Linto returned.
Brother Yamanaka Inoichi was still zoning out on his chair. When he saw Linto looking his way, he flinched. He held up one finger, signaling for a bit more rest.
Linto waved his hand, telling him to continue resting. He opened the system interface to check the status of Killer Queen.
Killer Queen · Bites the Dust.
Six Stars
Rank: Level 5 (Max Level 6)
Owner: Yoshikage Kira (Diamond is Unbreakable)
Abilities:
First Bomb: Can turn any object it touches into a bomb. Pressing it with the right thumb detonates it.
Second Bomb · Sheer Heart Attack.
(First and Second Bombs are explained in detail in Chapter 110, so no further repetition here.)
Third Bomb · Bites the Dust.
Activation Conditions:
First, extreme despair.
Second, choose a target to plant the bomb on, referred to as the "bombed person," and tell them the secret "Linto is a transmigrator."
Both conditions must be met simultaneously to activate Bites the Dust, rewinding time by one hour.
No one except Linto himself remembers the events of the erased hour, but the "bombed person" will remember Linto being a transmigrator.
If anyone asks the "bombed person" about Linto's secret, or if the "bombed person" voluntarily reveals Linto's secret, Bites the Dust will trigger, returning them to one hour earlier.
Killer Queen cannot be used while using Bites the Dust, and it occupies a Stand slot, restricting the use of other Stands.
Note 1: Meow.
Note 2: Here comes the regret medication, but all medicine has side effects. Have you really thought it through?
...
Linto finished reading Killer Queen's description.
"Regarding my secret, this is reasonable. Besides being a transmigrator and having a system, I don't have anything I can't show off… Actually, neither of those things is anything to be ashamed of."
Linto's friends won't distance themselves from him just because he has a system.
Linto's enemies won't suddenly be friendly to him just because he comes from another world.
Whether it's transmigration or a system, people are motivated by Linto himself, whether they admire or hate him.
"The fact that 'Killer Queen cannot be used while using Bites the Dust' is consistent with Yoshikage Kira, which makes sense.
After all, when the third bomb activates, Killer Queen has already burrowed into the bombed person's eyes.
The key is the 'Stand slot'..."
Linto can only use two five-star Stands simultaneously for about 3 to 4 seconds.
After Killer Queen is upgraded to six stars, this time might shorten to 2 to 3 seconds.
"This means that if I remain in the 'Bites the Dust' state, Stands like Star Platinum: The World or Aerosmith can only be summoned and used briefly, and time stop will only last for 4.99 seconds."
This is quite a significant weakening for Linto.
"However... come to think of it, I'm not Yoshikage Kira. Will a future really come where I need to hide my identity for a long time and constantly remain in the Bites the Dust state to avoid it?"
In Linto's imagination, the only use for Bites the Dust would be in a true desperate situation, using it to go back an hour and undo some mistakes or tragedies.
Nothing more.
Linto spent another 6000 soul fragments to upgrade it to max level.
The speed of placing the First Bomb increased from 0.5 seconds to 0.3 seconds, and the explosion radius increased from a diameter of 3 meters to a diameter of 5 meters.
With a placement time of 0.3 seconds, even if the time they can exist together with Aerosmith is reduced due to Killer Queen upgrading to level six, the power has actually increased. Instead of firing 8 bombs in 4 seconds, he can now fire 10 bombs in 3 seconds.
It's just that Killer Queen's finger for pressing the explosion button will be working overtime.
The Second Bomb · Sheer Heart Attack's small vehicle, though Linto hasn't used it yet, has also seen improvements in speed, precision, explosive power, and durability.
With this, all the savings accumulated in recent days were spent in one go.
"Although I told Oda Ieyasu that the joy of spending is temporary, but..."
Linto narrowed his eyes, sat back more comfortably in his chair, took a big gulp of the iced green tea on the table, and let out a sigh of satisfaction.
"It really is joyful."
...
To celebrate, that evening, Linto invited Jiraiya and others out to eat.
In Duwang Town, Linto had eaten so much plain "white people food" cooked by Kawajiri Hayato that his mouth and stomach felt dry. He craved something rich, meaty, and spicy.
After asking around, the Japanese cuisine in the Hokage world was still predominantly light.
Later, at Naruto's strong recommendation, the group decided to head to Ichiraku Ramen.
Not many people came to eat noodles. Tsunade was working overtime, Yamanaka Ino had gone home to rest with her pale-faced father, his friends had gone home, and Sakura felt it would be awkward to stay, so she left with them.
In the end, only Linto, Sasuke, Little Momo, Jiraiya, and Naruto remained for this simple celebration.
Ichiraku Ramen served tonkotsu ramen, with a rich broth and generous ingredients. A slurp of noodles followed by a bite of meat, combined with the cooling autumn breeze, made a bowl of hot noodles incredibly comforting from the inside out. If one felt too full, there were also bamboo shoots.
"But to cut through the richness, a clove of garlic is essential."
As Linto pondered this while waiting for the noodles, he saw Sasuke, Naruto, and Little Momo, three young boys, huddled together whispering, occasionally pointing at Naruto's stomach.
"When did these three get along so well?"
"Noodles are here! Please enjoy!"
Smiling, old man Ichiraku brought two bowls of noodles to Linto and Jiraiya.
Jiraiya poured Linto a drink and asked, "Do you know, a true ramen connoisseur, what's the first step: drinking the soup, or eating the noodles?"
Linto, who had just picked up his chopsticks, froze.
"Is there a difference?"
Seeing Jiraiya's solemn expression, Linto had to think carefully:
"It must be drinking the soup first. You prepare your taste buds with the broth, and then eat the noodles, which are slightly less flavorful, to feel their texture."
Jiraiya folded his arms and slowly shook his head:
"The first step is to properly admire the ramen, to take in the entirety of this bowl, breathing in the steam as you carefully appreciate it."
Linto was stunned.
All these complicated rituals for such a small matter... it was too Japanese!
"Don't listen to him spouting nonsense."
Old man Ichiraku, seeing that they still hadn't touched their bowls, quickly came over to explain:
"Jiraiya is getting old, his teeth aren't good, he likes to let the noodles soften before eating them. He made up that excuse to save face... don't learn from him."
Jiraiya burst out laughing.
The bowls of noodles were served, and the five of them slurped them down with gusto.
After finishing their noodles, Sasuke and the other two went to buy popsicles.
Linto and Jiraiya remained, drinking to the accompaniment of side dishes, one cup after another.
Jiraiya's nose was red, clearly a bit drunk.
For a trained ninja to get drunk, there are only two possibilities:
Either they are genuinely happy and have let go of all their inhibitions.
Or the troubles weighing on their hearts have mixed with the alcohol, invisibly increasing its potency.
"Linto, I envy you, and I envy the Land of Water."
All the smart people could see the changes in the Land of Water.
It wasn't great right now, but if they continued on this path, it would only get better.
However, this was something one could only envy, not force.
One reason was that it takes a hundred years to produce an Oda Ieyasu, a Daimyo with such management talent who wholeheartedly helps Linto.
And the second reason—
Jiraiya took out a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and placed it on the table. He then stepped back towards Linto:
"The Land of Fire has not been peaceful recently. There's a group of people..."
He looked up at Linto.
"They are coming for the 'Awakening Ideology.'"
Linto picked up the paper, his brow furrowing slowly.
---
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