The Forgemage of Konoha

New Teammate

However, the Third Hokage didn't speak with Shirō for long, as his new teammates had already arrived.

"Hokage-sama, Jōnin Nakamura requests an audience."

Hearing this, the Third Hokage paused his "subtle indoctrination" of Shirō.

"Let them in."

"Yes, sir."

"Greetings, Hokage-sama."

"Hm. Nakamura, this is the new member I've assigned to your squad. I trust you have no objections."

"Understood, Hokage-sama. Thank you."

"Shirō, go ahead and get acquainted with your teammates. Nakamura and I have other matters to discuss."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." With a polite bow, Shirō exited the office.

Once outside the Hokage Building, Shirō spotted two children around his age waiting nearby. Whether it was intuition or simply recognition from their files, he instantly identified them as his teammates. Of course, it definitely wasn't because he had secretly reviewed their profiles in advance.

His new squadmates weren't from ordinary backgrounds. One of them was Nara Shikamaru, heir of the Nara Clan. The file didn't say much, but based on Konoha's traditions, Shirō suspected he was a branch member. After all, the main line traditionally formed the Ino–Shika–Chō trio, a formation that rarely changed.

The second teammate was more impressive: Uchiha Taiyi.

Shirō had been mildly surprised to learn his new teammate was from the Uchiha Clan. But after some thought, it made sense. Konoha's distrust toward the Uchiha hadn't fully developed yet—not until after the Third Shinobi War and the Nine-Tails incident.

At present, the Village was still recovering from the Second Great Ninja War, and manpower was scarce. Not all Uchiha were confined to the Police Force; some were deployed on regular missions. So it wasn't strange to see an Uchiha genin in a regular squad.

Still, Shirō found himself curiously glancing at Taiyi. After all, the Uchiha were the clan of the Sharingan—mysterious and feared.

"Um, hello. My name is Emiya Shirō. You must be my teammates. It's a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me."

"Hmph. I'm not thrilled about this. You're just a commoner."

Before Shirō could respond, Shikamaru sighed and offered a hand in peace. "Don't mind him. That's Taiyi. He's not singling you out. He just acts like this toward everyone. I'm Nara Shikamaru. You can call me Shikamaru."

"Alright. You can call me Shirō. Looking forward to working with you."

Naturally, Shirō didn't take offense. This was just how the average Uchiha behaved. Obito, that lovable idiot, was clearly an outlier. Most Uchiha didn't warm up to people until they earned their respect.

But once they did, they valued that bond with absolute devotion. The Uchiha were a clan of love—and that made them fragile.

Shirō also understood Taiyi's attitude. Besides his personality, there was another factor. Their original teammate, Matsumoto Ci Lang, had died during the war, which was why Shirō was added to their team.

That was reason enough. If Shirō were in Taiyi's shoes, he'd probably react the same way.

Still, understanding was one thing. Going out of his way to curry favor? Not a chance. Shirō wasn't that type of person. He'd let his strength speak for him.

As for Shikamaru? Well, expecting Nara to initiate anything was a tall order. These were people who found breathing too troublesome.

So when Nakamura came out, this was the scene that greeted him: Taiyi had his back turned, staring into the sky; Shikamaru leaned against a wooden pillar, dozing off; and Shirō sat in a meditative pose, eyes closed. Not a word had been exchanged.

Nakamura wasn't surprised. He knew his team well.

"Alright," he called out. "We're heading to the training grounds."

None of the three said a word, but they followed at once.

---

Training Ground

"We don't have much time. Missions begin tomorrow. Today, we work on coordination. Start by introducing yourselves again. I'm Nakamura, your Jōnin instructor. I specialize in Earth Release and Wind Release."

He glanced at Shikamaru.

"You already know me," Shikamaru said lazily. "And my Ninjutsu. Shadow Possession. That's it. Troublesome…"

Nakamura and Shirō: "…"

"My name is Uchiha Taiyi." He activated his Sharingan—a single tomoe spun within his crimson eyes. He locked eyes with Shirō. "I specialize in Ninjutsu and Genjutsu. Don't hold us back." He deactivated his dōjutsu and stepped aside.

Shirō was genuinely surprised. Activating the Sharingan at such a young age—around nine—was no small feat. While not as early as prodigies like Itachi, it still placed Taiyi in the upper tier of young Uchiha.

Shirō guessed the catalyst had been his teammate's death. Tragic, but fitting. The Uchiha awakened their greatest power through love… and loss.

He finally understood, at least in part, why the villagers feared the Uchiha. Those blood-red eyes were stunning in fiction—but in reality, they exuded danger. Most didn't understand how the Sharingan awakened, so when an Uchiha activated it after a comrade's death, some believed they'd intentionally let them die.

Add in Danzo's whisper campaigns, and fear became prejudice.

"Ahem, Shirō. Your turn."

"Eh? Oh—sorry. I didn't expect Taiyi-kun to have awakened his Sharingan already. It caught me off guard."

Nakamura waved for him to continue.

"I'm Emiya Shirō. I specialize in Taijutsu and archery... and I've learned a bit of Fuinjutsu."

All three were visibly surprised. Fuinjutsu was notoriously difficult, and archery was almost unheard of among shinobi.

"Interesting," Nakamura nodded. "Alright. One last thing—Shikamaru usually handles the battle plans. Any objections?"

"None at all. I've heard about the Nara Clan's tactical genius."

"Why don't you object, Shirō? Now I feel even more burdened..." Shikamaru sighed.

"Haha. Shikamaru, deal with it," Nakamura chuckled. "Let's begin."

"Yes!" ×3

---

Evening

As dusk settled, the team rested at the edge of the training ground, chakra nearly exhausted from the day's exercises. Shirō suddenly spoke up.

"Hey, do you guys want to learn a really useful Sealing Technique?"

Nakamura frowned slightly. "Is that allowed?"

"It's fine. Big Sis Kushina approved it." Shirō grinned. "It's just a basic one—nothing secret or forbidden. Very practical."

He wasn't lying. Kushina Uzumaki had personally given her blessing, delighted that her work might become more widespread. Well, that was partly Shirō's interpretation—Kushina didn't say that directly. But knowing her, he wasn't wrong.

Besides, Shirō believed that while sharing happiness splits it, sharing pain diminishes it—and spreads growth.

The technique in question?

A crazy Fuinjutsu involving over 80 hand seals.

"I'll demonstrate first. You must learn it."

Nakamura sighed. "Alright. Explain it to us. I'll supervise."

"Hehe, deal!"

Shikamaru and Taiyi, unaware of the hell awaiting them, looked on curiously.