Chapter 95 — Fire Release Advancement
Konoha's main street.
After finishing his morning training, Taichi strolled leisurely through the streets. Watching the steady flow of pedestrians and the colorful rows of shops lining the road, he recalled Tsunade's advice.
Where could I find truly high-temperature flames?
Ordinary fire was everywhere—but fire hot enough to be called extreme was another matter entirely.
He wandered aimlessly for a while before unknowingly arriving at the weapon shop where he had once purchased his blade. Gazing at the wide variety of weapons on display, a smile crept onto Taichi's face.
Weapon forging required intense heat.
Taichi knew this better than most. The short blade on his back contained special metals with melting points exceeding two thousand degrees. To forge such materials into a finished weapon, the furnace temperature would have to be even higher.
Wasn't this exactly what he was looking for?
And in Konoha, there was certainly no shortage of such forges.
After circling around for some time, Taichi arrived at a blacksmith shop in the southeastern corner of the village. This place was known for crafting fine blades—meaning high-temperature furnaces were undoubtedly essential.
Even before he reached the entrance, a scorching wave of heat slammed into him. The crimson furnace glow flickered across the walls, while bare-chested smiths swung heavy hammers, striking iron billets on anvils and sending sparks flying everywhere.
Taichi slowly approached the furnace, eyes fixed on the orange flames. With each pull of the bellows by the apprentices, the fire flared brighter—its color shifting from orange to a faint blue. Along with that change came an even more terrifying heat.
"Hey, kid! You've been staring for ages—what, trying to steal our secrets?"
An irritable blacksmith barked at Taichi.
The apprentices burst into laughter, joining in with mocking remarks.
"Go back to school, kid. This isn't your playground."
"You're shorter than the hammer—thinking of forging weapons already?"
Taichi, who had been completely absorbed in observing the flames, was jolted back to reality. He raised his head, and the forehead protector hidden beneath his bangs became visible.
His sharp gaze swept across the room.
Silence fell instantly.
"This ninja-sama, I apologize," the lead blacksmith said quickly. "We meant no offense—just joking around."
Despite the tension, he showed some courage. After all, this was Konoha—ninjas here were known to be disciplined, not bullies.
Taichi smiled faintly. Of course, he had no intention of making trouble over such trivialities.
"I simply want to experience the temperature of the furnace up close," Taichi said calmly. "Would that be acceptable?"
The blacksmith hesitated.
"The forge gets crowded, and the heat is dangerous. It might not be suitable for you to stay here."
Taichi wasn't offended. He took out his wallet, counted out one hundred thousand ryō, and handed it over.
"How about now?"
"This… isn't about the money," the blacksmith said, still wavering.
Taichi calmly added another one hundred thousand ryō, placing the full sum of two hundred thousand into his hand.
"And now?"
"Of course! Of course!" the blacksmith beamed instantly, snatching the money and stuffing it into the pocket of his heatproof apron with lightning speed.
"Ninja-sama may stay as long as he likes!"
"Then don't stop working," Taichi said bluntly as he stepped right up beside the furnace.
"Everyone, back to work!" the blacksmith shouted, and the forge immediately returned to life.
Standing beside the furnace, Taichi felt the roaring flames firsthand. Each powerful pull of the bellows caused the fire to surge upward, waves of heat blasting across his skin. His body hair curled instantly, as if scorched by invisible fire.
He could clearly tell—this heat far exceeded the flames produced by his own Fire Release techniques.
This was exactly what he needed.
As he continued to observe and feel the furnace, dissatisfaction crept in. Unconsciously, he stepped closer and closer—until his body finally reached its limit and could no longer endure the heat.
Nearby, the blacksmith forging a blade glanced at Taichi's nearly furnace-adjacent figure and couldn't help but feel impressed.
Even someone like him—accustomed to these furnaces and coated in heat-resistant oils—couldn't stand that close.
As expected of a ninja…
Yet even now, Taichi still wasn't satisfied.
