During this period, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not take Shanks and Hatake Sakumo on any difficult missions.
Every day, they completed simple C-rank missions near the village, things like killing robbers or clearing out bandits.
They did not encounter shinobi like last time.
Even so, both boys had become somewhat numb to killing.
Shanks could understand Orochimaru a little now.
After watching one life after another die by his own hands, life truly did start to feel fragile.
It was not strange that Orochimaru would later pursue immortality and use human bodies to research forbidden techniques.
Of course, Shanks would never research that kind of twisted ninjutsu himself.
Turning into something neither male nor female was bad enough.
The thought of turning himself into a pile of snakes made him feel sick.
During this period, Shanks sent out shadow clones every day to train.
However, his strength had not improved much.
His current body had already reached the limit of what it could handle at his age.
Armament Haki had not grown by much either.
Ninjutsu was the same.
Only his left-hand seal speed had improved a little.
It was close to reaching chūnin level.
But ever since the fight in Sunagakure, where he had been surrounded and, under intense focus, released a faint trace of flying slash, Shanks had started spending time every night meditating on his sword path after training Observation Haki.
“In the One Piece world, being able to release sword energy is the sign of reaching swordsman level.
After that, to become a great swordsman, you need to understand your own sword path more deeply.
There isn’t a fixed mark for becoming a great swordsman.
Only after reaching that level would someone truly know.”
His original sword had also broken because it could not withstand the sword energy.
If not for Shanks wrapping it in Armament Haki, it might not have been able to release the slash at all.
“Looks like I need to go to the Land of Iron and get a good sword.
Even Hatake Sakumo has a family chakra short blade.”
Shanks decided to ask Hiruzen to take a mission to the Land of Iron tomorrow.
“What requirements do you have for the sword?” Hiruzen asked after hearing Shanks’s request.
“And what kind of swordsmanship are you practicing that it broke your sword?”
Hiruzen was curious.
“Not swordsmanship,” Shanks said.
“I call it the way of the sword.”
He thought for a moment, then explained, “You know about my special talent.
I can sense a kind of energy other people can’t feel.
My sword path is similar.
The sword energy I release comes from that special energy wrapping around the blade before being slashed out.”
“Ordinary swords can’t withstand it.”
“I see.
Is it like Second Hokage’s Sword of the Thunder God?” Hiruzen asked.
“No, not like that.
As long as it’s a famed samurai blade, it should work.
I don’t fully understand it myself yet.
I’ll know more once we reach the Land of Iron.”
Shanks shrugged.
“All right.
We’ll go to the Land of Iron tomorrow.
I know someone there.
He should understand this better than I do.
But you should know that the samurai era has declined.
Famed blades are very rare now.”
“I know.
Even if there’s no true famed blade, I should at least be able to find a decent sword.”
Shanks was only trying his luck.
The next day, the three accepted a mission to purchase ninja tools in the Land of Iron and set off.
After entering the Land of Iron, they saw samurai carrying swords everywhere.
Shinobi were much rarer.
The Land of Iron had been established by samurai families passed down from the old samurai era.
It was a neutral country.
Hiruzen took Shanks and Hatake Sakumo to the general’s residence.
The person Hiruzen was looking for was the son of the current Land of Iron general, and also the most famous samurai in the country.
Mifune.
“Hiruzen, what brings you to the Land of Iron?” Mifune asked.
“I heard your borders have been unstable lately.”
Mifune wore standard samurai clothing, carried a sword at each side, and wore wooden sandals.
He was around the same age as Hiruzen.
“Ah, we came here for a mission and passed through,” Hiruzen said with a smile.
“Also, one of my team members wants to buy a famed blade, so I came to ask for your help.”
“Team member?” Mifune looked at the two children.
“I thought they were your students.”
One was white-haired and carried a short blade on his back.
The other had red hair, with three scars near his right eye that gave him a faintly imposing air.
“Yes.
My name is Uzumaki Shanks,” Shanks said politely.
“I’m the one who needs a famed blade.
I’ll have to trouble you.”
He was asking for help, and the other person was not one of Konoha’s own people, so Shanks was still quite courteous.
He was not stupid enough to act arrogant everywhere without the strength to back it up.
Inside the village, he could show off because someone had his back.
Outside, he knew better.
“Oh, you’re from the Uzumaki Clan?” Mifune looked surprised.
“You also train in the way of the sword?”
The Uzumaki Clan was famous throughout the shinobi world for outrageous chakra reserves and unmatched sealing techniques.
Seeing an Uzumaki child train the sword was genuinely rare.
“Yes.
I awakened some special family talent, so I developed a unique sword path.
I need an especially hard sword to use it properly.”
“An especially hard sword?”
Mifune thought for a moment.
