I, Naruto Uzumaki, don't need your approval.

After separating his shadow clones to train, the main body, sitting cross-legged, held a water-filled balloon in his hand and attempted to train with the Rasengan.

The Rasengan, commonly known as the Rasengan, is Naruto's signature ninjutsu in the original work. He has no reason to give up this advantage and choose other more difficult ninjutsu.

Furthermore, the Rasengan is one of the few advanced ninjutsu whose training method he knows.

The first stage of training involves stabilizing and controlling chakra, gathering it in the palm of your hand.

The second and third stages involve using chakra to destroy the water-filled balloon.

The fourth stage marks the official success of mastering the Rasengan.

Naruto is currently in the second stage of training. Once he gathers chakra in his palm and controls the water flow to destroy the balloon, he will have completed this stage of training.

However, the training process was not as easy as he had imagined. Naruto tried several times but could not break the balloon.

After all, although his chakra control far surpasses that of his peers, he lacks experience and cannot use his chakra freely.

In comparison, training other low-difficulty Wind Release ninjutsu is much easier.

With the movements of several shadow clones, a series of wind-style ninjutsu formed in the distance, whistling towards the large trees in the forest.

The trees that were hit shook violently, each suffering different types of damage. One of the smaller trees, about the size of a bowl, was even cut in half by the aura of the weasel.

Naruto observed the shadow clone practice, seemingly lost in thought.

Soon, the shadow clones dissipated due to insufficient chakra and disappeared into thin air.

At that moment, Naruto, having received feedback from the shadow clone, closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the water-filled balloon in his hand burst.

Looking at the splashing water, Naruto suddenly understood.

Even if one knows the cultivation method, further study is still necessary. Simply working in isolation will only lead to a dead end, preventing true digestion and mastery.

Practicing different Wind Release ninjutsu can bring different insights and improve proficiency in other Wind Release ninjutsu.

Having successfully destroyed the balloon, all that remains is to use rotating chakra to destroy the ball itself; the initial training of the Rasengan will then be considered a success.

Once you have a goal, time flies by.

A week later at the same location, Naruto gathered his hands together and rolled them into a Rasengan.

"Spiral pills!"

With a low shout, the tree that was the target was blasted into a semi-circular crater.

Naruto was very satisfied with the power of the Rasengan, but his palms were slightly sore from using it.

This can be considered one of the side effects of using the Rasengan; not everyone has the ability to fight in close combat and physically withstand enemies.

However, the Rasengan is also a ninjutsu that can be developed over time. As his strength increases, he will be able to create other unique Rasengans in the future.

While Naruto was immersed in the joy of his successful training, Kurama said dismissively:

"Isn't this just a copy of the Tailed Beast Ball? This clumsy replica is no match for me in either power or size. I only need one Tailed Beast Ball to destroy the mountain on the other side."

Naruto smiled awkwardly but politely and nodded: "Yes, yes, but you're still locked in a cage."

Kurama, already used to their daily interactions, was too lazy to argue with Naruto. She simply said with some curiosity, "But your Rasengan is quite powerful. Aren't you afraid the Hokage will be wary of you?"

Naruto was somewhat pleased: "Would the Third Hokage be wary of my current strength?"

But Nine-Tails quickly poured cold water on the idea, saying:

"You are far from being good enough. I don't care about the difference between ants. However, your chakra has indeed increased a lot, probably to about one percent of my level, which is more than those few followers. But in actual combat, we don't know."

After sensing the situation, the Nine-Tails made a judgment, which was the standard by which tailed beasts measured their strength.

However, the outcome of a battle between tailed beasts also depends on the influence of the terrain and environment. The One-Tailed Beast can briefly contend with the Nine-Tailed Beast in the desert, but it is only a temporary standoff.

With Kurama's evaluation and his previous experience of killing Tenka, Naruto could make a preliminary assessment of his own strength.

He has a good chance of winning against genin and chunin-level ninjas, and he can also put up a fight against ordinary ANBU, but he definitely can't beat the jonin in the village. After all, jonin are the elite of the village and are considered leaders.

As for whether the Third Hokage would be wary of him, Naruto wasn't worried.

A genius is just a genius; before they become a strong person, not many people will care.

Therefore, even knowing that he was being monitored by the Anbu, he still chose to practice Wind Release ninjutsu and Rasengan.

Once his overt strength is sufficient to detect the existence of the Dark Guard, the Third Hokage will naturally withdraw his close surveillance.

All I need to do is work hard to cultivate and demonstrate high talent and not-too-strong strength.

As long as he doesn't reveal the harmonious relationship between himself and Kurama (the Nine-Tails), the Third Hokage won't feel that he's out of control.

……

on the way home.

Naruto continued to swagger down the street, enduring the 'kind' gazes.

Since he couldn't change their minds no matter what he did, he might as well do his own thing and live his life well. After experiencing attacks from four generations of his subordinates, he had long since given up any hope for this village.

As Naruto passed through a neighborhood, he suddenly realized that the malice directed at him had lessened.

He didn't believe the villagers' hostility towards him would suddenly disappear; it could only have shifted to other things.

