The forge in the workshop of the Okami family was still warm from work that had been done earlier.
Ryu surveyed the space as Shiroi Okami stood near the forge while his grandfather sat in a wooden chair by the workbench, his bandaged hand resting carefully on his lap. Kaori hovered near the entrance with a briefcase in her hand.
"I appreciate the challenge," Ryu said, meeting the old man's gaze. "But I need to be clear about something…. This is going to be different from what you're used to seeing."
The grandfather interjected and said, "I've been smithing for fifty years. Hammering hot metal is brutal work. You're just a child."
Shiroi stepped forward. "Grandfather, you've heard the rumours about this boy. He's building a reputation as a creator, an engineer. The Hamura clan... you used to tell me stories about them. Great crafters and builders."
"The stories are true," the grandfather replied. "But those were from the past. The glory days of those master artisans and weapon makers."
Shiroi's gaze shifted to Ryu. "I am trying to see if there is really a creator in him. Don't worry … if he can even shape it like a simple rookie knife, I will be satisfied."
Ryu hadn't taken offence. The scepticism was fair, earned through decades of experience. He simply waited.
Kaori stepped forward. "Bladesmithing is different from technology, boss."
"I know." Ryu's response was calm and matter-of-fact. "And it will be fine."
Ryu scanned the workshop again, cataloguing tools and materials. "I'll need to use my own equipment for this. Some of the methods are... nontraditional."
"Nontraditional?" The grandfather's tone carried warning.
"Very nontraditional," Ryu confirmed. "But effective."
Shiroi crossed his remaining arm over his chest. "I'd like to see just how good your nontraditional methods are."
Ryu's gaze swept across the workshop until it landed on a suitable piece of wood—a clean, straight log with good grain structure and wood type. He hefted it, testing the weight, then carried it to a cleared workbench. Ryu's strength surprised Shiroi and his grandpa.
The others watched as he began measuring, marking, and planning.
Kaori tilted her head, her expression showing growing confusion. "Boss, what are you doing?"
The old grandfather's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Recognition flickered across his features.
The old bladesmith explained, "He is making a scabbard… But… But the blade is forged first… Then the scabbard is fitted to match its exact dimensions."
Kaori looked confused.
Old Grandpa continued, "Making the scabbard first means he's confident he can make a blade that fits perfectly…. Since this is a challenge and not regular sword making, it's a statement… a taunt to the challenger."
Kaori's eyes widened. "Oh."
Shiroi scoffed, "That kind of overconfidence will come back to bite him. Let's see if he can even make a blade first to fit that sword."
Ryu said nothing. He simply continued working, the wooden rod gradually transforming under his hands as he shaped it into the rough outline of a scabbard.
After initial shaping, Ryu retrieved a cutting tool and sliced the wooden piece lengthwise, creating two halves. He laid them flat, then summoned a scroll. With a puff of smoke, an angle grinder appeared on the workbench beside a set of precision chisels.
The chisel was common enough, standard smith's equipment. The angle grinder made the grandfather's eyebrows rise.
"Power tools? I have been hearing about them for some time…" The old man said. Ryu's company had been busy and its work was reaching every ear.
Ryu glanced up, offering a shrug. "Being old school has its merits. But I prefer efficiency. I'm not a traditional swordmaker, and I want this done well and done fast."
He turned on the grinder and carved the scabbard channels. Workbench covered in sawdust. After the grinder finished, he used the chisel to smooth edges and surfaces with slow strokes. He then covered the inside using leather and glue.
Next came the jointing mechanism. First he secured the two halves using glue. Ryu custom-formed a thin sheet of gold into a ring and hammered it to fit the sword sheath. He fitted it carefully around the two halves at a few places. He then used a blowtorch and used another piece of melted gold to join the rings, creating a secure yet elegant join.
"Gold?" Shiroi asked, unable to hide his surprise.
"It's beautiful," Ryu replied. "It won't corrode, and the malleability lets me shape it precisely."
Then Ryu began the exterior design work.
He selected a pen-like chisel, its tip fine and sharp, and started carving. The first marks seemed random, disconnected. But as minutes passed and the pattern expanded, shapes emerged—petals, stems, and delicate leaves unfurling across the wooden surface.
Shiroi moved closer, watching the design take form.
Kaori's breath caught. "It's beautiful."
A garden scene blossomed across the scabbard shells, each flower rendered with surprising detail. The old man stroked his beard, genuine admiration breaking through his earlier scepticism.
