Chapter 75
After a morning of training, Haneda was feeling a bit tired from teaching Minato.
In the middle of the session, Obito insisted on training alongside them, so Haneda had to split off a shadow clone to help Obito with his Fire Style practice and some issues regarding the use of his Sharingan.
By noon, Haneda sat on a rock, drinking from his water bottle, while Minato was still training, working on altering the nature of his Lightning Style chakra.
Taking a big gulp, Haneda wiped his mouth and asked, "Minato-senpai, what are you training so hard for?"
Haneda had been striving for the last five years to change the fate of his companions and close friends. He was curious if Minato was now pushing himself for the sake of Konoha.
"My goal?" Minato paused his movements and smiled, "To protect my comrades, the village, and the ones I love. You understand that feeling, don't you, Haneda?"
Minato was well aware of the implications of awakening the Sharingan, especially the three-tomoe Sharingan.
Before Haneda could respond, Obito interjected, "That's right! Minato-sensei! If I can't protect what I need to, what's the point of having this power?"
"I see…" Haneda smiled and asked, "Is that also how you see the role of a ninja, Minato-senpai?"
"Why are you always overthinking these things? A ninja is supposed to protect their comrades, right? I remember five years ago you said, 'Those who abandon the mission are scum, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum.'"
Obito complained.
However, Haneda's attention was clearly not on Obito. He looked past him and turned his gaze toward Minato.
"A ninja, huh…" Minato reflected on the word and seemed to understand some of what Haneda was thinking.
Smiling, Minato said, "As a ninja of Konoha, it's about protecting my comrades, the village, and those I love most. That's how I view what it means to be a ninja."
"But my teacher once told me, a ninja is someone who can endure anything," Minato added.
As soon as he finished speaking, a tall man with long white hair tied back, wearing a forehead protector with the kanji for "oil," appeared beside Minato.
"Yo, Minato, I finally found you."
"You're not training with that hot-tempered Kushina today? Why are you hanging out with these two Uchiha brats?"
"Aren't we supposed to be practicing that mini-Tailed Beast Bomb today?"
Hearing Jiraiya call them "Uchiha brats" made Obito angry.
"Hey! Pervy Sage! How can you be so rude? Haneda and I are already ninja, not the brats you say we are!!"
Obito pointed at Jiraiya, shouting.
"See, definitely a brat."
Jiraiya ignored Obito and instead glanced at Haneda. This young genius had already started making a name for himself five years ago, and the old man mentioned him often, claiming this boy had the talent and potential of the likes of Orochimaru.
Of course, Jiraiya dismissed that with a scoff. He held Orochimaru's abilities in high regard.
"Jiraiya-sama," Haneda greeted politely.
Jiraiya gave a slight nod and turned to Minato. "You're training in Lightning Style? I thought your specialty was Wind Style?"
"Let's go, Minato, to the third training ground. Let's practice that mini-Tailed Beast Bomb for your little girlfriend."
Minato replied, "Let's stay here, Jiraiya-sensei. Haneda and Obito are here, and I can guide them while I train."
"Both of them?"
Jiraiya remembered the Hokage's political efforts toward the Uchiha clan and, given that Obito was his grandstudent, he nodded.
"Alright, this place isn't bad either."
Mini-Tailed Beast Bomb? Haneda thought to himself, isn't Minato creating the Rasengan? According to the original story, the Rasengan was modeled after the Tailed Beast Bomb, and Minato developed it for Kushina. It seemed to match what Jiraiya was hinting at with his "little girlfriend" comment.
While Haneda was contemplating, a loud explosion erupted nearby. Minato had been attempting to condense some sort of energy sphere, but it exploded before fully forming due to the highly concentrated chakra.
Minato used the Flying Thunder God to dodge the blast, but the ground was left with a large crater.
"Are you alright, Minato-sensei?" Obito asked with concern.
"Still too unstable. Can I really control such highly concentrated chakra?" Minato mused, analyzing the previous attempt.
Noticing Obito's concern, Minato responded, "I'm fine, Obito, but stay back just in case."
"Got it, Minato-sensei. You be careful too."
Obito backed up and sat down next to Haneda, feeling safer being close to him. Even if that chakra sphere flew their way, he trusted Haneda could block it.
Haneda silently observed Minato's repeated attempts, recalling the training method for the Rasengan from the anime. He vaguely remembered it involved rotating water-filled balloons and rubber balls, but without clear details, he didn't dare risk trying it himself.
In just a few minutes, Minato had tried creating the Rasengan dozens of times until he collapsed from chakra exhaustion. By that point, the training area was littered with craters of various sizes, remnants of his failed attempts.
Watching Minato and Jiraiya discuss the situation, Haneda spoke up.
"Why not try simulating the chakra concentration with a water-filled balloon? Then make the water move randomly to burst the balloon. It would save a lot of chakra."
"What do you know, kid!" Jiraiya snapped, annoyed at the interruption during his discussion with Minato.
However, both he and Minato exchanged a glance, and in that moment, they had the same thought:
"Wait, that might work!!"
Without delay, Jiraiya fetched a water-filled balloon, and Minato didn't disappoint. After only a few attempts, the balloon burst.
At that moment, Haneda added, "Next, switch to a tougher rubber ball. You don't need to fill it with water this time; just use the chakra itself to replicate the effect."
A stroke of genius!!
Jiraiya and Minato simultaneously realized that Haneda's suggestion was incredible, almost as if he knew how the Rasengan would be created. No, he even laid out the steps for its training!
Seeing their astonished expressions, Haneda silently shook his head. The method for training the Rasengan had to have come from either Minato or Jiraiya. If Haneda hadn't vaguely remembered it from the original story, this might have turned into another Tobirama-style intellectual property dispute.
Once Jiraiya brought a rubber ball, Minato tried again.
With a loud pop, the ball exploded, and in Minato's hand appeared a perfectly formed sphere of pure chakra!
"It's... it's taking shape, Jiraiya-sensei!!"
"Let's name it..."
"How about... the *Glorious Water Balloon Spin Haneda Dual-Style Orb*!!"
***
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