Chapter 357

357. Chapter 350: The last person who said that has already been bent.

"What did you say to Little Guang?"

Uchiha Gin, lagging at the very back of the team, looked at Uchiha Guang, who was a bit dejected ahead, and asked Hyuga Yuedu, who had just slowed her pace to walk side-by-side with him.

"Just told her some adult things."

"Huh?"

Uchiha Gin scratched his head, speechless. Even if his sister-in-law was modified into the appearance of a soft, cute Hinata, her core was still that cold, arrogant queen.

"Are you really okay staying down here for so long?"

As the clan leader of the Otsutsuki clan, her work must be very heavy. Suddenly taking a long vacation for herself—the people above must be in chaos.

"Are you worried about me?"

"Uh... don't you Otsutsuki clan members dislike staying on the ground for too long?"

Choked by her sudden out-of-character remark, Uchiha Gin froze for a moment and quickly changed the subject.

"Yes, because I dislike it."

Hyuga Yuedu nodded gently.

"Then why are you still..."

"Because I suddenly like it again."

"Fine, as long as you're happy~"

As soon as these words were out, Uchiha Gin felt the aura around him suddenly turn extremely cold. Hyuga Yuedu turned her head without saying a word, and the atmosphere between the two instantly dropped to freezing point.

Did I say something wrong?

Sure enough, a woman's mind can never be fathomed.

Uchiha Gin scratched his face in confusion. He wasn't some love expert, and the thing he was worst at was dealing with women.

"We're about to reach the border of the Land of Wind!"

Not long after the cold silence, the Chiyo siblings leading the way suddenly informed them.

"Click~"

Seeing that they had reached the edge of the forest ahead, Uchiha Gin and the others stopped, shielding their eyes from the glaring sun, their gazes tightening slightly.

"Is this the desert?"

Hyuga Yuedu, who hadn't spoken for a long time, finally put down her cold mask, looking at the boundless yellow sand before her, her white eyes shining with curiosity.

The climate inside the moon was like spring all year round. She had only seen harsh environments like this in books.

"Not bad, right? There are still many fun places down here. When there's a chance, I'll take you to soak in hot springs, go skiing..."

Seeing that his sister-in-law had finally returned to normal, in order not to let her continue to sulk inexplicably, Uchiha Gin immediately patted his chest to guarantee.

"Oh? Very practiced. Who else have you said this kind of thing to?"

Hearing Uchiha Gin's long string of words, Hyuga Yuedu turned her head, a thoughtful look on her face.

"Ah, this..."

Not expecting his sister-in-law's angle of looking at the problem to be so tricky, Uchiha Gin's gaze glanced involuntarily toward Uchiha Guang not far ahead.

"Hmph~"

Hyuga Yuedu snorted coldly, revealing an "as expected" expression, then turned her head away again, entering sulking mode.

No, sister-in-law, your character has collapsed~

"Uncle Gin, at our current speed, we can reach Sunagakure tonight. What do you think?"

After simply confirming the team's current location, Chiyo, who had already regarded Uchiha Gin as the leader of this squad, ran over to report the situation.

"Then let's continue on our way. I don't want to sleep in the desert."

Uchiha Gin nodded.

"Okay!"

Hearing this, Chiyo immediately found her brother, who was resting on the spot, and gave him a solid kick, making him get up and continue the journey.

And so, the five of them took advantage of the fact that the sun hadn't set yet, increased their horsepower, and galloped across the boundless desert, finally arriving at Sunagakure just before the sunset fell below the horizon.

"Sunagakure looks so poor~"

Uchiha Guang, who had been emo the whole way, finally found her soul, looking up at the slightly shabby village before her and giving a very pertinent evaluation.

"Sigh~"

Although he had been mentally prepared, seeing the desolate state of Sunagakure, Uchiha Gin couldn't help but sigh.

No wonder the Sunagakure in the original work always loved to stir up trouble. It turns out that those who are barefoot aren't afraid of those who wear shoes~

"Wuwuwu, finally back~"

Ebizo, whose two feet were about to be scrapped, was crying bitterly. The poor young man originally thought he was among the top in terms of physical strength in the whole team, but until he reached his hometown, he discovered that he was the weakest one.

Excluding his sister Chiyo, the one man and two women from Konoha had run for a whole day without stopping, yet they still looked relaxed and calm, not even shedding a drop of sweat.

"Quickly report to Lord Kazekage, Lord Chiyo is back!"

