Custom Kunai

A genin who did not buy ordinary ninja tools but came to her family's shop definitely had special needs.

But praise aside, as a ninja tool expert from a ninja family, Tenten's expression grew more serious when the topic turned to chakra-conductive metal.

"There is metal that can conduct chakra."

Tenten lightly tapped the glass counter in front of her with her finger, producing two crisp sounds.

"But Konoha does not have much of this metal in stock. Normally, only jōnin and ANBU come to place orders for it, specifically to forge their own exclusive ninja tools."

"Because its output is extremely low, it must be refined repeatedly before it gains weapon-grade conductive properties. Usually, no one would use this material to make kunai."

"Can you afford it now?"

Naruto quickly did some calculations in his head.

Tenten was right. Chakra-conductive metal was simply not something a genin could afford. The reward he had saved from the Land of Waves mission, together with the money from the D-rank missions over the past few days, was nowhere near enough to buy the finished weapons displayed in Tenten's family's cabinets.

But he did not need finished weapons. He only needed the most basic kunai form, and he did not need many of them for now.

"I don't have much money, but I don't need to buy a lot of big things either."

Naruto drew his gaze back from the locked glass cabinets and spoke frankly. "Just a few kunai will be enough."

"A few... kunai?"

Tenten froze for a moment, then shook her head with a laugh. "I just told you this metal is precious enough to be sold by the gram, and now you're telling me you want to use it to make kunai?"

"Kunai are consumables. It's perfectly normal to throw out dozens in a single battle."

"You want to use chakra-conductive metal for consumables? Do you think it's ordinary iron ore?"

At that, Tenten could not help looking at Naruto with an expression caught between laughter and tears. Did this guy not know how expensive the metal was, or was he simply overestimating himself in some ways?

Naruto did not laugh. He asked seriously, "Then how much would it cost to make just five kunai out of chakra-conductive metal?"

Seeing Naruto's serious expression, Tenten realized that he was genuinely asking, not joking.

She lowered her arms from the counter, picked up the inventory ledger on it, and flipped to the last few pages. They were densely filled with purchase prices and processing fees for all kinds of rare materials.

Her finger moved down the entries line by line as her lips silently calculated for a while. Then she looked up.

"For five kunai, counting only the cost of the metal itself and the forging process, not including additional custom design fees, it would be about the reward for two B-rank missions."

She turned the numbers in the ledger toward Naruto for him to see. "But I should remind you that this is only the material cost and basic forging fee."

"If you want a special shape or dedicated chakra-conduction performance testing, that will cost extra."

Two B-rank missions.

Naruto subtracted the amount from his savings in his head, then took a frog wallet from his ninja tool pouch and counted all the bills and coins inside.

He placed all the money from his wallet on the counter.

"Tenten, I'd like to order two."

"This is the deposit."

Naruto pressed the bills against the counter and pushed them over. "I'll make up the rest after I complete my next mission."

Tenten looked at the money on the counter, then at Naruto, and nodded decisively.

"Fine, but I need to make this clear in advance. Almost no one uses chakra-conductive metal to forge ordinary kunai, so the shop doesn't have a ready-made mold. My dad will need to make a new mold by hand."

"He's been rather busy lately. With the Chūnin Exams approaching, the village has had quite a few more ninja tool orders. I don't know when he'll be free to make it."

"So you'll have to wait a while. I can't guarantee exactly when it'll be finished."

Naruto nodded in understanding.

Waiting was not a problem. The important thing was that he would get the items in the end.

After thinking for a moment, Naruto added, "As for the style, I want the special kunai used by the Fourth Hokage."

As he spoke, he raised his hand and gestured in the air. The kunai's handle was longer than the standard size, its blade wider so it could also be used as a short sword, and the handle was more convenient for forming hand seals with both hands.

Tenten had been recording the order details in the ledger. When she heard the words "the Fourth Hokage's special kunai," the tip of her pen poked a tiny blot of ink into the paper.

She looked up at Naruto, undisguised surprise flashing through her eyes.

"The Fourth Hokage's special kunai?"

"You really do have good taste. Very few people order that kunai style these days, because its handle is longer than a standard kunai's, and its weight distribution is different from ordinary models. Not everyone can use it."

"But since you specifically want that style, I'll write it down."

After recording the exact specifications, Tenten took out an ordinary kunai for reference and had Naruto compare the precise handle length and blade proportions.

Once they had confirmed all the details, Tenten counted the deposit and stored it in a safe beneath the counter engraved with sealing formulas. Then she tore off a small slip of paper, wrote down the order number and amount, made two copies, and gave one to Naruto.

"You're actually pretty lucky."

As she handed him the slip, Tenten casually added, "My dad happened to have something to do outside today, so he asked me to watch the shop."

"Normally, he and my mom take turns running the place. I only come help occasionally when I don't have missions and am not training."

"If you hadn't run into me today, forget custom orders—even for ordinary ninja tools from rental counters, you might have had to visit two more shops."

Naruto folded the order slip in half and tucked it into his ninja tool pouch.

"Then thank you, Tenten."

"Once your dad finishes them, just let me know anytime. Send a message or have a teammate pass it along, either is fine. I'll come pick them up."

"You're participating in the Chūnin Exams too, right?"

Tenten nodded and set her pen beside the ledger.

"Then I'll see you at the Chūnin Exams. Good luck."

Naruto nodded to Tenten, then pushed open the wooden door and walked out.

The bell above the door rang crisply again.

Naruto walked back along the street in the ninja district, his steps noticeably lighter than when he had arrived.

The matter of the Flying Raijin kunai was basically settled. Although he did not know exactly when he would receive them, at least he had established a way to get them.

After watching Naruto leave, Tenten closed the inventory ledger spread across the counter. She picked up her pen and wrote a small note on the stack of slips beside it, reminding her father about the details of the chakra-conductive metal order, then neatly arranged the scattered documents on the counter.