For three straight days, Kei Yamanaka had been arriving early every morning at the training cave to spar with Jiraiya.
When his chakra ran out, he took Military Rations Pills to recover quickly. If injured, he simply used Medical Ninjutsu to patch himself up.
He didn't head home exhausted until the sun had fully set, then spent his evenings studying the Senju Clan's Water Release techniques.
Thanks to his incredible comprehension and learning ability, along with the boost from Jiraiya's purple-tier skill [Heaven's Chosen Mentor], over these three days,
the combat experiences he'd extracted and documented from other ninja over his five-year stint in the Analysis Team—along with countless dazzling Water Release techniques—had gradually fused seamlessly into his own skills.
Whether choosing jutsu, timing counterattacks, or controlling battle rhythm, he was now a completely different fighter compared to before.
Jiraiya had originally believed that once he figured out Kei's techniques and hidden strengths, he would gain absolute dominance in their duels.
Unfortunately, expectations were beautiful, but reality was brutally terrifying!
One moment of carelessness, and he—the mighty legendary Sannin and Heroic Hermit Jiraiya—would end up performing humiliating dances like [Paradise], [Majestic Pride], [Love Live Loop], and [Tiger Eyes Fixed Intently] right in front of the training cave.
It would've been bearable... if only Kei had been the only one watching.
But on the very first afternoon of their sparring session, Minato Namikaze brought Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara along for the spectacle.
Kei's three young apprentices began training nearby that very afternoon as well.
Kushina and that little girl Honoka even showed up right on the dot every noon, carrying lunch boxes.
And once they arrived, they didn't leave until evening, heading home together with their respective boyfriends.
Damn it!
Sure, he loved gathering inspiration for his novels—but not by becoming the subject himself!
In order to avoid publicly performing those deeply embarrassing dances,
he hadn't held back or relaxed even slightly during the next two days—but the outcome remained unchanged.
He didn't faint dead away—that alone proved how strong his heart was!
Three days later,
without saying a word, Jiraiya packed his stuff and immediately fled to Mount Myoboku for training.
Was Sage Mode hard to learn? Who cares—he'd master it no matter what!
He was a proud Sannin—at least, he used to be... Heh... Heh... Heh...
How could he face any of his titles now!?
"I feel like Master Jiraiya probably won't be coming back anytime soon," said Minato, gazing at the empty space where Jiraiya's clothes and toiletries once were, clearly sensing just how determined his mentor was this time.
"Did we laugh too much earlier?" Rin Nohara asked awkwardly, glancing at Kurenai Yuhi who stood linked arm-in-arm with her.
Kurenai shook her head, her expression equally uneasy, before shifting her eyes toward their teacher.
"Don't go blaming yourselves for nothing. I'm the one who made him dance—and even I haven't said a word!" Kei replied as he affectionately ruffled both girls' hair playfully.
"It's a shame we won't get to see Master Jiraiya's dance today, although it's always quite entertaining."
Obito Uchiha wiped his goggles while agreeing with Kei's opinion.
Still, a flicker of regret stirred in his chest.
He still hadn't memorized all the dance moves completely!
If—just if—he and Rin ended up together someday…
Wouldn't it be amazing if Rin ever danced for him?
"You're bleeding from the nose."
Kakashi Hatake glanced over Obito's increasingly perverted expression with his usual dead-fish stare.
Calmly reminding this guy who always seemed to be a few brain cells short.
Honestly, he couldn't understand—
how someone could nosebleed just thinking about Jiraiya dancing.
Didn't that sound just plain creepy?
"Huh? Ah! I-I was just… recently…"
Wiping the blood from his nose, Obito's face flushed bright red as he tried to explain but couldn't find a proper excuse.
"I noticed your urine looked really yellow yesterday, so I knew you must be overheated. Now *that's* what I call full-power youth!"
Maito Gai slapped Obito hard on the shoulder before giving him an enthusiastic thumbs-up, flashing his big teeth.
Obito gaped at Gai in disbelief.
Seriously… no other explanation, huh?
"Teenage hormone surge? Pfft, totally normal."
Genma Shiranami clicked his senbon between his lips, glancing quickly between Rin Nohara and Obito.
As a shrewd observer on the sidelines, he'd already pieced it all together.
Minato Namikaze and Kei Yamanaka exchanged knowing smiles.
They'd both been through this stage themselves—how could they not know exactly what these kids were thinking?
"Alright, alright, enough joking around. Let's start today's training."
