Minato held Naruto's hand as they walked home.
It was rush hour in Konoha, and the streets buzzed with activity.
Everyone who passed by simply smiled and gave Minato and Naruto a respectful nod.
Minato held a revered status in Konoha, and many villagers deeply respected him.
"Naruto, want to grab a bite to eat?"
As they passed by a dango shop, Minato noticed Naruto glancing at it and made the suggestion.
"Sure! I want beef dumplings and fish dumplings. Let's get extra—we can bring some back for Mom; she likes them too!"
Naruto was trying to figure out how to ask Minato for a treat when Minato offered on his own. He didn't even think twice before blurting out his order.
"Alright, but don't overeat. We still have dinner later. These dumplings taste great, but they won't keep you full for long."
Minato patted Naruto's head affectionately, granting his wish.
"Owner, ten beef dumplings and ten fish dumplings, mild spice please!"
Minato ordered smoothly. These were things he often ate during his youth—back then, it was just him and Kushina.
Now, with Naruto's playful energy added to the family, it felt rather amusing to reflect on.
"Minato-sama is picking up your kid from school today? Time sure flies—before you know it, the child has already grown this big!"
The owner recognized Minato. As he placed the cooked dumplings into the bag, he joked lightly.
"Yeah, before I knew it, this little guy has gotten this tall already. As for you, Owner, you haven't changed much—you still look just as young."
Minato lowered his head, a gentle warmth flickering across his light blue eyes.
"Me? Pfft, I'm getting old, you know. In a few years, I plan to hand over the shop and travel with my wife. I've worked hard most of my life..."
The owner laughed heartily, showing no concern.
"Well then, time to retire and enjoy life! After working so hard, it's only fair to relax a bit. The Shinobi World is huge—there's plenty to explore out there!"
Minato smiled.
"Here you go, Hokage-sama. Take care and have a good one—we won't be seeing you around anytime soon!"
The owner took the money Minato handed over, packed the dango into the bag, and handed it back with a wave.
"Okay, thanks!"
Minato nodded and pulled Naruto along as they left.
"Here, take these. Don't eat too much, and remember to leave some for Mom."
After walking a few steps, Minato handed the snacks to Naruto, whose mouth had already started watering.
"Got it. Dad, aren't you having any?"
Naruto grabbed the food and quickly pulled out a stick of dumpling, holding it up toward Minato.
"Dad isn't eating. You go ahead!"
Minato smiled gently, his face full of tenderness.
"Oh alright."
Without further ado, Naruto dug in.
You could say what you wanted, but despite the high price, these dango tasted amazing—his mouth instantly filled with rich aroma as he bit into one. The beef dumplings were chewy and flavorful, becoming more delicious with each bite, while the fish dumplings melted in smoothly, carrying a unique hint of fishiness that really opened up his appetite.
As he chewed, Naruto couldn't help but compare the flavor to all the other foods he'd ever tried, deep in his thoughts.
He suddenly recalled the time when Choji took him to Ichiraku Ramen.
The flavor was rich and the broth delicious at first, but after a few times, it started getting a little old. Just like his favorite instant noodles before — eating them occasionally still felt good, but having them every day just made one feel annoyed.
"I'll have five of each kind, and she'll have five of each too. That works just fine!"
Naruto followed Minato, his little face scrunched up as he chewed like those dumplings were his mortal enemies and he was on a mission to wipe them all out.
"Minato-sensei! Minato-sensei!"
Naruto lifted his head in confusion because he heard someone calling for his dad.
"Hey!"
Minato stopped walking.
*Heh… heh…*
Obito leaned on his knees, clearly tired, panting heavily.
"What's wrong, Obito?"
Minato looked puzzled. Since returning from their last mission, Obito had changed somehow.
Of course, all for the better — more mature and steady, even more diligent...
"Sensei, the ninjutsu you taught me last time — I think I've already mastered it. Whenever you're free, could you give me some further guidance?"
Obito slowly caught his breath. His face showed anticipation as he looked at Minato.
"Oh? You mean Rasengan?"
Minato was slightly surprised as he gazed at Obito.
"Yes. I can now generate it within one to two seconds. If I keep practicing, I believe I can shorten that time even more."
Obito nodded in reply.
"Alright then. I happen to be free today, though I need to take this kid back home and have dinner first."
