When Kimimaro returned to the Land of Vegetables, he unexpectedly saw Uzumaki Naruto.
"Why is he here?"
He mentally communicated with the system:
[Do we still need the Nine-Tails' chakra from Naruto?]
[No. The chakra extracted from Sora is sufficient.]
Naruto dashed over with a wide grin. "Yo! Kimimaro, you're finally back! The Pervy Sage and I have been waiting here for days. The food's great, by the way."
Kimimaro stood before him, gaze steady. "You've grown taller."
Naruto blinked. "Tch, you're still taller than me," he muttered, then turned to glance at the others. "But you... you feel familiar."
Sora stared at Naruto, his expression unreadable. Something about him resonated, as if they shared a bond he couldn't quite explain.
"No need to guess, Naruto," Kimimaro said flatly. "Sora once had a small fragment of the Nine-Tails' chakra sealed in him. I've already purged it."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, seriously? You can do that?"
"It was just a remnant," Kimimaro clarified. "A sliver. Your case is far more complicated—Kurama is sealed within you in full. Cleansing that is impossible… at least for now."
He silenced Naruto's next question with a cold look. Even with the Sharingan and Wood Release, subduing the Nine-Tails was far beyond him. Mangekyō Sharingan might grant some suppression ability, but true control would require far more—perhaps Hashirama's level of mastery.
Naruto scratched his cheek awkwardly. "Yeah, guess that makes sense."
Then his grin returned. "Oh right! Last time we fought, I realized afterward there was a jutsu I should've used on you. I think it might work this time!"
He raised a hand, flashing a familiar hand seal. "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
A dozen Narutos puffed into existence around him. "Harem Jutsu!"
Clouds of smoke erupted, revealing a throng of curvaceous women in suggestive poses—each clearly Naruto in disguise.
Kimimaro's eye twitched. He staggered slightly, then wordlessly dispatched the illusions with a flick of his hand and a burst of chakra. The clones dissipated in smoke.
Naruto flopped onto the ground, groaning. "Seriously? That always works! Even on the Pervy Sage!"
Kimimaro shook his head, exasperated. "I'm not interested. I have someone already… and besides, I know it's you under the transformation."
Naruto blinked. "Wait, you have a girlfriend?"
Kimimaro didn't answer. He simply turned and walked away, cloak fluttering behind him.
A few moments later, Jiraiya arrived, grinning proudly. "Heh. You've got better willpower than me, kid."
Kimimaro gave him a sidelong glance. "I don't consider that something to be proud of."
Jiraiya laughed. "Fair enough. But you've really impressed me. I never expected you to stabilize an entire country so quickly. You're making me look bad for calling myself your teacher."
Kimimaro offered a calm smile. "When I agreed to become your disciple, it was more out of respect than necessity. But if you're willing to teach me jutsu, I won't refuse."
"Truth be told, I doubt there's much I can teach you now," Jiraiya admitted, scratching his head. "What I taught Naruto—mainly the Rasengan—was passed down from the Fourth Hokage. And the real game-changer I know is Sage Mode… but that takes training at Mount Myōboku. It can't be learned anywhere else."
"I understand," Kimimaro said. "Still, if I'm also your student, don't show too much favoritism."
Jiraiya chuckled. "You wiped out five Root agents like it was nothing. At this point, you might be teaching me soon."
Kimimaro didn't respond, but his mind was already on the future. He had power now, but not enough. Not yet.
Kimimaro spoke calmly, "It's fine. You can demonstrate the Rasengan. Naruto used it against me last time, but I didn't get a clear look. I'd like to observe it properly. As for Sage Mode… while I haven't trained at Mount Myōboku, I believe Mr. Jiraiya can share his experience with it. Ninjutsu techniques often have underlying principles in common—I might be able to learn from that."
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Right, you've got Orochimaru's Cursed Seal… You've probably had your share of unnatural power boosts. But Sage Mode's a different beast."
Unbeknownst to Jiraiya, Kimimaro had his own reasons for this interest—reasons he kept hidden.
Jiraiya held out his hand and began forming the Rasengan, chakra swirling into a compact, spiraling sphere. Kimimaro's eyes narrowed, and for a brief moment, a flicker passed through them—a tomoe-shaped glint, hidden behind a technique.
The Rasengan spun with intense force—chakra compressed, rotating at high speed, without any elemental nature. Though it appeared simple, its true difficulty lay in the precise chakra control required to form and maintain it. Many shinobi had tried to replicate it, but few had succeeded.
Kimimaro analyzed it in silence. With enough time, and his own mastery of chakra control, he could potentially recreate the Rasengan. But he didn't need to—he already possessed a formidable arsenal. More importantly, Jiraiya was standing in front of him. Why reinvent the wheel when the Sharingan—or its derivative visual learning—could take a shortcut?
Besides, the Rasengan wasn't his true target.
"The demonstration's done. If you picked up anything from it, I don't mind," Jiraiya said, dispelling the jutsu.
Then he moved on to something far more valuable—his knowledge of Sage Mode.
Kimimaro listened intently. Though he had gained the ability to draw in natural energy, his mastery was incomplete. He had never undergone proper senjutsu training at any of the three Great Sage locations—Mount Myōboku, Ryūchi Cave, or the Shikkotsu Forest.
Among the few known masters, the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, had the most seamless control—entering Sage Mode instantly without aid. Jiraiya, on the other hand, still required time to gather natural energy and relied on the help of Fukasaku and Shima to maintain the form in battle.
"The Fourth Hokage could use Mount Myōboku's Sage Mode too," Jiraiya added. "But he never had time to fully master it."
"Yakushi Kabuto tapped into Ryūchi Cave senjutsu, but it altered him more than expected," Kimimaro noted silently. That path still held too many risks.
Jiraiya went on, unaware of how much his words were feeding Kimimaro's ambitions. He explained the balance of natural energy, physical energy, and spiritual energy—the fundamentals of senjutsu—and how even a slight imbalance could turn one to stone. He described the feeling of natural energy blending into his body, enhancing his strength, reflexes, and sensory perception.
Kimimaro absorbed every word. He had the foundations already—but with this, he was confident he could push beyond the threshold. His Sage Mode would never rival Hashirama's natural talent, but it could easily surpass what Naruto had achieved before taming the Nine-Tails.
"Thank you, Mr. Jiraiya," Kimimaro said sincerely.
"Don't mention it. It's the least I can do." Then Jiraiya's expression shifted, becoming more serious. "Actually… there's something else I need to talk to you about now that I'm here."
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