Aside from the monotonous but slightly varied food items, the only valuable rewards were the Ninja Cat Food and the Water Clone Technique.
In truth, its luck had been quite good; these two items alone were worth the price of admission.
But it wanted more iron spheres, and instead it got...
Toy: Rat Puppet.??? Toy: Rat Puppet.???
'What the hell is a Rat Puppet? Give me my iron spheres!'
Raj roared inwardly, then silently pulled out the Rat Puppet and began examining it.
To its surprise, the little thing was quite well-crafted.
After claiming it, the System notified Raj that this toy was rather interesting.
Its exterior seemed to have been solidified with the effects of the Transformation Technique, and by infusing it with Chakra, it could be made to move autonomously.
This sounded like it had great potential.
By infusing it with Chakra and marking it with the Flying Thunder God Technique, Raj would essentially have a stealthily mobile Flying Thunder God coordinate.
'Wouldn't that be far more useful than throwing iron spheres?'
'A treasure!'
It immediately marked the puppet with its personal Flying Thunder God seal and infused it with Chakra.
According to its plan, since it was a "puppet," it should be controllable.
The idea was to manipulate the puppet to approach the enemy, using it as a springboard for a surprise attack.
But the reality was...
After injecting Chakra, the puppet swiftly activated, its limbs moving with a whoosh as it darted away.
Raj instinctively gave chase, but the tent was directly below.
If the puppet jumped, it would tear right through the fabric.
Forced to land to the side, Black Cat raced to intercept it from another direction.
The rat puppet was remarkably fast and surprisingly intelligent.
Spotting the enemy ahead, it immediately veered away.
The problem was, a young Ninja stood on one side, and the tent blocked the other.
So...
It scurried toward the only open space.
'Damn it!'
Raj's frustration flared.
Though he couldn't use the Flying Thunder God Technique in public, he could open the Gate of Opening.
Activating the gate granted him a sudden burst of speed, and in the blink of an eye, he pinned the rat puppet beneath his paw.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"
'Great, it even has sound simulation. Talk about intelligent!'
It was intelligent, but its intelligence was limited to fleeing at the sight of an "enemy."
Speed was its only asset, and Raj had no intention of becoming a deserter.
Moreover, its escape routes were random and unpredictable, making it utterly uncontrollable.
So, the question arose: what was the point of this thing?
It was clearly just a toy.
If it were a real cat, this toy might have been somewhat amusing.
For instance, giving it to Matatabi, that big, goofy oaf, would surely result in endless entertainment.
But knowing Matatabi, he'd probably break it within days.
That was just the nature of cats.
'Wait a minute... if that's the case, the problem isn't with the System, but with me?'
Raj was instantly stunned by this realization.
It suddenly understood why it felt so cheated: its own configuration wasn't that of a normal cat, which explained why the System's offerings felt so unappetizing.
'Never mind, I'll just keep it for now...'
It stowed the Puppet away.
Turning around, it saw the young Ninja standing there, wide-eyed in astonishment, before bowing deeply and respectfully.
Though he didn't speak, his eyes were brimming with gratitude.
This left Raj utterly bewildered.
'What did he do?'
Still, the ninja had meant well, so Black Cat nodded slightly in acknowledgment before lifting its head and leaving to continue its stroll, checking the rest of its lottery winnings along the way.
The rat puppet was a total scam, but the cat food and Water Clone Technique were genuine.
This haul was definitely a major win.
It proved that mysticism had its uses after all.
While the Water Clone Technique seemed somewhat impractical, it was better than nothing.
Raj consoled himself while pondering his next move.
'Forget it, I'll go check on Jiraiya and make up for the lost points. I need to earn enough to exchange for those Secret Techniques and Kekkei Genkai I've been eyeing.'
He wondered what Jiraiya was up to.
If he was working, even Raj would hesitate to disturb him.
Official business came first; only when peace was restored could he finally settle back into his cozy home in Konoha.
Following the path to the Main Tent, Raj expected to find Jiraiya hunched over his desk, but instead, he saw Shibi Aburame sitting there, meticulously reviewing documents.
As for Jiraiya...
Jiraiya was ostensibly helping with the work, but his eyes and movements betrayed his slacking off.
More importantly, there was another Jiraiya's presence nearby.
A Shadow Clone?
Raj followed the scent trail to the riverbank, where he finally found Jiraiya's tracks.
Raj didn't approach too closely, instead observing from a distant tree.
He spotted Jiraiya crouching by the riverbank, a lewd chuckle escaping his lips.
Part of it was Raj's keen hearing, but Jiraiya's laughter also carried remarkably well.
'What's he up to, acting so perverted?'
There were only a few fish swimming in the river.
'Could a mermaid have appeared here...?'
'This is making me curious!'
Raj suppressed his scent and sound, cautiously creeping forward to investigate.
As he drew closer, he noticed Jiraiya holding a brush and paper.
'Writing an art book?'
That didn't seem right.
Raj remembered Minato saying that Jiraiya was still an upright author, writing only positive works filled with perseverance, determination, and hard work.
'Hmm, though it's not exactly a bestseller.'
In all of Konoha, the only people who would give Jiraiya a thumbs-up and praise his writing are probably Minato, Kushina, and Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As it approached, Raj peered down from the tree.
The handwriting was small, crooked, and messy, but fortunately, Raj could decipher some of it.
With a bit of guesswork, it managed to grasp the gist of the story.
Actually, no guesswork was needed.
The story was simple: the protagonist is playing by the river when a beautiful woman... well, you know... and he crouches nearby to watch...
Basically, it was exactly what Jiraiya was currently fantasizing about.
'Jiraiya, you're a true genius!'
'Could this be why he later transitioned from a positive-energy author to a bestselling writer?'
Raj mused.
But then it couldn't resist adding a few criticisms:
'Why write this trash when you could be writing proper positive-energy stories?'
'We need to guide this misguided author back to the path of righteousness!'
'More importantly, causing mischief right now would surely earn plenty of Points.'
'Hehehehe!'
'Don't blame me, Jiraiya. I'm just trying to make a living.'