Yondaime's Legacy
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Author's Notice: Well I'm finally back to update this story, sorry for the long delay but as I've previously explained in my other stories. I've been busy with exams and I've been resting up and chilling back home with the family for my semester break, so I've been kind of laid back a bit. But now all that is done and I'm back ready to write some more again.
Also if you haven't noticed yet my fourth story God of Shinobi is no longer around, I purposely deleted it because after returning to read the story once more I was a bit disappointed with how things went, and I want to just start over from scratch. Sorry to all those who enjoyed the story but don't worry I am currently working on revising the plan for that story and hopefully I'll have a new pilot chapter up sometime in the next few months. As the author of the story I was just not happy with how I wrote it, and so I just wanted to go over it again to make it better not just for me but also for you guys so I hope you understand why I deleted it.
Anyway thanks everyone for the continuous support and patience, this chapter right here is more of a training montage chapter but the action is about to begin soon enough. Please continue to favourite and follow this story, and if you have any questions or suggestions then please leave a review or a private message to me. I welcome all forms of constructive criticism; it really helps me know what you guys want me to do, and what I could change in my stories to make them better.
Chapter 4: Preparation is Key
Both Naruto and Sasuke waited patiently by the team's usual training ground, Kakashi had told them to meet him but they should have expected him to be late. It had already been an hour since their assigned time and still there was no sign of Kakashi whatsoever.
After a few more minutes of waiting, a large puff of smoke suddenly appeared in the middle of the training ground, both Naruto and Sasuke turned their attention to the cloud of smoke knowing that their sensei had finally arrived, in a way it was his trademark entrance.
Kakashi walked out of the smoke and towards his two genin students, "Sorry I was late you two, there was a kid who was lost in the middle of the market district and I had to help him find his way back home" he explained.
Naruto and Sasuke turned to each other with looks of disbelief, they still couldn't believe that someone of Kakashi's age and status still tried these lame excuses, the two then turned to their sensei with the same neutral looks on their faces.
"Sensei you don't seriously expect us to believe that"
Sasuke nodded in agreement, "Yeah he's right, were not idiots" he added.
Kakashi sighed, "So they're finally learning" he mumbled softly. The masked Jonin then shook his head and straightened up, he directed his attention towards the Uchiha first and foremost; "Sasuke for the following month I've found the perfect teacher for you. Unfortunately I can't train you because I've decided to train Naruto this time" he said.
Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise, he clenched his fists in anger and disappointment, and he wanted Kakashi to be his teacher for the month since he was only one capable of training him in his Sharingan.
"Kakashi-sensei, I need you to teach me. I'm going to be up against that Hyuga and he'll be armed with his Byakugan, I can outdo him with my Sharingan but I need your help to master it"
Kakashi nodded in understanding, "That is true Sasuke, but I've already trained you over Naruto and Sakura in the past. You were much more advanced than them at the time of our mission in Wave, and I taught you a few fire jutsus. It's Naruto's turn to learn some new skills, and as good as Neji is I believe that Gaara kid is probably a scarier opponent. Naruto will have to be at his best for that fight" he explained profusely.
Naruto smiled brightly, he was beginning to feel excited about his training with Kakashi. Sasuke on the other hand was growing in anger by the second, he wanted to answer back and continue to argue with the masked Jonin but Kakashi cut him off before he could so.
"You have nothing to worry about anyway Sasuke, your teacher for the next month is the perfect teacher for you at the moment. She could help you with some of your fire manipulation, she's quite knowledgeable on the element, and she also bears the same mark as you. She could help you resist and maybe even control the seal Orochimaru placed on you"
The blonde genin saw the anger in his teammate's eyes, he decided to walk over and place a hand on his shoulder, "Come on teme stop being so whiny about all this, I'm sure it won't be that bad" he said as a confident grin appeared on his face, "After all I'm expecting a challenging fight from you".
Sasuke turned to Naruto with an emotionless expression, he studied the face of his teammate and he could see that he was purposely trying to help him feel better the only way Naruto can. Soon he sighed in defeat, "Very well then, but this teacher better be as good as you say sensei" he said.
Kakashi smiled underneath the mask, despite how different the two of them were and despite how often they fought, they were definitely best friends. It really brought back memories for Kakashi, he was reminded of his days with Obito and Rin, of course Kakashi resembled Sasuke, Obito with Naruto, and Rin with Sakura. It was frightening just how similar these teams were despite the gap in their generations. It was even stranger knowing that Kakashi was training his sensei's own son.
"Don't worry Sasuke I'll personally vouch for her myself, to find her just head over to the Dango Shop in the middle of the market district, once there ask for a certain Anko Mitarashi. Tell her I sent you and then she'll begin your training. Though let me warn you she's a bit sadistic when it comes to training, but I'm sure you'll do fine Sasuke"
Naruto's eyes widened as he listened to Kakashi's explanation, "The Crazy Snake Lady from the Second Exam?" he yelled in shock.
Kakashi blinked a few times before nodding in confirmation, "Yeah now that you mention she was proctor of the second exam. Well at least that makes thing easier, now you know who to go look for Sasuke" he said.
