"Kakashi-sensei, why do you look so down?"
They had been walking for a while, and once they were past the outskirts of Konoha, Tenten finally couldn't hold back her question.
"Ah?"
Kakashi lifted his eyes lazily and replied in a deadpan tone, "Nothing… I've just lost my direction in life, that's all."
Chiba opened his mouth, then closed it .
The Gift of the Hermit Group…
It wasn't time to talk about that yet. Until Chiriku and the monks of the Fire Temple settled things, he couldn't reveal it to Kakashi and the others.
Kakashi gave him a brief sidelong glance, shook his head faintly, and said nothing more.
The four of them continued on.
Tsukikage Kaza practiced her sword forms as she walked, completely absorbed.
She had already fallen deep into her obsession with the sword. Whether her technique was good or bad didn't matter—it was better to have a path than to wander aimlessly.
Chiba watched her quietly, never offering a word of guidance.
What was his was his.
Only what she forged through her own sweat and effort would truly belong to her.
Of course, this was only the foundation stage. Once she'd entered the door and found her own style, she wouldn't need to practice this way anymore.
Chiba glanced at Kakashi.
The teacher looked lazy, but he was actually observing them all the time, noting their progress with subtle precision. That was why he could give such exact and timely advice.
Tenten's focus was on ninja tools and Earth Release techniques.
Tsukikage Kaza specialized in Lightning Release and kenjutsu.
As for Chiba himself—
Kakashi hadn't really taught him any specific jutsu. He mostly served as a walking encyclopedia for questions.
But as a teacher, he was doing his job well enough.
Of course, that same approach would never work with Sasuke and his team.
Those three weren't anything like him.
Chiba gave a side glance and sighed inwardly.
Before Naruto met Jiraiya, his life had been… well, quite something.
Though to be fair, that had a lot to do with Naruto's own immaturity in those early days.
It was precisely those repeated trials and hardships that transformed him from a naïve boy into someone truly strong. What was incredible was that such an environment hadn't crushed him.
Truly absurd—and admirable.
Chiba couldn't help but sigh in quiet awe.
"We're here! That's the ninja tools factory up ahead—I've been here before…"
Tenten pointed excitedly toward the distance.
Her parents had worked and studied here in their younger years.
"Let's go."
She took the lead, walking briskly ahead.
Along the way, she greeted a few people she recognized. Clearly, she was familiar with the place—it felt almost like home.
Before long, they met the person in charge.
The factory director's name was Dōmoto.
In his younger days, he had been a remarkable craftsman, but age and frailty had caught up to him. Now he had retired from the forge, taking a management role instead.
"Grandpa Dōmoto, we're here under the Hokage's orders to forge a new ninja tool."
"The Hokage?"
Dōmoto raised his brows, then nodded slightly. "Do you have the design?"
"Yes."
Tenten handed it over.
Dōmoto examined the blueprint carefully, then nodded in appreciation. "I don't quite understand what it's for, but it's drawn beautifully—very clean and precise."
"This ninja tool is meant to work together with a barrier technique. The material isn't all iron; I've already marked which parts need to be forged from chakra metal."
Chiba stepped forward and pointed them out one by one.
Dōmoto looked at him in surprise. "You know about these things too?"
Barrier arts and the integration of ninja tools were both deep, specialized fields. None of the current smiths in the factory understood such techniques.
Yet this boy spoke fluently and confidently—it was obvious he knew what he was talking about.
"Just a little," Chiba said humbly.
Kakashi coughed lightly. "Mr. Dōmoto, this tool is still in the experimental stage. Why don't we have it forged first and see the result?"
"Well… all right. Since it's under the Hokage's order, and with Jōnin Kakashi here as well, there shouldn't be an issue. I'll assign a team to forge it right away."
Dōmoto hesitated for a few seconds, then decisively dropped the topic.
After all, who would choose to be a craftsman if they could be a shinobi?
Most of the workers here were genin, or even civilians without chakra. They could never understand the kind of exhilaration a genius like this must feel.
"I want to help too!"
Tenten immediately volunteered.
Dōmoto blinked, then looked to Kakashi for confirmation.
Kakashi gave a small nod.
"All right then—but you must follow the factory's rules."
"Yes, sir!"
Tenten followed him eagerly, full of energy.
Chiba and the others walked behind her. Once Tsukikage Kaza noticed they were some distance from the others, she whispered, "Chiba-kun, what rules?"
"No idea."
His blunt answer clearly disappointed her.
Her expression—half disbelief, half shock—made Chiba roll his eyes internally.
Am I supposed to know everything?
He sighed. "Tenten's been here before. Her family runs a weapons shop, so she probably knows the ropes."
"Oh… so you don't know everything after all."
"I've not read every book," Chiba grumbled. "Why would I study factory regulations if I've never worked here?"
Tsukikage Kaza couldn't help but giggle.
Meanwhile, Kakashi was walking beside them with a book in hand, his eyes on the path ahead—completely relaxed, multitasking effortlessly.
He seemed to have forgotten all about his earlier existential crisis.
Dōmoto's arrangements moved quickly.
Once inside the factory, he assigned three of his best craftsmen to the forging work and another veteran artisan to supervise Tenten's practice.
Chiba's group observed from the sidelines.
Besides the ironwork, the project also required woodworking and barrier inscriptions, so Dōmoto brought in two carpenters skilled with wooden constructs.
Time ticked by.
The wooden components were completed first.
"Senior, I'll handle the rest from here," Chiba said.
"Would it be all right if we watched?" Dōmoto asked hesitantly.
Many barrier inscriptions were secret techniques, but his curiosity got the better of him. He wanted to see just how far this boy's barrier skills went—and whether this so-called barrier tool could actually succeed.
Kakashi glanced briefly at him, then at the other craftsmen, and said, "Let's move to a private room."
"Thank you very much!"
Dōmoto was visibly thrilled.
"It's not really anything classified," Chiba said with a soft smile.
He didn't refuse Kakashi's offer and moved into a quiet side room. Then he took out a carving knife and brush and began engraving the seals.
He wasn't a trained sculptor—but his kenjutsu was sharp, and his hands steady.
That was all he needed.
Every line he carved came out smooth and perfectly straight.
Just that level of control made Dōmoto's heart tremble with admiration.
Even if this boy weren't a shinobi, he'd make a master craftsman.
So it's true—genius shines no matter the field.
Though well into his sixties, Dōmoto couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.
One inscription after another took shape.
When he brushed ink across the grooves, the formulae lit up faintly, glowing with power.
Kakashi's eyes sharpened.
This barrier technique… it didn't seem to draw from a typical absorption seal—it looked more like a hybrid formula from another system altogether.
He'd seen something like it before… but where?
He thought for a long moment—
And then a spark of realization flashed in his mind.
The Fire Temple!
The two great stone statues guarding its entrance!
"So that's it," Kakashi murmured in understanding.
Those statues formed the heart of the Fire Temple's barrier, inscribed with seals that transformed and condensed chakra.
Chiba had adapted that very technique—refined it, and merged it seamlessly into this absorption barrier.
Remarkable… truly remarkable.
Kakashi glanced at the craftsmen.
He recognized a few from ANBU records—they were loyal and reliable, no risk of leaks there.
And besides…
Just as Chiba had said, the portion drawn on the weapon was only a fragment of the complete formula. Without the rest of the barrier array, it wouldn't function at all.
Still—
Kakashi couldn't shake the faint feeling that Chiba was holding something back.
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