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"I don't know how his stomach holds so much food...
But I do know that when Asuma comes to settle the bill tomorrow, he might just weep in the owner's arms!"
Shikamaru took a sip of his drink and glanced at the mountain of empty plates piling up, silently offering a moment of sympathy for their teacher, Asuma. I thought Choji was a beast when it came to eating, but it turns out
Goku leaves him in the dust.
Ino burst into laughter upon hearing this.
"He saved a life, after all; spending a little extra money is only right."
An hour later, the four of them walked out of the barbecue restaurant.
"Only seventy percent full!"
Goku rubbed his belly.
Why was he only seventy percent full?
It wasn't because Shikamaru and the others had cut the meal short; it was because Goku had eaten every last scrap of meat the shop had prepared for the night.
"Goku, come on—we're treating you to Ichiraku Ramen!"
Shikamaru smiled and waved at Goku. After all, Goku hadn't just saved Asuma's life; he had saved theirs, too.
If Goku hadn't stepped in to take down Kakuzu, their eight-man squad would have been wiped out in that massive crater.
So, while Asuma had paid for the barbecue, the three of them were treating him to ramen.
"Ichiraku Ramen is second only to barbecue!"
Choji said with a satisfied belch.
If he weren't already so stuffed, he would have loved to have a bowl of ramen to settle his stomach.
"For me, it's dumplings first, ramen second, and barbecue third."
Ino clearly had different tastes than Choji.
Then Shikamaru chimed in:
"According to our previous vote on Konoha's best food, ramen took first place, dumplings second, and barbecue third. Though, personally, I think they're all about the same." As the four of them chatted, they arrived in front of the Ichiraku Ramen shop.
It wasn't a large establishment—just a cozy little shop bathed in warm light. Inside, a customer was currently eating a bowl of ramen.
He wore an orange tracksuit and had short blonde hair, azure blue eyes, and six faint whisker-like marks on his cheeks.
"Old Man, one more bowl!"
"Naruto? You're here too!"
Shikamaru and the others weren't the least bit surprised to see that customer—the one ordering a second helping—inside the shop.
After all, they knew he was Ichiraku Ramen's number-one fan and most loyal patron in all of Konoha.
"Yo, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji! You're back from your mission!"
Naruto turned to look at the trio and raised a hand in an enthusiastic greeting.
When he spotted Goku standing beside them, a look of curiosity crossed his face:
"Who's this?"
He had never seen this boy in the village before.
"He's a friend we met while out on a mission. He helped us a lot, so we invited him here for ramen." "
"Hi, my name is Naruto—Uzumaki Naruto!"
Naruto extended his hand, his face beaming with enthusiasm.
Goku, clearly sensing Naruto's goodwill, generously extended his own hand in return:
"I'm Goku—Son Goku!"
Upon hearing Goku's name, the Nine-Tails inside Naruto instantly snapped its eyes open, only to close them again after seeing what Goku looked like.
The Four-Tails was also named Son Goku; it had thought the Four-Tails had appeared, only to realize it was merely a case of sharing the same name.
"Huh? Why is there a big fox inside you?"
Goku's mind had caught that momentary gaze from the Nine-Tails; focusing his mental energy on Naruto's stomach, he saw the sealed Nine-Tails clearly.
While training at the Lookout, he had learned many applications of ki from Kami, including using ki to mobilize and strengthen mental power.
This energy could be used to read others' minds, as well as for mental scanning and mental defense.
On top of that, he had learned quite a few mental techniques from Dumbledore and the Ancient One, including astral projection.
So, while he might not be considered a master in the realm of mental arts, he was certainly no slouch.
"You can see it?"
Naruto's eyes went wide upon hearing Goku's words.
It wasn't just Naruto; Shikamaru and the others also widened their eyes in surprise.
They naturally knew Naruto was the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki, and they understood the importance of the jinchūriki to the village.
Yet, what they hadn't expected was that Goku would detect the Nine-Tails inside Naruto the moment they met.
Fortunately, Goku harbored no ill intent; otherwise, it could have been a real problem.
"I can see it. It looks pretty fierce, though."
Seeming to sense Goku's gaze, the Nine-Tails immediately bared its fangs in a ferocious snarl.
"It sure is fierce!"
Naruto remarked with a sigh.
The Nine-Tails was constantly trying to break through the seal, forcing him into a full Tailed Beast transformation to destroy everything in its path.
"Naruto, I heard you're training to master chakra nature transformation. How's it going?"
Shikamaru deftly changed the subject.
The Nine-Tails was a top-secret matter for Konoha; while he trusted Goku, the boy was still an outsider, so there were things that simply couldn't be discussed openly.
"Man, I feel like I'm this close, but then Kakashi-sensei and Captain Yamato got suddenly recalled for an emergency meeting, so I have to wait until tomorrow..."
Naruto gave a brief rundown of his training progress over the past few days.
Upon hearing this, the trio remarked:
"That kind of cheat-like training method... only you could pull it off."
Naruto was currently working on chakra nature transformation, aiming to infuse that elemental nature into his Rasengan.
Mastering nature transformation or developing a new jutsu requires a massive amount of time.
Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to achieve in less than eight to ten years.
Yet, Naruto had utilized the unique properties of the Shadow Clone Jutsu to drastically shorten the process, bringing himself to the verge of completion.
Of course, this was something only Naruto could do; it was completely impossible for anyone else.
When a clone created by the Shadow Clone Jutsu is dispelled, all the experiences it gathered are transferred back to the original body.
So, if you use a shadow clone to train or study alongside your real self, the efficiency of that training effectively doubles.
With ten clones, it's ten times faster; with a hundred, it's a hundred times faster.
However, for an ordinary ninja, their chakra reserves aren't sufficient to create—and sustain—enough shadow clones for such prolonged training.
Furthermore, shadow clones don't just bring back training experience and knowledge; they also transfer intense fatigue and a massive influx of memories.
If things go wrong, the mental strain could easily lead to a nervous breakdown or even death.
Thus, using shadow clones to accelerate training requires meeting three specific conditions.
First is a massive chakra reserve; second is extraordinary physical resilience or regenerative ability; and third is an indomitable will.
Naruto possesses exactly these three traits, which allows him to use the Shadow Clone Technique as a "cheat" to accelerate his training.
"So, that technique is called the Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Upon hearing how Naruto used shadow clones to train, Goku's eyes lit up instantly.
Magic is incredibly useful—especially Giant Magic and Gravity Magic—as they can significantly boost his strength.
Unfortunately, he has focused most of his energy on physical conditioning, so he has actually devoted very little time to magic.
This has resulted in slow progress in his magical abilities.
For instance, even though he has adapted to ten-fold gravity and is ready to train at higher intensities, his Gravity Magic is currently limited to ten-fold strength.
However, if he could do what Naruto does, he could perfectly resolve this issue.
He could have his shadow clones study and improve those spells, while his original self focuses solely on physical training.
Asuma mentioned that he had done Konoha a huge favor; the Hokage would certainly meet with him tomorrow, and he could make a few requests.
As long as the requests weren't excessive, the Hokage would surely grant them.
He hadn't decided what to ask for before, but now he knew already had the answer.
Shadow Clones—he wanted to learn the Shadow Clone Jutsu, just like Naruto.