The guards at the entrance of Sunagakure, seeing the Chiyo siblings, immediately notified the guards inside the city.

"Uncle Gin, please wait a moment. We can go in after verifying our identities."

Chiyo, who was still waiting outside for inspection, was afraid that Uchiha Gin would be dissatisfied, so she said cautiously.

"Lord Chiyo, what did you call him?"

The guard who was performing the routine inspection, hearing Chiyo's address, instantly widened his eyes.

"Don't ask what you shouldn't. Hurry up and verify."

Don't look at how Chiyo acted like a big milk can in front of Uchiha Gin; in Sunagakure, she was the ruthless queen that everyone feared. With her puppetry, she had beaten a group of young talents into submission and became the strongest of the new generation in the village.

"It's fine. We're already here, so I don't mind waiting a while~"

Uchiha Gin didn't mind. Anyway, he had plenty of time, so much that he couldn't use it all up.

"Hahaha! Mr. Gin, you've finally come!"

Just as Uchiha Gin was boredly sizing up the wall skin of Sunagakure's outer wall, a familiar laugh rang out not far away.

"Uh..."

Sha Men Shamon Laodi's speed was quite fast, but this entrance—wasn't it a bit too flashy?

He saw a yellow sand wall rising into the sky from Sunagakure. The laughter just now came from within it. Relying on his bug-level perception, Uchiha Gin found the big bald head coming on the sand in the blink of an eye.

Magnet Release, huh...

It seems Sha Men Shamon Laodi's research wasn't without results.

"Gin, what kind of jutsu is that?"

Uchiha Guang was also shocked by this gorgeous opening, tugging on Uchiha Gin's sleeve and asking, her black eyes filled with the words "I want it."

Uchiha Gin just wanted to say something, but discovered that his other sleeve was also being tugged a few times. He turned his head in confusion, only to see his expressionless sister-in-law.

"You?"

Her pure white eyes met Uchiha Gin's. Hyuga Yuedu nodded imperceptibly. It seems his sister-in-law was also very curious about Magnet Release.

"Boom!"

The aggressive sand wall covered them. Just before it was about to crash down, all the sand grains seemed to be frozen, stagnating in mid-air.

"Mr. Gin is indeed not an ordinary person."

Sha Men, on the sand wall, looked at Uchiha Gin, who hadn't changed his expression, the admiration on his face growing. If it were an ordinary person seeing his Sand Burial, they would have probably run away long ago. How could they have the calm and composed demeanor of Mr. Gin?

"Is this how you Sunagakure people greet others?"

Uchiha Gin raised his eyebrows and shouted at Sha Men, whom he hadn't seen for a long time.

"Don't blame me, Mr. Gin. I just wanted to show you my secret jutsu."

Sha Men on the sand wall leaped down, and the yellow sand in the sky collapsed along with it. After landing on the ground, his honest, big face carried a bit of embarrassment as he apologized to Uchiha Gin.

"Teacher! How can you treat guests like this!"

Before Uchiha Gin could speak, Chiyo jumped out first. Unable to bear seeing her good uncle being wronged, her onion-like fingers were almost poking onto Sha Men's shiny bald head.

"Hehe, little Chiyo, my relationship with Mr. Gin is much better than you imagine~"

For his beloved disciple, Sha Men was very indulgent and doting, so he didn't take Chiyo's rebellious behavior to heart, instead smiling and pointing at Uchiha Gin, who was rolling his eyes wildly.

"Sha Men Shamon Laodi, long time no see."

"Teacher, do you really know Uncle Gin?"

"Uncle? That's right, it's understandable for you to call him Uncle. After all, your father and him..."

Sha Men, who was greeting Uchiha Gin, suddenly heard his disciple call the other party Uncle. After being surprised for a moment, he quickly figured out the reason.

"Mr. Gin, if it weren't for the fact that I had no other choice, I wouldn't be embarrassed to open my mouth."

"You're treating me as an outsider. With the relationship between us brothers, is there any need to say these things? If you have any difficulties in the future, just Q me directly."

Looking at the bald, burly man rubbing his hands in embarrassment, Uchiha Gin feigned anger and curled his lips.

"Isn't this because I'm afraid of troubling you?"

"Then why do you want to trouble me now?"

"Sigh, this is a long story. Let's go in, sit down, and talk slowly."

Seeing that Uchiha Gin wasn't really angry, Sha Men waved his hand, and the guards at the door immediately opened the gate.

"Who are these two?"

Only then did Sha Men remember the two women following the other party, having been too busy catching up with Uchiha Gin.

