The Sixth Year of Konoha's Founding
Kenichi Sato's Age: 10 Years Old
Late June – The Evening After the Combat Exercises
---
The rain was light that evening. No noise filled the air, only the steady rhythm of droplets falling on the wooden roof.
In the backyard garden, Kenichi sat before a stone water basin—still as a rock.
He wasn't meditating to relax, but to understand.
He watched the movement of the water closely.
The reflection of his face rippled with every wave, as if his very self was still searching for stability.
---
Ever since receiving the Water Element Affinity from the Golden Lottery, something inside him had changed.
A memory flashed in his mind—a voice from his former life, his old physics teacher:
"Water changes form depending on energy: fog, steam, liquid, ice. Each form has its nature. Every phase carries a new behavior."
Water techniques were no longer just an "element."
He could hear it…
> "Water doesn't fight with force—it seeps, adapts, and returns after every fall."
He began experimenting.
He released a thin stream of water chakra, letting it rise into the air like a thread.
Then he recalled a soft breath inspired by the "Water Breathing" technique.
He tried to mimic the form of steam—releasing a small amount of water chakra into the cool air. It rose as a faint mist.
> "Mist sneaks in… it doesn't attack. Maybe I can use it for deception—or confusion."
He attempted to combine them…
But failed.
---
He sighed and opened his notebook, writing:
> "Water chakra = energy. Water breathing = method. The fusion needs a medium."
He closed the notebook and resumed.
This time, he inhaled slowly, focusing on the chakra flowing through his body before releasing it.
He drew a ring of water over the surface of the basin and tried to keep its shape.
The ring wavered… then held.
---
The next morning, he stood in the training yard—but didn't join the sparring matches.
Instead, he struck wooden targets, controlling the water in his palm.
Each punch left a deeper impression—not from brute force, but from soft internal pressure.
Not power… but precision.
Duy watched him and asked, "You trying to make water punch?"
Kenichi smiled. "I'm trying to make the punch flow like a wave."
Duy laughed, "All I know is how to punch!"
Kenichi laughed back, "But your punches break the ground, Duy."
---
In one of the corridors, a chunin observed from a distance.
It wasn't Tobirama—this was someone else, sent on a special mission.
He muttered to himself, "He's already experimenting with fusion… faster than expected."
Then vanished silently.
---
That night, Kenichi wrote in his notebook:
> "I imagined a technique. I don't have a name for it… but it's like something from an anime I saw."
"A sensory movement that detects water around you—like a radar, but soft."
"The more chakra used, the wider the range."
He lifted his head and stared at the ceiling.
> "I don't have to just fight… I can discover. I can stay one step ahead of danger."
---
And between the raindrops tapping against his window…
And the open notebook in front of him…
The first real idea for a technique of his own was born.