It was dusk.
Outside Homura Hidden Village.
[Water Release: Gushing Dam Surge!]
Kisame formed hand seals and activated his ninjutsu.
A monstrous wave, like a geysered lake, burst from his mouth and roared forward.
The water quickly flooded nearly half the village.
Naturally, this flood only affected the newly built testing zones.
Surrounding walls made with Earth Release techniques had been built to prevent any damage to residential areas.
Soon enough, the water flowed out through the designated drainage channels and exited the village.
Everything took no more than ten or fifteen minutes.
That kind of efficiency was seriously impressive.
More than enough to handle almost any flood emergency...
Witnessing this, the captain of Construction Team No.9—tasked with building and upgrading the village's drainage system—became visibly excited.
Finally, the 'Final Load Test' was complete.
Now that it was done, his monthly bonus would surely double again.
Now he could finally take some well-deserved rest.
Awesome!
Immediately, this Uchiha captain grabbed Kisame's hands beside him.
With sincere gratitude, he said:
"Thank you so much! Thank you, Mr. Kisame!"
"You're truly amazing! Using such a massive-scale Water Release technique where there's no natural water source at all? Simply astonishing!"
"And we owe it all to your help."
"Otherwise, we really couldn't have pulled off this final test on our own..."
You see, within Homura Hidden Village,
All new infrastructure construction projects must undergo three rounds of testing before being officially commissioned.
This strict standard was personally established by the Young Master himself!
No one across the entire Hidden Flame Village dared violate this rule.
Other tests generally weren't too difficult.
But for tests on drainage systems like this one, which require massive amounts of water, it was always difficult.
After all, most members of the Uchiha Clan specialized in Fire Release techniques.
Throughout the whole clan, they couldn't find many experts in Water Release.
Let alone someone capable of performing the 'Final Load Test,' which required an immense volume of water techniques.
Fortunately, Kiri had just sent over several 'utility players'...
Ahem—
We should say they received several friendly visitors.
Granted, Lady Terumi looked somewhat close to the Young Master, so probably not suitable for simple menial tasks.
But the others worked out great.
Especially this seemingly honest guy, Mr. Kisame.
He worked fast and talked very little,
And possessed exceptional skill in water techniques;
Truly convenient to work with!
Honestly speaking, Kisame simply nodded slightly without giving much response.
Whether helping out or using Water Release techniques...
To him, it was merely completing assigned tasks—nothing particularly noteworthy.
Still, Homura Hidden Village genuinely impressed him!
They were actually utilizing ninja abilities constructively to actively develop their village.
Why hadn't his own Hidden Mist ever considered going this route?
With ninja abilities clearly surpassing ordinary humans by dozens of times,
Wasting such superior infrastructure-building potential...
Only to become mere warriors later,
Earning meager mission rewards while desperately risking lives serving those wealthy pigs from powerful nations.
It's really not worth it!
"Mr. Kisame, we've finished all the work here."
"Come on, let's go have dinner!"
"There are quite a few specialties in our village you can't find anywhere else—you must try them!"
The squad leader warmly invited.
Honest ninjas from allied villages were always welcomed warmly.
"Alright."
Kisame nodded and followed their steps.
Being able to quickly build friendly relations with these Uchiha ninjas would also make it easier for him to gather intelligence and learn more about Homuragakure.
However.
There were rumors that members of the Uchiha clan were naturally ruthless, extremely warlike, and cold-blooded.
But right now, they seemed vastly different from those descriptions.
Kisame hadn't sensed any unusual malice or coldness from these Uchiha ninjas either.
Besides,
he had already been observing inside Homuragakure for half a day after entering.
He hadn't come across anyone particularly powerful yet.
Could it be that within the entire Homuragakure, only that brat Shimoku Uchiha was their representative combat strength?
Were all the others just weaklings?
Kisame thought to himself as he walked.
Passing by the village entrance,
they happened to see a group of people returning from outside the village.
This group wasn't large—only around twenty people.
