Natsuro was reflecting on Kakashi's explanation of the Chidori. To be honest, it wasn't much different from the version he had figured out himself, but there were still some nuances.
He pondered the changes and principles involved, sighing that Kakashi, having played with the Chidori for so long, certainly had a deeper understanding of it.
From a power perspective, if he integrated Kakashi's version of the Chidori with his own, its power could increase by about 10 to 20%! Moreover, even from Natsuro's point of view, even without the Sharingan, Kakashi could probably quickly develop a version of the Chidori that didn't require the Sharingan; he simply didn't need to because he was already capable enough.
Given that he had a near-bug level of perception, Natsuro naturally didn't need to develop another version.
"Natsuro, Naruto is practicing like this because you taught him, right?" Kakashi asked, looking at the ten or so Naruto clones practicing Wind Release: Gale Palm together. "Can Naruto handle this?"
Hearing this question, Sasuke perked up his ears, curious about it as well. If it was possible, he wanted to ask Naruto to teach him this ninjutsu. A little loss of face was worth it if it meant gaining strength.
"Yeah, I've tested it before. At this level, Naruto can handle it; of course, only he can," Natsuro said, somewhat impressed.
Kakashi understood now; it was likely due to the Nine-Tails. He nodded at Naruto.
No wonder Natsuro was so confident that Naruto could learn it; he was using quantity to overcome challenges. This was undeniably a very effective method and could be considered a form of talent.
Kakashi thought of himself; using Shadow Clones in battle was fine, but when it came to learning, he could only create one at most. Any more would leave him exhausted from the feedback the clones returned.
Moreover, recovery afterward was also an issue, so it wasn't just about having Shadow Clones; only someone with Naruto's physique and recovery ability could play like that.
"By the way, Kakashi, I need to talk to you about Sakura."
"Hmm?" Kakashi looked at Natsuro in confusion. Had something happened to Sakura? Natsuro then explained what had just happened.
"Isn't it a bit early to let Sakura make a choice?" Kakashi frowned. He felt Sakura was very suited for genjutsu but sensed that Natsuro was trying to push her too fast.
"Early? It's actually not. The Ninja World War shouldn't be too far off," Natsuro remarked. "So there isn't much time left for them to grow steadily."
"Ninja World War?" Kakashi asked, surprised.
"Yes, have you heard of Mount Myōboku?" Natsuro inquired.
"Of course, the legendary three great holy places…" Kakashi seemed to grasp the situation.
"Yes, it's the sage there who gave the prophecy, so time is of the essence." Natsuro continued, "My teacher Jiraiya is also running around because of this prophecy."
"I will consider it." Kakashi wasn't surprised that Natsuro was Jiraiya's student; he just nodded solemnly after a moment of silence regarding the prophecy, "And I will keep this prophecy confidential."
"Alright." Natsuro nodded, suddenly thinking of something and smiling at Kakashi. "That means I seem to be the junior disciple of the Fourth Hokage, your teacher."
"Ahahaha, it seems Naruto is having some trouble; I'll go check on him," Kakashi scratched his head and quickly headed over to Naruto, leaving Natsuro alone.
Jokingly, Kakashi could never refer to someone younger than himself as his senior, especially in front of his own students.
Natsuro found it amusing, thought for a moment, and walked deeper into the forest. He also had his own ninjutsu to practice.
Telling Kakashi about this was partly because he knew Kakashi wouldn't speak out of turn, and partly because he wanted to encourage Kakashi to work harder and spend less time on "Icha Icha books."
Natsuro was contemplating Kakashi's version of the Chidori, which had indeed provided him with considerable inspiration, and he wanted to experiment with it right away. Next on his list was learning the Spiral Shuriken.
Honestly, Natsuro felt like he had almost mastered a version of the Rasenshuriken similar to that in the original series. The power and the ear-piercing sound of its rotation were nearly identical, and its shape had already taken form.
However, Natsuro was surprised to find that this jutsu seemed to have reached this point yet felt more like a semi-finished product than a complete one…
So was Naruto's initial mastery of this jutsu in the original series merely a semi-finished product? Natsuro scratched his head, as this seemed to be the only explanation. It looked like future learning would have to rely solely on himself. Without the original as a reference, his learning speed would likely plummet.
Fortunately, he had a prototype; he just needed to continue refining it.
At that moment, Natsuro was looking forward to what the complete version of the Rasenshuriken would be like. What kind of power would it have? Could it be thrown without needing Sage Mode?
...
After a long while, when Natsuro returned to the training area with Naruto and Sasuke, he saw both of them lying on the ground, fast asleep, while Sakura was nearby taking care of them.
Of course, she was gentler with Sasuke but a bit rougher with Naruto; however, the effect was the same.
"Sakura? Have you already finished treading water?" Natsuro's voice held some surprise.
"Natsuro, you're back!" Sakura noticed Natsuro and nodded proudly. "Of course, walking on water is no problem for me."
"Hmm, very good." It was the first time Natsuro had used the word "good." Sakura's talent truly surprised him; he felt that walking on water wouldn't be difficult for her, but he hadn't expected her to master it so quickly.
She seemed to be not far behind him, even though Natsuro had only learned about this training method through anime, and there had been no one to teach him during his practice.
