In fifteen minutes, Kazeo arrived in front of the building. A signboard hung from the top floor, reading: "Fuinjutsu Department – Authorized Personnel Only."
As he stepped inside, he noticed a counter just a meter from the entrance. Behind it sat a shinobi in a beige flak vest, deeply engrossed in a thick book. He looked to be in his late forties, with silver-streaked hair and a missing ring finger on his left hand.
When Kazeo approached the desk, the man closed his book and looked up.
"Are you looking for someone?"
Kazeo shook his head. "No, actually, I was called here to report." He then briefly explained the academy recruitment process and how he had selected the Fuinjutsu Department during that time.
"Oh, so you became a genin after applying back in the academy. That's good." The man's eyes flicked to the headband wrapped around Kazeo's forearm. "You'll make a fine addition to the department. You picked the right place."
He took out a scroll and a small bottle of ink from the drawer of his desk and handed them to Kazeo.
"Here. Please draw a storage seal for me."
Kazeo accepted the scroll and ink, then asked, "Is this a test?"
"Kinda. It'll help me gauge your talent in sealing," the man replied with a small smile.
Kazeo gave a light nod and began drawing. In less than a minute, he completed a basic storage seal. The man took the scroll, poured a bit of ink onto it, and watched as the seal absorbed it without a hitch.
"Good. Your calligraphy's clean, which means you've practiced a lot. Your speed is also impressive. From today, you're officially signed in as a trainee."
He then took Kazeo's ID card, used the data from it to create a new one specifically for department use, and handed it to him.
"Here. Whenever you visit the department, make sure to carry this."
Kazeo thanked him before asking, "So, what exactly do I do here?"
"You'll be assigned to a team. For today, you'll just get a look around the department and meet your teammates. Training starts tomorrow—one hour a day for two months. After that, you'll be promoted to a proper member. Your team leader should arrive soon."
"Oh, that sounds good. But… how do I get access to beginner or higher-ranking scrolls?" Kazeo asked.
"Just joined and already asking about high-ranking Fuinjutsu scrolls? Hmph. Ambitious—I like that," the man said with a light chuckle. "As for your question: beginner-level scrolls are already accessible. Just let me or your team leader know when you need them. But for higher-ranking scrolls, you'll need to raise your rank within the department. The higher your rank, the more advanced scrolls you can access."
He continued, "To raise your rank, you'll need to take promotion tests whenever you feel you're ready. Your first test will be after two months, once your team leader finishes training you in beginner-level Fuinjutsu."
Kazeo was about to ask another question when a firm voice cut in.
"You're Kazeo, right?"
He turned to see a woman walking toward him with sharp eyes and a strict expression. She had black hair tied back neatly, ink-stained gloves on both hands. Her Konoha headband was sewn onto the shoulder of her uniform.
"Yeah... and you are?" Kazeo asked, blinking.
'When did she even arrive? I really need to keep my chakra field open at all times.'
"I'm Rin. Your team leader for the next two months." Her voice was sharp and clipped. "You're late. You're the last one from your team to report in. Do you even take this department seriously?"
Kazeo stood straighter and replied quickly, "Apologies, Miss Rin. I was caught up in my training with my jōnin-sensei… and I recently had my first kill."
That made both Rin and the man pause. They exchanged a brief glance before the man narrowed his eyes and asked, "Your first kill already? You just graduated days ago. Who's your jōnin-sensei?"
"Uchiha Itachi." Kazeo replied with a smile and thought, 'Yeah, become surprised, I also don't know how it happened.'
"Uchiha Itachi?" The man raised an eyebrow. "He's your jōnin sensei? Isn't he barely older than you? Are you trying to joke with us, trainee Kazeo?"
"No, I'm not. You can confirm it if you like," Kazeo answered firmly, meeting his gaze without hesitation.
Rin studied him for a second before turning away. "I'll verify it later. For now, follow me. Today, you'll get a quick tour of the department and meet your team members. And this guy didn't bother you, did he?" she added, nodding toward the man at the counter, who was still watching Kazeo with an amused look.
That snapped the man out of his thoughts. He chuckled nervously. "What are you even implying, Rin-chan? Tease your trainee? Never. I value my life far too much."
Rin didn't even acknowledge the comment. She simply turned and said curtly, "Kazeo, follow me."
Kazeo gave the man a polite nod and fell into step behind her. As he glanced back one last time, the man gave him a friendly smile and called out, "Let's chat again tomorrow, Kazeo-kun."
Kazeo returned the smile with a small nod, then focused on Rin as they walked deeper into the department.
Without looking back, Rin suddenly spoke.
"Welcome to the team, trainee Kazeo.
In this place, always remember one thing, Fūinjutsu isn't about power," she said as they stepped into a corridor lined with three suspended orbs—each glowing faintly with a different elemental hue. "It's about definition. You don't seal something by overpowering it. You seal it by understanding it better than it understands itself."
Kazeo stopped in his tracks.
That… meant something profound, didn't it?
Noticing that Rin hadn't stopped walking, he quickly caught up. Soon, they entered a smaller chamber—circular in shape, with a raised platform in the center. Three figures stood nearby.
