It wouldn't be too late to make improvements after fully digesting the knowledge he would learn in the Puppet Corps, including the Black Secret Technique.
Additionally, Hardy wanted his avatar in Gotham to acquire some modern engineering knowledge and integrate it into his puppet techniques.
For now, Hardy planned to first master the multitasking technique from the Black Secret Technique.
A puppet master's weakness in close combat was relative. One reason was that most of their abilities were focused on their puppets; another was that when controlling puppets, a significant portion of their attention was occupied, making it easy to neglect their own defense.
That's why ninja like Konoha's White Fang, who excelled in close combat, had incredible speed and explosive power, and could close the distance in an instant, were the greatest counters to puppet masters.
Mastering multitasking allowed a puppet master to devote more attention to their own defense, helping to avoid such situations.
There were other methods as well.
For example, like Chiyo, one could enhance their speed to the point where enemies had trouble catching up.
Or like Sasori, one could transform themselves into a puppet.
But those options were still far off for Hardy.
Besides, he preferred to encase himself within a puppet.
That way, he could enjoy the advantages of both approaches.
"I understand the theory, but putting it into practice is really difficult."
In his home workshop, the notes were placed on the table. Hardy spread his hands, controlling Formentor with his left hand and Tom with his right.
At his feet sat the lone little boy puppet.
The little boy puppet was higher-level and more difficult to control, making it unsuitable for early practice.
The two puppets moved awkwardly, staggering around the room.
"My chakra threads still aren't refined enough. Controlling a single puppet used to be easy—if one thread slipped, another could compensate. But now—"
He had to achieve the same effect with a single chakra thread that he used to get with two!
Before long, beads of sweat began to appear on Hardy's forehead.
If it takes ten ropes to lift a stone, then when the number of ropes is halved, the remaining five have to be thickened or replaced with stronger material so they can bear the weight.
Hardy's current problem was that his "ropes" were too thin—the chakra threads weren't solid enough, and his technique was only barely passable.
In this state, trying to control two puppets in battle produced less fighting power than controlling one puppet did before; in fact, he might not even be able to fight at all.
*Clang!*
The fat guy tripped over Tom's foot and fell flat on the ground.
Hardy could only cover his forehead helplessly and turned his attention to the system panel.
Why can't you give me a boost like Deep Blue does?
Nothing for it—time to keep practicing.
...
...
Gotham City.
In a certain dark alley.
*Crack!*
Hardy personally twisted the neck of a mob boss who had just left a nightclub, then quickly searched the body.
This was the most suitable prey he'd found after a whole day of searching.
It had been two days since he escaped from Arkham Island.
Relying on his Transformation Jutsu and the intelligence-gathering skills of a ninja, Hardy had already obtained some of the information he needed and could proceed to the next step of his plan.
Step one: get money, get materials, then find a place to stay and build a puppet with some combat capability.
The DC Universe was a dangerous, high-powered world, and Gotham in particular was so "wholesome" that you might get shot in an alley just for going to the opera.
Without enough power to protect himself, it would be hard to do anything.
"Four thousand dollars. Less than I expected, but it'll do. The keyring is the important part, anyway."
Hardy tossed the keyring in his hand, then took the gun holster from the mob boss's waist.
At the moment, he was dressed as a stylish city woman.
Not cross-dressing, but having infiltrated the nightclub with the Transformation Jutsu and replaced the club's top hostess—he was supposed to spend the night with this boss.
When they passed through this alley, Hardy made his move, leading to the current situation.
He formed seals with his hands and used the Transformation Jutsu again.
With a puff of white smoke, Hardy instantly turned into the mob boss. He coughed a couple of times, shouted a few times in a hoarse voice, and cursed Batman. Once he felt his voice matched the original well enough, he walked out of the alley and headed to the car, pulling out the keyring.
After a few tries, he quickly got the car started.
He'd had a driver's license in his previous life, and although the cars here were a bit different, he adapted quickly.
Ten minutes later.
In front of a bar, Hardy parked and got out.
"Boss!"
The two security guards in suits at the door saw Hardy and immediately bowed their heads to open the door for him.
This large bar was one of the mob boss's businesses.
"Mm."
Hardy imitated the boss's mannerisms he'd observed over the past two days, swaggering into the bar.
He ordered a bottle of champagne as usual, flirted with a waitress, then laughed loudly and headed upstairs.
"The office should be this one."
Hardy tried the keys on each room until he found his target.
"The guy let slip when he was drunk—the bar's profits and his personal savings are all in this office."
Hardy scanned the room, then began searching.
There were six thousand dollars and two magazines in the drawer.
Women's underwear in the cabinet.
An old key abandoned in the corner.
No secret mechanisms behind the bookshelf.
It wasn't until he moved the desk that Hardy noticed there was very little dust under it.
"If it wasn't just cleaned, then…"
Hardy reached into the gap between the floor tiles and pried one up with a bit of force.
Underneath was a safe.
He tried the keys again, and finally managed to open the safe.
On stacks of crisp green bills lay neatly arranged gold bars.
Five rows of six, thirty gold bars in total.
He picked one up and weighed it, estimating the weight in his mind, then checked the cash.
Each gold bar was the same size and weight, about 100 grams each. Just the gold alone was worth around $200,000.
There were thirty stacks of cash, each stack exactly ten thousand dollars.
All together, it was half a million dollars—a small fortune.
After all, this was just a small-time gang boss.
In all of Gotham, there were countless such small gangs, and getting half a million from one was already a good haul.
With this money, he could buy a house in most non-downtown areas of Gotham, and still have plenty left over.