Hokage's Office
The Third Hokage had been ready to call it a day—until Chiba dragged him back into his chair and forced him to work overtime.
As he unrolled the scroll before him, the old man instinctively reached for his pipe.
He really needed a smoke.
What a headache.
He'd long suspected that Chiba might one day develop a taijutsu akin to the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist, but he hadn't expected it to happen this soon—and this was only the preliminary version.
Still, no one had ever forbidden non-Hyuga from creating their own Gentle Fist–style techniques.
"Hokage-sama?"
"Ah… Chiba," Sarutobi said, frowning at the scroll, "this jutsu of yours—it's a bit too advanced. I'd say it's at least A+ rank, isn't it?"
He didn't need to try it himself to know—it was the kind of technique that required near-perfect chakra control and precision.
"To master it completely, yes—probably S-rank difficulty," Chiba admitted. "But there's a simplified version. You just condense chakra, drive it into the opponent's body, and detonate it directly."
He pointed to a section near the bottom of the scroll.
Sarutobi followed his finger.
By his assessment, that "simplified" version still looked to be at least A-rank.
Chaotic Body Impact: Spiral.
Chaotic Body Impact: Burst.
What wonderfully blunt names.
Sarutobi rolled up the scroll and gave Chiba a look of equal parts awe and disbelief.
"These two techniques… their value is very high."
"I'd like to ask you, Hokage-sama, to arrange contact with the Hyuga Clan," Chiba said straightforwardly.
"Oh?" Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. "If you're worried they'll take offense, you needn't. Their Gentle Fist is indeed their pride, but that doesn't mean others can't develop something similar."
Besides—
The two techniques operated on completely different principles.
The Hyuga's Gentle Fist attacked the body's chakra network and internal organs directly.
Chiba's Spiral Gentle Fist, on the other hand, borrowed the principles of the Rasengan—creating a chaotic vortex of chakra inside the target to tear through flesh and viscera.
"You can look at the second scroll, Hokage-sama."
"The second one?"
Sarutobi blinked, suddenly realizing he'd been so stunned by the first that he'd forgotten there was another.
He opened it—and promptly took a deep breath.
Even at over sixty, the old man felt a bit faint.
Pressure-point strikes!
Gentle Fist and acupoint techniques—no wonder the Hyuga elders were probably rolling in their graves.
He rubbed his temples and began reading carefully.
So that was it.
According to the scroll, while some acupoint positions varied from person to person, others were fixed.
Chiba's pressure-point method targeted only those fixed nodes.
"You went to the Medical Department before this," Sarutobi mused. "So you already had these ideas back then, didn't you?"
He lifted his pipe—unlit, but even pretending to smoke made him feel less shaken.
This child was too sharp.
"Not exactly," Chiba replied. "I just found medical knowledge useful at the time. The idea came while I was developing an advanced version of the technique."
"That's already remarkable enough!"
If Chiba were a jōnin, or a shinobi from wartime, Sarutobi might not have been this surprised.
But in this peaceful age…
Look at his peers—
Neji Hyuga was still training basic Gentle Fist forms.
Uchiha Sasuke, a year younger, was busy cramming to graduate early.
The gap was enormous.
After a long silence, Sarutobi suddenly remembered something. He opened a drawer and pulled out a file.
"By the way, you previously negotiated cooperation with the Fire Temple, didn't you?"
"They've replied?" Chiba's eyes lit up immediately.
He'd been coveting their Iron Wall Seal Formation—and their research on Sage Physiology—for ages!
"They've formally submitted the cooperation documents," Sarutobi said, passing the folder over. "Take a look. If it's all fine, sign it. Chiriku will handle further coordination."
Chiba skimmed through—it looked solid enough—and signed on the spot.
"As for the Hyuga matter, I'll try to open the conversation," Sarutobi added. "But it might be tricky."
"I'd really appreciate it, Hokage-sama."
After bowing, Chiba left the office.
He detoured through the Hokage's archive room, selecting a book on chakra-based tools.
He didn't plan to forge ninja weapons himself, but he needed the theory—otherwise his future seal inscriptions wouldn't be technically sound.
When he finally left the Hokage Building, he stopped by Konoha Hospital.
kid had already been discharged.
Good thing, too—keeping him confined would've driven the man insane.
Which meant…
Chiba no longer had to worry about being pestered into responsibility for that injury.
His life returned to its usual rhythm:
Training — reading — meals and rest — more training.
Sometimes Tenten would swing by to exchange books, and they'd chat idly for a bit.
Otherwise, things were quiet.
Hayate and Yugao seemed busy with kenjutsu practice.
Everyone had their own work; missions were on hold for now. Their squad likely wouldn't take on new assignments for at least another month or two.
Half a month passed like that.
Chiba was still neck-deep in research on ninja tool theory—and it was exhausting work.
Konoha had very limited resources in this field.
Weapons like the Flying Swallow were simple enough.
But the kind of creation he envisioned—something like the Infinite Armor—was far beyond current technology.
So he could only research and theorize, bit by bit.
Then, just as he planned to retreat into more study, Chiriku arrived.
The Hyuga negotiations were still dragging on.
According to Neji, the Main Family had been holding meetings almost daily, sometimes for hours.
Chiba could only chuckle.
He'd already given up expecting much from that bunch.
By the time they reached a decision, he mused, even the tea would've gone cold.
So he decided to lower the bar —simplifying his Gentle Fist variant.
This time, it was pared down to simple chakra compression and release, no internal explosion.
Difficulty: B+.
Still high, but achievable for most jōnin or anyone adept at chakra control.
"That should be low enough. I'll submit this version—then meet with Chiriku."
After delivering the scroll to the Third Hokage, Chiba headed to the conference room, where Chiriku was already waiting.
The monk looked solemn.
When Chiba entered, he immediately rose, pressed his palms together, and bowed deeply.
"Apologies for keeping you waiting, benefactor."
"Not at all," Chiba replied quickly. "The Fire Temple is a large institution—these matters naturally take time."
The two sat opposite each other, with the Third Hokage seated between them.
Chiriku opened a thick book and said, "This is the Fire Temple's barrier formation manual, Chiba-dono. Please treat it with the utmost confidentiality."
"Of course," Chiba nodded. "I'll read it here."
"..."
There it was .
That tone—like he'd finish the whole thing in one sitting.
Chiriku took a deep breath, calming himself.
Chiba began flipping through the pages seriously.
Halfway in, his eyes suddenly lit up.
This technique—he'd never seen anything like it before.
A formula designed to identify Sage Chakra?
He immediately turned the book around. "Chiriku, what does this particular formula do?"
The monk blinked at the specific line Chiba had indicated, stunned for several seconds.
Even after rereading this manual dozens of times, he hadn't expected the young man to pinpoint such a detail so quickly.
After some thought, he replied,
"By itself, I'm not certain—but together with the seals on that page, the array can detect those with natural affinity for senjutsu."
"I see."
Chiba studied the page , memorizing every symbol.
A formula capable of identifying a particular type of chakra—this was incredibly valuable.
He had to digest it completely. It might even become the basis for a new inscription pattern.
A few moments later, Chiba looked up.
"Chiriku, I've finished. The reconstruction difficulty of this sealing barrier is quite high."
"No problem," Chiriku said serenely. "Take your time, benefactor. Once you've completed it, deliver it to the Fire Temple."
Chiba waved a hand. "That won't be necessary. Rest here in Konoha for two days. I'll study this array's structure and have a new barrier design ready for you."
"???"
For once, the monk was speechless.
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