Chapter 53: Purpose

A week had already passed since the two leaguers paid him a visit and he found himself quite content with what he was doing.

He didn't care for the selfless life of a hero, it just wasn't in him. He had his own goals that he wanted to pursue. Goals that had laid dormant in him for quite a while.

Though, it took him quite a bit to realize it, it didn't take out of his satisfaction. Growing up in an orphanage in his first life had left him a bit stunted in the educational sector.

Despite being smarter than the other kids by a large margin, it didn't change the fact that it just wasn't possible to attain a professional education.

Most of his knowledge came from borrowed books and the few people that were willing to spare some time.

Even after being reincarnated, though he had focused more on the joy of a happy family, he still held the drive to know things.

He had a thirst for knowledge. Magical and non magical.

He had been homeschooled but he doubted it was any less efficient than the academies around. Sometimes he wondered why his mother chose to work in a simple hospital despite her intelligence.

It really baffled him but he chalked it up to her loving to help people.

Despite how weird it would sound, he understood Orochimaru's thirst to know all. It was a worthy aspiration, one that he also shared and would pursue on his own terms.

With such in mind, he had begun to fill in the gaps in his knowledge. Knowledge is power and he wanted to know all of it.

•••••••••••

[Physics Proficiency Lvl 66]

[Chemistry Proficiency Lvl 62]

[Biology Proficiency Lvl 70]

[Language Proficiency Lvl 40]

••••••••••••

As if he was going to let something as trivial as a language barrier stop him from his research. For all he knew, at higher levels it might even allow him to understand alien languages.

With Medical Knowledge at a high 94, biology proficiency was the easiest to level up with physics proficiency coming up second.

•••••••••

[Magic Theory Lvl 12]

•••••••••

He borrowed a book about it from Zatanna who was happy to help. He wanted a more in-depth understanding of how it worked and he was slowly working his way there.

Alchemy had also risen a few levels with how much time and effort he put into it. The only thing that slowed its growth was the fact that he had to restock on ingredients.

He could only be happy for the shadow clone jutsu. If he didn't have that then it would take much longer than a week to progress this much.

At the moment he was working on a rather interesting project of his that came to mind. He vaguely recalled the scene of Tony Stark building his mini arc reactor to power his suit in a cave.

It had taken Tony about a month and a box of scraps to get it done. It had taken Sora exactly one week.

It didn't have anything to do with who was better at building things, it was more of the fact that Sora has more materials than Tony had. Not to mention magic.

He wouldn't need to go through necessarily the same procedures as the man since he used magic to speed run it.

Why wait hours to melt and mold a piece of metal when he could simply use Transmutation to give it whichever shape he wanted.

There is also the fact that what he was building was much less powerful and a bit bulkier than what the man of iron made.

With what he planned to do with it, he didn't need nor want it to be that powerful.

'Almost there…' Sora thought as he carefully placed a tiny piece circular metal in its rightful position.

He then placed a slightly bigger piece of the same metal at the top of the cylindrical looking object, covering the open top that showed multiple circuits inside it.

'Done.' With that thought he connected the cylinder to a smaller device before slowly turning the dial on said device, the sides of the cylinder lighting up in a light blue color.

'I didn't think it'd take so long to finish it but it's finally done.' If anyone heard his thoughts, they wouldn't be able to resist the urge to beat him with a hammer.

Why was that?

He had created a new and powerful source of energy that had never been seen before in only a week and that was his complaint.

While the original arc reactor resembled a slightly thick disk, this one was shaped like a soda can, cylindrical.

Even as he disconnected it from where it was, it still hummed softly with energy in his hand. With a satisfied smile, he slipped it into his inventory as he set about to the next phase.

Taking a quick shower and putting on some decent clothes, he made his way out of the apartment only to be stopped by a curious Zatanna.

"And where are you going?" She asked as she furrowed her brow in concentration and slight frustration.

She had hit a block in one of the spells on the grimoire and it was grating on her nerves. He offered to help but she insisted on figuring it out on her own.

"I'm going to the shop. I have a preposition for Matsuda. It'll be pretty big if I can pull it off." He answered, grabbing a small bag as she slammed the book shut.

"Can I come with? I've been at this for a full week. God knows I need a distraction." She asked, massaging her temples in an attempt to rub away the already present headache.

"Sure." He said as she got to her feet, leaving the book on the table.

With a casual snap of her fingers, her clothes changed to something more fit to wear in public. Her easy use of magic caused Sora to raise a brow.

"You're getting good at that." He complimented as he led her out of the apartment.

