"Tōma," Jiraiya said after a moment of silence, "you didn't have a personal teacher before this, did you?"
He couldn't help asking. What he'd just seen felt… unreasonable.
"I did," Tōma replied honestly. "If you count the Academy teachers. Other than that, no."
The Academy teachers, huh…Jiraiya frowned inwardly. They were competent instructors, sure, but there was no way they could produce a kid like this.
"Then the techniques you used earlier," Jiraiya continued, "were those taught by the Academy?"
He already knew the answer was no. Still, if Tōma said yes, Jiraiya was fully prepared to personally visit that mystery teacher.
"Taijutsu-wise, Might Guy-sama gives me pointers when he has time," Tōma said. "Everything else, I figured out myself."
He briefly explained how he'd run into Guy.
"…"
Jiraiya sucked in a sharp breath.
So that explained the taijutsu. Guy's lineage and obsession with physical training were well known. That part at least made sense.
But ninjutsu?Shape transformation?Nature transformation?
Jiraiya fell silent again.
He'd taught prodigies before. Very good ones. But he'd never met a student who seemed to need so little teaching.
"Sensei?" Tōma asked when Jiraiya didn't respond.
"Ah," Jiraiya came back to himself. "You're exceptionally talented. Truly."
"I know," Tōma said calmly. "But talent alone isn't enough. I still need to work harder."
Jiraiya burst out laughing.
"Well said. Plenty of geniuses die young."
He'd meant that as a warning against arrogance. Instead, Tōma's answer landed better than anything Jiraiya had planned to say.
This kid doesn't even need a lecture, he thought, half amused, half troubled.
Teaching a genius wasn't hard.Teaching this kind of genius was.
Jiraiya sighed inwardly. Looks like he'd have to focus on what he actually could teach.
"Based on your performance," Jiraiya said seriously, "I have a rough idea of your level. Among people your age, only a handful I've ever seen compare to you. And all of them had clan instruction. That makes you the most outstanding of the lot."
He glanced at Tōma's face. No pride. No excitement. Just quiet acceptance.
So he really means what he says, Jiraiya thought, nodding slightly.
"I was originally planning to keep today light," Jiraiya continued. "But now I think I should teach you something real. Tell me, Tōma. What kind of talent do you think the Flying Thunder God requires?"
Tōma didn't hesitate.
"Spatial aptitude and sensory ability."
Jiraiya nodded, then shook his head.
"Correct, but incomplete. You also need talent in fuinjutsu."
"Fuinjutsu?" Tōma frowned.
He thought back carefully.
"The summoning test checked spatial aptitude. Pulling the kunai out while its connection was obscured tested my perception. So the fuinjutsu part…"
Jiraiya waited, smiling.
Then Tōma's eyes lit up.
"The inscription on the kunai."
"Exactly," Jiraiya said with a laugh. "The formula Minato used. If you can pour chakra into it and control it properly, that already proves you have fuinjutsu aptitude."
Tōma nodded slowly.
So even that first step had been a test. He'd just found it too easy to notice.
"As for learning the Flying Thunder God itself," Jiraiya went on, "there's not much I can teach you about the spatial side. But fuinjutsu is something I can help with."
Tōma's eyes brightened immediately.
"So that means," he said thoughtfully, "the current formula is already a simplified final version. It doesn't have to be those exact characters. In theory, it could be expanded instead of simplified…"
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, but simplifying it to this point was already extremely difficult. Beyond that, the effort outweighs the benefit. That's why Minato stopped there."
That explanation didn't dampen Tōma's enthusiasm at all.
"Then I could do the opposite," Tōma continued. "Start with a more complex formula I can understand, learn it step by step, and then follow his path of simplification afterward."
Jiraiya stared at him.
That idea was… sound. Very sound.
And it would make learning the Flying Thunder God far smoother.
So this is how his mind works, Jiraiya thought. No wonder he's reached this level so early.
"I think that approach is viable," Jiraiya said at last. "We'll need to test it properly. I'll give you Minato's notes later. They should help."
"Thank you, Sensei," Tōma said sincerely.
He felt a quiet thrill inside.
So this is what having a real teacher is like.
Once he mastered fuinjutsu and the formula itself, he could begin practicing the Flying Thunder God in earnest. Even an unsimplified version that only allowed fixed-point teleportation would already be a massive step forward.
And this time, the path ahead was clear.