Following Jiraiya around was quite an experience. The Sannin only intervened a little to aid them in their learning. He acted more like a grumpy librarian, reluctantly directing them back to the material he provided. They usually saw him in the mornings and evenings. Sometimes, he disappeared for a few days to do some research, according to his words.

The group had set up a temporary camp outside a village to continue their training. Genma had read everything he needed during the first couple of days. He was now practicing. He had one of Minato’s special kunai planted in a tree. He had modified the design of the weapon a bit. He was trying to use it as a marker for the teleportation technique.

He hadn’t been successful so far. He fell to his behind without moving a few times and went in the opposite direction and fell hard on his shoulder on another occasion. The only time he succeeded in teleporting himself, he landed far away from his intended destination. It was entertaining to watch.

Koguro didn’t talk much. He was concentrated on studying. Jun didn’t particularly like the area of Fuinjutsu the man was interested in. He wanted to be an expert on curse marks, especially those designed to control people. With a simple gesture, he could manipulate a person with his curse mark or even torture them.

Orochimaru’s curse marks or the Hyuga Caged Bird Seal must work the same way. Therefore, Jun made sure to read the notes handed to Koguro. He memorized them even though he hasn't understood everything yet.

However, the teenager wasn’t just watching his teammates or reading their notes. He had his own homework to do. Jiraiya had given him quite a bit of material on Binding Seals. Furthermore, reading wasn’t tiring. He could afford to charge his Eternal Chakra Gate everyday. He would build up quite a reserve by the end of the mission.

The teenager memorized a dozen of new seals capable of restraining a person, knocking them out, putting them to sleep, or even paralyzing them. He had to hide his Sharingan during his reading, but the Dojutsu was useful. For him to apply a seal with a simple touch, he needed to master it perfectly. The Sharingan greatly helped with memorizing the seals down to their minuscule details. More than half the job was done that easily. Understanding the concept of the seals was also a piece of cake for someone with Jun’s knowledge of Fuinjutsu.

He happily memorized and mastered a whole range of binding seals in a couple of weeks. As he was a bit bored afterward, he pondered on other ways to draw them rather than just using his chakra for it. It didn’t cost much energy for a small seal, the size of his palm. However, for a large seal like the one he had used to blow everything up after Ise Hyuga’s death, It had felt the chakra expenditure. And it had been quite heavy.

If he wanted to use big techniques frequently to compete with geniuses like Itachi, Kakashi, or Shisui, he needed to find another alternative. He began mixing his blood with a vial of ink. He was counting on the fact that his blood cells were filled with energy. The teenager used a low-rank Suiton jutsu to manipulate the liquid and draw a seal.

The results were exceptional. Instead of just using his chakra directly for the seal, he used it on the Suiton technique. He spent a lot less energy that way. It was the ink mixed with his blood that was used to create the seal. The energy for the seal was drawn from his blood. The teenager didn’t require a lot of blood either.

A drop of blood was sufficient to create one of his explosive seals. He could cover a small clearing with a huge seal in an instant, with little effort. The only drawback was that it took him longer than to directly use his chakra as a medium to form the seals. However, it was still worth it.

After the binding seals, Jun asked the Sannin about storage seals. He already knew how to store his own chakra, but it was sealing others’ chakra that interested him. Moreover, he wanted to be able to imprison an enemy in a dimensional pocket similar to Jiraiya’s Toad Stomach technique, seal jutsus, or block curse marks’ effects. The idea of sealing a Biju was also in the back of his mind. He wanted to be prepared for all kinds of situations.

The Sannin gave him the necessary documents. Jun soon noticed that they were all about physically sealing one object into another. He was a bit disappointed. The teenager was sure Jiraiya did it on purpose. The latter may not want to put anything dangerous in his hands. Or perhaps it was because he was an Uchiha? The first thing the Sannin had noticed wasn’t his age or rank, but his surname. He may be suspicious of an Uchiha desiring to learn Fuinjutsu. Jun tried to not take it personally. He focused on studying storage seals and creating a pocket dimension to lock up an opponent or a jutsu.

Time passed. Jun celebrated his fourteenth birthday. Genma invited him to a restaurant. They ate good food and stuffed themselves until they couldn’t eat a single bit. They had a great time. Once their way back, they had a contest about who would detect and catch the most thieves in the village. Jun was surprised by how seriously Genma took the contest. It was during such moments that he remembered Genma and Gai were in the same genin team back then.

About six weeks into their mission, Jiraiya ordered them to show him their progress. Genma could teleport, but he needed a great effort to concentrate. Moreover, he often missed his landing and got bruises all over. His accuracy was lacking. But all things considered, the Sannin found his progress acceptable. Jiraiya always had a soft spot for anything related to his former student.

Koguro recited some theoretical knowledge that almost put the Sannin to sleep before offering to place a seal on someone to control the person. Jiraiya coldly replied that he lacked imagination and ordered him to return to Konoha. Jun was happy to see him go.

The teenager also had the impression that the Sannin wanted to send the man back. Jun mostly ignored Jiraiya and didn’t pay attention to his character. He could tell the Sannin was a bit bothered by his indifference.

But Jun wanted to let his skills do the talking for him. He showed him his ink-blood manipulation technique in combination with the Paralyzing Trap Seal and restrained the Sannin for several minutes. During that time, he displayed all the binding seals he had learned. He also explained to him the theory behind his Dying Wish Seal. Genma found the whole scene hilarious.

Jiraiya didn’t send him back. He seemed fascinated by Jun’s abilities. He looked at the teenager with fresh, scrutinizing, and attentive eyes. He began to question him on the theoretical subtleties of Fuinjutsu. They talked about space and dimensions. Genma had trouble following the conversation.

“I still won’t take you as a disciple.” The Sannin said warningly.

“I’m fine with it. My life is in Konoha, not following you around from hot spring to hot spring, looking at women.”

“Foolish boy! You know nothing about the good things in life. Anyway, now that I got rid of Danzo’s spy. It’s time to get going. We’re heading to the Land of Rice.”

Jun wasn’t sure what to make of Jiraiya's sudden interest in him. He preferred the time when the Sannin ignored him as much as possible. Now, he insisted on discussing the topics in the books he was studying or even participating in his learning. The teenager couldn’t use the Sharingan in secret anymore. It was too risky. Anyway, it wouldn’t impact him that much. The Sharingan was just a tool for him to memorize the seal patterns faster. It was a shortcut. There was more to Fuinjutsu than a good memory.

Jiraiya was smart, and their conversations could be constructive. But the man chose to be loud and rude. He had no respect for people’s personal space and was sometimes intentionally rude. He overplayed his stupidity until you wanted to slap him. Sometimes, he let out a glimpse of a cold, manipulative side, silently gauging the reactions of those around him in a way that reminded a bit of Orochimaru.

The Sannin felt pity for Genma and his attachment to the Hiraishin, a jutsu that was beyond his level. He was curious about Jun and his talent. But he made it a point to let them know he wasn’t their friend or their sensei. Jun didn’t like it.

However, a strange understanding developed between them with time. They familiarized themselves with each other. They were more relaxed. They talked about family, favorite dishes…

The group faced an enemy on two occasions. They naturally slipped into formation, covering each other’s back. The first time, they encountered three nukenins at a genin level. Jun and Genma knocked them out while Jiraiya was pretending to nap in the background. The second time, they faced a team from Takigakure. It was five chunins, who looked horrified when they ran into them. They knew they had no business in the Land of Fire. The matter was quickly settled as the Konoha Shinobis gave them the beating of their life..

Jun was getting used to his life during this mission. But he wasn’t sad to see it end…