After calming his thoughts, Jiraiya quickly pulled out a Scroll from within his robe and tossed it to Minato.
"This Scroll contains ninja techniques of the five nature transformations—Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, and Water. Most of them are C-rank techniques, though there are also some B-rank ones suitable for your training. As for A-rank techniques, they'd still be too much for you at this stage."
Jiraiya explained. Based on Minato's current Chakra Reserves Amount, techniques at this level were most appropriate. And considering their difficulty of learning, especially since he had never practiced such techniques before, it wouldn't have been suitable to teach Minato anything higher ranked.
Minato immediately unfurled the Scroll upon catching it. Seemingly enchanted with some sort of array, it expanded dramatically with a "poof" sound as he opened it, spreading across the ground of the training field.
Just as his teacher had described, the Scroll contained detailed instructions for numerous ninja techniques. Wind, Lightning, Earth, Fire, and Water—all elements were present. Some of these techniques were even exclusive to certain clans within the village.
Gathering all these and compiling them into a single Scroll was no easy feat. Not even an ordinary person could have done this—Jiraiya himself probably couldn't have managed it either.
"Please convey my gratitude to the Third Hokage," Minato turned toward Jiraiya. In Konoha, only a select few possessed the capability to do something like this. There was little difficulty identifying who had provided it.
Even before becoming Jiraiya's disciple, Minato already knew that the Third Hokage had been watching him closely.
If it was that man—the one known throughout the Ninja World as the "Sage of Ninjutsu"—then possessing such an extensive collection of techniques wasn't particularly surprising.
"Tch, kid really doesn't leave any room for secrets, does he..." Jiraiya chuckled. When the Third had handed over this Scroll, he'd actually predicted Minato would figure out its origin.
True enough, he had seen through it right away.
Jiraiya had gradually grown accustomed to this. Minato was unlike how he himself used to be—he really was a true genius.
A once-in-a-lifetime talent—there was no exaggeration in calling him that.
Eagerly staring at the Scroll spread across the ground, Minato's hands continuously practiced forming Hand Seal sequences according to the instructions written on the Scroll. Once again, Jiraiya found himself slightly taken aback by how quickly and skillfully Minato mastered the Hand Seal sequences.
By all rights, even someone usually adept at Hand Seals would struggle somewhat when attempting them for the first time. Yet Minato showed no such hesitation.
It was as if he had learned these techniques before.
"You're going to need to study the ninjutsu on your own now..." Jiraiya remarked while Minato was absorbed in examining the Scroll.
Looking up, Minato met Jiraiya's gaze as the latter continued, "There might be a long period coming up where I won't be able to stay in the village or personally guide you through techniques."
"Are you being sent on a mission?"
"Minato asked. Given his teacher's strength, even a tough mission wouldn't take him long to finish. After all, he was the village's backbone—being away for too long would do serious harm to the village.
Unless... this mission involved other hidden villages.
Seeing Minato's expression, Jiraiya smiled slightly and said, "You kid, stop making things up in your head. What you should do now is keep training and building your strength..."
Though his teacher wore a smile, Minato could clearly detect helplessness and aversion in his voice...
What kind of mission exactly had caused his teacher to reveal such an expression?
"Minato, you've told me before that you want to protect your family in the village, right?" Suddenly, Teacher Jiraiya asked another question.
Nodding, Minato listened as his teacher continued, "...But what if one day you find that protecting your family requires fighting others—and even harming innocent people? What would you do then?"
Hearing this, Minato felt momentarily stunned; he'd never considered such a scenario before.
"Teacher, what would you do in such a situation?" Not knowing the answer himself, he turned to ask his teacher for guidance, but Master Jiraiya merely shook his head.
Even he didn't have the answer to that question...
Minato noticed a flicker of confusion in his teacher's eyes—and he shared that same uncertainty.
To protect those you hold dearest might mean harming innocent people...
He somewhat understood now—back when he wanted to protect Kushina, he'd nearly lost control, hurt Yu Akasaka, and accepted Yan Uchiha's challenge despite normally detesting conflicts.
And almost harmed his innocent classmates.
Such consequences had been unpredictable and irreversible.
However, the confusion in his eyes didn't last long as he looked up at his teacher and said,
"Teacher, I might not yet be able to answer your question right now, but I'll strive to find the answer..."
His tone paused briefly. "...But since even you, teacher, don't know the answer yet, I know the process of seeking it will be long. Yet I firmly believe there will come a day when an answer appears."
"And for that, there must be a corresponding cost to pay. If someone must bear this burden, then let it fall entirely upon me—no matter what responsibility or sin it may entail!"
Jiraiya's eyes narrowed as he met Minato's sharp blue gaze—what he saw there startled him: unwavering determination.
"So before I find that answer, if it's for protecting my family, I'll accept harming innocents along the way… Because after all, how can someone who can't even protect their own family possibly talk about safeguarding others?"
Their gazes locked. Gradually, Jiraiya's face broke into a smile, as he said with a light chuckle, "I wonder... which one of us really is the student, and which is the teacher here."
Minato blinked in surprise. Jiraiya turned around and waved a hand at him, saying, "If we're talking about taking responsibility and blame, you're still not the one who should carry that burden. After all, I should bear it first."
"As for the answer, I'll find it myself. But if I can't find it, then I'll leave it to you to find the answer… Maybe that's what they call 'chuan cheng'—the passing of knowledge from master to student."
"Hopefully by the time I return, you'll already be capable of standing on your own. Until then, work hard and gain the strength to protect your family!"
After speaking those words, Jiraiya immediately left Training Ground Seven at great speed.
Minato, however, stood frozen on the spot, somewhat stunned. He began to wonder why his teacher had asked such a strange question today...
...
...
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