Violet Goldwood

The next day.

Early morning.

As usual, Samu Kokaze had risen at dawn and was now rummaging back and forth through his family's storeroom.

"Damn, there's so much dust! I should never have put it so far inside."

Standing in the storeroom, Samu Kokaze frowned as gray dust rose up with every casual rummage.

Today was Ino's birthday. Having decided on her gift last night, Samu Kokaze was now searching the storeroom for a piece of carving wood. After all, aside from wood carving—a skill presentable enough as a gift—he had little else he could offer.

The piece of wood he was looking for had been brought by a Land of Fire nobleman who had visited Konoha. After seeing the exquisite carvings displayed outside Samu Kokaze's shop, the nobleman had hurried home and returned with a precious piece of timber he had treasured for years, asking Samu Kokaze to carve a life-sized wooden statue of him.

At the time, the carving shop had only recently opened, and Samu Kokaze had yet to make a name for himself. He had accepted the enormous commission without hesitation.

After all, a nobleman was a nobleman. The carving fee alone had been a full one million ryo.

Measured by ninja missions, that was equivalent to the price of posting an S-rank mission in Konoha.

Of course, the nobleman had not been a fool, and his requirements for the statue had been extremely high. But to Samu Kokaze, who possessed the Nano Core, those were trivial matters.

"Ah! Is it here?"

Spotting the timber buried beneath other items, Samu Kokaze pulled it out and gently blew away the layer of dust, revealing its violet-gold sheen.

Samu Kokaze's warehouse was not far from his shop—only a few steps away.

The modest warehouse was now filled to the brim with all kinds of precious timber, leaving only a narrow path through which one could walk.

After that Land of Fire nobleman had brought Samu Kokaze's life-sized wooden statue back to his country and displayed it, it caused a tremendous stir among the Land of Fire's nobility.

As a result, nobles and wealthy merchants planning to visit Konoha would deliberately bring their family's precious timber to Samu Kokaze for carving. Between the leftover materials and gifts from those nobles, the wood in his warehouse alone was worth over ten million ryo.

If not for the money-making power of his carving shop, then honestly, with Samu Kokaze's daily expenses, an ordinary family truly could not afford to support him.

Carrying the roughly one-and-a-half-cubic-meter piece of violet-gold timber back to the shop, Samu Kokaze looked at it, and hesitation flickered through his eyes.

His hesitation was not because he begrudged the wood. The dust-covered warehouse alone showed how little he cared about such things. For Samu Kokaze, who possessed the Nano Core, any raw material was practically inexhaustible.

After all, Nanobugs could completely analyze any object they devoured, then transform objects with similar materials into items they had previously consumed.

For example, they could turn poplar into willow, but they could not turn metal into wood.

Of course, the Nanobugs' current material conversion process was not only time-consuming but also inefficient. For wood alone, they could convert only a finger-sized amount in an hour, making it largely useless. Then again, Nanobugs were still too scarce.

That was why Samu Kokaze had risked being caught and interrogated by Konoha's higher-ups to obtain Uzumaki Clan blood from Naruto.

Calling it an interrogation might have been an exaggeration, but being taken away for questioning was quite possible. Still, even if the Anbu or Root took him in, Samu Kokaze was confident he could get out. He could, at the very least, use the Nanobugs to alter the surface memories in his mind.

To the Land of Fire's nobles, Samu Kokaze, a master carver, held considerable value. Helping him gain a favorable impression at little cost was a very worthwhile investment. Besides, Samu Kokaze had an agreement with an influential nobleman in the Land of Fire.

Looking at the violet-gold timber on the floor, Samu Kokaze sighed. He could tell that Ino truly regarded him as her best friend. Perhaps because she had matured early, she might even harbor a little girl's crush on him.

As someone who was already an adult inside, he had no feelings for a little girl and merely regarded her as a mischievous younger sister.

But during the past year they had spent together, leaving aside that she had been his favorite female character in the anime in his previous life, his affection for her during their time together had been genuine.

As for her birthday gift, Samu Kokaze wanted to carve it himself rather than have the Nanobugs finish it instantly.

"Forget it. Being late for my morning run today won't hurt. Let's see where I should make the first cut."

Muttering to himself, Samu Kokaze sat on the floor as a silvery-white liquid seeped from his hand. It slowly took the shape of a carving knife before ceasing to flow and solidifying in that form.

Holding the carving knife formed from Nanobugs, silver glints flashed through Samu Kokaze's eyes from time to time as he memorized every grain in the wood before him. After calculating the best place to begin, his hand flashed repeatedly.

The Nanobug carving knife was incomparably sharp, slicing through the timber as though it were tofu. In only a short while, it had carved the wood before him into a rough shape.

As the violet-gold timber was cut open, a faint fragrance wafted into his nose, instantly refreshing his mind.

The wood before him was called Violet Goldwood by the people of the Naruto World. Its noble coloration and intoxicating fragrance made it universally beloved by the upper classes of every nation.

Violet Goldwood lived up to its name. Just like its color, its current market price was nearly equal to gold of the same weight—and even then, it was scarce and hard to find.

The piece before Samu Kokaze alone would fetch at least one million ryo if sold.

It was said that Violet Goldwood had not been particularly rare in the past, but after humanity discovered it, excessive logging had made growing Violet Gold Trees nearly impossible to find. Perhaps a few still remained deep in remote mountains and ancient forests.

Thus, the daimyo and upper classes of every nation took pride in owning a complete set of furniture carved from Violet Goldwood. Using it as the main material for Ino's birthday gift was truly a lavish expense.

Time slowly passed. More and more wood shavings accumulated on the floor, while the faint fragrance in the air grew stronger. As the final cut fell, a pretty young girl appeared before him.

The wooden sculpture was entirely violet-gold. The natural grain of the wood not only failed to detract from its appeal, but through superb craftsmanship had been completely integrated into the sculpture, making it even more captivating.

Samu Kokaze nodded in satisfaction. Looking at the wooden sculpture, which was nearly as tall as he was, he could guarantee that Ino's figure differed from it by less than a millimeter. I swear it on the Nano Core.

He gently carried the sculpture into the inner room, then gathered the wood shavings scattered on the floor. The larger pieces could still be carved into small items, while even the scraps could be wrapped into sachets and would appeal to some people. After all, this was Violet Goldwood, worth more than gold.