First Meeting with Jiraiya

The matter of Rinto stomping a huge pit into the training ground was ultimately left unresolved.

Uchiha Ryota, having been frightened half to death, was taken home by his parents.

After learning the full story from Nakaryu Taiku, the couple ultimately chose not to apologize to Rinto.

But Rinto did not care about that. There were people in the Uchiha Clan with astonishingly broad minds, but most of them were just a bunch of good-for-nothings.

What made Rinto happier was that Teacher Nakaryu Taiku had agreed to let him skip practical combat classes and use that time for tutoring instead.

Rinto was very satisfied with that.

As long as he could return to the shop on time to forge, those were all minor issues.

During the afternoon's only class, Rinto sat at the back of the classroom. His deskmate was the white-haired kid from that morning, Jiraiya.

At the moment, Jiraiya had a flamboyant afro, two red lines painted down from the corners of his eyes, and a gray-green belted robe decorated with flame patterns.

"Rinto, you're ridiculously strong! How did you train?"

Jiraiya lay sprawled across his desk, using the back of the student in front of him to block the teacher's view as he whispered.

Seeing that, Rinto copied him and lay down as well. He lowered his voice and said,

"Forging. Swing a hammer enough times, and your strength naturally increases."

"Can you teach me?" Jiraiya asked excitedly.

Rinto immediately nodded. "Next time, I'll bring you a Blacksmith Hammer. Find something sturdy and hit it as hard as you can. Do it every day, and your strength will naturally grow."

Jiraiya was instantly overjoyed.

He had experienced that immense power up close. Never mind the destructive force—the sheer presence of it alone was enough to chill one's heart.

The thought of gaining that power and then confessing to Tsunade made him grin from ear to ear.

Rinto smiled along with him.

He had to admit, Jiraiya really was a cheerful guy.

As he laughed, Jiraiya pointed to the empty seat in front of Rinto and asked curiously.

"Rinto, do you know where that kid Uchiha Ryota went?"

Rinto froze. So that evil little brat from the Uchiha Clan had been sitting right in front of him?

"No idea. I think his parents took him home to change his pants," Rinto said, scratching his head and voicing his guess.

Jiraiya did not laugh. Instead, he leaned close to Rinto with a sly look. "Rinto, you'd better be careful. Uchiha Ryota holds grudges. And their clan..."

Jiraiya did not finish, but Rinto understood what he meant.

The Uchiha Clan was indeed narrow-minded—but Rinto was even more petty.

With that thought, he belatedly realized a flaw in his plan.

If I have an enemy in Konoha, would the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, trust me more?!

The answer was obvious, and the Uchiha Clan would make an excellent enemy.

For one thing, the Uchiha Clan was not doing nearly as well in the village as people imagined.

That clan was far too exclusionary. It was decided by the atmosphere of the entire family. As long as there were still old fossils among the Uchiha who had survived from the Warring States Period, that pride buried deep in their bones would be passed down from generation to generation.

That ran completely contrary to the Will of Fire proposed by the First Hokage.

But the Uchiha Clan's formidable combat strength was an indispensable part of Konoha. Or rather, in the current Konoha, the Uchiha were still an important component of its fighting force.

If he became enemies with the Uchiha Clan, then as someone who appeared isolated and without support, he would surely lean toward Naruto's faction and seek protection.

That way, their trust in him would naturally rise over time.

From the moment he entered Konoha and his plan was exposed, he had already been dragged into this enormous whirlpool.

And in politics, there was no such thing as staying above it all.

Thinking that, Rinto's eyes shifted slightly as he secretly made up his mind.

Time flashed by, and before he knew it, the class was over. Rinto left the Ninja School amid the tide of students heading home.

As agreed, it was time for him to work at the Kato Ninja Tool Shop.

With the advantage of Magnet Release, Rinto's forging skills grew ever more refined, and the ninja tools he produced became increasingly exceptional. The reputation of the Kato Ninja Tool Shop gradually spread as well.

This led to one result: the Kato Ninja Tool Shop's ninja tools were in short supply.

Senbon in particular. News from the front lines said that the senbon produced by the Kato Ninja Tool Shop were exceptionally sharp.

To ninja, ninja tools were their second lives. If the quality of their tools was unreliable, it would be a nightmare.

The senbon Rinto forged were incredibly sharp while retaining remarkable toughness, resulting in an especially high recovery rate after battles.

