The bright moon hung high in the sky, illuminating the stars like scattered jewels. This was the Land of Waves, Tazuna's homeland, where the borders met the edge of a vast forest. Waves of vibrant flowers swayed in the breeze, interspersed with rare herbs growing among them.
Around a small crackling fire, Naruto sat cross-legged, arms folded over his chest. A red, hand-shaped mark on his cheek hinted at recent trouble. He glanced at his teammates, Sakura and Sasuke, with an air of seriousness.
"Guys, we have a problem." he said gravely.
"What now?" Sakura asked, narrowing her eyes at the mark on his face. "Maybe your biggest problem is playing pranks on Gojo-sensei."
Earlier, Naruto had tried to scare Gojo by pretending to be a ghost. One slap later, he was on the ground with a stinging reminder that Gojo was not easily rattled.
"No! I mean our team's power. We're totally weak! We barely even got to show off. Ever since Zabuza showed up, Gojo-sensei just takes over and leaves us in the dust!" Naruto said, pouting.
"Idiot. He's a top-level Jonin. What did you expect?" Sasuke scoffed, arms crossed, though a part of him agreed. Their team was hopelessly outmatched.
"It's normal, Naruto." Sakura said. "We're all just Genin. We don't stand a chance against Jonin-level enemies. Honestly, Gojo-sensei's been keeping us alive out here."
Since Zabuza's arrival, their mission had escalated from a simple C-rank to a high-stakes A-rank. If not for Gojo, they wouldn't have lasted a minute.
Sasuke clenched his fists, remembering his own paralysis in the face of danger. The enemy that had overwhelmed him was swatted aside by Gojo like a mosquito. That power gap fueled his rage. As the last of the Uchiha, he couldn't bear being this weak.
"Do you feel the same, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, noticing the tension in his teammate.
While he felt safer with Gojo around, Naruto still craved power—enough to stand equal with Sasuke and maybe even go toe-to-toe with Gojo one day. Each member of the team had their own reasons for wanting to get stronger, but the desire was the same.
Determined, Naruto leapt to his feet. "Let's do something about it! Let's make Gojo-sensei teach us some real moves!"
"Like what?" Sakura and Sasuke exchanged dubious looks.
Naruto grinned mischievously and pulled them in close, whispering his "master plan."
Meanwhile, by the river, Gojo Satoru lay on the grass, legs crossed, engrossed in a book titled Love to Heaven. Sasuke approached, clearing his throat.
"What's up?" Gojo said, turning a page without looking up. "You finally decided to read something more your age?"
Trying to hide his embarrassment, Sasuke held out a beautifully wrapped box of candy. "Here." he muttered. "It's from the Land of Waves."
Gojo blinked, momentarily stunned. After a pause, he raised an eyebrow. "Is this your attempt at bribery? Are you trying to be a tsundere or something? Because… ew."
"Whatever." Sasuke grumbled, stuffing the candy back in his pouch, cheeks tinged red.
Before Gojo could go back to his book, Sakura knelt beside him with a forced, sweet smile. "Sensei, let me give you a leg massage." she said, pretending to be thrilled about it. "Without you, we'd be in serious danger."
She began massaging his leg, muttering under her breath, "Stupid Naruto…"
Gojo sighed. "You kids are actually making this painful. A little higher."
Sakura shifted her hands upward, growing more embarrassed.
"A little higher." Gojo repeated, smirking.
Sakura's cheeks flushed pink, and she sprang to her feet, face red as a beet. "Never mind!" she squeaked, scurrying off.
In the grass nearby, Naruto whispered, "Did it work?"
"Baka!" Sakura growled, rolling up her sleeves and giving him a solid punch. "This was all your stupid idea!"
Naruto clutched his head, pouting. "Sakura-chan, what was that for?"
"For making us look ridiculous!" she snapped.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I don't have time for your nonsense." Hands stuffed in his pockets, he turned to leave, hoping to salvage his dignity.
Naruto slapped his palm against his fist, suddenly more determined. "Fine! I'll do this alone!" He squared his shoulders, stepping confidently over to Gojo.
With his teammates watching skeptically, Naruto summoned all his energy. "Sensei, get ready to be impressed!" he declared, forming a seal. "Multiple Shadow Clone Technique!"
With a loud poof, a dozen clones appeared around him. "Now for the finishing move!" they all chimed, forming seals together. "Multiple Harem Technique!"
Another cloud of smoke rose, revealing Naruto transformed into a group of flirtatious, overly-curvy figures, all striking alluring poses around Gojo.
