After traveling just a few miles, Umino Yoru created a shadow clone to escort Tekudō and the others back to the military camp at a leisurely pace.
Meanwhile, his real body made a detour to the lab, collecting a large vial of Water Bat No. 7, before activating the Basic Body Flicker Technique and speeding toward the frontline exchange post.
In the past, such frequent use of the Body Flicker would have drained him within minutes. But now, fueled by the energy from his food reserves, he could keep it up for over half an hour without breaking a sweat.
Soon, he arrived at the exchange post.
"Hah…"
The moment he stepped into the valley, a wave of suggestive sounds hit his ears. His blood surged, his face flushed, and he nearly lost control of his Transformation Technique.
"Having too much vitality… isn't always a good thing."
He finally realized a major drawback of the Akimichi Calorie Control Technique—excess energy led to excess vigor, and his body was now like a powder keg, ready to ignite at the slightest spark.
"I need to develop a way to store this food energy fast, or even a basic Sexy Technique might break my focus."
Storing it as fat was too risky—he had no desire to balloon into an Akimichi-sized physique. But the body had other ways to stockpile energy. Perhaps some Yang Release research could solve this.
After swiftly navigating the slum-like tent area, he spotted Kōenzō waiting eagerly at the entrance.
"My lord!" Kōenzō greeted him with visible excitement.
"Mn." Playing the part of the aloof Sarutobi jōnin, Yoru strode straight to the second floor.
"Kōenzō, I'm in a hurry. Give me an appraisal."
He unsealed the large vial of Water Bat No. 7 and four captured Sand Village puppets from a scroll, keeping only the intact Black Ant Puppet for himself.
"Two standard-issue chūnin puppets from Sunagakure—pristine condition. Two custom-made, high-quality puppets for special jōnin… heavily damaged."
Kōenzō's eyes widened at the haul. For an elite jōnin, wiping out a specialized puppet squad wasn't unheard of, but this was the second batch in days. Was this man part of an assault unit?
Then—
"This is…"
Before assessing the puppets, Kōenzō picked up a small, cleaved shield fragment, studying its surface.
His breath hitched.
The cut was impossibly smooth—no chakra blade could achieve this. Even a chakra-enhanced sword would struggle to slice through such reinforced material in a single stroke, let alone leave a flawless edge.
"What kind of technique has this kind of cutting power?"
His mind raced. An A-rank jutsu might not even be capable of this.
Unless—
"No way…"
A legendary technique came to mind: Water Release: Severing Wave, an S-rank forbidden jutsu. Its pressurized water blades matched the precision of these cuts exactly.
"Hiss…"
Kōenzō's hands trembled. His mysterious patron had S-rank capabilities? Previous estimates had been far too low—this was a hidden Konoha powerhouse!
And given the man's apparent youth… Kage-level potential wasn't out of the question.
The thought sent a thrill through him. This was the kind of connection that could rebuild fortunes—even elevate him to a merchant king in the Land of Fire.
Unaware of Kōenzō's internal fanfare, Yoru cut straight to business:
"Kōenzō, what's the price for mizuame malt syrup here?"
Mizuame, a type of sticky malt syrup, was perfect for his needs—not just as a high-carb energy source for prolonged training, but also as the base for a new technique: Water Release: Sticky Syrup Capture.
If he remembered right, this was the jutsu Kamizuki Izumo and Tatami Iwashi had stumbled upon after spilling syrup during a squabble.
Simple in concept but brutally effective, it converted chakra into a glue-like substance that immobilized foes. Later, it could even evolve into Water Release: Syrup Bind, forming hardened restraints far stronger than Water Whip.
"My lord, mizuame is 400 ryō per pound."
Kōenzō stood respectfully, awaiting further orders.
"What?! That's outrageous!"
Yoru knew frontline prices were inflated, but this was ridiculous.
"My lord, this is the warzone. Grain prices have tripled—high-energy foods like sugar are even worse."
Seeing Yoru 's displeasure, Kōenzō hastily added, "Actually, mizuame is among the cheaper options. Refined sugar goes for 2,400 ryō per pound, and mountain honey? 4,000 ryō—if you can even find it."
"Wait, honey's that expensive too?"
Yoru frowned. Shouldn't ninja, with their wall-running skills, have an easier time harvesting honey than civilians?
Kōenzō's explanation quickly corrected that assumption.
In the shinobi world, nothing about resource gathering was simple.
Bees here, nourished by natural energy, were far deadlier than their Earth counterparts. Wild swarms rivaled killer hornets, and their sheer numbers made them a nightmare even for ninja.
And then there were the Kamizuchi Clan's chakra-infused bees—practically summon-level threats.
No wonder honey cost a fortune.