Back home, Naruto quickly stripped off his soaked clothes and jumped into a hot shower.
After cleaning up, he threw on a fresh set of clothes, humming a tune as he made his way into the kitchen and started preparing a feast.
That was the scene the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, walked in on when he entered Naruto's home.
"Something good happen today, Naruto?"
He watched quietly for a moment, eyes soft, before smiling at the boy who came out of the kitchen carrying a dish, eyes bright with joy.
Of course, Hiruzen already knew what had happened with Naruto that day.
He just brought it up for conversation's sake.
This visit wasn't his usual stop to drop off Naruto's living expenses—it was to fulfill a promise: he'd come to give Naruto new jutsu.
As the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, Naruto had shown extraordinary talent. And as Hokage, Hiruzen couldn't be happier.
Though the boy didn't really embody the "Will of Fire," he wasn't a bad kid. And just being the Nine-Tails' container meant he had to become powerful—only with enough strength could he protect himself.
Otherwise, if anything ever went wrong with the Nine-Tails' seal, it'd be a disaster for both Naruto and the village.
"Hey, Gramps, you're just in time! Eat dinner with me! I mastered both tree climbing and water walking today! I'll show you later if you don't believe me—and you owe me that jutsu you promised!"
Naruto lit up when he saw him.
He plopped the dish on the table, then without waiting for a reply, dragged the old man over to sit down.
Then he headed back into the kitchen, took off his apron, and dished out two bowls of rice.
They sat across from each other, and Hiruzen glanced over the spread, smiling.
"Braised pork, steamed ribs, beef brisket with radish, stir-fried lettuce and pork, spicy chicken, and sautéed greens. Looks amazing—good work, Naruto."
Ever since that one time a year ago when he'd tasted Naruto's spicy shredded pork noodles, Hiruzen had taken every chance to swing by for meals. So he was already well-acquainted with these more modern, non-traditional dishes.
Of course, in return, Naruto's monthly living stipend had gotten a noticeable bump.
Naruto didn't mind in the slightest. He picked up his chopsticks and started scarfing food.
"C'mon, Gramps, dig in! I'm starving!"
Originally, Naruto had planned to save some of the food for tomorrow's bento.
But hey, since the old man showed up, they might as well eat together. Worst case, he'd just cook again tomorrow.
Hiruzen chuckled as he watched Naruto eat quickly—but not sloppily—and looked around the clean, tidy house.
He couldn't help but feel emotional. Even though Naruto was still young, he was growing more and more like Minato.
The same cooking talent, the same incredible ninja potential, and even his looks were becoming more and more similar.
If Minato could see him now, he'd definitely be proud.
With that thought, Hiruzen joined the food frenzy.
"Hey, Naruto, don't be picky—eat more veggies."
"Ugh, don't nag. You're the old one—go easy on the meat, or you'll get indigestion."
Their banter filled the room with a warm, light-hearted atmosphere.
Maybe it was because they were competing for food, but the meal ended up tasting especially great. The two of them wiped out everything on the table.
Of course, there was a downside—they both ended up slouched over, holding their full bellies and unwilling to move.
After a bit of a break, Naruto finally got up and made them both some tea.
A couple sips in, Hiruzen finally remembered why he came. He reached into his Hokage robe and pulled out two scrolls, handing them to Naruto.
Smiling, he said, "Naruto, when I tested your chakra nature a while back, it came out as Wind Release.
These are scrolls for the Shadow Clone Jutsu and Wind Style: Great Breakthrough. Since you've already mastered tree climbing and water walking, it's time you started on these.
If you run into anything you don't understand, feel free to come ask me at the Hokage's office."
Naruto eagerly took the scrolls and thanked him.
"Thanks, Gramps!"
Then he dove straight into reading them.
Hiruzen had already explained some jutsu basics to him before—how all ninjutsu fall into the five nature transformations: Yin-Yang, Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Lightning.
Unless the technique was non-elemental, you could only train in it if your chakra matched its nature.
Naruto's test showed Wind Release, so besides general-use jutsu like Shadow Clone, Wind techniques were all he could learn for now.
To learn other types, he'd eventually have to awaken additional chakra natures through advanced training—a journey that starts around Jonin level.
Hiruzen smiled at the sight of Naruto completely absorbed in the scrolls. With a chuckle, he quietly stood and left without disturbing him.
As for Naruto, after reading both scrolls from beginning to end, he immediately started testing them out.
First up: Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Following the chakra flow and hand signs described in the scroll—poof! A puff of smoke burst beside him, and an identical copy of Naruto appeared, blinking at him in curiosity.
They stared at each other for a moment. Then, when Naruto dismissed the clone, he suddenly gained a burst of memory—viewing himself from the clone's perspective.
"Whoa, this is amazing. I can use it for fighting and learning stuff that's not even physical!
Man, I nailed it on the first try… I really am a genius!"
He scratched his chin, a smug little grin forming.
"All those slow jutsu failures before—definitely the big fox's fault."
Naruto was clearly feeling good about himself.
But that didn't last long. A glance at the clock told him it was bedtime, so he promptly climbed into bed.
"I'll mess with the Wind Release technique tomorrow. Can't really use it indoors anyway, and it's pretty much bedtime."
The big fox had finally chilled out.
On the way home, he'd even given a beatdown to a few bratty kids and met Hinata—someone who, even after hearing his name, hadn't looked at him like a freak.
And on top of that, Grandpa Hokage had just passed on new jutsu to him. He even mastered Shadow Clone Jutsu in one go.
Sure, today had been packed with good stuff—but still, now wasn't the time to slack off.
He was still a long way from becoming the kind of ninja no one would dare underestimate. He had to keep pushing forward.
As he drifted off to sleep, Naruto made one more stop—his usual nightly visit to the sealed space.