Chapter 45
"When you reach the stage of Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation, you won't have to worry about food anymore," Asakawa Naoki quietly reassured himself.
In the first stage of cultivation, one must eat abundantly, extracting essence from food to refine it into mana. But in the second stage, Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation, practitioners shift from drawing power internally to absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth itself.
According to the Basic Qi Refining Art, breaking through to the second stage dramatically reduces one's need for ordinary food. With enough mastery, one could eventually practice fasting, sustaining themselves solely on ambient spiritual energy.
"Still… there's probably something in this world that could tide me over until then," Asakawa Naoki mused, a spark of inspiration flashing through his mind.
Ration Pellets.
Back in the early days of ninja warfare, these small food pills were indispensable on long missions. They couldn't massively restore chakra or dramatically boost one's upper limits like some exaggerated tales suggested, but they were high in energy and easy to digest.
Inuzuka Kiba once used them with Akamaru during a desperate battle. Yakushi Kabuto had reportedly used one while fighting Tsunade. Though they faded from prominence in later years, on real battlefields, Ration Pellets still had their place.
In truth, Ration Pellets were little more than compact, nutrient-dense survival rations. Think of them as the ninja world's compressed food — small, high-energy, and easy to carry. In Naoki's previous life, it was similar to emergency ration packs: awful in taste but reliable in function.
And while stories spoke of them restoring chakra, what they actually replenished was physical stamina, which then let a ninja circulate what little chakra they still had. Even so, because of their terrible flavor, most shinobi avoided them unless necessary.
Back when Asakawa Naoki hadn't yet ignited his Fire of Essence, he'd never considered using them. His cultivation pace was steady, and regular meals more than sufficed.
But now, with his body refining itself constantly in the background, and with the added demands of missions where food wasn't always available, these little things were looking a lot more useful.
With that in mind, Asakawa Naoki turned to the two figures seated nearby, busy practicing their ninjutsu scrolls.
"Rope Tree, Masamura — either of you have any Ration Pellets?" he asked casually. It wasn't urgent, but having some on hand would be convenient.
"I don't," Masamura Oki replied, shaking his head.
"What do you need that for?" Nawaki asked, blinking in surprise. Still, he rummaged through his gear and pulled out a small pouch, tossing it over. "My sister made me pack a few. It fills your stomach for a while, but it tastes like trash. No one eats these unless we run out of real food."
"Thanks. I just want to test it out," Asakawa Naoki said, picking one out.
The pellet was about the size of a marble — dull black with a faint herbal smell. There were dozens in the pouch, though at a glance, you couldn't tell what they were made of.
Not one to hesitate, Asakawa Naoki popped it into his mouth.
The taste was… indescribably strange. Not completely tasteless, but a muddled, conflicting medley of herbs, grains, and god-knows-what else. It was like mixing a sweet fruit with roasted fish — both good on their own, but revolting together.
No wonder ninjas hated them.
But Asakawa Naoki didn't care about the flavor. He chewed it down with a few gulps of water, then waited.
Before long, the gnawing hunger in his stomach eased. The Ration Pellet wasn't much, but its energy was dense. It felt like he'd just eaten a bowl of noodles.
"Pretty good hunger resistance," Naoki murmured, estimating that one pellet's energy equaled a proper meal. No wonder shinobi could down two or three and keep moving.
"If you like them that much, take 'em," Rope Tree grinned, then added as if remembering something, "But don't overdo it. My sister said you're only supposed to eat two per meal, tops. Any more than that and it starts messing with your stomach."
"Got it. I'll pay you back once we hit the front line," Naoki said earnestly.
Rope Tree waved him off. "I already told you, don't be so stiff about it."
As evening fell, the caravan remained untroubled, still within the borders of Konoha where no one would dare openly strike at a trade route.
"It's getting late — we'll camp here tonight."
The caravan leader pointed to a flat clearing. The merchants began feeding their horses and unpacking supplies, setting up tents.
According to their training, Asakawa Naoki and the others knew campsites should ideally be on higher ground with clear sightlines, but the caravan head wasn't interested in the opinions of a few young genin.
After exchanging glances, they let it go.
Half the team helped set up camp while the other half stood guard.
After lighting a bonfire and choking down some dry food, the caravan members retired to their tents, leaving the shinobi to handle night watch.
"We should take turns keeping watch," Naoki suggested.
"Agreed," Namikaze Minato nodded. "We've got three squads. Let's rotate shifts each night."
"Makes sense," Uchiha Mikoto chimed in.
Even though none of them officially held the captain's post, after the bell-grabbing exercise, Asakawa Naoki, Minato, and Mikoto had naturally fallen into leadership positions. The others followed their lead without complaint.
"Our team will take first watch tonight," Naoki declared.
"Then my team tomorrow," Minato added.
"And ours the night after," Mikoto concluded.
"Alright — you guys head to sleep," Naoki waved to the others, then glanced at Nawaki and Masamura Oki. "I'll take first shift tonight. You two handle the second half together. It gets tougher to stay awake then."
"Understood!" both of them replied eagerly.
Though seeing how hyped Rope Tree looked, Naoki suspected he wouldn't fall asleep anytime soon anyway.
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