Naruto: Cultivating to Immortality

Chapter 143 Spy

Hyuga Kanan gently shook his head, as if trying to dispel the tangled thoughts from his mind. At this moment, he had only one clear goal in mind—to collect various metal materials and, through continuous analysis and comprehension, master the power of the metal element's rules as soon as possible, laying a solid foundation for his breakthrough to the Golden Core realm.

Becoming a samurai or a ninja was of little concern to Hyuga Kanan. His gaze swept over the various signs around him, and since he wasn't familiar with the area, he chose to enter a relatively large shop. Typically, such shops would have a wider variety of metal materials in stock, giving him a greater chance to gather all the metal materials he could find on the market.

Hinata Kanan stood in front of the shop, took a deep breath, and then gently pushed open the heavy door. The hinges creaked softly, as if opening a passage to another world.

Upon entering this mysterious and alluring space, an intense atmosphere of luxury washes over you. It's as if you've instantly traveled through time and space to a place that only exists in dreams—a luxurious shop.

Stepping inside the shop, Hinata Kanan's eyes were immediately drawn to the dazzling array of decorations and furnishings. Every detail exuded unparalleled refinement and elegance, captivating the eye. A magnificent crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, its shimmering light like twinkling stars illuminating the entire space; the walls were covered with expensive silk wallpaper, embroidered with exquisite and lifelike patterns; and the floor was covered with a thick, plush carpet, making one feel as if walking on clouds.

A variety of luxurious decorative items are displayed on the shelves, each resembling a precious work of art. They shimmer with a captivating luster and exude an intoxicating charm. There are crystal-clear jade ornaments, dazzling diamond necklaces, exquisitely crafted handmade leather goods... each piece is so unique and so eye-catching.

Hyuga Kanan's eyes widened, a wave of amazement washing over him. Words couldn't describe the beauty and grandeur of what lay before him. This wasn't just a shop; it was a treasure trove of ninja swords. He felt an unprecedented sense of awe within this luxurious store.

Looking at the scene before him, Hyuga Kanan couldn't help but show a surprised expression.

It's important to understand that the ninja world is in a rather chaotic era. The fact that such a luxurious weapon forging shop could be established in the Land of Iron, where even basic necessities are scarce, proves that this shop must have an extremely wealthy and powerful background. Moreover, relying solely on the Land of Iron's weapon forging capabilities to establish a shop of this scale is simply a pipe dream.

Hyuga Kanan, who was still standing there staring blankly, was immediately interrupted by the words of a pretty hostess.

"Welcome to our shop, sir. What kind of weapon do you need? We also accept custom forging."

Upon seeing the exceptionally elegant Hyuga Kanan standing there in a daze, the female greeter quickly approached to greet and inquire. This person was clearly no ordinary individual; although he wasn't wearing a ninja headband, his demeanor and clothing immediately revealed his distinguished status.

The plan is to take Hinata Kanan directly to the store manager so that the manager can personally receive him.

Upon seeing Hyuga Kanan's appearance, the shop manager, who was not far away, showed a surprised expression, which then turned into one of elation. After giving an instruction to his assistant, he walked directly out of the shop counter and quickly left through the back door, looking extremely anxious. Even his assistant was puzzled by the shop manager's behavior.

Now, there's a customer who looks like a VIP who's come to shop at the store. Normally, when the store manager sees such a VIP, he'll immediately go to greet him and introduce the various weapons in the store, with a very friendly and approachable demeanor.

Surprisingly, today he didn't approach the guest but instead had his assistant greet him. He also told me to try to prolong the time so that this important guest could stay in the store and not leave.

The assistant didn't think much of it. The manager must have noticed something unusual about the customer, perhaps a big deal that required careful preparation, hence the need to stall the customer and prevent them from leaving the shop easily. The assistant continued as instructed, attending to the customer well and trying to delay their departure.

He then flashed a friendly smile and quickly stepped forward to greet her.

"Sir, is this your first time in our shop? Then let me properly introduce you to the various exquisite weapons we forge. I'm sure you'll be able to choose the weapon that best suits your taste. Our weapons are all sizes of blades forged by Master Yuu, one of the three most renowned blacksmiths in the Land of Iron. You'll definitely..."

The shop manager's assistant cleared his throat, preparing to give a detailed introduction to the various exquisite knives in the shop, and to use this opportunity to buy himself some time so that he could successfully complete the task assigned to him by the shop manager, while waiting for the shop manager to return.