“The Famous Blade Pavilion has an old sword that has been there for many years.
It is extremely hard, even harder than the Kurosawa in my hand.
Unfortunately, it cannot conduct chakra, so it isn’t useful to shinobi.”
“It doesn’t need to conduct chakra.
My sword path has little to do with chakra.
Can you take me to see it?”
Shanks immediately became interested.
“Of course.
Follow me.”
Mifune led the three of them to the Famous Blade Pavilion.
“Lord Mifune, are you here to purchase a weapon?”
The owner of the Famous Blade Pavilion immediately came out to welcome them when he saw Mifune and the others.
“Ah, some time ago, I saw that you had a very hard famed blade for sale.
I brought someone to take a look.”
Mifune gestured to the three behind him.
“This is Hiruzen Sarutobi, elite jōnin of Konoha and student of the Second Hokage.
This is the heir of the Hatake Clan.
And this is a member of the Uzumaki Clan, nephew of the First Hokage.”
Mifune introduced them very carefully.
The meaning was clear.
These three had powerful backgrounds.
You could raise the price, but do not raise it too viciously.
The owner was a sharp businessman.
He naturally understood Mifune’s meaning.
“Oh, so you came to see Withered Wood.
Please, my lords, come inside.”
The owner led the four of them to the second floor.
There were not many blades on the second floor, only a dozen or so.
But from the faint chill emitted by those blades, it was obvious none of them were ordinary.
The owner took down the sword placed highest on display and carried it respectfully to the four of them.
His expression became serious.
“This blade is named Withered Wood.
During the Warring States era, master swordsmith Murai Okayama obtained a piece of special metal by chance and forged it into this blade.”
“The blade is five feet seven inches long and two inches wide.
It is incomparably hard.”
“During the Warring States era, it once belonged to the Akifuyu Clan.
Later, when the Akifuyu Clan was destroyed by the Kaguya Clan, this blade shone brilliantly in that battle.
Afterward, its whereabouts became unknown.”
“Later, by chance, I bought this sword from a merchant from the Land of Snow.”
As expected of a businessman.
Whether it was true or not, he would brag first.
“Boss, after hearing you describe it like that, I thought about it and decided to forget it.
I definitely can’t afford such an amazing blade.”
Shanks put on a helpless expression.
Damn it.
It’s just a slightly harder old sword, and you’re bragging like it’s some divine weapon.
If you keep going, are you going to call it the demon blade Muramasa next?
Shanks acted like he wanted to buy it but was afraid he did not have enough money.
He sighed and prepared to leave.
“My young lord, don’t be in such a hurry.
The price is negotiable.”
The owner knew he had overdone the bragging, so he quickly added, “Because the previous owners of this blade all died mysteriously, it is also called an ill-omened blade.
So… I can sell it to you for two hundred thousand ryō.”
The moment he finished speaking, he almost wanted to slap himself.
“You dare sell me an ill-omened blade for two hundred thousand?
Do you not know my uncle is Senju Hashirama?”
Shanks could not endure it.
Sure enough, he really did try to brag it into a demon blade.
Does he think this young master is stupid?
“One hundred thousand ryō.
If you won’t sell it, I don’t want it.”
“This… one hundred thousand is really too low.
How about one hundred eighty thousand?”
The owner still refused to give up.
After a full two hours of bargaining, Shanks finally bought the sword for one hundred fifty thousand ryō.
On the way back to Konoha, Hatake Sakumo sighed.
“Shanks, your mouth is really impressive.
You bought such an amazing famed blade for such a low price.”
Shanks looked at Sakumo like he was looking at an idiot.
“You believe everything that guy said?
If this sword were really that amazing, it wouldn’t still be unsold today.”
He tapped the sword lightly.
“And what even is the Akifuyu Clan?
I’ve never heard of them.
Even if that clan existed, it was probably a small clan during the Warring States era.
How could they have such an incredible famed blade?”
“Didn’t you hear him at the end?
He almost bragged the sword into becoming the demon blade Muramasa.”
“Hahaha!
Shanks is right,” Hiruzen said with a laugh.
“Businessmen are cunning.
Sakumo, you’re still too honest.”
Then he glanced at the sword again.
“But I think the blade itself is still quite good.
It should qualify as a famed blade.
It may have been lost for a long time, which is why it isn’t very famous.”
“Maybe.”
Shanks did not mind too much.
“In any case, this sword will become famous from now on.”
He lifted his chin proudly.
“Because it is now in the hands of Uzumaki Super Invincible Great Swordsman Heaven-Piercing Earth-Shaking Raw Fish-Shrimp-Crab-Eating Extremely Domineering Super Shanks.”
Hiruzen thought, I really want to beat him to death.
Hatake Sakumo thought the same thing.