[Name: Jiraiya][HP: 885/885]
Naruto froze as the faint translucent screen flickered before his eyes. His gut tightened.
That HP bar… it was massive. Comparable to the black knights he had faced in Lordran. Flesh and bone that could take a beating and still keep moving.
But he knew better than to trust the numbers.
The system tracked only the surface. It could not measure the depth of a shinobi's chakra, experience, and most importantly their skill. Jiraiya's bar was just his foundation. The real danger lay in what the numbers did not show.
And this was one of the Legendary Sannin. A shinobi so powerful that Kakashi had not even considered asking for backup, even when Gato had threatened to send more assassins. Naruto should have felt awe. Instead, his blood boiled. Because here this man was, someone who carried the respect of the shinobi world, doing something so obscene to Tsunami of all people.
Respect and caution warred with rage, and rage won.
In an instant, twelve clones burst into existence, swirling into place like a living barricade between Jiraiya and the woman.
Tsunami's cry tore through the air. She clutched the water to her chest, arms trembling as though she could hide herself from the eyes that had already seen too much. One of Naruto's clones vaulted forward, pulling a blanket from a nearby clothesline and wrapping it tightly around her body before leaping away to safer ground.
Her shoulders shook as she gasped for breath, eyes wide and shining with tears of humiliation.
"Hey, hey, what is the big idea?" Jiraiya waved his hands, his grin sheepish, as if this were nothing more than a prank gone wrong. "You ruined the whole show, brat!"
Naruto's jaw clenched. He did not care if this man was a Sannin. Right now, all he saw was a pervert who dared look at Tsunami like a piece of meat. That alone was unforgivable. He snapped his fingers, and twelve clones immediately drew breath together.
"Wait, wait, hold on!" Jiraiya shouted. "We can talk this out, brat!"
The clones did not falter.
The humor drained from the toad sage's face. His hands slammed against the dirt.
Summoning Jutsu!
The ground cracked as ink spread outward, forming a wide seal. A plume of smoke exploded, engulfing the clearing. When it cleared, a massive toad stood tall, pale green skin glistening, patterned with golden streaks. Its purple eyes blinked slowly, framed by painted lashes. A bright violet bow stretched proudly across its back, fluttering in the heat of the fire. Red lipstick shone against its wide mouth, and blush pinked its cheeks.
"Jiraiya-chan, darling, what is the meaning of this?" the newly summoned toad cooed. "You dragged me away from my beauty routine. Do you have any idea how much effort it takes to keep this skin so perfectly radiant?"
Before Jiraiya could answer, the chorus of Naruto's clones roared in unison. Their chests swelled, air drawn deep into their lungs until their stomachs ballooned. A second later, the clearing exploded in fire.
Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!
Dozens of blazing spheres launched into the air, arcing forward in overlapping lines. They collided midflight, merging into a monstrous wave of black-speckled flame.
The toad blinked, lips curling into a painted smile. "So, you summon me to battle against flames this bold and beautiful? Very well. I shall not disappoint."
Its chest swelled, throat expanding until the skin bulged grotesquely. Then its mouth snapped open.
Water Style: Water Gun Jutsu!
A torrent of water shot forth. The pressure was so immense that the air rippled around it, droplets bursting into mist at the edges. Steam hissed where the two met, but the weight of Naruto's flames was too much for the water jutsu.
"Tch. It is not enough," Jiraiya muttered, forming a quick string of hand seals. He filled his lungs and exhaled with all the force his chakra could muster.
Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!
A hurricane burst from his lips, chakra sharpening the gust until it howled like a blade. The gale struck the toad's torrent, compressing it, twisting the water into a spiraling bullet so fast the air whined in protest.
The collision shook the clearing.
A deafening boom tore through the forest, sending shockwaves rippling through the soil. Trees bent nearly sideways, their leaves stripped clean. The air itself seemed to tear apart as a wall of boiling mist swallowed everything in sight.
Jiraiya hunched low, shielding his eyes with one arm, his white mane whipping violently in the gale. "Brat's serious about this…" he muttered under his breath.
The toad fanned its face dramatically with one webbed hand, lashes dripping with condensed steam. "Jiraiya-chan, darling, I must ask, what are we battling?"
Jiraiya was confused by the toad's comment, but he did not have time to ask further questions. Something slammed into him from nowhere, and he was hurled backward into the mist. He struck the ground hard, sliding across broken roots and stones, his white hair splaying around him as the air was knocked from his chest.
"Damn… how does the boy know an invisibility jutsu," he muttered, pushing himself upright, already making hand seals.
