Two days later, Kakashi found Aoba and handed him a scroll. But he didn't respond to Aoba's earlier question, silently turning to leave instead.
It seemed he had grasped the deeper meaning behind Aoba's words. And because of that, the question had become even harder to answer.Aoba wasn't in a hurry. He needed allies in Konoha. Kakashi wasn't exactly the most reliable person, but all things considered, he was an excellent choice.
In this world, there were many paths to becoming stronger. At least during this period, influence was also part of one's strength.
Take Konoha's White Fang from back in the day—his strength was undeniable, wasn't it? Yet a few rumors alone were enough to drive him to his death.
Aside from his lack of mental fortitude, another key factor was that he had no influence.
Take the two useless advisors among Konoha's F4. In their early years, they were notable figures. Now, their bodies had gone to hell, and Kakashi could probably take them both on.
Yet they still wielded immense power in Konoha. A single word from them could send Kakashi on a life-threatening mission. That was the power of influence.
Before the era where everyone could rival Gundams arrived, influence was still part of one's strength. While Aoba worked on enhancing his own power, he was also trying to cultivate his influence.
He had no interest in the Hokage's seat. But as the saying went: I may not want it, but you can't withhold it from me.
He would never allow himself to fall into the same predicament as the White Fang back then. He might not want the title of Hokage, but he needed the strength and influence to claim it at any time.
There was a difference between not having a sword and having one but choosing not to use it.
Kakashi had gone home to stew over Aoba's question, while Aoba himself began studying the pair of shackles Kakashi had delivered.
The seals on the shackles were much simpler than expected. The real issue was the material. These shackles were alloyed with expensive chakra-conductive metal, which was why they could maximize the seals' effectiveness.
But Aoba had no chakra metal—not a single gram. So he still needed to make adjustments.
Aoba didn't need something as costly as shackles. His plan was to create a disposable set.
After all, when the time came, he'd only get one shot. If he missed, there wouldn't be a follow-up.
And if he succeeded, the effect only needed to last a short while—just long enough for him to kill the White Zetsu. After that, he wouldn't need the shackles anymore.
Once he lowered his requirements, the problem became much simpler.
Aoba gathered some ordinary kunai and shuriken, carved the sealing formulas onto them, then infused them with chakra and threw them.
His idea was that once they hit their target, the seals would activate. They only needed to last about thirty seconds.
But the actual problem was that the shuriken shattered mid-flight...
Only then did Aoba realize why chakra metal was so expensive. The chakra conduction process was incredibly taxing on the metal.
With no other options, Aoba had no choice but to visit Konoha's ninja tool shop.
A girl with a bun hairstyle was minding the store. Aoba recognized her immediately—wasn't this Tenten? Her family was apparently a well-known ninja tool merchant in Konoha.
"Hello, how can I help you?"
Spotting the forehead protector on Aoba, Tenten quickly greeted him warmly. After all, her allowance depended on today's sales. Naturally, she had to treat customers well.
"Uh, I need some tools. Do you have kunai or shuriken alloyed with chakra metal here?""..." Tenten was momentarily stunned, as if caught off guard by Aoba's question. Because this was something every ninja knew the answer to - no.
In reality, apart from the special Flying Thunder God kunai made by the Fourth Hokage back then, basically no one used shuriken or kunai enhanced with Chakra metal.
Both were throwing weapons. While kunai could be used for close combat, they were primarily thrown. Although they could be retrieved, in actual combat situations, there were very few opportunities to recover them.
And any weapon enhanced with Chakra metal was extremely expensive. Even the wealthiest couldn't afford to consume them like this.
"I'm sorry, we don't have that kind of weapon."
"..." Aoba also fell silent for a moment. Although he had expected this, hearing the answer still left him somewhat frustrated. But this wasn't entirely bad news.
Because if they did have such weapons, his wallet would take a serious hit. That wouldn't have been good news either.
After thinking for a moment, he asked another question.
"Then what are the strongest shuriken and kunai you have here? I need weapons that can withstand Chakra conduction. They just need to hold for about a minute without breaking."
"Ah..." Tenten was genuinely surprised by this man's unusual request. But after some thought, she seemed to remember something.
"Please wait a moment."
Tenten then rushed to the storeroom, rummaged around, and came back carrying a box.
"Sir, take a look at these."
She opened the box to reveal a row of kunai and a row of shuriken.
Aoba picked one up casually and immediately noticed the difference. These were the most common weapons, ones they'd been trained to use since the academy.
Aoba had handled countless kunai, but there was something special about this one the moment he held it.
It felt exceptionally comfortable.
The overall shape was no different from other kunai, but the subtle details varied.
It was hard to describe in words. Essentially, this kunai had perfected every minute aspect - the texture of the grip, the weight, the balance - all refined to an extreme degree. That's why an experienced user like him could feel the difference immediately.
"This is..."
"This was an ultra-deluxe edition weapon our shop released years ago. Every piece in this set, from materials to craftsmanship, was masterfully handcrafted with extreme attention to detail."
"...Did anyone actually buy these?"
Though they didn't contain Chakra metal, putting this much effort into consumable weapons naturally drove the cost way up. The selling price must have been staggering too.
"Well... unfortunately, this product line failed back then. So there were no follow-ups - this is the last box. The materials used are the best available besides Chakra metal, durable enough to withstand Chakra conduction for a while. Though I can't say exactly how long."
Aoba examined the kunai in his hand and directly channeled Chakra into it. After about a minute and a half, the kunai shattered.
This was better than he'd expected. A trace of delight flashed across Aoba's face, but he quickly realized his mistake.
Sure enough, Tenten saw his expression and immediately knew a big sale was coming.