Unfortunately, his physical limits prevented him from approaching any closer. Just as frustration set in, inspiration struck.
Taichi extended his hand.
Chakra flowed gently from his palm, spreading over the furnace flames as he attempted to sense the temperature through chakra itself.
However, having never trained in sensory techniques, the feedback he received was faint—blurred, like peering through frosted glass.
There was sensation, but no clarity.
Still, it was a start.
Unwilling to give up, Taichi released his mental energy as well, attempting to enhance chakra perception through spiritual focus. As he continuously adjusted the resonance between his chakra and mental power, fully immersed in the process, he completely failed to notice the changes happening on his status panel.
[Epiphany in progress: New Skill — Chakra Perception Lv.0 (1/100)]
[Epiphany in progress: Chakra Perception EXP +10]
[Epiphany in progress: Chakra Perception Lv.1 (0/100)]
The moment Chakra Perception reached Lv.1, Taichi's chakra and mental power finally synchronized. Instantly, a sensation akin to standing within raging flames surged through the externalized chakra and fed back into his body.
The scorching heat overwhelmed his senses at once. His skin flushed red as if burned, blisters forming across his body in mere moments.
Startled by the intense pain, Taichi immediately retracted his chakra. Without the feedback medium, the burning sensation slowly faded.
The blacksmith nearby stood utterly dumbfounded. He had never seen anything like this—just looking at a furnace, yet ending up as if one had been burned alive. Truly, the world of ninjas defied common sense.
Taichi, however, had no time to care about the blacksmith's amazement. As soon as he pulled his chakra back, he hurriedly checked his condition—and nearly scared himself half to death.
Severe burns covered large portions of his body.
"This is insane…"
Leaving behind a quick, "I'll come back tomorrow," Taichi rushed home at full speed. Extensive burns were no joke—there was risk of infection, dehydration, even shock.
Back home, he immediately used a chakra scalpel to cut away his clothing. Staring at his blister-covered body, Taichi felt a chill down his spine—he still hadn't fully understood how he'd injured himself.
There was no time to dwell on it.
The Mystical Palm Technique lit up in his right hand as he carefully treated the blisters, inch by inch. At the same time, a soft emerald glow spread across his body—his Yang Release chakra operating at full capacity, nourishing his cells and stabilizing the damage.
After a full hour, the injuries were finally healed. Taichi collapsed onto the floor, panting heavily, his body utterly drained.
Once he had recovered slightly, he revisited what had happened—starting with his status panel.
[Skill: Chakra Perception
Effect: Chakra is an extension of yourself—the aggregation of all your senses. It allows you to perceive everything in the external world. Intensity and clarity depend on the amount of mental energy used.]
Everything clicked.
While observing the flames, he had unconsciously created a new skill, which the panel had crystallized. At the time, he had poured all his mental energy into perception—naturally producing a fully immersive experience.
As for the injuries? They were a classic case of mental feedback manifesting physically—much like phantom pain or the Kurama Clan's five-sense illusion techniques.
Once he understood this, Taichi couldn't help but feel excited despite the pain he'd just endured.
This skill had extraordinary potential—for sensing nature, understanding elemental attributes, and accelerating nature transformation training.
He continued reviewing the panel.
[Insight gained: Fire Nature Transformation +1]
[Insight gained: Fire Nature Transformation +10]
[Insight gained: Fire Nature Transformation +100]
Tsunade's advice had been absolutely right. Observation and comprehension worked—and that massive +100 clearly came from Chakra Perception stabilizing.
At last, Taichi felt reassured. Being injured without understanding why would unsettle anyone.
The rest of the day was spent experimenting with Chakra Perception, testing its effectiveness under varying levels of mental input.
---
The next day, when the blacksmith saw Taichi return completely unharmed, his jaw nearly hit the floor.
He had personally witnessed Taichi leave the day before, covered in blisters—yet here he was, fully recovered after only one day.
