Once the thought formed, Naruto began infusing nature transformation chakra into the Rasengan.
He started with the one he was most proficient in—Wind Release.
For him now, chakra manipulation was as natural as moving his hands and feet. He could wield it freely and effortlessly.
As the Wind Release chakra flowed into the Rasengan, its rotation speed surged dramatically, and the color began to shift toward white.
The buzzing sound it emitted grew increasingly shrill.
Jiraiya's eyes widened again.
"This... I didn't teach this, did I?"
"No, wait—this isn't even something I can do!"
All of Naruto's elemental chakra nature transformations had already reached max level.
The Wind-infused Rasengan looked vastly more powerful—lethal, even.
But Naruto didn't intend to stop there.
If he could add one chakra nature… what about two? Or even three, fused together?
With that thought, Naruto began infusing a second chakra nature into his Wind-based Rasengan.
Wind fuels fire.
The second nature: Fire Release.
As Fire Release chakra entered the sphere, the once-white Rasengan began to glow red.
Seeing this, Jiraiya panicked and immediately shouted, "Naruto! What are you doing?! Mixing two chakra natures will make the Rasengan explode! Stop, now!"
Even as he warned about the explosion, Jiraiya didn't back away. His eyes were full of worry as he frantically searched for a way to intervene.
But the explosion he feared never happened.
The fusion of Wind and Fire stabilized.
White chakra threads intertwined with red ones, weaving together seamlessly.
The Rasengan in Naruto's hand grew a size larger, and the power it radiated multiplied several times over.
Next came the third chakra nature—Yang Release.
A Rasengan infused with three chakra natures complemented and reinforced itself.
In Jiraiya's eyes, the tri-colored sphere glowed with unknown but terrifying energy.
He could already imagine its overwhelming power—it far surpassed the original Rasengan by leaps and bounds.
He now completely believed the Third Hokage's words—maybe even more so.
Back then, it had taken him a great deal of effort to learn the Rasengan.
But Naruto had not only mastered it at a glance—he was playing with it like a toy, producing version after version.
'You really are your father's son...'
But when Naruto tried to infuse a fourth nature, the Rasengan destabilized—then completely collapsed.
Naruto frowned at the collapsed sphere.
When he'd tried to merge the fourth nature, it felt like something essential was missing. In just an instant, the Rasengan's stability had shattered.
It left him puzzled.
Jiraiya noticed it too. The old veteran's experience kicked in.
He pinched his chin, then suddenly slapped his fist into his palm in realization.
"So that's it. That's definitely it!"
Naruto looked at him, expression flat.
"...What is it?"
Jiraiya smugly draped an arm over Naruto's shoulders.
"A Rasengan is like the human body. With one chakra nature, it's a regular jutsu. Two natures? That's Kekkei Genkai. Three? That's the even rarer Kekkei Tōta."
"But the fourth… shouldn't even exist. No one in the ninja world has ever demonstrated a bloodline limit more advanced than Kekkei Tōta."
"But being able to fuse three natures—that's already incredible. No, more than incredible."
Jiraiya's words made Naruto pause.
Jiraiya didn't know it—but Naruto did.
There were bloodlines stronger than Kekkei Tōta.
The Ōtsutsuki Clan.
'Do I have to become an Ōtsutsuki to wield power beyond Kekkei Tōta?' Naruto wondered silently.
"Naruto, how about a spontaneous training trip with me?" Jiraiya laughed.
After witnessing Naruto's talent, he felt even more certain—this boy was the Child of Prophecy.
Jiraiya's heart surged with excitement. His lifelong mission finally felt like it had hope again.
But Naruto flatly refused.
"Not interested."
Jiraiya's soaring excitement was instantly doused with cold water.
"Naruto, don't underestimate me! I'm one of the Legendary Sannin! The Toad Sage—Jiraiya, remember?"
He was forced to pull rank.
Naruto gave him a once-over and said blandly, "You mean the Pervy Sage? Yeah, I figured."
Jiraiya quickly corrected him. "Not Pervy Sage! Toad Sage! If you come train with me, I can teach you a ton of things! People would kill for this opportunity!"
"Wow, sounds real tempting."
"Right?! So—" Jiraiya's face lit up with hope.
"So, I'm still not interested." Naruto remained perfectly calm.
He had already planned to leave the village, but he had no desire to follow the original story's version of himself and spend over two and a half years on some long training journey with Jiraiya.
Sure, Jiraiya was strong—but he didn't have much left to teach Naruto.
It would be far better to travel the world alone, seeking out powers that could skyrocket his strength.
Like the Dragon Vein, or the Zero-Tails…
After declining Jiraiya's offer, Naruto returned home.
Jiraiya stood there, eyes glazed over, completely deflated.
This reminded him of when he'd just learned the Rasengan, and gone to show off to Minato.
"Well? Minato? I mastered the jutsu you spent three years developing! Impressed?"
"Amazing! That's incredible, Jiraiya-sensei!"
"Hahaha! Right?!"
"Anyway, I've got urgent business—bye!"
But on deeper thought, Naruto really did have Minato's essence in him. That gave Jiraiya the motivation to keep going.
—
Over the next three days, Naruto continuously fed chakra to Samehada.
Each time, Samehada devoured it with gusto.
It had never tasted chakra so delicious. Compared to Kisame's—which was large in quantity but bland in flavor—Naruto's chakra was unforgettable.
Samehada, helpless against such tasty chakra, gave in without resistance.
After three days, it had grown noticeably plumper.
At this rate, it would stop being a sword and turn into a hammer.
But Naruto didn't care what shape it took—he never planned to use Samehada to slice anyone. He was just keeping it as a backup chakra battery.
Wood Release had been learned, his mission on Uzushio Island was complete, and Samehada was fully charged.
It was time to move out.
—
At dusk, Naruto gathered the core Konoha rookies—
Except Sakura.
Inside the Akimichi Clan's barbecue restaurant, they sat around a large table.
Meat sizzled on the grill, releasing an irresistible aroma.
Ino broke the silence first, looking at Naruto.
"Naruto… are you really leaving the village?"
Everyone turned toward him, waiting for an answer.
Naruto nodded. "I've been cooped up too long. It's time I took a look around."
Hearing him describe his situation as "cooped up" drew mixed reactions from the group.