Yet each one looked dirty, covered head to toe in black soot, like walking charcoal blocks.
Among them, the person at the front
instinctively caught Kisame's attention.
The person wasn't very tall—appeared to be around thirteen or fourteen at most.
Yet his aura was calm, almost repressed, with barely a ripple of chakra detected—that was highly unusual.
Especially those crimson eyes hidden beneath his bangs—just a single glance sent an involuntary shiver down Kisame's spine!
A true expert!
"Who are those people?"
Kisame asked, for the first time taking the initiative to speak up.
As someone working partly as a spy,
he had always tried hard not to ask questions or dig for unnecessary information,
to avoid arousing suspicions from Homuragakure.
"Oh! Those guys..."
"They're the village's First Mineral Mining Team—they were recently formed."
"They mainly handle mining operations at the western mountain mines..."
Since the village was founded,
Shimoku had always emphasized "expanding sources of income while reducing costs."
Though he had indeed earned a massive initial capital for the village through nonstop money-making efforts,
the village couldn't keep relying on that endless reserve forever.
Therefore, aside from depending on the Sea Trade Company,
the village itself also worked hard to make money.
Just a few days ago, trade relations had successfully been established with the Land of Iron.
They could now profit by selling top-grade ores there.
After all, the Land of Iron had long remained the forging center across the entire ninja world, constantly demanding large quantities of top-grade ore.
And just west of their Homura Hidden Village stood a mountain range.
Rich in valuable minerals, it was definitely worth mining.
In fact, this was one of the reasons why Shimoku had originally chosen to establish the village here...
And now, it had finally proven its worth.
Therefore, the village quickly organized mining teams to begin extracting various types of ore.
"Mining team?"
"Why is there such a young kid among them?"
Kisame's gaze sharpened as he voiced his confusion.
Clearly, he had noticed too.
The brat currently slung over Itachi's shoulder.
This kid looked under ten years old, wearing a forehead protector from Iwagakure Village.
He appeared completely drained, as if sucked dry.
His tongue hung loosely from his mouth,
and even the odd tongue on his palm drooped lifelessly.
He seemed to be muttering something:
"It's all gone..."
"Not a single drop left..."
"I can't chew anymore! Please let me go!"
"I'm gonna puke..."
"I'll never blow stuff up randomly again."
...
The squad leader hesitated, then chuckled:
"You mean him?"
"Not entirely sure myself. Probably one of the delegation members from Iwagakure."
"I heard their delegation has someone particularly skilled in Explosive Ninjutsu."
"He happened to be assigned to the excavation team."
"Apparently that kid's explosion techniques were extremely effective. Helped boost the excavation team's efficiency tenfold these past few days!"
"Could very well be this little guy!"
"Amazing, right?"
"With so much ore blasted out, must've earned quite a bonus!"
There was a hint of envy in the squad leader's voice.
To have mastered such a unique jutsu at such a young age - a promising future indeed.
Truly enviable!
Admittedly, judging by his current "sucked dry" appearance, this kid must've worked hard every day.
But still, it's quite good…
At least the rewards are substantial!
Besides, these kids are still young and energetic. They can endure it.
Unlike himself, middle-aged and lacking vitality.
Even if work doesn't suck you dry during the day, your wife will when you get home...
Won't even go there—it's all just heartbreak.
Youth really is beautiful!
...
Kisame chose not to comment.
He was still young, never dated anyone, and full of energy;
He couldn't understand the worries of middle-aged men.
Compared to that, he was far more interested in that ninja called Uchiha Itachi.
Couldn't help wanting to test the guy's strength a bit!
Soon enough,
Itachi returned to the village, leading a weakened Deidara.
Of course, he also noticed Kisame at the construction site.
After all, Kisame stood out like a crane among chickens.
However, as they passed each other,
the red glow in Itachi's eyes intensified significantly.
And Kisame, as expected, finally got to see that pair of all-seeing [Mangekyo Sharingan] eyes.
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