Making

The materials needed for the Secret Brew and Secret Recipe Dried Meat, aside from meat and grain, were all special medicinal herbs.

In Konoha, if you asked which shop had the most complete selection of herbs, aside from the long-established Chinese Herbal Medicine, it would be the Nara Clan's family herb shop.

And Gu Qi's target was exactly the Nara Clan's herb shop.

Before long, Gu Qi arrived alone at the Nara Clan's compound in Konoha.

The Nara Clan's compound was divided into two areas. The outer layer was a commercial district, used exclusively for trade.

The inner area was where the Nara Clan members lived.

Outside the village of Konoha, the Nara Clan also had a garden dedicated to raising medicinal herbs and deer antlers.

Although the Nara Clan couldn't compare to the two great houses of Konoha—the Hyuga and the Uchiha—they were still far better off than the Hatake Clan.

After all, the entire Hatake Clan now consisted of only two people: Kakashi Hatake and Gu Qi. Oh, and Kakashi's eight ninja dogs.

Though the Hatake Clan's numbers had dwindled, their foundation was still fairly deep.

In the bustling areas of Konoha, they owned several shops. Among them was Gu Qi's Ninja Tool Shop.

These shops brought in a decent amount of rent each year, but all that money was in Kakashi's hands. Gu Qi couldn't touch a single ryo.

The money Gu Qi had brought this time to buy herbs was basically all the working capital from the Ninja Tool Shop.

"Uncle Seiichi, could you please prepare ten sets of the herbs on this list for me?" Walking into the Nara Family Herb Shop, Gu Qi spoke to a middle-aged man inside.

Gu Qi was a regular here. Since his family owned a ninja tool shop, he often needed herbs to make finished medicines for sale. Over time, he had gotten to know the shopkeeper, Nara Seiichi.

Nara Seiichi looked up, recognized the visitor, and squinted with a smile. "Ah, it's little Gu Qi. Here to buy herbs again?"

Gu Qi nodded obediently. "Yes, Uncle Seiichi. Just restocking this time."

Nara Seiichi didn't say much else. He took the note Gu Qi handed over and glanced at it.

"Oh? Is Gu Qi planning to make Ration Pills?" Nara Seiichi was experienced enough to know just from a glance at the list.

Gu Qi rubbed his nose in mild surprise. "Wow! Uncle Seiichi is amazing. You could tell just from that."

Pleased with the compliment, Nara Seiichi grinned proudly. "Of course. I've been in the herb business my whole life. Just by looking at a formula, I know what it's for."

But then he paused, eyeing another list with uncertainty. "This list is strange. I've never seen a combination like this before."

Gu Qi chuckled but said nothing. He wasn't a three-year-old child. He understood the principle that a man's wealth invites trouble.

The Secret Brew had a miraculous effect—it could heal injuries. If others found out, Gu Qi would face endless trouble.

Even with Kakashi around, Gu Qi knew that while Kakashi could handle the covetousness of ordinary people, he couldn't resist the prying eyes of stronger forces—like Konoha itself.

Once Konoha learned of the Secret Brew's effects, the higher-ups would surely use the greater good to pressure Kakashi into compliance, forcing Gu Qi to hand over the recipe.

Of course, some compensation would be given, so it wouldn't look too ugly.

"I was too forward. Since little Gu Qi doesn't want to say, I won't ask." Seeing Gu Qi's silence, Nara Seiichi dropped the matter.

He pulled out an abacus, clicked through a calculation, and said with a smile, "That'll be twenty-three thousand two hundred and thirty ryo. But since Gu Qi is a regular, I'll waive the thirty ryo."

Gu Qi's mouth twitched. After all that acting cute, he'd only saved thirty ryo.

Still, it was better than nothing. Gu Qi silently pulled a stack of bills from his pocket, counted them, and handed them over.

Nara Seiichi took the money without counting it and simply ordered an apprentice to prepare the herbs.

Soon, a large bundle of packaged herbs was handed to Gu Qi.

Gu Qi slung the bundle over his back with practiced ease and politely said to Seiichi, "Uncle Seiichi, I'll take my leave now."

"Gu Qi, are you sure you don't need me to send someone to escort you back?" Nara Seiichi looked at the heavy snow outside and asked with some concern.

