The daimyo's gaze was fixed entirely on the two uniquely crafted blades.
He was secretly astonished.
"Didn't expect this kid to exceed even my expectations. I thought he was just a jōnin, but to think he could take down members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."
"Looks like I'll have to reassess his strength. But that's fine. If that kind of power served me..."
"Hehehehehe..."
Gekko Chizan could tell from the daimyo's pensive look that the man definitely wasn't thinking anything pure.
Not that it mattered to him — money that walks up to your door is still money. Why refuse it?
"Very good. I didn't expect you to be in the pro-war camp, unwilling to settle for passive defense and choosing to strike first. Very good."
"But until the mission's deadline, your squad will remain at the daimyo's castle. No problem, right?"
Gekko Chizan had already expected the daimyo wouldn't let him leave so easily, so he could only agree.
Bringing the three little ones back to their quarters, Gekko Chizan was not someone who could just sit idle.
"Kakashi, Obito, Rin, get some rest. I'm going to buy the promised reward for the snakes of Ryūchi Cave."
"Eh, forget it. Obito, you're coming with me. You can help carry things."
Originally, he hadn't planned to bring Obito along, but the kid was happily playing with the Lightning Blades, channeling currents back and forth between his hands. If he didn't put a stop to it, the little rascal might blow the whole place up.
Sure enough, when Obito heard Gekko Chizan's words, his face immediately fell.
"Sensei, can't I skip this? I'm exhausted. We ran all the way back, remember?"
"Seriously, you have giant snakes. Why couldn't we just ride them back?"
"And riding a snake feels awesome!"
The next second, Gekko Chizan expressed his resolve with action.
He snatched the Lightning Blades from Obito's hands, tossed them to Kakashi, then grabbed Obito by the collar and dragged him toward the door.
"Ah! My swords!"
"Kakashi! Take good care of them! Don't mess with them!"
"When I get back, they'd better still be mine!"
Gekko Chizan's forehead was covered in black lines. He gave Obito a therapeutic punch.
Thunk!
"Idiot, since when were they yours?"
"Hmph! Move it!"
Clutching his throbbing head, Obito trudged along, looking like life had lost all meaning.
Kakashi chuckled, holding both blades in his hands as lightning began to arc between them.
Then, the very next second, Gekko Chizan's voice came from outside, full of menace.
"Kakashi, you'd better be careful. If I come back and find the house blown up, I'll feed you to Jinlin."
Kakashi quickly dispersed the lightning between the swords.
The daimyo's residence had everything — naturally, that included a pharmacy.
As soon as Gekko Chizan entered, he bought up all the snakeberries in stock.
Obito eyed the little fruits curiously.
"Chizan-sensei, are these tasty?"
Seeing his curious face, Gekko Chizan smiled mischievously.
"Obito, you have to understand — taste is something you have to experience for yourself."
"If I say they're good and you don't eat them, how will you ever know?"
"Back in my hometown, there's a saying — if you want to know what a plum tastes like, you have to try it yourself."
"Go on, eat. Big bites. If one isn't enough, have two!"
Without hesitation, Gekko Chizan shoved a big handful of snakeberries into Obito's hands.
He smiled, waiting for him to try this delicacy.
Snakeberries, despite their name, weren't sweet like strawberries. They were sour and astringent, with an overall unpleasant taste. They also contained trace toxins — not enough to cause serious harm in small amounts, but still... tsk tsk.
Obito hesitated, glancing at his sensei.
The pharmacy owner was just about to speak when Gekko Chizan shot him a glare, forcing him into silence.
The man could only give Obito a look that said, Boy, you're on your own.
"Sensei, why do I get the feeling you're trying to trick me?"
"Hmph, you brat. Why would I trick you? Do you know how much Jinlin loves these? Even a few baskets aren't enough to share between them."
Gekko Chizan spoke earnestly about the berries' popularity.
Inwardly, he added: Kid, you're still too young.
A snake's sense of taste isn't the same as a human's.
They have venom. Do you?
Thinking back, Obito remembered the three giant snakes' eyes lighting up whenever snakeberries were mentioned. If they liked them that much, maybe they weren't so bad.
With that thought, he took one from Gekko Chizan's hand and carefully placed it in his mouth.
Before he could chew, Gekko Chizan moved, stuffing the rest of the handful straight into Obito's mouth.
"Come on, Obito! You can do it!"
"Chew big! Hahahaha!"
Even an idiot could tell he'd been tricked again, but with his mouth crammed full of berries, he could only bite down.
The moment he did, his eyes rolled back.
What was that flavor?
Astringent, bitter... not unbearably foul, but eating that many at once was overwhelming.
Wait... there was also a... hmm... hard-to-describe feeling.
"Well, Obito? Delicious?"
Gekko Chizan, still thinking it was all a joke, hadn't noticed any change in Obito's expression.
When Obito suddenly swallowed the whole mouthful, Chizan was stunned.
"What the—? You swallowed them?!"
"You're supposed to chew a couple times and spit them out! Oh crap, where's my antidote pill?"
"Ah, right — in my bag. I'll give you some when we get back."
He'd just wanted to mess with the kid, but Obito went full reckless and gulped it all down.
"Chizan-sensei, I'm fine. Just a few berries."
"But I've figured you out — you're really black-hearted. Even your own student isn't safe."
"Hmph, I'm definitely telling Pakura-sensei about this when we get back."
Obito accepted the water the shopkeeper offered and rinsed his mouth, then shot his teacher a look full of exasperation.
"Hahaha, you were curious, weren't you? I just satisfied your curiosity."
"Alright, boss — here's the money. I'll take these nine baskets."
Looking at the nine full baskets of snakeberries, Gekko Chizan grinned at Obito.
"Obito, I'm counting on you for these."
"I'll take two. The rest are all yours!"
"I believe in you!"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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