Sasuke closed his eyes and massaged his temples, 'Why did it have to be her?' he thought to himself? Meanwhile Naruto stood beside Sasuke laughing loudly, he could barely control himself and Sasuke was finding it difficult to restrain himself from hitting his teammate.
"Good luck with the snake lady teme, Kami knows you'll need it" he laughed.
Sasuke scowled as he turned to Naruto, while Naruto was in his fits of laughter he grabbed the collar of his shirt and he pulled him to face him, "Listen to me dobe and listen to me good. You got lucky with your teachers so you better make it to the finals. Do you understand me? Anything less would be a disappointment, I'm hoping to see you there so that I could kick your ass in front of everybody" he hissed threateningly.
Naruto had a foxy grin on his face as he pushed Sasuke away from him, "Don't worry about me teme, worry about yourself because I guarantee you that I'll end up kicking your ass in the finals" he replied confidently.
Sasuke nodded with a smirk of his own, "Remember Naruto, its finals or bust. You claim to be my rival, well in that case I'd expect nothing less from my rival" he answered back.
The young blonde chuckled before extending his hand to Sasuke's, "Let's shake on it Sasuke, its finals or bust" he said.
The Uchiha extended his hand and the two rivals shook hands, "See you in a month dobe"
"Right back at you teme"
Konoha Hot Springs
"Sensei what are we doing here? Shouldn't we start our training already?" whined Naruto.
"Patience Naruto, were looking for someone here. I won't be alone in training you for the next month, you'll be having a second teacher for the next month and I assure you he's a good teacher"
Before Naruto could answer back, the two began to hear a perverse giggle come from a bush just outside the fences of the hot springs.
"Ah speak of the devil" said Kakashi, "Come follow me Naruto, I'll introduce you to your other teacher"
The two walked closer to the suspicious bush and as they same closer the sound of giggling got louder and louder, until eventually they stood in front of the bush itself. Kakashi had a small smirk underneath his mask as he stared at the bush; he had to admit that Jiraiya had a knack of hiding himself in these sorts of things.
"Lord Jiraiya there's someone here to see you" he said.
Naruto watched in confusion as Kakashi seemingly spoke to a bush, but then out of nowhere a man suddenly appeared from inside the bush, Naruto jumped back in shock as he stared at the large white haired man.
"What the hell where did you come from you old man?" he yelled in shock, "Wait better yet what the hell are you even doing here? Oh Kami you're peeping aren't you? You big pervert"
The white haired man's eyes widened in fear as he began to hear high pitched shrieks come from the hot springs, he turned to the young blonde with an annoyed look.
"Dammit kid shut up I was working on some research for my books" he yelled in response.
"Research, what kind of research is this you sick pervert?" he asked before turning to Kakashi, "Sensei what are we even doing here with this creepy old man?"
Kakashi chuckled as he watched the two bicker, before the argument could continue he decided it was best to play as the peacemaker, "Actually Naruto he's the second teacher was talking about" he said in a casual tone.
"What? Why this guy?"
"Believe it or not Naruto Jiraiya-sama here is actually a great teacher. He trained your father"
Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the old man in disbelief, Jiraiya had a smug grin on his face as he watched the priceless expression on Naruto's face.
"That's right you little brat so work on your respect. I'm not just the Yondaime's sensei, I'm a member of the famed Sannin of Konoha, I'm the Sage of Mount Myoboku; I'm none other than Jiraiya the Gallant" he declared in an overdramatic fashion.
Naruto sweatdropped as he watched the old man toot his own horn, "Seriously sensei? This guy couldn't have been my dad's teacher, he doesn't look like much" he said.
Jiraiya scowled at Naruto's dismissal of him, "Shut up brat, I should be saying the same thing to you. I can't believe your my prized student's brat, you don't look like much either" he replied.
A tick mark formed on Naruto's forehead but before he could jump and attack the Sannin, Kakashi jumped in between them and stopped the two. Honestly Jiraiya may have been much older than him, but after seeing this he acted as if he was Naruto's age instead.
"Naruto calm down, looks can be deceiving and Jiraiya-sama here is one of the most powerful and renowned ninjas of Konoha and he's willing to train you for the next month. So I suggest for you not to get in his bad side seeing as how he is doing off his own free will, and also let's not waste any more time, we need to begin our training as early as possible" he explained calmly.
The young blonde understood Kakashi's explanation of the situation and thought that if the old man was as good as Kakashi said, and then he could really help him achieve his goal to become Hokage. And if this Jiraiya guy really trained his father, then he was probably a great teacher for him.
"Naruto yesterday Jiraiya-sama and I discussed your training schedule for the next month and both of us agreed that it was best if we kept our training outside of Konoha, we know of a spot just on the outskirts of Konoha where we'll have peace and privacy for our training. So I suggest for you to head back to your apartment and pack your bags, we'll meet you by the gates to begin your training"
The young blonde's anger and annoyance quickly dissipated upon the mention of his training, he nodded at his sensei before hastily running back home to begin his packing. Once Naruto was out of sight Jiraiya turned to look at Kakashi.
