Shennong (Part 1)

After standing there in a daze for a while, Ye Wuji went back. Since Fu had already left, he wouldn't be coming here to train anymore. He planned to continue training at home.

Looking at his hands, Ye Wuji felt he was still too young. It made a lot of things difficult. Once he returned to his room, he began looking through the things Fu had given him.

There was quite a lot: nearly twenty Explosive Tags, more than Sister Konan had given him, and around a dozen lengths of wire. They were made from metal specially used by ninjas. It didn't reflect light easily, making it especially suitable for setting traps. There were also a few Kunai, some Shuriken, and finally, more than twenty Senbon.

Kunai were more or less like daggers, which most people knew. Shuriken were those star-shaped blades. Some had four points, others five. Senbon were long, thin needles, thicker at one end and thinner at the other.

While he'd been in Takigakure, Ye Wuji had learned some basic facts about the Naruto World. Ninja tools like these were sold in specialty shops in any reasonably large ninja village. The same went for Explosive Tags. You didn't have to be a ninja to buy them. It was much like Earth: if you had money, you could buy just about anything, whether you were a ninja, a samurai, or an ordinary person.

Ordinary people with money could buy Explosive Tags to keep at home, too. Of course, since they weren't ninjas, they couldn't use them. Explosive Tags were made using a common type of Sealing Jutsu, and only ninjas with a Fire Release affinity could make them. They were produced by ninja craftsmen. Usually, to detonate an Explosive Tag, you had to understand its formula beforehand, then set it off with chakra.

Although ordinary samurai used chakra, they didn't perform Hand Seals, so they generally couldn't use Explosive Tags. They were basically for ninjas alone. More importantly, Explosive Tags weren't cheap. They were expensive—a single tag usually cost between five thousand and ten thousand ryo. The exact price depended on its quality.

A regular Shuriken, Kunai, or other ninja tool usually cost more than a thousand ryo. Ordinary people generally wouldn't buy them. Swords and other weapons used by samurai cost even more if they were made from the same metal.

In the Naruto World, five hundred ryo was enough to post a D-rank mission, hiring low-level ninjas to do simple jobs. So ninja tools were usually bought by ninjas.

There were also ordinary weapons shops that sold everyday swords and knives, the kind samurai and thieves liked to use. They sold farming tools as well.

As for the difference in quality between ninja tools and ordinary weapons, you had to try them to know.

Actually, when Ye Wuji first heard how much Explosive Tags cost, no one could have guessed what his first thought was. The instant he heard the price, he wondered how much Sister Konan's sea of six hundred billion Explosive Tags—the ones she'd used against Masked Obito—would sell for. Even though he'd seen all kinds of figures in the internet age on Earth, his brain had nearly short-circuited. By all accounts, Sister Konan had to be the richest woman in the Naruto World. With that many Explosive Tags, why would Kakuzu need to collect money?

Sure enough, the rich were powerful in any world. Couldn't beat someone? Fine, bury them in money! If the Mangekyō Sharingan hadn't been so overpowered, Masked Obito really might have been buried under Sister Konan's money. But only she could pull off that trick. No one else could control so many Explosive Tags at once, even if they had them. Only her Paper Style made it possible.

Ye Wuji put the items away. He had no use for them right now, so he went back to training.

Three days later, Ye Wuji was exercising when he suddenly heard someone calling for him out front. Curious about who it could be, he went outside and saw that Rei was calling him.

"Rei, you're back," Ye Wuji said, looking at her, Yuta, Uncle Ken, Aunt Kei, and finally a middle-aged man who looked to be in his forties or fifties. His hair fell over his shoulders, and he wore a brown hat.

"Where have you been running off to? You should've stayed put," Rei said, reaching to knock Ye Wuji on the head.

"You were training just now, weren't you, my young friend?" the middle-aged man at the back asked.

"Huh? How does he know?" Ye Wuji gave the middle-aged man a questioning look. He wasn't the only one; the others were looking at him, too.

"It's simple," the man explained. "Your breathing has settled, and you've wiped the sweat from your face, but there are still several marks on your hands. They're the kind left by holding something for a long time. And although you're young, you walk very steadily. That shows you weren't playing around. So I'd guess you were holding something like a sword hilt and practicing. Am I right, my young friend?"

Before Ye Wuji could answer, Rei and Yuta exclaimed, "Amazing! You figured all that out in no time!"

Even Aunt Kei chimed in. "No wonder you're such a perceptive doctor, Shennong. Please, come inside." She gestured for Shennong to enter, then turned to Uncle Ken. "Uncle Ken, Doctor Shennong will be staying with us for a while. Please get things ready, and ask Tomomi to come back. We'll make extra food tonight."