Left behind in the clearing was his summon. Gamariki adjusted the bow on his back, pouting as he turned toward the mist. "You know, how about we call this a truce? I really do not want to ruin my beauty routine over some tantrum."
His voice trailed off when Oscar emerged. The ravenous crystal lizard form glinted in the steam. Oscar's maw opened, releasing a guttural growl that reverberated like rocks grinding together.
"Oh my, what a grotesque little beast," Gamariki said, though his lips curled into a wicked smile. "But I suppose I cannot leave my darling Jiraiya-chan undefended. Very well. Let us dance."
Oscar lunged forward, rolling his crystalline body across the ground like a living boulder. Gamariki leapt into the air with surprising grace for his size, his bow fluttering as his body spun. His throat swelled, and with a sharp snap of his jaw he unleashed a stream of high-pressure water.
Water Style: Gunshot!
The lizard responded instantly, firing a shard of crystal from his gullet. The projectile met the water stream midair, exploding into a burst of steam and glittering fragments.
Gamariki landed lightly, perfectly unscathed. "Crystal release? Now that is a first. Tell me, little beast, which summoning clan spat you out? You certainly are not from any of the realms I know of."
Oscar's only reply was a flick of his tail as he launched a razor-edged crystal shuriken. It spun with a whistle, slicing through Gamariki's midsection. But instead of blood, the toad's body burst into water, collapsing into a puddle.
Oscar crouched low, confused. Then a heavy glob of thick, golden liquid slammed into his back. He screeched as the syrup clung to his body, pinning his limbs to the earth.
Water Style: Syrup Capture Field!
From the mist, the real Gamariki charged. His bow flared behind him like a banner as he bounded forward, lips painted with a smug grin. He landed before Oscar and placed a hand over the struggling lizard's head.
Yin Style: Kiss of a Hundred Illusions.
A strange shimmer passed from his lips, washing over Oscar's eyes. The lizard stiffened, body freezing as if trapped in invisible chains.
"That was a fun little scuffle, brat. But remember this: you cannot touch the fabulous beauty of Mount Myoboku. Not with tricks. Not with crystal. Never."
He turned his head, ears twitching as the clash between Jiraiya and Naruto echoed through the mist. The sound of clones bursting and explosions rolling made his brow furrow. "Strange… why is Jiraiya-chan not taking this seriously?"
His musings cut short when he felt something searing hot burn across his back. Cracks raced along his skin as jagged crystal began to spread, carving through his bow and locking tight into his flesh. He roared in pain, whipping his head around, only to see Oscar crawl free of his false restraints. The small lizard, back in his base form, slinked forward with slow, deliberate steps. His tiny claws scraped the dirt, his beady eyes glinting with intelligence.
Gamariki's breath caught. "You… were never caught in my genjutsu. You pretended. You let me think I had you, just to make me lower my guard."
Oscar tilted his head, chirping once, his scales flickering with residual chakra.
"You scheming little reptile!" the toad roared, beginning to weave hand signs.
But before he could complete the jutsu, sharp pain spiked in his neck. Two fingers pressed against a cluster of nerves, cutting his chakra flow instantly. Gamariki's eyes went wide as he turned his head. Kakashi Hatake stood beside him, calm and composed, his single visible eye cool as steel.
"What is the meaning of this, handsome dog?" Gamariki hissed, his tone suddenly dropping into something far less flamboyant.
"I apologize, Gamariki-san. But you must not use chakra with those crystals on your back. If you had forced a jutsu, they would have detonated, and you would be dead."
Gamariki froze, the realization sinking in as the heat of the crystals flared against his skin. He let out a long, dramatic sigh. "Tell Jiraiya-chan that he owes me for this indignity. I expect a day at the finest salon in the village when this is over."
Kakashi's eye curved into an amused crescent as he drew a kunai and carefully cut the crystals free, leaving shallow, bloody gouges in the toad's back. "I will tell him."
A puff of smoke engulfed Gamariki, and in the next moment he was gone, reverse summoned back to Mount Myoboku. Kakashi exhaled slowly and looked down at Oscar.
"You know," Kakashi murmured, his voice carrying the faintest edge of humor, "for something so small and cute, you are incredibly dangerous."
Oscar chirped proudly and leapt up onto Kakashi's head, settling between his silver spikes as if he owned the place.
A few minutes ago, something invisible slammed into Jiraiya from nowhere, the force like being hit by a battering ram. He was hurled backward into the mist, crashing through roots and tumbling over broken stones. His white mane fanned out as he struck the ground hard, the air leaving his lungs in a sharp grunt.
"Damn it…" Jiraiya wheezed, rolling to his feet. "How does the brat know an invisibility technique?"
His fingers blurred through hand seals.