"How'd you get him to behave so easily?" he asked in amazement.
"It's really quite simple Jiraiya-sama, just mention training and he'll fall in line immediately. He may be a hyper and troublemaking kid, but he's a good kid at heart"
Jiraiya nodded in agreement, "Honestly after finally meeting after all these years, he sure does remind me of Kushina. He may look like Minato but he acts a lot like Kushina" he exclaimed.
Kakashi chuckled softly as memories of the redhead surfaced in his mind, "Yeah but he does have his moments. During a few missions when Naruto was serious, he actually reminded me a bit of sensei. During everyday life Naruto's just as loud and brash as Kushina-san, but I think eventually in time he'll learn to mellow things down, it'll come with a bit of maturing" he said.
"I guess you're right Kakashi, maybe in a little bit of time we may have another Minato in our hands. Hell, just looking at the kid I was reminded when I first met Minato as a genin, if you take off the whiskers the two are practically twins"
"Yeah but Naruto still has a long way to go before he reaches Minato-sensei's level. But I believe that if there's anyone who could surpass the Yondaime, it'll be Naruto"
Jiraiya raised a single eyebrow from that statement, Kakashi wasn't someone to make such bold claims like that, "I've trained Minato and I saw him grow before my very eyes. I watched him grow from being my genin to being my Hokage. I've had many great students but by far Minato was the very best, are you sure Naruto could reach that level? That's a lot of pressure to put on a kid".
Kakashi nodded, "I fully believe Naruto has what it takes. He may not seem like much at first but trust me when I say this, Naruto has a knack for making the impossible possible" he explained.
"I hope your right Kakashi because the future of Konoha rests on that boy"
A Few Hours Later
Naruto had finished packing his things and he met up with his two teachers by the village gates, he still felt uncomfortable being around the old pervert but he trusted Kakashi's word for it, and if Kakashi said that he was a great teacher for him that he was going to trust his judgement, no matter how questionable it could be sometimes. Once they regrouped by the village gates the small made a small journey towards a thick forest just outside of Konoha. It took them roughly three hours to make it here, but once they arrived the group quickly set up their camp.
For the next month they were going to stay here in this forest with no distractions, their main focus was training Naruto and nothing else. The young blonde had to be at his best for what was to come not only for the Chunin Exams but also for the future.
Once all the preparations were complete, Naruto was led by the two to a forest clearing. This was the location they decided it was best to train Naruto.
Jiraiya and Kakashi towered over the young blonde; both now adopted solemn expressions as they faced their student. There was no time for fooling around.
"Naruto I know we got off the wrong foot but I need you to trust me. Do whatever Kakashi and I tell you to do; if you do then I promise you that you'll leave this forest a new man. You'll be able to do things you've never done before, and you'll be able to defeat opponents you wouldn't have been able to defeat before. Do you understand?"
Naruto nodded eagerly as a response, Jiraiya saw the excitement and enthusiasm in the young boy and it really reminded him of himself back when he was Naruto's age.
"Kakashi told me that your dream was to be Hokage, is that correct?"
"Hai sensei"
"Good, Naruto I've been trained by the Sandaime Hokage and I've trained the Yondaime Hokage. I can help you become a Hokage in the future"
Naruto smiled brightly as he heard Jiraiya mention his affiliation with the two most recent Hokages. After hearing this and after seeing the man's serious side, he began to question his original view of Jiraiya. Maybe the old sage wasn't as bad as he initially thought, sure he may have been a peeping pervert, but from what he's heard so far the man was a great teacher and a great ninja. Naruto could learn a lot from the man.
Jiraiya then grabbed a large scroll from his bag; he threw it on the ground just in front of Naruto.
"Open the scroll kid" he ordered, Naruto did as he was told and upon opening the scroll a few things popped out of it. There were a few more scrolls inside, and there were even a few notebooks and books.
"What are these things?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto, these are some of Minato's old notes, scrolls, books and equipment. For the next month Kakashi and I decided to teach you one of your father's old techniques. This technique is still incomplete, but even in its beginner form it is a deadly jutsu." the Toad Sage explained.
"Whoa, what kind of technique is this?" Naruto asked in complete awe.
Jiraiya raised a single finger, "Kakashi will explain the jutsu later on, but before we get to that I plan on teaching you how to summon" he replied.
The mention of that jutsu brought a few memories back for Naruto, "Oh like the ones you used Kakashi-sensei? Didn't you summon dogs or something?" he asked the Jonin.
The Copy Nin gave his student a classic eye smile, "Yes and no Naruto. Jiraiya-sama will teach you the summoning jutsu but it won't be for the dogs. The dog summoning contract is for me, but JIraiya-sama will give you the toad summoning contract. It is the same summoning contract Minato-sensei used, and it is also one of the most powerful summoning contracts in the world" he explained.
Naruto raised a sceptical eyebrow, "Really, toads?" he asked.
Jiraiya nodded, "Yes the toads are very powerful, but they are also very prideful. Now I act as the sage of the toad summons and I am also sole carrier of the toad summoning contract. I've never given this summoning contract to anyone other than Minato but seeing as how you're his son I'm sure he would have wanted you to also have this summon" he said.
