Chapter Forty: Boar, Deer, and Butterfly

"Hand over the food—no, the scrolls!" A chubby boy leapt out from the grass, shouting at the three who were eating.

"Choji, huh..." Feng Xue rubbed his forehead, but before he could respond, a rather adorable girl landed a punch on Choji's head. "Didn't I tell you to wait until they were full and at their most relaxed before making a move?!"

"But if I wait any longer, the food will be gone!" Choji mumbled, clearly feeling guilty.

Should I say, as expected of the Akimichi clan?

A rumbling stomach suddenly echoed across the sky from the little chubby boy, interrupting Feng Xue just as he was about to act.

It wasn't that Xia Mi and Mu Qianrou were interrupted; they simply ignored the three newcomers. In their eyes, though the Twelve Little Heroes were already quite formidable, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio was among the weakest. Compared to the first tier who could touch the threshold of hero status—Rock Lee, Neji, Sasuke in cursed mark mode, and Naruto in Nine-Tails Chakra form—and the second tier who had reached the extraordinary level, the trio, with the aid of their secret techniques, barely counted as special extraordinary (naming inspired by "Special Jonin"), able to only hold back ordinary extraordinary opponents. Only Choji, in his explosive state, could match such power, but the awkward reality was that Choji was just twelve. Despite his size, his calorie reserves weren't necessarily higher than an average adult, and without the secret medicine, his potential was limited.

But, if this chubby boy were to learn Food Will...

The thought flashed through Feng Xue's mind, and he quickly dismissed it. If the Akimichi clan mastered Food Will, with an infinite eating mode to accumulate calories, then used their secret arts to convert calories to chakra—good grief, they'd outclass the Tailed Beasts in an instant!

Seems like the Akimichi secret arts should be added to my collection list. Even if I don't use chakra, perhaps I could develop a technique to rapidly convert calories into universal energy.

But before pondering that—

"Hungry? Join us!" Feng Xue invited, leaving the two girls dumbfounded. He pulled out his cookware anew and began cooking again—the meal would barely suffice with three more mouths.

"Are you serious?" Mu Qianrou looked incredulous. "Don't forget, we're..."

"I know," Feng Xue shook his head. "To feed the hungry is a chef's duty. As for what they do after they're full—what's that got to do with me? If they try to take our scrolls, we'll just deal with them then."

This wasn't self-deception. Ever since gaining some mysterious power from the Moon Realm, Feng Xue's mindset had grown ever closer to that of a chef. Whether Chef's Heart, Food Sense, or Food Will, or even that nameless power—all were forms of self-cultivation, a path of the heart, with no room for deceit. Food Will's gratitude toward all things, Chef's Heart's dedication, none arose by accident; they stemmed from the chef's primal, profound insight into food. To grow stronger, one must first be a true chef (or gourmet).

"Of course, if these three kids worry I've poisoned the food, that's another matter." As Feng Xue spoke, several new dishes appeared on the simple dining table, the portions noticeably substantial—clearly considering Choji's appetite.

"Thank you so much!" While Shikamaru and Ino hesitated, Choji plopped himself at the stone table, eager to join the meal.

"Hey! Choji, they're our opponents, from another village!" A comic-style "井" symbol flashed above Ino's head, and she looked ready to blow her top.

"It's fine. Someone who says such words would never poison the food... Thanks for the meal!" Choji confidently grabbed a shelled centipede leg and popped it into his mouth, then dove into the feast with gusto.

"Well, since Choji says so, let's trust him..." Shikamaru lazily sat down and began eating as well.

"Seriously! One after another, all the same!" Ino, exasperated, scratched her long hair, finally sitting down and stuffing a piece of white meat into her mouth. At once, an indescribable expression crossed her face—one so vivid it might land even a writer in trouble.

"I've competed with the Medicine King on the same stage, you know!" Feng Xue watched Ino's indescribable expression with amusement, mumbling some cryptic phrase about "minimum three years, maximum death penalty." Yes, Ino may look mature, but she's still just twelve!

Speaking of which, the ages of characters in the world of shinobi are almost cheating—kids with extraordinary power, some at the hero level. Rock Lee, after opening five gates, could take on epic foes without Noble Phantasms or domains. Meanwhile, this group of transmigrators, even with their cheat-like abilities, only barely reach the extraordinary level at sixteen or seventeen. How are they to compete?

But then again, Nanoha was a grade-schooler and became a star-destroying powerhouse!

Anyway, saving the world as a Japanese adolescent is practically common sense. (In America, it's the almighty homeless man; in Japan, the school kid; in China, the retired special forces soldier. These are the three strongest professions in real-world fiction.)

Enough of that—back to the Forest of Death.

With six people feasting together, the centipede banquet was quickly devoured. Ino stood up, satisfied. "What ingredient was that? Crab? Are there really crabs this big in the rivers of the Forest of Death?"

"It's centipede, Ino!" Choji pointed to the pile of centipede shells nearby, unconcerned by Ino's now pale face, and excitedly continued, "I knew centipedes were edible, but the ones I've tried always tasted metallic. Who knew these giant centipedes would taste so good once shelled!"

"Ce-ce-ce-ce-ce-ce-ce-centipede?" Ino's eyes widened, face dark as thunder. A dangerous aura erupted from her, one that would terrify any ordinary person.

"So Ino has the makings of a conqueror's aura... Too bad she was born in the wrong world." Feng Xue watched Ino with amusement, showing no sign of guilt. He clapped his hands, slowly packed up the tableware into a storage scroll, and spoke with a playful tone—

"Now that you've eaten your fill, you're no longer guests. So, tell me—what is your choice?" As he spoke, a predatory, dangerous aura surged from Feng Xue, instantly quelling Ino's battle spirit sparked by her anger.

"Thank you very much for your hospitality." Shikamaru pulled Ino back, bowed in thanks.

Ino, seeing Shikamaru's signal, changed her expression, thanked Feng Xue, and followed the other two away from the riverside.

"Are you really just letting them go?" Mu Qianrou, chewing a twig toothpick, nonchalantly cleaned her teeth.

"It doesn't matter. Our mission is to defeat the Twelve Little Heroes after the second exam. So anyone we beat in this round doesn't count."

"In that case, it's better to leave a few. That way, in the third round preliminaries, we'll have a higher chance of facing the Twelve Little Heroes. Beating them in the arena is much more reasonable than taking them down in private, isn't it?"