With Sharon's support, Gwen's situation was temporarily resolved, and Su Ye finally had time to think about the Akatsuki organization.
When Su Ye drew the "Girlfriend Card: Hinata" before, he was naturally overjoyed. After all, Hinata has a great personality and an excellent figure, the epitome of a perfect girlfriend.
As for the small conflict between her and Gwen, it was just a rebellious phase typical of young girls—it would pass as she matured.
At least, that's what Su Ye believed. If she continued rebelling, she wouldn't be a "Yamato Nadeshiko" anymore but more like Sadako.
"How could my Hinata be that fierce?"
Moreover, with Sharon as a mentor and guide, it was only a matter of time before Hinata moved past her rebellious phase.
But right now, the main issue wasn't some love triangle—it was the Akatsuki organization.
By all accounts, Hinata was only twelve. In Shippuden, the Akatsuki began hunting tailed beasts when she was sixteen.
So initially, Su Ye didn't take it seriously, thinking he had plenty of time. Even if events were ahead of schedule, it wouldn't be this soon—he'd just learned summoning techniques!
Yet right after the Battle of New York, the Akatsuki showed up without warning or hesitation, giving him no time to rest.
So, the question was: could Su Ye withstand the Akatsuki's assault?
Even though he caught Deidara off guard and easily destroyed one of Sasori's puppets, the other members would be prepared. Taking them down wouldn't be so easy.
Plus, the Akatsuki had members with "red eye disease"—and not just one!
The Uchiha clan's hereditary "red eye disease" (Sharingan). Even a single "Stinky Weasel" (Itachi), if fighting seriously, could cause more devastation than the Chitauri invasion.
Given Su Ye's current strength, he stood almost no chance against the Mangekyō Sharingan.
And these red-eyed freaks only got worse: Itachi was followed by the despair-inducing Nagato, then the fool Obito, and finally, old man Madara.
It seemed like anyone from the Uchiha clan—or even someone like Nagato who got their eyes transplanted—turned into a monster.
If a fully powered Six Paths Madara appeared, Su Ye might really have to call his father for help.
"Stop drinking and bragging at home! Get over here with Flying Thunder God before your son gets wiped out."
Fortunately, it hadn't reached that point yet; Su Ye could still manage for now.
Of course, finding ways to strengthen himself was a top priority—power was the only thing he could truly rely on.
As a system holder, Su Ye had two paths to growth:
Reinforce and solidify his current abilities.
Continue drawing "Girlfriend Cards."
Su Ye had already saved up some Girlfriend Cards and could try his luck to see if he could draw one with a powerful boyfriend.
However, strong characters often came with equally strong enemies, potentially bringing him more trouble.
The other option was to push his current abilities to their limits, which would likely have fewer side effects.
At this thought, Su Ye remembered the Toad Boss, who had mentioned taking him to Mount Myoboku. Now seemed like the perfect time.
At Mount Myoboku, not only could Su Ye become stronger, but his absence might also hinder the Akatsuki's plans.
Without Su Ye or the tailed beasts, the Akatsuki's assault on the city would lose its purpose.
This way, Gwen and the others would likely remain safe.
But there was another problem. If Su Ye really went to Mount Myoboku, it would seem like he was afraid of the Akatsuki.
Putting it nicely, it could be called a strategic retreat. Harshly, it would look like fleeing with his tail between his legs.
Su Ye wasn't obsessed with fighting to the death, but given his affiliations with the Guardians and Avengers, retreating from the Akatsuki would be hard to justify.
Running wasn't an option. Even if a monstrous Uchiha showed up, Su Ye wouldn't flee without a fight.
Meanwhile, not far from the Osborn Tower, in the ruins of a building, Uchiha Itachi suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"What's wrong? Why did you stop?" asked Kisame Hoshigaki, who looked like a dried salted fish.
Uchiha Itachi shook his head. "Deidara is dead, and Sasori has been defeated. We can't afford to be careless. Before making a move, we must gather first-hand information to ensure everything goes smoothly. Otherwise, we'll tarnish Akatsuki's reputation."
Itachi, usually a man of few words, was unusually talkative this time, which even touched Kisame. After pondering for a moment with his limited brain cells, he nodded in agreement.
"You're right, Itachi!" Kisame's tone sounded as if he were possessed by a monk.
Itachi didn't say another word. Instead, he formed a few hand seals, and several black crows flew out from his cloak.
The Crow Clone Technique allowed him to project his chakra onto dozens of crows and create clones, perfect for reconnaissance and surveillance with minimal chakra consumption.
Knowing Itachi's habits, Kisame sat down to wait without saying much.
Dozens of crows scattered across the ruins of New York City, standing out in the urban environment.
After all, birds were rare in the city, especially after the recent battle with explosions and bombings. Any that were around would've long since flown away.
The sudden appearance of dozens of crows was bound to raise suspicions.
Thankfully, as night fell, the crows hidden in the shadows became less conspicuous.
After Deidara's earlier appearance, the Akatsuki had learned of Su Ye's identity and knew he was based at the Osborn Tower. Thus, the crows all headed in that direction.
Through the eyes of the crows, Itachi saw Su Ye—a tall, muscular young man, different from his initial impression.
"As expected of Uncle Su's son. Like father, like son!"
At that moment, Su Ye also looked up, meeting the gaze of the crow perched nearby.
The two locked eyes through the crow's vision.
"Did they really come to find me?"
Su Ye muttered as a kunai appeared in his hand, and he raised it, throwing it at the crow.
Thwack!
