A few days later, after an absence of several months, Yuji finally returned to Sunagakure.
Looking at the Village nestled among the mountains and sand, he felt the strange illusion of having been away for a lifetime.
The architecture of Sunagakure was completely different from Konoha, possessing a unique character... This was all the result of the Second Kazekage Shamon's modifications, based on the Land of Wind's special environment and Sunagakure's geographical location.
Wooden structures like those in Konoha were rarely seen in Sunagakure. Most of the buildings here were vaulted houses or blocks cast from sandstone; at a glance, many of the roofs were oval-shaped.
The streets were paved with some rough stone slabs, but most were just dirt roads.
In terms of prosperity, it certainly couldn't compare to Konoha.
Fortunately, it covered a large area... However, due to the current Ninja World War, the Village's manpower had been urgently mobilized for missions.
Casualties were also heavy.
This resulted in sparse traffic on the streets... making it feel somewhat desolate.
"It's already like this... and they still want to keep fighting..."
Walking down the street, Yuji sighed inwardly as he saw the shops on both sides, which were deserted and seemingly devoid of business.
It was impossible for the Village higher-ups not to realize that this Ninja World War had already exhausted the Village's combat reserves and severely impacted trade and the economy.
Even so, they still insisted on competing with Konoha to see who was superior.
Simply foolish.
Because of the decisions of the higher-ups, the future of the entire Village was being buried along with them.
The situation in the Land of Rain was special; Hanzou was forced to fight—striking one blow to avoid a hundred coming his way... fighting to the death to expand their territory. To put it bluntly, they were the 'barefoot' who didn't fear those with shoes... but Sunagakure had a vast family business and couldn't afford to charge in brainlessly.
Moreover, while Hanzou seemed reckless and overbearing, as a hero of the Ninja World, he was actually quite clever. Seeing that the fighting was enough... and there was no hope of winning, Amegakure simply stopped.
Only the Sand side remained, still locked in a heated struggle with Konoha.
If this continued... the very foundations would be ruined.
But for now, Yuji was just a small Genin. Although he was clear about Sunagakure's future fate, he had no way to change it for the time being.
"Yuji... you're back."
A shop owner saw Yuji and greeted him warmly.
This shop sold bean cakes... When Yuji and the others were at the Ninja Academy, they would often visit after school.
"Mm."
Yuji nodded with a smile.
This owner was probably one of the few people he had met along the way who still had a relatively cheerful expression.
Because he was just a civilian, there were no Ninjas in his family.
Most people... had a hint of gloom and oppression in their expressions.
Afterward, Yuji first turned in his mission and collected his reward.
The mission he had taken was originally C-rank, but because Amegakure suddenly launched a large-scale operation, his mission rank was upgraded to B-rank.
And the subsequent raid mission he performed with Arai and Sasori was A-rank.
Although this mission was only issued individually by Arai, it was also recognized by the Village.
Thus, Yuji became the second Genin in the Village at his age, besides Sasori, to successfully complete an A-rank mission.
From the rewards he received, it was apparent that Sunagakure was currently in financial trouble.
A normal C-rank mission's reward was between thirty thousand and one hundred thousand Ryo.
This was the standard for a Great Ninja Village, with the specific amount determined by the difficulty of the task... In any case, that was the total; if it was completed by one person, it was all theirs.
If there were many people, it was divided equally.
Yuji and his team had taken a squad mission. Even though he was the only one who survived to complete it, he still only took one-third.
The two missions he had just completed were B-rank and A-rank respectively.
The reward for a B-rank mission was between eighty thousand and two hundred thousand Ryo.
A-rank was between one hundred and fifty thousand and one million Ryo.
His patrol mission was a squad mission; after splitting it by a third, he only got twenty thousand Ryo.
Multiplied by three, that didn't even reach the minimum standard for a B-rank mission reward.
The A-rank mission was also completed by three people, so each person got forty thousand.
In other words, for the two missions, B-rank plus A-rank, Yuji earned a total of sixty thousand.
Regardless of the mission difficulty, they were all paid at the minimum standard, and even then, they didn't meet it... Clearly, the Village had no money left.
However, sixty thousand Ryo was obviously a huge sum for him.
As a war orphan whose parents were Ninjas who sacrificed themselves for the Village, Yuji could collect a monthly subsidy from the Village. It wasn't much, but it was enough for him to live on.
In this world, a normal expenditure of about three hundred Ryo was enough for a child to wander the entire commercial street.
But if it was the consumption level and mindset of a Ninja... then there was no limit to the spending.
