The moment I opened the system menu, my hands were still trembling—partially from the ghostly aftertaste of Pain's power, partially from the cold bite of reality settling back into my own flesh. I was no longer standing tall with chakra rods humming under my skin. I was back in my wheelchair, my legs limp, my body exhausted, my chest still aching where old wounds never fully healed.
But the points…God, the points were glorious.
Almost 2000 system points flickered on the screen like a jackpot. Civilians whispered about the massacre at the Iceberg Lounge. Cops shared stories of the red cloud symbol. And the main characters—the ones who mattered—had taken notice. Robin. Even Bruce Wayne himself. Their attention alone fed the system like a feast, the notifications chiming nonstop for days.
[You have gained +15 points: Civilian Fear][You have gained +40 points: Gotham PD Alert Level Increase][You have gained +200 points: Robin's Attention][You have gained +300 points: Batman's Suspicion]
Every ping was a reminder: Gotham now feared the Akatsuki.
And I was the one who brought the name here.
I took a long, steady breath and opened the Reconstruction Menu.
[Body Repair: 750 Points]Complete healing of all current injuries, nerve damage, fractures, tissue degradation, and chronic conditions.
My finger hovered for a heartbeat.
Then I pressed CONFIRM.
The system ignited inside my body like molten gold being poured through my veins. My spine cracked—but in a good way—straightening and knitting itself back together. The pain that had been my constant companion for far too long dissolved into a warm, soothing hum. Muscles tightened. Nerves reconnected. My legs tingled—first painfully, then beautifully, then powerfully.
I sucked in a breath, my heart pounding with something wild and victorious.
Then, slowly… I stood.
For the first time in so long, I stood on my own two legs without Pain's chakra… without jutsu… without puppeteering another body.
Just me.
My fingers brushed across my torso, almost disbelieving that the old scars were gone. My lungs felt clear. My bones felt whole. The system had erased every flaw.
"I'm… back," I whispered, my voice shaky with equal parts awe and hunger.
But I wasn't just back.
I was better.
The system menu closed, the faint afterglow fading as I flexed my hands, feeling strength that had been stolen from me now roaring beneath my skin.
And Gotham had no idea what kind of monster it had just helped create.
I smiled, slow and sharp.
Time to show them what a fully healed me could really do.