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I was reading a manga where A, a shinobi, is in a barbecue but is not eating
anything. B finds it strange and asks what's up. Then, the talk follows:

> A: さっき、兵糧丸食った  
>  B: ひょうろうがん・・・  
>  A: 忍のは燃費がいい  
>  B: どれ

I don't understand what A's last phrase means. Does he mean the shinobi have
an effective/convenient metabolism and hence don't need to eat much? Or does
he mean that the hyourougan takes time to be metabolized?
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2020-06-21T19:58:57.740
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2020-06-23T06:49:17.427
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question
meaning translation words
What does 燃費がいい mean here?
So, I assume B is not a shinobi. Then A recommended 兵糧丸 to B and the food has
high nutrition. That's why A is not eating anything in a barbecue. A few
amount of intake and Long time activity. So, it does not cost much food and
you do not have to eat foods a lot. As a result it's fuel-efficient.

The 兵糧丸 made for "Shinobi" should be having higher nutrition than that of for
others, then A says 忍のは燃費がいい → '兵糧丸 made for "Shinobi" has high-nutrition' →
"good-fuel-efficiency" in this kind of sense.

Well-trained Shinobi might have better metabolism than others though, I think
it is irrelevant to Shinobi's metabolism itself.
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2020-06-22T00:10:43.697
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answer
兵糧丸 = Field ration/MRE

Wiki states that they were made (in different manner) by various
warrior/shinobi clans, and there is a [PDF
Article](https://www.alic.go.jp/content/000128528.pdf) linked that states that
ones for shinobi was primarily made out of sugar with some spices and rice
base. It further gives a comparison on different types of rations, and that
they were around 20-30g and contained as much as 50-150kcal each, or as much
as a box of caramel, a single riceball, or a banana, as per the article:

> 兵糧丸も飢渇丸も一個は大体20 ～ 30グラムが持ち運びやすく、おおむね一つが50 ～ 150キロカロリーぐらいです。キャ
> ラメル一箱やおにぎり一個やバナナ一本に相当するカロリーです。

So the efficiency is referring to the amount of caloric intake A already had.

-- Starfox
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2020-06-22T03:08:47.220
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answer
燃費 is basically a technical term to describe the efficiency of engines or
gasoline. A 燃費がいいエンジン can work longer with the same amount of gasoline.
燃費がいいガソリン can make an engine work longer for the same price (i.e., cost
efficiency) or with the same amount (i.e., per-liter efficiency).

Nothing surprising happens when this word is used figuratively to describe a
person or food. A 燃費がいい人 refers to someone who does not have to eat much to
live. This sometimes implies they can easily get obese. 燃費がいい食べ物 can refer to
either the cost-efficiency or the per-gram efficiency, depending on the
context.

In your context, 忍の ("shinobi's ones") refers to the 兵糧丸 made or used by
shinobi. Note that [this の is a pronoun (`'s
one(s)`)](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/9379/5010), so the sentence is
not about shinobi but about the food itself. And it's obviously about the
"per-gram" efficiency of the food in this context. All military rations are
supposed to be lightweight and nutrient-rich, but A is saying that the one
made by shinobi is especially good in this regard.

If the sentence were 忍は燃費がいい (without の), it would mean "Shinobi don't have to
eat much".
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2020-06-23T04:28:54.250
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answer