Aoki Yoru looked at him in confusion.
'For free?'
He wasn't General Mifune's illegitimate son; there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world.
Sensing Aoki Yoru's confusion, General Mifune smiled and explained, "Of course, it's not entirely for free. From now on, you owe the Land of Iron a favor. If the Land of Iron is in trouble, no matter where you are, you must come and help."
He was very optimistic about Aoki Yoru's future; this was a powerhouse destined to stir up the world. Asking for a favor from him was not a losing deal.
Hearing this, Aoki Yoru glanced at him in surprise. He hadn't expected General Mifune to propose such a condition. He only needed to make a promise to get what he dreamed of; this deal was worth it.
Before coming, he had even rehearsed what conditions General Mifune might propose; as long as it wasn't something like assassinating the Raikage, he would agree.
As for the promise, the Land of Iron still existed by the boruto era anyway, so it seemed they hadn't encountered any major enemies. This was basically getting something for nothing.
"I accept this condition. If the Land of Iron ever faces an insurmountable hurdle, you can send word to me, and I will definitely come to help."
Upon hearing Aoki Yoru's promise, General Mifune smiled and nodded. "Good. Wait a moment, I'll have someone fetch it for you from the secret vault."
A few minutes later, Aoki Yoru looked at the fist-sized, greenish-blue ore in his hand. After excitedly thanking General Mifune, he left.
On the way back, he kept turning the ore over in his hand. Thinking that he had finally gathered the two treasures, Aoki Yoru wished he could fly to the Land of Artisans right now.
However, considering it was the middle of the night and he had been busy all evening, he returned to the hotel to rest.
The next day.
Early in the morning, Aoki Yoru woke up early and rushed out of the city.
In the outskirts far from the town, Aoki Yoru summoned Yatagarasu, jumped onto its back, and headed for the Land of Artisans.
With Yatagarasu flying at full speed, it took only five hours to cross the entire Land of Fire and reach the Land of Artisans.
The blacksmith shop.
With a cigarette in his mouth, Sosuke held a hammer and struck the blade blank. Seeing Aoki Yoru standing outside the door, he asked in confusion:
"Are you giving up on forging a divine weapon? I have some materials here that can create decent swords, no worse than those famous blades, but you'll have to pay for them yourself."
In his view, Aoki Yoru's desire to find those two ores was simply a pipe dream, especially the chakra active crystal, which even he had never seen.
He had previously thought the boy was just in a chuunibyou phase, fantasizing about being a protagonist who could destroy heaven and earth, only to be slapped awake by his mother after going home.
Aoki Yoru shook his head, walked into the shop, took out the star-fallen mysterious iron, and placed it on the counter.
Sosuke immediately put down his hammer and stepped forward to pick up the mysterious iron, examining it closely. "That's right, it's that piece from General Mifune. He bragged about it in front of me quite a bit back then. I can't believe you actually got it from him."
Sosuke looked at Aoki Yoru in shock. This was General Mifune's treasure. He had asked for it several times and tried all sorts of ways, but was always rejected. He didn't expect this little kid to get his hands on it.
"Could he be General Mifune's illegitimate son?" Sosuke couldn't help but mutter as he looked at the young boy.
He then looked at Aoki Yoru. "With the star-fallen mysterious iron, I can guarantee that the ninja tool forged will surpass the quality of those seven bloodthirsty blades from the Hidden Mist Village. I swear it on my name as the number one swordsmith in the Land of Iron."
"What if we add these things?"
As Aoki Yoru spoke, he took out a sealing scroll from his robes and, under Sosuke's expectant gaze, released the seal.
"This... this is..."
Sosuke gasped sharply, freezing in place. His beard trembled uncontrollably as he stared at the four newly appeared ninja tools on the table, his eyes filled with disbelief as if he had seen a ghost.
"Ah! These are the Four Sacred Tools forged by the Ancestor of the Land of Artisans using chakra active crystals that you mentioned. With your skills, you should be able to extract the chakra active crystals, right?"
Aoki Yoru looked at the excited Sosuke; he was looking forward to Sosuke extracting the chakra active crystals from them.
Sosuke's lips quivered slightly as his trembling hands caressed the Four Sacred Tools, his mouth constantly muttering to himself:
"They really are the sacred tools. I didn't expect the legends to be true."
He then picked up the four weapons and tested them one by one. Their various abilities were a real eye-opener for him.
He then suddenly looked at Aoki Yoru. "Do you really want to melt them down? You should know that the abilities of these four weapons alone are rare in the Ninja World. They are powerful tools to have in hand. It's such a waste to melt them."
Aoki Yoru said indifferently, "Who cares about their abilities? I'm a swordsman. I'm just asking if you can extract the chakra active crystals."
Seeing that Aoki Yoru was unmoved, Sosuke said with a look of grief and indignation, "What a waste of God's gifts! A complete waste! Do you know what precious materials were used to make these Four Sacred Tools? Each one is a treasure of the Ninja World, irreplaceable!"
Looking at the agitated old man, Aoki Yoru immediately became wary. 'Is this old man trying to pocket my Four Sacred Tools?'
Seeing Aoki Yoru's wariness, Sosuke took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and reluctantly put down the longsword in his hand.
"Since you insist on melting them, I can only fulfill your wish."
Sosuke straightened his back and said confidently, "When the Ancestor Seimei forged the Four Sacred Tools, he didn't just incorporate chakra active crystals, but also other precious minerals, some of which have even gone extinct in the Ninja World. Now, I am confident I can forge a divine weapon that is not inferior to the Kusanagi Sword."
This was beyond Aoki Yoru's expectations. He hadn't expected to own a weapon on the level of the Kusanagi Sword, and he bowed deeply to him.
"Then I'll leave it to you."
"According to our previous agreement, I won't charge a penny this time. Next, I will put all my effort into forging it. It should take about half a month."
"Alright, I'll come to pick it up in half a month."
Aoki Yoru didn't waste any words. He turned and left, finding a hotel to stay in not far from the blacksmith shop.
During that time, he constantly sensed the situation inside the blacksmith shop.
He didn't trust the old man. If the man got greedy and ran off with the weapon, he would have nowhere to cry.
Half a month later, Aoki Yoru appeared at the blacksmith shop on time.
For those two weeks, he stayed in the hotel, even having his meals delivered by a waiter. He watched the blacksmith shop all day, not daring to slack off for a moment.
Due to the excessive use of mental energy, his face now looked pale and haggard, and he appeared listless.
"Customer, you're here!"
Inside the blacksmith shop, Sosuke didn't look at all like someone who had been forging weapons non-stop for fifteen days. He greeted Aoki Yoru with high spirits.
Then, he took out a ninja tool from the counter and handed it to him. "Take a look. This is something I've poured my heart and soul into forging. It can be considered the masterpiece of my life."
As he spoke, his eyes shone, and a proud expression appeared on his face. By forging such a weapon, his name would surely go down in history.
Aoki Yoru reached out to take the new blade. His fingertips brushed over the scabbard, and he smoothly drew the sword.
A cold light suddenly erupted from the blade, its sharpness overwhelming.