Minato ruffled Naruto's hair casually, smiling as he looked at his student.
"How about this: 7 o'clock tonight, meet me at Training Ground 11. That works, right?"
Minato thought for a moment. It'd probably be around five when he got home, then dinner and some rest, plus giving Naruto a bit more guidance — they should wrap up by seven.
Then, he would have enough time left to train with Obito again.
As the Hokage, his schedule was tight; he rarely found time for personal training with students.
Kakashi was naturally talented, his development path quite different from Minato's own. Besides, Kakashi had inherited his father's swordsmanship scrolls — so he generally didn't require much supervision.
As for Obito, previously not nearly this hardworking, Minato hadn't really needed to guide him much before. But things were different now — who knew what spurred him, but he completely transformed in his approach to learning ninjutsu.
And as Obito's teacher, Minato never refused. Whenever he could spare the time, he happily continued fulfilling his role.
"Got it then, Sensei Minato! I'll see you tonight!"
Smiling broadly, Obito bowed and walked past Minato.
Before leaving, he couldn't help mimicking his sensei's gesture — reaching out to ruffle Naruto's head and savoring his moment as the cool, older guy.
"Come on, Naruto. Let's go back first!"
Minato smiled watching Obito's hurried pace.
Obito wasn't lacking in talent, but his temperament and personality had always been holding him back from reaching greater heights.
Since his return, he'd changed a lot, gradually developing in the direction Minato hoped for.
Minato believed that if Obito kept working hard like this, it wouldn't be long before he caught up with Kakashi's pace and became another exemplary young ninja of Konoha's new generation.
Naruto frowned at how Obito had just ruffled his hair.
Since Obito was his father's disciple, their generations were equal. So why did Obito dare treat him so condescendingly by ruffling his hair?
Thinking about this, Naruto decided that once he officially became a ninja, he must get even by ruffling back.
"Crunch!" A row of white teeth fiercely bit into the meatball, causing its juices to immediately squirt out while the aroma of beef blossomed inside his mouth.
Walking beside Minato, Naruto kept eating his meatballs while secretly plotting.
...
"Obito, demonstrate your [Rasengan] to me."
Minato looked at his disciple ahead and gestured.
This was Training Ground 11. Though it was night, Konoha didn't mind the electricity costs. Several large incandescent lamps illuminated the area as if it were daylight.
"Understood, Sensei Minato!"
Obito nodded, looking quite serious.
He steadied both feet, slightly bent his knees, lowered his stance, and assumed a classic defensive posture.
Then, he stretched out his right hand and slowly raised it in front of him.
[Rasengan!]
As he muttered the word through gritted teeth, blue chakra appeared in his palm. The chakra rotated continuously, expanding until within one second it formed into a spherical shape, spinning rapidly.
Minato narrowed his eyes watching the jutsu in Obito's hands.
This was his own created hand seal-less technique, something he naturally understood thoroughly.
Though ranked merely as A-rank, in some ways, it wasn't easy to master.
And Obito had gone from learning it to nearly instantaneous execution in only about half a month.
Maybe Obito really was suited for this technique. Who knows?
"Excellent, you've definitely grasped it. Although its activation speed is still somewhat sluggish, considering it's your first time learning, achieving such speed is already remarkable! Now you can basically use it effectively in battle."
Minato nodded, clearly delighted.
"Mmm..."
Obito said nothing. Mastering the Rasengan was merely his first step. With only this alone, he couldn't defeat that powerful man.
That Uchiha rogue ninja who'd brushed him aside like a mere insect!
"Fzzt!"
Obito dispersed the chakra in his hand. The Rasengan shrank continuously until finally vanishing completely from his palm.
"Now that you've got the Rasengan down, I can move on to what's next."
"The Chakra Nature Transformation of the Rasengan!"
Minato spoke solemnly.
"Chakra Nature Transformation?"
Obito furrowed his brows. The Rasengan possessed no elemental nature—it was an elementless, hand seal-less jutsu—a very convenient single-target technique with considerable power.
He'd never even heard of this Chakra Nature Transformation thing.
"Right, Chakra Nature Transformation!"
"This is something I recently developed. The Rasengan's neutral nature gives us the opportunity to infuse it with elemental chakra however we like."
"For example, wind!"
As Minato spoke, a blue glowing Rasengan gradually formed in his right hand.
