Chapter 59: There's One Thing

"Rasengan"?

The jutsu developed by his father.

Naruto was intrigued.

His current combat system was already quite mature, and he didn't really have much need for new "techniques"—the Hadō were sufficient.

But that was something his father had created.

There weren't many traces left of his parents in his life.

Moreover…

The Summoning Jutsu seemed valuable to learn too.

Naruto recalled the time he carried out his first C-rank mission with Kakashi.

He had seen Kakashi use the "Summoning Jutsu" to summon a creature from a distant location.

It was a technique that involved "space."

To this day, he still hadn't figured out the principles behind his ability to travel between "this world" and the "Soul Society."

Spells involving "space" and "time" were explicitly forbidden techniques.

Unless one was among the Kido Corps, they were inaccessible in the Soul Society.

Oretsu Iron-Sai had been a good breakthrough—he was the first person to openly use a technique that clearly involved elements of "time" and "space." But he had fled to the human world with Kisuke Urahara.

They were hiding well.

They seemed wary of that lurking enemy and had never tried to contact him again.

His investigation was also obstructed by Central 46.

He hadn't been able to find them.

Now, he needed a technique related to "space."

"Is the Summoning Jutsu related to space?" Naruto asked.

Jiraiya was momentarily stunned but nodded. "Of course. It's a fairly basic space-time ninjutsu."

"Then please, Jiraiya-sensei, teach me both of those techniques," Naruto accepted.

Jiraiya looked thoughtful. "Naruto, are you interested in space-time ninjutsu?"

"Konoha has a technique called the Flying Thunder God."

"It was also one of your father's techniques—his signature jutsu."

"It's thanks to that jutsu that Minato became known as the 'Yellow Flash'—a name that struck fear into his enemies."

"If you stayed in Konoha, maybe you'd get the chance—"

Naruto cut him off with a grin. "My father was called the Yellow Flash?"

"That sounds really cool."

Jiraiya choked. The rest of what he wanted to say stuck in his throat.

He looked at Naruto and knew that these casually deflective words were actually a subtle but firm refusal to his suggestion.

After all, a dangling carrot might lure a donkey, but how could it possibly tempt someone like Naruto?

Instead of pressing further, he walked over and, without pulling out a scroll, began to demonstrate and teach Naruto directly.

The Summoning Jutsu wasn't difficult.

The most important step was to sign your name on the contract scroll.

Jiraiya took out the "Mount Myōboku Contract" and unrolled it.

Naruto scanned over the names left by previous contractors.

"Jiraiya" was second from the bottom.

And the very last name, written in sloppy hiragana, was "Minato Namikaze."

Naruto wrote down his own name. There were only five hand signs required. It was a simple jutsu and took less than an hour to fully master.

Looking at the toad he summoned—

Naruto was thoughtful.

He could indeed feel the spatial rupture—the sensation of a pathway opening in an instant.

Unfortunately, Kisuke Urahara had fled.

He could only study it on his own.

The Summoning Jutsu wasn't limited to just summoning animals.

"Inanimate objects" weren't restricted.

Jiraiya even suggested that Naruto inscribe the Summoning Formula onto the hilts of his twin blades.

That way, if he lost grip of his swords during battle, he could summon them back with the technique.

He could also use Summoning as a form of storage—sealing objects into scrolls and summoning them when needed.

The second technique to learn was the "Rasengan."

A jutsu that required no hand signs.

Watching the glowing blue orb in Jiraiya's palm, which spun endlessly within—

"This was… developed based on the Tailed Beast Ball?" Naruto asked.

The orb felt very familiar.

Jiraiya grinned and nodded. "As expected of Naruto. You noticed at a glance."

"This was a jutsu Minato developed for Kushina."

He paused, then dispersed the chakra with a wave of his hand. "You can already walk on water, even gather chakra to stand in mid-air."

"That proves your chakra control is extremely refined—far beyond mine."

"But those are all static uses of chakra."

"The Rasengan is different. It requires flowing chakra."

"For this training period, let me stay with you and teach you—"

Before he could finish, his eyes stopped on Naruto's hand.

In Naruto's palm, chakra flowed and began to twist in one direction, generating a faint breeze.

It was—

Not incorrect.

But it was still a surface. Far from being a sphere.

Naruto adjusted the direction of the chakra flow, controlling multiple streams at once.

The breeze grew violent. The chaotic air currents spiraled.

Gradually, the chakra became restrained. A blurry trace of a "Rasengan" began to form.

He increased the power.

After a few more attempts, a glowing blue orb floated steadily in Naruto's palm. "Jiraiya-sensei, like this?"

He had already released the Tailed Beast Ball many times.

After successfully achieving Four-Tails transformation with Urahara Kisuke's help, he had also trained in using the Tailed Beast Ball.

The Rasengan was a technique derived from that principle.

With that to reference, it wasn't so difficult for him.

Jiraiya fell silent as he watched.

He learned it this quickly?

He had hoped to use this training as an opportunity to spend more time with Naruto.

But—

He'd only demonstrated it once, and Naruto had already grasped the concept. In just over an hour, he had mastered it.

"Amazing, Naruto." Jiraiya forced a smile. "You picked it up so fast."

Naruto dispersed the chakra. "Thank you, Jiraiya-sensei."

"Then I'll take my leave now."

He stood up, leapt into the trees, and was about to Shunpo away.

Jiraiya called him back. "Naruto."

The blond boy turned around.

"You said you were going to find your parents—what do you mean?" Jiraiya finally voiced the question weighing on his mind. "Minato and Kushina are already dead."

"Where are you going to look?"

Naruto's voice was soft but firm. "I know they're dead."

"But isn't there a Shinigami in this world?"

"Then there must be a place where the souls of the dead reside, right?"

"That's the place I want to find."

Jiraiya froze. "Shinigami? Where did you hear about that?"

"I saw it with my own eyes—when the Third Hokage used a technique called Reaper Death Seal."

"He summoned the Shinigami and sealed his own soul along with the First and Second Hokage."

"That Shinigami? You could see it!" Jiraiya's face darkened, and he furrowed his brows. "Where did you make a contract with that thing?"

Naruto looked at him calmly. "I didn't make a contract. Due to certain special reasons, I can see it."

"Jiraiya-sensei knows about that technique too?"

"Then may I ask you to teach me, please?"

Jiraiya asked suspiciously, "You really haven't made a contract?"

Naruto nodded. "Really."

"I'm relieved you haven't gotten entangled with something that dangerous." Jiraiya let out a breath. "As for that jutsu…"

"Sorry, Naruto. I don't know how to use it."

"Since the Third passed away, maybe only Konoha still has a written record of it."

Naruto remained unfazed.

Jiraiya hesitated, sighed, and said, "If you're determined to leave Konoha and travel the world, I can't stop you."

"Naruto, you're mature, and very powerful."

"So… there's one thing I feel I should tell you."

(End of Chapter)