Chapter 51: Training in the Flying Thunder God Technique
"The Flying Thunder God Technique is something I refined from the Second Hokage's version," Minato said. "To learn it, you need talent in space time ninjutsu."
"In that regard, Yuu, you're absolutely qualified. There's no issue at all."
Minato had tested Yuu back when he first accepted him as a student.
When it came to ninjutsu training, Yuu showed remarkable versatility. Not only did he possess all five chakra natures, he also had a genuine affinity for space time techniques. He could not compare to Minato himself, but his talent was still clearly above average.
At the very least, he was far stronger than ordinary people.
Yuu could only think, once again, that the value of an Ōtsutsuki body really did keep climbing.
"Your conditions for learning the Flying Thunder God are excellent," Minato continued, looking at him steadily. "But if you want to use it to its full potential, you need one more ability."
"Reaction speed?" Yuu asked after a moment of thought.
"Correct." Minato's eyes showed clear approval. "The Flying Thunder God is a space time technique. You engrave a special Flying Thunder God Mark somewhere, then use it to teleport."
"It sounds perfect, but if your reaction speed isn't fast enough, it can lead to terrible consequences."
"Terrible consequences…" Yuu repeated quietly, falling into thought.
He roughly understood what Minato meant.
In battle, an enemy is rarely stationary. If a Flying Thunder God Mark is placed on the opponent, the point you appear at will shift constantly along with their movements. That is where reaction speed becomes crucial.
Because the moment you appear to strike, the enemy is also striking back.
If the opponent's neural response is faster than yours in that instant, the result could be disastrous.
If the mark was placed somewhere ahead of time, the problem became even more dangerous.
You never truly know what is waiting on the other side of a mark.
If everything remains unchanged, fine.
But if an enemy, a trap, or some other hazard appears there at the wrong moment, that is when the technique becomes a test of life and death.
Either way, it heavily tests the user's neural reaction speed.
The reason Minato could dominate with the Flying Thunder God Technique was not just the technique itself.
His near unmatched reaction speed was just as important.
If someone else learned Flying Thunder God, it would still be powerful, but it would never be as terrifying as it was in Minato's hands.
Just look at the Second Hokage.
He created the Flying Thunder God Technique, yet the power it showed under his control was still far inferior to Minato's. Despite being a Flying Thunder God user, the Second Hokage ultimately died at the hands of the Kinkaku Brothers.
That kind of outcome would have been unthinkable for Minato.
In fact, Yuu knew it was true.
During the Nine Tails' attack, if Minato had not been determined to die alongside his wife, Obito alone would never have been able to handle him.
"If you use Flying Thunder God properly, it becomes your ultimate trump card," Minato said. "But if you use it poorly, it can also put you in tremendous danger."
"So before you truly master it, you need targeted training."
In terms of basic requirements, Yuu was excellent.
That included his neural reaction speed, which was already outstanding compared to ordinary shinobi.
But in Minato's eyes, that still was not enough to control Flying Thunder God perfectly.
So training was necessary.
"Strictly speaking, Kakashi would also be a good fit for training in this technique," Minato said, watching Yuu practice with a deep sigh. "Unfortunately, his reaction speed isn't sufficient. Even if he learned Flying Thunder God, he wouldn't be able to take it very far."
Minato was never stingy with what he knew.
In the future, he would even teach the Flying Thunder God Technique to his personal guards. If he could do that for them, then he would certainly do even more for his own students.
But Kakashi simply was not suited for Flying Thunder God.
It was hard to say how Kakashi's space time talent measured up, but his neural reaction speed was clearly lacking. He could not even properly handle the reaction demands of the Chidori he created himself, and needed the Sharingan Obito gifted him to complete it.
If even Chidori required that, then Flying Thunder God, which demanded even more, was out of the question.
And beyond reaction speed, there was another problem.
Chakra reserves.
The Flying Thunder God Technique also demanded enormous chakra.
Yuu had already realized that.
Minato might look gentle and ordinary at first glance, but in truth, he was a "hexagon warrior." His mastery of ninjutsu, sealing techniques, summoning, and many other fields was profound, and his chakra reserves were also far greater than most people's.
Maybe he could not compare to an anomaly like Naruto later on, but he was more than enough to make Kakashi look lacking.
Flying Thunder God involved frequent teleportation, and the chakra consumption was terrifying.
Yuu even felt that using it right now would strain him.
That was a frightening realization.
His chakra reserves were not small compared to ordinary people. With a double portion of physical and spiritual energy, plus a partial Ōtsutsuki physique, his overall chakra volume could already be called vast by normal standards.
Yet even so, he estimated he was only barely qualified to meet Flying Thunder God's usage requirements.
If that was the case, then Kakashi, who was famously short on chakra, should not even think about it.
No matter how you looked at it, he just was not suited for this technique.
"Don't rush yourself too much," Minato said, smiling at Yuu. "You're still young, and your body is still growing. You have plenty of time to train. There's no need to be so impatient."
Although they had not been together for very long, Minato already valued Yuu highly.
To him, this was almost a perfect successor candidate.
Among his students, Obito and Rin were gone, and Kakashi, due to his own circumstances, was not suited to inherit Minato's legacy.
Instead, it was the boy in front of him.
Gifted across the board, talented in every field, and possessing excellent conditions for training in the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Even his personality carried more than a few similarities.
With those conditions, plus sharp judgment and strong management ability, he truly seemed like the best choice to inherit Minato's mantle.