"Girlfriend, Uchiha Guang."

"Sister-in-law, Hyuga Yuedu."

The two women looked at each other and introduced themselves separately. But Otsutsuki Yueji, didn't you refuse to admit the identity of sister-in-law before? Why are you answering so quickly now?

"Uh... Mr. Gin, your circle is a bit messy."

"It's alright, it's alright~"

Following Sha Men, Uchiha Gin and his group soon arrived at Sunagakure's reception hall, where food prepared in advance was already laid out on the table.

"You've been on the road for a day, eat first!"

The hungry group didn't stand on ceremony and started devouring.

"Mmm... this fruit is so sweet!"

Uchiha Guang, eating a piece of green melon, instantly had her eyes light up.

"Sweet? Let me taste it!"

Although the land of the Land of Wind is barren, the temperature difference between day and night is large, so the fruits produced are all exceptionally sweet.

"That's a melon produced in Loulan."

Sha Men looked at them with a smile and explained the origin.

"Loulan? How is your hometown?"

"Thanks to the First Hokage, Loulan is now the largest oasis in the Land of Wind."

More than a decade ago, Senju Hashirama personally performed the Deep Forest Creation in Loulan, semi-permanently covering the barren soil of the Land of Wind with a touch of green.

As for why it's said to be semi-permanent...

The trees catalyzed by Wood Release can indeed grow vigorously in a short time, but after a long time, they will still wither. However, why the trees in Loulan can flourish for a long time is all thanks to the chakra leaking from the Dragon Vein. If the Dragon Vein disappears, Loulan might return to desolation overnight.

Hope the Dragon Vein is okay~

"Burp~ Thanks for the hospitality!"

Uchiha Gin, who had stuffed his stomach with high-sugar fruits, patted his bulging belly with great satisfaction.

For him, this was simply a state banquet!

"As long as Mr. Gin is satisfied."

Seeing that Uchiha Gin didn't dislike the simplicity of Sunagakure's meals, Sha Men was deeply moved. You must know that the food on their table, if placed in the Land of Fire, might not even be as rich as the dishes in a small restaurant.

"Tell me, what exactly happened?"

"Mr. Gin, you should know about the matter of the Tailed Beast Knights, right?"

Returning to the main topic, Sha Men faded the smile on his face, sat upright, and his expression was very serious.

"Mm, the knight of Konoha is my foolish younger cousin."

The matter of Uchiha Madara becoming a Tailed Beast Knight was naturally not a secret. In the few years after successfully changing jobs, his big cousin, in order to grind KDA, frantically performed high-difficulty missions, starting a prosperous era called "Great Involution."

When the knights of the other countries saw this, they thought, "This won't do," and had to join the involution, one after another increasing the efficiency of their mission execution.

Of course, this did not include the Land of Wind.

This was also one of the reasons why Sunagakure was still so poor. High-paying missions were all snatched up by Tailed Beast Knights, and these small fries could only pick up some leftovers.

The strongest knight, Geats, huh...

Sha Men smiled bitterly upon hearing this. The Tailed Beast Knight of the Land of Fire was the most prestigious existence in the knight circle, nicknamed "Geats," meaning the strongest, highest, and most ultimate fox knight, who once had the proud record of taking on three at once.

"Mr. Gin, you also know the current situation. If a country doesn't have a knight, it will be looked down upon by other countries."

Because they were mocked by the feudal lords of other major countries during the feudal lord gathering, the feudal lord of the Land of Wind, after returning to the country, gave a death order to Sunagakure: if you can't produce a knight, I will withdraw my funding!

"I understand, I understand. Isn't that why I came here this time, to help you fulfill your dreams~"

Uchiha Gin remembered very clearly that when Senju Hashirama handed Uchiha Madara's name to the feudal lord of the Land of Fire, that old guy jumped up with excitement, almost directly appointing his big cousin as the Hokage himself.

After all, the record of the Nine-Tails Knight was verifiable, making the feudal lord of the Land of Fire, who had always cared about face, feel very honored, and he could hold his head high in front of his other brothers.

"Then... I'll leave the matter of Shukaku to you!"

"Don't rush. Tell me first, what step have you reached?"

Although he learned the general situation from the letter, Uchiha Gin still needed to understand Shukaku's current situation in detail. After all, he was here to help Sunagakure in the capacity of a developer (toy merchant).

"Sigh... if it comes out one more time, the teapot sealing Shukaku might be scrapped."

