"I told you! I'm learning the way of the sword, so you don't have to spend stupid money on them anymore."

"And you think that means going around starting fights? Give up already and help out for once."

"No way! How am I ever going to find a wife if I'm always dirty like those losers? One day I'll own those mines, but no one is going to take me seriously if I'm covered in grime."

"Nobody said you have to go into the mine. Help with accounting, sort through the ores, help negotiate deals – anything besides swinging that sword around like a fool. You're proving to everyone that you're an idiot. Who will marry you then?"

Yuina watched as a father and son argued in the town's center after the son tried to pick a fight with someone who bumped. Everyone watched as the boy recklessly swung his sword. Some even shouting urging them to fight, but the person he attacked fled as quickly as possible. A hoard of people called him a coward. She wondered if it was from fear, annoyance, or run away from the stupidity.

Kiwazawa was a mining town. The livelihood of many of the townsmen came from working at the mines on the outskirt of town.

Yuina learned that 65% of the Land of Fire's mining activity came from the northwest corridor, much closer to the Haisai area than their current whereabouts in the northeast.

If Konoha was worried about this prosperous village, it was likely to know the state of mining. She hoped she was reading too much into it, but that meant the mining activity in the northwest may not be a reliable source of metals. The tensions with Iwa were known to her, but did the village expect things to escalate, or was this a mere precaution?

Yuina began walking away. She didn't need to listen to a familial squabble as a form of twisted entertainment when there was work to be done. Their fight provided some insight about the familial social structure, but she didn't need to watch more.

"You!"

Yuina only stopped when she realized everyone's eyes were on her and Orochimaru. She looked back to the middle of the crowd to watch the mine owner's son stop his way over to them, only to be stopped by his father who grabbed his arm. The son shook him off.

"Go back to that village of yours and tell them we never want your services again."

Yuina wished he was drunk so she could at least give a poor excuse for his behaviour, but he was being a brat. She could understand him wanting to take another path, but his tantrum was too much. More so, she detested that he was willing to take advantage of his family's influence to start fights unscathed while mocking all it entailed.

The mine owner ran forward and looped his arm around his son's elbow in an attempt to hold him back. "I apologize on his behalf." He slapped the back of his son's head to try to snap some sense into him, then tried to force him to bow. "Apologize."

"Stop hiring them then."

"Safety is important! I didn't hire them, though."

Now they were both stared as if waiting for an explanation. She eyed Orochimaru who signaled for her to take care of it.

"I'm currently on a training camp with my sensei. We're only passing through."

"Kobutsu, apologize."

The son ignored him. "Pshh. You're telling me they let some kid become a shinobi?" He looked at his father. "You don't think I can do better than a kid?" She wondered if it was natural, or whether his talent to ignore things that didn't fit his narrative of the world was crafted. "Hey, Pa won't let me duel Masaharu, so you duel me."

Duel? What kind of world did he think he lived in? "No." Did she need to explain?

The father slapped a hand over his face, done with trying to reason with his son. "Could I convince you to duel him? No death? I'll properly compensate you." He thought Kobutsu needed a harsh reality check.

"Of course she will." Orochimaru volunteered her against her will. She didn't want to fight an oversized toddler. "It's good for people to remember our strength." What? So he wanted to use her as an advertisement? She didn't think it was necessary since the father clearly already hired ninja from Konoha before and had faith in their abilities.

The mines were intended to be passed on to his son, though. Beating him up sounded like a bad idea from a future business prospect, but at this rate he wasn't going to hire them, anyway. It would cause conflicts someday. Mines were important.

Yuina lightly exhaled. She wasn't happy to fight against someone with a sword, even when the holder lacked training. Having large weapons pointed at her was intimidating. The only consolation was that he shouldn't have access to his chakra, as miniscule as it was, meaning there was no doubt she could outspeed him. It really would be like fighting a toddler back in Konoha. "Fine."

"I'll show you just how strong us country men can be." If no one else would shut him up, she would.

Yuina walked into the middle of the circle the villagers formed, across from Kobutsu. He rushed forward before his dad could declare the start of the match.

She couldn't let him reach too close to the edge of the ring. She didn't want to risk someone else getting hurt by his recklessness.

She vanished from his sight and kicked his back, sending him tumbling face first to the ground.

Kobutsu used his arms to prop him back up. "Lucky hit. Another round."

There truly was no saving this man from his own idiocy.

He ran at her again. This time she unsheathed her tanto, parried his sword, flipped her weapon so that when she hit his gut with her, it was with the tip of the handle side.

The force pushed him to land on his behind, and a pain shot through him. He put a hand over where she attacked him and watched his sword crashed against the ground.

Something stirred within her, as pathetic as the scene was.

The crowd was a mixture of laughs, cheers, and taunts.

"Are you finished?" She stared at his gaping form. Yuina turned to face Orochimaru. "Is this enough of a display?"

Yuina didn't need Orochimaru's smirk as a warning. She heard the thumping footsteps of a fool behind her who wouldn't give up. She dodged the fist coming her way and grabbed the arm attached to it. Yuina sent a zap of lightning chakra through him, knocked him off his feel, then pulled a kunai to hold to his neck so he would remain still.

Kobutsu gulped as he saw her eyes sharpen on him. He saw his life flash before him.

Yuina had her limits, and she wasn't a pleasant person when her patience was tested past that limit.

"Did you know?" Her eyes pierced through his with the promise of pain. "The human body is adaptable and resilient by design." Yuina leaned in. "Despite that, there are so many ways people can die." She let him sit in fear for a moment before she removed her kunai from his throat. "Don't flaunt skills you don't have." She looked over at his father. "We don't need payment. Having to deal with him is enough of a punishment."

Orochimaru was amused on the sidelines. Perhaps Yuina could be predatory when needed, and the opportunity had never presented itself before now. More than an opportunity, he hadn't seen her in a position where she was high enough up the hierarchy to assume control. In that moment, she exuded a similar presence as she did in the lab, but with the addition of something darker. He'd have to look into creating more opportunities to see that side. It would be a waste to not cultivate it.

"You aren't going to stick around for intel?" he asked as he picked up that she was headed out of town.

"There's no need. We're here for the mines." She wasn't wrong. "Iron."

Whether it remained iron or whether it was processed into steel, it was a vital asset to weld the equipment associated with their profession. Weapons correlated to power. Stockpiling ensured security.

As much as she loved crafting theories, she regretted her latest one.