"I guess that makes sense, if the toads were good enough for dad then they're good enough for me"
Kakashi then raised two fingers, "Now Naruto the second jutsu will be taught by yours truly. Both Jiraiya-sama and I know how to use this technique, but he'll be too preoccupied with your summoning training. The second jutsu is an A-Rank jutsu created by sensei, it took him four whole years to create it but when he finished it, this jutsu wreaked absolute havoc. It's the Rasengan".
"Could you show me the Rasengan?"
Kakashi nodded, "Of course I can" he said. The masked Jonin brought out his hand and he began to concentrate his chakra, soon a spiralling blue ball emerged in his hand, Naruto watched in awe as Kakashi ran to a nearby tree and used the Rasengan on it. The tree was hit by an enormous force causing the whole thing to uproot and fall.
Naruto stood up in shock as he watched the jutsu's damage; he didn't expect something so small to have such devastating damage.
"That's not even in its full power Naruto, I only used a quarter of its required chakra"
"That's only a quarter of its strength?" Naruto yelled in shock.
"Yes, and to be honest Naruto the Rasengan isn't even a complete jutsu. One thing Minato-sensei never accomplished was incorporating an element with the Rasengan, maybe one day you could achieve what he couldn't. But that'll be farther down the road, for now I will teach you how to form a Rasengan first. It also helps that we found a way to make the learning experience much easier and quicker".
Naruto's excitement was now through the roof, he was going to be taught how to summon, and he was going to learn a powerful A-Rank jutsu. This could seriously help him achieve his dream, if these were what made his father the Hokage, and then these could do the same for Naruto.
"How can we speed up the process?"
"I'm glad you asked Naruto" Kakashi replied with a smile underneath his mask, "This training method is actually unique only to you. You are the only one capable of doing this, your chakra reserves are already at a Kage level and you could already summon hundreds of shadow clones. Only you can summon hundreds of shadow clones without feeling tired, a normal person would have probably died of chakra exhaustion or something"
"What does my shadow clones have to do with this?"
"I'm guessing you never really noticed then. When shadow clones are dispelled, the knowledge they learned during their existence returns to the user, originally when the Nidaime Hokage created this technique the purpose was mainly for recon and information gathering, it was later that they found a use for it in the battle field. So, in a sense Naruto, we could use your clones to train with you and once you dispel them you will gain the knowledge that they learned thus speeding up the process of your training"
"What the hell? Why was I never told of this earlier?"
"Honestly Naruto I thought you would have noticed it earlier, especially with the amount of shadow clones you use in a daily basis" he answered truthfully, "But Naruto remember this though, this training method isn't perfect. It has its own flaws, and they are major flaws. When you train with clones make sure that when you do dispel them, do it slowly and not instantly. If you dispel a hundred clones in an instant after training, your brain will go into an overload from too much information at one time. Be sure to dispel them slowly to avoid any damages to your brain"
Naruto gulped nervously, that is something Naruto should look out for, "Is there anything else I should know about this training method?" he asked.
Kakashi nodded, "Yeah this training method doesn't help with your physical fitness and conditioning. It only relays information back to the brain and not to the body, so if you want to improve your strength or stamina, then you'll have to work on that yourself" he answered.
"I guess that makes sense" muttered Naruto, "So what else will we be training on, any other cool jutsus or techniques?"
Kakashi shook his head this time, "Unfortunately Naruto the answer is no. we don't want to overbear you with too many jutsus. Instead you will also be learning Chakra Control, some Genjutsu defence, and some academic learning using your shadow clones. If you really want to be Hokage you need to be strong and intelligent"
Naruto nodded in understanding, he didn't necessarily mind it considering it wasn't him who was going to be doing the studying. It was his clones.
"So, what'll I personally work on?"
"You'll be working on some taijutsu, physical fitness, and summoning. For the Summoning Jutsu it would cost you too much chakra to continually summon things so it would be for the best if you and only you stick to that.
"Sounds good sensei."
With Sasuke
The young Uchiha was hiding behind a tree in one of Konoha's training grounds, he was panting and out of breath. His training under Anko started with a survival training exercise where Anko hunted Sasuke down, and his objective was stay alive until she decided he'd proved that he was worthy of being her student.
So far Sasuke had done well but the snake mistress was definitely not holding back, she was out for blood, Sasuke's blood to be exact.
The Uchiha scowled as he recalled his sensei's words, 'Kakashi-sensei when you come back I'm so going to kill you for this' he silently thought to himself.
"Oh there you are"
Sasuke turned to glance behind the tree and there he found Anko breathing out another fireball, "Oh shit not this again" he muttered before running away from the tree.
'You'll pay for this Kakashi'
With Naruto
The young blonde sat down in a private area with the Toad Sage, his clones were all over the area training in their different fields. While the original Naruto was scheduled to work on his own special training plan, for the next month Naruto was going to alternate between summoning training and some fitness and taijutsu training. For now, though he was stuck with Jiraiya for some summoning.