However, just then, Hyuga Kanan, snapping out of his daze, rudely waved his hand, interrupting the shop assistant who was still about to launch into a long explanation of the ninja swords. It should be noted that he hadn't come here to buy any ninja tools or weapons, and he had no time to listen to the shop assistant's further explanation of the ninja swords in the store.

As his gaze swept over the incredibly luxurious shop and the renowned Iron Country forging master within, Hyuga Kanan was convinced that this place must hold a vast collection of diverse metal materials.

Hyuga Kanan glanced around at the various ninja swords and immediately noticed that they were forged from different metals. This further confirmed his suspicions.

"I don't need the ninja swords in your shop!"

Seeing the shop assistant who seemed a little stunned by her words, Hinata Kanan continued, "I think your shop should also sell various metal materials for forging weapons. I need various metal materials."

The slightly stunned shop assistant took a while to recover, looking at the distinguished and imposing Hyuga Kanan with a puzzled expression. He muttered to himself, "This guy comes to our weapon-making shop, not to buy or customize a ninja sword, but to buy forging materials? That's really strange!" Despite his confusion, the shop assistant didn't immediately refuse.

After all, the store manager's task for him was clear—to treat this customer with utmost hospitality and find a way to keep him occupied and prevent him from leaving the store easily. So, the clerk thought, "Whatever, the store has a huge variety of metal materials; it would take a long time to look at them all. This way, I can easily complete the task the store manager gave me!"

How the store manager handles this strange customer is none of my business; the store manager will take care of that. Thinking this, a barely perceptible smile appeared on the employee's face.

With a smile, he gently raised his hand and waved gracefully a few times towards the hostess not far away. The movement was small but extremely elegant and approachable, as if he were calling a cute little bird. The hostess understood and walked over with light yet dignified steps.

After the hostess came to a stop, he said to her softly, "Could you please ask the materials buyer to come over and give this distinguished guest a detailed introduction to all the different materials in our store? We must do our best to meet the guest's needs."

Upon hearing this, Hyuga Kanan's face lit up with delight, and he nodded in satisfaction. He thought that with a professional materials buyer assisting him, his expertise and experience would help him collect a wider variety of metal materials. This way, he wouldn't need to spend so much time and energy selecting and purchasing from shop to shop; he could simply wait a while before picking up the materials he needed. This method was undoubtedly more convenient and efficient, and he looked forward to it.

The shop assistant carefully led Hinata Kanan into a meeting room in the shop and gestured for him to wait a moment.

The shop manager, who had already left the store, was now hurrying through the streets of the town. He turned left and right, finally stopping in front of an inconspicuous, deserted house.

After stopping, the shop manager cautiously glanced around to make sure no one was watching him. Then, he stepped forward and rhythmically knocked lightly on the door. The knocks were crisp and short, as if conveying some secret signal. Then, he stood quietly in place, silently waiting for a response from inside.

Time ticked by, and in less than a minute, the tightly closed door slowly opened, revealing a narrow crack. Through the crack, the shopkeeper and the person inside exchanged a glance, seemingly receiving some kind of confirmation. Then, the door swung open completely, and the shopkeeper stepped inside without hesitation, his figure instantly disappearing into the darkness behind the door.

As soon as the shopkeeper entered the courtyard, he saw a squad of ninjas wielding ninja swords and wearing headbands from the Hidden Cloud Village, who were keeping watch around the area. They had also subtly surrounded the shopkeeper, ready to strike and subdue him should he make any hostile move.

The store manager didn't pay much attention, just nodded slightly to the leader and then spread his hands.

The leading ninja nodded to the team members around him, signaling them to put their weapons away first, before looking at the shop manager with some curiosity.

They were a small team that the Hidden Cloud Village had painstakingly managed to infiltrate the Land of Iron, a country that was extremely unwelcoming to ninja teams from other nations stationed within its borders. Moreover, the leader of the Land of Iron, Mikawa, was a legendary samurai who could rival Hanzo of the Salamander.

As a permanently neutral country, the Hidden Cloud Village's dispatch of ninja teams to infiltrate the Land of Iron, and its control of a very large ninja tool forging shop, could potentially incur the hostility of all samurai in the Land of Iron if discovered.

Moreover, other ninja villages cannot tolerate the behavior of the Cloud Village.