Jiraiya stared at the sly expression on Gekko Chiyan's face as the boy stood before him, feeling like he had just been taught a lesson.
The lesson's name was simple: As long as I've got no shame, no one can take control of me.
"Lord Jiraiya," said Gekko Chiyan, "just one technique. Once I learn it, I won't tell The Third anything about your affairs."
Jiraiya's lip twitched violently—he decided to play along for now.
Arriving at the hill behind the Hokage Monument, Jiraiya stared solemnly at the young boy before him.
"All right," he said. "Tell me what technique you want to learn?"
"Hmm... How about Sage Art?"
Jiraiya's previously stern face immediately collapsed into disbelief, almost causing him to stumble forward.
"No way! Sage Art is... well, it involves too many complications—I really can't teach that to you!"
"Then pick something else."
Gekko Chiyan gave Jiraiya a look filled with disdain.
"Hey, what's with that look? I can teach you any other techniques, but seriously, I can't teach you Sage Art."
Jiraiya almost cried; why were kids these days so hard to deal with? His own disciple, Minato Namikaze, had been such a good kid.
"I mean, come on, you're supposed to be one of the Legendary Sannin, yet you can't even teach me Sage Art—tch tch tch."
"Looks like legends really shouldn't be believed!"
Jiraiya: ...What the hell?!
"How about Sealing Technique then—but let me make it clear, you can't ask for only one sealing technique."
"I..." Jiraiya exhaled sharply. "How many do you want?"
"Well, let me think... Fire Sealing, Five Elements… heck, any Sealing Technique will do—I'll learn them all. Sure, your Sealing Techniques may not match the Uzumaki Clan, but still—something's better than nothing, right?"
Jiraiya: You damn brat, picking on me like this!
"Weren't we agreed on just one technique!! How many have you asked for already?"
"It is just one technique! All these techniques are collectively called: Sealing Technique! So isn't it still just one technique?"
Jiraiya could feel his blood pressure skyrocketing.
It felt like he might die of a stroke any second.
Without hesitation, he pulled a scroll from within his robe and shoved it into Gekko Chiyan's hands.
"There! Take this! I'm leaving! If I stay around you any longer, I'll end up dying not from enemies, but from sheer frustration."
"Farewell!"
"Poof!"
White smoke burst out, and Jiraiya vanished.
"Hehehe…"
"Another win off Jiraiya—again!"
Gekko Chiyan grinned mischievously as he looked at the scroll marked with 'Seal.'
Humming a tune, he started walking back home.
The Gekko household was located at the northern part of Konoha Village.
It wasn't big, but they had a courtyard all to themselves.
Of course, currently, there were only two members left in the entire Gekko clan—Gekko Chiyan and Gekko Hayate.
And Hayate was still a toddler, barely weaned. For Hayate's sake, Gekko Chiyan had sacrificed almost everything.
Pushing open the door, Gekko Chiyan found a woman smoking while playing with the two-year-old Hayate.
Seeing Gekko Chiyan walk in, she couldn't help but grin and immediately started teasing him.
"Yo, little Chiyan came back?"
"What kind of trouble did you stir up today?"
Gekko Chiyan's expression turned sour, clearly irritated as he shot back,
"I ran to your house and stole your thong. Does that count?"
Upon hearing this, the woman burst into laughter, showing absolutely no shame or embarrassment.
The next moment, she shot back without hesitation,
"You actually took it? That shouldn't be possible. Didn't I put that thing on Ebisu's head?"
Gekko Chiyan almost stumbled and fell flat on his face.
He stared at the woman with pure anguish in his eyes.
She was a Konoha Chunin and the mother of Ebisu.
To help take care of Gekko Hayate, he specially invited her over as a wet nurse...
If he had the chance to choose again, he'd never have crossed paths with this woman.
She was nothing less than a full-fledged female gangster!!!
Even with all his slime accumulated over two lifetimes, he was still just pond scum compared to her.
"Big sis, I'm sorry. I didn't take your thong.
I just went out for a walk, checking if there were any missions available. Lately the milk money has been tight."
Seeing Gekko Chiyan's helpless expression, Ebisasha laughed heartily, finding it extremely amusing to tease this little brat.
Well, truthfully speaking, that's exactly what she thought.
Ebisasha was a single mother. Her husband had died in Rain Country during The Second Great Ninja War.
Their parents had fought side by side, so their families had always been close.
That's why Chiyan turned to his family's Auntie for help taking care of Hayate.
But honestly, he had no idea until he asked.
This "auntie" was basically a reincarnated female gangster.
Later when he found out her son was none other than Ebisu—the future legendary "Pornography Pillar" of Konoha Village—Chiyan's mouth opened so wide he could swallow an entire durian whole!
"Tomorrow I need to go on a mission, heading to Takigakure Village."
At the mention of a mission, Ebisasha froze, not even noticing as ash from her cigarette was about to fall off.
"Hey hey hey, watch the ash! Don't let it land on Hayate's head!"
Reminded by Chiyan, Ebisasha finally snapped out of it and quickly stubbed out her cigarette.
"Don't look like that. I'm quite slippery myself. Survival comes first. Don't worry, I'll come back fast—in a few days max.
Oh right, here, take this."
As he spoke, Gekko Chiyan placed a kunai knife in front of her.
This kunai looked identical to any other, except for a strange inscription etched onto its handle.
It read: Oto-san ga kita (which means 'Your dad is here!')
Clearly meant as a prank.
"What is this? 'Your Dad is Here'?"
Ebisasha lifted the kunai, feeling completely dejected. This kid had gone totally off the rails, leaving her such a ridiculous keepsake?
"Hmph, what's that look? Let me tell you, this inscription contains top-secret technique formulas."
"Ever heard of the Flying Thunder God Technique? It was created by the Second Hokage himself!"
[The Flying Thunder God Technique]
"And I nearly got caught—and okay fine, I sneaked in secretly and borrowed some scrolls—to learn it."
"Just you wait."
While saying that, Gekko Chiyan started running toward the door.
In the blink of an eye, he had already dashed outside.
Ebisasha, wearing a baffled expression, muttered to herself: "Is this kid's mind not working properly... Maybe I should really take him to see someone..."
"What did you say? You're the one with the messed-up brain!!!"
Right after her words faded, a ripple appeared beside her, and Gekko Chiyan suddenly showed up.
Ebisasha: ????
Seeing the stunned look on her face, Gekko Chiyan felt especially pleased.
"See that? As long as this seal formula exists, I can instantly return using [Flying Thunder God]!"
"Of course, it has to be within a relatively short distance—chakra consumption is quite significant."
Among all his overpowered techniques, the ones he felt most comfortable with were definitely [Flying Thunder God] and [Transparent Escape].
One allows instant teleportation, the other grants invisibility—absolutely perfect! The ultimate sneaky playstyle!
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To provide a better reading experience, I have re-optimized the translations of all the books under this channel. The current translation quality has been taken to the next level. Moving forward, updates will be accelerated to catch up with the original release schedule. Happy reading, everyone!