By the riverside.
Watching his shadow clones diligently train, a smile curled on Veigar Koshima's lips. He had to admit—the utility of the Shadow Clone Jutsu for training was nothing short of extraordinary.
Whoever used it knew exactly how broken it was!
The ultimate cheat code of the ninja world—absurdly effective.
"Summoning Jutsu."
After distancing himself a bit from the clones, Veigar performed the hand seals. With a puff of smoke, Gamajay appeared before him.
For the past three days, Veigar had been summoning Gamajay at this exact hour—granting the toad's earnest wish to visit the ninja world often.
In these three days together, Gamajay had come to understand Veigar's strength, and the initial awkwardness between them had faded as they trained side by side.
"Veigar-sama, is it time to train again?"
The freshly summoned Gamajay spoke as soon as he landed.
Veigar nodded, gazing at him. "You ready?"
This toad—silly as he might seem at times—possessed remarkable combat instincts and natural ability.
"I'm ready," Gamajay replied with uncharacteristic seriousness.
All that was on his mind now was accompanying Veigar in training with everything he had.
Because Veigar had promised him: if he gave his all and cooperated fully, he would be summoned often and given the chance to explore this world to his heart's content.
"Then let's go!"
With a backward leap, Veigar put some distance between them as he called out.
"Here I come, Veigar-sama!"
Gamajay's eyes narrowed with focus. With a shout, he sprang forward, launching himself straight toward Veigar.
This was their training method—combat sparring.
It was one of the fastest ways to forge a sense of mutual understanding.
To achieve synergy, you had to truly know one another. And who understood you better than your opponent?
Among the toads of Mount Myōboku, Gamajay wasn't exactly a big deal—but for humans, especially someone like Veigar who was barely seven years old, a two-meter-tall toad might as well have been a giant.
As Gamajay came crashing down from above, Veigar swiftly sidestepped and launched into a flurry of punches and kicks the moment the toad landed.
Smack!
Thwack, thwack!
Within Training Ground 44 of the Hidden Leaf, a boy and a toad clashed in rapid exchange—blow for blow, block for block.
Thirty minutes later.
The intense sparring left both of them winded. They finally broke apart, panting slightly.
Due to Veigar's limited chakra reserves, he couldn't maintain the summoning for long. And after that last bout, Gamajay was nearly at his limit too—he'd be returning to Mount Myōboku any moment.
Perched atop Gamajay's head, Veigar gave his broad forehead a firm pat. "Gamajay, we've still got a long way to go."
"There are way too many powerful beings in this world. Only true strength can give us a place to stand."
"If you grow strong enough, you'll be able to go anywhere you want, whenever you want!"
Gamajay wasn't the brightest—everyone knew that—but he had an innate ability to sense sincerity and malice in others.
The reason he had once longed to become Minato Namikaze's summoning toad was precisely because he could feel Minato's kindness, clear and pure.
Now, listening to Veigar, he felt that same warmth and conviction—just like the concern his big brother Gamago always showed.
"Veigar-sama, you can count on me!"
"I'll give it my all and become the strongest toad of Mount Myōboku!"
Gamajay's voice was resolute.
Veigar burst out laughing. "Good!"
"Then you'd better keep up—because I'm going to become the strongest person in the world!"
A short while later, Gamajay's summoning time reached its limit, and with a puff, he vanished, returning to Mount Myōboku.
No sooner had he left than Veigar resumed his training.
He was still trying to master the incomplete Rasengan: Revolving Heaven.
Over the past few days, Veigar wasn't the only one working hard. The other five members of his cohort were also pushing their limits.
In the Uchiha compound, Shōgetsu Uchiha stood in his backyard, the tomoe in his scarlet Sharingan spinning constantly—clearly refining his dōjutsu techniques.
Back home, Hoshino Sarutobi trained relentlessly, focused on perfecting the Earth Release jutsu he had just learned.
Meanwhile, the three Cloud-nin still stationed in Konoha continued honing their strength under the guidance of their jonin squad leader.
All six were bracing themselves for the upcoming third round of the Chūnin Exams.
At that moment, deep within the Hokage Residence, a confidential report lay open before Hiruzen Sarutobi.
It had come from a spy embedded in Sunagakure.
"Suspicious movements in Suna. Possible major upheaval imminent."
The message was brief, but grave enough to command Hiruzen's full attention. Any turmoil in Suna could tip the already unstable balance of the ninja world into full-scale chaos.
A heavy foreboding settled in Hiruzen's chest.
"Could this be the spark that ignites the Third Great Ninja War...?"
The thought aged him visibly. Once hailed as the "Professor" of the shinobi world, even Hiruzen now felt the weight of time pressing on his shoulders.
Without hesitation, he signed a secret order and sent it back to the spy in Suna.
Simultaneously, the Raikage of the Kumogakure, the Tsuchikage of the Iwagakure, and the Mizukage of the Kirigakure—all received intelligence of similar nature.
Each responded with similar secret directives of their own.
A storm was brewing in Sunagakure, one that could reshape the entire shinobi world.
...
Night fell.
After a long day of training, Veigar dragged his slightly battered body back home.
As he reached his doorstep, just before opening the door, he suddenly sensed a chill in the air.
"…Who's there?"
He turned sharply toward the dim alley on his right, voice laced with caution.
"It's me, Veigar-kun."
From the shadows emerged Orochimaru, his movements utterly silent. He smiled with that familiar, sinister charm.
Veigar immediately straightened up, wary but respectful.
"Orochimaru-sama."
Still shrouded in darkness, Orochimaru easily picked up on Veigar's guarded stance.
But far from being displeased, he was clearly delighted.
"Veigar-kun… I'm growing quite fond of you. Still unwilling to become my disciple?"
"If you joined me, with your potential, you'd grow far faster than under Minato's wing—stronger, quicker."
To Orochimaru, Veigar Koshima was an uncut gem—flawed, but brimming with extraordinary promise.
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