Right at the moment Orochimaru was fiddling with the scroll—

  [gratutions, Host! The lottery system upgrade is plete!]

  [Intermediate draws are now avaible! Each draw costs 1,000 Employment Points, with a minimum of 10 draws!]

  Senshi’s mi bnk for a moment.

  “How much?! 1,000 points for a single draw?”

  He had anticipated that the ight go up after the upgrade, but he never expected it to jump tenfold. Quickly, he g his bance:

  [Employment Points: 15,231]

  Let’s try one pull and see how it goes.

  [Dedug 10,000 Employment Points! Remaining bance: 5,231 points.]

  [Drawing…]

  [gratutions! You’ve obtained…]

  ? 1 Pair of Sharingan

  ? Shikotsumyaku (Dead Bone Pulse, a Kekkai Genkai)

  ? +10 Chakras

  ? +8 Physical Strength Units (beled “Kai”)

  ? x10 Lv80 “Surprise Apples”

  ? +6 Physical Strength Units (Kai)

  ? 1 Thuone

  ? x100 Ichiraku Ramen

  …

  He’d drawn chakra again? In fact, after his chakra and body strength had both reached SSSS-level, he hadn’t drawn any simir upgrades for a while. Apparently, you have to upgrade the system first before you draw these again.

  What’s more, the odds of getting good items seemed signifitly higher now: he evewo Kekkai Genkai at once, plus two other straems:

  [Thuone]: A mysterious stone taining “evolutionary power.” When carried, it enhances lightning-type teiques.

  [Lv80 Surprise Apple]: From what Senshi recalled, its fvor improved with the “surprised level”; the higher the “Lv” of shock ht, the tastier it became.

  One came from Toriko, and the other from Pokémon. He never expected that after the upgrade, he’d start drawing items from other worlds.

  Before he could think more oter, Orochimaru finished his preparations. Bck patterns crisscrossed the floor, stretg out in all dires—reminding Senshi of the “human transmutation circles” from Fullmetal Alchemist. pared to the first time he saw Orochimaru’s research seals, this one was clearly much rger and more plex.

  Having id everything out, Orochimaru turo Senshi:

  “Based on our long-term employment tract, you’re obliged to cooperate with my resear your chakra. Now please follow the agreement: go sit in the ter of the array and refine your chakra. I o observe and study it.”

  Senshi heard this and didn’t refuse. After all, it was a trivial matter. He sooo the ter, sat down, and began molding chakra. Orochimaru observed the readings from a nearby instrument, his expression impassive, but inside he was utterly shocked.

  “What’s going on? It hasn’t evehat long since I st checked him—how has his chakra level increased so drastically?!”

  He was taken aback: Senshi’s total chakra now exceeded the maximum this array could even measure. If Kisame—famous for his “tailless Tailed Beast” level of chakra—knew how much Senshi had, he’d likely surrender his niame on the spot. But Orochimaru’s only was: How oh had Senshi achieved such explosive growth?

  Beyond that, Senshi’s chakra “quality” had also soared. Anyone familiar with Tailed Beast chakra knows that all “equal amounts” of chakra are not the same. One unit of Ten-Tails’ chakra far outstrips one unit of a on genin’s. Yet Senshi’s chakra was now, by far, the highest quality Orochimaru had ever observed. Add in that Senshi possessed an unbelievable affinity fhtning Release, and Orochimaru couldn’t help but wonder:

  “Just how powerful is he at full strength these days? Even he might not know.”

  Finishing his observations, Orochimaru carefully recorded the data on a scroll, then opened his mouth—and a snake shot out, swallowing the scroll in one gulp. Senshi noticed and instantly reized the infamous “Orochimaru spitting snakes, snakes spitting scrolls” se. He couldn’t help making fun of it in his head. Obviously, Orochimaru had no clue what Senshi was thinking.

  After putting the scroll away, Orochimaru turo Senshi.

  “There’s another matter I want to discuss.”

  Senshi rose, looking at Orochimaru.

  “What is it?”

  Orochimaru g Karin and licked his lips.

  “I need a pair of Sharingan.”

  He gazed at Karin’s eyes with undisguised envy. Though his greatest wish was still the Rinnegan, he had seen with his own eyes how that was out of reach. Failing that, obtaining Sharingan would be the best thing. For most people, acquiring a Sharingan is extremely difficult—just look at how Kumogakure tried to abduct a Hyūga princess for their Byakugan. But for Senshi, it shouldn’t be much trouble. After all, he’d already transpnted a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan into Karin.

  Realizing Orochimaru’s aim, Senshi smirked in his mind.

  “That’s easy enough. Ten million ryō, and I get you a pair right away.”

  It’s just a pair of Sharingahought. I literally just drew a set. Once Orochimaru issued the ission, Senshi could hand over a jar taining the eyes on the spot. Of course, iy, he wouldn’t do it that simply. He’d probably disappear for a few days to pretend it was a grand uaking—so he could justify the reward.

  But Senshi didn’t expect Orochimaru to shake his head and crify:

  “Perhaps I didn’t expin my requirements clearly. Let me be more specific.”

  “I don’t only need a pair of Sharingan. I also need a living member of the Uchiha who’s already awakeheir eyes. Without an Uchiha’s physique, normal people ’t hahe chakra drain of Sharingan. Not everyone is like your Uzumaki , with massive chakra reserves. And I have no iion of turning into a Kakashi-like weakling after transpnting them.”

  For a sed, Senshi was left speechless.

