pertwk Chapter 56 Iron
Chapter 56 Iron
It's another rainy day.
Sosuke sat behind the counter at the "Sweetness Corner".
In the shop.
The Uchiha guests weren't in a very good mood today.
"It hasn't been approved yet."
The speaker was a man in his thirties, Uchiha Kaito.
He is the head of the garrison's armory, a veteran Chunin who participated in the Second Shinobi World War.
Haito only has one right hand, his left sleeve hanging empty at his waist—it was severed by an explosive tag on the battlefield in Amegakure while he was covering his clansmen's retreat.
"Those bastards in the logistics department."
Haidou's face was gloomy.
"We applied for 500 new standard-issue long knives to replace this batch of old ones that have been in use for half a year."
"And the result?"
"That old woman, Xiaochun, only approved fifty packs."
The reason given was: "For the sake of victory on the front lines, personnel in the rear need to overcome difficulties and make repairs as needed."
"Overcoming difficulties?"
The young Uchiha sitting opposite Kaito was indignant.
"When we're capturing spies, do you think the enemy will show mercy just because our knives are dull?"
"Last week, the members of the fourth squad encountered Sunagakure infiltrators in the Nakagawa River."
"If that clansman's sword hadn't broken at the crucial moment, that Sand Village resident wouldn't have been able to escape at all!"
"That old woman is clearly retaliating against us for arresting Murai a month ago!"
They were angry.
But no way.
In times of scarcity, the power to allocate resources meant life and death. Let alone now, during wartime.
In the past month, the loss rate of ninja tools at the front lines has reached an alarming 40%.
Iron prices have skyrocketed.
A month ago, one tael of refined iron cost fifteen taels.
Yesterday, the price rose to thirty taels.
This morning, the listed price was thirty-eight taels, but there was no market for it.
Because iron was a strategic material, it was strictly controlled.
The blacksmith shop behind them was open day and night, and black smoke covered half of Konoha's sky.
However, the ninja tools that were produced were immediately taken away by the logistics convoys of the Anbu and the regular army, and not even a scrap of metal entered the market.
Even if the Uchiha clan had money, they couldn't buy it.
The Konoha leadership is using this legitimate means to quietly weaken the Uchiha's armed forces.
Sosuke listened.
He was thinking.
Does Konoha lack ninja tools?
It's both lacking and not lacking.
The people who truly lack ninja tools are those who lack connections.
There are definitely no shortage of families related to the Naruto series.
Other neutral families also received appropriate rations to varying degrees.
Only the Uchiha.
"Senior Kaito".
Sosuke walked out of the counter.
He held a teapot in his hand and poured a cup for Haidou.
"There aren't any readily available ninja tools, but if they had iron, could the Uchiha clan forge their own?"
"Craft your own ninja tools? Sure, the Uchiha clan can find craftsmen too." Kaito looked up, "But iron is regulated in the market now. It's impossible to get any."
You should know that now that they have a share of the profits from the purified water, the Uchiha clan is not short of money or skilled craftsmen.
But they have a hard time getting iron.
As members of the security force, they cannot knowingly break the law and engage in smuggling.
"What if I had the connections?"
Upon hearing this, all the Uchiha turned to look at Sousuke.
"You can get your hands on iron?" Haidou narrowed his eyes. "Aren't the merchant guild's goods coming in and out controlled?"
"The Chamber of Commerce is under control, that's a fact."
Sousuke said calmly.
"Without a permit, any iron ore or steel ingots that are brought in will be immediately requisitioned."
"But I have other ways to get it."
"What channel?"
Sosuke put down the teapot and lowered his voice.
"Senior Kaito, you're in charge of the security force's armory. I'd like to ask you a question."
What is the average lifespan of a standard-issue longsword on the battlefield?
Although Kaito didn't understand, he still answered:
"In the case of intense skirmishes, it usually only lasts two or three days. It's common for blades to get chipped or blown off by explosive tags."
"So, where did the broken knife go?"
"Of course, you should either throw it away or bring it back to be scrapped."
"What happens after it's scrapped?"
"Melted and reforged?" a young Uchiha interrupted from the side.
"That was before," Haidou shook his head. "Now, the blacksmith shops in the logistics department are so busy they don't have time to deal with those half-finished swords or scrap iron mixed with dirt and blood rust. The cost of reforging an old sword is higher than the labor cost of making a new one."
"So, they were simply disposed of as garbage."
Sosuke stopped keeping everyone in suspense.
"At Konoha's waste disposal plant, there are piles of household scrap metal, construction scrap steel, and scrapped ninja tools."
"To those old men in the logistics department, it's garbage, a burden, and waste that needs to be paid to be hauled away."
"But in reality, it was an iron ore mine."
Haidou was stunned.
He was a ninja and a manager. But he never looked at the problem from that perspective.
In his mind, iron was either iron ore or steel ingots.
Rubbish?
That filthy, smelly stuff, can it really be called iron?
Even if it's iron.
Hai Dou raised the most practical question.
"As I said, recasting is too costly. To turn rusty, deformed scrap iron into usable steel, you need a high-temperature furnace, a lot of charcoal, and skilled blacksmiths to forge it for a long time."
"The process of removing impurities alone can be exhausting."
"Now the village's charcoal production is also controlled. Without charcoal, the scrap iron can't be smelted into refined iron."
"Charcoal is not a problem."
Sousuke smiled.
He glanced at the room full of Uchiha people.
"Senior Kaito, have you forgotten what the Uchiha clan excels at?"
Kaito was startled.
Fire Release: Fire Style
Sosuke uttered two words.
"The Uchiha clan possesses the most advanced Fire Release technique in the ninja world, which represents the ultimate transformation of chakra nature."
"What's the core temperature of your Fireball Jutsu? 1000 degrees? 1500 degrees?"
"Even a low-ranking ninja could burn a lot of charcoal with a single breath of fire."
All the Uchiha clan members looked at each other in bewilderment.
This idea...
Using the noble Fire Release ninjutsu, meant for killing, to burn charcoal? To forge iron?
This is an insult to ninjutsu.
"This...this is outrageous!"
The young Uchiha couldn't help but retort.
"We're ninjas! You want us to burn charcoal? If word gets out..."
No, he's right.
Haidou didn't think so.
As a veteran who had been on the battlefield, he knew exactly what the Uchiha clan needed.
face?
When it comes to survival, saving face is nothing.
Haidou's eyes were resolute.
"As long as I can make a knife, I'll burn charcoal."
"Xiaochun can control us because she knows we can't do without the village's supply system."
"If we could make our own swords and ninja tools, would she still be able to act with such impunity?"
The young man fell silent.
He looked at Sosuke.
"However, the waste treatment plant is under the jurisdiction of the health department. Although it is not an important department, it is still part of the administrative system."
"I'll go talk to them."
Sosuke stood up.
"There's an old man guarding the gate there; he's my teacher."
"I'm in charge of getting the scrap metal out."
"You are responsible for providing personnel, fire, site, and equipment."
Kaito stood up and nodded solemnly to Sousuke.
"If this can be done, Sousuke, you will be the savior of the security forces."
"I'd rather be friends with the Uchiha clan."
Kaito smiled slightly.
"You already are."