Ryu then painted the scabbard with a permanent and beautiful special paint.
"The boy's an artist. To carve something this intricate at his age..."
Shiroi nodded, the hostility in his posture easing. "The design is beautiful. I'll give him that."
"But the real challenge hasn't started yet," the grandfather added. "The blade is what matters."
Ryu set the scabbard aside and turned his attention to the sword guard. He carved the wooden prototype first—a flowing, organic design that complemented the scabbard's floral motif. Once satisfied, he created a sand mould from it, pressing the wooden form deep into specially prepared casting sand.
The use of sand mould casting for something as intricate as a sword guard drew another surprised look from the grandfather. Most smiths would hammer out a simpler shape like an oval or square or rectangle. Ryu was going for meticulousness and artistry.
He summoned several jars of different metals and an induction heater. Ryu put a few pieces in the crucible. The device hummed to life, temperature climbing rapidly as the metals began to melt inside the crucible jar.
"You're using your own metals?" The grandfather recognised some of them by sight alone—decades of experience identifying composition at a glance. "Those are expensive. Jewellery-grade material for a sword guard?"
"Yes. The metal in your workshop is simple steel. No offence but I am trying to impress someone here. I added zirconium and titanium for extra hardness," Ryu explained, monitoring the temperature. "But I haven't added the really expensive metal yet."
The old man's eyes widened. "You don't mean..."
Ryu confirmed. "Yes. I am going to use chakra metal."
A stunned silence fell over the workshop.
"I earned some from the Land of Rivers," Ryu continued.
Ryu was going to use chakra metal. Security and sanctions keep it out of reach even if you have money. Most blacksmiths never even see it in person. So it was an opportunity for the old man.
Shiroi scoffed, "It's a waste of such precious material."
The grandfather turned to Kaori. "Chakra metal is useful for ninja weapons, but it's difficult to work with."
"How so?" Kaori asked.
"It conducts chakra well, which lets a ninja channel jutsu through their blade. But the metal becomes brittle if you don't use the right quantity of it. A simple clash can shatter the sword if the recipe is not right."
He paused. "To make high-grade chakra metal weapons, you need that secret recipe that only famous swordsmiths have."
"Or," Ryu said, pouring the molten metal mixture into the sand mould with steady hands, "you can use scientific calculations to determine the right recipe."
The grandfather shook his head, caught between amusement and disbelief. "The confidence of youth."
Ryu set the cast aside to cool, then turned to face them fully. "We'll see soon enough."
"Now," he said, cracking his knuckles, "it's time to make the blade."
Ryu summoned a small welding machine and thick metal sheets. With quick, precise movements, he welded together a rectangular shell, leaving one of the longer sides open for filling.
The measurements were exact. He'd calculated the specific dimensions needed to minimise waste while maximising the final blade's quality.
Next came the jars of fine metal powder. Ryu opened them carefully, revealing different grades and compositions. He began filling the rectangular shell in layers—iron powder mixed with chakra metal dust, creating a base. Then he added metal bearings and chips made out of a special alloy of chakra metal, the results of Ryu's experiments, a different, new and higher grade of chakra metal never seen before. He distributed them strategically throughout the powder matrix with a pattern in mind.
The pattern wasn't random. Each placement served a purpose, designed to create specific structural characteristics when forged.
Shiroi watched the process with growing fascination. "What are you doing?"
"Something nontraditional," Ryu replied with a slight smile, continuing to layer materials. "You'll see when it's finished."
Once the shell was filled, Ryu compressed it using multiple clamps to minimise any air pockets inside. Ryu used force to compress it hard. Ryu then welded the final side shut, sealing everything inside compactly. He adjusted the induction heater's coils vertically, allowing the rectangular shell to be inserted horizontally. The device hummed, energy building as Ryu carefully positioned his metal-filled container inside.
Then he activated the heat.
The glow began slowly, building in intensity. Ryu monitored it carefully, using his knowledge to control the heating precisely. The powder inside melted gradually, piece by piece, fusing without disturbing the carefully arranged pattern of metal chips and bearings.
When the internal structure had fully melted and solidified into a single block, Ryu withdrew it and immediately plunged the glowing metal into water. Steam exploded upward with a violent hiss.
After cooling, he used a cutting tool to remove the outer rectangular shell—it had served its purpose as a container and was no longer needed.
What remained was a solid block of patterned metal, the internal structure locked in place.
Ryu reheated the block in the induction heater, then withdrew it glowing red-hot. He positioned it on the anvil and raised a hammer.
