Late at night.
"Light, why have you been in the bathroom for so long?" Gali knocked on the door, her voice muffled through the wood.
Light scrubbed his hands vigorously in the sink, feeling slightly breathless. "I'll be out in a minute!"
Creak.
Light wiped his hands on a towel and walked into the bedroom, ignoring Gali's puffed-up cheeks.
"You're suspicious," Gali narrowed her eyes. "Are you hiding snacks in there? Or did you just crawl out of a dungeon?"
"Go to sleep, Gali," Light sighed, shooing her away.
He sat down in his chair, taking a deep breath. The blue System interface popped up in front of him.
[Fan Value: 2,050,000]
Light felt a thrill of nervousness. He had over two million points. He had saved up since last week, resisting the urge to spend.
"System, adjust specifications. I want to try all tiers. One draw at 100,000. One at 300,000. One at 500,000. And finally... one at 1,000,000."
[Specifications adjusted. Initiate lottery?]
"Start."
Light decided to warm up with the lower tiers first.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Obtained: Nobita's Glasses (Doraemon)]
A pair of round, thick-rimmed glasses appeared in the air.
Light tossed them directly into the trash can. Useless.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Obtained: Survey Corps Uniform (Attack on Titan)]
A set of clothes floated down—a light brown jacket with the Wings of Freedom embroidered on the back, and a green cloak.
Light didn't throw this one away. He put it on the table.
'Gali seems to like cosplay lately,' he thought. 'She was playing with Mindy using the 3D maneuver gear the other day. She might like this.'
The 100,000 tier was mostly junk items. Light figured the pool for good items at this level was diluted.
"Next. 300,000 tier."
The wheel spun gold.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Obtained: Ken Kaneki Fragment x2. Kakuhou Fragment x1.]
A pulsating lump of flesh and two puzzle pieces appeared. Light dragged them into his warehouse without a word. He still had no desire to become a Ghoul.
"Next. 500,000 tier."
This was usually where the good stuff was.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Obtained Asura Kabuto Skill Set: Monstrous Power Fragment x1, Agility Fragment x1, Asura Mode Fragment x2.]
Two passive skill fragments and one active skill fragment.
The Monstrous Power and Agility fragments turned into red and green rays of light, pouring into Light's body. It felt like soaking in a hot spring. He took a deep breath as his muscles grew denser and his nerves fired faster.
His Monstrous Power was now Level 2 (Dragon-level potential), and his Agility was Level 3.
However, the crimson light emitted by the Asura Mode fragments made Light uncomfortable. It looked ominous.
Asura Mode Fragment: Great anger brings terrifying strength. The more fragments collected, the stronger the boost, but the user risks losing their sanity to bloodlust.
Light touched his chin. 'Basically, a berserker mode. Since it's an active skill, I'll install it. Better to have it and not need it.'
The fascinating red light turned into a meteor and entered Light's mind. A new icon appeared in the active skill panel: a roaring monster silhouette.
"Now for the big one. One Million Points."
This was his biggest gamble yet. Half his remaining fortune on a single spin.
"Start!"
The wheel spun so fast it blurred into a ring of white light. Light watched the numbers tick down.
[Ding! Congratulations Host! Grand Prize Bundle Obtained!]
[Obtained: Skynet AI Fragment x2] [Obtained: Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu Fragment x5] [Obtained: Konoha Forehead Protector x1] [Obtained: Genos Power Core x2] [Obtained: Ken Kaneki Fragment x2] [Obtained: Saitama Fragment x1] [Obtained: Shunpo (Flash Step) Fragment x1] [Obtained: Bakudo #1: Sai (Restrain)]
Hiss!
Light sucked in a breath of cold air. His heart hammered against his ribs like a drum.
"Jackpot!"
Except for the forehead protector, everything here was gold.
A million points well spent.
[System Prompt: Synthesizable items detected. Auto-synthesizing...]
Light watched as a dim battery flew out of his warehouse. It merged with the two new Power Cores.
Flash!
In a dazzling brilliance, the three batteries collided. A gleaming blue sphere of energy emerged, encased in a sleek, flesh-colored metallic shell with exposed wiring.
Genos Power Core (Complete): The core energy device of the cyborg Genos. Capable of generating immense energy output for weaponry like the Incineration Cannon. Can be upgraded.
Light held the azure sphere. It felt cool to the touch, humming with dormant power.
'This is not a biological heart,' Light noted. 'It's an engine. I can't put this inside me, but I can use it to power external devices.'
He thought of the Terminator fragments.
'If I complete Skynet, maybe I can build a Terminator body and install this core and the Incineration Cannon. A cyborg bodyguard would be useful.'
He stored the core and looked at the Skynet AI Fragments. They looked like black floppy disks. He needed more to complete the AI.
Next, his eyes fell on the blue skill fragment: Shunpo (Flash Step).
Shunpo Fragment: A movement technique from Bleach. Allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow. Can stack with other high-speed movement skills (e.g., Body Flicker Technique).
"Equip."
The fragment turned into blue light and shot into his legs.
[System Prompt: Skill stacking active. Agility + Shunpo = Enhanced Mobility.]
Light stood up. He focused his intent.
Zip.
He disappeared from his chair and reappeared by the window instantly. To a normal human eye, he would have simply vanished.
"It feels... easy," Light whispered. "Like slipping through the air."
His mobility had now exceeded human limits. He wasn't just fast; he was a blur.
Next, he clicked on Bakudo #1: Sai.
Bakudo #1: Sai (Restrain): A Kido spell that locks a target's arms behind their back. Requires spiritual pressure to maintain.
"Equip."
This was a useful capture tool. He didn't always want to punch enemies into red mist. Sometimes, he just needed to arrest them.
Finally, Light looked at the most important prize.
Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu Fragment x5.
This was it. The Holy Grail of productivity.
Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu: Creates solid copies of the user. Experience and memories gained by the clones are transferred to the original upon dispersal. No upper limit on clones, but consumes Stamina (converted from Chakra).
"Stamina instead of Chakra," Light noted. "That makes sense. My Regeneration and Toughness skills give me superhuman stamina, so I should be able to maintain quite a few clones."
He had purposefully drawn Naruto with a focus on this jutsu in the first chapter. He knew the lottery favored elements from recent chapters.
"This changes everything," Light grinned.
Being a manga artist was exhausting. Drawing, inking, plotting—even with tracing, it was a grind.
But with Shadow Clones?
He could have one clone drawing Naruto, one drawing Bleach, one drawing Doraemon, and the original body could go out and enjoy life. Or train. Or sleep.
"And the experience transfer..." Light realized. "If five clones practice drawing for an hour, I get five hours of practice in one hour. My actual art skills will skyrocket."