In the next moment, Shinichi swung his hand upward.
Whoosh!
The crimson flame in his palm shot forward. The moment it left his hand, it didn't expand or dissipate. Instead, freed from the constraint of violent rotation, its shape became perfectly streamlined. Like a crimson arrow of fire, it tore through the freezing air with a sharp, piercing shriek!
It wasn't until the fiery arrow was halfway to its target that the highly condensed chakra structure inside seemed to reach a critical mass and suddenly released.
BOOM!
The crimson fire violently unfolded mid-air, instantly transforming into a blazing sea of fire that surged forward like a roaring tidal wave!
Wherever the fiery wave passed, the snow vaporized instantly, and the ground was left scorched black. The rolling heatwave blasted outward with a ferocious, man-eating intensity.
While its concentrated, pinpoint destructive power was far inferior to the Great Flame Rasengan, its area of effect, impact speed, and continuous burning damage surpassed that of a standard B-rank Fire Release. Furthermore, it carried a unique, condensed, driving sense of penetration!
This is!?
Nintaijutsu?!
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, stopped his pipe mid-air, a flash of pure astonishment erupting in his eyes.
With his profound mastery and vision as the "Professor of Ninjutsu," he captured the fundamental difference and the staggering potential of this jutsu the instant Shinichi unleashed it.
It had discarded the Rasengan's signature rotation and the explosive power brought by extreme compression. Yet, it successfully retained the absolute core advantages of the Rasengan system: it required no hand seals, activated instantly, and featured highly condensed chakra.
At the same time, it integrated Fire-nature chakra in a much more stable, easily shaped, and remotely controllable manner. This created a brand-new hybrid model that combined the long-range attack of ninjutsu with the high-efficiency characteristics of "chakra shape transformation."
This was a massive, groundbreaking, and entirely viable first step toward developing Fire Release Nintaijutsu!
The Third's heart pounded.
He clearly remembered that it was only half a year ago when Shinichi had first pitched the concept of creating a Fire Release Nintaijutsu system to him.
At the time, while he admired the boy's ambition, he also understood the immense difficulty involved. He had viewed it as a long-term goal that would take years, perhaps even decades, to explore.
He never expected that in such a short amount of time, the boy would navigate this path with such blistering speed and actually map out a practical route!
The jutsu before him was still a bit rough around the edges. Its power and completeness couldn't compare to a fully mature A-rank jutsu. However, the conceptual framework it displayed—and the unique understanding of chakra nature and shape transformation behind it—was undeniably the critical breakthrough needed to turn Fire Release Nintaijutsu from a mere concept into reality!
Right now, it still needed to be thrown, and its form was relatively simple.
But what if he kept going down this path?
The next step might be wrapping this highly condensed, stable Fire-nature chakra directly around his fists and feet for close-quarters combat.
Take it a step further, and it might even be possible to fuse Fire-nature chakra into his entire body—much like the Lightning Release Chakra Mode passed down through generations in the Hidden Cloud Village. He could create a Fire Release Chakra Mode unique to Konoha: a perfect fusion of offense and defense, granting unparalleled strength, speed, and explosive power!
Shinichi... he's actually completed the hardest part of Fire Release Nintaijutsu—going from zero to one—in such a short time!
This level of talent, perseverance, and the sheer creativity to forge a completely new path once again exceeded the Third's expectations.
He looked at the boy in the center of the field, whose breathing was steady and whose eyes were shining brightly. After a moment of silence, he spoke slowly.
"This..." He was about to call it a jutsu, but changed the term at the last second to better fit its current status as a move or technique. "Have you thought of a name for this move?"
Shinichi nodded, clearly prepared, and offered a concise, somewhat unique name: "Yamibarai."
"Or, to be more direct, you could call it 'Darkness Sweeper,' 'Darkness Hook,' or 'Dark-Dispelling Flame'—meaning a fire that drives away the dark."
"A fire that drives away the dark," the Third murmured, savoring the meaning of the name. He looked back at the scorched, blackened earth nearby and nodded. "It's a good name. It fits both its form and its nature. Now then, Shinichi... explain the specific concept behind this new approach of yours in detail. And... how did you manage to find this path—one that seems like a step backward, but actually opens up a whole new world—in such a short time?"
Shinichi organized his thoughts for a moment. He glanced at his right hand, which had just unleashed the flames, then looked at the Third Hokage and the Ape Demon King before explaining:
"Lord Third, the starting point for this approach actually circles back to our original goal: Fire Release Nintaijutsu."
He held out his left hand, palm up, as if holding something invisible.