Barrier: Canopy Method Formation!
Chakra rippled outward in a translucent dome, a sensory net woven from his own chakra threads. It spread through the mist, brushing over trunks, stones, and leaves. Every living thing inside the bubble stirred faint impressions in his mind. It was not sight, not sound, but something deeper. A sixth sense telling him exactly where Naruto moved, regardless of tricks.
Jiraiya flexed his toes, sliding into a stance low to the ground, weight shifting into his legs. The boy came at him again, fists raised in a boxer's guard.
"Not bad, brat. You've got guts charging straight at me," Jiraiya said, raising his leg in a frog-like stance. "But I'll warn you now. Toads do not punch. We kick!"
Naruto drove forward, flickering in with a jab, then a quick hook. Jiraiya bent his knee unnaturally low, his foot whipping up in a snapping arc that caught Naruto's guard and sent him skidding back. Naruto ducked low and drove in again, fists like pistons. Jiraiya hopped backward, springing forward off the balls of his feet, and lashed out with a heel aimed at Naruto's chest. The impact rang like a drum, knocking the boy a step back.
The two circled in the mist, Naruto throwing combinations, Jiraiya parrying with sharp kicks and sweeps, his barrier always tracking the boy no matter how he tried to vanish.
Naruto clicked his tongue, sliding out of reach. His body shimmered faintly, his invisibility starting to distort. "So… it's not my spell failing. You're using some kind of detection jutsu."
"Smart kid," Jiraiya admitted, never lowering his guard. "This barrier picks up movement and chakra flow. In here, you could turn yourself into a ghost and I'd still smell you out."
Naruto leapt back, already flashing through signs. "Then I'll just drown you in targets!"
A burst of chakra filled the air as dozens of shadow clones formed in rapid succession. They fanned out, darting through the trees, some immediately spitting Wind Style: Bullet Barrages. Compressed gusts tore through the fog, each one sharp enough to splinter bark and gouge earth. Jiraiya twisted between them with surprising agility, his barrier flaring to warn him of each angle of attack.
Then he paused. The mist parted, and his grin faltered for half a beat.
Naruto's form shimmered into view, surrounded by a dozen clones… all women.
Jiraiya's grin spread wide, and he pumped his fist in the air. "Aw, hell yeah!"
Naruto smirked, arms folded. "Heh. Thought so. I figured if I can't beat your strength, I'll beat your weakness. Every guy in the village knows about perverts like you. So I combined two of the deadliest forces in existence…" He raised a hand like he was announcing the final act of a play.
"Sexy Jutsu: Thousandfold Heavenly Maiden Greatbow Execution, Shadow Clone Variant, Version Seven!"
The name went on and on until even his clones looked confused. Jiraiya sweatdropped, lowering his head slightly. "Kid… you could've just called it Sexy Bow Girls and saved yourself a breath."
"Shut up, old man! This is artistry!" Naruto barked, pointing forward. "Firing Squad!"
The clones pulled back their strings. Chakra flared. A storm of arrows shot out at sonic speed, glittering in the mist, each one leaving faint heart-shaped trails in the air.
Jiraiya's grin slipped into horror as he realized the arrows were real, not just illusions. His hands flew together. "Aw, hell nah!"
Ninja Art: Needle Jizō!
His hair writhed, lengthening and hardening into thousands of steel-like quills that wrapped around him in a dome. The arrows shattered against it with sparks, snapping one after another until the ground was littered with broken shafts.
Inside the cocoon of his own hair, Jiraiya muttered, "Damn brat… using my weakness against me." His voice echoed out loud now, sharper. "Alright, enough playing around. Stop this, Naruto, or else."
Naruto did not answer. He only raised his hand, signaling his clones to attack again.
"Stubborn brat!" Jiraiya roared. His hair quills flexed outward.
Ninja Art: Needle Hell!
The air screamed as thousands of hardened hair needles shot outward in a storm. The sexy clones were shredded in bursts of smoke, the needles tearing holes into the ground and trees until it looked like the clearing had been caught in a hailstorm.
The original Naruto used the Black Knight Shield, absorbing the worst of the barrage. He pushed the shield down, smoke rising from it where needles had struck, and glared through the haze.
Jiraiya stood in the middle, hair slowly retracting, breathing steady but his expression more serious now. "You've got guts, I'll give you that. Hell of a first meeting, kid."
Naruto responded by unsheathing his zweihander, pulling it from his pouch, which was actually just a cover for the inventory.
It looked comical.
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, lips quirking. "Kid… that's the most ridiculous thing I've seen all week. You really want to play swordsman with me?"