"Understood, ma'am," Uncle Ken replied.

"Hey, Ye, was Uncle Shennong right? Have you been practicing in secret?" Rei grabbed Ye Wuji and asked.

The others were curious, too, and waited to hear if Shennong had been right.

"Yeah. I'm the only one at home, so when I have nothing to do, I go practice in the yard over there," Ye Wuji replied with a smile.

"I wouldn't have guessed you were so impressive, Ye. You'd better keep working hard. Your big brother Yuta has gotten pretty strong, you know," Rei said, glancing from Ye Wuji to Yuta.

Then she turned to Yuta. "You'd better keep working hard, too. It'd be embarrassing if Ye surpassed you."

Yuta laughed at Rei's teasing and looked at Ye Wuji. The two boys seemed to be getting competitive. Listening to Rei, Ye Wuji thought, I don't have time to get into a rivalry with him. Still, this works as a cover.

By then, Uncle Ken had gone out to make arrangements, while Aunt Kei had ushered the doctor named Shennong into the main hall. After giving Ye Wuji a look, Yuta disappeared with his sword. Judging by where he was headed, he was going to the training yard.

"Rei, who was that man just now?" Ye Wuji had heard everyone call him by name, but he still wanted to confirm.

"That's Uncle Shennong. He's an amazing doctor! Uncle Daimyo was poisoned, and no one here could cure him. But after Uncle Shennong arrived, he got rid of the poison in three days. Uncle Daimyo is safe now, but Shennong has to stay a while longer to make sure the remaining poison is completely gone. Uncle Shennong travels all over, treating poor people and even going to the battlefield to help injured civilians. He's incredible," Rei said admiringly.

"I see," Ye Wuji said, nodding. "That's amazing. He really is remarkable. By the way, Rei, you're all back, but I don't see Uncle Ukyo."

"Dad has to stay at the Daimyo Mansion for a few more days. He'll be back soon. Yuta and the others have also reached a point in their training where they need a few days' rest before moving on to the next stage. Don't worry. When Dad gets back, I'll ask him to teach you a few moves, too. I guarantee you'll be just as good as Yuta.

"Anyway, I've been away for so long. I want to see how my room's doing." Rei hurried toward her room as she spoke.

"Your room's fine! Tomomi cleans it every day!" Ye Wuji called after her.

Once everyone had left and Ye Wuji was alone, he thought, Now that they're all back, it'll be harder to practice certain things. But I'd planned to spend the next two years like this anyway. I never expected Shennong to come here. This is great. A smile spread across his face as he thought.

*This Shennong should be the one from the movie, right? He looks a little younger, but his features are pretty much the same as I remember. That has to be him—the man who wanted to create an artificial Tailed Beast, the Zero-Tails.

*I don't need the Zero-Tails. It uses people's dark emotions as fuel to create a monster with Dark Chakra. Its power is way too unstable. If people don't have dark emotions, wouldn't that be the end of it? Maybe everyone has some darkness in their heart, and it can be drawn out with the right guidance. But Shennong ran into Naruto of all people, and Naruto just happened to have no dark emotions in his heart. Shennong was incredibly unlucky. He could've sent anyone, just not Naruto.

*Shennong usually puts on the act of a benevolent doctor who helps the people, but he's really a hypocrite. And even if he truly were a good doctor dedicated to helping others, I still wouldn't let him live. To most people, Shennong might just be an ordinary name, but to me, it isn't a name just anyone deserves to bear. As a descendant of China, I won't let anyone sully it.

*Besides, this Shennong is a remnant of the Land of Sky. Judging by how even Orochimaru wanted to get the Reanimation Technique from him, Shennong must be a high-level medical ninja. No matter what, he's come right to my doorstep. If I don't seize this opportunity, I'd be letting myself down. The people of Konoha should thank me. I'll be removing a future threat for you. Sorry, Orochimaru, but it looks like you won't get the Reanimation Technique so easily.

*That's not all. I'm sorry, future Nephew Naruto. I've deprived you of a chance to play the hero and save a beauty—and of a kindred spirit, too. I feel bad doing this as your uncle. But given my relationship with the Fourth, I suppose it's fine to call you Nephew Naruto.

I was just thinking of finding a base, and one has already come to me—a base I can move wherever I want. The Land of Sky's floating city, Angkor Fortress, is mine now! A strange light flashed in Ye Wuji's eyes, then vanished. He returned to being the adorable six-year-old Ye Wuji.