Speaking of which, this was actually Gamabunta's first time meeting Naruto.
Originally, this meeting could have happened much earlier.
But it just so happened that after learning the Summoning Technique, Naruto never once summoned a toad from Mount Myoboku.
Instead, he went and summoned three other creatures himself.
Yes, Sasuke had also successfully become one of Naruto's Pokemon.
Later, during the Konoha Crush Plan, just moments before Naruto arrived at the battlefield, Jiraiya dispelled the summoning, causing the two to just miss each other.
This led Naruto to believe that the toads from Mount Myoboku were only as big as the one Jiraiya had initially summoned.
Their size couldn't even compare to Gyumaru.
Summoned creatures of that level couldn't really help him much, so he hadn't used the technique again after returning to the Ninja World.
"How did you get so big… Cough, I mean, what do you eat to get so big?"
'Geez, if only I knew the toads in the Ninja World could grow this big...'
Although he corrected himself quickly, the drool at the corner of Naruto's mouth still made Gamabunta shudder with a sense of dread.
"Brat, I don't like you!"
Gamabunta directly took out his enormous smoking pipe from his mouth and pointed it at Naruto. That feeling of facing a natural predator, just like when seeing the giant snakes from Ryuchi Cave, was all too familiar to him.
The toads of Mount Myoboku and this brat were naturally incompatible.
After saying this, Naruto also sensed something was off.
Usually, he kept thoughts like that to himself. The only time he said it out loud was when he mistakenly thought he was dreaming.
It felt like some kind of force was amplifying his inner emotions and desires.
The culprit behind this had to be the Zero-Tails.
Kurama, however, had a different opinion.
He thought the key reason wasn't the Zero-Tails, but Naruto's own gluttony.
Even the Zero-Tails' main body had been swallowed by him, so this terrifying appetite probably didn't need much extra influence.
One could say the Zero-Tails only did a tiny bit of work.
Of course, Kurama didn't say any of this out loud.
After witnessing Naruto devour a Chakra Entity whole, the fox had become much more subdued.
Unlike him, who was sealed inside Naruto and still maintained his consciousness, Zero-Tails had truly become part of Naruto's body, turned into nourishment.
He wasn't sure if a new Tailed Beast would even be born in the Ninja World if a being like him was eaten and absorbed by Naruto.
One could say that Naruto now possessed power that could truly threaten the Tailed Beasts.
After pointing his pipe at Naruto and saying his piece, Gamabunta collected his expression again, adopting a all-business attitude.
"The Great Toad Sage sent me to bring you to him. He already knew you were coming... Hey! Brat! I'm not finished talking!"
Gamabunta had only gotten halfway through his sentence when Naruto instantly appeared on top of his head.
Feeling the Zero-Tails' sinister aura up close made every hair on Gamabunta's body stand on end… if he had any.
He reached out a hand to grab Naruto and pull him down, but just as his hand got close, Naruto casually swatted it away. The force was so great that even Gamabunta felt pain.
"Alright, alright… Big Toad, whatever you have to say, you can say it while we walk... Speaking of which, does Mount Myoboku have any good food?"
"What do you guys usually eat? Do you drink alcohol?"
The moment the topic turned to food and drink, Naruto became much more talkative. It was hard to tell if this was the Zero-Tails' influence or his true nature.
"...Fine. You just wait, I'll make sure to give you a proper welcome."
Gamabunta said this through somewhat gritted teeth.
Jiraiya looked at his old friend's predicament and made a 'can't help you' gesture, then also jumped up onto Gamabunta's head, "Really now-"
…
Deep within Mount Myoboku, inside the same temple.
The Great Toad Sage was still half-lying down, his eyes closed as if foreseeing the future, or perhaps just taking a nap.
This was Naruto's first time coming here, but Jiraiya was a frequent visitor.
After all, he had stayed in this very temple when training in Sage Mode years ago.
Naruto looked at the ancient-looking Great Toad Sage and the two smaller toads beside him.
The two small toads gave him a feeling that their strength probably surpassed even Gamabunta's.
As for the half-dead Great Toad Sage, Naruto found him somewhat unfathomable.
This was the first time in all his years that he had encountered an existence that even his Observation Haki couldn't see through.
He really seemed just like an ordinary, common toad, without anything special about him.
"Come to think of it, this is the first time we are truly meeting face to face, Uzumaki Naruto."
The Great Toad Sage opened his mouth, adopting that familiar mystic tone.
However the three Sages present who had heard the prophecy immediately reacted, "Great Toad Sage, you mean... Naruto is the-"
[Child of Prophecy.]
The Great Toad Sage didn't continue, merely nodding gently before turning his gaze to Naruto.
"Keep walking your path, Naruto. This old one is also very curious about what that future will truly be like."
After speaking, and without waiting for Naruto to ask any questions, he turned to look at Jiraiya, "Jiraiya-chan, your idea is correct."
"Sage Mode can solve Naruto's problem. Let him stay here and learn. It won't take very long."
After saying this, his head lolled to the side, his eyes closed, just as if he had died.
If not for the faint, almost imperceptible aura everyone present could still sense, one might truly think the Great Toad Sage had passed away.
"Honestly, it's not that big of a problem. Given a little time, I could probably solve it myself."
Naruto casually pinched off a small black hand extending from his skin, speaking to Jiraiya beside him.
…
Back in the main hall of the temple, he hadn't even had a chance to ask a single question before the Great Toad Sage went on his long spiel.
Finally, the two Sages, Fukasaku and Shima, politely ushered them out and brought them to the training grounds.
It was a large pool filled with flowing yellow liquid, with a giant stone toad statue standing in the middle.
Fukasaku first explained the precautions to Naruto:
He would be coated in the toad oil from this pool to enter a state of sensing Natural Energy. He must constantly be careful to maintain a balance between his own Physical Energy, his Spiritual Energy, and the Natural Energy at a 1:1:1 ratio.
If an imbalance occurred, he would show signs of transforming into a toad. At that point, Fukasaku would need to strike him with a special black staff to disperse the Natural Energy within his body.
The principle wasn't particularly complex, but Jiraiya knew deep down that mastering this was far from an overnight task.
It had taken him decades, and he still hadn't achieved a perfect Sage Mode. Furthermore, Naruto's situation was more special.
Currently, within his body, besides his own chakra, there was also the Zero-Tails' Chakra, and if you looked even closer, there was the sealed Nine-Tails' Chakra as well.
However, it was precisely because he needed to balance the Zero-Tails' Chakra that Naruto needed to absorb an equivalent amount of Natural Energy.
'Thinking about it this way, could this kid really manage it 'without spending much time' as the Great Toad Sage had said?' Jiraiya thought to himself.
Fukasaku wasn't one for excessive chatter. He directly dipped his finger in the toad oil and began applying it to Naruto.
Naruto himself sniffed the scent of the toad oil, 'Hmm, no particular odor, but it didn't look like it would taste very good.'
The moment the toad oil seeped into his skin, the world before Naruto's eyes seemed to undergo an earth-shattering transformation.