As I focused on the scroll, my hand moved steadily, laying down the subspace storage seal like the manual. Supposed to handle about 20 kilos — your basic beginner stuff. Simple, efficient. At least, that's what they claimed.
While my brush worked, I kept half an eye on Itachi across the field. No way I was letting him finish first.
As for Rin?
Yeah... Rin didn't count. This was between me and Itachi.
The seal took shape under my hand — lines, nodes, chakra flow paths — all coming together. But something felt off.
It was subtle, like an itch you can't scratch. The structure wasn't tight. It was bleeding chakra, wasting space that should've been extra storage.
"Nano," I ordered silently, "scan it. Break it down. Tell me exactly what's wrong."
Nano fired up in the back of my mind, dissecting every inch of the seal.
Meanwhile, across the field, Itachi was almost done. Textbook perfect, no surprise there. Kushina watched him, probably thinking, Wow, so clean, so talented, Uchiha supremacy, blah blah blah. But me? I'd stopped halfway, and it had her raising eyebrows. She had no clue what was cooking.
Nano finished. Findings:
Original Seal: Stored items but constantly drained chakra to stay stable.
Problem: Half the storage was getting eaten up just keeping the damn thing from falling apart.
Fix: Externalize the chakra support. Ditch the drain.
It clicked instantly. I didn't hesitate. Mid-drawing, I started tweaking.
I added a new node, an external battery, to feed the structure instead of my reserves. If chakra ever ran low, instead of everything collapsing, the stored items would just go dormant until I kicked them. Bonus?Freed up way more space. Thirty kilos total. Clean. Stable. Smarter.
I finished my seal, crisp and efficient, and slid it toward Kushina like it was no big deal.
Itachi wrapped up a second later — perfect, of course — but basic. Rin... was still fighting her scroll like it owed her money.
I sauntered over to "help" Big Sis Rin, letting Kushina stew over what she'd just seen.
She picked up my scroll, eyes narrowing. Shock. Skepticism. Amusement.Then right back to shock. It was almost funny watching her brain short-circuit.
Finally, she looked at me, squinting like I was a suspicious animal.
"Akira," she said, slow and sharp, "why did you alter the seal? How did you even see the flaw?"
I shrugged, casually."While I was drawing, it just felt wrong. Like... inefficient, you know? So I broke it down in my head — kinda like different languages stacked on top of each other — and realized part of the storage was being chewed up by chakra buffering."
I gave her my most innocent smile."Simple fix. Added an external node. Freed the space. No big deal."
Silence.
Minato's eyes sharpened, interested now. Kakashi even closed his little book and if Kakashi's closing his book, you know something serious just happened. Even Itachi gave me a quick look. Not mad, not impressed, calculating.
Kushina looked like she wanted to throw something.
Inside my mind, I was grinning."Nano, this is just the warm-up. Wait until we start cooking."
Kushina forced a sharp smile." Seems we have a little genius here," she said, voice tight. "Fine. Let's crank up the difficulty."
She tossed me another manual."Soundproof and detection-proof seal. Blocks internal sounds, hides from sensors except Byakugan."
Caught it one-handed, sat down, cracked it open. Nano was already tearing through the diagrams with me.
First glance? It was good. Decent structure. But way too messy. Too much chakra turbulence. A good sensory ninja would sniff it out fast. And against doujutsu users like the Sharingan? Forget it. It might as well be a glowing neon sign.
Pathetic.
My hand moved before I even finished thinking. Fast. Smooth. Brush dancing like it was alive.
Tweaked the structure.Tightened the chakra flow . Added environmental camouflage folded space subtly around it, making the whole thing blend into the terrain.
Fixed the dispersal, too. After activation, the chakra would naturally break down, with no lingering scent for trackers to pick up. Even a Byakugan would have a hard time spotting it unless they walked straight into the trap.
When I finished, the seal looked... elegant. Like a blade so sharp it didn't even look dangerous, just beautiful.
I leaned back, chill, and waited.
Minato and Kushina came over, stared at my work.
Shock.Disbelief.And under all that?A tiny flicker of fear.
Minato stepped behind me, hand on my shoulder.
Voice carefully.
