"Who the hell tipped off Sunagakure about Mukade trying to steal the Dragon Vein's chakra?"
Last night, after reading through Chiyo's memories, Naruto learned that Sunagakure had received an anonymous letter years ago, warning them that Mukade was secretly researching the Dragon Vein's chakra beneath the ruins of Rōran.
"Could it be that damned old toad again?"
He was deep in thought when suddenly he received a feedback pulse—one of his Shadow Clones had just been dispelled.
Chakra fluctuations had begun emerging on the opposite side of the border. Extending his sensory field, Naruto soon discovered that thirty new individuals had appeared at a Wind Country outpost—and ten of them had chakra levels equivalent to jōnin.
"Looks like Sunagakure has noticed Chiyo's disappearance. But it hasn't even been twelve hours… Why are they reacting so fast?"
Naruto was puzzled. In the original timeline, the Fourth Kazekage had been killed by Orochimaru in some remote valley, and Sunagakure didn't discover Rasa's corpse until after the entire "Konoha Crush" incident was over.
"Huh?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed. In the next instant, he entered the Mirror World. A few seconds later, he emerged from his thoughts, reached into the bag beside his bedroll, and pulled out a cup. Then, he grabbed his water flask and poured himself a drink.
That's when someone stepped into his tent.
"Kakashi-senpai?"
"Naruto, our mission is about to wrap up. But there's something I need to talk to you about."
Kakashi ducked into the tent and sat down on a folding stool Naruto had made himself.
"What is it?"
Naruto glanced into the Mirror World and noticed that Kakashi's memory sync only went up to noon. He was curious why Kakashi would send a Shadow Clone just to speak with him.
"During this mission… you've shown a lack of team awareness."
Kakashi glanced at the cup in Naruto's hand. He remembered it. Hayate had once told him the Hokage gave it to Naruto when he was little.
Ah, so it's lecture time.
Naruto laughed inwardly but put on a surprised face.
"What do you mean, Kakashi-senpai? I split off lots of Shadow Clones to patrol so my teammates could rest during missions. Sakura even thanked one of my clones last night. Sasuke might not appreciate it, but—"
"That's exactly what I want to talk about,"
Kakashi interrupted, his tone calm.
"Sasuke was right. He didn't need your help. Maybe your intentions were good, but from what we've seen on this mission, your behavior comes off as showing off in front of your teammates."
"While helping each other is important, the number one rule during missions is teamwork. By having your clones stand guard for others, you're encouraging your teammates to lower their vigilance."
"A shinobi who lets their guard down… is a shinobi who won't survive long in this world."
"Is it really that serious?"
Naruto stood up, pretending to be deep in thought.
"Thanks for the reminder, Kakashi-senpai. I'll go tell my clones not to help with patrol tonight."
"Hold on."
Kakashi stopped him.
"There's still time before nightfall. If you've run into any problems with your training, now's a good chance to ask me."
"So you came here to give me personal guidance?"
Naruto grinned, turned, and pulled out a scroll Kakashi had given him earlier.
"Actually, I've been struggling a lot with the Lightning Release technique you gave me. And to be honest, ever since I got assigned to your team… I've felt a lot of pressure."
"Really?"
Kakashi's tone remained even.
"I don't think I've been that strict with you three."
"Honestly, I kind of wish you were stricter."
Naruto said seriously as he untied the scroll.
"I don't know why, but I've had so much trouble mastering ninjutsu. If I hadn't picked up Shadow Clone Jutsu so quickly, I'd honestly doubt whether I had any talent as a ninja at all."
Kakashi's expression sharpened.
"Why do you think that?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
Naruto frowned.
"I graduated alongside Sakura and Sasuke. Back in the Academy, they couldn't beat me. But after we were placed on the same team, the gap appeared immediately."
"Even though we've all been training under you, I have the strongest theoretical knowledge and foundational skills—but Sakura always masters new jutsu the fastest, then Sasuke, and I'm always last. Especially when it comes to Lightning Release… Sasuke can pick it up after watching it a few times, but I can't seem to get it no matter what."
"If Sasuke weren't from the Uchiha—one of the great clans—I'd almost suspect Sakura's from a noble family too."
After he finished speaking, Kakashi fell silent. It was a long pause before he replied.
"You're overthinking it."
"Sakura's a civilian. The reason she learns jutsu faster is because her chakra control is far superior to both you and Sasuke. And you just said it yourself—Sasuke's still slower than her. So clearly, training results don't correlate directly with your background."
"Stop rushing. Focus on refining your chakra control."
"I want to…"
Naruto opened the scroll, a bit frustrated.
"But no matter how I try, I just can't get it right. Take the Shadow Clone Jutsu, for example. I feel like I should be able to make five at once, but in the end, I can only manage three."
"I asked the Hokage about this years ago. He told me that if I built a solid foundation, things would improve. But I've already graduated… and I still haven't found what's wrong."
"You asked the Hokage about this… years ago?"
Kakashi looked at Naruto with a complicated expression.
"Yeah."
Naruto nodded, unaware of Kakashi's intense gaze. His full attention was on the open scroll.
Kakashi went silent again as he watched Naruto circle and mark parts of the scroll with a pen. After a while, Naruto stepped forward and handed him the scroll.
"Kakashi-senpai, these parts… I really don't understand."
"Let me see."
Kakashi took the scroll and began to frown. Most of the areas Naruto had marked were related to chakra control.
And all of them… were indirectly tied to the Five Elements Seal placed on Naruto's body.
After thinking it over, Kakashi pulled out a blank scroll and began to write.
A few breaths later, he handed it to Naruto.
Naruto took a look.
"Mystical Palm Technique?"
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