Chapter 26 – Lessons
The next day, after finishing his morning internship duties, Taichi couldn't find Tsunade anywhere.
With no other choice, he headed for Training Ground No. 3, where he had agreed to meet Jiraiya the day before.
As he approached, he saw Jiraiya already waiting in the center of the field.
Taichi quickened his pace.
"Sorry, Jiraiya-sama—I'm late."
"Haha, it's fine. I know you can't get here until after noon, and we're still fifteen minutes ahead of schedule. You're not late at all."
Jiraiya waved it off.
"Oh, and don't call me sama. If I'm going to be your teacher for a while, just call me sensei."
"Alright, Jiraiya-sensei," Taichi replied without hesitation. After all, he was the one getting the better end of this deal.
"Before we start training, tell me—do you know your chakra nature?"
"Uh…"
The question caught Taichi off guard.
When he was younger, he couldn't afford chakra test paper and simply assumed he had Fire and Wind natures, since jutsu of those types came easily to him.
Later, when he had the money, he'd just… forgotten to check.
"I've never tested it," he admitted. "But I think it's Fire and Wind. Those are the easiest for me to learn."
"Just as I thought."
Jiraiya's tone was hard to read—was he thinking Tsunade had overlooked something so basic, or that Taichi was simply careless?
"Here," he said, producing a slip of chakra test paper. "You know how to use it?"
"I do."
Taichi took the paper and channeled chakra into it.
The sheet split into three distinct reactions: one side burned to ash, another crumbled into fine shreds as if sliced apart, and the last softened and dampened.
Jiraiya raised his brows. "Fire, Wind, and Water? That's a rare combination."
"Is that… a problem, Jiraiya-sensei?" Taichi asked, staring at the fragments in his hand.
"No problem. It's just uncommon. Fire–Wind–Lightning is fairly frequent. Fire–Wind–Water, not so much."
They sat down across from each other on the sun-dappled stone of Training Ground No. 3—Jiraiya cross-legged, speckled light flickering over his white hair; Taichi with his ninja tool pouch resting in his lap, listening intently.
"Think of chakra nature transformation like shaping a rice ball," Jiraiya began.
He picked up a small stone—clay crumbled in his palm into fine grains.
"Nature transformation is molding chakra into different 'shapes'."
The grains trickled from his fingers, forming a rough flame pattern on the grass.
"Of course, you have to understand each nature's characteristics first."
"Let's start with your three natures. First, Fire."
He raised his right hand, chakra swirling in his palm, shifting from pale blue to deep red—then bursting into flame.
"From this, what do you think defines Fire Release?"
"Burning… high temperature… maybe explosions?" Taichi guessed.
"Those are all correct, but not the whole picture. Chakra nature follows perception—what you believe Fire is, it can manifest. Within reason, of course. Most people see Fire as the embodiment of intense heat."
Taichi nodded thoughtfully. Chakra was a fusion of physical and spiritual energy—so nature transformation wasn't bound only by physical laws, but also by the mind's perception of them.
"Now, Wind."
Jiraiya swept his hand forward—wild chakra surged forth, laced with countless invisible blades of air.
"Wind isn't just about gusts and penetration—it's about cutting power. Yesterday's Wind Release: Great Breakthrough was only wind. You need to add the slicing edge if you want its true force."
"Lastly, Water. Without favorable terrain, making Water Release powerful requires massive chakra reserves."
Jiraiya's eyes scanned Taichi.
"That's where you fall short. Your chakra is still below a chunin's level. But you're young—once you pass ten, your body will hit a rapid growth phase. Your chakra reserves will climb fast then."
After hearing Jiraiya's explanation, Taichi finally understood why his elemental affinities were on par with, or even better than, a chunin's, yet his chakra reserves were far lower.
So it all came down to age—his body simply hadn't begun its growth spurt yet.
"Water Release," Jiraiya continued, "is about overwhelming force—like a torrent sweeping everything away. But it's also about fluidity—unceasing, adapting, relentless."
He straightened. "Now I'll teach you a B-rank technique—Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet.
Remember, the hand seal order is: Ram → Horse → Snake → Dragon → Rat → Ox → Tiger."
He moved through the seals slowly so Taichi could follow.
"The key to this jutsu is maintaining the shape of your chakra."
When the last seal clicked into place, Jiraiya inhaled deeply and expelled a concentrated stream of fire. A meter out, it flared violently, swelling into the shape of a blazing dragon that roared forward. The earth it passed over crystallized into a scorched, orange-red sheen.
"Got it? Your turn."
The air reeked faintly of sulfur as Taichi steadied himself, excitement pounding in his chest.
He moved through the seals one by one, carefully feeling the chakra flow tied to each.
Finally, with a deep breath, he unleashed his first Fire Dragon—five meters long, blazing and fierce.
"Impressive," Jiraiya said, genuinely surprised. "I figured you'd need at least half a day to pull that off."
Taichi grinned, then went again—this time faster, sharper.
The fire dragon surged ten meters across the field, scorching everything in its path.
Jiraiya stood there wide-eyed. This… this growth rate is ridiculous.
"You've basically got the hang of it," he admitted. "From here, it's all about practice."
He glanced at the sky. "It's getting late. I've also got a C-rank—Wind Release: Gale Palm—and a B-rank—Water Release: Water Formation Wall. Take them home and study them. Next time, we'll work on these. That's all for today."
"Thank you, Jiraiya-sensei." Taichi smiled. "By the way, why not come to my place for dinner? I'll cook—let you try my skills firsthand."
"Oh? I've heard Tsunade brag about your cooking for ages. Guess it's time to see for myself."
With a chuckle, Jiraiya slung an arm over Taichi's shoulder, and the two wandered off together.
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Later, at home, Taichi surveyed the battlefield of empty plates and bowls left in Jiraiya's wake and sighed with a wry smile.
"Honestly… it was good, but does he have to eat like that?"
The memory of Jiraiya waddling away, clutching his overstuffed stomach, made him shake his head.
After cleaning up, Taichi headed to his study and took out the two scrolls Jiraiya had given him.
One was Gale Palm, the other Water Formation Wall.
Unfurling the first, he immediately noticed the neat but freshly-written handwriting—Jiraiya must have prepared it just last night. The scroll went into painstaking detail: execution steps, seal order, and even a breakdown of each seal's function.
The second scroll was just as thorough—so clear that even a beginner could follow it to learn the technique.
This level of care far exceeded Tsunade's casual instructions.
A warmth stirred in Taichi's chest. He couldn't repay the kindness now, but he would remember it—deeply, and for a long time to come.
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