Training in ninjutsu was something every ninja took extremely seriously. Even Naruto dared not be careless.
The dining table in the living room had already been moved aside.
Naruto and Sasuke now sat facing each other.
"Naruto, is training in shadow clones dangerous?" Sasuke asked, seeing Naruto's solemn expression and none of the usual ease between them.
"Not really. It's just that learning this ninjutsu takes intense mental focus. If you get distracted, you'll put in twice the effort for half the results."
"Mm, got it." Sasuke nodded at that.
"For now, set aside the principles behind the Clone Technique. Tell me in detail what you feel and what you've learned when you use it and successfully create a clone."
A good teacher would never make students memorize basic formulas by rote. Even if they learned them that way, it would stifle their inspiration and leave half their potential wasted.
What Naruto wanted was for Sasuke to gain some understanding of the basic principles behind shadow clones before he began training. Once he had a rough grasp of those principles, he could let his imagination run during practice and keep experimenting until he succeeded.
This was the most sophisticated, least troublesome, and fastest approach.
Of course, it only worked for gifted geniuses. They needed a certain degree of insight and intuition.
"Well, setting aside the principles of the Clone Technique, I instinctively focus when I cast it, then gather chakra. After that, I control the chakra to form a clone beside me that looks like me."
"Right, but that explanation still misses the key point." Naruto cut straight to the heart of it. "Put it this way: when you use the Clone Technique, you think you're instinctively focusing. But when you gather chakra for the clone, your mind instinctively separates