Inside the sealed space.
Minato, who had just finished his tasks, happened to witness the scene of Naruto and his shadow clones' battle, and an awkward expression appeared on his face.
"Hehe… Kushina, Naruto really is just like you."
Inside the cage, Kurama lay prostrate, asking with a mocking expression, "Minato, is this the Child of Prophecy you spoke of?"
Minato turned to look at Kurama, and with a bright smile, nodded and said with conviction, "That's right, I believe it."
"My child will be the first person to extend a hand to a Tailed Beast."
Kurama's sharp claws gripped the cage, his tone full of enticement. "Ridiculous! You left this contingency in the Fuinjutsu formula."
"I don't believe you didn't sense those scenes. What, aren't you going to ask that dying Third Hokage? I think you can still manage that much."
Minato said, "Lord Third is a Hokage first, and then himself. Besides, Naruto is growing up well now, isn't he?"
Minato turned his head to look behind him. He could clearly sense that Naruto was very happy right now.
Outside, Naruto was surrounded by Shikamaru, Sasuke, and a few others, as the commotion he had just caused was not small.
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly, pretending not to hear Sasuke's taunts. He had made a huge fool of himself just now. If he retorted to Sasuke now, the mockery might get even louder later.
Kurama scoffed at this. "Tch, human bonds. They are fragile, easily shattered things."
Having lived for thousands of years and seen too much, the most memorable instance was the fight between Hashirama and Madara.
Minato did not refute Kurama's view, as it was a fact. However, he had his own perspective.
"Though fragile, how can they not be extraordinarily precious?"
"Therefore, I will give the choice to you, Kurama. On the day Naruto unseals the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style, I believe you will see what a ninja truly ought to protect."
Kurama did not reprimand Minato for calling it by its name. Instead, it burst into laughter. After a long while, it's beast eyes stared at Minato's Chakra body.
"Interesting. But I can choose not to participate."
With that, Kurama's tails, which had been thrashing wildly behind it, slowly drew in. It's large body lay down, and it closed its eyes. It clearly showed Minato that it would not concern itself with this matter.
Minato chuckled, not at all disheartened by Kurama's attitude.
"Naruto, my child."
Minato, having withdrawn his perception, once again vanished within the sealed space. The once bright sealed space gradually dimmed. In the darkness, a pair of beast eyes slowly opened.
— — —
On the Training Ground.
Naruto and a few others were gathered around Shinji, discussing.
Shinji stood with his arms crossed, smiling as he watched them.
Training shouldn't always be about toiling away. Sometimes, appropriate relaxation is also fine. Moreover, what Naruto and the others were discussing was how to make Shadow Clones help with tasks.
After Naruto explained the benefits of this Ninjutsu, the others immediately thought that if Shadow Clones could cooperate and help, it would be great.
If they had enough Chakra, they could even have Shadow Clones train with them. Only an idiot like Naruto would think of having Shadow Clones complete homework.
Thinking of this, Sasuke glanced at Naruto. He possessed abundant Chakra yet didn't appreciate his good fortune.
Shikamaru stroked his chin, carefully considering that if Shadow Clones could be used in conjunction, then the secret techniques of the Nara clan and the Akimichi clan could achieve even greater effects.
Thinking of this, he turned to Shinji to verify his idea.
After listening to Shikamaru's explanation, Shinji nodded in approval and said, "Shikamaru is right."
"The inventor of the Shadow Clone Technique, when developing this jutsu, actually had a primary goal in mind. The Shadow Clones could possess Chakra just like a physical body, serving as an alternative way to restrict the Sharingan."
???
Sasuke, upon hearing this, was utterly bewildered.
What kind of grudge was this?
And restrict the Sharingan?!
"But, Shikamaru, your idea can work."
"If used well, the Shadow Clone can also be a type of tactic, especially in the hands of intelligent people. Its power definitely rivals the effects brought by some A-rank Ninjutsu."
Of course, in the hands of some crazy people, its utility is even greater. Having Shadow Clones charge into battle with explosive tags attached is definitely a powerful weapon.
The prerequisite is that this person possesses a massive amount of Chakra and astonishing recovery abilities, otherwise, one wave would either kill them or definitely turn them into an idiot. After all, the pain is real.
Shinji subtly glanced at Naruto, he was definitely a seed for a demolition expert.
"However, Shikamaru, you forgot one point: Chakra."
"Those from the Nara clan inherently have a frail physique, and while Choji's Chakra is decent, the jutsu he uses consumes a lot of Chakra. If Choji uses Shadow Clones, I estimate that the power of Choji's Expansion Jutsu would be less effective than if he didn't use Shadow Clones."
Shikamaru, hearing this, slapped his forehead. He had indeed taken it for granted, as the temptation was quite strong.
Choji, meanwhile, was still holding his potato chips, munching away noisily.
Ino, due to the nature of her Mind Body Switch Technique, had no interest in the Shadow Clone Technique at all.
Naruto clasped his hands behind his head and said, "Eh, sensei, it would be great if the guy who invented this jutsu had considered making the Shadow Clones absolutely obedient to the main body."
He still preferred if Shadow Clones could help him with his homework.
Sasuke said irritably, "Idiot, just use Genjutsu to control the Shadow Clones."
Naruto, who could make the most effective use of the Shadow Clone, kept thinking about homework, which he found incredibly frustrating.
Huh?
Why did it suddenly go quiet?
Sasuke looked up in confusion, only to find Naruto, Shikamaru, and the others staring at him with astonished expressions. Even Shinji was like this.
Shinji was wondering if Tobirama would utter that classic line if he heard Sasuke's words?
Evil Uchiha brat, your thoughts are very dangerous.
After all, what good person is so ruthless?
Using Genjutsu on their own Shadow Clones?
Naruto clapped his hands in agreement. "That's right. We can do that. I didn't expect you, arrogant Sasuke, to be quite smart."
???
Shinji, hearing Naruto's words, couldn't help but cover his face.
Here was another ruthless one.
"Naruto, Genjutsu will disrupt the Chakra distribution of the Shadow Clone, causing the clone to collapse and disperse."
"To do what Sasuke said, extremely high Chakra control and a massive amount of Chakra is required."
Shinji shattered Naruto's fantasy. If this continued, Naruto might even attempt such an operation to lighten his homework burden.
"Hehe, then I'll just solve it myself." Naruto said with an embarrassed smile.