The Three-Legged Golden Toad

"Yatsuhashi, youth waits for no one!"

The sky was just beginning to brighten as Anko headed toward the Ninja Academy.

Although she was still a Chunin, she was already a grade-level leader at the school.

Naturally, she bore the weight of many teaching responsibilities.

After Anko bid Yatsuhashi farewell, the exhausted Yatsuhashi prepared to rest for a while.

The familiar slogan soon rang out within the hospital room.

Yatsuhashi looked helplessly at Might Guy, who was dancing with youth inside the room.

"Guy, I really can't do it today."

"Oh?"

Might Guy leaned in, his thick, black eyebrows nearly brushing against Yatsuhashi's face.

He lifted Yatsuhashi's arm and then set it back down, checking his body.

Might Guy discovered that Yatsuhashi had not sustained any obvious, serious external injuries.

"Strange, there are no external injuries at all. Could it be that you've suffered some internal damage?"

"Youth can never say 'I can't'!"

The events of last night had been placed under a special gag order by the Fourth Hokage.

Therefore, Might Guy and the others only knew the simple news that Yatsuhashi had encountered an attack in the village, but was otherwise unharmed.

Under the leadership of the Wood Release Jonin squad, the exaggerated scene of the battle had been restored to its original state in just one night.

It did not stir up much of a ripple within the village.

"Alright, alright, I get it."

Yatsuhashi rose from the hospital bed and followed Might Guy's figure.

One after the other, they arrived at the training ground in the early morning.

Might Guy knew that Yatsuhashi was not in good condition, so he did not invite him to spar.

This time, he did not engage in his routine training.

Instead, he closed his eyes.

He repeatedly practiced the moves Yatsuhashi had used to overcome hardness with softness during their last sparring session.

"Hm?"

Yatsuhashi watched Might Guy, who stood before him with his eyes closed, imitating his fist techniques.

Although it could not be said to be exactly the same, it still carried a certain charm.

This was the only fist technique Yatsuhashi had learned in college during his previous life: Military Boxing.

It blended four categories: grappling, throwing, striking, and defense.

Although Yatsuhashi had not grasped its essence back then, his taijutsu foundation had been greatly enhanced ever since he awakened his Mangekyo.

The all-dimensional elevation of his stamina, strength, and speed had also led Yatsuhashi into realms he had never touched before.

The Military Boxing he had memorized by rote to pass exams in his past life now allowed him to perceive many of the truths contained within it.

That seemingly ordinary fist technique radiated a brand-new vitality in Yatsuhashi's hands.

It was precisely because of this that Yatsuhashi's strength had been bolstered, advancing even further.

"Guy, I'll join you!"

With that said, Yatsuhashi lunged toward Might Guy.

This time was different from their previous sparring session.

Yatsuhashi was constantly feeding moves to Might Guy.

He broke down the essence of the sixteen sets of Military Boxing, dismantling them into the most fundamental techniques, guiding Might Guy to grasp their true meaning.

The speed of Yatsuhashi's attacks was not particularly fast.

The two of them were simply exchanging techniques, holding back their strength during the clash but never holding back their skill.

Unexpectedly, this process proved even more mentally exhausting than their last bout.

Yatsuhashi had only just finished demonstrating all sixteen sets of Military Boxing.

Both of them were already drenched in sweat, panting and nearly drained of all energy.

"Yatsuhashi, you truly are worthy of being my rival..."

Although Might Guy's expression remained calm, his heart was already churning like a stormy sea.

The boxing style Yatsuhashi had just demonstrated to him was truly exquisite.

It had opened his eyes to a whole new world.

Yatsuhashi sat on the ground to rest, waving his hand, "It's not as exaggerated as you make it sound."

Seeing this, Might Guy laughed, "It seems you really did suffer quite a serious internal injury last night, Yatsuhashi!"

On the training ground, Might Guy savored the experience alone, continuing to comprehend the mysteries within.

Yatsuhashi watched Might Guy, who was practicing over and over again.

Even though he was exhausted, he refused to stop.

Although Might Guy's consciousness was fading, his body was still instinctively driving him to throw punches.

