"Alright, here's your mission receipt."
After the three of them had neatly stacked the collected softwood in his storage room, Li Anshi handed the receipt to Nawaki.
"You don't need me to teach you the process for collecting the mission reward, do you?"
"No."
Nawaki took the receipt and replied stiffly.
"Then that's perfect. When you go, tell the ninja registering the mission to bring back my share of the reward as well."
"Understood."
"Take care..."
After seeing the three of them off, he returned to the shop, casually picked up a few pieces of softwood, and began to carve at his desk.
Because of the peace and lack of conflict, the great ninja villages had stopped promoting their famous ninjas.
Therefore, the memories of "Konoha's White Fang" and "Little Li's Flying Dagger" in the minds of the villagers and children were gradually fading.
What's more, children under the age of three probably didn't even know their names anymore.
However, the good thing was that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had not yet revised the textbooks in the Ninja Academy. The legends of the First and Second Hokage were still very popular in the village.
Therefore, recently, the best-selling items in his woodcarving shop had once again become the statues of the three Hokage.
Carving figures, whether in terms of difficulty or material consumption, was far beyond that of weapons like kunai, shuriken, daggers, and short swords.
Thus, his consumption of softwood had increased quite a bit during this period.
And the time it took to carve a figure was also much longer than carving a weapon.
If he were carving weapons, he could carve at least two hundred a day. If he put in some effort, four or five hundred would not be a problem.
However, under normal circumstances, the children who came to his shop every day to buy toy weapons were around a hundred. Carving more would not only take up space, but if they saw a lot of stock, the children's parents would also try to bargain.
Therefore, he had to give the villagers the impression that the toys were not easy to carve, to make them feel that they were getting their money's worth.
As for figures, he could carve five a day.
At the fastest speed, without considering quality, he could carve ten.
Of course, because the difficulty of carving figures was much greater than that of ninja tools, the selling price was naturally not comparable to these toy-like tools.
A real kunai or shuriken sold for one hundred and sixty Ryo at the blacksmith's. If you bought in bulk, you could get a discount.
Just like the more than thirty thousand daggers he had had made in a large batch, they had cost about ninety to a hundred Ryo each.
The toys he carved from softwood naturally could not be sold for that much.
He sold a dagger, a kunai, or a shuriken for twenty Ryo.
Generally, children would buy them in threes or fives.
As for figures, he could sell about three to five a day.
The price varied according to the size.
A smaller, fist-sized one sold for three hundred Ryo.
A larger one, about forty to fifty centimeters, could sell for forty to fifty thousand Ryo, depending on the fame of the character and the difficulty of the carving.
The two most expensive woodcarvings in his shop were a statue of the First Hokage using Sage Mode: Wood Human Jutsu, and another of Madara Uchiha standing on the Nine-Tails, using Majestic Attire: Susanoo.
Below that were just ordinary twenty- to thirty-centimeter-sized figures.
Now, because Konoha's White Fang and Little Li's Flying Dagger were no longer in the limelight, the White Fang's short sword and his own daggers, which had a special meaning, were basically no longer being bought.
The main characters in the children's ninja games had also become the common equipment of ordinary ninjas, like kunai and shuriken.
Therefore, his current income was mainly from the figures.
All in all, he made four to five thousand Ryo a day.
This income was half of what it was when there were famous ninjas around.
"Business is tough..."
He shook his head with a smile.
People were just so fickle.
Although he had always wanted to sever his identity as a ninja before the profession could shed the name of "tool," he had never expected that his own performance would have to rely on famous ninjas to increase.
In the end, woodcarving was not something an ordinary person could appreciate.
With his skill, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was the only woodcarving master in the ninja world.
If he were to sell his carvings to the daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire, they would probably be highly sought after.
However, that was not his intention.
He would rather have the villagers of Konoha display his carvings in their homes than have them become a showpiece on the high shelves of those people.
…
"Haaah!"
In front of the river, Nawaki let out a loud shout, and the rubber ball in his right palm began to let out a faint whistling sound.
Then—
Pop!
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—
A huge force burst the rubber ball from the inside out.
The water in the ball spiraled outwards, leaving ripples in the river.
Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz...
At this moment, in his right palm, a fist-sized chakra sphere was quietly suspended.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Around the sphere, there was also a breeze stirred up by the high-speed rotating airflow, spreading outwards like a tornado.
"I did it!"
"Hahahaha, I did it!"
Looking at the chakra sphere in his palm, he couldn't help but shout in pleasant surprise.
Then, he glanced at a large tree in front of him and suddenly pressed the sphere in his palm against it.
Boom—
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...
The moment the Rasengan collided with the tree, the power within it was completely released, twisting the tree like a spiral.
The violent chakra also madly engulfed and tore the tree to shreds.
Rumble—
The barrel-thick tree was completely pulverized from the ground to a height of more than three meters. The trunk above that was sent flying by the force of the Rasengan, landing far away on the ground, kicking up some dust and breaking a few branches.
Beside him, Mikoto looked at the chakra sphere in his palm, a trace of envy flashing in her eyes.