His grin faded, expression hardening.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Smoke burst in front of him. When it cleared, Jiraiya was gripping a slate-grey blade. The weapon was brutal in its own way. The pommel was hollow and circular, a chain looping from pommel to hilt, and the long wide blade was veined with faint, unnatural markings that looked like molten scars frozen into steel.
He lifted it with surprising grace, twirling the chain once to test its balance before dropping into stance.
"I warn you, brat. I was trained by one of the finest masters of the blade. Don't think this old man can't cut you down just because you're flashy."
Naruto slid into a guard, zweihander leveled low, both hands braced. "You talk too much."
The ground cracked when they moved.
Jiraiya came forward first, blade whistling as he brought it down in a two-handed arc. Naruto met it head-on, the zweihander rising in a master cut. The shock of impact rattled the air, sparks flying as steel scraped against steel. Naruto's arms bent and shifted, letting the weight roll past instead of meeting it straight. The motion was fluid, practiced as he slid Jiraiya's blade aside with the edge and countered with a thrust that would have skewered the toad sage had he not twisted away.
"Tch. You've got real form," Jiraiya muttered, chain jingling as he swung his blade out wide to reset. "You didn't learn that in the Academy."
Naruto answered with silence, eyes sharp. He advanced. His zweihander cut in high, then low, then side into a flowing sequence of master cuts, each designed not only to kill but to close off an opponent's possible counters. Jiraiya parried one, blocked another, but each clash shoved him back an inch at a time.
"You fight like a damn samurai," Jiraiya grunted, barely deflecting another downward chop. He tried a trick, snapping the chain to wrap Naruto's blade and pull it wide. Naruto anticipated it, twisting his wrists and rolling the zweihander free, punishing the attempt with a pommel strike that nearly cracked Jiraiya's jaw.
The sannin staggered, spitting blood. He barked a laugh even through the sting. "You little bastard. You've got me sweating. It's been years since anyone pressed me with steel."
Naruto pressed harder. A feint cut high drew Jiraiya's guard; the true cut came low, a sweeping strike at the legs. Jiraiya jumped back, sandals skidding across dirt, and threw his own riposte, blade cutting in a vicious diagonal. Naruto leaned aside, the zweihander angling into a hanging guard, then rippled downward to slice into Jiraiya's defense. The sannin barely managed to shove it away with raw strength.
"Damn it," Jiraiya muttered between breaths, chest heaving. "You're reading me like a book. Every cut you make, it's like you already know where I'm going."
Naruto exhaled slowly, not smug, just calm. His stance never faltered.
The fight went on for several more exchanges, the clearing echoing with the clash of steel and the hiss of blades cutting the mist. But it was becoming clear. Jiraiya's strikes, while powerful and creative, lacked the same precision. His swordsmanship was effective, yes, but not pure. He relied too often on raw force, on improvisation, on tricks. Naruto's movements were exact, trained, drilled. Every cut, every guard, every counter came from an understanding of the blade that far surpassed mere combat instinct.
It all ended with Jiraiya having Naruto's massive sword buried through his stomach. Or so it seemed. The sannin grimaced, blood at the corner of his lips, but even then he chuckled. "You're full of surprises, brat… but remember this. A shinobi doesn't win with strength alone. We fight with deception."
The body burst apart in a concussive pop of chakra.
Ninja Art: Exploding Shadow Clone.
Naruto had leapt back due to the Way of Focality pulling his awareness sharp as the clone detonated in a burst of force and smoke. But the blast itself betrayed him. The light cast a clear, stretched shadow across the broken ground.
That was all Jiraiya needed.
Toad Subjugation: Art of the Manipulated Shadow.
Jiraiya's form melted into ink-like darkness and merging with Naruto's shadow. The boy froze mid-step, his muscles locking as though invisible chains bound him.
From the shadow at his feet, Jiraiya's head rose, eyes sharp. "It's over, kid. Stop struggling. If you don't yield, I'll knock you out and drag you back to Kakashi myself. No more games."
Naruto's jaw tightened. His lips moved, murmuring words in a language Jiraiya didn't recognize. The syllables rolled like a prayer.
[ Force Miracle has been attuned. ]
The Thorolund talisman manifested in Naruto's palm. Before Jiraiya could react, a shockwave erupted outward in every direction. It was like a bell made of pure force had been struck inside the forest. The wave tore through the mist, uprooted dirt, and stunned the sannin long enough for Naruto to wrench free.
With telekinesis, Naruto ripped Jiraiya out of his own shadow, dragging the sannin's body into his grasp. He seized his throat with crushing strength.
A puff of smoke burst. In Naruto's grip, a log, being shredded under Naruto's grip.
Substitution Jutsu.
