Chapter 400: Temptation

Naruto looked up and asked, "What did you say?"

Fujin replied, "I said that you will have to work for hours daily for a few months to learn that. Why are you thinking that you will learn it in 15 minutes? And what are you so upset about? I needed more than a month to learn this jutsu perfectly. Others need around 3 months to learn it.

I will ask you again. Can you put in the hard work needed to learn this jutsu? If not, you can quit now and save yourself from a lot of trouble."

Naruto immediately responded, "I will train until I learn the jutsu."

Fujin nodded and said, "Good. For the next three hours, keep practicing seriously. Even if it seems like you aren't making any progress, in truth, you will be. So don't get restless."

Naruto nodded and started his practice again. He was very grateful that Fujin continued teaching him and didn't abandon him because he was slow at learning.

As for Fujin, he just observed while thinking, 'Though my words were a lie, it will give him some hope. If he knew that I learnt it within a few days, he would be very discouraged. That said, I am not sure if that's a bad thing considering his never-give-up attitude.

Still, I should give him some tips slowly. That chakra control needs to improve, even if just slightly. However, asking him to meditate would likely lead nowhere. I recall him saying to had never taken that seriously. Guess I'll have to make up some bullshit.



And maybe I should introduce him to the leaf-cutting exercise as well. Though training Wind Affinity isn't needed for a low-level jutsu like this one, it won't be any harm. And, it will give him something to do to spend time.'

Fujin sat down with his back against a tree while Naruto practised. Though he kept an eye on Naruto, his mind began thinking about the Frying Thunder God seal. He had a hundred Shadow Clones working on it, so he didn't need to practice it himself. Instead, he recalled the various theories in the scroll. Though practising the seal was important, studying and analyzing it was equally important in Fujin's eyes.

Unlike Fujin, whose day was going as planned, a certain someone had a strange start to his day. Hiruzen had just reached his office when he saw an Anbu waiting for him. He immediately informed him about Fujin's actions.

With a confused expression, Hiruzen sat on his chair and grabbed his crystal ball. He thought, 'First he leaves the Anbu and then he suddenly takes an interest in Naruto? What is Fujin up to?'

He began watching in the crystal ball. Soon, the scene of Naruto practicing Gale's jutsu and Fujin monitoring him appeared in the crystal ball. Hiruzen observed for a few minutes, but nothing else happened. That confused Hiruzen even more.



Going to rank S from there won't be very difficult either. Perhaps in just one more year, he could reach that.'

Fujin couldn't help but sigh at the unfairness. At the same time, he had a temptation in his heart. A temptation to teach Naruto seriously and make him ridiculously overpowered.

However, after a few minutes, Fujin shook his head and decided, 'Unfortunately, doing that has the potential to completely ruin any knowledge of the future I have.

Would Hiruzen put Naruto on the same squad as Sasuke and under Kakashi if he is already close to the Elite Jounin level?

If he does, how would it impact their clash with Zabuza?

How will his relationship with Sasuke be if he is so much stronger than him even before graduating?

And, if Naruto reaches close to rank S by the time the Chunin exams take place, his encounter with Orochimaru will turn out to be very different. With his unpredictability, he might even prevent Orochimaru from putting the cursed seal on Sasuke.

And, it is possible that Akatsuki might take him very seriously and attack preemptively. After all, unlike the rest of the ninjas, rank S would merely be a starting point for Naruto. As he continuously keeps growing stronger, even Obito and Nagato, despite their arrogance, might not want to risk seeing Naruto getting stronger.

Irrespective of what happens, my advantage will be completely ruined. Though I would still be a rank S ninja and my life won't be threatened easily, I'll lose out on a lot of critical opportunities.'

Fujin could only shake his head and give up on that idea. Though he pitied Naruto's situation and could fully explore his potential, Fujin's gains just didn't match up with the horrendous losses he would incur due to the opportunities he would have given up.

Naruto was oblivious to the opportunity he just lost. Of course, even without Fujin's help, his future would still be very bright. Though Fujin decided against helping Naruto too much, he didn't intend to block his path to rank S and even planned on assisting him a bit and making his path slightly easier.

As he trained, Naruto's breathing became rougher. He wanted to stop but thought, 'I have to keep going. I have to show that I am serious about learning this jutsu.'

He weaved hand signs, thrusted his palm forward and once again shouted, "Gale jutsu."