."

"Well… I guess that's true…"

"Then it's settled!"

Tsunade latched onto Kushina's wrist like a hawk, as if afraid she'd bolt at any second. She turned to Hikari next.

"Don't look at me. I'm the Kage—I only deal with waterworks. Not much to do."

Hikari took another sip of juice, flashing a smug little grin.

...

"You're our top combat power! What if someone from the Ōtsutsuki clan shows up? Let's just go back, check in, and if nothing's wrong, we can come back later."

"…Hmph."

Hikari puffed up her cheeks and gave Shinno a sidelong glare.

That bastard was definitely doing this on purpose!

...

"Let's roll!"

Slapping his butt, Shinno stood up and headed for the hotel front desk.

Honestly, he'd had enough fun for now—it was time to get back to business.

After all, he'd taken the Eye of Agamotto from the Ancient One. He was technically the new Sorcerer Supreme.

It'd be pretty embarrassing if he didn't even know where Kamar-Taj was.

Using one of the casino's anonymous payment cards, Shinno settled their hotel bill and led the group back into the Primordial World Sovereign.

Once there, Tsunade, Kushina, and Hikari changed into their latest interdimensional outfits and stepped through the portal back into the shinobi world.

...

Eleven-year-old Clare ran up to Shinno, notebook in hand, rattling off updates.

Though her expression still seemed a bit stiff, her eyes were much livelier than when they first met.

"Sir, three days ago, Jiraiya came by to ask about your whereabouts… A day and a half ago, Miss Kanae Kocho and her sister, Shinobu, stopped by to ask about building a shrine… And yesterday, a man named Nara Shikaku…"

Shinno didn't interrupt.

He already knew all of this, of course—he was the master of the Primordial World Sovereign.

But for Clare and the still-recovering Teresa, this was the only way they could feel useful.

Abandoned by the world, the two of them had never known warmth or kindness.

Now they had fresh vegetables, meats, fruits, illustrated storybooks, clothes—things they never dared to dream of.

And to truly feel secure, they needed to do something. To feel valuable.

Listening to Clare's detailed report, Shinno sat quietly on a reclining chair in the courtyard, nodding occasionally in acknowledgment.

Meanwhile, his attention turned inward—back to the system interface.

And with a silent command, he instructed the system to use up all of his remaining Trait Extraction chances.

From the rewards for Orochimaru taking away Dōma, to those gained by altering Kanae's fate—he had accumulated four full Trait Extractions...

He hadn't taken time to strengthen himself lately—too busy slacking off.

Thinking about it, he almost felt guilty!

[Congratulations, Host, for obtaining the following traits: Green – "Virginity Seal Specialist"; Purple – "Cupid the Jerk"; White – "Mountain of Morality"; Black – "Hannibal's Successor."]

Virginity Seal Specialist (Green): The ultimate detector of true love, straight from Chunan's school of forbidden arts. You've trained in the Seal of Chastity since youth. You can complete its application in thirty seconds. If someone without true love forces themselves on the bearer, the seal will backfire—with the backlash strength determined by the caster's own power.

Cupid the Jerk (Purple): Noble love? Passionate desire? Nah—today this little brat shoots pettiness! Consume energy to fire an "emotional sabotage arrow." If the target has a partner, the arrow will trigger either an argument, breakup, fight, or epic verbal meltdown. Lasts 30 minutes.

Mountain of Morality (White): A towering mountain of justice looms in your heart. Slightly increases moral integrity, sense of justice, order, and protectiveness. Doing immoral things significantly increases guilt, regret, and a sense of sin.

Hannibal's Successor (Black): You've long admired Hannibal—and now you've embraced your true nature. Your humanity and morality drop drastically. Your craving for human flesh increases dramatically. Greatly improves your butchering, organ handling, and cooking skills. Slightly improves elegance, charisma, and verbal ability.

"..."

Shinno silently scratched his head.

Virginity Seal Specialist... good thing it didn't just slap a chastity seal on him directly. Otherwise, he'd have to go to the bathroom and check with a mirror to do any real research on it.

And Cupid the Jerk—can't the love god just act normal for once? Why always the opposite!?

As for Mountain of Morality and Hannibal's Successor—

The first one was basically a "hero maker." Hand it to someone with a shred of decency, and they'll become a justice paladin. But give it to a villain? They'll be guilt-tripping themselves into a breakdown in no time.

The latter... well...

Anyone with this trait—even if they weren't super powerful—could probably carve out a niche for themselves in Gotham City.

Today's system...

Was as wonderfully abstract as ever.