Jiraiya reappeared several meters away, landing in a crouch. He rubbed his neck and gave a crooked grin. "Wow. Looks like you really do want me dead. Guess I should start taking you seriously."
Naruto's eyes burned. He formed a spear of lightning in his hand, the crackling energy casting harsh shadows across the trees.
The hair on Jiraiya's arms rose. He could feel it. That wasn't a simple elemental jutsu. If it landed, he would not walk away unscathed. His smile vanished. He cupped his hand, chakra spiraling violently.
Rasengan!
The two attacks collided midair. Lightning and spiraling chakra ground against each other for a heartbeat before exploding in a thunderclap that shook the entire clearing. Both fighters were hurled back, smashing into trees, rolling across the earth.
Jiraiya was first to recover. He slammed a hand into the ground, blood on his lip but eyes fierce.
Summoning Jutsu: Toad Mouth Bind!
The ground twisted beneath Naruto's feet. Fleshy, pulsing walls surged up around him, slick with mucus and muscle. He struggled as the grotesque, living walls clamped around his body, binding him from the neck down. The reek of stomach acid burned his nose.
He braced to trigger another miracle, when a hand touched the top of his head. His helmet was lifted away, golden hair spilling free.
Naruto's eyes widened. He looked up.
Kakashi stood there, calm but firm, the helm tucked under his arm. "It's over, Naruto."
Jiraiya straightened, exhaling. "Damn right it is. Kid's tougher than I thought." His eyes lingered on the golden hair and the whisker-marked cheeks, his chest tightening at the strong resemblance to Minato.
Naruto grit his teeth, then let out a long sigh. He hated it. He hated that Jiraiya never once fought him at full intent, hated that his chance to punish the man slipped away. But Kakashi was right. He had pushed his limit.
"Fine," Naruto spat, looking down in frustration. Then he forced a grin and shouted, "I'm not gonna kill this old pervert… for now. Dattebayo!"
A minute later, Naruto found himself by the side of the stream, scrubbing stubborn stains from his armour. He dunked his overgarment roughly into the cold water, scowling the whole time.
"Need any help?" Kakashi asked, holding a drowsy Oscar in his arms.
"No," Naruto grumbled, his voice clipped as he wrung the cloth out hard enough that droplets sprayed.
Jiraiya crouched nearby, watching with his arms folded. His sharp eye roved over the Elite Knight set, taking in the craftsmanship. "That is some armour you've got there, brat. A proper composite set unlike the samurai's armour. Mail hauberk with plate reinforcement, leather straps keeping the weight in place, and even a textile surcoat. Not something you see every day."
He raised a brow as his hand caught the red cape drying on a rock. Jiraiya picked it up between his fingers and smirked. "You know, you should not wear a cape. On the battlefield, someone could grab it and send you flying. Out in the woods, it will snag on branches and slow you down. Shinobi gear is supposed to be compact, efficient."
Naruto set his jaw and scrubbed harder, deliberately ignoring the advice.
"Jiraiya-sama is right," Kakashi said mildly. "But if I recall correctly, your armour did not come with a cape in the first place."
Naruto hesitated, ears turning red. "…I added it."
"Where from?"
"Stole it from the Balder Knights," Naruto muttered, cheeks burning.
Jiraiya blinked. "The who?"
Kakashi nodded as though he understood completely, sparing Naruto the trouble. "I see. And why exactly did you add it?"
Naruto's shoulders sagged. "…Because it looked cool."
Jiraiya burst out laughing, loud and unrestrained. "Hah! You really are something else, kid."
"Shut up, you pervert! I do not need advice from someone like you!" Naruto snapped, pointing at him as if he were scolding a cat.
Jiraiya raised his hands in mock surrender. "All right, all right. But for the record, if you wore something more streamlined, the ladies would be lining up. With that body of yours, no cape is needed to impress them."
Naruto's irritation faltered, replaced with a sly grin as he flexed one arm. "You think so?"
Oscar covered his face with his tiny claws and let out a groaning chirp.
"Wait… hey!" Naruto pointed, half-flustered. "I know what you are trying to do. You cannot trick me into forgiving you for your crimes with compliments!"
Oscar chirped again as if to say then stop flexing, but Naruto defiantly flexed harder, striking another pose.
"Oh, come on," Jiraiya said with a scoff. "So your armour got a little stinky from some intestinal juices. Big deal."
"You are a shameless bastard," Naruto shot back, his mood souring. He scrubbed harder, muttering loud enough for them to hear. "A man like you should be castrated."
"Now, now, brat. That is too far. Do you know how many women would mourn if that happened? The economy of the hot spring towns would collapse overnight!"