"Traditional ninjutsu—whether it's the Great Fireball or the Phoenix Sage Fire—relies on hand seals to guide large-scale chakra shape and nature transformations to determine their power, range, and area of effect. They are powerful, but they take time to activate. Once released, their trajectory and range are basically fixed. They are incredibly difficult to use flexibly in high-speed taijutsu combat, let alone integrate directly with physical strikes."
"The core requirement of Nintaijutsu, however, is the seamless fusion of jutsu and martial arts. It demands that the application of chakra be extremely fast, condensed, and stable, and capable of changing instantly alongside the body's movements. The Hidden Cloud's Lightning Release Chakra Mode is the perfect example. They tame, compress, and cloak their entire bodies in violent Lightning-nature chakra, thereby gaining unparalleled strength, speed, and defense."
"My initial attempt with the Great Flame Rasengan was actually too aggressive," Shinichi admitted frankly. "I tried to forcibly fuse the two most violent characteristics of the Rasengan system—extreme compression and rotational tearing—with Fire Release right from the start, hoping to create an ultimate offensive weapon. But the facts proved that with my current chakra control and physical endurance, trying to master such a complex and highly unstable composite structure is far beyond my limits. The resulting backlash is simply too severe."
He changed the subject. "So, I adjusted my priorities and chose to temporarily abandon the pursuit of extreme compression and rotational tearing."
The Third nodded slightly.
"My new direction prioritizes safety, stability, and control," Shinichi continued. "I kept the most valuable advantages of the Rasengan system: seal-less casting and high-speed chakra condensation. But I shifted the focus to figuring out how to make that fast, highly condensed Fire-nature chakra form a stable, inert base state that is easy to shape and control remotely."
He raised his right hand again. A wisp of crimson, yet much more docile, flame condensed at his fingertips, burning quietly.
"This base state—or intermediate state—is the core of Yamibarai. Unlike the Great Flame Rasengan, its interior isn't constantly on the verge of violent detonation. It's more like a carefully forged, structurally stable crystal of fire. I can easily shape and maintain it in my palm because it's stable enough, massively reducing both the chakra cost and the risk."
"When I need to attack," Shinichi made a throwing motion, "I no longer have to expend massive amounts of mental focus to maintain a dangerous equilibrium. I just launch it, like throwing a kunai. During its flight away from my hand, its stable structure allows it to maintain its shape. It's only when it hits the target—or when I remotely trigger it—that the highly condensed Fire-nature energy inside instantly releases, creating an explosion or a continuous wave of fire."
He summarized: "The essence of Yamibarai is that it's the first—and currently most necessary—safety cornerstone I've built for the Fire Release Nintaijutsu system. It solves the fundamental problem of how to make high-power Fire Release safely, quickly, and stably accompany taijutsu movements."
"Right now, it acts as a fire shuriken that can be thrown safely. The next step is to try wrapping this stable form of fire around my fists and feet to create flaming punches and kicks, achieving true close-quarters Fire Release strikes. This will lay the groundwork for a more distant goal: a true Fire Release Chakra Mode."
"As for extreme compression and rotational tearing... I've only temporarily set them aside." Shinichi looked off into the distance. "Those will be future projects. Once my chakra control, physical toughness, and mastery over this base state of Yamibarai reach a higher level, I will try to integrate them back in, step by step."
"When that time comes, Yamibarai might evolve into a more powerful, advanced variant—and perhaps even feed back into improving the Great Flame Rasengan."
The Third Hokage listened quietly, the smoke from his pipe curling slowly into the air.
Shinichi's explanation was clear, methodical, and entirely grounded in real combat and system-building. There was nothing abstract about it.
He hadn't just explained the mechanics of his new move; he had clearly mapped out a development path—learning from failure, adjusting direction, and advancing step by step.
This clear-headed self-awareness, the solid, pragmatic steps, and the precise planning for long-term goals moved and gratified the Third far more than the raw power of the jutsu itself.
"Using a stable intermediate state as a foundation and transition to avoid the backlash, gradually moving toward a fusion with taijutsu..." The Third slowly repeated the key points, the admiration in his eyes growing deeper. "A brilliant approach, Shinichi. You didn't just find a way to solve the backlash; you found a practical, viable path to Fire Release Nintaijutsu."
He paused, his tone becoming more solemn. "Then, what you need to do next is follow this path. Constantly refine the stability of this fire carrier, your precision in controlling it, its adaptability when combined with different parts of your body, and its variations in different combat scenarios. This will require an immense amount of practice, testing, and improvement. I have high hopes for you on this path. Keep at it, my boy."
"Thank you, Lord Third!"