"Naruto we'll begin by having you sign the toad summoning contract" said Jiraiya, the toad Sannin then weaved through hand seals, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu"
A large puff of smoke appeared, and in the middle of the smoke was a large orange and blue toad. The toad had a scroll on its mouth; Naruto was amazed by the size of this toad. At first summoning toads sounded kind of lame for him, but after seeing how big the toads actually were he was beginning to feel excited about the prospect of summoning them.
The toad slowly lowered the scroll to Naruto; Jiraiya walked over to the scroll and opened it in front of Naruto. Upon being opened, Naruto quickly noticed the various red signatures and thumb marks around the summoning contract. He soon realized that the markings were actually signatures, and true to Jiraiya's word, the final two names in the scroll were for Jiraiya then the Yondaime Hokage.
"Listen kid if you want to sign with the toads you'll have to sign your name with your own blood and place a mark of each your fingers in the bottom, once again using your own blood"
Naruto nodded in understanding, he quickly bit the tip of his thumb and wrote his signature down on the scroll, and then afterwards he bit the tip of each finger on his right hand before placing his fingertips just beneath the signature. Once this was done the large toad quickly walked over and rolled the scroll back into its tongue, it then disappeared leaving another plume of smoke.
"Alright Naruto now that you've signed the contract I'll teach you how to perform the jutsu itself"
For the next few minutes Jiraiya then began to explain and demonstrate the required hand seals for Naruto, and he also began to explain to him the required chakra output to be able to summon a true toad. After his explanation Naruto was ready and geared up to go, he quickly weaved through hand seals before biting the tip of his thumb.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu" he yelled as he slammed his hand onto the ground, smoke appeared but underneath all the smoke was none other than a tiny insignificant tadpole.
The confident smile on Naruto's face quickly faltered into a look of disappointment, Jiraiya looked in and whistled in appreciation.
"Well looks like we're going to be in for a long day"
Hours Later
After countless numbers of failed attempts Jiraiya was beginning to lose patience with the young boy. He was impressed earlier on after seeing the amount of clones he managed to form, but his control was awful. He couldn't translate the chakra output he placed on his clones onto his summoning, he knew the blonde could do it but for some reason he was failing repeatedly.
But as much as Jiraiya teased him about his constant failures, he began to feel somewhat reminiscent after watching the young genin. He didn't admit it to Naruto but he was very much the same when he first tried summoning, and so was Minato even. Everyone had to start somewhere, but at least in Minato's case it only took him a few errors before he managed to correct himself.
After continually seeing Naruto fail in this task, Jiraiya decided that he needed to mix this training up a bit in order to help speed things up.
"Naruto stop that for now and follow me, I think I know a way to help you learn this technique faster"
Naruto nodded and soon he was led by Jiraiya towards a nearby cliff's edge, the young blonde glanced down the cliff and his eyes widened as he stared at the gigantic drop.
"So why are we even here sensei?" he asked.
"Naruto you simply aren't progressing enough in your training and I think I found the perfect way to motivate you" he replied, "But before we begin here's a small hint. Dig deep and gather as much chakra as you can"
The genin raised an eyebrow out of suspicion, "What do you mean by…." he said, but before he could finish his sentence he was pushed right into the large gorge. Tears were streaming down his face, and his yells echoed around the area.
"You crazy fucking bastard, if I survive this I'll kill you" he yelled in anger, but as soon as he recollected himself he realized how quickly he was falling. He quickly closed his eyes and focused, a large amount of chakra began to surround the young blonde, and after feeling the large surge of power, Naruto once again used the jutsu.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu"
Naruto closed his eyes feeling nervous, he felt as though as if he summoned another tadpole and that he was going to drop to his death. But instead of there being a tadpole, there stood a gigantic red toad armed with a small katana, and the toad was even smoking a pipe.
Jiraiya's jaw dropped as he watched from the top of the cliff, he expected Naruto to summon someone but he didn't expect it to be Gamabunta of all toads. Explaining things to him was going to be troublesome.
"Who dares summon me, the great Gamabunta?"
Naruto opened his eyes and realized that he wasn't falling anymore, and he even looked down to see the large toad he was standing on top of.
"Holy crap I summoned you? I didn't know toads could grow this big"
The toad known as Gamabunta heard the childish voice on top of his head; he turned and looked up only to find a dancing young blonde.
"Who the hell are you kid? There's no way in hell that you summoned me"
Naruto smiled and pointed a thumb at himself, "Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze at your service, the future Hokage of Konoha" he declared.
Gamabunta's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the young boy, memories from years ago suddenly surged back to him. He remembered seeing Minato with a baby boy and it seems that the kid has grown up since then, in fact the last time he saw him was during the Kyuubi's attack.
"You're Minato's kid?"
Naruto nodded in response, "Yeah, he may have been Hokage but I'll surpass him in no time" he replied.
Gamabunta then burst out into laughter, "I like you kid, you've got spunk. So why'd you summon me anyway?" he asked.
Naruto shrugged, "My crazy sensei threw me off a cliff to help me with my summoning, and while I was falling I accidentally summoned you" he answered in reply.
"Who's your sensei?"