Kakashi noticed the vein on Naruto's forehead throb and spoke evenly. "Jiraiya-sama, I will be reporting your behavior to Lord Third."
Naruto's glare did not waver. "Tell him to stay away from the people I protect."
"Jiraiya-sama, please behave yourself. The Hokage will reprimand you if this continues."
Jiraiya raised both hands in exaggerated surrender, forcing a laugh. "All right, all right! Let us not act like I am some criminal dragged into court. I just happened to be… appreciating the view."
Naruto's voice dropped into a venomous mutter. "Bastard thinks he can get away with crime just because he's strong."
The words stung sharper than any kunai. For a heartbeat, Jiraiya's grin faltered. Then, unwilling to let the brat dictate the mood, he straightened his spine, clapped his hands together, and said loudly, "Well, it seems we skipped a proper introduction. Allow me to correct that little mistake!"
He slapped his palm to the ground. Chakra surged outward, etching a massive seal into the dirt in bright lines of ink.
Summoning Jutsu!
With a thunderous poof of smoke and a quake that rattled the trees, a gigantic red toad appeared beneath him.
Perched proudly atop its head, Jiraiya struck a flamboyant pose, one leg bent high, white hair spilling dramatically behind him. He raised his hand skyward, his teeth flashing in a grin that gleamed unnaturally bright.
"I am the holy hermit sage of Mount Myōboku! Master of the Toads! Behold, the great Toad Sage… the Gallant Jiraiya!"
His voice boomed with such gusto that birds took flight from the nearby trees.
Oscar gave a single confused chirp.
Naruto did not even blink. He just muttered, "No."
The armour he had been cleaning shimmered and vanished, dissolving into light as if erased from existence.
Jiraiya's jaw dropped so far his pipe nearly fell out. "No? What do you mean no?! And what in the hell was that?! Kakashi! Did you see this?"
"I saw."
"And you're calm about it?!"
"I have seen stranger with Naruto."
Naruto ignored both of them and stood up. "Me and Oscar have been planning a way cooler introduction. I throw him into the air, he transforms into his Ravenous Crystal Lizard form, drops down like a meteor, and I strike a pose beside him. Then we announce ourselves together. That's how you do an entrance."
Both older shinobi sweatdropped.
Oscar gave a long-suffering chirp.
"Fine, fine," Naruto muttered. He lifted the little lizard into his palm with a tug of telekinetic pull.
Jiraiya's stomach turned as he caught sight of the strange eye glaring from Naruto's palm. His instincts screamed at him. He looked at Kakashi, silently demanding, Are you seriously fine with this?
Kakashi, of course, remained perfectly unruffled.
Jiraiya hopped down from his toad, shaking his head. "Brat, listen. If you are going to make a dramatic introduction, you need rhythm. Brevity. Impact. You need to strike a line that makes women swoon, men shiver, and enemies second guess fighting you. Something like—" He raised his arm again, grinning. "The Gallant Jiraiya!"
"That's lame. Sounds like a discount kabuki play."
"What did you say, brat?"
"You heard me. Ours was way better."
Oscar puffed his chest in agreement.
Kakashi's eye curved in a quiet smile. "Naruto, introductions won't save you in a real battle."
"Yeah," Naruto muttered. "But they'll make me look cool doing it."
He yawned wide. "Okay, sensei, I'm going to sleep."
"Sleep? It's barely five in the morning."
"Yeah, so?" Naruto grumbled as he took out a shirt from his inventory. "I haven't slept at all. Sleep doesn't catch you when you're busy fighting gargoyles, killing scammer cultists, joining the God of War covenant with my sunbro, and learning how to go invisible."
The words hit Jiraiya like a kunai to the forehead. His eyes went wide, and he slipped right onto his ass in the dirt. "Wait, wait, wait… what did you just say?! God of War? Gargoyles?! What kind of nonsense—"
"I think you should get some sleep, Naruto," Kakashi said smoothly, unbothered.
Naruto clicked his tongue in irritation. He liked when Kakashi raised an eyebrow or gave him that sharp stare at his Lordran stories. Now the jōnin was too calm, too indifferent, and it made all his adventures sound ordinary.
And Naruto hated that.
Now as the duo walked back into camp, Naruto's mind wandered to the strange ball of chakra Jiraiya had used in the fight. The memory burned in his head like a spark he could not let go of.
Maybe I should ask him to teach it…
Naruto stopped the thought cold, his jaw tightening. No. I do not want to owe that pervert anything if I can help it.
Instead, he clenched his fist, eyes narrowing with determination. I will figure this out. It looked simple enough. Just chakra control. Rotation. Power.
