The << Rank: Genin >> notification still hummed faintly in Kaito's awareness, a hard-won milestone. But Jiraiya offered no respite. "Genin means you're officially worth more trouble than you're worth dead," the Sannin grunted at dawn. "Time to prove it. We're clearing a rat's nest."
The target: an abandoned iron mine in the foothills, infested with bandits hitting trade caravans. Intel (via Jiraiya's broker): a dozen thugs (Level 5-9), likely two ex-shinobi leaders (Level 12-15, Chunin-tier). Payoff: recovered goods, split 60/40. Aiko's next month's rent.
But first, Jiraiya tossed Kaito a blank scroll and ink pot. "Moss money's done. Earn your keep as a real Seal Master. Design something new. A trap. Use your tricks – perception, step, wood. Clever. Lethal. One hour."
The challenge ignited Kaito's << INT: 23 >>. He visualized the mine's narrow tunnels, predictable patrols. He synthesized principles:
Trigger: A refined Chakra Disruption Glyph, sensing movement (not jutsu), etched onto Saisei-wood for sensitivity.Payload: A fragmentary Temporal Binding Seal (0.5 seconds freeze).Delivery: Linked to a Void Step-inspired micro-teleport matrix, pulling the frozen target into...Finale: A spring-loaded, Saisei-hardened wooden spike, primed by the teleport's energy discharge.
It was complex, pushing his limits. As he inscribed the final sigil, the scroll pulsed blue. A cosmic interface appeared:
<< SYSTEM: Unique Fuinjutsu Creation Detected! >>
<< Designate: [Phantom Lash Trap] >>
<< Effect: Teleports immobilized target into pre-positioned physical trap. Requires setup. >>
<< Reward: 5,000 EXP, Title: 'Sealweaver Pioneer' (+5% Fuinjutsu Innovation Speed), TECHNIQUE ROULETTE SPIN! >>
<< Broadcast Achievement? (Y/N) >>
Hide it. Kaito thought instantly. The anonymity was his shield. << N >>
<< World Notification! >>
<< An Anonymous Player has crafted the first Unique Fuinjutsu Seal: [Phantom Lash Trap]! >>
<< Reward Claimed: 5,000 EXP, Title: 'Sealweaver Pioneer', TECHNIQUE ROULETTE SPIN! >>
A spectral roulette wheel materialized, glowing with possibilities. Two options dominated:
Option 1: Select any S-Rank or Lower Technique (Non-Forbidden). Guaranteed.Option 2: Spin for a Random Forbidden Technique (Extreme Risk/Reward).
Jiraiya stared at the cosmic display, a flicker of awe beneath his gruff exterior. "Huh. The world itself notices true ingenuity. Choose wisely, brat. Forbidden arts... they carry their name in blood."
Kaito didn't hesitate. Guaranteed power was tempting, but predictable. His path was shadows, risk, and the impossible. He needed an edge only the forbidden could provide. Spin.
The roulette blurred, symbols flashing – demonic summoning pacts, soul-rending genjutsu, body-destroying kinjutsu... then it slowed. Landing on a symbol depicting intersecting kunai against a ripple of distorted space.
<< FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE ACQUIRED: Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) - Fragmentary Understanding >>
<< Effect: Allows placement of specialized space-time markers (Hiraishin Kunai Seals). Grants instantaneous teleportation to any marker within sensory range. Initial Chakra Cost: Extreme. Mark Creation Complexity: Extreme. Current Mastery: Basic Marker Placement Only (Single Kunai). Cannot yet perform combat teleports. >>
<< WARNING: Technique is Forbidden due to extreme spatial strain, strategic vulnerability of markers, and potential for catastrophic teleportation failure. >>
Knowledge flooded Kaito – complex, agonizingly intricate space-time formulae, principles of coordinate anchoring, the immense chakra cost of folding space. It was overwhelming, barely comprehensible, yet a sliver of it resonated perfectly with his Namikaze - Space-Time Affinity and his experience with Void Step. This wasn't just a technique; it was the foundation of his bloodline's legend.
Jiraiya's eyes widened to saucers. "Kuso! The Yellow Flash's technique?! You reckless fool! That jutsu breaks minds and bodies!" He grabbed Kaito's shoulder, his gaze intense. "You understand even a fraction of that?"
"It... resonates," Kaito gasped, clutching his head as the knowledge settled like white-hot wires. "The principles... they align with the Void Step. But the scale... the complexity..."
"Hmph. Alignment isn't mastery," Jiraiya growled, releasing him. "Marking kunai? That's the easy part, and it'll drain you dry. Teleporting to them? That's the mountain you just decided to climb blindfolded. Forget the bandits for a second. Show me you can even make the damn mark without exploding."