"Ninja-sama… are you here to observe the flames again?" the blacksmith asked carefully.
Taichi nodded with a smile. Yesterday had been for testing the technique; today was for real application.
As the apprentices worked the bellows, the furnace temperature steadily climbed. Taichi released his chakra once more, calmly immersing himself in perception.
Hot.
Scorching.
Violent heat.
As he gradually increased his mental output, Taichi clearly felt the flames licking across his body, experiencing their fury and intensity.
For a fleeting moment, he felt as though he himself had become fire—burning fiercely, radiating endless heat and light.
[Insight gained: Fire Nature Transformation +10]
Seeing experience notifications pop up every few minutes, Taichi clenched his teeth and persisted. Opportunities like this were rare—if he stopped now and never regained this efficiency, he'd regret it for life.
He continued until his chakra was nearly depleted and the panel stopped updating. Only then did he withdraw.
The chance had ended.
Further progress would require either grueling practice—or deep communion with nature itself.
Still, in just half a day, his Fire Nature Transformation had gained 150 experience points.
Suppressing his joy, Taichi left the forge.
Back home, he wasted no time. Even with low chakra, he could still train taijutsu and swordsmanship. If you truly wanted to improve, there was always something you could do—even reading.
Days passed with Taichi fully immersed in Fire Release training, until the day arrived that he had agreed to meet Yōhei and Saori.
---
Taichi arrived early at Training Ground No. 3—only to find them already there.
"Taichi, you're late!" Yōhei shouted.
Taichi glanced at the rising sun in the east, a bead of sweat sliding down his forehead.
"…Do we have different definitions of 'late,' Yōhei?"
"Haha! Just joking!"
As Taichi approached, he noticed both teammates fully recovered, their energy vibrant. The sight genuinely pleased him.
"Looks like you've both gained a lot these past few days."
"Of course!" Yōhei declared proudly. "I've been doing hell-level training every day—I've improved a ton!"
Saori nodded quietly, clearly having worked just as hard.
"Then how about a sparring match?" Taichi suggested with interest.
"One-on-one won't work," Yōhei scratched his head. "That wouldn't really test you."
"So just say you want to gang up on me," Taichi chuckled.
"Haha! Then we won't hold back!"
Taichi immediately understood—they'd planned this together.
Which only made it more fun.
The three took their positions and formed the opposing hand seals.
The match began.
Yōhei struck first, activating his three-tomoe Sharingan and flinging four kunai at once.
Taichi calmly drew his short blade—this level of attack was trivial to him.
But just as he prepared to deflect them, the four kunai collided midair, altering their trajectories and attacking from four different angles.
Caught off guard, Taichi sidestepped two and barely deflected the remaining pair.
At that moment, Saori finished her hand seals.
Lightning Release: Lightning Orbs!
This time, her casting was faster, her timing sharper—and instead of one orb, she fired seven or eight, exploiting the opening perfectly.
"Excellent coordination!" Taichi praised.
Previously, this might've caught him off guard. Now, dodging was effortless.
With several short-range Body Flickers, Taichi avoided the lightning entirely and closed in on Yōhei.
The scattered electrical currents crackling behind him proved just how dangerous the attack had been.
Yōhei stared in shock as Taichi appeared before him. This Body Flicker was far faster—and repeatable at close range. Without his Sharingan, he wouldn't even see it.
Kunai clashed against blade. Yōhei pressed in with agile close combat, denying Taichi the advantage of reach.
Taichi was equally stunned—three-tomoe Sharingan truly lived up to its reputation. Yōhei's improvement was night and day.
Saori joined the fray, abandoning ninjutsu and attacking with a kunai.
One against two.
Taichi defended effortlessly, countering both sides as their coordination sharpened with each exchange.
He let the battle continue—learning their styles, letting them push themselves.
Only when their growth plateaued did Taichi strike decisively, forcing both back with a powerful slash.
"You've both improved tremendously," Taichi said with a grin.
"But now—watch out. I'm getting serious."
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