He held his palm out, chakra welling in his hand. Guided by his high intelligence stat and sharp memory, he recalled the motion: a swirling cyclone that Jiraiya had conjured effortlessly.
A faint spiral flickered into existence. The chakra twisted, spinning like a flickering candle in the wind. It built up, pressure mounting, but then shuddered violently. With a small pop, it sputtered out, leaving nothing but a tingle in his palm.
Naruto shook his hand with a hiss. "Tch. Close, but not close enough."
Behind him, both Kakashi and Jiraiya froze mid-step, staring.
"Oi, brat!" Jiraiya nearly ripped Naruto's shoulder off as he spun him around. His eyes were wide, his voice sharp. "Where the hell did you learn that?"
"I just tried to recreate what you did. Looked easy."
The silence that followed could have swallowed the whole area. Both Jiraiya and Kakashi's jaws dropped.
"Brat!" Jiraiya barked, shaking him once. "Do you have any idea what you just tried to pull off? That jutsu is one of the Fourth Hokage's legacies! It is called Rasengan! A high-level, A-rank ninjutsu! It took him three years to perfect it!"
Naruto's eyes went wide. The name hit him like a hammer. "Three years? Just to spin chakra in a ball?"
"Not just spin it!" Jiraiya snapped, his voice fierce now. "It is a technique of compression and rotation. Pure chakra, condensed to the point of explosive impact. No hand seals. No elemental crutch. Pure control. A sphere so dense that it tears through anything it touches. That is why it is considered one of the most advanced forms of shape manipulation in existence. Most jōnin cannot even form it."
Naruto swallowed, his breath quick. A technique like that… yes, he could feel it in his bones. A jutsu that could rival his Lightning Spear miracle. His heart thumped faster with excitement.
Curious, he asked, "So… how do you know it?"
Jiraiya straightened his back, his chest puffing up with pride. "Because I was the Fourth Hokage's teacher."
The declaration rang out like thunder.
Naruto gasped. "Wait. You trained the Fourth?"
"Damn right I did!" Jiraiya grinned proudly. "That genius brat was my student. The Rasengan was his masterpiece. One of his finest creations. You should be honored just to see it in action."
Naruto's head spun with the revelation. But then a thought cut in, nagging, bitter. "Then what was his relation to Artorias?"
"Who?"
"Artorias," Naruto repeated, confused. "You know, Knight Artorias?"
Jiraiya turned to Kakashi for backup. The jōnin shrugged. "Never heard of him."
Naruto's brow furrowed. A pit of frustration built in his gut. How could the teacher and student of the Fourth Hokage not know of Artorias? Did the Fourth keep his time in Lordran secret? Why would he hide something like that?
The unanswered questions gnawed at him until his temples ached. Finally, the boy clutched his head and shouted in exasperation, "Es reicht! I just want to sleep!"
"...What language was that?"
Neither Jiraiya nor Kakashi understood that Naruto had accidentally shouted in Catarina dialect. A habit he had picked up from Siegmeyer during their training sessions. Naruto did not bother explaining this as he just wanted to sleep.
"Wait!" Jiraiya jogged after him. "What about the Rasengan?"
"What about it?"
"You want me to teach it to you, don't you?" Jiraiya's grin returned, sly and hopeful. This was his chance to reel the brat in, to start earning his respect.
Oscar chirped from Naruto's shoulder, the sound almost like a snicker. The lizard's body language screamed, Say no. Shoot him and go to sleep.
"Nein," Naruto said bluntly, swatting at Oscar before he could nip his fingers.
Jiraiya's face fell. "What? But—"
Naruto waved him off, already vanishing in a flicker of motion. "I'll figure it out myself after I get my beauty sleep."
And just like that, he was gone.
The toad sage stood dumbfounded, his jaw slack. "...Did that brat just refuse me?"
Kakashi walked past, hands in his pockets, eye curved in a faint smile. "Seems like it."
Jiraiya whirled on him. "Kakashi! He tried to recreate the Rasengan on his first attempt! Do you know how insane that is?"
"I do," Kakashi said calmly.
"Then why are you not freaking out?!"
Kakashi tilted his head. "Because that is just Naruto."
Jiraiya honestly had no words as he rubbed the back of his wild white hair, sighing. "The brat's… something else. He's got Minato's talent, Kushina's fire. A prodigy with that calm control, then the next second, pure storm. Spitting image of his mother in the face, but carrying his father's features."
Kakashi gave a quiet hum, one visible eye narrowing in thought. "On the surface, yes. But Naruto's not just his parents put together. He's his own person. Different from them, yet he reflects both of them at the same time. Like a mirror bent at an angle... you see the same image, but it comes back at you in a way you don't expect."