"Some pervert named Jiraiya, he claims to have trained my dad"
Gamabunta scowled in response, he quickly began to leap upwards towards the cliff in search of Jiraiya. Naruto held on to the toad, the sudden movement was unexpected but at least it made climbing the cliff so much easier. As soon as they reached the top they found Jiraiya standing there looking nervous.
Gamabunta used his tongue to drop Naruto off to the ground before facing the toad sage, "Jiraiya you idiot, next time don't do something so reckless. You owe me sake for this, and it won't be coming cheap either" he yelled.
Jiraiya nodded slowly while looking down in shame, 'Damn why don't the toads show me any respect. The slugs revere Tsunade, and the snakes respect Orochimaru, why couldn't they do the same for me' he thought to himself.
After a few more minutes of scolding from Gamabunta the toad decided to simply return to his home. Soon after that Jiraiya turned to Naruto and he found him staring at him with a deadly gaze.
"I swear to kami sensei one day I'll find a way to pay you back for this. You won't know when or how, but vengeance will be mine. I wasn't known as the prank king for nothing after all"
Jiraiya gulped once more, the kid seemed dead serious about it and if the rumours about him were true, then Jiraiya was absolutely screwed.
The Next Day
After the whole toad summoning fiasco from the day before, Jiraiya decided to up the ante for Naruto's summoning training. He had already summoned Gamabunta and there wasn't much more he could do other than that, but he needed the consistency in his summons. Jiraiya's training with Naruto now comprised of him learning how to summon specific toads for specific purposes, rather than making a random summon and hoping it was the toad you were looking for.
They didn't really expect to grow into the next Yondaime Hokage over a month, but they did need to teach Naruto his father's techniques and when better to start then now. The boy was eager, Konoha needed a generational defining shinobi, and war was on the horizon.
The sooner Naruto learned the Yondaime's trademark techniques, the better. Naruto was a hard worker, but his father was also the same, but not only that but Minato was also a genius at the same time. It would be difficult for someone to learn Minato's techniques as fast so quickly, and so because of this the shadow clones are a godsend. They hastened the process and they make life much easier for Kakashi and Jiraiya, they were confident that Naruto would be able to learn and eventually master not only summoning, but also the Rasengan.
The boy's potential was immense, his heritage, his seemingly limitless chakra storages, and his hard working and determined nature meant only that Naruto had incredible promise. Of course, Jiraiya and Kakashi didn't admit that, they didn't want to boost Naruto's ego too much. But what they could admit was how dangerous Naruto could be in the future.
"Now Naruto to learn this technique you will have to first master three different stages, first is rotation" Kakashi explained as he held a Rasengan out with his right hand, "If you look closely Naruto, the Rasengan isn't just a stagnant blue ball of chakra, it's actually a rapidly spiralling ball of chakra. For this you'll need to learn how to spin your chakra into multiple directions at once"
Naruto nodded in understanding "The next step is power, for this you'll need to learn how to control the chakra output in your Rasengan" Kakashi said.
"And finally Naruto, the last step is containment. For this you'll need to master both the rotation and power steps first, because you'll need to be able to do them simultaneously in order to learn, let alone master this technique"
"I guess I understand, so how are you going to teach me this technique anyway?" Naruto asked.
Kakashi gave his student an eye smile and he threw him a small water balloon, Naruto quickly noticed this and caught it before it hit him.
"What's this for?"
"This is how you train for rotation" Kakashi answered.
Naruto raised a single eyebrow, "Really? A water balloon" he asked sceptically.
Kakashi nodded as he held out yet another water balloon in his hand, "Naruto this will mark your progress with the first step. The point of this exercise is for you to burst the balloon using your chakra. Just like this" he said. The Jonin then began to apply chakra to his right hand; the water balloon began to churn rapidly until the water balloon exploded in Kakashi's hand.
Naruto was left surprised by that, he questioned the validity of this training exercise due to the simplicity of the explanation, but from what he just saw there was no doubt that it could seriously help with his training for this jutsu, and so with a renewed sense of vigor, Naruto jumped up from his seat and stared at his own water balloon, a confident grin adorning his face.
The Copy Nin saw the confidence in his student's eyes and he chuckled to himself, "Don't take this exercise likely Naruto, learning the Rasengan is no easy feat. It took me three months to learn it, and it took Jiraiya-sama five months"
"Don't worry I'll only need a month"
Later that Day
After a hard day's night of training, the three sat by the fire of their camp. They were cooking a few fishes they caught from the lake, the group sat in silence. Naruto was too exhausted to say anything, Jiraiya seemed to have been too busy jotting down notes, and with nothing else to do Kakashi decided to whip out his favourite book, Icha Icha Paradise.
Naruto groaned as he watched Kakashi pull out the orange book, "Not that again sensei, how could you continue to read that perverted smut. It's complete garbage" he said.
Jiraiya's notebook then dropped to the ground along with his pen, he stared darkly at the young blonde and Naruto wondered why that was so.