"This guy..."

Watching the sweat-drenched Might Guy, Yatsuhashi couldn't help but sigh, "His body has clearly reached its limit, yet it continues to dance; what kind of monster is he exactly!"

Might Guy's talent for taijutsu far exceeded that of Yatsuhashi.

After practicing it just once, Might Guy was already hitting his stride, becoming lost in the process as he continuously gained insights.

This made Yatsuhashi grumble inwardly, if this didn't count as genius, then there probably wasn't a single genius left in this world.

In the dense forest beside the training ground, Jiraiya leaned against a tree stump, "Is this the guy Minato was talking about?"

He had taken in the entire scene of Yatsuhashi feeding moves to Might Guy.

Jiraiya's heart was equally shaken.

Back then, he had received a message from Minato, saying that a promising new ninja had appeared in the village.

Minato hoped that Jiraiya would take Yatsuhashi as his disciple, and incidentally teach him the Summoning Technique of Mount Myoboku.

Hearing that it was Minato who was introducing a student to him, Jiraiya, who had been out trying to track down Orochimaru, returned to the village.

After all, the Great Toad Sage had once told him about the Child of Prophecy.

However, after seeing what had just transpired, Jiraiya felt a headache coming on, "That guy Minato..."

"He really knows how to give people a difficult problem!"

Because from his observations, Yatsuhashi was already an extraordinary taijutsu master.

Even without the use of ninjutsu, Jiraiya didn't have the confidence to defeat Yatsuhashi in a pure taijutsu battle.

How was he supposed to take Yatsuhashi as a disciple?

"Forget it," Jiraiya stopped overthinking, He formed hand seals, "Summoning Technique!"

With a poof of white smoke, the massive Gamabunta appeared before Jiraiya.

"I'm counting on you."

Upon hearing Jiraiya's words, a look of clear impatience crossed Gamabunta's face.

"Hey, Jiraiya, why do you always make me do everything!"

Though he complained, Gamabunta still used his tongue to coil around the summoning scroll Jiraiya handed him.

Seeing that the matters Minato entrusted to him were properly arranged, Jiraiya headed toward the village izakaya with peace of mind.

"It's time to reward myself and relax a little."

"Hm?"

Uchiha Yatsuhashi looked up, "Might Guy, watch out!"

"Boom!"

Gamabunta's massive body descended from the sky, kicking up a cloud of dust upon landing.

Within the smoke, Gamabunta's colossal form was revealed.

"Hey, you two!"

Gamabunta looked down at the tiny humans below with disdain, "Who is Uchiha Yatsuhashi?"

Might Guy looked at the giant toad, stepping back half a pace in shock, and stammered, "What a huge toad spirit!!"

"Brat!"

Gamabunta flew into a rage, his right hand slamming down like a small mountain, "My name is Gamabunta! I am no toad spirit!"

Watching the two easily dodge his attack, Gamabunta let out a cold snort, "Not bad. Even though Minato recommended you, I still have to see what you're worth!"

"But I'm going to get serious now!"

"Might Guy, let me handle this."

Uchiha Yatsuhashi interrupted Might Guy, who was preparing to open the Eight Inner Gates, as he had already recognized this as Gamabunta of Mount Myoboku.

"I am Uchiha Yatsuhashi."

Uchiha Yatsuhashi took the initiative to admit his name.

"Oh?"

Gamabunta looked at Uchiha Yatsuhashi, "You don't look as imposing as that thick-browed kid."

Though he didn't know what Gamabunta was planning, since the other party wanted to test his strength, Uchiha Yatsuhashi no longer held back.

Instantly, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan appeared in his eyes, spinning slowly.

"Hahaha, that's more like it!"

Seeing this, Gamabunta drew the short sword at his waist.

"Toad Short Sword Slash!"

The massive short sword in Gamabunta's hand slashed fiercely toward Uchiha Yatsuhashi; although this sharp strike was barely dodged by Uchiha Yatsuhashi, it left a mark several feet deep in the ground.

Its destructive power was in no way inferior to an ordinary ninjutsu.

However, Gamabunta's assault did not stop there.

"Water Release: Gunshot!"

