The Forgemage of Konoha

Third Hokage's Shameless Maneuvers

Even so, Shirō occasionally considered giving up—Barrier Magecraft was quite difficult.

Barrier Magecraft, or Bounded Fields, as they were properly known in the Type-Moon world, were complex to explain. Simply put, they were akin to array formations in cultivation novels. The stronger ones could partition space or distort reality itself. The most extreme of them—Inherent Boundaries—were manifestations of a Magus's internal reality overwriting the external world.

An Inherent Boundary was essentially a Magus's materialized inner world, capable of imposing their will onto the physical plane. It shared similarities with the Mangekyō Sharingan in that it could alter reality—albeit briefly—but the comparison ended there. Inherent Boundaries were far more 00pppppp0pp00plppp000p0ppppp, as they directly challenged the foundational laws of existence.

Inherent Boundaries were advanced forms of Barrier Magecraft, which only highlighted the overall difficulty of the discipline.

From what Shirō had gathered, even lesser Bounded Fields had the capacity to partition space, isolate spiritual interference, or temporarily reshape limited portions of the environment. That alone made them desirable tools for defense, concealment, and battle.

This was why Shirō persisted in studying them. He longed for the day he could create his own Inherent Boundary, even if it was far in the future.

That said, progress was slow. At present, he couldn't even set up the simplest perception ward or intrusion alert barrier.

Reinforcement Magecraft and Projection Magecraft, however—those he had long since mastered. In those fields, he could be considered a true Magus.

He already had some ideas. Once he learned more about foundational Bounded Fields, he could establish a Magic Workshop—a personal, warded domain akin to a wizard's tower. There were things he couldn't safely do within Konoha.

Leaving Root aside, the current Shirō wasn't influential enough to attract much attention. But he was still worried about the Third Hokage.

That old man's telescope technique, enhanced by Konoha's sensory network, could observe almost every corner of the village.

If the Third Hokage caught wind of his secrets—like his upcoming Attribute Strengthening ritual involving Tailed Beast Chakra—it could become a serious problem.

It wasn't that Hiruzen would take action directly. No, that was Danzo's specialty. And Shirō was convinced that Hiruzen would absolutely sic Danzo on him if he found it politically convenient.

After all, the so-called "Professor" wasn't nearly as benevolent as people claimed. If he were, Orochimaru wouldn't have been allowed to flee so easily despite his human experiments—which he had begun within the village itself.

And what about Naruto Uzumaki?

He was the son of the Fourth Hokage—the man who saved the village with his life. Yet the Third Hokage allowed him to grow up hated, isolated, and abused. Sure, Danzo and the elders fanned the flames—but did Hiruzen not have the authority to stop it?

No, Shirō didn't believe that for a second. Any competent Hokage wouldn't let a hero's child suffer like that under his watch.

That's why Shirō planned ahead. He had to.

No matter how difficult Bounded Fields were, he would endure. Perseverance, for a former shut-in like him, was proof of growth.

After reading a few more lines, Shirō put the scroll down and lay back on his futon. It was good to slack off now and then.

…Well, that lasted fifteen minutes.

He got up and resumed studying. Not because he was particularly virtuous—but because everyone else around him was still hard at work, and it felt awkward doing nothing.

Eventually, Shirō and his team returned to Konoha, their routine unchanged.

However, since their last mission had been assigned directly by the Third Hokage, their squad couldn't submit the report through their captain like usual.

This time, they had to report in person.

---

Hokage's Office

Nakamura stepped forward and handed over a scroll.

"Hokage-sama, here is the report. Based on their performance, I believe they're fully qualified to participate in the upcoming exam."

"Exam?" Shirō blinked. He and the others exchanged confused glances.

They were already Chūnin. There hadn't been any word about a Special Jōnin or full Jōnin exam. What "exam" was this?

Hiruzen smiled benignly, stroking his beard. "Ah, forgive me. I forgot to inform you. In a few days, your squad will head to Sunagakure to participate in the Chūnin Exams."

"Wait—what?" Shirō frowned. "Aren't we already Chūnin?"

"Oh, yes. My apologies, Shirō. It seems I neglected to officially update your promotion paperwork. According to our records, you're still listed as a Genin."

…

Even if I were illiterate, I'd know this is BS, Shirō thought, eyes narrowed. There's no way the Hokage personally fills out Chūnin paperwork. This reeks of politics.

"But Tai Yi and Shikamaru have been registered as Chūnin for a while now," Shirō pointed out.

Hiruzen's eyes narrowed slightly, his smile thinning. "Ah, yes. But their failure during the last mission shows they still lack maturity. As such… they've been temporarily demoted."

…

x3

Before any of them could protest further—BANG!

The Hokage Office door slammed open.

There was only one person who would do that without hesitation.

Kushina Uzumaki.

"Hey, Old Man Third! Why did you demote Minato to Genin?!"

Shirō stared, utterly dumbfounded.

You demoted Minato… to Genin… to send him to the Chūnin Exams?! Just how far are you willing to go to win?!

This was Minato Namikaze—a prodigy who had sparred with Kumo Jōnin right after graduation. With the way he'd progressed recently, he was definitely beyond Chūnin-level. If he'd already mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, he could probably assassinate full-fledged Jōnin.

And now they'd demoted him just to qualify him for the exam?

It wasn't just Minato. Shirō suspected this was a village-wide strategy—a desperate move to win the upcoming exams.

The war had just ended. Konoha's younger generation had already advanced rapidly. There weren't many candidates left to send. But they couldn't afford to look weak in front of the other Great Nations.

So Hiruzen resorted to deception.

Still, Kushina didn't care about politics. She only knew her boyfriend had been wronged—and she was going to make someone pay.

"Calm down, Kushina. There's a reason behind this," Hiruzen said patiently. "Besides, I heard Minato has recently mastered that Space-Time Jutsu?"

"…Yes, just recently," she admitted, reluctantly easing up. Truthfully, she understood the village's intentions—but she still wanted compensation for Minato.

"Our plan is to use this exam to test Minato's progress—and to serve as a deterrent. A demonstration for the other villages."

Kushina crossed her arms and scowled. "You're still shameless, Old Man."

Hiruzen's smile cracked slightly. He chose not to respond.

He was tired.

"In any case, the exam is in a few days. You'll depart for Sunagakure soon. Any questions?"

"No, Hokage-sama." ×4

What could they say? They weren't being sent to die. And unlike Kushina, Shirō didn't have the guts to bargain.

"Good. You're dismissed."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

As they turned to leave, Kushina called out:

"Shirō—stay behind. I need to speak with you."

"Yes, Big Sister," Shirō said instinctively, before correcting himself.