Looking into the distance, members of the police force blocked the villagers' path, seemingly conducting some law enforcement activity, and loudly reprimanded the villagers in front of them.

Faced with violent law enforcement, these villagers dared not speak out and could only look at the police officers with hateful eyes.

"They're Uchiha clan ninjas... They're still so disliked."

Naruto didn't stop walking. He had no interest in watching the excitement; his time was precious, and he wouldn't waste it on such trivial matters.

Moreover, conflicts between villagers and the police force occur daily in the village and have never ceased.

This is not only due to the Uchiha's overly strict enforcement of the law, but also related to the open and covert struggles between the Uchiha and the Hokage's faction.

When it comes to internal strife, Konoha Village always has an unparalleled talent, but it is too weak in external affairs.

However, Kurama, upon noticing the Uchiha members, seemed to recall unpleasant memories and thought to himself: I hate this group of Uchiha, I hate the Sharingan.

Naruto was joined by Sasuke Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha to watch the spectacle.

The former looked at the scene of the police enforcing the law with longing, while the latter frowned and glanced at Naruto who was quietly leaving. He remembered that this child had once visited his home and seemed to be the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki of the village.

The other person's out-of-place figure reminded him of his clan's experience in the village.

Sasuke wasn't thinking about that much; he was simply enjoying the pleasure of going out with his brother.

As a devoted brother-obsessed man, he longs to go out with his brother, hunt together, and cultivate together.

Itachi withdrew his gaze and looked at his younger brother beside him: "Sasuke, did you have fun tonight?"

"I'm very happy. I'm happy as long as I'm with my brother. He has time to go out with me tomorrow, so I can practice my shuriken."

Itachi shook his head: "Next time, I have a mission tomorrow."

"Missions, missions, more missions! Why can't you join the family's security force? That way you'd have time every day to cultivate with me."

Sasuke stood with his hands on his hips, pouting and looking very unhappy.

And wouldn't I also like this kind of life?

Itachi sighed inwardly, but the arrogance and prejudice of his clan filled him with despair. If it weren't for his close friend Shisui as his support, he would have left this world in despair long ago.

Therefore, for the sake of the village and for Sasuke, he had no choice but to join the Anbu.

Only in the shadows can one truly understand what the Will of Fire is.

Chapter 24 Admission to Ninja School

What is it like to be feared and isolated by villagers?

Naruto felt he had the right to speak on this matter.

With his admission notice in hand, Naruto stepped through the gates of the Ninja Academy and received special treatment at the registration desk.

Neither the students nor their parents dared to line up ahead of Naruto, and the Chunin teachers at the registration desk were very 'friendly,' quickly helping him complete the necessary procedures.

"Isn't that the village's fox spirit? How could the Third Elder allow him to enroll?"

“It’s one thing for them to just wander around on the streets, but my child is studying at a ninja academy. What if something happens to them?”

"Even if there are ninja teachers at the ninja academy, it won't work; that's the incarnation of a demon fox!"

"And he's an orphan dressed so handsomely, could he have stolen something?"

After Naruto successfully enrolled in the academy, the Chunin teachers hadn't even complained yet, but the ordinary parents were in an uproar.

They couldn't accept that the demon fox, who threatened the village, had also entered the ninja academy. What would happen to the children's safety if the demon fox went berserk?

Faced with the parents' complaints, even Chunin-sensei, who knew some of the inside story, was unable to explain.

Naruto is not a demon fox; he is the village's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, a secret of the village.

Even though the rumors about the fox spirit are already widely known, rules are rules, and ninjas must never reveal secrets casually.

Finally, after the Third Hokage intervened and used a carrot-and-stick approach, these parents stopped causing trouble.

He repeatedly warned his children not to provoke Naruto Uzumaki, to always keep a safe distance from the Nine-Tailed Fox, and to report to their ninja teachers immediately if they encountered any danger.

This scene naturally fell into the eyes of Naruto, the instigator, who was standing at a distance watching the parents' performance.

Waiting until no one is around before going to register alone is not his style.

Sensing the frequent warnings of malicious intent, Kurama opened its eyes and said to Naruto, "Kid, you really have a twisted sense of humor. You know they don't like you, yet you still deliberately show up in front of them."

Naruto said dismissively, "It's not that they have a bad sense of humor, it's just that they seem to have forgotten that this is a ninja academy, and the ninjas they train are mercenaries who live on the edge of a knife."

Kurama glanced at Naruto: "Kid, you seem much more confident since you said you were leaving Konoha that day."

Naruto stared at Kurama and slowly said, "Perhaps it's because I found my goal and had a direction. All I need to do is work hard. The mocking and hateful words have become my motivation."

Nine-Tailed Fox smiled without saying a word and continued to sleep soundly in its cage.

After registration closed, the honorary principal, the Third Hokage, gave a speech on the Will of Fire.

In Naruto's opinion, the Will of Fire depicted by the Third Hokage is a type of principle that is three parts theory and seven parts personal interpretation. It can be taken as inspirational advice, but it is not very useful otherwise.

Besides that, he felt a bit bored, as it was a waste of his precious cultivation time.

"Weren't you going to put on a show in front of the Hokage? Why aren't you being more proactive now?"

The fox strategist woke up at some point and offered advice.