Immediately following, a massive water ball was ejected from Gamabunta's mouth.

Uchiha Yatsuhashi was forced to constantly leap and dodge across the field, appearing quite disheveled.

Seeing Uchiha Yatsuhashi only defending and not attacking, Gamabunta's expression grew increasingly smug, "Are you just going to keep jumping around and dodging?"

"Yatsuhashi?"

Might Guy couldn't help but ask from the side.

He watched Gamabunta talking to himself at the empty air while continuously casting ninjutsu.

"Is this your genjutsu?"

Yatsuhashi nodded, "This is a dojutsu innate to the Three-Tomoe Sharingan; I haven't mastered it very proficiently yet."

Watching Gamabunta wreak havoc across the training ground.

Might Guy felt a chill in his heart—this wasn't proficient enough?

"Hahaha! Jiraiya even said you were extraordinary and told me to be extra careful."

Gamabunta threw his head back and laughed arrogantly, "I think you're just so-so!"

"In front of me, Lord Gamabunta, your Uchiha Clan's Sharingan is nothing special!"

Seeing this, Yatsuhashi proactively dispelled his genjutsu.

Gamabunta, who had been laughing incessantly in the training ground, suddenly stopped smiling.

He looked at Yatsuhashi and Might Guy, who hadn't moved a single step the entire time.

The air at the scene instantly turned silent.

"Ahem."

Gamabunta coughed abruptly a few times, and silently sheathed the short blade in his hand.

"Jiraiya told me to come and sign a Summoning Technique contract with you for Mount Myoboku."

"I see."

Yatsuhashi suddenly realized; Kakashi had mentioned this to him before.

He said that Minato was preparing to find him a powerful summon.

Yatsuhashi naturally accepted this with pleasure.

After all, Kakashi's summon, Pakkun, had once made him incredibly envious.

Gamabunta feigned composure and spat out the summoning scroll, "Just sign your name here."

Not only was his tone calm, but the arrogant aura he had displayed earlier had also quietly extinguished.

"Alright."

Having just signed it, Yatsuhashi couldn't wait to perform the technique.

He had already mastered the Summoning Technique; he had simply lacked a contracted summon.

Now that he had a summon from Mount Myoboku, he immediately cast it.

"Poof!"

A small puff of white smoke dissipated.

What appeared before Yatsuhashi was not Gamaken or Gamahiro, but a small yellow toad.

Furthermore, its hind legs were incomplete, with only one remaining.

Gamakatsu looked at the world with curiosity, "Ah! Is this the world outside Mount Myoboku?"

This was his first time leaving Mount Myoboku.

Gamakatsu quickly spotted the massive Gamabunta, "Lord Gamabunta, do you need my help?"

"Tsk."

Gamabunta looked at the incomplete Gamakatsu and ignored him entirely, looking down to say to Yatsuhashi.

"The target summoned by the Summoning Technique depends on the amount of chakra you inject.

If you inject more chakra next time, you'll be able to summon me.

If you inject a small amount of chakra during combat, you might randomly summon other toads from Mount Myoboku."

After all, the object of this summoning scroll contract was the entirety of Mount Myoboku.

Therefore, the results of the summoning would vary.

"Alright, let's meet again next time, kid."

Seeing that the task Jiraiya had arranged was complete, Gamabunta vanished from the spot with a "poof."

Gamakatsu prepared to disappear as well, but Yatsuhashi stopped him.

"I was the one who summoned you. Would you be willing to become my personal summon?"

Gamakatsu hopped with excitement at first, but then shrank back, feeling self-conscious about his missing hind leg.

"I... I'm not good at fighting."

"It's fine." Yatsuhashi placed Gamakatsu on his shoulder. "Were you born with three legs?"

"Yeah."

Gamakatsu's tone was noticeably dejected.

However, this was his first time standing at such a height, looking out at this strange new world, so he quickly grew excited again.

Seeing this, Might Guy also performed his Summoning Technique.

An old turtle appeared before everyone.

Watching the slow-moving turtle, Gamakatsu finally shed his insecurities, and the two summons began to play happily together on the training grounds.