As the first light of dawn pierced through the curtains, gently illuminating every corner of the room, Kanon opened her misty eyes. She gazed quietly at the familiar ceiling. This was her sanctuary, a peaceful harbor before the rigorous training scheduled for the day.
Jiraiya, Naruto, and Kanon had agreed to meet for training in the afternoon, leaving Kanon's morning free. Naturally, she intended to use this time to train with Konin.
"Konin, are we learning any new techniques today?"
"Of course..." In her mind, the voice synchronized with her own responded.
While others were still deep in sleep, Kanon was in her inner world, listening to Konin impart knowledge of the shinobi world and explain the fundamental nature transformations of ninjutsu. By now, Kanon had become a scholar of the craft.
Though the morning sessions left her physically and mentally exhausted, she always woke up feeling as though she had experienced a deep, restorative slumber, energetic and free of fatigue. She didn't dwell on the mechanics of it; if she could trade sleep for training and still wake up refreshed, she would continue to do so.
Currently, she felt like a "Professor of Shinobi," having mastered all C-rank and even B-rank ninjutsu, with a thorough understanding of the seven chakra nature transformations. Knowing that using Kekkei Genkai in public would bring endless trouble and risk turning her into a research subject, she chose remote cliffs for her daily practice.
In the afternoon, Kanon and Naruto arrived at the stream as planned. Sure enough, Jiraiya was hiding nearby, peeking at the women by the water.
"Pervy Sage, we're here!" Kanon shouted toward him.
"Ah! Shhh!!"
"I knew you were peeking again, you creep!"
"Research! It's called field research!" Jiraiya barked back at her.
The three walked to the edge of the stream. At Jiraiya's signal, they began to mold their chakra.
"Hmm, both of you have quite large chakra reserves. No wonder you can produce so many Shadow Clones." Jiraiya looked at the boy. "Naruto, can you draw out the red chakra?"
Naruto shook his head.
"Tsk, no talent at all!" Jiraiya sighed helplessly.
Naruto's face flushed red with anger at the taunt. "Stop talking big! I don't even understand those two types of chakra myself!"
"Less talk, more refining. Keep working on it." Jiraiya turned to the girl. "Kanon, go buy your sensei some popsicles!"
Kanon rolled her eyes. Since when had this guy become her sensei?
"What are you looking at? Move it!" Jiraiya's sudden roar startled Naruto. Kanon sighed and went to buy popsicles for both of them.
When she returned, Naruto was still refining chakra while Jiraiya crouched by the side. Seeing Kanon return with two popsicles, Jiraiya broke into a grin.
"Ah, it's too hot today. Let's eat!"
Jiraiya unwrapped his and handed the other half to Naruto. Kanon did the same; she had specifically bought the kind that could be split in two. She was surprised Jiraiya actually shared with Naruto; she'd expected him to eat the whole thing himself.
"Take a break, you two."
The two genin sat on stone blocks by the stream, looking at Jiraiya.
"Listen up, brats. The ultimate technique I'm going to teach you requires more chakra than you currently have. Kanon might have enough, but Naruto, you definitely don't!"
"Therefore, we need to wake up that other massive chakra sleeping inside your body. You must utilize that energy to successfully perform this jutsu."
Naruto asked, confused, "How do you even know about the other chakra inside me, Pervy Sage?!"
"Good question! That's because I am a Sage!"
Both Naruto and Kanon gave him a deadpan look of disbelief.
"That's not an answer!" Kanon shook her head.
"Anyway, your traits are similar. Especially you, Naruto, your unique, massive chakra reserves will be your greatest weapon. As for Kanon, your chakra is surprisingly vast too. It's hard to imagine you're an Uchiha."
"Uchiha typically have relatively smaller reserves, and the Sharingan consumes even more... but that is one of your advantages."
"I understand, Pervy Sage." Kanon mulled it over, grasping his meaning.
"As expected of a smart one. You catch on quick."
"Hey, hey, Kanon! What is he talking about...?" Naruto clearly hadn't followed.
"He means we don't need to strictly follow a single style of training," Kanon explained. "We each have strengths and weaknesses. You have your style, and I have mine."