Gu Qi waved his hand dismissively. "It's fine. I'm not that fragile."

"Alright then. Be careful on the way, Gu Qi."

"Mm. Goodbye, Uncle Seiichi."

Leaving the herb shop, Gu Qi carried the herbs on his back and walked home with a light heart.

Though Gu Qi was only three and a half years old, he had long understood how dangerous this world was and had started training early.

Kakashi, knowing he couldn't stop Gu Qi and afraid he'd ruin his body by doing things recklessly, had no choice but to reluctantly teach him some Taijutsu techniques.

So it was no exaggeration to say that Gu Qi could proudly declare he could take on ten kids his own age.

"Yo, Kakashi. Watching the shop again?"

Back at the family's Ninja Tool Shop, Gu Qi unsurprisingly found Kakashi reading some kind of risqué novel.

"Instead of staying home and training properly, where did you run off to this time?" Kakashi saw Gu Qi's cheerful expression and couldn't help scolding him.

Gu Qi spread his hands. "We were out of herbs at home, so I went to the Nara Clan to buy some."

Kakashi sighed. "It's not like I can't support you. Why wear yourself out like this?"

Gu Qi grinned. "I was bored. I don't want to be like those other kids, just lazing around waiting to die."

Kakashi rolled his eyes at that. "Then at least watch the shop properly! You make me cover for you every time I'm off duty."

Gu Qi, upon hearing this, said without a shred of shame: "I'm a kid, aren't kids supposed to be playful? That's totally normal!"

Kakashi gave Gu Qi a speechless look. What he said made sense, but somehow it felt so off.

"Forget it. Since you're back, I can head out too." Kakashi decided not to bother with Gu Qi anymore, stood up, and left directly.

Gu Qi didn't stop him. He knew Kakashi was off to train.

Even though it was supposed to be time off, as a ninja who risked life and limb, even during breaks, he had to train now and then to keep his body in peak condition.

That was the only way to ensure he'd come back alive on the next mission.

Still, Kakashi's departure suited Gu Qi just fine, because he had a lot of things to do.

Taking some money, Gu Qi headed to the nearby Butcher Shop and bought a good amount of meat.

Then, after sending the meat home, he went to buy the grains needed for brewing alcohol.

By the time all that was done, it was already noon.

"Whew, finally ready."

In the kitchen behind the Ninja Tool Shop, Gu Qi looked at the massive pile of supplies and suddenly felt a twinge of regret.

The amount of medicinal herbs he'd bought this time was enough to make over two hundred pounds of dried meat and Secret Brew.

As a result, the entire kitchen was now packed full of meat and grains.

"Crap, I should've bought less to test it out first. Careless, careless." Gu Qi felt a bit annoyed—he'd accidentally bought way too much.

But since it was already done, Gu Qi had no choice but to start preparing the Secret Brew and Secret Recipe Dried Meat.

He processed the herbs bought from the Nara Family Herb Shop according to the scroll's instructions, then began steaming the grains.

Once the grains were steamed, Gu Qi followed the steps on the scroll and packed the processed herbs, steamed grains, yeast, and water into four jars that could each hold fifty pounds.

After sealing the gaps on the jar lids with water, all that was left was to wait for the ingredients to ferment.

This fermented mash was called aromatic mash, and it couldn't be eaten directly because it contained a lot of impurities.

Only after distilling and filtering the fermented mash could you get the safe-to-consume Secret Brew.

Since the Secret Brew needed time to ferment, Gu Qi moved on to making the Secret Recipe Dried Meat.

First, he processed the herbs again, then chopped the raw meat into small pieces and mixed it with the processed herbs to marinate.

After letting it sit for a while, Gu Qi placed the meat and herbs into a steamer and cooked them over water.

Once the meat had absorbed the medicinal properties from the herbs, Gu Qi started roasting it.

When the roasting was done, the Secret Recipe Dried Meat was finished.

"Hey, Gu Qi, you're making dried meat? Perfect, I haven't had dinner yet. I'll help myself."

Just as Gu Qi was about to taste the Secret Recipe Dried Meat he'd made with his own hands, a short little figure suddenly appeared in his kitchen.