"I try my best." She replied cheekily with a smile on her face as they left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

During the course of his time working at the repair shop, he finally figured out that the boss's name was Matsuda Aoi.

It was weird calling him 'boss' all the time.

Walking into the repair shop, eyes landed on him and his companion as they made their way past the busy workers.

They gave the Zatanna weird/curious glances seeing as how she'd never stepped a foot in here.

"Ooooh, the kid's got a girlfriend." Someone whispered but not low enough as Sora let out a sigh as he and Zatanna walked to the back of the workshop, stopping in front of a door at the end before knocking on the door.

*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*

He waited a few seconds before a voice came out.

"Come in." A faint voice said from inside before they opened the door and walked in.

The offices space wasn't big but it wasn't small either. Matsuda sat behind his desk going through some papers as they walked it.

"Sora, it's nice to see you. Haven't you already finished your quota for the week?" He asked as his eyes landed on Sora and then Zatanna.

"Who's the girl?" He asked curiously.

"I know I'm already done for this week but I have something to talk to you about." He said as the man gestured towards Zatanna.

"This is Zatanna." Sora finally answered.

"Hello." The girl greeted with a wave from behind him.

Truly he had no idea how to introduce her so he kept it simple but Matsuda seemed to interpret it as him being shy.

"Please sit." He told them, gesturing to the two chairs in front of his desk.

"So what brings you here? I'm guessing it's something serious since you're not the type to waste your time." Matsuda asked as Sora shut the door behind him.

"Are you interested in becoming more than a manager here? Of expanding and building something bigger?" Sora asked, drawing the man's curiosity.

"What do you mean?" Matsuda asked, not understanding where Sora was going with this.

"What I mean is that I've been working on something that can push this business further than you've ever dreamed." Sora said seriously.

Matsuda was seriously intrigued. On one hand it could just be a silly prank or some naive idea but on the other hand, he knew the kid a lot.

He didn't say things lightly and he seemed more serious than he had seen him when he spoke about something.

"Out with it already. Don't keep me in suspense." He urged, genuinely interested.

"Think of it. A car with an automated driving system. There would be no more need for fuel and it drastically reduces the chances of a crash."

"If those two factors were to be known by the people, they'd rush forward to get a car like it. If we can even manage to get it publicized and regulated by the government, we could be responsible for drastically reducing the crash rate in Tokyo." Sora explained in a grand manner.

Matsuda looked utterly confused as he rubbed his temple. He had a look of disbelief on his face as he listened.

"Do you even hear yourself? You're talking big things kid but that's not possible. As a matter of fact, even if it was possible, it's nowhere near what we're capable of." He said with a sigh.

"I'm aware of what exactly I'm saying. I believe it's very feasible but we can only do it if you're on board." Sora replied, his tone not wavering even once.

Sora could see the conflicted and exasperated look on the man's face as Sora finished speaking. Even if talking wouldn't work, he already had a backup plan for that.

From the moment he pitched his idea, he used one of the Enchantment spells he had searched for specifically for this.

[Motivation], a spell that inspires those who the words are directed to to greatness.

He could already see the effects as the man let out a small sigh as he considered it.

"Sora, those people out there, they fix cars. They don't build them. Besides, if the cars aren't going to use fuel then what's going to power it?" Matsuda asked, finally taking the bait that Sora had laid.

From the small bag on his waist, he fished out his custom mini arc reactor and dropped it on the table as Matsuda's eyes were glued to it.

"This is something I've been working on for a while. It's capable of powering a car for almost a full week." He explained as the man's eyes opened wide at the high tech looking reactor.

"You…made this?" He questioned in disbelief as it hummed lowly on the table.

"Yes. With your help we can make more. And with only us knowing how to make it, we'll hold a monopoly over the supply." The man looked skeptical even as Sora places these facts in front of him.

"This power cell…Even if it works, I don't see how we can actually use it to power a car. It's unlike anything I've ever seen before." He admitted as he sighed tiredly.

"Then let's make a deal. I'll take one of the cars that no one wants and adapt it to utilize this. If I'm unsuccessfully then I'll pay you the amount to cover the car and we can forget this conversation. But if I can do it, then you're fully on board with me. What do you say?" Sora proposed.

He had more enough money to pay for the cars here. It's not like he thought he'd not be able to make it.

If anyone else was in the room, they'd laugh at the fact that he was even listening to him. He couldn't help but consider it. He had nothing to lose and all to gain if it was possible which he didn't think it was.

"Fine. It's a deal." Matsuda said as he shook Sora's outstretched hands.

'All according to plan…' Sora thought as he fought down the grin that threatened to emerge on his face.