"Bingo!" Jiraiya gave Kanon a thumbs-up. "Your previous training focused on maintaining and releasing a set amount of chakra, in other words, suppression and control. But both of you have better stamina than others and unyielding willpower. Especially you, Naruto. With two types of chakra, you should be training to release it all."
"Focus on utilizing and enhancing chakra. The same applies to Kanon, though you need to be more disciplined because you don't have a second source like Naruto does. If you practice this way, the number of jutsu and ultimate moves you can use will grow."
Kanon felt grateful to Jiraiya. Even though Konin had taught her much of this already, hearing it from a legendary shinobi was different. "Thank you, Pervy Sage. I understand."
"Hahaha! Well, I am a Sage after all!"
Naruto tugged at Jiraiya's sleeve. "You said 'ultimate moves.' Like what?"
"Like the one I'm about to teach you: the Summoning Jutsu."
He gestured toward a nearby rock, where a toad was puffing out its cheeks.
"It's a space-time ninjutsu that allows you to summon creatures from another dimension at any time, provided you've signed a contract with them using your blood," Jiraiya explained.
Naruto's eyes turned into literal stars. "Whoa! Is it really that cool?! Teach me! Teach me!"
Kanon shook her head with a smile. She had learned about the Summoning Jutsu from Konin, but she hadn't dared to sign a contract yet because she hadn't decided which creature to bond with.
"First, you need to use up all your normal chakra," Jiraiya instructed.
The moment he finished, Naruto leaped back and shouted with confidence, "Watch me!"
"What about me?" Kanon pointed to herself.
"Kanon, you don't need to do that. We'll wait for Naruto to finish his release first."
Kanon nodded, trusting her "impromptu master."
Naruto began spamming the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu. In an instant, fifty Narutos appeared. The original stood at the front and roared at his clones:
"Listen up! We're having a battle royale! The last one standing is the strongest! We're gonna decide who the real me is once and for all!"
As the clones began brawling, Jiraiya smirked. "I'll give him credit, he certainly is creative."
"Of course. He's the man who's going to be Hokage," Kanon said firmly.
"Kanon, do you really think he can become Hokage?"
"I do. I've always believed in him." She turned her head to look at Jiraiya. "Do you think he can do it?"
"It's a secret. I'm a Sage, remember? If I say it now, I'll jinx it," Jiraiya replied with a small smile, placing a finger to his lips.
Finally, the last clone vanished. Jiraiya stood up and walked with Kanon toward the exhausted Naruto.
"Your chakra's about tapped out. Time for the big move."
"Finally! I thought I was gonna die!" Naruto shouted, unable to hide his excitement.
"I'll demonstrate once. Watch closely!" Jiraiya bit his finger and smeared blood across his left palm.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
He slammed his palm onto the ground. Black markings radiated outward, and a massive creature appeared beneath him, a huge toad wearing a necklace with the character for "Loyalty."
Gama used his tongue to hand a scroll from his mouth to Kanon.
"Open the scroll," Jiraiya commanded. "This is our ancestral contract. Write your name in your own blood and leave your fingerprints. Then, mold your chakra at the spot you want to summon, and place your hand down."
Jiraiya explained the hand signs as they signed.
"Is this right?" Kanon asked, checking with Jiraiya.
"Yeah. Your chakra should flow much more smoothly now. Give it a try! Naruto, you first."
"Right! Here goes!" Naruto mimicked Jiraiya's movements and slammed his hand down.
"Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu!"
Black markings flared, and white smoke billowed. Naruto and Kanon were both wide-eyed with anticipation.
"Incredible! Did he get it on the first try?!" Kanon cheered.
But then, Kanon's lip twitched. Jiraiya nearly slipped off Gama's head. A tiny tadpole was flopping around on the ground—Naruto's summon. Even Gama looked confused.
"Kanon, your turn."
"Okay." Kanon walked up to Naruto and patted his shoulder. "You'll get it, Naruto. Let me try first."
"Yeah! Kanon, make sure you get a cool one on the first try!" Naruto encouraged her.
Kanon bit her finger and performed the hand signs. Her speed was so fast Naruto could barely follow; in a blur, her hand struck the ground.
"Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu!"