novelhk Chapter 173 Tetsuya: Orochimaru-kun, all these years have passed, but my skills haven't gotten
Chapter 173 Tetsuya: Orochimaru-kun, all these years have passed, but my skills haven't gotten
In the capital of the Land of Grass, Orochimaru disguised himself as a traveling merchant and arrived at this place, which was regarded as a sacred place by merchants all over the world.
Why do merchants from all over the world regard this place as a sacred site? Because in the eyes of many merchants, the Daimyo of the Land of Grass, Chiba Tetsuya, is a saint among them.
Starting as a small ramen shop owner, he worked his way up through the ranks, accumulating capital in the power-worshipping ninja world through business acumen, building a vast commercial empire, and eventually transcending social class, becoming a daimyo from a commoner.
Such stories are almost like myths in the eyes of ordinary people.
But it's not a myth; it's a real-life case.
How could this not inspire other merchants to yearn for it? Over time, Chiba Tetsuya became a saint-like figure in the mouths of those merchants, and the capital of the Grass Country naturally became a sacred place in the eyes of the merchants.
Moreover, this place is a crucial transportation hub on the important trade route connecting the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth, two major powers.
"Hehe, Mr. Chiba, I never thought that after so many years, you would have reached this level today. A daimyo of a country, that's truly admirable."
He recalled a story he'd heard from the old man years ago: the old man had asked Chiba Tetsuya what his dream was. Chiba Tetsuya had replied that his dream was to make the name Chiba famous throughout the ninja world through his own strength.
Now, so many years have passed, and he has realized his dream. Looking at the world, which country doesn't have the Chiba Trading Company's footprint and branches? Wherever there is commerce, which person hasn't heard of the name Chiba?
"Hey buddy, are you here in the Land of Grass to do some trading too?"
A young man dressed as a merchant saw Orochimaru standing outside the capital, gazing at the bustling city before him, and immediately approached him as if they were old friends.
"Judging from your appearance, you probably don't have much experience. I know, you must be like me, having heard the story of the Chiba Daimyo, and that's why you came here."
Orochimaru glanced at the person in front of him, and after confirming that the other party had no chakra and was just an ordinary merchant, he replied with a smile.
"Yes, after all, the story of the Chiba daimyo is indeed very inspiring. From an ordinary small merchant, he eventually rose step by step to the position of a daimyo of a country. Anyone who hears this will be excited and want to see it for themselves."
"Haha, you're right, I recognized you at a glance. My name is Oda Saburo, I'm a traveling merchant, I've been doing business for three years, and I've only been here a few days. What about you, brother?"
As a traveling merchant, Saburo Oda traveled all over the country and developed a friendly and outgoing personality. After all, if you're not enthusiastic, no one will buy your things.
“I, my name is Ōro-maru. I just became a merchant and arrived here today. Oda-kun, you arrived a few days earlier than me, so you should be quite familiar with this place.”
“Of course, I hit it off with Dairou-kun right away. Come on, I'll treat you to dinner. I know a ramen shop that's really good. Speaking of which, Chiba Daimyo started out making ramen too.”
"Really? Then I'll have to give it a good taste."
Led by Saburo Oda, Orochimaru arrived at a relatively deserted street.
It's not that it's deserted; that's only in comparison to other, more bustling streets. There are still quite a few pedestrians coming and going on this street.
These people were dressed in different ways; they came from the south and the north, from the land of wind, the land of earth, the land of fire, and from both large and small countries.
Oda Saburo led Orochimaru into a relatively secluded and somewhat shabby-looking little shop.
For some reason, Orochimaru felt a sense of familiarity when he looked at the ramen shop in front of him.
It seems that Chiba's original ramen shop was just as unremarkable.
"Boss, one of my signature tonkotsu ramen, please!"
As soon as Oda Saburo entered the store, he shouted loudly towards the kitchen.
"Dairo Maru-kun, please sit down. Here is the menu. See if there's anything you'd like to eat. If not, I recommend you try their signature tonkotsu ramen. You'll definitely be satisfied with the taste."
Orochimaru did not order food immediately, but instead looked around and observed the surrounding environment.
There weren't many people in the shop, but surprisingly, quite a few of them possessed chakra, suggesting they were all ninjas. However, none of them wore headbands, so it was unclear which ninja village they belonged to.
However, there were also some ordinary customers; these ninjas were probably just here to eat.
After confirming that there were no problems, Orochimaru began to look at the menu.
"This is!"
He saw some familiar ramen names on the menu.
Mixed Ramen, Signature Tonkotsu Ramen, Flaming Yakisoba, Cold Ramen, Chashu Ramen...
These are all dishes from the original Chiba Ramen shop!
Orochimaru took a deep breath and offered words of comfort.
"It's alright. After Chiba retired successfully, he probably made all the recipes public. You can still get these ramen at Ichiraku Ramen."
After comforting himself with a remark, Orochimaru spoke.
"Then, give me a plate of flaming fried noodles."
"Okay, one order of Flaming Fried Noodles and one order of Signature Tonkotsu Ramen, please!"
A clear voice came from the kitchen.
"Come on, Mr. Dalang, have some tea first. You must be tired after your long journey."
Thank you.
"Dairo Maru-kun, what kind of business do you do? Are you planning to resell local specialties, or buy some daily necessities, or perhaps go a little bigger and sell some rare and exotic treasures?"
"I haven't decided yet what kind of business Oda-kun is in."
"Me? I just resell some local specialties. For example, I bring some local specialties from the Land of Fire to the Land of Wind to sell. After selling them, I bring some local specialties from the Land of Wind back to the Land of Fire to sell, making a little profit from the price difference."
The two chatted idly, with Orochimaru behaving like a newcomer to the business world.
Meanwhile, Oda Saburo continuously imparted his business experience to Orochimaru.
"Ouch!"
Suddenly, Xiaotian put down his cup and said somewhat embarrassedly.
"Um, Mr. Oolong, I've had too much tea, I need to use the restroom. Sorry, please wait a moment."
As he spoke, Oda Saburo ran towards the restroom, paying for the two bowls of ramen as he passed the counter.
Orochimaru shook his head and continued drinking his tea.
"Sir, your flaming fried noodles are here. Oh, where is the customer who ordered the tonkotsu ramen?"
An ordinary-looking young man came to the table and put down two bowls of noodles.
"He went to the toilet."
"I see. Then please enjoy your meal, sir."
Looking at the steaming hot fried noodles and smelling the familiar aroma, Orochimaru picked up his chopsticks.
Orochimaru frowned after taking a bite.
"This tastes amazing!"
I ate a couple more bites; the taste was exactly the same as I remembered.
"Orochimaru-kun, how is it? After all these years, my skills haven't gotten any worse, have they?"