Jiraiya bit his thumb and began forming hand seals.
"Just like this—Summoning Jutsu!" A large puff of white smoke appeared, and in its wake stood a giant toad beside Jiraiya. "You should remember this Sage from Mount Myoboku, right?"
Naruto looked at the toad standing beside Jiraiya and grinned.
"Of course I do! He's the one who brought you back after I fought Pain. Toad Sage, long time no see."
Jiraiya covered his face with his hand and said,
"Naruto, how can you be so disrespectful to the Toad Sage? Your entire training relied on him!" He mumbled under his breath, "Punk," while Fukasaku simply chuckled.
"It's fine, Jiraiya," Fukasaku said as he jumped off the ground and landed in front of Naruto, carefully examining him. "You've got talent, kid—and immense power too. You're even stronger than the last time I saw you. With your current strength, you should be able to defeat Pain."
His words instantly brightened the mood in the room.
Tamako smiled, so did Sai, while Yugito was so excited she almost couldn't speak. She still remembered how brutally Pain had defeated Naruto last time.
"You already know his secret, don't you?"
Naruto nodded seriously, "Tamako already told me everything. Those were just his puppets." Fukasaku nodded, confirming Naruto's words.
"So where is his real body then?"
"I don't know either, kid," Jiraiya replied. He'd never managed to find out where Pain's true body was hidden. "But I'm certain about one thing—his real body must be close to those puppets. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to control them effectively."
With his remaining hand, he flicked his fingers. "How about we change plans? We just need to enhance your current abilities. Using the Nine-Tails' Chakra, you'll have more than enough strength to beat Pain."
"This time, I won't rely on the Nine-Tails' power," Naruto said.
Everyone except his teammates was shocked, because they all knew how terrifying Naruto became when using the Nine-Tails' Chakra.
"I can't trust it, and I can't rely on it now—not like this," he added.
After all, he'd once been completely overwhelmed by the Nine-Tails' Chakra, helpless and utterly defeated.
That meant even if he could access more Tails now, Pain would still be able to defeat him.
Naruto didn't mention that he suspected the Nine-Tails itself was afraid of Pain—that was him giving the beast the benefit of the doubt. But yes—he definitely wasn't planning on relying on the Nine-Tails anymore.
Everyone knew Naruto couldn't control the Tailed Beast as perfectly as B or even reach the level Yugito had achieved.
"And besides…" Naruto continued, "We still need to deal with Madara Uchiha. I wouldn't stand a chance against him. Even if you think I should've mastered controlling the Nine-Tails before getting humiliated by Pain, I still need more time now. Honestly, I'm not that much stronger."
But he wasn't telling the whole truth—since his last battle against Pain, he had actually come a long way.
Jiraiya nodded, finally convinced.
"Alright then. Let us know whenever you're ready, and we'll begin."
"Now's the time," Naruto said eagerly, already tired of just sitting here doing nothing while a million things ran through his head.
He wanted to get this training done fast and then start building an alliance to take down Madara.
"We really don't have any more time to waste."
Interrupting, Fukasaku said,
"Are you sure about this, Naruto? To do this training properly, we must go to Mount Myōboku. The journey will be very long and take quite a bit of time."
Naruto pressed his lips together and replied,
"Then let's get going right away—as fast as we can."
Yugito looked disappointed; she was hoping he'd stick around a bit longer in Kumogakure.
He hadn't even been there a full day yet when he was already leaving again.
Still, she could understand why he was doing this—it wasn't a vacation or anything.
He'd already said everything he needed to say, and now it was up to them to inform everyone else and start building an alliance to take down Madara.
Maybe this news would finally convince Iwagakure to change sides and get Onoki to loosen up a bit.
Though Naruto was leaving so soon, Yugito still wanted to play her part.
"Naruto, when you decide you're ready to completely control the Nine-Tails' power, come back to Kumogakure. Me and B can help you with that," she said, then turned to the smiling Raikage and asked, "That's okay, isn't it, Lord Raikage?"
"Of course," the Raikage laughed, clearly entertained by Yugito's enthusiasm.
Jiraiya and Fukasaku were about to speak up, wanting to mention how long this training might take, but Naruto cut in first:
"Lord Raikage, you won't need to wait too long—I'll be back before you know it."
"What about us, Naruto-senpai?" Sai asked, knowing that neither he nor Maki could enter a restricted place like Mount Myōboku since neither of them had a summoning contract with the frogs there.
Looking at his teammates, Naruto said,
"I want you two to return to Konoha and stay with Tamako and protect her. I need you ready for anything—because honestly, I have no idea what's coming next."
"Yes, Naruto-senpai," Sai and Maki replied together.
Seeing how obedient Naruto's teammates were, Jiraiya gave a satisfied smile.
Fukasaku interrupted again:
"Well then, if everyone is ready, I'll head back and have Gamakichi summon Naruto so we can start the training right away."
With that, he disappeared into a puff of smoke, off to prepare for Naruto's arrival.
Placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder, Jiraiya said,
"Kid, anything else you want to say? If so, better say it now—you're about to miss your chance."
Turning to face his friends, Naruto cleared his throat and said:
"I've gotta leave for a while, guys. When I come back, I swear I'm gonna kick Uchiha Madara's old butt so hard he'll get sent back to the Stone Age! So, believe in me, yeah? I promise I'll return with some killer new moves."
Tamako gave Naruto another tight hug, drawing disapproving looks from both Maki and Yugito.
"Don't worry about me, Naruto-sama," she whispered, "I'll stay in touch. If anything important pops up that you need to know, I'll make sure you hear it—so focus on your training, got it?"
Naruto nodded, turning eagerly toward his teammates to see if they had anything else to say.
Then, Sai spoke first.
"Try not to die, Naruto-senpai. It'd be quite awkward otherwise."
Maki cleared her throat and faced Naruto.
"Well, we'll be waiting for you, Naruto-senpai. We'll have everything ready to go before you return."
Naruto let out a soft chuckle.
"I've always trusted you, Maki." He looked around one last time, then sighed. "I—" Before he could finish, he vanished in a puff of smoke, shocking everyone—except Jiraiya.
"That was way too fast," Jiraiya muttered, blinking in shock. "Wait, why am I still here? They summoned him before me?! I'm at least his senior—"
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>