Jiraiya watched Uzumaki Kuming standing before the three children with a serious expression, unable to tell what Kuming had in mind. If last night's events hadn't happened, Jiraiya might have felt perfectly comfortable letting Kuming train his three students.
After all, Uzumaki Kuming's reputation as a genius wasn't just talk; he had the ability to back it up. His training methods would undoubtedly benefit Jiraiya's three students.
But the previous night, Jiraiya had discovered that Kuming intended to secretly place a Cursed Seal on Nagato. Jiraiya had stopped him in time, but the incident had made him wary of Kuming.
Yahiko, Nagato, and the others heard that Kuming planned to train them himself, and they nervously looked at Jiraiya. They hadn't known Kuming for long, but that trial that had started with a bang and fizzled out quickly had already given the three children a good idea of what kind of person he was.
Kuming hadn't actually hurt any of them, but his actions had still left the children shaken. Especially Yahiko, who had just brushed past death, and Nagato, who had nearly killed his closest friend.
They were reluctant. They didn't want someone like Kuming to guide their training.
"Senior Brother, leave the three of them to me. If you're worried something might happen, you can watch them train from the side."
"I'm sure my abilities make me qualified to guide them."
Seeing that Jiraiya still hadn't agreed, Kuming turned to him and spoke.
"Kuming, it's not that I don't trust your abilities, but..."
Jiraiya didn't finish the sentence, but he looked Kuming up and down, his eyes revealing his distrust so plainly that even a child like Nagato could sense it.
"Relax. I've got no grudge against any of them. I'm not going to do anything strange."
Kuming