"Congratulations, Nawaki."
In him, she felt the gap in their talent.
She and he had both been taught the Rasengan by Sensei Li on the same day.
However, three weeks had passed, and he had already completed two stages of training and possessed considerable power.
And her?
She hadn't even burst the first-stage balloon yet.
She felt that it would take her at least another month to complete the first stage.
As for the second stage, it would be impossible for her to complete it without a year or two of hard work.
Although she had already accepted her future, she was still only an eleven-year-old girl.
How could she not have fantasized about becoming a powerful ninja and possessing powerful ninjutsu?
A powerful ninjutsu like the Rasengan was right in front of her, and yet it would take her a year or two to master it.
And the time she could spend by Sensei Li's side was only two years.
In other words, if nothing unexpected happened, the Rasengan might be the strongest ninjutsu she would ever come into contact with in her life.
But reality had once again made her realize that she was not suited to be a ninja.
Indeed, compared to becoming a great ninja, marrying Fugaku and staying at home to support my husband and raise my children is more suitable for me.
With a sigh, she also became more determined in her choice.
On the other side, Rin also looked up at him.
"That's great. Nawaki has already completed the ninjutsu passed down by Sensei Li."
"And I..."
She pursed her lips, looking at the dagger in her hand.
As early as two weeks ago, she had already been able to completely replicate his technique.
He had said that she had to completely make the technique her own, to form her own "instinct," before she could continue to the second stage of training.
However, no matter how much she practiced, she could only replicate his technique according to what she had observed with her Byakugan.
Once she didn't, the speed of the daggers she threw would be greatly reduced, no different from the kunai and shuriken thrown by other ninjas.
"Sigh..."
With a sigh, she put the dagger back in her ninja tool pouch and walked towards the two of them.
"Nawaki, since you've already completed the Rasengan, let's go and report our results to Sensei Li now!"
He had once said that when Nawaki completed the Rasengan, he would take them on a mission.
Of course, he had already broken this promise himself.
In these three weeks, the three of them had already carried out three missions.
Yes, that's right. All three were to collect softwood.
Now that Nawaki had completed the Rasengan, he should be teaching them the next step, right?
Although she and Mikoto had not yet completed their own training, they had long known that they were just accompanying Nawaki.
The reason their clans had let them join his command was so that they could form a bond with him.
He had been invited by Lady Tsunade to teach Nawaki. Now that Nawaki had completed the task he had set, they naturally did not dare to delay.
"Yes, let's go now."
Looking at his two teammates, Nawaki also wanted to wait for them to finish their training before going to see him.
He also knew that after he had completed the Rasengan, what he would face next would probably be fighting with enemies to master his power.
Rin and Mikoto, who had not yet completed their training, would inevitably encounter greater danger while on a mission with him.
But unfortunately, he had a greater goal. He could not stay in place and wait for them to grow up.
So, he took a deep breath and said to them seriously, "Rin, Mikoto."
"I swear on the name of the Senju clan."
"Before I fall, I will absolutely not let you be harmed in the slightest!"
Seeing his serious promise, Mikoto's heart trembled slightly.
Then she said with a laugh, "Hahaha, then my safety will depend on you in the future."
"Mikoto, I'll protect you too!"
Seeing this, Rin also said to her.
Although she had not yet completely mastered the first stage of the Little Li's Flying Dagger, replicating his technique was no longer difficult for her.
Although his technique was not a one-hundred-percent fit for her, the daggers she threw, in terms of both power and speed, far surpassed those of an ordinary ninja.
Even a Chunin could be killed in a single blow.
It could be said that in this team now, the one holding them back had become Mikoto.
"Hahaha, that's right, that's right. I'll be counting on you too, Rin..."
…
"Not bad."
In the shop, Li Anshi looked at the Rasengan in Nawaki's palm and nodded.
"Since you've already completed the Rasengan, then from today on, we will truly begin the next stage."
With a flick of his middle finger, the unfinished woodcarving in his hand was instantly put away into his sleeve.
He planned to carry a few pieces of softwood with him from now on. When they were in danger, he would look after them.
When they weren't, he could carve a few more.
Making money was not shameful!
"Let's go. I'll take you to the Hokage's building to accept a mission first."
"Yes, Sensei!"
After closing the shop door, he led the three of them towards the Hokage's building.
As they walked, he said to them, "You three also know my identity."
"Although I've been a ninja for almost ten years, my mission experience basically comes from fighting with other villages on the border."
"What I'm good at is only assassination missions."
"As for other tasks like infiltration, disguise, and intelligence gathering, I may not have as much experience as you."
"So, I can only take you on assassination missions, or some simple escort missions."
"You don't have a problem with that, right?"
"No."
The three of them shook their heads.
Among them, Rin was the most enthusiastic about improving her strength and wanting to obtain "freedom."
As for Nawaki, it went without saying. Anyone who aspired to the position of Hokage, who hadn't fought their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood?
Even the highly intelligent Nara clan, the highest they could go was to be Konoha's "strategist."
Only with powerful strength and a convincing character could one have enough prestige to compete for the position of Hokage.