Food Sources

At this moment.

Gurgle, gurgle...

His stomach rumbled again and again as waves of hunger washed over him. Umino Sasuke immediately felt as if his eyes had turned green, seized by the urge to eat anything he saw.

He quickly took out a pack of dried fish and wolfed it down. Only after eating nearly two pounds of dried fish did he barely suppress the overwhelming hunger.

He had to marvel at how the law of conservation of energy applied everywhere. The Akimichi Clan's Digestive Technique was powerful, but its food consumption was astonishing.

If he had been in Konoha, then at Konoha's prices, eating like this would bankrupt him in less than half a year.

No wonder the Akimichi Clan owned so many businesses. It seemed those fat men were not greedy or incapable of keeping a low profile. If they did not work hard to make money, they really might starve to death.

"Fortunately, I've mastered the Infrasonic Radar Technique. Even on the battlefield front lines, I can be self-sufficient. With the paltry supplies Konoha gives us, wouldn't I starve to death?"

Under his Infrasonic Radar Technique, the river beneath his feet was a natural granary, one with an inexhaustible supply.

As the river flowed, the schools of fish upstream and downstream were like leeks, harvested batch after batch.

Given how rare Golden Mandarin Fish were, the fact that he could still catch them after harvesting nonstop for the past several months showed just how abundant the aquatic resources of the Land of Rivers were.

Perhaps the Land of Rivers did not have land suitable for farming, nor was it as fertile as the Land of Fire, but when it came to fishing and hunting, it was truly blessed by nature. No wonder the Land of Wind coveted this land.

There they were again—several Golden Mandarin Fish leisurely feeding on aquatic grass at the riverbed.

"Tremor!"

Umino Sasuke directly unleashed the vibrational force of Infrasound, stunning the Golden Mandarin Fish to death. This time, he did not even spare a large patch of nearby freshwater fish.

"Water Release: Water Prison Technique."

Umino Sasuke formed hand seals with both hands and created a restraining water prison, trapping all of the nearly hundred pounds of fish within it.

After bringing the catch ashore, he took out the Fish-Cutting Sword and began preparing it. To save time, he threw away all the organs except the delicious fish maw.

It took quite a while, but he finally finished preparing all the freshwater fish. Other than the Golden Mandarin Fish, which he marinated in advance for dinner with Akimichi Toribo, every freshwater fish over ten pounds went onto the grill, while the smaller ones were all turned into smoked dried fish.

Smoked dried fish took quite a while to make, but grilled fish was ready quickly.

Umino Sasuke had long been starving. He hurriedly grabbed a Sand Grouper weighing nearly twenty pounds and began tearing into it.

At the same time, he mobilized the chakra within his body to stimulate the nerve endings of his intestinal vagus nerve. Soon, his intestines began to writhe, while gastric acid, bile, and digestive enzymes were secreted in large quantities, digesting the fish he had eaten and converting it into surging waves of energy.

"Water Release: Mist Technique."

Umino Sasuke immediately felt as though the weakness he had experienced just now had been an illusion. He was back at full strength and began practicing various ninjutsu.

From time to time, he even cast Water Prison Technique after Water Prison Technique, trapping valuable aquatic catches he discovered in the river and flinging them ashore.

Whenever the food energy in his body ran out, he went ashore and ate another ten or so pounds of fish. While he was at it, he spent some time preparing the valuable catches he had just thrown onto the bank. If they had particularly strong vitality, he left them for later. Training remained the priority.

And so, after eating, he trained. When training drained his energy, he ate fish. In between, he caught fish and killed fish. Like a tireless machine, he repeated the cycle over and over.

After training for nearly four hours, he finally stopped when the sun was about to set and began preparing the dinner he would use to entertain Akimichi Toribo.

Although he had not caught another Yellow-Spotted Turtle that afternoon, he had caught a River Mother Clam as large as a tabletop. If the clam had not opened its enormous shell and allowed him to sense the huge pearl hidden inside, he would probably have missed this delicacy.

Though the River Mother Clam was not as rare as a Yellow-Spotted Turtle, it was still an exceptional ingredient. If it could be braised with yellow wine, it would be especially nourishing.

As it happened, there were several bottles of fine wine in Tejudo's Sealing Scrolls.

Those fine wines had been specially prepared by Tejudo's elders for him to curry favor with the commanders on the front lines. Now, they could finally be put to good use.

He had already sensed Akimichi Toribo heading this way, so he could only speed up the cooking. He had Tejudo and the others stop training and called them over to help.

"Captain, such a huge pearl must be worth at least a hundred thousand ryo, right?"

"Liao, and you call yourself the young master of the Inuzuka Family? My aunt has a pearl worth three hundred thousand ryo, yet its luster and size are both far inferior to this one."

Tejudo snatched the pearl from Liao's hand and examined it carefully.

The pearl in his hand was even larger than a quail egg. Judging by its quality and luster, it would certainly fetch no less than five hundred thousand ryo.

"Oh, not bad at all."

Umino Sasuke's eyes lit up. He had not expected this unexpected gain to be so valuable. It was equivalent to nearly a hundred Explosive Tags.

However, they were currently on the battlefield front lines, and a ninja war was underway. They said antiques thrived in peaceful times while gold thrived in chaotic ones. He likely would not be able to sell this pearl for cash for the next few years, though it would make a suitable gift.

Of course, such a valuable pearl could not possibly be given to Akimichi Toribo, and besides, he was not interested in such things. A lavish meal would be much more practical.

The River Mother Clam looked enormous, weighing two or three hundred pounds, but very little of it was edible—only a little over twenty percent. Only its muscles, mantle, and yellow sac glands could be eaten, while all other organs had to be discarded. That left only around fifty pounds of edible meat. Given Akimichi Toribo's appetite, that was barely enough for him alone, and now there was another big eater. Naturally, it was even less sufficient.

"There's still time."

Umino Sasuke sensed that Akimichi Toribo was less than two kilometers away. At his speed, he would arrive in just a few minutes.

The time was a little short, but it was enough.

The River Mother Clam's yellow-white glands were an excellent delicacy for seasoning and enhancing freshness. Without many additional ingredients, they could make an exceptionally savory soup.

And the clam's two enormous shells could serve as two oversized grilling plates for roasting fish.

Wasn't that large iron pot the perfect hotpot vessel?

He placed the fish chunks he had marinated earlier onto the clam shells to grill, leaving them to cook until it was time to eat.

Next, he heated oil in the pot and stir-fried the spices until fragrant. Then he added the River Mother Clam's yellow sac glands and stir-fried them until golden-brown, poured in yellow wine to release its aroma, and quickly added boiling water. After letting it simmer for a few more minutes, a superb soup base was basically complete.

Finally, before the soup base had fully finished simmering, he picked up the Fish-Cutting Sword and sliced up the various fish and River Mother Clam meat, arranging them neatly as he waited for Akimichi Toribo to arrive for hotpot.

As for dipping sauces, Tejudo's Sealing Scrolls had long been stocked with them—dozens of flavor combinations, ready for anyone to choose from.

Soon, repeated whooshing sounds came from within the forest. This time, with Umino Sasuke's warning, Tejudo and the other two lowered their guard.

"Wow, it smells so fresh and delicious."

The moment Akimichi Toribo arrived, he was captivated by the pot of soup base.