Naruto paced back and forth by the village gate, dawn light casting long shadows. A few days of rest had done him well, and he felt refreshed and ready for the next stage of Jiraiya's training. Minutes of waiting for Jiraiya turned into hours. Naruto was sitting on the ground, drawing circles in the dirt with a kunai blade when Jiraiya rounded the corner.
"Late again!" said Naruto. "You're as bad as Kakashi-sensei!"
"You're lucky I'm here at all, giving up my time to tutor you," said Jiraiya. His arm was no longer held in a sling. "How are you feeling?"
Naruto stretched his shoulder. "I'm ready to learn that new move, Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
"Good, we'll start our journey at once," said Jiraiya. "It will take us three days to reach Numachi Swamp. That's where you'll learn the technique."
"A three-day journey? Why didn't you tell me the other day?!" said Naruto. "I didn't pack my travel gear!"
"Don't worry, you'll want to travel light," said Jiraiya.
They left the village and headed north, moving briskly through dense forest as Jiraiya deviated from the common road. Naruto's stomach grumbled—he had only eaten a light breakfast.
"Why do we have to go to a swamp to train?" said Naruto.
"That's where you'll make your blood contract," said Jiraiya. "If the master of the swamp deems you worthy."
"What's that supposed to mean? Who's this swamp master guy?"
"It's better if you find out on your own."
"So what, you're not going to tell me anything?"
"The Toads of Myoboku don't align with just anyone that wanders by. By bringing you to Numachi Swamp, I'm effectively recommending you, but you need to prove yourself as well."
"What do I have to do?"
"I don't want to spoil the surprise!"
Naruto thought back to Jiraiya's exhibition of Kuchiyose no Jutsu at the hot springs. How do I win over a toad?
"You said that you knew Orochimaru," said Naruto. He paused, as if hesitant to follow up with a direct question, taking a moment to guage's Jiraiya's initial reaction.
There was a pause before Jiraiya spoke. "I did. We were shinobi in the same three-man cell."
"Really? You were that close?" said Naruto.
"Why do you want to know about Orochimaru?" said Jiraya.
"Because he wants to know about Sasuke," said Naruto. "I want to know about anyone that's a danger to my friends. Why does he want Sasuke?"
"I can't say for sure," said Jiraiya. "But it's in Sasuke's best interest to avoid Orochimaru, whatever he's plotting."
"How strong is he?"
"Strong."
"Stronger than you?"
"It's close, or at least it was a long time ago, last I saw him. I've learned a few new techniques since then, but he has too." Jiraiya picked up the pace. "If you're able to chat this much, then we're clearly not moving fast enough."
The two continued through the woods, over streams and hills, with only a few brief breaks throughout. When they stopped to eat, Jiraiya handed over a misshapen onigiri and pointed out some edible nuts and berries. By the second day of their journey the forest had turned to bog, and Naruto found himself slapping at buzzing insects. They passed through wide patches of fog for hours at a time.
"Slow down, Pervy Sage!" said Naruto. "The fog is too thick to see!"
"Your senses are that weak?" said Jiraiya. "Follow my scent and sound. Any shinobi worth his metal doesn't need to rely so heavily on sight."
"Yeah, sure, but it stinks out here too, and I can hardly hear your steps over these damn crickets and mosquitos in my ears!"
Naruto was exhausted and filthy with dried sweat and mud by the time they set up camp. This terrain is more brutal than the Forest of Death… and I've hardly eaten anything in two days! He fell asleep quickly and dreamed of steaming bowls of ramen.
It rained on the third day. Jiraiya donned a large poncho, though was unpleasantly reminded of the tear that he had failed to patch—both shinobi were soaked through their layers in little time. Naruto guessed it was close to midday when Jiraiya stopped, but it was difficult to tell under the gray clouds.
"Welcome to Numachi Swamp," said Jiraiya.
Naruto saw that they were nearing the edge of a cliffside that overlooked a vast canyon. The swamp within the canyon was filled with thick fog and foliage.
"Your task is to find the Scroll of Myoboku, and mark it with your blood," said Jiraiya. "Down there, in the swamp."