Although that trait was not good for business at the Kato Ninja Tool Shop, in situations where supplies could not reach the battlefield in time, those recovered senbon could save lives!

He lifted the curtain and entered the Kato Ninja Tool Shop.

The shop was no longer as deserted as when Rinto had first arrived. It was bustling with customers. Quite a few ninja in green flak jackets moved through the store, gesturing as they inspected the tools displayed on the racks.

Uncle Ippongi rubbed his chubby hands together, his face full of worldly calculation as he moved through the crowd with a fawning smile.

The moment he saw Rinto lift the curtain, Ippongi hurriedly darted over.

"Oh, little brother! Why are you only getting here now? Hurry, there are several major custom orders here. Take a look and see if we can accept them."

"How major?" Rinto asked instinctively.

At that, Ippongi threw an arm around Rinto's shoulder and secretly held up eight fingers with his free hand between them.

"Mine?"

"Yours!"

Rinto broke into a broad grin, knowing his good days had arrived.

These major orders were not merely major orders. They were proof that the shop's reputation had truly spread.

In forging—especially weapon forging—quality was the foundation of everything.

With quality, you had everything.

Ninja who survived the battlefield were naturally the best advertisements. The ninja tools they carried would naturally be considered high-quality tools.

As they spoke, Rinto and Ippongi walked over to the counter.

"These are the orders: custom ninja swords for the Hayate Clan, Armor Plates for the Akimichi Family, and merchandise for my old man's latest trading trip. The old man's order from me isn't urgent, so let him wait.

"What matters is the Hayate Clan's ninja swords. They're a major customer, so make sure you put your heart into it."

Rinto nodded, took the order from this filial son, and turned to enter the forge.

It was funny, really. Magnet Release gave almost absurd boosts to blacksmithing, yet even now, Rinto could not figure out whether Magnet Release was a Kekkei Genkai or not.

The clanging of metal began, accompanied by the gusting roar of the bellows as time slowly passed.

At six o'clock, the Kato Ninja Tool Shop closed.

Rinto wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked out of the forge, pretending to be exhausted.

In the front hall, Uncle Ippongi was leaning over the counter with bright eyes, snapping the beads of his abacus with crackling speed.

"Oh, Rinto-kun, you've worked hard."

"Heh, I worked this hard. Shouldn't I get a raise?" Rinto asked with a grin.

"A raise?" Ippongi's expression stiffened as he slowly wrapped his arms around the stacks of banknotes before him.

"You're joking again. We're partners splitting the profits. I'm not your boss, so how can I give you a raise?"

Seeing Ippongi's wary expression, Rinto curled his lip. "We could adjust the split."

At those words, Ippongi's fat head immediately shook like a rattle drum.

"No, no, no, Rinto-kun. I'm an honest merchant. I'll never go back on what we agreed to."

Hearing that, Rinto could only sigh helplessly.

"Fine, you're honest. We only have enough iron ore and charcoal for tomorrow, so remember to restock. I'm heading home for dinner."

With that, Rinto slipped out of the Kato Ninja Tool Shop without looking back, leaving Ippongi standing there and howling in agony.

"Already not enough? We only restocked last week! That was two whole weeks' worth of charcoal and iron ore! Damn it, Rinto, don't go! Get back here!"

Rinto ducked his head and vanished without a trace.

In a dense forest outside Konoha, Rinto excitedly pulled out a bundle of Weighted Gear from his clothes.

He had forged this Weighted Gear using leftover materials. Under the combined effects of Great Strength Forging and Magnet Release, the gear was not large, but its weight was terrifying.

There were four pieces in total, wrapped in sturdy burlap sacks.

Together, the four pieces weighed nearly four hundred kilograms.

Rinto fastened the four pieces of Weighted Gear onto his hands and feet. With the iron powder stored inside his body added in, the total weight approached five hundred kilograms.

Just putting on all that Weighted Gear made Rinto feel like a massive weight, the kind that would sink straight to the bottom if thrown into water.

He stood up and struggled to take two steps. Immediately, his muscles and bones groaned, and Rinto knew it was his body crying out under the unbearable burden.

But that was exactly the effect Rinto wanted.

He believed that once he adapted to that weight, he would be able to take down a group of Chunin effortlessly through physical strength alone.

As for why not Jonin, it was because those capable of becoming Jonin generally possessed some extraordinary trait that ordinary people could not match.