"Even if you are that guy's child, without guidance, learning the Rasengan is extremely difficult; it takes months of hard work to master."
"Kid, if you beg me, this old man can teach you…"
Kurama's arrogant voice was cut short by Naruto.
"I already know it."
"Swish!"
A strong gust of wind rose from Naruto's palm.
The original bright blue ball of light, seemingly stable on the outside, contained thousands of irregularly moving Chakra streams within, constantly rotating at high speed.
Like… a controllable, irregular hurricane!
"Compress!"
Naruto's azure eyes reflected the bright blue Chakra sphere, and he slightly tightened his five fingers. What was originally the size of a large bowl was now compressed to about the size of an orange.
Second step, skipped!
Third step, skipped!
Fourth step, skipped!
Rasengan, complete!!
The moment Naruto condensed a true Rasengan, Kurama instantly stood up. This behemoth, who had lived for a thousand years and observed the Ninja World with cold eyes, actually showed a look of shock.
The Rasengan, with its A-rank learning difficulty, was just… instantly mastered?
"Kid… you… secretly practiced, didn't you?!"
Kurama was silent for a while, then put away his surprise, his voice becoming low and deep again, but not as arrogant as before.
Yes.
Throughout the long millennium, Kurama had seen many talented and brilliant Ninja.
But, Naruto could now be counted among them.
Not just because of the Rasengan, but also the Multiplication Technique and Dragon Elemental Battle Armor from before.
Kurama saw astonishing potential in Naruto.
This potential, for a moment, even made Kurama feel that he might not be that important.
The other party might truly not need to beg for its power.
He could still stand at the pinnacle of the Ninja World!
"Hmph, I must have been overthinking."
"In the Ninja World, the difference in strength can be as vast as heaven and earth. Without my help, you cannot fight against true powerhouses."
Kurama lay back down, slowly closing its eyelids, concealing its fierce fox eyes, which were as crimson as a blood moon.
It was a little tired.
And it had to be said, there were quite a few surprises today.
Naruto didn't care what Kurama was thinking.
At this moment, his gaze was completely drawn to the Rasengan.
It had to be said, this Ninjutsu was art!
It embodied a simple and brutal aesthetic.
"Let's test the power of the first orb I created."
Naruto stood up and pressed the Rasengan into the towering tree behind him with a backhand motion.
"Buzz!"
With a tremor, a cylindrical hole was actually pierced through the thick, hard tree trunk.
The hole's cut was smooth and complete, but a closer look would reveal countless crisscrossing, incredibly fine cutting marks!
"Not bad."
The Rasengan's power was impressive, but it didn't overly surprise Naruto; everything was within expectations.
"If you don't rely on the amount of Chakra to stack power, the Rasengan is actually quite suitable for close combat. The chaotic, rotating Chakra flow can not only cut opponents but also disrupt the enemy's internal Chakra flow, causing significant internal injuries."
Naruto spread his palm, then slightly clenched it, and a Rasengan condensed from nothing, growing from small to large, bright blue, creating a visible wind vortex in the surrounding air.
In the original work, young Naruto, whose Chakra was disrupted by the Nine-Tailed, couldn't control it well and needed to summon two Shadow Clones to condense the Rasengan with multiple hands.
But now, Naruto could instantly release it with a single hand!
"I really want to challenge a Troll right away," Naruto murmured.
Just as the system evaluated, he needed to verify what he had learned and integrate it.
More importantly…
Naruto wanted to know how strong he truly was now!
Definitely more than a Genin.
Chunin?
Or a Special Jonin?
For the next period, Naruto was very busy.
Or rather… his Shadow Clones were busy.
Some Shadow Clones were responsible for eliminating Goblin, completing the mission [Goblin Must Die].
Three thousand Goblin were enough to kill.
Fortunately, he had mastered Ninjutsu now, so clearing monsters was fast.
As long as a Goblin nest was found, one Shadow Clone would lure the monsters, and another Shadow Clone would use Fire Dragon Flame Bullet. No matter how many Goblin came, they would die.
Often, only a pile of charred, carbonized corpses remained.
Who told Goblin to like living in dark, narrow caves?
It just provided Naruto with the perfect terrain to use Fire Release.
Then one Shadow Clone was responsible for errands.
In addition to accepting and settling Adventurers' Guild mission requests, it also inquired about the whereabouts of high-ranking demonic beasts and transported instant noodles brought from Konoha Village.
Two Shadow Clones learned Ninjutsu.
Since Chakra nature transformation and shape transformation reached the [Master] level, learning Ninjutsu was twice as effective with half the effort, simply too fast.
One only needed to learn the corresponding Chakra circulation path.
One Shadow Clone was also left in Konoha Village to attend school in his place.
Although Naruto acted like a hands-off boss, seemingly doing nothing, he was still exhausted by the end of the day.
Who could endure treating Shadow Clones like oxen and horses all day long?
But the benefits were too obvious.
Naruto's overall strength was growing stronger little by little every day!
…
Konoha Village, Ninja Academy.
It was another lunch break.
Hinata, carrying a bento box wrapped in a delicate cloth, stood shyly and expectantly at the staircase entrance to the rooftop, waiting for someone.
In just a few days, she had grown accustomed to eating with Naruto and "exercising" together after meals.
Hinata was unknowingly changing.
This change was subtle, so much so that even she probably hadn't noticed it.
"Why hasn't Naruto come yet today?"
Hinata stood on her tiptoes, her Ninja shoes gently kicking the ground.
She shyly peeked into the stairwell.
It was empty, desolate, and deserted.
A little disappointed.
Hinata pulled her small head back and continued to wait.
If there were no classes in the afternoon, she could even wait until dark.
"Hmm, next time… next time I'll definitely wait for Naruto at the classroom door and walk with him."
Hinata encouraged herself.
At this moment.
Naruto, who had left the classroom, was walking down the hallway with Sasuke.
Since Naruto didn't conceal his presence or deliberately lighten his footsteps, Sasuke naturally noticed his "tailing."
Sasuke, with his hands in his pockets and no concept of friendship, had a cold expression and completely ignored Naruto.
Until… they both arrived at the restroom.
"Naruto, what are you doing?"
Sasuke finally couldn't help but speak.
"Why ask the obvious? What else can you do when you come to the restroom?" Naruto replied nonchalantly.
"…"
"Then why are you so close to me?"
"Isn't the unspoken rule for men in the restroom to leave one urinal between them?"
Sasuke kept this thought to himself and didn't voice it.
Of course, with his personality, he wouldn't actively switch to another urinal either.
Just pee, whatever.
Whoever's smaller is more embarrassed.
While Sasuke was "relieving himself," he couldn't help but curiously glance at Naruto.
With just that one glance, Sasuke instantly froze, turning into a stone statue, his entire being losing color.
No, are you sick?!