Ninjutsu

As Naruto and Menma reached their front door and set down their boxes, they spotted a cloud of dust rising in the distance, with two figures flickering within it. They sprinted toward them like a gust of wind, occasionally tossing small objects into the air that traced arcs against the sky. In the blink of an eye, the pair arrived before Naruto and Menma simultaneously, the breeze they kicked up fluttering the boys' clothes.

"How was it, Naruto, Menma? Who won!" Might Guy panted, looking at Naruto and Menma with eager anticipation.

"Uh, how should I put it? It was basically a tie," Menma said, spreading his hands.

"I don't think so. I felt like this brother named Kakashi arrived first," Naruto offered a differing opinion.

Hearing this, Menma felt strange. It was truly bizarre; he was so used to hearing Naruto call him Kakashi-sensei that this sudden shift to "Brother Kakashi" felt completely out of place.

"Is... is that so, Menma?" Might Guy looked at Menma with expectant eyes.

"Ah... well... I suppose that's right..." Menma didn't know what to say, so he could only echo Naruto.

Upon learning the result of the contest, the anticipation in Might Guy's eyes instantly dimmed. His shoulders slumped, his mouth drooped, and his entire demeanor seemed drained of vitality, clearly dejected.

Meanwhile, a faint smile hung on Kakashi's lips, his eyes filled with a gentle, teasing warmth as he looked at Might Guy and said, "Ah, is that so? It seems I won. Counting this one, it should be 71 to 70; I have a slight edge." Kakashi chuckled and scratched his head.

Suddenly, Might Guy seemed to revitalize, turning to Kakashi and saying, "Come on, Kakashi, I can still keep dueling!"

"Ha! I'll make you admit defeat!" Kakashi clenched his fist and held it high.

Seeing this, Might Guy didn't hesitate, immediately raising his own fist and running toward Kakashi, shouting, "Ha! Kakashi!"

As the two drew closer and closer, just when it seemed they would come to blows, suddenly: "Rock, paper, scissors. Rock, paper, scissors. Rock, paper, scissors..."

Neither would give an inch, and since they kept throwing the same thing, it was a draw every time. Watching this, Menma felt completely numb; these two were truly a match made in heaven.

"Um... Guy-sensei, aren't you supposed to teach us... how to read this afternoon?" Menma spoke up, intending to interrupt their so-called duel.

"Yare yare, Guy, you have things to do this afternoon? Then go ahead, we'll call this one a draw." With that, Kakashi ended the game and picked up his box, preparing to leave.

"Brother Kakashi, have you considered becoming a jonin squad leader? Staying in the Anbu for too long will have its effects," Menma asked as he saw Kakashi preparing to depart.

"Ah... well... I'll think about it." Kakashi smiled, waved, and left.

Might Guy was pleased to see that Kakashi had changed his perspective. He couldn't help but glance at Menma again; although the boy was only three, his words and actions possessed a maturity that didn't belong to his age.

"So... Guy-sensei, what now..." After Kakashi left, Menma looked at Might Guy and asked.

"Hm, indeed, it's time to get down to business. Let's go!" With that, he headed into the house.

As this peculiar contest ended, the sunlight continued to spill over the earth, and everything around seemed to return to peace, while Naruto and Menma's learning journey continued.

Might Guy's teaching method was also quite unique. Aside from standard literacy, he included his own "private goods," such as rewarding them with push-ups and squats at every turn. This left Naruto and Menma miserable, though Menma didn't harbor any resentment.

After more than a month of this, Naruto and Menma had achieved some success; at the very least, they could understand most of the content in Minato's Ninja Book.

Days passed one by one, and under Might Guy's unique instruction, Naruto and Menma gradually grew. However, a sudden knock on the door shattered the peace, and a new story was about to unfold.

That day, Might Guy was teaching Naruto and Menma in his usual way when a knock suddenly came from outside.

"Strange, who would be coming over?" Menma said, feeling puzzled while doing push-ups. Naruto felt the same, but he was too busy with his push-ups to chime in.

"Ah, Naruto, Menma, you two keep going, I'll go open the door." Might Guy said, heading to the entrance. When he opened the door and saw who it was, he instantly brightened.

"Ah! Isn't this my lifelong rival, Kakashi? What brings you here?" Might Guy asked curiously.

"Yo, Guy. The Hokage wants to see you; there's a mission, so he sent me to cover for you for a few days," Kakashi said, looking at Might Guy with a smile.

Kakashi had been contemplating his future for some time. He had considered leaving the Anbu, but he was still hesitant about whether to serve as a squad leader.

"I see. No problem, I'll head to the Hokage Office right away. I'll leave Naruto and Menma to you; they've both been working very hard!" Might Guy looked back at the boys doing push-ups, then turned to Kakashi, giving a thumbs-up with his white teeth gleaming.

"I understand. Don't worry," Kakashi said with a smile before walking into the house. When he entered and saw Naruto and Menma, he froze for a moment.

"What... are you two doing?" Kakashi looked at the brothers in confusion as they performed their push-ups.

Menma looked at him, not stopping his push-ups, and said, "Brother Kakashi, this is Guy-sensei's special teaching method. He says it helps with learning to read. By the way, where is Guy-sensei?"

