After the preliminaries, Naruto and the others returned to their daily training, waiting for the final tournament to begin in fifteen days.
Rock Lee, who had returned to his original team, rejoined them to train together.
One day, Goku didn't have them do their usual routine. Instead, he told them he was going to teach them a new move.
"What kind of move, Goku-sensei?"
Naruto's eyes lit up.
Whether it was the ki blasts or the Solar Flare he had learned before, they had all been incredibly helpful. So, hearing that there was a new move to learn, he was beside himself with excitement.
Sasuke, Sakura, and Rock Lee also looked at Goku with curiosity.
"Hehe, this move is called the Kamehameha!"
Goku put his hands on his hips and grinned.
"Kamehameha? What a unique name."
Sakura recalled the Solar Flare she had learned previously; its name gave a hint about what the move did. But the name "Kamehameha" (Turtle Destruction Wave) gave her no clue whatsoever.
"It must be an attack move," Sasuke said, rubbing his chin.
His intuition told him this move would be more powerful than a simple ki blast.
"That's right! It's a very powerful attack!" Goku confirmed his guess.
Hearing this, Naruto couldn't hold back anymore. He rushed up to Goku and said impatiently,
"Goku-sensei, hurry up and teach us!"
The thought of learning another powerful move to boost his strength made him itch with anticipation.
"Hehe, alright then. Watch closely."
Goku bent his knees slightly into a horse stance and brought his cupped hands to his side.
"Ka-me-ha-me-HA!!"
A blue sphere of light suddenly materialized between his palms. As he shouted the final syllable, he thrust his hands forward, and the blue sphere shot out, trailing a comet-like tail as it blasted straight ahead.
BOOM!
After a loud explosion, Naruto and the others stared at the scene before them, question marks practically floating above their heads.
???
That's it?
In front of them, a four-to-five-meter-tall rock—which had been minding its own business and never bothered anyone—had been blown to smithereens by the sudden Kamehameha.
While the power seemed decent, it was a far cry from what they had imagined!
"Goku-sensei, is that all the power it has?" Naruto scratched his head.
For him, learning a move with this level of power was still great, as it was definitely stronger than a standard ki blast.
But he had expected something even more impressive, so he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
Just then, Sasuke, who had been stunned for a moment, snapped out of it and thought of a reason.
"No, Goku-sensei must have suppressed its power. Didn't you notice that his ki didn't fluctuate at all?"
"If it were a full-power attack, his ki would have fluctuated."
His analysis made a lot of sense. However, what he didn't know was that even if the Kamehameha had been ten or a hundred times stronger, it wouldn't have caused a ripple in Goku's ki, which he had been constantly suppressing since arriving in this world.
"Haha, Sasuke is right. I did suppress the power. After all, it was just a demonstration, and there weren't any better targets around."
Goku laughed, scratching his head.
In their training area, aside from a few scattered rocks, there was nothing else to use as a target.
Although there were forests around, he couldn't exactly give the forest a haircut.
This was Konoha's territory, after all. As a guest, it wouldn't be right to go around destroying their property.
Of course, this was something he only thought about when he was calm. If he were in the middle of a fight and got carried away, the forest might not be so safe.
"Aw, I really wanted to see how powerful that move is in your hands, Goku-sensei," Naruto said, his face scrunching up.
If the Ninja World could take human form right now, it would grab him by the collar and scream obscenities: "You motherf*****!!"
"Hmm... how about this? Let's go train outside. This place isn't really suitable for practicing the Kamehameha anyway."
Goku frowned in thought for a moment before coming up with a good idea.
"Outside? You mean outside the village?"
"Yep."
"That's great! I haven't been outside the village in ages!" Naruto raised both hands in approval.
Sasuke nodded in agreement.
Sakura and Rock Lee hesitated, saying respectively, "I have to tell my parents first," and "I should tell Guy-sensei."
"Bah, no need for all that trouble!"
Goku waved his hand dismissively, then placed two fingers against his forehead.
In the next instant...
Swish!
He vanished into thin air.
???
Sakura and the others stared blankly, three question marks slowly appearing over their heads.
Where did Goku-sensei go?
In Kakashi's bedroom, sunlight streamed through the window, shining directly on Kakashi, who was fast asleep in his bed.
He had stayed up too late reading the new edition of Icha Icha Paradise, which left him incredibly sleepy this morning.
He had intended to go watch Naruto and the others train, but he hadn't managed to wake up yet.
Swish!
Suddenly, a figure appeared by his bed near the window. It was Goku, who had used Instant Transmission.
"Huh? Still sleeping?"
Seeing Kakashi sleeping soundly, Goku scratched his head, feeling a bit conflicted.
He had come to find Kakashi to ask him a favor—essentially to use him as a messenger to tell Sakura's parents and Might Guy that they were leaving the village for training.
But finding Kakashi still asleep left him unsure whether to wake him up or... wake him up.
Fortunately, before he had to choose, Kakashi woke up on his own.
"Who's there?!"
Kakashi flipped out of bed, drawing a kunai he kept nearby and throwing it without even looking at the intruder.
Cold sweat broke out all over his body.
As a battle-hardened ninja, his vigilance was exceptional. Even in his sleep, he could usually sense if someone was approaching.
But today, someone had gotten right next to him without him noticing a thing.
If the intruder hadn't spoken and startled him, he might still be dreaming indescribable dreams.
Catch!
Goku reached out and casually caught the kunai. Looking at the tense Kakashi, he grinned.
"It's me, Kakashi."
Hearing the familiar voice and seeing the familiar orange gi, Kakashi, squinting against the light, finally relaxed. He let out a long breath, black lines forming on his forehead.
"Goku... if you keep appearing out of nowhere like that, you're going to give me a heart attack one of these days."
Whenever Goku had needed him before, he would appear like a ghost, often scaring the living daylights out of him.
Although he was somewhat used to it, he definitely wasn't used to being ambushed in his sleep!
"Hahaha, sorry, sorry!"
Goku scratched his head apologetically.
"Sigh, forget it. Shouldn't you be training Naruto and the others? Why are you suddenly here?"
Kakashi felt too tired to dwell on it.
After all, Goku had apologized before, but nothing ever changed. He would just scare him again next time.