CHAPTER 46

After killing Nobuto Yagi, the three of them didn't return to the convoy immediately.

They stood there for a long time in silence before Nawaki Senju finally spoke, breaking the stillness.

"This… we just killed four ninjas? That was too easy, wasn't it?"

"No, one of them was a Chunin, the one Kiyo fought," Sarutobi Shō added.

"That's even harder to believe. It felt easier than fighting the Matsuoka brothers last time."

"Agreed," Nawaki nodded.

Uchiha Kiyo had already come to a conclusion and decided to explain.

"It's not the same. These four were rogue ninjas with barely any training. Their ninjutsu was lacking, and even those three Genin barely knew anything beyond the basic Three Basic Jutsu. I doubt they even mastered them properly. They just refined chakra and relied on brute force, making them slightly stronger than regular people but not much else.

Compared to them, the Matsuoka brothers were originally samurai with extensive combat experience. After gaining chakra, they became even stronger."

"That pathetic?" Nawaki looked shocked. "They didn't even have real ninjutsu? And they didn't even fully master the Three Basic Jutsu? And they still dared to try robbing people? They even tried to rob us, Konoha ninjas?"

Uchiha Kiyo shot him an annoyed glance.

"You think ninjutsu is just lying around for anyone to pick up? We're lucky because we have a village and a clan backing us. We have access to powerful ninjutsu, but outside the major villages, it's incredibly difficult to get any. I used to read about it in books, but now I truly understand how rare it is. That Chunin only had one C-rank jutsu, and it was mediocre at best."

"Man, that's rough," Nawaki muttered. "No real guidance, and barely any ninjutsu… Compared to them, we're really lucky."

"Yeah," Sarutobi Shō agreed. "That's why we need to be grateful to the village, train hard, and grow stronger so we can protect Konoha."

Uchiha Kiyo internally sighed. This guy is completely brainwashed by the Will of Fire.

"How the hell did Hiruzen Sarutobi raise Shō? His belief in the Will of Fire is way too strong. But if Hiruzen was so good at raising kids, how did Konohamaru turn out the way he did in the original story?"

After that brief internal rant, Uchiha Kiyo let the thought go. Not my problem.

Once they returned to the convoy, the group continued their journey toward Giant Tree City in the Land of Earth.

Along the way, they encountered a few bandits, but no ninjas.

Ninjas are simply on another level. While they might seem physically weaker in battle, once they're hit, they tend to suffer serious injuries—or even die. But that's only when fighting other ninjas.

With chakra, a ninja can temporarily enhance their body, making them stronger, faster, and more durable than normal people. Even samurai struggle to land attacks on a ninja, and even if they succeed, the damage isn't always significant.

This is why the ninja system eventually replaced the samurai. The rapid growth potential, chakra-enhanced physical abilities, and the versatility of jutsu made ninjas far superior.

"Still… chakra is a double-edged sword.

It's originally from the Otsutsuki clan, and they can potentially 'reclaim' it at any time. If I can, I need to find a way to counter that risk."

This was another reason Uchiha Kiyo had mixed feelings about chakra. Aside from its effect on the body, its origins were concerning.

The Divine Tree came from the Otsutsuki. If an actual Otsutsuki ever showed up, they could just absorb chakra from anyone. That's ridiculously overpowered.

For a while now, Uchiha Kiyo had been thinking about countermeasures. Unfortunately, he wasn't strong enough to research such things yet. For now, he had no choice but to keep using chakra. Thankfully, Kaguya Otsutsuki's emergence was still far in the future. That gave him time.

"Maybe I should focus on my Uchiha bloodline. If I can refine it enough, I might be able to counteract that weakness…"

He immediately dismissed that idea. He didn't want to rely on drastic methods like blood purification or cell transplants. If I can, I want to develop naturally.

Uchiha Kiyo had nothing against science, but he didn't want his own growth to depend on excessive modifications. Only what you cultivate yourself is truly yours.

Besides, the idea of transplanting body parts from others made him uncomfortable.

---

Unlike the fertile lands of the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth was mostly rocky terrain with poor soil quality. However, the trees here were stronger due to the harsh environment.

Otherwise, why would people come all the way here to buy wood instead of using the forests in the Land of Fire?

Of course, there was a balance. If the conditions were too harsh, the trees wouldn't grow at all. But in certain regions, they developed into high-quality timber.

This was why most of the Land of Earth's wood trade was concentrated in specific areas near the border—places like Giant Tree City.

The Land of Earth was one of the Five Great Nations, home to Iwagakure, a powerful shinobi village. Its overall strength was formidable.

Iwagakure always had strong ninja protecting it. The village had two tailed beasts, the Four-Tails and Five-Tails, both sealed within jinchūriki. Unlike some other villages, Iwagakure's jinchūriki weren't completely unable to control their tailed beasts.

On top of that, Iwagakure possessed Dust Release, one of the most powerful kekkei tōta techniques, capable of disintegrating matter at the molecular level.

In short, Iwagakure was not to be underestimated. Even as Konoha ninja, Uchiha Kiyo and his team knew they needed to keep a low profile while in the Land of Earth.

Thankfully, their mission only required them to visit Giant Tree City, which was on the outskirts of the Land of Earth. As long as they avoided trouble, they likely wouldn't attract Iwagakure's attention… hopefully.

Three days later, Uchiha Kiyo and the others finally arrived at Giant Tree City.

As its name suggested, the entire city revolved around the timber trade. Aside from a few essential inns, almost every business was connected to wood in some way.

For Uchiha Kiyo, this was his first time seeing a city with such a clear purpose. A city where everything is about selling wood… that's pretty unique.

While the caravan took two days to purchase supplies, Nawaki dragged Uchiha Kiyo and Sarutobi Shō around the city.

Even though there wasn't much to see, it was still an interesting experience.