Naruto's Heart

The sun hung high in the morning sky.

Jiraiya and the others returned to the training site they had originally selected.

"Now we enter the second stage, we..."

"Yeah! Finally, some real training!"

Before Jiraiya could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by the cheers of Naruto Uzumaki.

This immediately caused him to lose the interest to continue.

He pulled a white rubber ball from behind his back and tossed it into Naruto Uzumaki's hands.

Then, he took another white rubber ball into his own right hand.

"This time, you have to burst this!"

As Jiraiya spoke, chakra surged in his hand, and the rubber ball, which was far tougher than a water balloon, exploded directly in his palm.

"This thing is a hundred times harder than a water balloon."

Jiraiya's eyes were playful, looking at Naruto Uzumaki with a hint of provocation.

Naruto had always been the straightforward type; provoked by Jiraiya, he couldn't hold back.

"What's so great about that? Watch me burst it right now."

He followed the method he used to burst the water balloon, placing the rubber ball in his left hand.

Then, he surged chakra into his left hand while his right hand constantly kneaded the rubber ball, trying to make the chakra inside even more chaotic.

However, this rubber ball was countless times harder than the water balloon he had used before; no matter how he manipulated it, the ball remained completely unaffected.

"So hard!"

"The first stage was rotation, the second stage is power. Because there is no water, it is hard to visualize the direction of the chakra's rotation, so rotating the chakra is also very difficult!"

Jiraiya reached out and held up two fingers, gesturing as he spoke.

"For what comes next, you'll have to find a way yourself. Once you succeed in bursting the rubber ball, we will proceed to the next stage of training."

"Then I'm going to gather intelligence!"

At the mention of gathering intelligence, a meaningful smile immediately appeared on Jiraiya's face.

He turned and walked away, as if he were truly off to collect urgent information.

"Wait, wait, wait! It's been so long since we've been together, train with me! Even if it's just taking a nap, that's fine too!"

Naruto shouted in a panic; if he just left after saying a few words, where was he supposed to start?

"Don't be a brat!"

Jiraiya's tone suddenly turned serious, carrying a hint of sternness.

"Did you misunderstand something? I said I would teach you ninjutsu, but I have no obligation to hold your hand! If you can't do it yourself, then this is the end of the line. Stop acting like a child and start acting like an outstanding ninja!"

Naruto Uzumaki was rendered speechless, cold sweat dripping down his face, feeling as if he had truly done something terribly wrong.

Yet, he still forced himself to speak:

"Then... at least teach me some tricks!"

Jiraiya seemed to be waiting for Naruto to say exactly that. He turned around, his expression indifferent, and held out his right hand, palm facing up.

"Money!"

Naruto Uzumaki: "..."

His composure was already crumbling; his face flushed red as he shouted:

"What do you mean by 'acting like an outstanding ninja'? You're just a despicable, money-grubbing adult! You're not an outstanding ninja at all!!"

"Heh, then practice on your own."

Jiraiya scoffed and turned to leave.

"I'll practice on my own, then!"

Naruto Uzumaki's stubborn temper flared up. What was so great about it? Didn't he pass the first stage of training all on his own?

In the blink of an eye, it was late at night.

"Huff, huff, huff, huff, huff, huff—"

In the clearing of the forest, a figure lay on the grass, gasping for air, his chest heaving violently.

Naruto Uzumaki's hands were trembling intensely; trying to break through the rubber ball was truly much harder than breaking through the water balloon.

He had been practicing continuously for the entire afternoon, yet he still had no progress to show for it.

Tap, tap, tap...

A soft sound of footsteps approached.

Lin Mu walked silently to Naruto Uzumaki's side and sat down to his right.

The two remained silent for a moment before Lin Mu broke the stillness.

"I know you want to become stronger as quickly as possible, and that you have many things you need to do. But all of this must be within the limits of what your body can endure. I hope you understand that going too far is as bad as not going far enough."

Naruto Uzumaki was pushing himself far too hard.

As his friend, Lin Mu couldn't help but feel a bit worried.

After thinking about it for a long time, he ultimately decided to offer Naruto Uzumaki a few words of advice.

Once he finished speaking, Lin Mu didn't care what Naruto Uzumaki might think; he reached out and placed his hand over Naruto Uzumaki's palms.

Chakra surged within his body, and his hands began to emit a faint cyan glow.

Medical Ninjutsu!

This medical ninjutsu wasn't taught to him by anyone else; it was purely a natural talent of his body.

Or rather, it wasn't true medical ninjutsu, but simply a manifestation of Lin Mu's chakra.

Because his chakra possessed a rich vitality, it could be used just like medical ninjutsu.

If he could meet an expert in the future, he might be able to ask for advice on how to properly study medical ninjutsu.

Lin Mu believed that if he underwent more detailed and systematic training, his healing abilities would only grow stronger.

"Ah... that feels so good!"

A low, raspy groan escaped Naruto Uzumaki.

His hands had been trembling uncontrollably and aching intensely from the overuse of chakra.

It was only because Lin Mu helped him treat them every day that he had been able to persist for so long.

The two fell into silence once more.

This time, it was Naruto Uzumaki who spoke up to break the quiet.

"I really have so many things I want to do. There are people I love that I want to protect, and I don't want to lose anyone important ever again...

If I had the strength of the Pervy Sage, then maybe Old Man Third wouldn't have died.

And then there's Sasuke... he has always wanted to take revenge on his brother, but that man is just too strong. I have to keep getting stronger so that I can help Sasuke.

You don't need to worry about me; I can keep going. I want to protect all my important friends—Sasuke, Sakura, and... you.

I still don't know anything about my parents. Once my strength grows, I want to go and search for traces of them.

There is a monster sealed inside me, and I know everyone hates me... I used to live in darkness, but you all saved me!

I still have a dream, and I must realize it. I must become the Hokage.

Not just to prove myself, but because I want to protect everyone..."

"..."

No matter how optimistic, hardworking, or strong Naruto Uzumaki appeared to be.

He was, after all, only a child in his early teens.

His shoulders were already bearing burdens that many adults could neither imagine nor endure.

"Sigh!"

Lin Mu remained silent for a long time, only letting out a quiet sigh once he heard Naruto Uzumaki's steady breathing.

"Don't worry, Naruto. No matter what you think or what you do... whether you want to become the Hokage or protect your friends, I will always, always stand behind you, helping you and healing you."

Lin Mu's voice was very low, almost inaudible.

"Because you are my friend!"