Sunagakure Sand Flavor Dango Shop
This is the only dango shop in Sunagakure.
Temari loves sweets, so she frequents the place, and this time she brought along two foodies, Hongshi and Choji.
Hongshi took a bite of the meatball. "Hmm... no wonder it tastes like sand, but it's damn hard to chew."
Choji chewed the dumpling with difficulty. "Sand... Sunagakure flavor... It really does taste like sand."
Temari, on the other hand, ate with great relish. "Ah, that's how Sunagakure is."
Hongshi chewed on a meatball, making a crunching sound as he said, "Boss, a glass of water, please."
Upon hearing this, the bearded man who owned the meatball shop beamed with delight. He carefully retrieved a glass of water from a locked cabinet. "You ordered this yourself, no refunds!"
Temari tried to stop her, but it was too late. " Hongshi-kun! A cup of water here costs five thousand ryo!"
"Puff!"
"That spit of yours is worth a thousand taels."
Hongshi suddenly stood up. "Five thousand taels! You're robbing me!"
Temari drew her Great Sickle Weasel Fan and tapped Hongshi on the head. "Water resources are scarce in the Land of Wind; five thousand ryo for a cup of water is a reasonable price."
Choji scratched his head. "That's way too much."
Temari irritably, "Hmph, our water resources here aren't as abundant as your Land of Fire. The water you waste so often is a huge problem here."
As he spoke, Rock Lee walked in from outside and plopped down on a stool. "Phew! Exercise task complete! Boss, ten skewers of meatballs and a pot of water, there's not even a place to drink water here."
Hongshi tried to stop him, but it was too late. The shopkeeper swiftly placed a kettle in front of Rock Lee: "Your water."
"Gurgle, gurgle."
Rock Lee grabbed the water bottle, tilted his head back, and drank heartily.
Choji: " Rock Lee! Drink slowly!"
Hongshi: "It's over!"
In less than ten seconds, he downed a whole pot of water in one gulp. "Hahaha! The first pot of water after a workout is so refreshing and clear!"
The dumpling shop owner rubbed his hands together, watching Rock Lee finish his water. "Sir, thank you for your payment of 31,000 taels."
Rock Lee: "Σ(ﾟ∀ﾟﾉ)ﾉWhat?!"
Hongshi: "This time you're chilled to the bone, aren't you!"
Thirty minutes later
Hongshi and Rock Lee walked out of the dumpling shop with tears in their eyes.
Gaara two companions, who had just finished their discussion, walked towards them.
Kyōai greeted them, "Hey! Lee-kun! Hongshi-kun, why do you look like you've been robbed?"
"Shut up!"
"Shut up!"
Gaara rarely saw Hongshi and Rock Lee looking so exhausted. " Temari, what happened?"
Temari forward and whispered, "They bought water to drink."
Kyōai seemed to know what had happened. "It seems that water resources are a big problem in Guiren Village. Have you considered purifying seawater for drinking?"
The water resources of Sunagakure are mostly purchased or collected from neighboring small countries, and sometimes even require ninja escorts, resulting in high transportation costs.
Upon hearing Kyōai's words, Gaara exclaimed, "Seawater purification? That's an interesting proposal. Is it feasible?"
The Land of Wind is bordered by a vast ocean to the south. If the seawater could be purified for drinking, it would save a considerable amount of money.
Kyōai: "Of course."
Hongshi said listlessly, "Hey, Kyōai, what did you and Calabash Boy discuss again? If there's nothing else, I'm going back to the Land of Rivers."
Rock Lee had the same expression. "I drank all my year's worth of mission rewards in ten seconds."
Choji comforted him, "Well, at least you've experienced the customs and culture of the Land of Wind."
Kyōai didn't say anything more, "Alright, the next task is up to Temari."
Temari, unaware of what had happened, asked, "What is it?"
Gaara slowly said, " Temari, take Hongshi and Shino and head north to eliminate all the troublesome Star Ninja. Kyōai have already notified Hōryūsai of the Nuclear Ninja Village. You two go ahead and meet at the Wind-Covered Rock."
"Yes!"
Choji asked, "Then where should I go?"
Kyōai chuckled and said, " Choji, Rock Lee, Kankuro, your mission is simpler. Come back to the Land of Rivers with me. The daimyo of the Land of Rivers is holding a banquet and has invited us."
Choji was naturally delighted. "A banquet! That's wonderful!"
Rock Lee was still unable to shake off the memory of the 30,000 taels. "The banquet..."
Kankuro seemed rather displeased. "Tch, at a time like this, who's in the mood for a banquet? We'd be better off spending this time cleaning up some rebels."
Kyōai distributed the Blue Bird Type Four flying ninja tools to everyone. "Alright, diplomatic relations still need to be maintained. Let's go, Temari, good luck."
Hongshi: " Kankuro, if you don't want to attend the banquet, how about we switch places?"
Kankuro: "(ˉεˉ) rolling rolling rolling."
"Boom!"
The flying ninja tools emitted a roaring sound.
The four members of the group, including Kyōai, slowly ascended into the air and disappeared from sight in a short while.
Choji pulled out a bag of potato chips and handed it to Hongshi: " Hongshi-kun, don't worry, you don't have flying ninja tools now, so you'll have to walk. It's a long way to go."
Temari, having nothing else to pack, patted Hongshi on the shoulder. " Hongshi-kun! Let's not delay, let's set off now. It'll take half a month to get to the Land of Bears from here, and if we wait any longer, the sandstorm will start."
Shino, seeing that Hongshi still looked listless and useless, said, " Hongshi-kun, I heard from Kyōai that there's a very valuable meteorite in Hoshigakure, worth at least a billion. Are you interested?"
"What??? Ten... ten billion? Then what are we waiting for? Let's get going!"
Temari covered her mouth and laughed, "I didn't expect you, Hongshi, to be so greedy. This is quite different from your honest appearance."
The Lord God: "Honest means ugly."
Baki asked with some concern, " Gaara, but what about the others? Will they be alright?"
"No, it won't."
The ninjas of Hoshigakure do not use the five common ninjutsu, but their secret technique, Mysterious Peacock Method, is both offensive and defensive, capable of being hard, soft, and spinning. Ordinary ninja tools Ninjutsu cannot cause them much damage.
Lord God: "I suspect you're making a suggestive joke."
Hongshi stood there in thought for a moment, then Hand Seals: "Look at the Ninjutsu I just came up with! Earth Release: Desert Boat!"
The sand beneath my feet slowly rose and gradually coalesced into a sand boat on the open ground in front of me.
Temari: " Ninjutsu can be used like this?"
Gaara: "Can he control sand too?"
Shino: " Hongshi-kun, your control has improved again."
"Traveling on foot, is that my style? Hmph, let's go! Land of Bears! I am! The Train..."
"Shut up!"
The Desert Boat moved automatically without wind, slowly accelerating as it sailed out of Sunagakure.
Baki flicked away the sand that had been kicked up. " Gaara, this Hongshi is extremely skilled in Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Sealing Jutsu. Shouldn't we put him on our radar?"
Gaara looked at the dark figure standing at the bow of the ship. "So what if we've sealed Shukaku is not someone we can defeat in our current state."