"So that's more or less the situation. That mysterious man's appearance has had a big emotional impact on Kakashi, which is totally understandable."
Finally, by the time they arrived at the training ground, Jiraiya had finished his story.
He gave a small shake of his head, feeling a little wistful. The idea of something lost and then found again might seem uplifting…
But if it ended up like what happened between him and Orochimaru, then it was far from a happy ending.
"Forget it. Let me teach you a jutsu. Take your time with it."
Shaking his head, Jiraiya brushed the thoughts aside. He raised his right hand, and immediately, a wave of chakra began to gather.
Before long, with the chakra swirling and spinning, a bright blue spiral of energy formed in his palm.
"This is a jutsu with infinite potential. Its developer was the Fourth Hokage."
Looking at the Rasengan in his hand, he spoke to Gen with rare seriousness.
"This technique doesn't require a specific chakra nature. That means any chakra attribute can be infused into it, giving rise to all sorts of new variations."
"But make no mistake—it's not easy. Even the Fourth couldn't complete that part before he died."
At the mention of Namikaze Minato, Jiraiya's tone dimmed slightly. He lightly flicked his hand, and the Rasengan dissipated into the air.
Then he gave his face a few slaps, forcing himself back to normal before continuing: "Take your time with this, kid. It took the Fourth three years to develop it, and it took this great sage three months to learn. So don't rush!"
With that, he turned around and started to leave.
It wasn't that he didn't want to teach—he simply wanted to see just how talented Kakashi's so-called genius student really was.
If Gen couldn't handle it, then he'd teach him properly.
"Jiraiya-sama."
But just then, Gen suddenly called out to him.
At the same time, he mimicked Jiraiya's motion, raising his right hand.
"You mentioned earlier… that guy suspected to be Uchiha Obito—he was really fond of their other teammate?"
"Hm?"
Jiraiya paused mid-step. Yes, he had indeed said that.
"That's right. Are you suggesting that guy's targeting people around Kakashi on purpose? We've considered that. It's possible, but not too likely."
The deaths of the Fourth Hokage and his wife, and Gen's recent attack…
It did all look suspiciously like someone trying to get revenge on those close to Kakashi.
But while Kakashi didn't have many close friends, he did have someone like Guy!
If that man really intended to do something, even Guy and the others wouldn't be able to escape.
That guy had already broken through Konoha's defenses and caused all that damage. This wasn't just about revenge anymore.
"Besides—why didn't that guy take Kakashi's Sharingan? Why deliberately leave such an obvious flaw? Kid, don't overthink it, alright?"
Jiraiya chuckled as he shook his head.
But the next second—he completely froze.
Because right before his eyes, a swirling mass of chakra had already formed in Kitagawa Gen's palm!
"Wha—"
"This isn't too difficult," Gen said calmly. "My Purple Lightning is all about pushing chakra shape and nature transformation to the limit. The Rasengan's difficulty lies in controlling the chakra ratio. With enough practice, it's manageable."
As he continued to form the Rasengan, Gen kept speaking without missing a beat.
"As for Uchiha Obito—I don't think it's about revenge either. I think… he might have been manipulated, and now he's trying to blame everything on Konoha."
"Manipulated… and blaming Konoha?!"
Jiraiya's eyes widened in disbelief. But Gen nodded and went on: "Yeah. He went through the war, didn't he? I haven't experienced it myself, but just reading about it in books… I can already feel how terrifying it must've been. Reality must've been even worse than those books described."
"Going through a war can really mess with your mind. If someone manipulates you, and then the person you love most suffers a tragedy, it's easy to start blaming everything on your village."
"Like—why did Konoha even get involved in war in the first place?"
At this point, Gen paused for a moment.
"Of course, I'm just speculating," he added. "It's just… I've read a lot about how brutal war can be. Also, Jiraiya-sama—take a look at this."
As he spoke, chakra surged within him once more—and a vibrant, stable Rasengan formed cleanly in his palm.
In that moment, Jiraiya was completely stunned.
...
