Konoha: Comparison of Naruto

Chapter 31: Cunning Nine Tails

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- Impossible!

The Nine Tails was actually moved by Naruto. Was it really going to teach him ninjutsu?

And not just any ninjutsu—it was the Fourth Hokage's own technique.

---

Namikaze Minato: "The Nine Tails mentioned the Tailed Beast Bomb earlier. Could it be that it's guiding Naruto to learn the Rasengan?"

Uzumaki Kushina: "Rasengan? Minato, are you serious...?"

Jiraiya: "What?! The Nine Tails is teaching Naruto the Rasengan? Then what's the point of me being his teacher?"

---

["Boy, I'm going to teach you a ninjutsu developed by your father: Rasengan."]

[Nine Tails' response left Naruto utterly stunned.]

[It was beyond his imagination.]

[Not only was the giant fox in front of him willing to teach him ninjutsu, but it was a technique developed by his own father?]

["Rasengan involves condensing Chakra into your hand, making it flow in various directions while compressing it into a high-density, rotating Chakra sphere."]

["Remember these points—I'll only explain them once."]

["Phase 1: Focus Chakra in the palm of your hand."]

["Phase 2: Practice further by releasing Chakra steadily and continuously."]

["Phase 3: Maintain the released Chakra, materialize it, and form a Chakra ball. But remember, although Rasengan is formed at this stage, it's unstable. Its offensive power will only break the surface and might even dissipate."]

["Phase 4: Stabilize the formed Rasengan and compress the Chakra further until it forms a perfect sphere resembling a small typhoon. Only then will it be truly complete."]

[The Nine Tails explained with a cunning glint in its eyes.]

[Rasengan was a ninjutsu developed by Namikaze Minato after three years of effort, inspired by the Tailed Beast Bomb.]

[As Kushina was the Nine Tails' Jinchūriki, the fox naturally knew the specific process of developing the Rasengan.]

[However, the Nine Tails intentionally left out an important detail about the practice.]

[After all, it was still the Nine Tails, and it occasionally had to punish the audacious yellow-haired boy.]

["Alright, I've fulfilled your request. Don't bother me anymore."]

["But let me warn you: it took your father, a genius, three years to develop the Rasengan."]

["If you fail to master it, it only proves how stupid you are. Don't come crying to me if you can't do it."]

It turned out to be the Rasengan.

Namikaze Minato, Jiraiya, and Sarutobi Hiruzen—those who understood the intricacies of Rasengan training—were visibly shaken.

None of them expected Naruto in the black frame to persuade the Nine Tails into teaching him Rasengan.

But there was a catch—the Nine Tails clearly didn't have good intentions.

It deliberately left out the most crucial aids in the practice of Rasengan: balloons and rubber balls.

It was evident that the Nine Tails wanted to see Naruto struggle and make a fool of himself.

Uzumaki Kushina: "Nine Tails is up to no good. It didn't tell Naruto about the critical tools needed to practice Rasengan. Isn't that just setting him up to fail?"

Namikaze Minato: "Without the assistance of balloons and rubber balls, it's almost impossible to understand the feeling of a sphere or the outer layer that contains Chakra. Without those tools, gathering Chakra into a ball is incredibly difficult."

Jiraiya: "Haha! But look at Naruto's eyes shining with excitement—he actually believes it. Honestly, in this regard, both versions of Naruto are way too easy to fool."

In the venue of the Chūnin Exam, Naruto shot Jiraiya a suspicious look.

"Pervy Sage, is Rasengan really that strong of a jutsu?"

"Of course it is! I originally planned to teach you this ninjutsu when I got back, but then this whole movie-viewing system happened."

"Really? After the movie ends, you have to teach me!"

Uzumaki Naruto's excitement grew.

This was a ninjutsu developed by his father, and if Jiraiya said it was strong, then it had to be something incredible.

However, amid his happiness, Naruto couldn't help but feel concerned for his counterpart on the screen.

Even Naruto knew that if any step of the process was missing or flawed, it would be impossible to succeed. Worse, serious problems could arise.

And with the Nine Tails deliberately hiding the most important details, it was clear that his black-framed counterpart was in for some trouble.

Uzumaki Naruto: "Hey! I'm not provoking that big fox again. It really has way too many bad intentions."

Nine Tails: "???"

---

[Time passed day by day.]

[Within Naruto's body, the Nine Tails watched with glee every time Naruto grew frustrated over his inability to gather Chakra into a sphere.]

[The sight of Naruto struggling filled the Nine Tails with joy, to the point that it almost wanted to roll on the ground laughing.]

["Hmph! If I don't put this brat in his place, he'll think he can ride roughshod over me forever."]

["Maybe once he realizes his own limitations, I'll show mercy and tell him the critical details."]

[Many days passed in a flash.]

[Hokage's Office.]

[Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Sarutobi Hiruzen—three old comrades who had worked together for decades—were gathered.]

["In a few days, the new generation of Genin will be graduating. Here is the proposed team classification."]

[Sarutobi Hiruzen handed over a list to the other two advisors.]

[Shimura Danzō, who had been removed from his position as Hokage's assistant after the Uchiha massacre, was no longer qualified to attend meetings of this level.]

[Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura carefully reviewed the materials in their hands.]

[By the end, both of their faces had darkened.]

["Hiruzen? What are you doing?"]

["Uzumaki Naruto is listed among the graduating ninjas?"]