  “Orochimaru, that’s putting me in a tough spot. You know how many living Uchiha are left in the world? Exactly three!”

  ting on his fingers, he expined:

  “We’ve got Uchiha Obito, Uchiha Itachi, and Uchiha Sasuke. That’s it.”

  “Obito’s a Cyclops—only one eye. I assume you’re not ied in him. Itachi’s off-limits because he’s part of Akatsuki, and I don’t want to csh with the anization and ruin all my future missions. Plus, Sasuke’s around Karin’s age—a total little brat. What would you even do with him?”

  Inwardly, Senshi couldn’t help rolling his eyes at how Orochimaru had insulted Kakashi’s stamina. For all people tease Kakashi about his low chakra, that opped him from usih Release: Earth-Style Wall and carving f heads into it. Maybe that was the st stubbornness of Copy Ninja Kakashi. If nothing else, he never actually colpsed from “overuse,” not in any definitive sense.

  As Senshi broke down these hidden pieces of intel, Orochimaru was left dumbfounded—yet again. He’d heard rumors here and there but not in such detail, aainly not all tied together so ly. He’d lost t of how often Senshi’s uny intelligework stunned him. No matter how secret the intel, Senshi always seems to know.

  Intelligehering is part of a ninja’s power, and Orochimaru realized all ain that Senshi was beyond pare in this department—though in his mind, he beled Senshi’s “brain circuit” as the only questionable point.

  After regaining his posure, Orochimaru asked:

  “So how exactly do you know all this?”

  Senshi just gave a cryptic grin.

  “Trade secret.”

  He certainly wasn’t going to reveal that his intel came from a “system.” Let Nagato or Orochimaru iigate all they want. Their clusion would always be: This ‘intelligework’ does in the real world.

  Seeing no way to pry it out of him, Orochimaru decided to make use of Senshi’s mysterious intel-gathering services ily. He pondered for a moment and said:

  “Tell me more about that cyclops then—Obito, was it?”

  Truth be told, Orochimaru felt he had no choice. If Itachi rotected by the Akatsuki, and Sasuke was too young with underdeveloped Sharingan, Obito might be the only optio—even with a single eye.

  Senshi felt a bit surprised by the question.

  “Wait, you’re really going for that cyclops? Fet it, Orochimaru. He only has one eye, so half the abilities are missing. A lot of Sharingan’s powers won’t work properly.”

  He wasn’t lying. That retty much the reality. Shimura Danzuably the man who had the most Sharingan—still couldn’t use Susano’o effectively. The eyes mostly ended up as disposable tools for Izanagi or whatever else.

  Orochimaru frowned as he mulled it over:

  “Well, ’t I just find another Sharingan somewhere to make it two? Aren’t you the one who supposedly knows where to get them?”

  After all, Orochimaru’s knowledge of the Uchiha line wasn’t very prehensive. Senshi was momentarily dumbstruck by his idea and quipped:

  “Ha. Wow, you’re really something else. But it’s no good. If it isn’t the pair that inally beloogether, it won’t offer the full potential. Many of the high-level Sharingan abilities wouldn’t work. Obito and Danzo both had spares, aher of them could develop Susanoo. The real point is, the pair of eyes o be a matched set. Of course, there is a vanishingly small ce that Obito has a spare stored away somewhere and just never bothered to use it—but I doubt it.”

  Seeing Orochimaru’s face darken, Senshi rubbed his thoughtfully.

  “Though, e to think of it, I do know where Obito’s other eye is.”

  At that, Orochimaru lit up, hope fshing across his features. Just when I thought all was lost, here’s a glimmer of possibility.

  If Obito could recover his missing eye, then he’d be a perfect host body with two intact Sharingan. And Orochimaru, being an old t of Senshi’s, uood how things worked. He saw Senshi was silent after dropping that remark, so he cut to the chase:

  “How much?”

  Senshi let out a sly ugh.

  “These eyes have abilities far beyond anything you imagihe other person who holds Obito’s Sharingan is one of Konoha’s top jōnin—ae amoes—someohe vilge secretly grooms as a Hokage didate. Taking his eye means going against the entire Konoha, which is huge. You’re from there, so I don’t have to expin its power. So yeah, this won’t be easy. On top of that, Obito himself isn’t some random nobody—he’s allied with our leader Nagato. Making a move on him also puts us at odds with anization. In short, one word for you: plicated. That’s why we’re talking at least… oh, 100 million ryō.”

  Orochimaru: “Wha—?!”

  He was momentarily dazed by all that extra intel. So Obito, the kid who was the Fourth Hokage’s student—someone he’d barely paid attention to—had not only survived, but also ended up cooperating with Nagato? How is that even possible?

  A thousand questions ran through Orochimaru’s mind. If Senshi’s intel was true, it meant Obito was no mere “tail-ender” but someone who’d made it to Nagato’s level i. Orochimaru couldn’t begin to guess what had transpired to make that happen.

  Still, he mulled it over. First: did he still want a perfect “Uchiha host body” at all? Yes, absolutely. He’d seen Uchiha Itachi’s prowess; he knew how enormous a boost Sharingan could provide. The stronger he was, the more research he could do, and the fewer ninja could hamper him.

  Sed: if Senshi’s intel was correct, only three legitimate Uchiha remained, ign the possibility of transpnting the Mangekyō from someone like Karin, who already had it from a transpnt. She had vast chakra reserves from her Uzumaki lineage, making her a good “host,” but Orochimaru would still have to get past Senshi to get her. And if he could get past Senshi, why stop at Karin—he could go after Senshi’s body directly.

  Bleam