At first, Kitagawa Gen was wondering what kind of flashy trick Jiraiya might try to pull.
But the moment he saw Jiraiya charging in with a Rasengan, Gen realized there was no need to hold back anymore.
The Rasengan, after all, wasn't just about chakra control and ratio manipulation—it also required a deep mastery over chakra transformation.
Just like he'd explained to Jiraiya earlier: Purple Lightning was the ultimate manifestation of both shape and nature transformation.
Since he had already mastered Purple Lightning—even if he still had room to deepen his understanding—handling a Rasengan was practically effortless for him.
As for intelligence analysis?
Well, he hadn't done poorly in school, and during his time out on missions with Kakashi, he had also proven himself in that area.
This level of challenge was barely worth mentioning—especially considering he'd even thrown in a disclaimer.
"Jiraiya-sama? Hey, Jiraiya-sama?"
Seeing Jiraiya standing there frozen, Gen immediately put on an innocent expression.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"Ah…"
Jiraiya slowly lifted his dazed gaze, and after a brief pause, finally came back to his senses. His whole demeanor seemed a bit numb.
"No… you did well. Really well."
He was even stumbling over his words a little. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth.
But now, perhaps, he finally understood what Kakashi meant earlier when he'd said, "It won't be long before I have nothing left to teach him."
Teaching a genius really was frustrating—because it truly wouldn't be long before there was nothing left to teach.
"You performed very well. That's enough for today."
Jiraiya couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed as he said that.
How long had it been since they left the hospital?
And already he was calling it a day?
He'd spent more time at a red-light district before!
But he couldn't help it—Gen's words had genuinely caught his attention.
"I'm going to speak with the old man—the Third Hokage. What you said just now was a bit messy, but there was a certain logic to it, and it gave me some ideas."
"I have to discuss this with him. You're on your own for today. Don't worry, while you're training under me, I'll make sure to teach you properly."
"Uh… Is this your idea of proper teaching—just dumping me here?"
"..."
Jiraiya didn't even respond. He just turned and ran off on his own.
Seeing this, Gen could only shrug—but this was exactly the outcome he'd hoped for.
"I wonder if this method will let me complete that exclusive side quest…"
...
Konoha Hospital – Inside Kakashi's Room
"What's this about, calling me here all of a sudden?"
Hiruzen looked at Jiraiya in confusion, then glanced at Kakashi, who seemed just as clueless. He lowered his voice.
"Old man… that kid, Kitagawa Gen, is something else."
Jiraiya plopped down into a chair, rubbing his head in frustration before glancing at Kakashi beside him.
"I think I understand how you feel now."
"?"
Kakashi gave him a puzzled look. Jiraiya continued.
"Trying to teach a genius like that—it's enough to throw you off completely."
"You know, I knew about his Purple Lightning technique, and yet I still couldn't resist testing him."
"And that brat—he watched me use the Rasengan once and then immediately replicated it. I mean…"
Jiraiya trailed off, rubbing his temples. Even Minato had spent three years developing the Rasengan, accounting for all the research involved.
Jiraiya himself had needed three months to learn it—even with some refinements and simplifications.
But Gen?
He'd done it in the blink of an eye. No matter how calm Jiraiya usually was, he couldn't help feeling a little depressed.
"You've seen Gen's Purple Lightning, right, Jiraiya-sama?"
Kakashi slowly sat up a bit and murmured, "With that technique as his foundation, any jutsu that relies on shape and nature transformation is practically child's play for him."
"Back when I taught him Earth-Style Wall, he mastered it almost instantly—and even carved the faces of the past Hokage into the wall."
"From that moment on, I knew Gen had extraordinary talent when it came to jutsu."
"That Purple Lightning… it really is something special. As far as I know, only the Third Raikage had done anything comparable."
Hiruzen nodded, deeply moved by such talent. As the so-called 'The Professor', he fully understood the difficulty involved.
For someone as young as Kitagawa Gen to achieve this level already—it was impossible not to feel pleased. After all, he was a talent of Konohagakure!