The Forgemage of Konoha

End of The Battle

A furious gust of wind howled through the clearing as the Mountain Bandits in front of Shirō were flung into the sky like autumn leaves, forming a strangely beautiful—yet grim—scene.

Then they fell.

And died.

Nakamura stood frozen, staring at the devastation in silence for a long time. Though he had known since the pursuit of Shimizu that Shirō possessed a technique capable of amplifying Wind Release Ninjutsu, this was his first time seeing its effect in real-time.

Back then, he'd only witnessed the aftermath—and, distracted by their mission and irritated mood, he hadn't paid close attention.

He never expected a mere C-Rank Wind Release technique to produce such overwhelming power.

What if Shirō learns something stronger? Nakamura shuddered at the thought and mentally offered a three-second moment of silence for Shirō's future enemies.

Still, even though he was amazed by the power Shirō displayed, Nakamura didn't press him about the technique. Out of professional courtesy, and understanding that secrets were often guarded for good reason, he simply decided to teach Shirō more advanced Wind Release techniques when they returned to the village.

Unfortunately, what Nakamura didn't know was that the bloodthirsty demoness sealed within Shirō's body offered her greatest amplification not to Wind techniques, but to sound-based attacks. Too bad Shirō had no idea how to use them.

Then again, that was also a good thing—for now. This allowed him to practice his Ninjutsu without drawing unwanted attention.

After all, many of the techniques in Shirō's arsenal weren't obtained through formal means and couldn't be used openly. A C-Rank Ninjutsu could be disguised as battlefield loot or copied techniques, but higher-ranked ones couldn't be explained away so easily.

Thankfully, he only had one advanced Wind Release technique at the moment.

---

—Scene Shift—

"Alright," Tai Yi announced coolly, "round two begins."

As the words left his mouth, both of his two-time Sharingan locked onto the Chūnin he had previously battled.

"Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!"

He gave the enemy no time to react. The illusion gripped the opponent's senses instantly. Yet this time, Tai Yi didn't rush in for the kill.

There was still another enemy nearby—the one who had previously used Fire Release against Shikamaru. Tai Yi loathed him the most at this moment. Logically, he knew it was a life-or-death fight and that the Fire Release user was just doing his job.

But emotions didn't care for logic.

"Servant of the Mist Technique!"

Tai Yi opened with Genjutsu once again, but this one wasn't cast through the Sharingan. Therefore, even when the opponent avoided direct eye contact, he still fell into the illusion.

The enemy immediately sensed the distortion in his Chakra flow and attempted to disrupt it to break free. But even though this wasn't a traditional Sharingan Genjutsu, Tai Yi's enhanced ocular power amplified its strength significantly. It wouldn't be so easily broken.

"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Tai Yi's follow-up attack landed before the opponent could recover, engulfing him in flame. The man's screams were cut short as he was turned to ash.

Without hesitation, Tai Yi turned back toward the first Chūnin. His Sharingan tomoe spun slightly, maintaining the illusion's duration.

"Nakamura-sensei, do you need this one alive?" Tai Yi asked calmly.

Despite his earlier threats about killing them all, he had already calculated that he would likely be allowed to kill only one, depending on their usefulness. These weren't just any rogue ninjas—their affiliations might prove useful to Konoha politically or strategically.

Nakamura, arriving just as the question was asked, was honestly surprised. He had always heard of the Sharingan's strength, but to see two Chūnin subdued almost instantly—one incinerated, the other paralyzed—was something else entirely.

Tai Yi had only recently evolved from a one-time to a two-time Sharingan, and yet the difference in his combat power was staggering.

Then again, Nakamura realized it made sense. Before, Tai Yi could cast only one Binding Genjutsu before exhausting his ocular power, and his amplification effect on regular Genjutsu had been minimal.

Now, with a two-time Sharingan, not only had his Genjutsu become more potent, but he could amplify even non-Sharingan illusions significantly.

Of course, the strain was considerable—but the results spoke for themselves.

"Kill him," Nakamura replied coldly. "Just bring the body back. He's not as useful alive as you think."

Normally, prisoners like these could be political bargaining chips—useful in post-war negotiations or to gain moral leverage. But the current situation was different. Konoha had just ended a major war. Internal stability was fragile. No one wanted to provoke further conflict.

And if what they needed was intelligence, a corpse would suffice.

Without further ado, Tai Yi flung a kunai. A clean headshot ended the paralyzed Chūnin's life.

---

Meanwhile, Shikamaru—with the support of Nakamura's Shadow Clone—had already subdued the two Genin.

By the time Shirō and Nakamura arrived, Tai Yi and Shikamaru were calmly cleaning the battlefield.

Seeing that both teammates were unharmed, Shirō finally relaxed. He quickly joined them to assist in cleanup.

---

It's worth noting that Tai Yi and Shikamaru didn't immediately rush to help Shirō earlier. That's because Nakamura had updated them on Shirō's situation.

Through a Shadow Clone.

Nakamura played messenger again. As for how he did it without his original clone dispelling—simple. He created a second Shadow Clone and dispelled it to transmit information.

Because this new clone didn't travel or fight, its Chakra consumption was minimal.

After all, the Shadow Clone Technique (Kage Bunshin no Jutsu) is primarily used for intelligence gathering and training, so its application methods are well-developed.

---

By the way, some people mistakenly believe the Shadow Clone Technique is a forbidden jutsu. That's inaccurate.

The regular Shadow Clone is a B-Rank Ninjutsu.

The actual forbidden version is the A-Rank Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu ( Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu), which creates dozens—sometimes hundreds or thousands—of clones. It places an immense burden on the user's Chakra and nervous system, hence the classification as forbidden.

So while the names differ by just two words, the difference between them is like night and day.

Shadow Clone is the earth.

Multiple Shadow Clones are the heavens.

That's why someone like Nakamura can use the regular technique proficiently—and why Naruto's use of the forbidden version is considered reckless by others.

---

Thus, Shirō and the team completed their final mission.

It had been a wild ride—dangerous, thrilling, and exhausting—but fortunately, there were no casualties.

With the battlefield cleared and enemies dealt with, it was time to head back to the village.

And—of course—on to new missions.

…But we'll worry about that later.

What's important now is...

Splitting the reward money!!

—