A few more days passed, and the Sand Ninja finally finished their intermittent inspections.
The caravan had also stayed as long as it could and was preparing to move on to its next destination. Only after reaching the Land of Wind's capital would it turn back toward the Land of Fire, completing a trading circuit.
On the night before their departure, Zou Hyuga brought Queen Sara to a stretch of rocky desert not far from the oasis.
The ground here was exposed rock rather than quicksand, with rich oil deposits hidden beneath it.
Over the past few days, Zou Hyuga had been using his Byakugan to survey the nearby mineral deposits. This counted as another major use for the Byakugan kekkei genkai outside of war.
Ninjutsu and kekkei genkai, with all their tremendous power and versatility, were used solely for fighting.
Zou Hyuga always felt that was a waste. The Shinobi World Wars clearly broke out because of insufficient resources and productive capacity, yet every nation neglected the enormous productive potential of ninjutsu.
As he recalled, it was only after Kaguya Otsutsuki's defeat, when every nation had been frightened by that world-ending Ninja War.
Only then had the Shinobi World begun developing its productive capacity in earnest, entering a brand-new age of ninja.
Queen Sara followed behind him, her heart full of questions. Even after deciding to cooperate with the Tailed Beast Merchant Association, she still did not know the true identity of the ninja before her, much less why he thought so differently from other ninja.
All she knew was that he was the secret master behind "Tailed Beast," the organization that spanned merchant companies.
And according to the man himself, as the association's master, he simply wanted to do business in peace and barely possessed enough strength to