"So, Hatake… do you think the boy's ready? To know the truth about them?"
Kakashi didn't hesitate. "Physically, he's more than ready. You saw what he did to you earlier. Emotionally?… I think he deserves the truth, whether he's ready or not. If it were my choice, I'd have already told him. Keeping him in the dark only makes the burden heavier."
Jiraiya's brows drew low. He rubbed his chin, thinking. "Hmph. Maybe. I'll test the waters. If your read on him's right, maybe I can mend things with him first before I try and drop the whole mess of his heritage on his head."
Kakashi gave a small nod. "That's fair."
Jiraiya cracked a grin, patting Kakashi on the shoulder. "But I'll give you this... you've done damn well with him. Kid fights like a beast. I can't even imagine what kind of forbidden tricks you taught him to turn him into this."
"Nothing like that," Kakashi replied coolly. "I gave him guidance where I could. The rest… Lordran shaped him."
Jiraiya's face sobered at that word. Lordran. He'd heard the name from Kakashi already, a place that felt like half nightmare, half proving ground. "So that Lightning Spear of his. Yours, or theirs?"
"Lordran," Kakashi said simply. His gaze went distant. "That technique… it's something else. Pure speed, power compressed into a single strike. I honestly don't know if my Raikiri could stop it. If the two collided, I'm not sure which one would cut through."
Jiraiya let out a low whistle. "Now that's a thought. A real clash of lightning."
That did bring up an interesting thought for the white-haired man.
Should I teach Chidori to Naruto? Kakashi wondered, his single eye narrowing as he pictured it. The boy already had that monstrous long-range power in the form of the Lightning Spear, but what he lacked was a close-range finisher. Chidori could be the answer, a blade of living lightning in his hand to complement the spear he hurled across the battlefield.
But the Sharingan user knew better than anyone that Chidori was a double-edged weapon. Its speed was both its strength and its curse. The technique drove its wielder forward in a blur, so fast the world collapsed into a tunnel. That narrowed focus made the strike devastating, but also left the user blind to counters. Without the Sharingan, without the ability to read and predict movements in that tunnel, the jutsu could be suicide.
That was why Kakashi had hesitated to teach it outside the Uchiha.
But then his thoughts turned back to Naruto. The brat was not normal. He had those eyes… Hawkeyes.
A hawk did not simply dive. When it locked onto prey, it could see the shimmer of scales on a fish beneath rushing water from a hundred feet above, even as the ground tore past in a blur. Hawks folded their wings tight and let gravity hurl them at speeds beyond thought, yet even then, their vision remained sharp, wide, alive. They could track not only their target, but the movements of the world around it, adjusting with subtle flicks of their wings. A hawk in its dive was not blind; it was focused, alive to every twitch of its prey, every gust of wind.
Naruto's eyes might give him that same gift. The tunnel vision of Chidori could become a predator's tunnel, not a weakness but a refinement. He would not just be charging blind; he would be hunting, reading the smallest shifts, correcting his angle in the blur. If any shinobi without a Sharingan could make Chidori his own, it was the boy with the gaze of a hawk.
Kakashi let out a slow breath. The possibility was there…
"You're a little too deep in thought there, kid. What's rattling around in that masked head of yours?"
Kakashi exhaled softly. "I owe three jutsu to Naruto already. It has me wondering… what would happen if I taught him the Chidori?"
That made Jiraiya blink. Then he barked out a laugh and shook his head. "That's a stupid idea." He jabbed a thumb at Kakashi, half amused, half serious. "The brat can't even use a complete Rasengan yet. Chidori was born from a failed attempt to add lightning chakra to the Rasengan in the first place. Teaching him a jutsu that can get him killed. That's reckless, even for you."
Kakashi didn't flinch. He kept his calm tone, though there was an edge of conviction to it. "I am aware. But even a failure can lead to something great. Chidori may not be Rasengan, but it's still a technique strong enough to stand beside it. If Naruto can wield both… if he can refine them together… maybe he could succeed where I failed. Maybe he could truly add lightning to Rasengan."
"That's some daydream you're spinning there. Mixing oil and water. You're betting a lot on a kid who still blurts out whatever's in his head."
"I wouldn't underestimate him. Naruto is the number one most unpredictable ninja for a reason. He has a way of turning impossibility into routine."
For a moment Jiraiya just stared at him, weighing the conviction in Kakashi's voice. Then, slowly, a grin spread across his face, toothy and proud. "Heh. You really believe in the brat, don't you?" His eyes softened just a little, as if remembering another blond-haired knucklehead from years ago. "Well, if that's the case… then I look forward to seeing it too."