Kaito focused, pushing past the headache. He took a standard kunai. Channeling his << CC: 15 >>, he poured chakra, not just energy, but intent and understanding into etching the impossibly complex Hiraishin formula onto the metal. It felt like carving reality itself. His chakra plummeted << Chakra: 100/100 >> → << 40/100 >>. The kunai hummed, glowing faintly with a unique, intricate seal. << Hiraishin Kunai Mark Created! >>
Jiraiya stared at the marked kunai, a mix of disbelief and grudging respect on his face. "Well... you didn't blow up. Or turn inside out. Consider me mildly impressed and deeply concerned. Now stash that. It's a beacon for every sensor in ten miles right now. Bandits first. Try not to get killed before you even use your forbidden toy."
The Iron Maw Mine:
They approached the mine entrance at dusk. Kaito scouted ahead, << PER: 20 (Effective) >> mapping patrols: two thugs at the main entrance (Level 7 & 8), a lazy circuit inside the first tunnel. He signaled Jiraiya, who gave a curt nod: Your show, Genin.
Kaito moved like smoke. He planted his newly crafted Phantom Lash Trap near a side tunnel entrance – the trigger glyph hidden under loose gravel, the temporal binder and teleport matrix linked to a prepared spike-trap behind a rockfall. He then scaled the cliff face above the main entrance, silent as a shadow.
He drew his single Hiraishin Kunai. With a grunt of effort and another << Chakra: 40/100 >> → << 5/100 >> drain, he threw it not at the guards, but high onto the cliff face opposite the mine entrance, embedding it deep in a shadowed crevice. A hidden anchor point. Insurance.
Focus returned to the present. He dropped silently behind the two guards. Namikaze Perception showed their blind spots. Two precise, chakra-enhanced strikes to nerve clusters. They crumpled without a sound. << EXP +120 >>
Inside the dimly lit first tunnel, he avoided the patrol using cover and << Stealth >>. He found the leaders' quarters – a reinforced ore cart office. Voices inside: two men, one gruff (Level 14), one sharper (Level 13). Kaito couldn't take them head-on, not drained.
He used his remaining chakra carefully:
Placed Chakra Drain Traps along the patrol's return route.Set Crude Explosive Tags rigged to collapse a weak section of tunnel behind the office, cutting off retreat.Positioned himself near the prepared Phantom Lash Trap.
He whistled sharply, mimicking a bird call – the patrol's signal for trouble. The patrol rushed towards the sound... stepping onto the trigger glyph.
WHUMPH! The Temporal Binder flared. The lead thug froze mid-stride. The micro-teleport activated. With a sickening shunk, the frozen man vanished, reappearing directly onto the waiting spike trap. << Phantom Lash Trap Triggered! >> << Target Eliminated! >> << EXP +180 >>
The sudden violence and disappearance of their comrade panicked the remaining patrolman (Level 9). He stumbled back, triggering a Chakra Drain Trap, feeling the sting. Kaito blurred forward from the shadows, a silent takedown. << EXP +90 >>
The commotion alerted the leaders. The door slammed open. The Level 14 bruiser charged out, roaring. Kaito was exposed. He triggered the Explosive Tags behind the office. BOOM! Rock crashed down, sealing the office door and blocking the Level 13 leader inside. << Chakra: 5/100 >>
The bruiser (Level 14) charged Kaito, a massive axe raised. Kaito had no chakra left for Void Step or Earth Wall. He dodged desperately, << AGI: 19 >> saving him from the first swing. He pulled a smoke pellet – not a seal, just chemistry – and smashed it at his feet. Thick grey smoke billowed.
He ran, not away, but towards the cliff face where his Hiraishin Kunai was hidden. The bruiser roared, crashing through the smoke after him. Kaito reached the base of the cliff. The kunai was 20 meters up. He had 5 chakra. Activating the teleport was suicide.
But the marker was placed. He understood the anchor point. He poured his last << Chakra: 5/100 >> → << 0/100 >> into a desperate, instinctive pull towards the kunai, not a full teleport, but a spatial lurch.
<< Hiraishin no Jutsu - Partial Activation! >>
Kaito didn't vanish. He staggered, disoriented, appearing 15 meters up the cliff face, slamming hard into the rock just below the kunai's crevice. Agony lanced through him, but he was out of immediate reach.
The bruiser skidded to a halt below, staring up in confusion. "What the—?!"
A massive fist, wreathed in fire, slammed down from above, cratering the ground where the bruiser stood. Jiraiya landed amidst the dust, the bandit leader unconscious at his feet. He looked up at Kaito, clinging to the cliff.
"Flashy exit, brat," Jiraiya called, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Next time, maybe land on the ledge, not under it. Now get down. We've got loot to collect and a wall to unblock. Your sister's counting on that Ryo."
Kaito clung to the rock, panting, drained, aching, but alive. He'd used his new seal, touched the forbidden technique, and survived his first real mission as a Genin. The ghost was learning to strike. Level 40 felt distant, but the path was lit by stolen steel and the cold glow of a Hiraishin mark.