The Final Sparring Session and Growth During the Vacation

Jiraiya truly was a good teacher. He could tailor his instruction to each student's traits, allowing them to fully bring out their talents. That was why every one of Jiraiya's disciples achieved extraordinary things, whether it was Minato Namikaze of Konoha or Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan of the Land of Rain.

For the past half month, Taichi Matsushita had gone to study with Jiraiya every afternoon without fail, sometimes spending the entire afternoon there. For Taiichi, this was both an opportunity for rapid improvement and a profound bond. Although Jiraiya had never formally accepted Taiichi as his disciple, Taiichi regarded him as a true master in his heart.

The same went for Tsunade, of course. Although she was terribly irresponsible and vanished after teaching Taiichi for only a few days, Taiichi would never forget her efforts and kindness.

Today was the last day of vacation. That morning, Taiichi had completed the handover at the hospital with Director Fujita and Director Biwako, and they had collected his internship wages for the past two months. It was not much, but it was the first money Taiichi had truly earned himself, and he was still quite happy about it.

By afternoon, at Training Ground 11.

Cicadas chirped as heat waves swept across Training Ground 11. Taiichi stood on the gravel of the riverbank, sweat trickling down his chin and steaming into white vapor on the scorching stones. Jiraiya sat cross-legged on a tree stump across the river, tossing and catching three shuriken. Cold metallic glints appeared and vanished between his fingers.

"This is the final practical lesson. Let me see how much you've improved over the past half month." Jiraiya suddenly flicked his hand, and the shuriken tore through the heat with sharp whistles. The instant Taiichi leaned back to evade them, the short sword at his waist had already left its sheath, its blade colliding with the next two hidden weapons and throwing out sparks.

The hum of the blade slicing through the air suddenly intensified. Taiichi's figure left an afterimage across the water's surface, his chakra-coated blade glowing with a faint blue light. Jiraiya's hand froze midway through forming seals—Taiichi was too fast. Watching Taiichi rush toward him, Jiraiya pulled out a kunai from his Ninja Tool Pouch and met him head-on.

Clang!

The instant the kunai blocked the blade, the force of the wind lifted Jiraiya's headband. He retreated half a step into the river, and before the ripples on the water could spread, Taiichi had completed the final Yin Seal. "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A whirlwind carrying river sand rushed at him. Jiraiya narrowed his eyes, and his pupils abruptly contracted when he saw cold flashes glinting among the grains. Multiple transparent Wind Blades were mixed into the fierce gale and blew straight at him. Half a month ago, Taiichi's Great Breakthrough had only been a violent wind—at worst, one would be blown away by it. But now, it concealed quite a few Wind Blades. Getting caught in it would leave someone torn open and bleeding.

Jiraiya did not take it head-on. He leaped backward, rapidly formed seals, and slapped one hand onto the water. Water Style: Water Formation Wall! The exploding water curtain shattered into countless droplets beneath the Wind Blades, refracting seven-colored rainbow light.

"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!"

The boy's clear shout pierced through the water curtain. The crimson streak of flame suddenly expanded as it passed through the rainbow light, transforming into a three-meter-long fire dragon. Jiraiya leaned back to avoid the flames, the smell of singed hair drifting past his nose. Using the momentum of his backward bend, he braced himself against the ground with one hand and swept his chakra-infused right leg toward Taiichi's abdomen.

Splash!

Amid the scattering water, Taiichi's kicked-away figure suddenly turned into a wooden log. Jiraiya was just about to turn when the sound of air splitting above him made him instinctively form seals. "Earth Style: Earth Wall!" The instant the rock wall rose, shuriken wrapped in Wind Blades had already sliced away half of it.

"Your timing isn't bad, but..." Before Jiraiya could finish, the river beneath his feet suddenly began to boil. As he leaped up sharply, a two-meter-wide waterspout burst from the river and swallowed him in midair. Within the crystalline curtain of water, Taiichi's hands maintained the Snake Seal as they trembled slightly—this was a modified application of Water Style: Water Formation Wall. Instead of raising a water curtain in front of himself, he raised it directly beneath the enemy's feet to strike them.

The waterspout collapsed with a roar, and the soaking-wet Jiraiya landed on a rock by the riverbank. He shook droplets from his white hair and looked at the boy kneeling on one knee in the middle of the river, gasping for breath. The setting sun stretched Taiichi's shadow long, and his drenched ninja uniform clung tightly to his still-undeveloped body. His chakra fluctuations were clearly in disarray, yet he was still forcibly gathering chakra.

"That last Water Formation Wall," Jiraiya said, wiping the water from his face, "the scroll didn't say it could be used like that." He noticed the boy's pale lips, a sign of chakra exhaustion. Yet that waterspout's scale and precision of control had both far surpassed an ordinary Chunin's level.

Taiichi supported himself with his sword hilt and stood up, the sensation of river water flowing around his calves clearing his head slightly. "You said Water Style needs to adapt to the situation..." Before he could finish, three shuriken tied with Explosive Tags had already embedded themselves around him. Amid the thunderous explosions, the boy's leaping figure was swallowed by firelight.

When the smoke cleared, a pale blue water curtain protected Taiichi like an overturned bowl. Ripples still spread across the Water Formation Wall as the boy's fingertips, still holding the Snake Seal, trembled slightly. Yet he still forced out a smile. "Yesterday, when you ate your fifth bowl of Tonkotsu Ramen... cough... you said anything could happen in actual combat..."