The first strike rang clear and sharp through the workshop.
Then Ryu did something unexpected. He took a deep breath and exhaled a stream of flames from the basic Fire Release jutsu he'd been practising at home. Ryu's purpose was to maintain temperature without relying on induction heating too much.
The grandfather's eyes widened. "I forgot... he's a ninja."
"He's at the academy," Kaori said. "Top of his class."
Strike. Breathe fire. Strike again.
Ryu fell into a rhythm, hammering the metal while maintaining optimal temperature with the fire jutsu. But he wasn't working blind.
[Temporary Enhance] running on [Improved Eyesight] and [Infrared Vision]
[Electromagnetic Vision] activated
His perception shifted. The world took on new dimensions as electromagnetic fields became visible.
The half-formed blade revealed its secrets.
Different metals responded to electromagnetic fields in distinct ways. The iron glowed with a steady, deep crimson signature. The chakra metal fragments pulsed with brilliant violet. The secondary higher-grade chakra metal grade showed as amber streaks, cutting through the matrix like veins through stone.
Ryu could see where the metals had fused completely and where microscopic gaps remained.
Ryu adjusted his grip and brought the hammer down precisely where a gap in the pattern showed. The electromagnetic signature shifted, the metals merging seamlessly.
Strike, observe, adjust, and strike again.
Ryu stuck the sword where needed and tried to form a pattern he wanted by striking it into the shape he desired. Each strike echoed through the workshop.
Clang.
The sound was sharp, pure, and reminiscent of the precise clink Marvel fans might remember from a cave where Stark built his Mk-1 armour's helmet with scrap tools and determination.
Clang.
Ryu charged the hammer with chakra, then brought it down with controlled force where the electromagnetic vision showed a stubborn cluster of iron that needed redistribution.
The sound wave rippled outward, supported by Ryu's chakra.
Outside, birds perched peacefully on nearby roofs suddenly took flight, scattering in all directions across the Leaf Village. The disturbance spread like a stone dropped in still water.
Clang.
The rectangular block gradually transformed under his guided strikes, taking on the unmistakable form of a single-edged curved blade. The metal pattern flowed like water frozen in steel—violet chakra metal threading through amber and crimson, creating a design that was both beautiful and structurally perfect.
People on the street paused, looking around uncertainly. Some frowned, trying to identify the source of the sound. Others simply felt it—a resonance that hummed through the air itself.
By now, a crowd had gathered outside the Okami workshop, drawn by the rhythmic hammer strikes and the palpable sense that something unusual was happening inside.
Inside the workshop, the grandfather glanced toward the entrance, noting the shadows of onlookers gathering beyond the doorway.
Clang.
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked up and thought, "What was that sound?"
The telephone rang, interrupting his work. He picked it up. "Yes? ... Ryu Hamura is doing what? Forging a blade… at the Okami family workshop… hmmm."
Hiruzen set down the phone, a mixture of curiosity crossing his features. The boy's innovations always proved interesting, if occasionally disruptive. Just like the phone that is now integrated into the information system of his ninjas.
"The workshop wasn't far from the administrative building," Ryu thought.
"I suppose I should see what he's up to this time," he said to himself, rising from his desk.
Back in the workshop, Ryu studied the blade through [Electromagnetic Vision] one final time.
The pattern was complete—perfect distribution, no gaps, no fractures. The chakra metal formed a coherent network through the blade, ready to conduct chakra without compromising structural integrity.
"Beautiful," Ryu murmured, as only he can see what's inside the sword.
[Electromagnetic Vision] deactivated
[Temporary Enhance] disabled
Ryu heated the blade and then immediately plunged it into oil. The quench created a different sound—a bubbling hiss as the superheated metal rapidly cooled, its internal structure locking into the desired crystalline form.
He withdrew the blade, examined it briefly, then reheated it to bright red and plunged it into water. Again, the violent quench. Ryu repeated the process multiple times—heat, quench, heat, quench—carefully tempering the blade to achieve the perfect balance of hardness and flexibility.
The induction heater made it fast, almost too fast compared to traditional methods. What would normally take hours of careful fire management happened in minutes.
Just as Ryu withdrew the blade from its final water quench, there was movement at the workshop entrance.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, landed smoothly in front of the Okami family workshop.
The crowd that had gathered immediately parted, bowing respectfully.
Hiruzen stepped forward, already knowing the boy inside would have something remarkable to show him.
A/N:
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