The Man Testing Sealing Art: Devour

The man testing Sealing Art: Devour

A gust of wind rose...

Fallen leaves and gravel lifted from the ground...

Naruto Uzumaki watched Jiraiya charge toward him. He infused the Rasengan in his hand with Wind Release Chakra, and the technique's shape changed at once. "Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"

Naruto did not understand why Jiraiya was rushing at him with an ordinary Rasengan, but to avoid any mishap at the last moment, he could only alter the Rasengan's form in advance.

At the very least, Wind Release: Rasenshuriken would guarantee enough power and ensure that his ninjutsu would not collapse after a single clash.

Worthy of being a legendary ninja...

Worthy of being a man who could stir something within him...

Jiraiya's mental fortitude was too strong. Even as he was about to reach him, he still had not changed the Rasengan in his hand...

Naruto sighed inwardly, raised his arm high with the Rasenshuriken in hand, and charged straight at Jiraiya!

Yet when Jiraiya saw the Rasenshuriken in Naruto's palm, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes. No matter what, he had never expected this brat to have developed the Rasengan to such a degree!

"This is bad..."

Jiraiya glanced at the small Rasengan in his palm. Was he really supposed to use this to collide with a Rasenshuriken?

Wasn't that suicide?!

This brat had already surpassed his father!

Jiraiya moved his hand, and the Rasengan dispersed into a Chakra vortex. His hands came together in rapid seals. "Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"

An earthen wall burst from the ground, blocking Naruto's path!

Jiraiya's Earth-Style Wall far surpassed Kakashi's technique in both thickness and height!

Boom!

An explosion rang out!

The solid earthen wall was instantly destroyed by the Rasenshuriken!

Dust billowed into the air, while fragments and stones scattered in every direction from the impact!

The Konoha boy let the dust settle over him. Standing where he was, he withdrew his hand and spoke, "Worthy of being a legendary ninja. This is the first time I've seen an Earth-Style Wall that could withstand a Rasenshuriken..."

"No, I'm the one whose eyes have been opened."

Jiraiya shook his head gravely. With Naruto standing amid the dust, he could only make out a vague silhouette. He said softly, "This is also the first time I've seen a Rasengan undergo a Chakra nature transformation. Brat, you're no simple case!"

There was a trace of gratification in that final praise.

This was a boy who had inherited his parents' talent.

No, it should be said that he had surpassed them.

As the dust settled, Jiraiya looked at Naruto's blond hair and felt as though he could see Minato Namikaze's face through the boy's features.

But the battle had to continue!

After seeing the Rasenshuriken, Jiraiya already felt that the trip had been worthwhile. But if he could force Naruto to reveal his limits, perhaps he would gain even more!

"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!"

Jiraiya swiftly formed hand seals.

The ground beneath Naruto instantly turned into a swamp. His body sank uncontrollably into the mire, which swallowed his calves in an instant and continued pulling him downward...

Naruto struggled a few times, only to sink faster.

Jiraiya's Earth Release was not something one could escape so easily, much less this move, one of his signature Earth Release ninjutsu!

"Twin Rasengan Impact Wave!"

Naruto formed a Chakra vortex in each palm and slammed both hands downward. The massive force from the released Chakra propelled him out of the mud, and with that momentum, he finally escaped the swamp!

Before he could fully land, Jiraiya's attack followed closely. His white hair moved like nimble ropes, wrapping around Naruto's body. "Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"

"So fast..."

The Blond Genin gritted his teeth and tried to pull free with all his strength, but no matter what he did, he could not escape the white hair's grip. The Wild Lion's Mane Technique was incredibly powerful!

"Brat, I've got you..."

Jiraiya pressed his fingers together and rapidly formed seals before his chest, but he continued trying to persuade Naruto. "Do you feel despair and helplessness? Then use the greatest power in your body to break free from my restraints!"

"..."

Naruto secretly clenched his teeth. Jiraiya absolutely knew how powerful the Wild Lion's Mane Technique's restraints were.

If it were so easy to break free, why was that white-haired middle-aged old man still leisurely forming seals over there?!

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at the still-defiant boy. A faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, but then he suddenly spat out a blazing flame mixed with fire oil. "Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"

"Rasengan Bullet!"

A fingernail-sized Rasengan shot from Naruto's finger and instantly struck Jiraiya's body, sending him flying!

However, the blazing flames had already rushed toward him...

Naruto could clearly feel the heat radiating from the fire. He raised his other hand before himself. "Sealing Art: Devour!"

The roaring flames vanished in an instant!

Both the flames and the fire oil had been created by Jiraiya's Chakra. They were instantly converted back into Chakra and absorbed into Naruto's body.

Taking advantage of Jiraiya being blasted away, Naruto finally broke free from the white hair binding him and brought the battle back to square one.

He landed on the ground, shook off the faint wisp of white smoke rising from his palm, and stared warily at Jiraiya as he climbed back up and regained his footing!

Jiraiya rubbed his shoulder, which was beginning to ache. That Rasengan Bullet had formed too quickly and had been launched too subtly; even he had been caught off guard.

The Rasengan Bullet was not particularly lethal. Even after being hit, it had merely obstructed the flow of Chakra through his shoulder.

Aside from that, the impact might have slightly displaced the bones in his shoulder, which would also interfere with forming seals...

That did not matter much, though, because he had plenty of ways to form hand seals.

He had thought he already regarded Naruto highly enough, but he had not expected the boy's mastery over the Rasengan to be so proficient.

What surprised Jiraiya even more was how Naruto had completely erased the Flame Bullet without suffering the slightest injury.

Absorbing the Chakra from an enemy's ninjutsu and turning that absorbed Chakra into one's own was something only Kirigakure's Samehada sword was known to be capable of.

Yet Naruto Uzumaki had merely held out his little hand...

"Incredible!"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and held two fingers together before his chest with one hand. He muttered, "Tch, no wonder Kakashi told me not to be careless... Then let's continue testing exactly what level of ninjutsu it can absorb!"

"...One-handed seals again?"

Naruto looked up at Jiraiya forming seals with one hand and leaped at him. To increase his speed, he even used Rasengan Impact Wave to propel himself!

He kicked at Jiraiya's head!

Yet Jiraiya happened to be in his prime. In close combat, he held a tremendous advantage. After evading several of Naruto's continuous attacks—

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes. Chakra gathered in his chest, and an even hotter blaze burst from his mouth. "Fire Release: Great Flame Bullet!"

In the distance, Kakashi Hatake could not help raising an eyebrow. He was considering whether he should tell Jiraiya not to test Naruto's strange technique that could absorb Chakra.

Because every test would be pointless!

Based on Kakashi's observations so far, regardless of rank or nature, as long as Naruto could touch a ninjutsu, he could extract the Chakra within it.

Even the Chakra inside a ninja's body could not escape him...

Naruto already possessed an enormous amount of Chakra. He could also use that technique to absorb Chakra from an enemy's ninjutsu and even reclaim the Chakra from his own techniques.

If Jiraiya continued testing him with all kinds of ninjutsu, then as one side diminished while the other grew, it would leave a stain on his already less-than-glorious life...