The kunai pinned the crow's wing to the wall as it tried to dodge.
"Don't bother trying to dodge. You won't escape."
Su Ye said as he pulled out another kunai.
The crow, pinned to the wall, suddenly opened its beak and spat at Su Ye.
Su Ye: "..."
"Spitting fire jutsu is one thing, but water jutsu? That's just disgusting."
Disgusted as he was, Su Ye still reached out and caught what the crow had spat.
It wasn't spit but a small wad of paper.
Upon opening it, he saw a line of small text.
"The enemy is strong. Run or seek help!"
Clearly, this was intel from a mole, akin to "There's a mole, stop the deal."
The moment he saw the crow, Su Ye guessed that the one controlling it was likely none other than the traitor Itachi Uchiha.
In the original story, this was someone who massacred his entire clan, sparing no one—not even infants—except for his younger brother, and was ultimately redeemed as a hero in mourning.
After coming to this world, Su Ye was still unclear about Itachi Uchiha's backstory.
After all, Old Su was still alive, and many things differed from the original story.
Su Ye had tried to subtly ask Hinata about the Uchiha clan, but she was vague, as if she had never heard of the clan or the Sharingan.
At the time, Su Ye thought Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno might both be gone. After all, he was nearly 19 and had never attended any ninja school; Kakashi's Team 7 likely didn't exist either.
But now that Itachi Uchiha had appeared, the situation needed reevaluation.
Or maybe just call Old Su directly?
With that thought, Su Ye casually threw the kunai, killing the crow, and then pulled out his phone to call Old Su.
On the other end, Old Su answered, sounding half-asleep and groggy.
"Hello?"
Su Ye immediately felt a surge of frustration. Your son is fighting for his life in New York! Did you even watch the alien invasion livestream? Did you see the massive explosion that leveled a ten-kilometer radius?
And you're still able to sleep through all that? How are you so calm?
"Dad, what's the deal with Itachi Uchiha?" Su Ye cut straight to the point.
On the other end, Old Su, still drowsy, mumbled, "Who? Yu Zhibo Rou? What about them?"
Su Ye scratched his head. The localized names were tricky to handle sometimes.
For instance, calling Hinata Hyuga by her original name was straightforward, but now it sounded like a physical move.
"It's… the guy with the Sharingan who joined the Akatsuki!"
"Oh, you mean Yuchi You, Uchiha Fugaku's eldest son, right?"
Old Su sounded completely unconcerned. "Did you meet him? Did he beat you up badly? Don't worry about Xiao You, he's one of my hidden pieces. Even if he roughs you up, he won't take it too far."
"Alright, if there's nothing else, I'm hanging up. Stayed up too late watching your livestream last night… maybe drank too much—uh, I mean, stayed up too long. Not feeling great. Bye!"
With that, Old Su hung up, not giving Su Ye any chance to ask for help.
Listening to the busy tone, Su Ye's face nearly twisted in frustration.
Is this my real father? I'm fighting life-and-death battles, and he's home getting drunk and hungover?
Old Su, I'm telling you now, this isn't over!
As for Itachi Uchiha becoming Yuchi You and being one of Old Su's secret pawns, Su Ye wasn't too surprised. Changing Itachi to You made sense for localization; after all, in Dragon Country, people didn't name their kids after weasels.
Perhaps it was because weasels were seen as mystical creatures, often referred to as "Huang Daxian" in folklore. Names like "Er Gouzi" were more common.
Based on what Itachi—no, Yuchi You—said, their Akatsuki's power was formidable. Su Ye couldn't fight them alone; his options were to flee or seek help.
But with the help option blocked by his drunkard father, fleeing wasn't on the table either. Su Ye wouldn't run without at least putting up a fight.
So now, everything hinged on tonight.
After the Battle of New York, he'd see what kind of reward the system would grant him at midnight.
A reward was guaranteed. From Su Ye's perspective, the Battle of New York had been a resounding success.
He had stopped the alien invasion, destroyed America's largest and most prosperous city, summoned the Great Toad Boss, and used summoning jutsu to retrieve nearly half the alien corpses and gear as loot.
From Su Ye's standpoint, it was an overwhelming victory.
Logically, the reward should be generous.
Who knows, maybe he could even turn the tables and go on the offensive.
Time passed slowly as he waited. Finally, midnight arrived, and the system notification sounded as expected.
[Ding! Event "Battle of New York" completed. Achievement: "Unimaginable." Reward: "Girlfriend Card (Blue·Special·★)."]
This time, the system notification was different. It evaluated Su Ye's event completion as "Unimaginable."
Additionally, the "Girlfriend Card (Blue·Special·★)" had two suffixes, a first for him.
Although it was just a blue card, two suffixes had to be better than a single "★" suffix.
As for the "Special" part, he wasn't sure what that entailed.
He pulled out the card, activated it, and with a flash of blue light, a blue-skinned, red-haired woman appeared on the card.
"Is this… Mystique? My cousin?"
Looking at the card, Su Ye felt a bit confused.
A double-suffix card, and this is what he got? What's so special about this woman? Because of her mutant nature, it was hard to tell if she was dressed or not in that blue skin.
Or was she supposed to be some kind of ultimate fantasy shapeshifter who could even fulfill a man's desires for other men?
This kind of "special" was useless in terms of boosting Su Ye's combat power.
Moreover, Mystique's transformations only changed her appearance, not her actual abilities. Even if she turned into fully-geared Thanos, it wouldn't help.
On top of that, Su Ye was troubled by one more pressing issue.
Who was Mystique's boyfriend, anyway?