Jiraiya forced an awkward smile. The boulder hanging over his heart because of the "Karsten incident" had finally dropped halfway. Good, good. This time it was normal—a frog from Mount Myoboku.
He had just wanted to say something when he saw Naruto squat down and meet Gamakichi's gaze.
"How capable are you in combat?" Naruto asked, his tone as flat as if he were interviewing a new recruit. "Jumping height, toxin secretion volume, and stress resistance on the battlefield."
"Huh?"
The blade of grass in Gamakichi's mouth fell to the ground with a plop. This was the first time in his frog life that he had encountered questions like these, and for a moment, he had no idea how to answer. What was this? Jumping height? Toxins? Stress resistance? What nonsense was this kid talking about?
"Kid, are you playing some kind of role-playing game with me?"
"Cough, cough!" Jiraiya hurried forward to smooth things over, pulling Naruto to his feet. "Naruto, he... he's still just a child. A little frog. Don't scare him."
Naruto nodded, straightened up, and looked at Jiraiya as he calmly delivered his conclusion. "The sample size is too small to draw a valid conclusion. I need to summon a unit with standard combat capability to assess the practical combat value of this technique."
Jiraiya's mouth twitched. More of those terms that made him sleepy just hearing them.
Still, he forced himself to encourage him. "Fine! Try again, then. Use more chakra this time! Call out something big!"
Though he said that, he was tense beyond measure. Both hands were already quietly prepared to provide support at any moment. He stared fixedly at Naruto's movements, terrified that another metal can holding a gun would emerge from the summoning array the next second.
Naruto said nothing more