Ward 24.
A deathly silence enveloped every inch of the space. Suddenly, a chilling chewing sound echoed throughout the area.
Kaneki Ken, his white hair a heavy contrast against the grim surroundings, looked as pale as a sheet of paper.
He mechanically brought the Kakuhou, emitting a nauseating stench, to his mouth, quickly chewing it.
Looking around, there was nothing but ghouls lurking in the dark corners and the strange glowing meat walls.
These ghouls either hid in the shadows or blatantly roamed about, searching for their next prey.
The area was divided into countless small sections by walls of flesh, crisscrossing in a labyrinthine fashion, making it impossible to tell directions.
Time had no meaning here, and Kaneki had no idea how long he had even been trapped in this nightmare. Maybe days, maybe weeks, or even months..
Since stepping into this hellish land, he had been in a constant battle.
Each time he was injured, he had no choice but to consume the Kakuhou of other ghouls to recover his strength before quickly throwing himself back into another fight.
Day after day, this cycle repeated endlessly.
In the beginning, Kaneki had struggled to survive, and even though his kagune was powerful, he could hardly control it.
Many times, he couldn't even tell who was controlling his body. Was it Rize, or was it himself? Who even knew?
But with time, Kaneki was forced to adapt to this life, and fighting became almost instinctive.
The potential of this body was gradually unlocked, both physically and in terms of neural reflexes, growing stronger with each passing moment.
The faint sound of footsteps approached, growing louder in the suffocating silence. A cold gleam flashed in Kaneki's eyes, and his kagune whipped out at incredible speed.
A flash of light, and a ghoul didn't even have time to react before its torso was sliced clean in half by the razor-sharp kagune.
In an instant, blood splattered, and entrails spilled onto the ground, exuding a nauseating stench.
Kaneki's lower garments remained relatively intact, but the upper half of his clothes had been reduced to tatters. After Aogiri Tree had tossed him here, they had left him to his own devices.
At first, Kaneki had felt like he was being watched, but after a while, that feeling faded.
After wiping the blood from his mouth, Kaneki swiftly rose to his feet. A few bone shards were tied to his waist, with intricate routes carved onto them.
"I can't do this. These walls are constantly shifting. It's impossible to find a path," Kaneki muttered, his eyes filled with bloodshot veins, his kagune glowing crimson with exhaustion.
Here, there was no time for rest. Even a moment's carelessness would mean a ghoul would rush to tear him apart.
Most of the ghouls in the 24th Ward had unstable minds and couldn't communicate, leaving Kaneki with no way to gather any information.
Aside from the paths he was trying to find, he was constantly contemplating Aogiri Tree's purpose.
Why had they thrown him here? If they wanted to kill him, they could have done it quickly and easily without all this elaborate planning.
The tall white-haired young man's face and scattered words often flashed through his mind. Since the steel beam incident wasn't an accident, what role had Dr. Kanou played in it?
...
At the CCG Rehabilitation Hospital, midnight.
A fierce battle had drained Uesugi Ryu of much of his energy. After treating his injuries at the hospital, he sank into a deep sleep.
When he woke up, he lay on his hospital bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. His gaze shifted slightly, as if he were contemplating something.
Three lottery chances weren't something to take lightly!
Moreover, Uesugi Ryu wasn't that high-minded either. He quickly pulled the blanket over his head.
Reaching into the system space, he took out a lace thong and, in a flash, placed it over his head.
[Use successful, Luck +4! Duration: 5 minutes!]
[(The goddess of luck smiles: ( *,(),* ,) )]
A peculiar seafood scent filled the air, and Uesugi Ryu's hair was messed up, split into two pieces.
He coughed lightly, quickly clicking the lottery button on the system panel. "System, I don't care about my face anymore, give me a Golden or Legendary drop!"
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining C-rank rare item: Wine bag]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining E-rank item: 3D Maneuver Gear (Mana-powered version)]
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining B-rank rare item: (One set of Sharingan, Seven)]
Looking at the string of items, Uesugi Ryu gasped in amazement.
As expected of the goddess of luck, it really worked wonders! Uesugi Ryu couldn't contain his excitement and quickly started putting the items into his storage space for future use.
But just as he was about to stash the items, a mechanical prompt sounded.
[Items cannot be retrieved from system space during their active duration!]
Uesugi Ryu froze for a moment, and a trace of disappointment appeared on his face.
"Sigh..." He let out a light sigh, shaking his head helplessly. Looks like exploiting the system's loopholes for a small advantage wasn't going to work.
Before he could even take off the headgear, he hurriedly looked at the three strange items.
When he saw the peculiar device, Uesugi Ryu couldn't help but grin helplessly, silently cursing in his mind.
"Although this is a food-themed show, why the hell would you give me a 3D Maneuver Gear? Are you trying to make me fight ghouls with this?!"
After a moment of cursing, Uesugi Ryu didn't care too much about the item; he didn't need it to fight ghouls.
His gaze shifted to the golden B-rank item, and he was slightly dumbfounded. Was it the one he thought it was, the set of Seven?
---
Name: (Pending)
Race: Dark Crow
Gender: Male
Power: Overall rating A-
Strength: 7 (B)
Agility: 10 (S-)
Constitution: 7 (C-)
Intelligence: 8 (B+)
Mana: 80 points
HP: 70 points
Race Talent:
1. Shadow (Blend into shadows, making it difficult to be detected. Speed +1 when hidden)
2. Two Tomoe Sharingan
[Insight] (Greatly enhances dynamic vision)
[Copy]
[Hypnosis] (Consumes 8-40 Mana to put the target to sleep)
(Willpower affects success rate. Strong resistance may cause failure.)
(Strongly opposed actions may cause hypnosis to fail.)
Skills:
Iron Feathers (Consume 5-15 Mana to reinforce feathers and claws, making them as hard as iron)
Blessing (Can bestow Blessing on others, Luck +1, only for one person)
Shared Vision (Consumes 3-6 Mana, allows temporary sharing of vision with one target)
Description: The perfect fusion of the Uchiha bloodline and the Transcendent Dark Crow race.
Potential beyond belief... (￣m￣)
---