"Natsuro, regarding what you just mentioned, I'd like to try practicing together first and then choose what suits me. Is that okay?" Sakura asked, a bit apprehensive.
"Hmm, that's fine, but practicing together will slow your proficiency. It might actually delay your progress," Natsuro thought for a moment and replied.
"Well, that's okay. After all, I've already fallen behind by so much, so there's no rush. I'll make my final choice as soon as possible," Sakura said with a smile.
"Alright, then you can just find Kakashi afterward. He can still teach you some basic genjutsu, and once you decide, he can help you find a suitable teacher," Natsuro naturally handed Sakura over to Kakashi.
"Okay, thank you, Natsuro."
Natsuro then looked at the two sleeping figures on the ground, covered in dust. It appeared they had pushed themselves to the point of exhaustion. Naruto looked much worse, but with the Nine-Tails around, there was no need to worry.
At that moment, Natsuro approached Naruto and placed his hand on his stomach.
The next moment, Natsuro found himself once again in that familiar space.
"Back again, you little brat? What do you want this time?"
The Nine-tails became wary as it sensed Natsuro's presence, even taking a few steps back from its position at the door. It still remembered what had happened last time.
Seeing Kurama's reaction, Natsuro couldn't help but chuckle. "Kurama, I came this time to ask you a few questions."
"Huh? Do you think I'm some kind of great lord? Asking questions?" Kurama roared. Just because of such a ridiculous reason, its chakra began to surge violently toward Natsuro.
"Yes, this is the feeling." Natsuro sensed the Nine-Tails' chakra differently and murmured before asking his doubts. He speculated that ordinary people's chakra also contained will, but he couldn't perceive it.
After all, just as the Nine-Tails' malice was sensed, it wouldn't be possible to perceive it out of nowhere. It should also be through mental energy. Not everyone possesses chakra, but as long as one is alive, they basically have some mental energy.
Upon hearing Natsuro's question, Kurama suddenly froze. Its chakra slowly dissipated, and the entire fox began to laugh heartily, clutching its belly with its front paws, as if it had heard something funny and was mocking Natsuro's arrogance.
"What's the problem? Your malice perception shouldn't be out of nowhere, right?" Natsuro frowned at Kurama's laughter.
"Hmph, you sure know a lot, you little brat!" Kurama gradually stopped laughing and said, "Yes, I have the ability to sense malice, but I'm sure you absolutely cannot comprehend it. That's not a power a ninja can grasp."
Natsuro remained silent for a moment, considering that ninjas usually harness their power through chakra. So, did the Nine-Tails mean that the perception of malice wasn't a power related to chakra? That was indeed a problem.
However, Natsuro thought for a moment about his own perception, which mainly targeted chakra but did it need chakra to function? He wasn't sure about others, but his didn't seem to require it.
"So, kid, just give up on that idea," Kurama coldly shot down Natsuro's thoughts.
"Well, if that's the case, then there's nothing I can do," Natsuro sighed.
Seeing this, Kurama nodded, finally gaining some ground back. After being 'ripped apart' that one time, it had been quite angry, so this felt like some revenge.
"By the way, you've been hanging out with Naruto for a while, right? How's he doing?" Natsuro thought for a moment; since there was nothing else to discuss, he might as well ask for an update since he was feeling bored.
"Hmph, what's so special about it? They all just want to exploit the power of the Tailed Beasts," Kurama scoffed, though this time it didn't get as angry.
This actually reflected something, and seeing this, Natsuro smiled and nodded, saying, "Well, it looks like you two are getting along quite well."
"Hey, you little brat, are you even listening to me?!" Kurama roared.
"I'm listening; just don't shout all the time! Kurama, with your big size, it's quite intimidating when you yell," Natsuro said, covering his ears and feeling a bit dissatisfied.
"Don't call me that!" Kurama roared again, feeling a strange sense of confusion as to why Natsuro wasn't afraid of it like other ninjas. Even though it had wrapped its chakra around Natsuro, he should have sensed its malice; otherwise, he wouldn't have had that ridiculous thought before.
But why wasn't he afraid? And it seemed like he wasn't that interested in its power either...
"Alright, Kurama, I get it, I won't call you that again," Natsuro said with a smile.
"…" Kurama was speechless, feeling agitated again. It wanted to roar once more but paused. Forget it; it wouldn't scare him anyway.
"By the way, don't you think Naruto looks a bit like you? Especially those whisker-like marks on his face—they're quite similar to yours," Natsuro continued. "So it's possible that your power was involved in Naruto's birth."
At this, Kurama couldn't hold back any longer. How could such a good fox be so slandered? It roared, "You brat, don't talk nonsense!"
"I'm not talking nonsense! How do you explain those whiskers on Naruto's face?" Natsuro said, looking at the slightly stunned Kurama and chuckling lightly.
Saying this, Natsuro also withdrew from that space.
Kurama watched him disappear, then thought of Naruto again, realizing he indeed had six whisker-like marks on his face.
However, that was impossible. Still, Kurama couldn't help but feel that Naruto seemed a bit more likable...
Check out the patreon and get 49 chapters in advance
Currently on Chapter 171 - The Weight of the Crown