When he said "wind," the Rasengan began changing—its size increased and it became a deeper shade of blue. Around its edges appeared many tiny notches resembling the teeth of a gear.
"Krrshhh!"
In the blink of an eye, the Rasengan completely transformed into a shuriken-shaped mass of chakra surging with energy.
[Wind Release: Spiral Shuriken!] "Its power is more than a hundred times that of the regular Rasengan!"
Minato held the technique steady in his palm and slowly extended his arm toward Obito.
The blue glow illuminated Obito's face. Minato saw his slightly open mouth and eyes wide with astonishment.
"Since it's shaped like a shuriken, it can be used for long-range attacks. That also solves the problem of the Rasengan only working at close range."
Minato reduced the chakra flow, letting the technique shrink back into the ordinary-looking Rasengan.
"Naturally, this isn't limited to wind. There are other elements too—for instance, fire!"
Fixing his gaze on his palm, Minato began transforming his fire chakra's nature and injecting it into the Rasengan.
He had to remain focused and careful while performing such a transformation. Chakra Nature Transformation was never simple when combined with the Rasengan.
"Boom!"
With precise control, the ordinary Rasengan suddenly burst into fierce flames and instantly turned into a blazing fireball.
The flame burned dark—almost black—and spun violently, radiating immense intensity.
"Whoa!"
Obito was startled and took a step back from the sudden change.
Three tomoe whirled in his eyes as they locked onto the jutsu in Minato's hand.
Fire was Obito's innate chakra nature. At the sight of this technique, his heart leapt—he felt immediately drawn to it.
"When infused with Fire Nature Transformation, the Rasengan becomes even more powerful. However, it's far less stable than the wind version and requires extremely fine chakra control."
[I call it my Fire Release: Black Flame Spiral!]
Seeing Obito's delighted expression and obvious admiration, Minato smiled slightly before continuing.
"Just like the Wind Release version, it can also be used for long-range attacks, though its effective distance is roughly half that of the Wind Release: Spiral Shuriken."
"Its stability is much worse, so once it leaves my control, it quickly explodes."
Minato stepped closer to Obito. The Rasengan in his hand faded away, but he kept his hand in position without pulling it back.
"Look closely!"
He extended his right hand toward Obito, motioning for him to observe.
"All powerful techniques carry serious consequences. Take Guy's Eight Gates—for instance—it drains your entire body each time you use it, and in some cases, might cost your life."
"The Chakra Nature Transformation of the Rasengan can also do some serious damage to your body."
Obito frowned as he looked at the burnt marks and small cuts on Minato's palm.
Although these wounds didn't seem serious at first glance, since his teacher specifically asked him to check them, they must be significant.
"The Chakra Nature Transformation of the Rasengan shouldn't be used frequently, or it will kill the cells in your arm tissue—and this kind of damage is irreversible."
Minato put down his hand and shook it a few times.
"Your next step in training should focus on this part."
"But I must remind you, every training session needs someone monitoring you nearby. I'll now explain how to integrate Chakra Nature Transformation into the Rasengan, and how to control the chakra after its nature has changed."
Minato's expression grew serious.
"Understood!"
Obito nodded slightly. He could sense the seriousness and solemnity in Minato's tone.
"After each week of beginning this practice, I require you to go to Rin for physical examinations, understood?"
Minato continued reminding him.
"Understood, Sensei Minato!"
Obito nodded again. Though his teacher seemed repetitive and a bit nagging, Obito knew these reminders were genuinely for his own good.
"Well then, let's begin with the first step of learning."
"Which attribute would you like to learn first?"
Minato asked. His own thought was to start with wind attribute first, since it was relatively easier to master and more stable.
But after all, Obito was already a jonin with a well-developed mindset and naturally had his own preferences.
"Then... Let me start with fire!"
A spark lit up in Obito's eyes. At the moment he saw that [Fire Release: Black Flame Spiral], the astonishing energy it contained ignited his strong desire to learn.
Only such powerful Ninjutsu could help him regain his dignity in front of that man and protect his comrades!
Minato was silent for a few seconds but didn't refuse. You're supposed to take things step by step, but some rules don't always apply to someone like you.
Maybe Obito truly was one of those rare prodigies. Even if not, they could always return to learning simpler techniques later when needed!
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>