When Gekko Chizan saw Jiraiya, oh boy, this guy instantly turned on the charm.
"Chizan! I heard you went to Takigakure this time?"
"Did you gather any good material? Come on, share it with me."
"When the next Icha Icha Paradise gets published, I'll make sure you get the first copy!"
Jiraiya, a ninja, was also an author.
Icha Icha Paradise was his work.
In his spare time, to complete his books, Jiraiya would travel far and wide collecting material.
And Gekko Chizan was his biggest source.
"Hehe, Jiraiya-sama, you're joking. I was just on a mission."
"There was no time to gather any material."
Jiraiya choked on the spot. He understood all too well—trying to get material from Gekko Chizan was harder than climbing to heaven.
But Takigakure was truly unique. Completely closed off, it had no communication with the outside world. Getting in was nearly impossible.
Especially now, in post-war times, it was even more out of reach.
Only someone like Gekko Chizan, with special methods and undetectable entry techniques, could pull it off.
"Hehe, Chizan, listen... My student Minato recently learned a new jutsu."
"Why don't I have him teach it to you? You're both from the same generation, you should help each other out."
Namikaze Minato: ???
This was peak Jiraiya. He'd just sold out his student without a second thought.
"Oh? Minato, you learned a new jutsu and kept it from us?"
Actually, Gekko Chizan already had a pretty good guess about Minato's new jutsu.
It was probably the Flying Thunder God, right? After all, he helped save a future Jinchuriki. He definitely got a chance to read the Scroll of Seals.
"Well, I wouldn't say I've mastered it—just developed the basics."
Minato scratched his head awkwardly, throwing his teacher a very helpless glance.
"Haha, Minato, don't be so modest. That jutsu of yours is one powerful Ninjutsu!"
"Come on, show Chizan. Honestly, I was going to take Chizan as my student first. But for various reasons, it didn't happen."
"Otherwise, the two of you would've been fellow disciples."
Jiraiya had a love-hate relationship with Gekko Chizan. He loved Chizan's unmatched skill at gathering material—Transparent Release made him a walking gold mine.
He hated that Chizan was a little monster who bled him dry every time.
He'd nearly lost the shirt off his back.
"Hehe, that's true. Minato, technically I'm older than you. If we'd both become Jiraiya-sama's students, you'd have to call me senpai, y'know."
As for shame, Gekko Chizan had long discarded it.
After all, a tree without bark dies, and a man without shame is invincible.
"Alright, it's actually this."
Minato smiled wryly and held out his right hand.
A specially crafted kunai appeared instantly.
"Wow! That's a pretty complex seal array. Looks like some kind of space-time Ninjutsu?"
One sentence stirred up a thousand waves. Both Namikaze Minato and Jiraiya looked at Gekko Chizan in surprise.
Especially Minato—he had just developed this jutsu, and the array really did involve space-time techniques.
How could Chizan see through it so easily?
"Chizan-kun, you're amazing. You saw the core of the jutsu at a glance?"
"Chizan, you're something else. Even I couldn't figure out his technique right away. Tsk tsk."
The master and student showered him with praise, holding nothing back.
It made Gekko Chizan feel a bit shy—just a bit.
Pfft. Flying Thunder God? Bro, you're late to the party. I've been using it for ages!
Just as he was about to show off, a red figure suddenly appeared before the three of them.
"Minato, there you are! I've been looking all over for you."
The moment she appeared, the beast inside Chizan, Chōmei, let out a soft "hmm?"
"Chizan, this girl has red hair."
"She's from the Uzumaki Clan, right? That Chakra level at such a young age?"
Chizan replied in his mind:
"Yeah, that's Uzumaki Kushina. Definitely Uzumaki Clan."
"She's probably going to be the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
The moment Chōmei heard that the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki was this little girl, he nearly burst out laughing.
At the same time, Kushina turned her gaze toward Gekko Chizan. She was extremely sensitive to aura.
Unfortunately for her, while Chōmei was weak among the Tailed Beasts, he was a master at concealment.
A puff of phosphorus powder could hide his presence completely—and besides, Kushina wasn't the Nine-Tails' host yet, so she didn't have that level of Chakra sensitivity.
"Good afternoon, Kushina-san."
Seeing her, Gekko Chizan greeted her on his own initiative.
After all, they were in the same cohort, and he knew the future. He wasn't going to be like the others and treat Kushina with bias.
This earned him some favor from Kushina.
Though, of course, not as much as Minato. After all, Minato had once saved her like a true hero.
"Huh? Chizan, weren't you out on a mission?"
"Never mind, I'm here to find Minato."
"Minato, let's go. You promised to go shopping with me."
That one line made Jiraiya and Gekko Chizan glance at each other, and instantly, their gossipy hearts ignited.
Both of them chuckled slyly. Minato, on the other hand, looked awkward—but didn't deny it.
"What are you two laughing at? Jiraiya-sama, fine—but you, Chizan, what's your deal?"
Seeing her red hair fluttering despite the lack of wind, Gekko Chizan immediately stopped smiling.
No jokes—Kushina was called the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero for a reason. Her temper was like a nuclear bomb—ready to go off at any moment.
He wasn't about to provoke her.
This scene made Chōmei smack his lips in amazement.
"The Nine-Tails, that arrogant fox, is gonna have a tough time with a host like this. Hahaha!"
...
In the days after returning from the mission, Gekko Chizan finally had some downtime. He bred some bugs and resumed his usual skill-based missions to aid his development.
Until one day, the ANBU showed up at his door.
"Gekko Chizan. Mission from the Third Hokage. The Ninja Academy is currently short on staff. You're to serve as an assistant instructor."
Gekko Chizan: ??? Excuse me?
They wanted him to be a teacher? Teach what? Peeping? Stealing?
What was the old pervy Third thinking?
"Wait, I'm just a Chūnin—and still a kid myself…"
"This is a direct order from the Third. You're to teach stealth techniques to the academy students. Report in tomorrow."
With that, the ANBU vanished right before Gekko Chizan's eyes.
He was absolutely speechless.
Teaching? What kind of absurd setup was this?
But the next second, a sly grin crept onto his face.
Teaching, huh? If memory served, this generation of students included names like Kakashi and Might Guy…
This was a golden opportunity to make sure they remembered the name Gekko Chizan.
A flurry of ideas began flashing through his mind.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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