"Akira... where did you learn this? This doesn't look like beginner's work."
I shrugged again, lazily."Didn't learn it. Just... made sense. Patterns are just languages, right? You line up the meanings properly. Make sure the 'wills' behind each symbol don't clash. Stability is just connection strength. Efficiency is just good handwriting."
Silence. Again.
And inside, I thought: "Nano... we're gonna break this world."
Then suddenly Kushina burst into wild laughter, loud enough to make the windows rattle.
It felt like I had just roasted Minato for being a sissy and Kushina couldn't agree more.
When she finished laughing, she dropped down to eye-level with me, fire burning behind her gaze.
"Akira," she said with deadly seriousness, "become my disciple. I'll teach you everything about fuinjutsu.Your talent... It's like my grandmother Mito Uzumaki, a one-in-a-century genius. Honestly... I'm starting to think you've got Uzumaki blood in you."
I stared at her quietly for a second, acting like I was seriously contemplating it.
Inside, I was grinning like a devil.
Got you.
If I just accepted, she would control what seals I could study. Dead Demon Seal, Four Red Yang Formation forbidden-level seal would stay locked away.
I needed her to give them to me willingly.
I shrugged, cocky.
"No need. If fuinjutsu is this easy, I'll master it myself by the end of the year."
For a second, I thought Kushina might punch me.
Her hair lifted, chakra flaring, eyes going red.
Before her fist could kiss my face, Minato flashed forward and teleported me out of the way.
"Kushina, calm down!" he said, trying not to laugh. "He's just a kid!"
Minato faced me, more serious now.
"Akira," he said, "listen carefully.Fuinjutsu starts easy. But as you go deeper, its nature shifts completely. Take my Flying Raijin, it's built entirely on seals, yes, but it ties into spatial manipulation, dimensional anchoring, and instant sensory perception. Simple on the surface, incredibly complex underneath."
He looked at me closely.
"Limits don't exist with fuinjutsu. It can create or destroy anything. You need a master to guide you if you want to survive it."
I acted like I was deeply thinking.
Inside, I smirked.
Exactly what I wanted.
Finally, I said, "Alright. I'll become your student, Kushina-neechan. But there's one condition: I study whatever I want. No restrictions. No hiding any seals from me. I want complete mastery."
Kushina grinned fiercely.
"Deal, brat."
Victory.
Turning to Itachi, Kushina added:
"Itachi, you have talent too. But I think you should focus on integrating seals into your combat style, like sealing poisons into kunai, or rigging shuriken to explode or paralyze. It'll make you untouchable."
Itachi nodded, calm and calculating.
Finally, Kushina faced Rin, her expression softening slightly.
"Rin... your talent is ordinary. But with enough hard work and my guidance, I'll make you a master of fuinjutsu. It'll take more time and effort than Akira or Itachi, but I promise, it'll be worth it."
Rin brightened up immediately, soaking in the encouragement.
Meanwhile, I stood back, arms crossed, smiling faintly.
Good. Everything's in place. Now the real training can begin.
The whole morning, Kushina hammered us with sealing theory, how to push willpower into the lines, how chakra flowed through the ink, how to keep the structure from blowing up in your face.
Basic stuff. Stuff that Nano had already dissected and explained to me in better detail hours ago.
So I sat there, nodding like the model student, while inside, I was slowly dying of boredom.
When noon finally hit, it felt like a prison break.
We had lunch at Minato's place. And an unexpected plot twist, Minato could cook. Like, good. Everything on the plate was balanced, clean, and somehow comforting. Almost rivaled Aunt Inoichi and Yoshino's home food.
Honestly? Minato gave off more housewife energy than Kushina did. And Kushina... yeah. Classic brute. Loud. Over-the-top. Madly in love. Total wreck when it came to Minato.
After lunch, Itachi and I followed Minato into the woods behind his house. He led us to this open clearing surrounded by thick trees.
He stood in the middle, smiling like always, soft, patient. But something was different. The air around him shifted. What used to feel like warm sunshine now felt like standing too close to a bonfire.
Still smiling, he said, "Let's keep it simple. I want to see what you've got. Your goal: hit me. Twice. Anywhere. Hair, clothes, and body don't matter. Once I know how you fight, I'll build your training around it."