Because just Ninja tools and cultivation resources were a huge expense—for example, food pills, exploding tags, Kunai, and the like.
Although the Village would give each Ninja a basic allocation of supplies, that little bit was simply not enough on the battlefield... For an average Ninja, if they wanted to survive the battlefield, they definitely had to prepare more privately, which meant paying out of pocket.
Moreover, Ninja tools and war supplies were undoubtedly the most expensive 'luxury goods' in this world, with very high prices.
Since his parents' death, Yuji had been saving money, and after several years, he had only saved a little over ten thousand.
Now, he had earned it all back in just one mission... This showed the speed at which the profession of Ninja could make money.
But while they earned a lot, they also spent a lot.
Furthermore, for truly powerful experts, tens of thousands of Ryo... wasn't even considered money; it was just a drop in the bucket.
Only a newcomer like Yuji would think it was a huge sum.
Just after turning in the mission, Yuji followed Arai to the most prominent Sand Building in the Village.
That... was where the Third Kazekage worked.
As for Sasori, he didn't go with them. After turning in the mission, he picked up another mission on the spot and then left the Village.
He seemed... not to want to go home.
Seeing this, Yuji didn't say anything... Soon, Arai led Yuji past the guards and into the building.
He knocked on the Kazekage's office door.
"Come in."
A familiar voice came from inside.
Arai and Yuji entered one after the other.
Upon walking in, Yuji found that besides the Third Kazekage, there were other Village higher-ups.
Grandma Chiyo and Ebizo were both there, along with two other unfamiliar faces.
But judging by their attire, they were undoubtedly also big figures in the Village.
They all wore robes characteristic of the Land of Wind, which could resist the wind and sand.
"Sasori... he has left."
After Arai greeted the various adults, he glanced at Grandma Chiyo and said a word.
Hearing this, Chiyo's eyes dimmed.
"Is this the child you all mentioned..."
Everyone's gaze focused on Yuji, and some sized him up curiously.
"Not having seen you for a few months... the change is quite significant." The Third Kazekage still had that serious expression, but facing Yuji, he managed a rare smile.
"Although he didn't complete it independently, to be able to participate in an A-rank mission at such a young age, and with Arai's evaluation of him being so high... one can see this child's talent," Grandma Chiyo also praised.
With so many big figures present, Yuji didn't seem flustered at all. Meeting their praise, he only showed a smile.
He was very clear about Arai's purpose in bringing him to see the Kazekage.
"Alright..."
The Kazekage looked over. "Yuji, perform that Ninjutsu you created... let us see it."
"And tell us about your thoughts and inspiration for creating this Ninjutsu... especially the Hand Seals you used when mobilizing and driving Chakra."
"Creating a Ninjutsu is not that simple... The idea is good, but to get down to the specific details and perform it, coordinating Chakra and Hand Seals, is quite difficult."
"Especially, one must have high attainments in Hand Seals... Different seals have different effects; to respond to your Ninjutsu, you must also coordinate the control and release of Chakra to form a complete system. To be honest, this doesn't quite seem like something a Genin like you could do... Even for me, it would be very difficult to create an A-rank Ninjutsu in a short time... When Arai sent me the message, I thought it was quite incredible."
"Do you know... what this kind of ability of yours means?"
It's here!
Yuji's heart stirred, but on the surface, he remained calm. He grinned. "Actually, it was a bit difficult during the process... but I think, overall, it was quite simple."
As he spoke, he pulled out the piano wire from his waist pouch.
His words made everyone present twitch their eyelids.
Simple?
Did this kid know what he was saying?
To want to create a Ninjutsu, one must have an incredibly thorough understanding of the essence of Ninjutsu—this didn't refer to a single type of Ninjutsu, but the principles of all Ninjutsu.
It required a vast reserve of knowledge and experience.
The most representative person with this level of skill was Hiruzen Sarutobi of Konoha, known as the 'Professor of Ninjutsu,' who was proficient in many types of Ninjutsu.
But Yuji was a Medical Ninja and had only learned the basic Three Body Technique and the like at the Ninja Academy... Even if his parents had left him some ninjutsu scrolls before they died or cultivated some skills in him, it shouldn't have reached this level.
Yuji's parents were both only Chunin.
If it were said that Yuji had come into contact with Medical Ninjutsu like the Mystical Palm Technique through his internship at the hospital and learned it after some scattered pointers from others... in the eyes of the Third Kazekage and the others, it could be attributed to being exceptionally gifted.
But creating a Ninjutsu... that was truly monstrous.
It completely broke common sense.
The problem was... he was just a Genin, not even ten years old.