A training ground in the Hidden Leaf Village.
Naruto scratched his head. "Mister, is it really okay for to skip school today? If Iruka-sensei finds out, he's definitely going to punish !"
Jiraiya chuckled. "Don't worry, I've already taken care of your absence!"
Naruto asked, "Oh, then why did you bring here?"
"Of course, it's for secret training to defeat Sasuke!" Jiraiya struck a strange pose. "I'm the Toad Sage, and with my guidance, defeating Uchiha Sasuke will be a piece of cake!"
"Really?"
Naruto's spirits imdiately lifted.
"Of course!" Jiraiya nodded. "First, show your 'Three Basic Jutsu.' Let see the foundation of your ninjutsu."
Naruto looked confused. "Three Basic Jutsu!? What's that?"
"Huh?"
Having seen Sasuke, Shinji, and others perform various jutsu, Jiraiya had assud Naruto would know at least a little. But he didn't expect Naruto to have no idea what the 'Three Basic Jutsu' even were.
After explaining what the 'Three Basic Jutsu' were, Jiraiya demonstrated them a few tis with hand seals. "Now, give it a try!"
Naruto rolled up his sleeves and got to work.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't successfully perform any of the jutsu. Especially the 'Clone Jutsu,' which produced a bunch of strange, deford clones that didn't look human at all.
Jiraiya facepald.
Over the years, he had been traveling outside the village, either searching for the 'Child of Prophecy' ntioned by the Great Toad Sage or gathering information on Orochimaru. He had neglected to guide Naruto.
He had assud that Naruto, being the son of Minato and Kushina, would have so natural talent. But he didn't expect that at nearly eight years old, Naruto couldn't even perform the basic 'Clone Jutsu.'
At Naruto's age, Minato had mastered such techniques with just a glance.
"I've already shown you the hand seals. Now it's up to you to practice! If you want to defeat Sasuke, you can't slack off!"
After saying this, Jiraiya found a tree to lie under and leisurely dozed off.
Unknowingly, the day passed.
By evening, the sun was setting.
Jiraiya got up, yawned, and looked over to see Naruto still practicing the most basic 'Clone Jutsu.'
Naruto had taken off his outer shirt, his body drenched in sweat. Despite the exhaustion on his face, his excitent was unmistakable.
Seeing Jiraiya awake, Naruto shouted, "Mister, I did it! I did it!"
With Jiraiya's experience, he could tell Naruto had been training hard all day. But he didn't show it imdiately. Instead, he said, "Then show !"
Naruto imdiately ford the hand seals. "Clone Jutsu!"
Poof!
In a puff of white smoke, a shadowy figure appeared next to Naruto, resembling him about eighty to ninety percent.
Jiraiya was slightly impressed.
He knew Naruto's previous level. For Naruto to improve this much in just one day was indeed surprising.
Naruto looked proud. "How's that? Isn't it just like ?"
"Hmph, a clone that can be seen through at a glance is still a failure!" After a pause, Jiraiya added, "But since you did well today, let's go. I'll treat you to a al!"
"Aweso!"
Naruto jumped up excitedly.
Over the next few days, under Jiraiya's guidance, Naruto quickly mastered the 'Three Basic Jutsu' and beca more proficient in using chakra.
As Jiraiya got to know Naruto better, he realized that while Naruto wasn't a genius like Minato, he had his own unique strengths.
Especially that tenacity!
After another day of training and a hearty al, Naruto brought up the incident of stealing the 'Scroll of Seals.'
Naruto clasped his hands behind his head. "Mizuki-sensei said that to defeat Sasuke, I had to learn the secret techniques from the 'Scroll of Seals.' But I looked at the scroll, and the techniques on it were too hard. I couldn't learn any of them."
Jiraiya said seriously, "The 'Scroll of Seals' contains forbidden techniques. They're not sothing you should be ssing with right now!"
Naruto pouted. "Then when will I be able to defeat Sasuke?"
Jiraiya replied, "That day will co!"
Naruto shook his head. "No, I need to get stronger as soon as possible. Otherwise, Sasuke will change teammates, and Sakura will be heartbroken!"
"Girls are nothing but trouble!" Jiraiya muttered, then added, "Being a shinobi isn't a ga. Getting stronger requires hard work!"
Without a word, Naruto stood up and headed back to the training ground.
Jiraiya called out, "What are you doing?"
Naruto said, "I don't have ti to waste. I'm going to practice the 'Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu' from the 'Scroll of Seals'!"
Jiraiya smiled.
The difficulty of the 'Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu' wasn't much different from the regular 'Shadow Clone Jutsu.' The reason it was considered a forbidden technique and included in the 'Scroll of Seals' was purely due to its overwhelming power and the imnse risk it posed to the user.
But even so, the 'Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu' wasn't sothing a kid like Naruto, who had just barely mastered the 'Clone Jutsu,' could learn.
In the distance.
Kakashi and Asuma stood side by side on a tree branch, watching Naruto from afar.
"I didn't expect Lord Jiraiya to take the initiative to train Naruto," Asuma remarked.
Being trained by one of the Legendary Sannin was an opportunity many shinobi in the Hidden Leaf could only dream of. If word got out, not only would ordinary academy students be envious, but even the children of prestigious clans would be green with jealousy.
Kakashi said, "The threat of the Akatsuki is looming, and Naruto is one of their primary targets. Lord Jiraiya is doing this to help Naruto grow stronger as quickly as possible."
Asuma shook his head. "Compared to the monsters in the academy, Naruto is still lacking. No matter how hard he trains, he'll have a hard ti protecting himself against Akatsuki mbers."
Perhaps because he had seen too many geniuses like Sasuke, Shinji, Kimimaro, and Neji, Asuma's standards had beco quite high. As a result, his evaluation of Naruto wasn't very favorable.
Kakashi didn't argue.
His feelings toward Naruto ran deeper than most, but even he had to admit that compared to Sasuke, Naruto still had a long way to go.
Poof! Poof! Poof!
At that mont, a series of white puffs of smoke exploded on the training ground.
When the smoke cleared, countless Narutos appeared, filling the entire training ground!
"What!?"
Asuma, who had just been skeptical of Naruto, was completely stunned.
Kakashi instinctively lifted his headband, revealing his Sharingan. As he observed the training ground with his Sharingan, he confird that these Narutos weren't re illusions but actual shadow clones—so real that even the Sharingan couldn't distinguish them.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "Isn't this just too much?!"
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