Hearing this, a few black lines appeared on Kakashi's forehead. He muttered to himself: Guy has been teaching these two kids this way for a month? Looking at how drenched in sweat they are, they're actually enjoying it? What kind of strange new teaching method is this? Kakashi's eyes were filled with bewilderment; he truly couldn't understand Might Guy's approach.

While Kakashi was still thinking, Naruto suddenly stood up and said, "200 push-ups finished!" He then sat in a chair, took a sip of water, and slumped over the table.

Seeing this, Kakashi walked over and noticed that both were soaked in sweat, their clothes drenched.

At this moment, Menma also stood up. He took a sip of water, wiped his sweat with his sleeve, and then collapsed onto the sofa, panting.

Watching the exhausted pair, Kakashi found Might Guy's actions even more incomprehensible. Was he trying to teach them how to read, or was he training them in taijutsu?

Not knowing what else to do, Kakashi cleared his throat.

"Guy-sensei has gone on a mission, and I'll be taking his place for the next few days. Seeing the state you're in, why don't we take a break today?" Kakashi stood to the side, smiling at them.

Hearing this, Naruto immediately looked up, clearly delighted. Menma, however, remained unmoved, still sprawled on the sofa.

"I'll teach you how to read tomorrow, so for today..." Before Kakashi could finish, Menma suddenly sat up and asked, "Brother Kakashi, are you going to teach us ninjutsu today?"

"Huh? Really? Brother Kakashi is the best!" Naruto shouted excitedly.

Only Kakashi stood there stunned, speechless. He looked at Menma, then at Naruto, with a blank expression.

"Teaching you ninjutsu in your current state isn't really possible," Kakashi said after a moment of thought.

"Then could you teach us some ninjutsu basics? Like hand seals or the fundamental knowledge of the five elements?" Menma looked at Kakashi with anticipation.

"Ah, this... well... the Hokage only arranged for me to teach you how to read; he didn't say anything about teaching you ninjutsu." Kakashi felt a bit helpless. If they weren't Minato-sensei's children, he really wouldn't have wanted to take over for Might Guy.

At this point, Naruto hugged Kakashi's leg, looking up with a pitiful expression. "Kakashi-sensei, please teach us!" Naruto had changed his address directly, calling him "sensei" on the spot.

Only then did Menma feel things were back to normal; this was the proper way for Naruto to address Kakashi.

Menma soon realized something as well. Sensing that Naruto's approach might actually work, he immediately stepped forward, grabbed Kakashi's hand, and acted spoiled: "Kakashi-sensei, teach us ninjutsu!"

Looking at the two beside him, Kakashi felt helpless and had no choice but to agree. Upon hearing Kakashi's consent, both boys were overjoyed.

Kakashi sat directly on the ground, and Naruto and Menma crossed their legs to sit down, listening quietly to Kakashi's explanation.

"There are 12 basic hand seals for ninjutsu: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. These seals, formed by crossing the ten fingers of both hands into different shapes, are also known as the 'Nine Syllable Protection Method.' It is the process of extracting and controlling chakra..."

As Kakashi explained patiently, he demonstrated each seal one by one. Because Menma had been a fan of Naruto in his past life, he already had some understanding of these seals. He kept his eyes locked on Kakashi's hands and quickly mastered all 12.

Naruto wore a look of intense concentration. Although he was slower to grasp the concepts and took more time, he eventually mastered them under Kakashi's careful guidance.

"Since you want to learn ninjutsu, you must first learn how to focus your chakra." With that, Kakashi stood up. "Let's go, we're going to do some training." Kakashi smiled at Naruto and Menma and began walking toward the door. Delighted, Naruto and Menma changed their shoes and immediately followed him.

Before long, the three arrived at the base of a very tall tree. Kakashi first channeled chakra to his feet and then walked straight up the trunk vertically, without using his hands at all.

In a moment, Kakashi was hanging halfway off a branch, yet he did not fall.

"Just like me, channel your chakra to your feet. If you can climb to my height, that should be enough," Kakashi said to the two at the bottom of the tree.

"So cool! I want to try too!" Naruto said, eager to give it a go. He mimicked Kakashi's posture and began to focus his chakra.

A layer of pale blue chakra gathered beneath Naruto's feet. He took a deep breath, gathered his strength, and sprinted toward the tree, relying on his momentum. To his surprise, he only managed two steps before falling with a thud!

Seeing this, Kakashi offered a hint: "Naruto, you need to control the amount of chakra. Too little, and there won't be enough adhesive force; too much, and you won't be able to move an inch."

"Huh? Kakashi-sensei, then how much chakra should I use?" Naruto asked, looking at Kakashi in confusion.

At this moment, Menma knew that to climb up, one had to not only control the amount of chakra but also maintain that exact amount consistently, or else they would fall.

Thinking of this, Menma also focused his chakra and began walking toward the branch where Kakashi was, one step at a time. He didn't get very far before falling, but it seemed Menma had found the trick, and he continued to focus his chakra to climb upward.

Seeing this, Naruto refused to be outdone. He backed away from the tree, focused his chakra, and sprinted toward the branch where Kakashi was perched.