Then he clapped. "Ready when you are."
Itachi and I didn't say a word. We vanished into the trees.
Behind a thick bush, we crouched and regrouped. I leaned in close.
"His whole vibe changed," I whispered. "From friendly sunlight to burning sun. If we rush him head-on, we're toast."
Itachi's eyes flicked once. Got it.
"This isn't just sparring," I said. "We gather data. Reaction speed. How fast he adapts. How he moves. What habits slip out when he's pressured? Our edge? He doesn't know our styles yet. So we hit him with the unexpected."
I checked that he was following. He gave a short nod.
"I'll go first. Pull him in. You watch everything. Figure out his patterns. And don't show your real moves yet. Mix it up. Fake tells throw off his reads. Constant change."
"Understood," he said, low and clear. "Don't get caught."
I smirked. "Same to you."
Then I peeled away, looping wide through the trees. Fast, quiet, low to the ground.
From Minato's view, it probably looked like I was going for a straight charge, kunai in hand.
But I wasn't staying long-range. I made the call for close combat.
Riskier, yeah. But the best way to get a read on someone's real instincts is to get right in their face.
Alright, Yellow Flash. Show me what you've got.
I dashed in, kunai low, steps light but steady.
Minato didn't flinch. He just stood there, hands at his sides, like this was some casual afternoon stroll, but his eyes never left me. Sharp, focused. The kind of look that said, yeah, I see everything.
Good. At least he wasn't looking down on me.
Right as I hit the halfway point, I shifted a slight feint left, enough to hint I was going for his blind spot. Textbook bait.
He didn't move.
So I committed. Pushed off the ground, flipped the kunai into a reverse grip, and aimed a diagonal slash at his side. Clean. Direct. Kind of obvious.
Which was the point.
He responded instantly.
A smooth turn, just enough to let my strike pass. No panic. No flash. Just that slick, quiet kind of movement that looks lazy until you realize it's terrifyingly efficient.
Exactly what I wanted.
"Nano," I thought. Mark everything.Speed: fast. Fast. Jonin baseline or higher. Chakra usage: low. Body mechanics: clean.
But even as I pulled away, I caught the shift. Hips lowering, shoulders loosening.
He was about to counter.
Nope.
I aborted mid-swing and kicked off, flipping backwards into the treeline before he could even take the first step. Clean getaway.
Behind me, I heard him chuckle softly, amused.
"Not bad," Minato said, like I hadn't just tried to slash him a second ago.
Up in the brush, Itachi didn't move. Just watched, probably tracking every twitch of Minato's muscles.
"Nano," I whispered inside. Run the numbers. Show me his reaction window. Build me a profile, real-time predictions, fast as you can."
Processing…
I looped around, changing angles. My heart was racing now, but in a good way. That kind of high-alert clarity. Adrenaline sharp, but under control.
So. First round: no chakra, pure instinct. Second round?
Let's up the tempo.
I charged again faster this time. Zigzagging, no rhythm, no tells. Just chaos.
Minato shifted. Not much, but his gaze locked in tighter. He was taking this seriously now.
At five meters, I lobbed a sloppy kunai, exaggerated, like I was getting desperate.
He didn't even blink. Just tilted his head, and it whizzed past.
That lazy dodge?
Perfect.
I was already behind the kunai, low to the ground, rushing in with a rising slash, but I dropped the weapon mid-motion and pivoted into a heel kick, aiming straight for his thigh.
His eyes widened barely, but I saw it.
Then he caught my foot. Like it was nothing. No grunt, no strain. Just grabbed it, like I'd tossed him a shoe.
And then he tossed me gently, almost playfully, straight back through the air.
I twisted mid-flight, landed on my feet, slid a few steps on the dirt, and exhaled hard.
Okay. That was humbling.
Minato smiled at me like a proud teacher. "Nice feint. Good instincts. But your follow-through? Still too honest."
Up in the trees, Itachi's brain was probably in overdrive.
Direct fight? Not happening. Reaction time? Stupid fast. Chakra use? None so far. Solution? Outthink him. Use the terrain. Disrupt his flow.