Clapping his hands, Kei drew everyone's attention away from their banter.
"Yes sir!"
The Three Little Troublemakers responded immediately.
Maito Gai led off by starting to run laps around the training cave.
Kurenai Yuhi and Genma Shiranami followed behind him in the standard ninja squad triangular formation.
Thanks to Kushina's improved version of the Continuous Four Limbs Sealing Array,
the three troublemakers had all seen improvements in their physical strength recently.
Exercises that once took several hours now required less than an hour.
Except for Maito Gai, who still insisted on extra practice to hone his Taijutsu even further,
Kurenai and Genma dedicated nearly all their remaining time to mastering new Ninjutsu techniques.
"Let's work hard during today's training too!"
Minato also gave Kakashi and the others a word of encouragement.
Over the past few days, the three youths had already grown accustomed to this rhythm, and they began their own training routines accordingly.
As for Kei Yamanaka and Minato Namikaze—
"Begin?"
Kei arched an eyebrow slightly, flipping a kunai deftly between the fingers of his right hand.
"No more faking me out this time."
Minato also held his Flying Thunder God Kunai.
His usually carefree face bore an unusual look of seriousness and resolve.
He'd watched every sparring match between his dear friend and former mentor over the past three days.
And honestly, he couldn't make heads or tails of it either.
How could his closest friend hide his abilities so well?
His clan's secret techniques, genjutsu, Water Release, taijutsu, medical ninjutsu, sealing techniques...
How many more secrets was he hiding?
"If you're not holding back, then I won't either."
Kei Yamanaka's eyes narrowed slightly.
The next moment—
Clang!
Sparks flew as the kunai clashed mid-air, the two agile figures springing apart and throwing their weapons simultaneously.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Within the cramped confines of the mansion, two flickering shadows repeatedly clashed, vanishing and reappearing like ghosts.
After a brief skirmish, both fighters burst out of the mansion at the same time.
Kei Yamanaka flicked two kunai from his wrist—one soaring into the sky, the other striking the ground.
Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze held four Flying Thunder God Kunai in each hand. With a swift spin and twist of his waist, he launched all eight kunai straight at Kei.
Tink! Tink! Tink! Tink!
In mid-air, the Flying Thunder God Kunai struck each other, instantly shifting their trajectories.
Two kunai streaked toward Kei's head, blocking any chance to dodge upward; another pair aimed for his feet, closing off any escape downward.
The remaining four kunai carved sweeping arcs through the air, striking directly at Kei's vital points from all directions.
Uchiha Shuriken Projection Technique?!
Kei's eyes flickered with surprise.
It looked flashy and required incredible perception, lightning-fast reflexes, and rigorous training—but its practical combat value was actually quite limited.
For the most part, it was only effective for catching opponents off guard.
Except for the Uchiha clan—who possessed the Sharingan to greatly reduce the difficulty of mastering the technique—few shinobi ever bothered to learn or use it.
Over time, it became synonymous with the Uchiha name.
Yet Kei never expected Minato to combine it with the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Normally, once a shuriken was thrown, that was all—there was little follow-up effect.
Yet wherever Minato's Flying Thunder God Kunai landed, he could instantly teleport there!
Now that he thought about it, the two techniques truly were a perfect match!
Still... You're just a bit too slow.
Weapons clashing and scraping against each other inevitably reduced speed and power.
In normal circumstances, such a small difference wouldn't matter much.
But between two fighters whose reaction times already exceeded normal human limits, even that small delay gave Kei the edge to take control early.
Ignoring the incoming Flying Thunder God Kunai, Kei wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth with his right hand before vanishing on the spot.
He reappeared beside the kunai he had earlier thrown into the sky.
[Summoning Jutsu: Corpse Crow!]
"Caw! Caw! Caw!" "Caw! Caw! Caw!" "Caw! Caw! Caw!"
Nine jet-black crows erupted from the swirling chakra smoke like dark arrows, scattering in all directions.
Detecting the Flying Thunder God formulas hidden within the crows under Locking Seals, Minato's expression darkened.
For the past three days, he had been watching Kei's battle against Jiraiya-sensei.
He had even asked his dear friend before why he never used the Flying Thunder God Technique.
The answer he got was that his friend hadn't yet mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique well enough to use it in actual combat — it might be a long road ahead.
But now—
So the 'long road' you're talking about means using underhanded tactics against me, huh?!
I open my heart to you like a brother, and you play mind games with me?
The more Minato Namikaze thought about it, the more furious he felt.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>