As the sun dipped below the horizon, the land settled into a tranquil stillness. Soft moonlight bathed the branches, and small birds had quietly drifted into sleep.
Anya arrived near the Land of the Blacksmiths under the cover of night. She retracted her Eagle Puppet and paused within a dense bamboo forest.
Looking down toward the flickering lights below, she spotted a village. By contrast, this village seemed remarkably small compared to Konoha. A ninja village known as the weapon supplier for the Five Great Countries yet remaining so small meant it lacked true power. Territory often reflected the strength of a faction. Indeed, without the mutual balance among the Five Great Countries, whether this village could survive remained questionable.
Anya reviewed the documents she had obtained from Orochimaru. The Land of the Blacksmiths specialized in crafting ninja tools. Their high-quality products were distributed to the Five Great Countries across the Ninja World. With the Third Great Ninja War underway, orders must have piled up—no wonder they were still working late into the night.
Leaping swiftly from the woods, Anya landed directly at the village entrance and began walking forward slowly.
Suddenly, several shuriken and kunai flew toward her—without warning or hesitation, an ambush had begun.
"Hmph..." Anya gave a cold chuckle. While advancing slowly, she had already surveyed the surroundings with her [Sharingan] and detected clear signs of hostility lingering in the air.
Without breaking stride, her hands moved like shadows, catching every projectile with lightning speed. Her fingers moved in a blur, then sent every weapon flying back the way they came. "Here," she called out, "returning them to you."
In the shadows, the ambushing ninja saw their own weapons flying back at them. Realizing they'd been discovered, they burst from hiding, blocking her path — their faces twisted with panic and tension.
One of them, clearly the leader, stepped forward, suppressing his fear before shouting at her, "Which nation's ninja are you? What business do you have here in our Land of the Blacksmiths? Do you plan to annex us? Let me tell you—it's impossible! We'd rather die than ever submit!"
At those words, realization struck Anya immediately. Because their ninja tools were the best available, during peacetime they sold freely to all Five Great Countries for profit. But now, amidst war, no wonder they were anxious. It was likely she wasn't the first outsider to come looking for them.
Seeing how Anya stood there deep in thought, apparently unmoved by his words, the leader's expression shifted. Glancing behind him at the rest of his team—already paralyzed by fear—he felt a flash of sorrow in his heart. This was the helplessness of a minor nation. Yet determination hardened within him. Even if it meant death, he wouldn't make things easy for her. Better mutual annihilation than surrender. Thinking thus, he raised one hand, ready to order an attack.
Feeling the hostility, Anya couldn't be bothered with these timid ninja. Besides, she hadn't come looking for trouble.
"Thud."
A chest hit the ground as Anya casually tossed it aside, startling the attacking ninja into halting their movement.
The leading ninja noticed Anya meant no harm and eased up slightly, asking, "What is this?"
Anya smiled faintly. "Why don't you open it and see for yourself?"
At a glance from the leader, one of the other ninjas hurried forward cautiously and opened the chest. He froze instantly.
Those behind immediately tensed up, anxiously asking, "What's wrong?"
The ninja turned around blankly, stammering, "It's... all money."
"What?" Hearing that, the leading ninja rushed over and looked inside. Sure enough, the large wooden chest was overflowing with cash—easily several tens of millions. Although they had handled many big orders before, those were always transactions between major nations. And even then, to prevent nonpayment, deals were split into smaller installments throughout the year. This was the first time they'd ever seen such an enormous sum in one go.
"You're here to commission a weapon, aren't you?" The leading ninja finally realized.
Anya shrugged. "What else would I be here for?"
Realizing he had misjudged Anya's intentions, the leader turned to the others and announced, "Relax. He's not an enemy—just a customer. Put your weapons away, everyone."
Hearing that, the surrounding ninjas also relaxed, returning their weapons and fading back into the shadows, resuming their concealed watch.
Anya followed the leader into the village. Inside, the place was nowhere near as prosperous as Konoha. The streets had only a few scattered lights, giving off a desolate and cold atmosphere—similar even to the Rain Village (Sanshouo Hanzo's domain). That didn't make sense—logically, as the Land of the Blacksmiths, they should have been doing fairly well financially due to constant trade with the great nations.
Anya voiced his confusion.
The leading ninja snorted bitterly, resentment clear in his voice. "Those major nations? They treat us like tools—mere craftsmen. Every time, they throw us just crumbs to keep us silent. Some shameless ones even claim they've sent ninja to protect us, then deduct the wages as protection fees."
It was a tragedy caused by unequal power in a transaction. Anya understood. Even sympathized—up to a point.
They arrived at the forge. Inside, artisans worked diligently, fully focused, barely noticing the arrival of the two visitors.
Carefully, the leading ninja asked, "May I ask what kind of weapon you're looking to commission?"
Anya pulled out a blueprint and handed it to him.
The drawing showed a ring-shaped weapon resembling a Fuma Shuriken, but with distinct variations. When separated, it split into six sharp blades. Each of these main blades had many smaller, thinner ones surrounding them—about the size of Finger Blades from Anya's past life. He had carefully detailed every part of the design on the blueprint.
In short, this weapon was actually made up of countless tiny sharp blades, ultimately forming one large ring-like structure. It could be used for launching spinning attacks from afar, disassembled into many smaller blades for close-range strikes, or even split into six separate weapons for coordinated strikes in six different directions at once.
The lead ninja stared in awe and fascination. Such a weapon concept was simply inconceivable. If built, it would shake the entire Ninja World to its core. But could they actually pull it off?
The lead ninja took a deep breath and said, "You're certain you want to forge a weapon like this?"
Anya nodded, "Yes, I'm very sure."
"I can't guarantee it'll be completed one hundred percent."
Hearing this, Anya smiled, "Don't worry, money isn't an issue, and neither is time. I'll stay here waiting until you finish. No one *dare* interrupt you."
Having said that, Anya unsheathed the Blade of Indifference. Under the dim moonlight within the room, it emitted a faint jade glow, so soft and gentle that it felt as if the soft glow could pull a person's very thoughts and consciousness into its light. The lead ninja's gaze became unfocused, not even noticing when Anya left.
But he knew better — those words were both a promise and a warning.
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