His Sharingan spun once more. He'd already started planning the next move.
I wiped my forehead, still grinning. That little moment during the dodge, that's where he's human. He won't use chakra unless he has to. He reads movement, not guesses. He reacts, not predicts.
"Nano," I muttered under my breath. "Give me energy flow estimates. Look for weak points and any inconsistencies. Let's crack this."
Analyzing...
Across the clearing, Minato just stood there, calm as ever, like we weren't trying to land real hits on him.
Round two was coming.
This time, I was gonna make him move.
Analysis complete:
Chakra usage: minimal.Hip tilt: 4.2 degrees, prep for teleport.Vulnerability window: 0.12 seconds during transition.
I smirked inside.
There it is.
That sliver. That one tiny gap between physical and space-time movement.
Found it.
Game on.
I hit the ground lightly, sliding back with my kunai already back in hand. Across from me, Minato looked the same, calm, easygoing, but I could feel it. His focus had shifted. That warm smile was still there, but the weight behind it had changed.
He was dialed in now.
In the treeline, Itachi stayed low, eyes narrow, tracking every breath Minato took. No Sharingan yet. He didn't need it. He didn't rely on flashy tools unless necessary.
Itachi's greatest weapon? Patience.
I caught his gaze, a flicker of understanding between us. No words. Just the smallest nod.
Go time.
I feinted left, sharp and obvious, then burst right, driving in fast. Minato's body shifted, still loose, still calm, letting instinct lead. His stance opened up like a matador waiting for the bull.
Right before contact, I lashed out high, a wild, exaggerated slash toward his face.
Minato dodged, stepping sideways with surgical ease.
Perfect.
Because at that exact moment, Itachi moved.
Silent. Fast. A shadow across the grass. Low to the ground and coming in from a blind angle, targeting Minato's trailing foot.
He didn't need to land a blow. Just a touch. A graze.
Minato's head twitched. He felt it. Pivoted hard, just barely catching the movement at the edge of his senses.
And that hesitation? That tiny hitch in his flow?
That was mine.
I dropped the kunai and closed in, hands free, body loose. No feint this time, just a brutal, clean punch straight to Minato's shoulder.
I didn't care if he blocked it. I just needed him to react to both of us at once.
He spun fast, fluid—shifting weight to avoid Itachi while raising his arm to catch my strike.
We clashed.
The force pushed me back a step, but I felt resistance. Just a brush. A fraction of contact.
Nano chimed in.
Confirmed: fabric contact. Target: upper sleeve.
First hit: secured.
Minato exhaled through his nose, the smile on his face pulling wider, almost proud.
"You two…" he said quietly. "You're not bad."
Then his body turned slightly, resetting.
"But not fast enough."
And then he moved.
He hasn't teleported yet. No flash. No seals.
Just speed.
Real, terrifying speed.
One second he was there, the next, gone. The air bent where he passed. A blur that cracked through the space between us.
I spun, trying to track, but he was already behind me.
A flash of movement, a whisper of pressure, and Itachi barely ducked in time, Minato's hand grazing the top of his head with surgical control.
If he wanted to take us out, he could've.
Nano blared in my mind.
Warning: Target speed exceeds predictive thresholds. Reaction time is insufficient. Recommend an evasive maneuver.
Yeah. No kidding.
I hit the dirt, rolling to reposition, heart thumping in my throat. Minato wasn't just faster, he was reading us. Real-time adaptation. No wasted motion. No repeats. He learned every time we moved.
From across the clearing, Itachi met my eyes again.
No panic. Just a cool calculation.
We both knew the truth now: solo rushes? Pointless. Straight-up brawling? Dumb. Even our feints have limited shelf life.
Only one path forward: layered distractions. Environmental traps. Timing.
I gave a tight nod.
Plan B.
Minato straightened and brushed his sleeve, like wiping off invisible dust.
"Come on," he said, voice light, teasing. "Don't tell me that's all you've got."
His eyes gleamed.
This wasn't training anymore.
This was the chase.
"""
Chapter length - 2966 words
(A/N)-I have tried to change the writing style a bit since I thought many people dislike the previous styles therefore I am changing this a little bit
"""