Naruto:Suna Shinobi

The panel revealed new branches under Hiriito's LV2 Puppetry skill: LV2 Puppet Crafting and LV2 Puppet Manipulation.

However, what drew his attention most was the progress bar. A small button had appeared beside it, along with two new lines of text:

[Please collect more luck. When the luck gauge is full, you can open a new world and send an avatar.]

[Current Progress: 17.3%. Worlds Opened: 1.]

These two lines of text carried significant implications.

The keywords—luck, new world, and avatar—suggested something extraordinary. Collecting luck could open new worlds, and an avatar could be sent into these worlds to gain even more luck. This appeared to be a major new function of the panel.

Curious, Hiriito clicked the button with his mind.

The panel distorted, transforming into a swirling black vortex. Hiriito felt a strand of his consciousness being stripped away and swallowed by the vortex.

"I feel… dizzy."

Closing his eyes, Hiriito focused on the strange sensation. His consciousness seemed to split in two—one part remaining in his body, and the other now inhabiting a distant, unfamiliar world.

"This feels… like the Shadow Clone Jutsu. But… different."

Although Hiriito had yet to master the B-rank Shadow Clone Jutsu, he was familiar with its concept. However, this avatar seemed far superior, almost like creating a second, fully independent self.

Ominous lightning illuminated the sky, splitting the darkness as heavy rain poured down on the city.

This was Gotham.

Hiriito's new consciousness stirred in a small, ten-square-meter room with walls and floors made of metallic white material. Cold blue light filtered through the bulletproof glass door, and curses echoed from both sides of the hall.

As fragmented memories of this new body flooded his mind, Hiriito tried to orient himself.

A voice from the neighboring cell shattered his focus.

"Oh, hey! Black Mask, you're getting closer! Think about it! It has wings but isn't an angel, it drinks blood but isn't a devil. What is it? Come on, it's simple!"

The exaggerated, theatrical tone belonged to none other than the Riddler, whose antics were already pushing the occupant of the next cell—Black Mask—to his limits.

"Shut up! If you don't stop, I swear I'll rip your mouth off and feed it to Batman!" Black Mask roared.

Hiriito groaned, covering his ears in frustration.

"Great. My neighbors are lunatics."

The memories crystallized in his mind. He was in Arkham Asylum, Gotham's infamous prison for the criminally insane. His new identity?A minor villain nicknamed Puppet Master on Gotham's streets.

Pupet master, or Hiriito in this incarnation, was a disgraced doctor from Asia. After failing as a medical practitioner, he became obsessed with reanimating the dead. His crude methods involved stitching corpses together and manipulating them with steel wires, turning them into makeshift puppets. Despite his creativity, his puppets were low-grade, easily defeated by armed police.

This minor reputation wasn't enough to land him in Arkham, but his so-called "mental instability" had earned him a place here.

The Riddler's endless chatter continued, grating on everyone's nerves.

"Oh, hey! You, Puppet Master, why don't you try solving my riddle? You've been awfully quiet!"

Hiriito finally dropped his hands and responded, his tone sharp and annoyed.

"First, the answer to your riddle is bat. Second, don't bother me again. Third, if you do, I'll turn you into a puppet!"

The Riddler was stunned into silence for a moment, then smirked from behind his green hat.

"You've got some spirit, Puppet Master. But you still have a long way to go!"

Hiriito sighed, punching the wall in frustration. "Riddler, get out of Gotham already!"

Black Mask snickered. "For once, I agree with the puppet freak."

The Riddler leaned closer to his glass door. "Get out of Gotham? Hah! I'll give you another riddle! Let's see how smart you really—"

"Ding Dong!"

Hiriito banged on his bulletproof door, his fists making a racket. The noise quickly drew the attention of the guards monitoring the surveillance cameras. Moments later, a heavily armed guard stormed into the room.

"Puppeter! You'd better have a good reason for this, or I'll make you regret it!"

"Master Guard!" Hiriito said with feigned urgency. "The Riddler just confessed he's been in contact with the Other guy. He's planning a breakout and invited me and Black Mask to join him."

Black Mask: ???

The guard's expression darkened, and he immediately spoke into his communicator.

"Room 408. The Riddler is suspected of plotting a jailbreak. Recommend immediate transfer to maximum-security holding."

The Riddler pressed his face to the glass in disbelief.

"What? I didn't—"

"Riddler," Hiriito interrupted with a sly grin, "you just admitted earlier that everyone in Arkham wants to escape. What's the problem?"

The Riddler paused, trying to retort, but was dragged away by armed guards before he could muster a reply.

As the chaos settled, Black Mask exhaled in relief.

"Finally, some peace and quiet," he muttered, slumping against the wall.

"Don't get too comfortable," Hiriito warned. "The surveillance recordings will be reviewed soon. That lunatic might come back."

Black Mask groaned, already dreading the Riddler's inevitable return.

Meanwhile, Hiriito sat cross-legged in the center of his cell, his mind buzzing with ideas. The new panel functions, the avatar system, and his position in Gotham opened up countless possibilities.

(End of Chapter 4)