"This is Team 3," Rin said without pause. "You'll be working with them until further notice. Don't worry about rank or age. In this department, skill and mental discipline are valued more than raw strength."
The group turned toward him. The first to speak was a tall kunoichi with cropped grey hair and a burned seal mark visible on her left shoulder.
"Rena," she said flatly. "Barrier tags and lock seals."
The second was a hunched boy with scrolls strapped tightly to both thighs and a fresh ink splatter on his cheek. He looked like he hadn't slept for days.
"Junpei. I decode ancient seal language. Don't touch my scrolls."
Kazeo blinked. 'Ancient seal language… Is he talking about Uzumaki seals?'
The third was the boy with glasses. He didn't speak—just gave a single, shallow nod.
Rin didn't let it slide. She introduced him.
"Kosu. He rarely talks, but don't underestimate him."
Kazeo gave a small nod in return, thoughts already forming.
'Perfect. What a cheerful team. My genin squad looks like a festival parade compared to this lot. My time here might be rougher than expected…'
Rin didn't give him time to dwell. She turned and pointed toward the center of the circular chamber.
In the middle stood a raised stone platform—a wide, circular slab etched with spiral patterns and intricate layers of symbols. The symbols shimmered faintly under the low orange torchlight.
"This," Rin said crisply, "is an Ink Resonance Table. One of the last remaining relics from Uzumaki sealing heritage."
She walked toward it and placed a blank scroll gently in the center. The slab responded with a soft glow.
"It doesn't teach or correct. It just reacts to your mistakes."
Kazeo leaned in slightly, focusing.
"When you write over its surface, your chakra threads through the seal lines. If your logic is flawed or your seal unstable—it will respond. Light and vibration are minor warnings. More severe mistakes… carry consequences. This are mostly used during making explosion tags but we can also use it normally."
Junpei smirked from behind his tired eyes. "If you mess up badly, the ink explodes and slaps your face. Ask Kosu."
Rin didn't even blink at the comment. "Ignore him. Now, each of you except Kazeo will draw a modified storage seal that divides chakra into two chambers based on elemental nature. Kazeo—you observe only."
Kazeo gave a nod, his gaze fixed on the table. Something about it pulled at his attention.
Rena stepped up first. Her movements were sharp, deliberate. Every stroke of the brush was precise, clean. As she worked, the symbols beneath began to glow with a steady green hue—her chakra flow synced and stable. A faint pulse shimmered at the end.
Silent. Passed.
Junpei's scroll looked like a mess at first glance, ink lines swirling in chaotic genius—but the table didn't reject it. Passed.
Kosu, the quiet one, simply wrote the word "Divide" at the top and began forming a minimalist seal. It was shockingly efficient. The table pulsed blue—advanced stability. Passed.
"You three are progressing well. Keep it up," Rin said. Then she turned her gaze to the kunoichi. "Rena, show Kazeo around the department. It's his first day."
Rena groaned. "Ugh, why me? Can't you make Junpei or Kosu do it?"
"Junpei already toured you when you joined. Kosu doesn't talk enough to explain anything clearly. That leaves you." Rin's voice was flat and final.
Rena sighed and gave a nod. She couldn't argue with that.
Rin walked over to Kazeo and said, "Rena will give you the tour. If you have questions, ask her. I've got other duties to attend to—otherwise, I would've toured you myself."
Kazeo gave a respectful nod. "Thank you."
He followed behind Rena as she led him down a long corridor. The walls were etched with layered sealing formulas, some of them faintly glowing. Through glass-paneled windows, Kazeo glimpsed workstations where shinobi engraved formulas into chakra-infused metal plates, while others burned intricate seals onto stone tablets.
As they walked, they chatted lightly. Kazeo learned that Rena had become a genin three years ago but only joined the department recently, after someone recommended her.
He was still observing the surroundings when her voice cut through.
"Our job here isn't just about drawing tags," Rena said. "We monitor, design, and repair every active seal running through this village. And believe me—there are tens of thousands."
She walked over and opened a panel in the wall.
"This is one of the distribution channels. See that stream?"
Kazeo leaned in, eyes widening as he saw a steady current of pale blue light flowing through the conduit.
'Woah… is that chakra?' he thought, surprised.
"That's chakra from over sixty Genin stations across Konoha. They donate small reserves daily. That energy flows into the central sealing lattice, then gets redirected to:
Barrier seals at the village gates
Reinforcement seals on structural foundations
Chakra wards around medical supply vaults
Detection tags on sensitive archives
Weather regulation seals around the Hokage Tower"
Kazeo's eyes widened even more. "All of that… runs on this?"
Rena nodded. "And we're the ones who make sure it never stops working."
Kazeo stayed quiet for a few seconds, then asked, "But… isn't it risky to show this to a new recruit? I mean, if someone turned out to be a spy, couldn't they sabotage the whole system?"
She shut the panel and said, "Hmm, fair question, I also asked it when I joined." Rena said with a smirk. "But don't worry. Except for the higher-ups, no one knows the full layout of these pipes. And even if someone tries to find them, they won't get far. These conduits are buried deep underground, and the moment anyone comes within fifteen meters of one without clearance, the seals trigger instantly—locking the intruder underground and sending an alert with their exact location."
