Uchiha Kirin had foreseen this outcome long ago.
But when it came to the power of faith—already riddled with flaws and proven unreliable by the native deities of the shinobi world—he had no intention of using it on his own body. That was why he had prepared this mountain god statue in advance.
Now, the faith power that belonged to him had already gathered within the statue and could be extracted at any time.
However, just as he was about to take that power, he discovered something unexpected—within the once-ordinary statue, a sliver of spiritual essence had appeared out of nowhere.
A mountain god?
To think that a deity he had entirely fabricated would manifest a trace of divinity simply through the gathering of faith.
It seemed this power, while unstable, could potentially surpass both chakra and natural energy in terms of raw potential and strength.
No wonder the shinobi world of old could force even the avatar of a godlike Ōtsutsuki, one who had transcended the world, to fall in battle.
Now that it had shown signs of sentience, perhaps one day it could become a true god.
Uchiha Kirin wanted to witness the birth of a god born from faith. So, rather than taking all the accumulated faith energy, he left a portion of it behind.
The rest, he infused into pre-prepared chakra metal, which he handed over to the pangolin clan. Once they returned, they would use the Sword-Nurturing Art to forge it into the Scythe of Death, further enhancing its power as a prototype Divine Tool!
In order to generate a steady flow of faith power in the long term—
To continuously strengthen his weapons and nurture a true faith deity—
Uchiha Kirin turned his gaze toward the war-ravaged, half-ruined Hoshigakure.
The shinobi of Hoshigakure, who once relied on the Mysterious Peacock Method, had lost their only means of training. All they had left were some very basic ninjutsu, and the strength of their shinobi had plummeted drastically.
To be blunt, the current Hoshigakure couldn't even compare to the second-tier ninja clans of the great villages.
If news of their decline were to spread, the loss of clients and mission commissions would be the least of their worries. More likely, they would immediately lose their ability to defend themselves and become a target for others.
Sure, the new Hoshikage, Sumaru, had beaten his chest and boasted about finding a new path forward when seeing off Naruto and Sasuke...
But the truth was, the real struggle had only just begun.
How to hide the drastic decline in the village's strength, how to ensure missions could still be completed, and how to gather other forms of ninjutsu—all these were pressing concerns that demanded solutions.
Even with advice from several elders and the formation of a temporary ninjutsu research division, these problems wouldn't be solved overnight.
Developing a replacement for the Mysterious Peacock Method? That would take at least ten, maybe twenty years—unless they could recruit top-tier ninjutsu researchers.
But what did they have that could attract such experts? And even if someone agreed to come, how could they be sure that person would abide by the contract and not just take the techniques for themselves?
It was at this moment that the pangolin clan, as attendants of the mountain god, proved useful.
Capable of human speech and possessing Kekkei Genkai, the pangolins were undoubtedly top-tier summoning beasts.
However, they were unwilling to sign contracts with individual shinobi. Instead, acting in their capacity as servants of the mountain god, they brought good news:
Hoshigakure was rich in chakra metal veins. And due to centuries of exposure to the influence of the "Star," the metallic properties of these ores had undergone beneficial transformations.
Compared to standard chakra metal, the quality here was significantly better.
The pangolins agreed to allow Hoshigakure shinobi to temporarily work the mines, assisting in the extraction process. They would also teach them some basic crafting techniques for forging ninja tools.
This initiative would attract other shinobi and transform the village into another Village of Artisans!
And it wouldn't stop there—it would also be open to summoning beasts. With access to special innate resources, they could create a unique competitive edge!
Given Hoshigakure's current size and capacity, becoming a hub for producing and selling ninja tools would not only keep them safe from the covetous eyes of rival villages—it would actually raise their status and influence in the shinobi world.
Sumaru, the new Hoshikage, immediately struck a deal with the pangolin clan.
While his influence was still strong, he quickly announced the plan to the villagers and weakened shinobi.
Although a few shinobi, having lost the power of the Mysterious Peacock Method, rejected this new path...
The vast majority agreed to give it a try—for the sake of the village's future and their families.
...
And so, the pangolin clan remained in the village, dissecting a portion of the Sword-Nurturing Art to teach the basics of forging weapons.
At the same time, under the pangolins' guidance, many shinobi successfully located and mined veins of chakra metal.
The clan elders examined the ore and confirmed its exceptional quality. Once forged into ninja tools, these metals—
Having been long exposed to the power of the "Star"—were not only tougher and more durable but also produced wounds that were far more difficult to heal. Even with medical ninjutsu, it would take twice the chakra to mend such injuries!
However, just like the Mysterious Peacock Method, prolonged use of these tools could damage the user's body.
While they had advantages, the side effects were significant.
To address this, under the pangolins' leadership, the Hoshigakure shinobi once again offered prayers to the mountain god.
The response they received: After crafting a ninja tool, a sincere prayer during the sharpening process would allow the mountain god to bless the weapon—
Eliminating its negative effects and boosting its overall power even further!
In other words, they were using faith power to enchant their weapons...
And enchanted ninja tools—that was the key to creating an irreplaceable signature style. The true core of Hoshigakure's new competitive edge!
Meanwhile, Uchiha Kirin and the nascent mountain god could both absorb the faith power generated in this process.
...
As for sales and distribution?
That wasn't a problem at all. Aside from a few trade routes Hoshigakure managed to open with nearby villages...
Most of the distribution was completely taken over by the ninja cat clan!
Because of this, the ninja cats now held pricing power over Hoshigakure's enchanted tools.
They outright refused any payment in mass-produced Daimyō paper bills—only rare metals could be used to weigh and trade for tools of equivalent value.
And when it came to custom-crafted enchanted tools, even rare metals weren't enough. One had to exchange them for high-level ninjutsu, secret family techniques, or strange and unusual items with rare properties.
Naturally, this discouraged quite a few would-be buyers.
But in a world like this, there's never a shortage of shinobi willing to try their luck.
Some came from families that owned mines. They simply traded raw ore to get batches of basic enchanted tools—ninja swords, kunai, shuriken, senbon, and more.
Upon using them, they discovered that these enchanted tools utterly outclassed even the so-called famous blades made by well-known craftsmen.
Not only did chakra flow more smoothly through them, but the damage they inflicted was harder to heal, and the blades could cut through iron like butter. Some even helped users overcome difficult chakra control issues with sheer weapon quality.
The wealthier shinobi clans immediately began placing custom orders.
Before long, it became the age of the pay-to-win shinobi.
Still practicing swordsmanship the hard way?
Why not trade in the Daimyō's worthless paper currency for gold, or bring in your grandfather's dusty scroll of obscure ninjutsu to Hoshigakure, and commission an enchanted ninja blade?
Enjoy the thrill of slicing through your enemies!
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