In the distant battlefield of the Land of Rain, Orochimaru was momentarily stunned when he received Ryun's messenger snake.
However, after reading the contents of the letter, he rarely showed a smile.
His nominal disciple actually wanted to develop a new ninjutsu again...
Moreover, he even remembered to write a letter asking for Orochimaru's advice. Such behavior was undoubtedly a recognition of Orochimaru's abilities, and for some reason, Orochimaru actually felt a sense of pride.
"You're smiling so creepily. Did you receive some good news?" Nearby, Jiraiya teased.
Jiraiya could understand all the different smiles of his old friend. This time, Orochimaru's smile was one of genuine happiness.
After the death of his disciple Nawaki, Orochimaru had rarely shown such a smile.
"Could anyone possibly be creepier than you, you big idiot?" Orochimaru tucked the letter into his collar and then joked.
"What kind of time is this? You two bastards still have the mood to joke around?" Tsunade casually cursed while adjusting the medicine in her cup.
Though the three were bickering, the originally heavy atmosphere had noticeably lightened.
"Haha... Don't be so negative. Victory and defeat are common in war. I believe that as long as we work together, we'll eventually defeat Hanzō of the Salamander and win this war."
Jiraiya suddenly burst into laughter.
Unfortunately, the other two didn't respond or pay him any attention.
Tsunade continued studying her poison, while Orochimaru simply left the small hideout, leaving Jiraiya awkwardly standing there, ignored...
Two days later.
Ryun received Orochimaru's reply letter and a ninjutsu scroll.
Orochimaru had answered all the difficulties Ryun encountered in ninjutsu development. He even wrote down his personal insights on the Land of Lightning's "Lightning Release Armor" and provided some guidance on using electric currents for body training.
Having a dedicated and thoughtful teacher like Orochimaru was Ryun's good fortune. He silently swore to himself that he would never eat snake soup again...
Most of the letter's contents moved Ryun deeply, but the last paragraph left him utterly speechless.
At the end of the letter, Orochimaru asked if Ryun wanted to come to the Land of Rain battlefield. He said:
With Ryun's abilities, early graduation would be effortless. He shouldn't remain stagnant in the academy. Growth required battle and killing.
Orochimaru sincerely invited him to join the war and even threw in a cheesy line about wanting to fight side by side with him...
"Go to the Land of Rain to get drenched every day, then stand side by side and get poisoned and beaten by Hanzō... But I'm really not resistant to poison or getting beaten..."
Ryun muttered to himself before putting away the letter.
Sitting cross-legged again, he closed his eyes and focused. Soon, a faint blue arc of electricity appeared on his body.
The arc was unstable, and there was only one, but since it was just a single strand, he could easily control its flow.
The blue arc started from his palm and spread throughout his body.
This time, since the electric current was deliberately limited, the places it passed didn't hurt as much as before. Instead, there was a slight tingling numbness.
"It feels pretty good... Next, I just need to increase the number of arcs or the frequency of being shocked, slowly finding the optimal electric current threshold for body training."
"As for Chidori Current... once my body gradually adapts to the electricity, I can increase the output, and using it shouldn't be a problem."
"Orochimaru really is a ninjutsu genius!" Ryun couldn't help but praise.
Sometimes, he only needed to propose a concept for a ninjutsu, and Orochimaru would quickly figure out how to make it a reality. This level of ninjutsu comprehension was simply terrifying!
In the quiet riverside training ground, each of Ryun's shadow clones had a clear division of labor.
One was electrocuting fish in the river using the New Energy Technique. Another stood on the water, scooping up the half-dead fish floating belly-up. A third had green light glowing from his hands, carefully healing the nearly dead small fish.
And one was attending class at the Ninja Academy.
With the shadow clone technique and his strong mental resilience, Ryun could simultaneously learn multiple skills in a short time without worrying about exhaustion. His growth speed was absurdly fast.
Time flew by.
Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
Ninja Academy—Classroom—Break Time.
"Minato, you're really graduating early?"
Kushina was slightly surprised by Minato's sudden decision, while Ryun remained completely calm.
"Yeah, I've already passed the genin exam. The Konoha forehead protector should arrive soon. Today might be my last day at the Ninja Academy!"
Minato replied with a smile. Though excited about leaving school life behind, he also felt a little reluctant.
"Being a ninja means doing tons of missions... It'll probably be exhausting." Ryun chuckled.
In his eyes, Minato was like a fresh graduate, eagerly jumping into the grind of a nine-to-five working life.
"Haha! I'm already prepared!"
Minato laughed first, then explained the reason for his early graduation:
"Many ninjas have been sent to the Land of Rain battlefield. Konoha is severely short on manpower for missions right now. I want to help the village share some of the burden..."
Hearing this, Ryun couldn't help but applaud him.
Having such awareness at such a young age, no wonder he would become the Fourth Hokage in the future.
"Truly worthy of Minato. I declare the next Hokage will definitely be you!"
Ryun's words immediately made Minato burst into laughter.
"Wait! I also want to be Hokage. Let me be the Fourth Hokage first, then he can be the Fifth..." Kushina raised her hand playfully.
"You, this big dummy, want to be Hokage? I object!" Ryun laughed.
"Huh? How can you object? Also, is 'big dummy' a compliment or an insult?" Kushina glared at him suspiciously.
"Then tell me, why do you want to be Hokage?" Ryun suddenly turned serious.
"Being Hokage means gaining everyone's recognition... Don't you want to be Hokage?" Kushina tilted her head in confusion.
"Why would I necessarily want to be Hokage? Others' recognition isn't important to me. As long as I recognize myself and the people I care about recognize me, that's enough..." Ryun retorted casually.
Hearing this, both Kushina and Minato looked surprised.
Among the academy students, there were probably very few who didn't aspire to be Hokage.
This was the result of Konoha's long-term indoctrination.
Ryun felt it was necessary to correct Little Tomato's misguided thinking in the future.
He didn't expect her to be as rebellious as him, but he absolutely couldn't let her develop the terrifying idea of "sacrificing herself for Konoha"...
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