Kazeo nodded, a small frown of thought on his face.
'So, I'll have to be extra careful if I ever decide to explore underground in future…'
"Actually, I have another question," he said. "Why do genin provide chakra daily? Don't they have training to do? Are they paid or is it part of their duty?"
"They're paid," Rena replied plainly. "Every single time they give chakra. See, we haven't been able to create a reliable way to store raw chakra. No matter what we try, it disperses. So instead, we use live, daily chakra input—mostly from the Genin Corps. They rotate shifts and get paid for it."
She glanced back at him. "And let's be real. Most genin in the corps aren't aiming for chunin. If they were, they'd be busy training or going on missions. Regular chakra donations only let them earn a steady income."
Kazeo's eyes widened slightly as he thought, 'This whole system is more advanced than I thought… I didn't even know something like this existed under Konoha. As for those genin, I don't think they are at fault considering the high prices of jutsus, they have to do something other than missions, if they have to learn new jutsus without endangering their life.'
A moment later, a thought struck him. "This setup is amazing—both sides benefit. So why not expand it? Like… sell seals to regular houses and charge them like utility bills? Wouldn't that help villagers stay safer and bring in extra income for Konoha?"
Rena turned her head slightly and gave a knowing smile. "You really ask a lot of questions, don't you?"
Kazeo scratched the back of his head. "Sorry. That's the last one, I promise. I'm just curious. It feels like something that could work."
To his surprise, Rena nodded. "It's already implemented. Most large shops have protection seals installed—alarms, chakra locks, even minor barrier tags. Some private homes have them too. But mostly, it's the clans that use these systems. A few major clans even have their own chakra pipeline, where their own members supply the chakra. But even they need Hokage's approval to set it up—and most of the time, that request gets denied."
Kazeo's respect for the system grew even more.
'Damn… I didn't know any of this. Konoha must be making serious money through this network. This is way beyond what I thought Fuinjutsu was about.'
They walked and talked for a few more minutes as Rena showed Kazeo some failed seals and prototypes the department was still working on. Many of them had roots in old Uzumaki designs—some of which were still being decoded even now. The more Kazeo saw, the more he was in awe.
Eventually, they reached a wide, circular chamber located on the underground floor, where Rin was already waiting. As soon as she saw them enter, she stepped out and greeted them.
"Oh, finished the tour already? Good timing." She gave a slight nod. "Would you both like to see what our field work actually looks like?"
Kazeo's eyes lit up. "Yeah, I'm definitely curious. I'd like to know what kind of work I'll be doing here."
Rin smiled faintly. "Well, don't get your hopes up. It might look boring. But remember this—people won't praise you here," she said, her tone calm but firm. "Most shinobi don't even know we exist. But when the walls start cracking, when the Academy's chakra lines flicker, or when the hospital barriers fail... suddenly, we become the most important team in the village."
Kazeo didn't respond. He just absorbed her words silently.
Seeing that, Rin continued, "We've got a couple of small assignments today. Nothing dangerous—just basic fieldwork. Here's the list:
1. A leaking seal on the west gate of the Academy. Might be causing chakra bleed.
2. A Genin supply station with unstable output. Could be seal misalignment or tampering.
We'll inspect and correct them. You two, along with the rest of Team 3, will come with me to observe how things are handled in the field."
Rena grinned. "Finally! I was waiting for this. Kinda nervous though."
Kazeo blinked. "Wait, you haven't seen fieldwork yet?"
"Nope," Rena said, still smiling. "She told us she'd wait until you arrived before taking us out."
Kazeo glanced at Rin, who had already turned and started walking back into the room. He didn't say anything.
Before they left the chamber, Rin handed him a brown leather case with multiple neatly arranged slots inside.
A calligraphy brush
Temporary adhesive tag slips
Sealing compound chalk
An ink capsule scroll
And a blank regulation tag for personal use
"This is your technician's toolkit," Rin said. "You'll eventually build a more customized one yourself once you earn signature rights. But for now, you'll observe and occasionally activate pre-written formulas."
Kazeo ran his fingers lightly over the tools, feeling their weight and texture.
After that, they left the underground floor to collect the final member of the team and headed out for their field assignment.
------
One day later, Kazeo was sitting in a room across from Akimichi Choza, the head of the Akimichi clan. Two clan elders sat beside him, watching quietly.
Choza leaned back slightly with a warm smile. "So, what's this special thing you wanted to show me? I hope you didn't ask for this meeting just for a prank."
Kazeo answered calmly, "No sir, it's nothing like that. I've come with something worthwhile."
He pulled out a scroll and began unsealing it.
The two elders subtly shifted, positioning themselves to shield their clan head, just in case. Choza noticed but simply raised an eyebrow, not saying a word.
Unbothered, Kazeo unfurled the scroll. With a small burst of chakra, a metal pot appeared on the table.
He opened the lid and smiled. "Here it is, sir. Just like I promised—new recipes. I call them pizza, burger, and fries. I plan to start a chain of food shops, and I'm hoping to partner with you for your network and influence."
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