In the grass, Sakura buried her face in her hands, mortified. Sasuke just looked away, muttering, "Total idiot…"
"Sensei~~~" the clones cooed in unison, winking and pouting.
Gojo sat up, surveying the bizarre scene. "Hmm," he mused, pretending to inspect their "form." After a moment, he said "This might impress some, but… nah. 5/10 at best."
"Gojo, handsome, can you make us super powerful?" The feminine Naruto Uzumaki wrapped his arms around Gojo's waist, rubbing against him with exaggerated enthusiasm.
"Wow, this feels amazing, so cool! Keep rubbing harder!"
Gojo, unfazed, grabbed Naruto's hair—his real body—and casually tossed him into the nearby river with a flick.
The Shadow Clones vanished in a puff of smoke.
"Smelly brat, you think I'll fall for that?" Gojo muttered.
Soaked and sputtering, Naruto pointed at Gojo. "Damn it, just wait! I'll perfect this technique and surprise you next time!"
"Good spirit." Gojo smirked, then turned to Sakura Haruno, who was hiding behind a bush, clearly struggling to hold back her laughter. "I'd rather pet little Sakura's flat attas than deal with that."
Sakura's face flushed, her eyes flashing with anger. "Bastard! I'm going to kill you!" she yelled, charging at Gojo and throwing a punch at his abdomen.
Gojo caught her wrist easily and flipped her to the ground. "Don't get too worked up, Sakura.You're eager to improve, right? Let's move to the next phase."
Sakura grimaced, face pressed into the dirt. "Is this how a teacher behaves?"
Gojo laughed. "Would you prefer lollipops and hugs?"
Sasuke stepped out from behind the trees, his expression unreadable. "What's next?"
"Finally, we can move on." Naruto said, eager and cross-legged on the ground.
Gojo raised a finger, a spark of blue chakra appearing at his fingertip. "You learned to control chakra. Now, we'll learn how to release it."
Naruto tilted his head. "But why release it? What's the point?"
Gojo smirked, holding up a rock. "Watch this, fox kid."
"My name is Naruto!" Naruto yelled for emphasis.
Sakura, still on the ground, sighed dramatically. "Gojo-sensei, can you please let me up now?"
"Ah, right, my bad." Gojo said, letting her go.
Sakura shot him a glare, brushing off the dirt. Gojo held up the rock and focused chakra into his palm. Blue energy spun around the stone, compressing into a tight, glowing spiral. With a flick, the rock shattered into dust.
"See? Chakra manipulation." Gojo said casually, wiping his hands. "It's not just about releasing it—what if you compress it and make it spin really fast?" He formed another chakra ball and spun it even faster.
BAM! The rock exploded into dust.
"Wow, that's amazing!" Naruto shouted. "You can do that with chakra?"
Sakura's face was a mix of awe and confusion. "I never thought about chakra like that."
"That's the Rasengan." Gojo explained, "The Fourth Hokage made it. You can add elemental attributes, but for now, just focus on the basics."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "That technique takes insane precision, right? It looks... complicated."
Gojo grinned. "It's not for beginners, but with talent, it's manageable."
He focused more chakra, and the Rasengan changed to bright red as it gained a Fire Style attribute.
"Fire Style Rasengan." Gojo said, his tone almost bored. "Now, it's a bit more dangerous."
He teleported to a distant hill, slamming the massive Rasengan into the mountain.
BOOM!
The explosion shook the ground, crumbling the mountain face and sending rocks tumbling down the hillside.
Sasuke's eyes widened, his Sharingan activated. "Impossible..."
Gojo casually reappeared. "That's the Rasengan at its peak. You can apply all kinds of elemental changes, but for now, like I said earlier, let's focus on the basics."
Naruto jumped up, still buzzing. "So we release and manipulate chakra like that?"
Gojo handed him a bag of balloons. "Yep. Inflate one with chakra."
Naruto was confused. "Wait, what's the balloon for?"
"Just watch." Gojo smirked, inflating a balloon with chakra until it popped with a loud 'bang'.
"Your turn." Gojo said, tossing Naruto a balloon.
Naruto, eager to impress, grabbed the balloon, puffing his cheeks.
"Don't pop it with your mouth, Naruto." Gojo said. "Use your chakra."
Naruto struggled as the class watched quietly.
"Once you can pop a balloon with chakra," Gojo continued, "we'll move on to something more advanced."
Sakura raised her hand, her curiosity winning out over the tension. " Gojo-sensei, what's shape change and Nature Transformation?"
Gojo grinned. "Good question, flat funbags. But that's for another lesson.
With a wave, he casually added, "Anyway, get to work. I've got a tent to nap in." He grinned, walking off as if nothing important had just happened.