"Golden-Scaled Whole Fish Banquet!"
"And even Yellow-Margined Turtle Stew?!"
Akimichi Torifō nearly drooled on the spot at the sight of such extravagant dishes.
The Yellow-Margined Turtle Stew, in particular, was something he'd only tasted once before—at a Daimyo's feast in the Land of Fire. The memory was so vivid that he recognized it instantly.
And this was the frontlines of war. Normally, just getting a simple home-cooked meal here would be a luxury. Faced with such a lavish spread, if not for his confidence in his own abilities, he might've thought he was trapped in a genjutsu.
"Please, help yourself!"
Yoru respectfully handed his superior a bowl and chopsticks—though noticeably twice the usual size.
Torifō didn't stand on ceremony. He immediately dug in, shoveling food into his mouth with gusto.
"Mmm! So good!"
He couldn't stop praising the meal, too engrossed in eating to care about anything else.
"Everyone, join me!"
His words were muffled by the food in his mouth, but the enthusiastic waving of his chopsticks made his meaning clear. As a true gourmet, he believed fighting over food with others was far more enjoyable than eating alone.
"Hell yeah!"
Yoruhad been waiting for this. But before diving in, he secretly activated his Infrasound Radar Jutsu, scanning the pot until he located the most succulent piece—the turtle's rump. He plucked it out and placed it in Torifō's bowl before finally starting his own meal.
Torifō's eyes lit up at the sight of the juicy, fatty meat. Mentally applauding his subordinate's thoughtfulness, he waved his chopsticks again, urging the others to stop hesitating and start eating.
"Wow! This is amazing!"
Shukudō and his two companions ate with unrestrained joy, while the ninja dog, Akitarō, wagged his tail furiously in delight.
At the dinner table, ranks were forgotten. The five of them fought with their chopsticks, snatching up the best bites.
The Yellow-Margined Turtle Stew was especially divine. Hayate, unable to resist, kept his Infrasound Radar active the entire time, using it to pinpoint the most flavorful morsels.
But even with his advantage, he was no match for Torifō's bottomless stomach. By the end, the four of them combined hadn't eaten even half as much as their leader.
"Ugh… I'm so full."
Shukudō sprawled on the grass, his belly round and taut like a balloon, utterly content.
"Incredible. It's been ages since I ate this well."
Torifō patted his own stomach, radiating satisfaction.
Shukudō, envious of the man's monstrous appetite, couldn't help but ask:
"Sir, is that stomach of yours a storage scroll in disguise? How can you eat so much and still look less bloated than me?"
Inuzuka Ryō, though equally impressed, wasn't as surprised. He chimed in:
"Torifō-sama is an Akimichi jonin. This is normal for them. Once, at a Yakiniku place in Konoha, I saw Torifū-sama eat. Now THAT was terrifying."
"Huh?"
Yorufroze.
It was common knowledge that the Akimichi had huge appetites, but consuming more than their own body weight in food defied logic.
"What is this…?"
His eyes sharpened.
Through his Infrasound Radar perception, he could sense something astonishing—
Torifō's chakra was stimulating his vagus nerve endings, triggering a massive surge of gastric acid, bile, and digestive enzymes. The food in his stomach was being broken down at an unnatural rate, converted into raw bioenergy.
Then, using a Yang Release secret technique, that energy was stored directly in his fat reserves.
No wonder he could eat like this.
The food wasn't sitting in his stomach—it was being instantly digested and stockpiled as fuel.
"This is… incredible."
Yoruwas awestruck.
And then, a spark of greed ignited in his heart.
This Akimichi secret art was strikingly similar to the Strength of a Hundred Seal—a way to stockpile energy for later use. If he could learn it, his chronic chakra shortage would be solved!
But just as quickly, he cooled his excitement.
Stealing a clan's secret techniques was a death sentence.
Unlike his borrowed Beast Mimicry from the Inuzuka, which could be passed off as a modified Transformation Jutsu, mastering the Akimichi art would inevitably make him gain weight. There'd be no hiding it.
And if caught?
Konoha would exile him on the spot.
Becoming a missing-nin wasn't an option—that path was only for the exceptionally strong. For an average shinobi like him, holding a stable Konoha position was like passing the civil service exams. A secure, respectable life—as long as he avoided major wars.
Why throw that away?
Besides, even if he wanted to defect, he couldn't.
He lacked the foundational Yang Release knowledge to understand how the Akimichi converted food into fat, let alone how to burn that fat for chakra.
"The full Akimichi technique is out of reach… but their digestion boost? That, I can borrow."
A plan formed in his mind.
The Yang Release secrets were too complex to crack now, but the accelerated digestion was simpler—and far less likely to raise suspicion.
After all, the core of the Akimichi arts lay in energy storage and the Multi-Size Technique. As long as he didn't suddenly balloon in size, no one would suspect a thing.
"My shadow clone's about to give out. I should head back. Let's do this again sometime!"
Torifō, now thoroughly stuffed, patted his belly and stood to leave.
Clearly, he'd snuck away alone, unable to resist the temptation of good food—even resorting to a shadow clone to cover his absence.
"Sir, why wait? Are you free tonight?"
Yoru put on his best bootlicking smile, oozing flattery.
Internally, though, he was panicking.
His Infrasound Radar's "X-ray vision" had only given him a rough grasp of the technique. He needed more observation—more experiments—to fully replicate it.
He couldn't let this walking buffet escape now!
"Hah! Free? Of course I'm free!"
Torifō beamed, thoroughly pleased.
This subordinate really knows how to treat his superiors!
He made a mental note to keep this kid close.
Such thoughtful underlings were hard to come by.