"You obviously have no taste in literature you impudent brat, the Icha Icha Paradise is a masterpiece, and it is one of the bestselling books not only in the Land of Fire, but all across the world. It is a story that delves into mature and adult topics, it has adventure, love, lust, drama, romance, action and everything else you'd ever want from a book"
"Geez why are you so defensive about this?" Naruto asked.
"It's because I'm the author of the books, and they are masterpieces. You're just too immature and unsophisticated to understand the complexities of the Icha Icha Series"
Naruto's eyes widened in shock, but honestly after having met Jiraiya he should have expected something like this, "Oh Kami I'm stuck with two super perverts for the next month" Naruto groaned.
"Oh stop being such a stick in the mud kid, when you grow older I'm sure you'll begin to read my work" said Jiraiya.
The young blonde rolled his eyes, "Yeah right" he replied sarcastically.
"Well I managed to convert your father, I'm sure you'll turn eventually"
Naruto jumped up from his seat in shock, "My dad was a pervert?" he yelled.
Jiraiya chuckled, "Yeah but he kept it a secret. He used to read all my work, but not many people know about that" he said.
"I don't think I could ever see my dad the same way again"
"Don't worry kid, one day you'll be just like your dad. You just need to grow a bit older"
One Week Later
A whole week had passed, and Naruto was beginning to show strides in his Rasengan training. The young blonde initially took the training for granted, he saw how effortlessly Kakashi managed to pop the water balloon and he firmly believed that the same thing was going to happen to him. But unfortunately, it wasn't so, it actually took him a whole week to master the first step, this just went to show how complicated the technique was, but to be fair to Naruto a week was still extraordinary.
While Naruto continued his training, Kakashi and Jiraiya stood by a flowing river. Both found an isolated area within the thick forest, this was the perfect place to conduct their brief and private meeting.
"Any news Jiraiya-sama?" asked Kakashi.
Jiraiya nodded his head as a grim expression adorned his face, "Yeah I just got a small message from sensei, I left a toad with him so that he could contact us. Unfortunately, there have been two murders in Konoha just in the past week" he replied.
Kakashi's lone visible eye widened in shock, "Two murders, who were killed, and who's the prime suspect?" he asked.
"Apparently one of the genin competitors from the Sound were killed, I believe Dosu was his name. The other was unfortunately one of ours, Hayate Gekko was found dead earlier today one of the rooftops of Konoha, it was clearly murder but at the moment there are no leads or suspects whatsoever"
The Copy Nin was surprised by that, he wasn't necessarily close with Hayate but he had known the Tokubetsu Jonin since their childhood, and from what he's seen Hayate had always been a commendable and competent ninja.
"Kakashi, since the break out of the news, sensei has assigned me to be his bodyguard. When the Chunin Exams Finals begin, I am to serve as the old man's bodyguard, just in case Orochimaru really does decide to pop up again"
The Jonin nodded in understanding, "Very well Jiraiya-sama, now is there anything else?" he asked.
Jiraiya shook his head, "No that's it for now, I'll arrange another meeting if we get any more information from sensei. We should probably head back now"
With Sasuke
The past week had been hell for the young Uchiha; Anko had really lived up to her name as the Konoha's crazy snake lady. The training had been intense, sadistic, and even downright deadly at times. But despite these, Sasuke could feel himself growing stronger. He had to admit that she was quite a skilled teacher, and one that suited him.
Anko grinned as she stood in front of the Uchiha, "You've done well over the past week gaki, I'm actually impressed that your still alive after all I put you through. I got to give it to you gaki, you've got some talent, and after much thought I've decided to reward you with something" she said.
The snake mistress handed Sasuke a large scroll, "What is this?" asked the genin.
"That is the Snake Summoning Contract"
With Naruto
Many weeks had passed since Naruto begun his training under both Kakashi and Jiraiya, and during that time the young genin had begun to make massive strides with his ninjutsu. What amazed both Kakashi and Jiraiya most during this month wasn't Naruto's gigantic chakra reserves, and it wasn't his undying determination, it was the attention to detail when he was learning and training in these new techniques. Even in training, Naruto began to show major glimpses of Minato.
The Chunin Exams finals about to start just tomorrow, and Naruto couldn't help but feel confident about his chances. During the past month he managed to learn not only the summoning jutsu, but he also learned the Rasengan. But despite Naruto having the skills to perform those two techniques, he was still far from mastering them.
Naruto's Rasengan was still a work in progress, yes, he could perform a Rasengan but he needed the help of a shadow clone to do so. His chakra control was still lacking, but this was going to come eventually for Naruto as long as he continued his training.
For summoning Naruto was beginning to be more consistent with his summons. He was able to summon toads the size of Gama, but he still struggles with summoning toads the likes of Gamabunta, Gamahiro or Gamaken. Of course this was to be expected, it would take years of training to be able to summon the great battle toads of Mount Myoboku in a consistent manner.
A whole month before this Naruto was feeling nervous about the prospect of facing Gaara, but now after all the blood, sweat and tears he placed into his training, he was feeling excited.
"Are you ready for this Naruto?"
"Of course, I am Kakashi-sensei"
Jiraiya nodded as he stood in between the two, "Well if both are you are okay then I guess it's time to begin. Hajime!" he yelled.