Jiraiya suddenly burst into laughter, startling a flock of birds from the forest. He walked over to Taiichi, who had collapsed in the shallows, his shadow covering the boy's pale face. "Your chakra is nearly empty, and you still dare to keep up the Water Formation Wall?" His rough palm pressed down on the boy's wet black hair. "But..." He turned to look at the fading water curtain. "Being able to turn a defensive ninjutsu into a trap—this adaptability is more precious than the ninjutsu itself."

Dusk deepened, and the cries of returning birds came from the forest at the edge of the training ground. Jiraiya took out his Frog Wallet, and three coupons drifted down onto Taiichi's knees with a faint chakra sound. "As a graduation gift, I'll treat you to double char siu tonight." He turned toward Konoha, the setting sun casting his shadow over the boy. "The next time you see Tsunade, tell her that the trouble she threw at me..." His white hair fluttered in the evening breeze. "...was a pleasant surprise."

"Teacher Jiraiya, are you leaving?" Taiichi shouted at Jiraiya's retreating back.

"I'm going on a mission. I've delayed it for over half a month. If I don't go now, someone's going to get angry." Jiraiya's voice drifted back on the evening breeze.

After saying goodbye to Jiraiya, Taiichi went alone to Ichiraku Ramen. He handed over the coupons Jiraiya had given him, and the owner soon served him a large bowl of Tonkotsu Ramen.

Looking at the overflowing bowl of ramen, Taiichi could not help feeling a little sad. Whenever he had eaten ramen before, there had always been someone beside him who laughed, cursed, and did whatever he pleased. But now, there was only Taiichi himself.

After hurriedly finishing the ramen, Taiichi collected himself and rushed home. He wanted to carefully review what he had gained over the summer vacation, and he could hardly wait.

At home, Taiichi looked at his newly organized Attribute Panel, his heart filled with accomplishment.

Name: Taichi Matsushita

Class: Genin Lv8 (1024/1400)

Talents: Diligence Makes Up for Mediocrity, Academic Overachiever

Age: 6

Constitution: 15

Strength: 17

Agility: 15

Spirit: 20

Chakra: 5000 (5800)

Attribute Points: 10

Skill Points: 11

Fire Nature Transformation Lv3 (356/400)

Wind Release Nature Transformation Lv3 (373/400)

Water Nature Transformation Lv3 (173/400)

Yang Release Nature Transformation Lv4 (537/600)

Skills: Basic Taijutsu Lv10 (463/2000), Basic Meditation Lv10 (634/2000), Chakra Refinement Technique Lv10 (944/2000), Ninja Tool Throwing Lv9 (345/1600), Three Body Technique Lv9 (12/1600), Hatake Style Kenjutsu Lv7 (53/1200)

[Fire Style: Flame Bullet Lv8 (356/1400), Phoenix Sage Fire Lv9 (124/1600), Fire Dragon Flame Bullet Lv4 (302/600)]

[Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Lv8 (36/1400), Air Palm Lv4 (352/600)]

[Water Style: Water Formation Wall Lv4 (257/600)]

[Medical Ninjutsu: Healing Technique Lv10 (1467/2000), Mystical Palm Technique Lv6 (935/1000), Delicate Illness Extraction Technique Lv6 (467/1000), Chakra Scalpel Lv5 (312/800)]

Evaluation: As an ordinary person, your lack of chakra is your fatal weakness.

His three physical attributes had all increased thanks to his diligent training over the summer vacation, with Agility rising by two points in particular. It could be said that Taiichi had now reached the level of a Genin through physical ability alone, not to mention that his Constitution and Spirit far surpassed those of an ordinary Genin.

The greatest changes were still the improvements in his various skills. Several of them had even reached Lv10. Seeing how the experience requirement had surged to 2000 at Lv10, Taiichi guessed that once Lv10 was fully maxed out, the panel would reveal an unexpected surprise.

Perhaps the only thing Taiichi was dissatisfied with was exactly what the evaluation said. Although the evaluations were always annoying, they were also piercingly accurate every time—Taiichi had too little chakra. At present, Taiichi's chakra had only barely reached the entry-level Chunin standard of 5000 points. Based on the usual basic consumption of 500 points for a C-rank ninjutsu and 1000 points for a B-rank ninjutsu, Taiichi's current chakra quantity could still allow him to cast ten Flame Bullets or five Fire Dragon Flame Bullets.

And that was only the most basic form of casting. If he added more complicated manipulation, such as extending the duration or increasing the power, the number would be even lower.

According to Jiraiya, chakra would only begin growing rapidly after a ninja turned ten, alongside physical development. This growth period would span the ages of ten to thirty-five for ordinary ninjas in the shape of a parabola, while the years before that were merely for laying foundations.

He had also advised Taiichi not to worry about his chakra quantity. Taiichi's chakra already far exceeded that of ordinary children, and he absolutely must not over-refine chakra because of its shortage. That would damage his body's potential.

Taiichi naturally understood Jiraiya's good intentions and promised that he would not over-refine chakra. But whenever he thought of those people with unimaginably vast chakra reserves, he could not help feeling envious. It was then that Taiichi made up his mind: in the future, he would thoroughly study chakra nature transformations and strive to synthesize a Kekkei Genkai himself, breaking through his own chakra limit in one stroke.

But overall, the current Taiichi could absolutely crush the Taiichi from before summer vacation. Even facing two or three opponents at once would not be a problem.