Sha Men let out a long sigh, his face carrying a thick look of embarrassment.

"Huh?"

Uchiha Gin instantly put on a dead-fish eye, staring straight at Sha Men. How many times have you let the big raccoon slip out?

"Don't look at me like that. The research hasn't been without progress. That secret jutsu just now was developed when I was researching Shukaku's chakra."

"Amazing, amazing~"

"Hehe, Magnet Release was an unexpected joy, but the research on transformation props hasn't made any progress."

"Magnet Release? Is it a Kekkei Genkai?"

As Uchiha Gin threw out the question, Uchiha Guang and Hyuga Yuedu on the side pricked up their ears at the same time.

"Although I'm not sure, it should be about 80-90% likely."

Because he was the first person to awaken Magnet Release, Sha Men wasn't sure if this counted as a Kekkei Genkai. He had previously taught the operation method of Magnet Release to several disciples, but none of them could comprehend it. He could only wait until his child was born to verify whether it was a Kekkei Genkai.

After hearing Sha Men's words, the two women who had just been listening intently instantly lost interest. Things like Kekkei Genkai, just like their eyes, were inherited by bloodline and couldn't be forced.

"Congratulations, congratulations. The Kekkei Genkai that other countries have spent so much effort researching for so long on Tailed Beasts hasn't been developed, yet it was accidentally stumbled upon by you. If that old guy Ishi heard this, wouldn't he be so angry he'd jump out of his coffin?"

Back when he sold Tailed Beasts, Uchiha Gin used the selling point of developing Kekkei Genkai to frantically raise prices and pit them hard.

As a result, so many years have passed, and the countries that bought Tailed Beasts back then have had their development of Kekkei Genkai stagnate, while Sunagakure, which didn't have a Tailed Beast Knight, took the lead.

"Sigh~ Worldly affairs are unpredictable. Compared to Kekkei Genkai, I want to become a knight more."

Becoming a Tailed Beast Knight had become Sha Men's heart disease over the years. Among the few people back then, he was the only one who hadn't become a knight. Now, even if it was just to win a breath, he had to fulfill his knight dream.

"Don't worry, leave it to me!"

Just for this obsession of Sha Men Shamon Laodi, Uchiha Gin had to help him fulfill his dream.

"It's late today, you guys should have a good rest first."

Uchiha Gin and his group came from afar. How could Sha Men be embarrassed to let the other party work overtime? So he arranged a few superior rooms, letting them get enough energy, and wait until tomorrow to go to Shukaku's place to carry out the work.

Midnight.

Uchiha Gin, lying on an unfamiliar bed, had his old problem of being unable to sleep in new places flare up again. After tossing and turning for a while, he rummaged through his bag and took out his travel bedding.

"Good thing I brought it!"

After laying it out, Uchiha Gin suddenly felt a bit thirsty. The dry climate of the Land of Wind made the water in his body lose frantically, so he groped around the room and only found a pot of clear water that looked bland and tasteless, with the four small characters "Nongx Mountain Spring" marked on it.

"Even a dog wouldn't drink this!"

Curling his lips, Uchiha Gin decided to go find Little Guang and ask. Don't all shut-in girls have the habit of drinking beverages? So she should have brought some small sweet water when she went out.

Bang bang bang~

"Gin, I knew you would come to find me. Don't worry, I will definitely be able to do *** too!"

"Good night, sweet dreams, goodbye!"

In this situation, he could only escape.

Uchiha Gin, who had finally escaped, had only walked two steps when he saw Hyuga Yuedu sitting by the window in the corridor at the corner. He saw her lowering her head, examining the thing in her hand, not knowing what she was thinking about.

"Eh? You haven't slept yet?"

Uchiha Gin's voice interrupted Hyuga Yuedu's thinking. She raised her head, her white eyes shining with an inexplicable meaning.

"Aren't you also not asleep?"

"Hi~ Thirsty, came out to find some small sweet water with flavor to drink."

"Did you find it?"

Hyuga Yuedu raised her eyebrows, her peripheral vision glancing at the secret ice black tea in her hand, a struggle flashing by.

"This is the Land of Wind. Oil is easier to find than water, let alone small sweet water. Forget it, forget it~"

Seeing Uchiha Gin's disappointed face, the white-eyed girl, as if by divine intervention, raised the sleepy ice black tea in her hand, a trace of provocation on her cold face.

"I have some here, but do you dare to drink it?"

"Just kidding, I'm super brave, okay? I'm super good at drinking!" (End of chapter)