Naruto and Kakashi quickly ran at each other, Naruto summoned four shadow clones and the group all lunged at the Copy Nin. Kakashi saw this coming; he grabbed a kunai from his vest and quickly dispelled the clones. But while the Jonin was preoccupied with the small group of clones, Naruto rushed in and managed to land a kick right into Kakashi's solar plexus.
Kakashi skidded back a few meters as he clutched his gut in pain; he had to admit the kid packed quite a punch on him. The Jonin quickly grabbed a smoke bomb from his vest and threw it to the ground; smoke enveloped the area leaving Naruto visionless.
Naruto held a kunai by his hand in case Kakashi decides to suddenly attack him, but he waited there for minutes and nothing happened. Soon the smoke began to clear and Kakashi was nowhere in sight, Naruto narrowed his eyes, this was too suspicious, and he knew his sensei wouldn't flee.
This was obviously a trick; he was soon broken from his reverie as he heard a pair of shuriken flying right at him. Naruto detected these and he used his kunai to deflect the projectiles, he then found Kakashi standing on a tree branch weaving through hand seals.
But before Kakashi could finish the jutsu, Naruto summoned a shadow clone and the two ran at the tree. While running towards the three, Naruto held his palm out, a blue ball of chakra was forming on the young boy's hand and he plunged the attack onto the tree.
"Rasengan" he yelled, the tree was uprooted by the attack but before it fell Kakashi jumped away in time, and while Naruto's back was turned, he completed his jutsu.
"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu"
A ball of fire flew at Naruto, the young blonde felt the growing heat and his eyes widened in shock as he stared at the fireball. He hastily applied chakra to his feet and jumped to dodge the incoming attack, but as soon as he was in the air there was another barrage of shurikens thrown his way.
This time however Naruto didn't expect this attack and he was left defenceless, he forced chakra to the soles of his feet and jumped up into the sky to avoid the projectiles.
The spar carried on for another twenty minutes, both Kakashi and Jiraiya had been impressed with how long Naruto was lasting against Kakashi. By the end of the spar, Naruto seemingly managed to fool and corner Kakashi in the same cliff he was thrown out of for his summoning training.
Kakashi then began to laugh softly, "You've done well Naruto, I'm sorry to say this but you still haven't defeated me yet" he answered back.
"What do you mean? I've trapped you here; I have a kunai pointed at you, you have nowhere to go"
"That may be true Naruto, but remember what I told you. Expect the unexpected"
Kakashi then exploded into a cloud of smoke, then as soon as that happened Naruto felt two hands grab his ankles. He realized his mistake now and before he could flee he was dragged onto the ground, he was left stuck from the neck down.
The Copy Nin then jumped up from the ground and he squatted in front of Naruto, he gave his student his trademark eye smile. Naruto on the other hand glared at his sensei, the man was just too sneaky and craft. He thought that he finally had him but it seems that it wasn't the case.
"Like I said a while ago Naruto, you've done well and you should be proud of your growth and progression. But you still have a long way to go before you could defeat me. You're still a bit inconsistent and shaky with your jutsus, and your still a bit impatient and impulsive, but that's nothing a little bit of practice couldn't fix"
Jiraiya then walked over to the two with a smile on his face, "I must say gaki, you've done pretty well for yourself. You reminded me of Minato for a second there when I watched you" he said.
Naruto smiled brightly at the two as he was soon helped up from the ground, "Damn I thought I had you Kakashi-sensei. I swear one day I will defeat you" he said.
"Oh I'm sure you will Naruto, but for now I'm still better"
"Hey kid, seeing as how well you've progressed over the past month, Kakashi and I decided to give you a gift" said Jiraiya.
"A gift, what kind of gift?" he asked suspiciously, "This isn't anything perverted is it?"
Jiraiya's shoulders slumped, "No it isn't anything perverted you brat, just be thankful we even got you these" he replied as he threw Naruto a small storage scroll.
Naruto caught the scroll and opened its contents; he was surprised bunch a of clothes appeared from the scroll. Naruto quickly glanced through the items; he noticed a strange grey book, some black ANBU style pants, a dark blue long-sleeved shirt, a black fishnet undershirt, and some black sandals. But the one thing among the pile that really caught Naruto's eyes was the haori. It was a white haori with red flames on the hem.
"So what do you think of our gift?" asked Jiraiya.
Naruto walked over and grabbed the haori, he then tried it on himself and it just felt right. It fit him like a glove; a smile began to form on Naruto's face as he wore the garment.
"I love it"
Glossary
Rasengan – Spiralling Sphere
Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu – Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique
Author's Note
Here is Chapter 4 finally complete and I hope you guys like it, I know that Naruto may sound a bit OP with the Rasengan and the Hiraishin already, and he is just a bit but he is nowhere near unstoppable in this story. He still has a long way to go before reaching Minato's level but this is a good start in my opinion. Anyway thanks to everyone who supports me and my work, please continue to favourite and follow my story, and also if you guys have any questions or suggestions please leave a review or pm me. Thanks again everyone and I hope you guys enjoyed the latest chapter.
