Boiling Wine Training

The Third Hokage watched the crystal ball before him. Inside, Yashui finished the hand seals for the Summoning Jutsu and vanished from the spot.

"Jiraiya, this child is truly like you. Both of you can freely come and go from the summoning realms you've discovered." The Third Hokage seemed to be talking to himself.

A hand suddenly reached out from the Third Hokage's shadow, bracing against the floor, and soon a whole person crawled out. This man had white hair, wore a red cloak, and carried a large scroll on his back—it was none other than Jiraiya.

"He's not like me," Jiraiya said. "I've seen plenty of children like him. If he keeps his heart set on kindness, he could become a Child of Prophecy who changes the world. But like Sasuke, he carries the hatred of the Uchiha Clan..."

"He still doesn't know he is of the Uchiha Clan... or so I assume..." The Third Hokage had put a great deal of painstaking effort into Yashui's upbringing.

"In any case, I believe it's best to let him fend for himself. Teacher, you don't need to teach him any ninjutsu. Naturally, I won't be teaching him any high-level techniques either." Jiraiya walked up to the Third Hokage. "War and hatred are the eternal themes of the ninja world... I fear this child will only be able to drift with the tide..."

With that, Jiraiya transformed into a frog and hopped out of the Third Hokage's office.

On the other side, Yashui appeared before the Three-Legged Golden Crow.

"Master, this is what you asked me to prepare." Yashui stepped forward and presented two jin of rice wine. He had already infused it with his chakra, though his chakra was far from enough to fill the wine to the brim.

"Is this the extent of your current strength?" The Three-Legged Golden Crow glanced at Yashui, his eyes narrowing into slits. "This is going to be a bit difficult."

"What's wrong, Master?" Yashui asked.

"You know what chakra is, don't you?" the Three-Legged Golden Crow asked.

"I do. Chakra is the foundation for performing ninjutsu. Without it, one cannot use ninjutsu," Yashui replied.

"Correct." The Three-Legged Golden Crow seemed troubled. "Chakra can accomplish many things. Walking on water, performing ninjutsu, sticking to rock walls, and so on."

"You are of the Uchiha Clan, so you naturally possess fire-attribute chakra. One characteristic of fire-attribute chakra is its ability to heat liquids. Take this rice wine, for example; as long as you can infuse enough chakra into it, the wine will heat up and boil." The Three-Legged Golden Crow pointed his feather tip at the two jin of wine and asked, "What temperature do you think this wine is right now?"

Yashui lowered his head; his chakra reserves were indeed far too low.

"Your task for today is to make these two jin of rice wine boil right in front of me." The Three-Legged Golden Crow then lay down to rest. "No need to go anywhere else; do it right here in the Sun Palace, in my presence."

So this magnificent palace was called the Sun Palace; it certainly suited the Three-Legged Golden Crow's status. But then again... making two jin of rice wine boil was no small feat.

"Master, I have a question to ask before I begin." Yashui remembered the issue with his Sharingan; he couldn't afford to forget it again today. "Sometimes I can't control my Sharingan. It activates when I don't want it to, and I can't turn it off. Master, what is wrong with me?"

The Three-Legged Golden Crow lazily glanced at Yashui. "You have three types of chakra in your body. You simply haven't learned to coordinate them. Once you complete the task I've given you, this problem will resolve itself."

The Three-Legged Golden Crow didn't seem to take Yashui's concern seriously at all.

With those words from the Three-Legged Golden Crow, Yashui felt a bit more at ease. He sat down cross-legged and, following the master's instructions, began to refine his chakra.

This training was a bit too difficult for Yashui. For him, even infusing chakra into the rice wine was an arduous struggle. The resistance of the wine made his chakra transmission efficiency extremely low. He exerted all his strength, yet the wine only became slightly warm.

The Three-Legged Golden Crow's task was to make these two jin of rice wine boil! How much chakra would he have to pour in to achieve that?

Yashui spent the entire day on this training. His chakra was constantly drained, as if he were pouring it into a bottomless pit.

Yashui's body consumed chakra incessantly throughout the day. By nightfall, his chakra meridians were swollen from the high-intensity training. Furthermore, even though he was only refining chakra, the muscle cells that served as the source of that chakra ached as if they were burning.

The first day of desperate struggle ended, and Yashui had only managed to make the wine lukewarm.

Midway through, let alone boiling the wine, he had used every ounce of his strength just to maintain its current temperature.

The Three-Legged Golden Crow had watched from the sidelines all day, saying nothing, only shaking his head from time to time.

Seeing that it was almost dark, Yashui knew his performance today was far from satisfactory. He asked the Three-Legged Golden Crow, "Is there a trick to this training? I'm still young, and my chakra reserves just can't keep up."

"Looking to rely on others so soon?" The Three-Legged Golden Crow shook his head again—he had lost count of how many times he'd done so today. "I know your chakra reserves are insufficient, but I still assigned you this training. That means you are definitely capable of doing it."

Yashui looked at the lukewarm rice wine, wanting to try again; perhaps one more push would lead to success.

"Even though you are capable of doing it, you must master the technique to succeed." The Three-Legged Golden Crow spoke just as Yashui was preparing for another attempt.

Yashui checked his body; it was so sore that he could only move by sheer willpower. In this state, he could no longer mindlessly rely on "brute force." Perhaps the Three-Legged Golden Crow was right; it was time to stop and think carefully about what to do.

"That's enough for today. Your performance was abysmal. The last disciple I took only needed three days to complete this training. Compared to him, your progress isn't even half a day's worth." The Three-Legged Golden Crow had a sharp tongue and never knew when to hold back.

The Three-Legged Golden Crow dispelled the summoning, and Yashui returned to Konoha.

Yashui had left his house earlier and used the Summoning Jutsu to reach the Hundred Bird Nest from an empty training ground. Now that the jutsu was dispelled, he found himself back in that same training ground.

Watching the moon slowly rise, Yashui truly regretted leaving the house. If he were at home, he wouldn't have to endure the muscle soreness while walking back step by step.

During dinner that evening, Yashui looked at the miso soup before him, wondering how he could make the rice wine boil. Subconsciously, he began to infuse chakra into the miso soup.