Chapter 3: First Forging and the Lucky Draw
Now ready for his very first forging attempt, Naraku decided to start simple: a basic shuriken.
He stood quietly in the forging room, expression focused and serious. Tools were laid out before him. Carefully, he picked up a piece of rough iron and placed it in the furnace. Sparks flew as the flames roared to life.
Once the metal glowed bright red, he clamped it with tongs and began hammering—light, controlled strikes at first. His movements grew smoother with each blow. The shuriken's shape slowly emerged. Sweat dripped from his forehead, but his eyes never left the workpiece.
As time passed, the outline sharpened. He quenched it in the cooling medium, then ground and polished the edges until they gleamed with a cold, razor-sharp light.
Finally, the crucial step: infusing one of the Vassal Arm secret techniques. Most required rare conditions or materials, so he chose the simplest one available.
Naraku paused, staring at his creation.
The Forging Master System evaluated it:
[Shuriken: D+]
[Limited by materials and the forger's current proficiency. Even with B-grade techniques, it falls short of C-rank. Still, this shuriken far surpasses others in its class!]
Naraku reflected on his process. He realized the issue: his mind knew the techniques perfectly, but his body—still a child's—lagged behind. Eye-high, hand-low.
Ding...
[Detected: Forger has crafted a D-grade weapon for the first time. Reward: 1 free lottery draw.]
The notification reminded him—he still had an unclaimed beginner's gift pack! "System bro, where's my newbie big gift? You didn't pocket it, did you?" he grumbled aloud.
No response. The system stayed silent, as useless as ever. Maybe the first task reward was the gift pack. He let it go.
Undeterred, Naraku threw himself into forging. The workshop's talent bonus combined with the inherited Vassal Arm knowledge sent his proficiency skyrocketing. Each shuriken sold for about 100 ryō—not bad for pocket money.
Money mattered. The ninja world had rare materials like chakra conductive metals that cost a fortune. He refused to live like a broke orphan (looking at you, future Naruto). He wanted resources, power, and freedom.
He hammered late into the night, spirit burning with excitement. This latest shuriken felt different—bigger.
He lifted it carefully.
[Shuriken: C-]
[Limited by materials, but B-grade techniques and sufficient proficiency pushed it to C-. Extreme sharpness and near-indestructible durability. This is its limit!]
Ding...
[Detected: Forger has crafted a C-grade weapon for the first time. Reward: 10 free lottery draws.]
Naraku nodded in satisfaction. Progress.
Only then did exhaustion hit. Even with chakra and ninja resilience, his small body ached. Clothes soaked in sweat, face blackened with soot—he looked like he'd crawled out of a coal mine.
Supplies were running low (rough iron, charcoal), so he called it a night.
Walking home through the quiet streets, a strange noise drifted to his ears: twisted, gasping breaths mixed with delirious meows—like someone high out of their mind.
He froze, scanning the darkness. Cold wind rustled leaves, but the eerie sound grew clearer. Heart pounding, unease crept in.
Closer… closer… from that shadowy corner.
Naraku braced himself. Don't tell me I transmigrated into a Cthulhu version of Naruto. System or not, that's not survivable!
Then he saw it: Ninja Cat Shukaku, completely wasted on the catnip he'd gifted earlier. The proud summon was sprawled out, defenses down, rolling in ecstasy—three ninja taboos forgotten.
Naraku smirked. Normally aloof and haughty, now helpless. Revenge time.
He darted in, gave the cat a thorough, gleeful petting session—then bolted home before Shukaku could recover.
Back at home, Naraku bathed, changed, lit incense, and sat in solemn meditation. Eleven draws waited—time for a big session. He felt a flicker of nerves. In his past life, he'd been the ultimate "non-chief": legendary bad luck, always hitting pity. Would this world change that curse?
"System, start the lottery!"
He decided to test fate with a single draw first—singles sometimes hit miracles.
[Lottery in progress]
The wheel spun: mostly white, with tiny gold sections. He prayed silently.
It slowed… landed in white.
[Mineral Water Bottle ×1]
The cold text appeared. Naraku felt a wave of defeat. Proof: the curse followed him across worlds.
He could rage-quit… but no. High-quality materials existed in the ninja world; reputation would come. A good pull now would let him craft B-grade weapons faster.
"Ten-draw! Go!"
[Pull Can ×1]
[Cola ×10]
[Milk ×1 crate]
[Blue: Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's Underwear]
[Green: Ingredient Processing Technique]
[Melon Seeds ×10 kg]
[Eight Treasures Porridge ×1 crate]
[Iced Black Tea ×1 crate]
[Green: Monkey Scarlet Iron Sand & Monkey Scarlet Ore ×10 portions]
[Blue: Dangerous Species – Flying Mantis Corpse ×1]
Naraku's eyes locked on the last one. From the Vassal Arm knowledge: the Flying Mantis corpse was a core material for crafting Kirikabe Ichimonji (One-Text Blade / Murasame-style one-cut killer).
He had just gathered everything needed—and a full corpse meant leftovers for extras!
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