"What does it even look like?" said Naruto.
"It's big, you'll know it when you see it," said Jiraiya.
Naruto peered over the cliff. The air grew more humid by the step, animal calls floating in the distance. "Down in there? Can you be a little more specific?"
Jiraiya shook his head. "No more hints, you need to do this on your own."
Jiraiya didn't budge. Naruto focused chakra into his feet at the cliffside, walking off the edge near perpendicular to the floor of Numachi Swamp, hundreds of meters below. He descended through the heavy bog air, hopping off the wall face onto a gnarled swamp tree. It stinks down here. Naruto began his search.
Where do I even begin? Naruto had hopped around the swamp searching randomly for over an hour. Numachi Swamp was dim and wet at the base of the cloudy canyon, teeming with giant insects and swamplife—Naruto had been careful to avoid a four-meter centipede with glistening fangs. He stopped to reassess his strategy when he heard a distant scream. There's someone else out here? He cautiously followed the sound to a thicket of trees where he spotted a toad dressed in robes struggling in a spiderweb. The web was massive, with thick threads spread across several trees.
"Hey!" shouted the toad when it saw Naruto. "A little help here!"
"You can talk?!" said Naruto. "That was you screaming?"
"Yes, that was me! Obviously! Cut me down from here already!"
Can't just leave the little guy to die, plus if anyone was to know about a toad summoning scroll, it would be this toad. Naruto took out a kunai knife and started cutting through webs to get closer to the toad. The toad screeched, and Naruto spotted a hairy, dog-sized spider crawling near. He threw the kunai blade, striking the giant arachnid before it could reach the toad. The spider hissed and scuttled away.
"Nice shot, kid!" said the toad. "Now get me down before another one comes."
Naruto was able to reach up and carefully cut the web away from the toad, pulling him down to safety. "How'd you get stuck up there anyway?"
"One unlucky hop is all it takes, kid," said the toad.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki."
"Gamasuko."
Naruto noticed a flit of movement, the softest crunch of claw on moss. He whipped around to see a horse-sized spider lunging from the shadows. Naruto grabbed Gamasuko and leapt away as the spider gnashed its mandibles. He stopped mid-jump upon crashing sideways into a sticky web.
"Now you get it, that's all it takes!" said Gamasuko.
"Damn, I'm really stuck!" said Naruto. He tried to pull himself free, but the webs were tough. He could barely move, and the struggling just made it feel tighter. "Can you move at all?"
Gamasuko had come out of Naruto's arms when he hit the web, and he was stuck upside down next to Naruto's shoulder. "Not much, no."
The spider started crawling up the web, eight eyes locked onto Naruto and Gamasuko.
"Can you reach my side pouch?" said Naruto. "I can't reach it, give me a kunai!"
Gamasuko shot his tongue out and latched onto the handle of a kunai knife by the top of the pouch. He pulled it up and lobbed it into Naruto's hand.
"Nice!" said Naruto. He flipped around the blade and cut his arm free in a few strokes, then reached over and cut Gamasuko out of the web. "Run, get out of here!"
Gamasuko grabbed onto Naruto's leg. "What else you got in this goodie bag?" He reached into the side pouch and pulled out a vial of flash powder. The powder hit the approaching spider in the mouth, exploding with a bright light and a loud bang, and leaving the spider stunned.
Naruto sawed away enough of the web to pull himself free as the spider regained its senses, and he and Gamasuko slipped free and made it back to the ground. The spider charged down the side of a tree toward Naruto and Gamasuko, when Naruto conjured a single shadow clone that jumped up to meet it. The spider clung to the tree with four of it's eight legs, countering the airborne Naruto clone with the others, but with the underside of its abdomen exposed the genuine Naruto darted forward and plunged a kunai blade deep into its flesh. He slashed upward, and twisted. The spider let out a chilling hiss, then collapsed to the ground.
"You got some moves, Naruto-kid!" said Gamasuko.
"No sweat," said Naruto, though his heart was still beating quickly. He steadied himself. "Do you know anything about a Scroll of Myoboku?"