The spring breeze rolled white clouds across the horizon as gentle sunlight bathed the deserted village, catching the edges of the high-piled haystacks.
"Super cool..."
"Super cool..."
The praise echoed in Minato's ears. This was the first time someone had ever called one of his techniques "cool" to his face!
Furthermore, this person was a comrade he had fought alongside in perfect sync, someone who shared his "superb" talent for naming things!
Minato's face flushed slightly red as a wave of sheepishness hit him. After all, that expanding proto-Rasengan had nearly detonated in the face of his battle-brother. He still felt a bit guilty and didn't know how to refuse the request.
Seeing Minato's silence, Ren Uchiha realized he might have been too abrupt. In the shinobi world, a ninja's techniques are their most precious assets—especially a unique jutsu modified from a Tailed Beast Bomb that utilized extreme shape transformation.
It was hand-seal-less and non-attributed, meaning almost any ninja could potentially learn it. While it was highly universal, it also meant its value was immeasurable! By asking Minato like this, especially with his Uchiha status, it was easy for someone to suspect he was just trying to "copy" the move with his Sharingan.
Ren scratched his head and added sincerely:
"Consider it me learning from you. I won't let you lose out on the 'tuition' fee! Once we get back to the village and collect the mission rewards, I'll borrow some funds from the clan. In exchange, I also have a few ninjutsu I can..."
Despite Ren going to such lengths, Minato thought for a moment and shook his head firmly, his expression growing solemn.
"Ren, this technique is truly dangerous. Your speed is incredible, but you might not be able to outrun the expansion of the explosion. It would hurt you."
"I'm sorry. Wait until I've perfected the technique, and then I'll teach you. Don't worry about the fee; we're comrades who have fought side-by-side!"
Minato's words were both righteous and kind. Ren felt a surge of helplessness. He sighed, raised his hand, and activated his Sharingan right in front of Minato.
A sphere of rapidly rotating chakra began to rise in his palm!
"Let me see... The first step is rotation. Rotate in the direction of the hair whorl. Concentrate the chakra at the center, using the eyes to lock onto that point as a marker. Then comes power: increase the chakra, making it rotate irregularly, faster and faster. Finally, the third stage is the shaping—this part is a bit tricky..."
As he funneled chakra into it, Ren relied on the absolute control over his body he had gained through his Cursed Seal experiences. Though it was difficult, by following the steps Jiraiya would eventually teach Naruto, the Rasengan slowly began to take shape in his hand.
The first two steps were smooth. But at the final stage, because he was rushing it, the chakra began to fluctuate unstably.
Ren quickly brought his other hand over, just like Naruto. One hand held the base while the other constantly controlled the chakra that tried to bulge out of the spherical wall. Finally, with great effort, a brilliant blue orb of chakra formed between his palms.
Rasengan!
A line of subtitles immediately appeared before his eyes.
[You have mastered: Rasengan (A-Rank, Entry Level).]
It was absurd, but with Ren's current foundation, combined with his detailed knowledge of the tutorial, the Sharingan, the Cursed Seal, and his masterful body control... all these factors aligned to allow him to perform the Rasengan before Minato had even finished creating it!
Holding the Rasengan, Ren wiped the sweat from his brow and looked up at Minato.
"This technique of yours... you wanted it to look like this, right?"
Minato's gaze had shifted from indifference to alarm—thinking it was dangerous—and finally to absolute shock when the Rasengan manifested. He gasped:
"Ren... how did you do that?!"
"Phew." Ren waved his hand, dispersing the Rasengan. He looked at Minato and explained patiently:
"Your technique is nearly complete. The reason it won't take form and keeps exploding is a lack of stability. Making chakra rotate irregularly while maintaining a sphere is incredibly hard. I used a second hand, like a cat batting at a water balloon with both paws, constantly changing the direction of the flow and suppressing the chakra that tries to bulge out. That's how I stabilized it."
