He clearly remembered that just half an hour ago, Naruto had been snoring away on the snowmobile. Yet, the moment they got off, his eyes were red, and he even stumbled while running.
“Hiss~~~”
The smoothness of Naruto’s performance made Hosokawa suck in a cold breath. He realized that there was indeed a gap between people… one that he couldn’t bridge, no matter how hard he tried.
"Pervy Sage!"
"Lee!"
"Neji!"
"You’ve suffered so much!"
The eyes of Jiraiya, Lee, and Neji also turned red, not because they were moved by Naruto’s affection, but because they saw the food he had brought. They all looked up, holding back tears.
"Eating raw fish every day, I was almost done for," Jiraiya sighed. Without being picky, he grabbed the food from Naruto’s hands and started devouring it.
Seeing this, Naruto wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He directly pulled out more food and pressure cooker from the sealed space. He then cooked the food and soup on the spot, and managed to put together a simple hot meal on the spot.
"Naruto, you are really omnipotent!" Lee said vaguely while eating frantically, "You are even better than Tenten. You can actually cook in a place like this."
"Not bad, right?" Naruto smiled.
The Jonin from the Land of Snow watched from nearby. They had been eating dry rations the entire journey because cooking at such high altitudes was nearly impossible. Besides, they were on a rescue mission and couldn’t afford to waste time.
"Is Tenten safe?" Neji asked.
"She’s back in the village, probably resting at home now." Naruto replied. "I’ve been to the Land of Whirlpools. Getting back to Konoha wasn’t too hard."
"You returned to Konoha from the Land of Whirlpools by yourself?" Jiraiya was a little dumbfounded, staring at Naruto again and again, "You didn’t touch that gate, did you?"
"Nope. There was a delay in the message. I went back the same day," Naruto said, waving his hand nonchalantly.
"That’s good. The gate is too dangerous. You’d better not mess with it." Jiraiya said, raising his chopsticks and mumbling a warning before diving back into his meal.
"Eat slower. No one’s fighting you for it." Naruto said, watching the three of them devour their food. Sweat was practically dripping down his face, "After starving for so long, you can’t just start eating like crazy. Take it easy."
Obviously, the three of them didn’t take Naruto’s advice to heart. They ate until their stomachs were round.
If ordinary people ate like this, they’d be in the ICU, racking up a $5,000-a-day bill.
But who were these guys? They were Shinobi.
The journey back was still long. Jiraiya, Lee, and Neji lay on the snowmobiles, feeling a sense of novelty. They acted like they’d never seen such things before, touching the interior of the vehicles repeatedly.
"This is a snowmobile. What do you think?" Naruto turned to the three of them, "Convenient, right? It can travel through the snow, saving a lot of time."
"How was this thing made? Even the Land of Fire doesn’t seem to have anything like it." Jiraiya muttered as he examined it, "But it doesn’t seem all that impressive."
"The Land of Fire is either busy with wars or hosting parties for the nobles. They are not willing to invest money in cultivating talents and developing technology." Naruto said disdainfully.
Jiraiya didn't say anything about this. He knew all too well what the nobles of the Land of Fire were like. The funding for Konoha had been declining year after year, always with the excuse of a bad economy.
Although the nobles of the Land of Fire were a bunch of degenerates, Konoha wasn’t much better. During Sandaime’s tenure, the village had been preparing for war, and the villagers’ lives were still at an agrarian level.
Naturally, the village’s expenses can only rely on the Land of Fire, creating a vicious cycle. Even something as beneficial as communication devices was instinctively rejected by the old-timers.
First, their minds were stuck in the past, fearing that uncontrollable communication devices would leak information. Second, Konoha didn’t have the funds to develop secure communication equipment.
All in all, when faced with new things, it was easier to just ban them outright.
In terms of Chakra technology, the Land of Lightning was leading the way, far ahead of the Land of Snow. But when it came to civilian technology, the Land of Snow had been catching up rapidly in recent years.
In other words, once Naruto firmly took control of Kumogakure, he would hold the two core technological hubs of the Shinobi World in his hands, ready to create a Shinobi Version of Stark Industries.
He had even sketched out a blueprint for the future.
However, Naruto was only responsible for drawing the template. As for how to achieve it, that wasn’t his concern.
"What are they wearing?" Lee suddenly pointed at the armor worn by the Shinobi from the Land of Snow, curiosity evident in his voice.
"Chakra Armor. If you're interested, I can get you a set later." Naruto replied, "It assists Shinobi in combat and can improve their combat effectiveness."
"Enhances a Shinobi's potential? Lee, you'd better not touch that armor." Jiraiya interjected, glancing at Lee, "It's not suitable for you. Wearing it might actually harm you."
"Why?" Lee was puzzled by Jiraiya’s words.
"You learned Taijutsu from that kid Guy, right?" Jiraiya said seriously, looking at Lee. "Your body's potential is far beyond what that armor can offer. Using it would only limit your growth."
Hearing this, Lee was startled but quickly dismissed the idea of wearing the armor.
"Naruto, do you have a good relationship with the people of the Land of Snow?" Neji suddenly asked, "Why does it seem like they're following your orders?"
It wasn't that Neji had discovered something the others hadn't. It was just that Jiraiya and Lee were still too amazed by the hot meal and the snowmobile to think of asking.
Hearing this, both Jiraiya and Lee turned to look at Naruto.
"Well, I have some private investments here. By chance, I took on a mission for the Land of Snow during the change in power and made some investments along the way." Naruto said, downplaying his involvement.
"You know how investments work. You scatter seeds everywhere, and eventually, one of them sprouts. The Land of Snow was one of those places, so I have some influence here."
"So, you're basically a local noble?" Jiraiya sucked in a breath, surprised that his student had become a noble at such a young age.
"Not exactly. The Land of Snow is remote," Naruto quickly added. "Cough, I can't live here permanently, and I don't come here often."
"So, it's just a place with a relatively high return on investment.”
"Yeah." Neji didn't notice anything unusual.
"You really are full of tricks, kid. I never thought you'd have such ideas." Jiraiya said, his attitude toward the snowmobile changing.
"This vehicle is really nice. Can you bring one back to Konoha?"
"Didn't you just say it was nothing special?" Naruto was surprised and turned to look at Jiraiya, "I heard it with my own ears. Don't try to deny it."
"Well... I was just joking. Even if you brought it back, I could only play with it in Konoha." Jiraiya said with a grin, his playful side showing.
"I remember you can store items, right? How about bringing one back?"
"I could, but there's no need." Naruto smiled, "Pervy Sage, this is a snowmobile. I'll have someone make you a better one later."
He wasn't lying to Jiraiya. With the snowmobile as a template, the Land of Snow's technology could easily produce a car. And once he took control of Kumogakure, even electric vehicles could become a reality.
In the world of anime, logic wasn't a concern. All it took was a spark to ignite countless possibilities.
Thinking about the relaxed and comfortable life of the future, even Naruto felt a sense of longing. He felt this world was broken and needed to be rebuilt.
The group huddled in the snowmobile, excitedly discussing their plans before eventually resting. The journey back was long, with several breaks along the way.
By the time they reached the Land of Snow, it was already late at night.
Naruto arranged accommodations for everyone, deliberately placing them far from the palace to avoid any slip-ups.
As for himself, he continued with the unfinished ‘business’ he had left behind.