Minato was stunned, as if a lightning bolt had struck his brain.
"Hair whorls... a cat's paws..."
His face lit up with joy, and a flush of excitement rose to his cheeks. He raised his hands and began to manipulate the chakra on top of the orb with both hands, just as Ren had done.
Soon, an identical Rasengan appeared in his grasp.
"It's—it's taking shape!!"
Minato looked at the Rasengan in his hands with delight, a wide smile breaking across his face.
"Ren, thank you! Your theory is correct... In that case, I shall name it—"
He looked up at Ren, pointing a finger at the swirling orb in his other hand.
"Halo-Cat-Paw-Counter-Return-Inspired-Whorl-Uchiha-Dual-Style-Sphere!!!"
Stare.
Hearing that ridiculously long and awful name, and seeing Minato rubbing the ball with both hands like Naruto, Ren stood there frozen. He didn't even know how to begin critiquing it.
This is insane. I used the son's method to teach the father, and it actually worked...
Ren couldn't bear to let the name "Rasengan"—a name born from the desire to protect Kushina—lose its meaning. He wanted Minato to use this move to defeat the Nine-Tails and win over his girl, eventually giving it its rightful name!
Ren decisively interrupted Minato, shaking his head.
"Ahem, let's worry about the name later. Besides, this two-handed method is just a shortcut. To use this in real combat, you still need to perfect it according to your original idea. Otherwise, this hand-seal-less jutsu loses its primary advantage."
Minato thought about it and nodded in agreement. "Yes, you're right!"
The strength of the Rasengan lay in being an instantaneous, seal-less jutsu designed to counter Tailed Beasts. If one had to spend time rubbing it with two hands, it would waste precious seconds and miss the tactical window.
Naruto only did it that way because of his limited talent at the time, using Shadow Clones to compensate. A normal ninja couldn't afford to spam Shadow Clones like that.
"Phew~"
Ren let out a breath and turned his serious, crimson Sharingan toward Minato, speaking solemnly:
"Minato, that move you used earlier—the unstable one—is truly important to me. It gave me a lot of inspiration! Just as I've inspired you with this shortcut."
"I have no intention of stealing your jutsu. The deal I mentioned still stands. You've seen my abilities on the battlefield. A mere explosion won't kill me. You don't need to worry about my safety."
"So, please... teach me that 'super cool' move from before! It's truly vital for me!"
Ren saw his situation clearly.
He had Earth Grudge Fear, an immortal body, Fire Style: Chakra Mode, Body Incarnation, the Cursed Seal, and the Zero-Tails. On paper, he seemed invincible among Kage-level fighters, but he knew the truth. He had struggled immensely against Ebizo, an elder whose combat power wasn't even at his peak.
His current strength was a "fake" power.
- Earth Grudge Fear only provided thread and sewing.
- Immortality only offered slow healing and a "won't die" trait; he lacked Hidan's jutsu resistance and ritual abilities.
- Fire Style: Chakra Mode was great against Chūnin, but against Kage-level fighters, it was more special effects than raw power.
- Body Incarnation was incomplete, providing only localized regeneration with major risks. A skilled eye could deflate him like a balloon.
- Cursed Seal was a black box of risks, and Orochimaru had sealed it for now.
- Zero-Tails was the "Shame of the Tailed Beasts," and it was just a juvenile. It was like trying to run Red Dead Redemption on an integrated HD4000 graphics card—he was constantly out of mana.
But Minato's "failed" prototype—the ability for a human to detonate a Tailed-Beast-level explosion from their palm!
This could bridge the gaps in Ren's arsenal, merging his various powers into a single, cohesive fighting style. How could he not be obsessed?!
Faced with Ren's earnest gaze, Minato fell silent for a moment. Somehow, it felt surprisingly good to have his "reckless" move recognized so highly by Ren.
After a long pause, Minato nodded and flashed a bright, sunny smile.
"In that case—alright, let's do it one more time!"
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