Everyone in the conference hall dispersed.
Inside the Third Training Ground, Minato's battle was also drawing to a close.
He couldn't expose his Elementalization or the Sharingan, and the fact that a five-year-old had invented the Rasengan was already somewhat shocking.
Furthermore, there were no specific Ninjutsu for Wood Release yet; he had already shown almost everything he could.
"Hmm... without firing a Laser Beam, I don't have any better means of attack."
"I'll use this technique to end the battle."
Minato reached out his right hand, light gathering in his palm.
In the blink of an eye, a dazzling Light Sword appeared in his hand!
"What kind of technique is this now..."
Nawaki's expression went blank, leaving him completely speechless.
To be honest, when Minato had just defeated him, he felt a bit indignant.
However, after witnessing the battle between Minato and Jiraiya and realizing the other boy was indeed stronger than himself, he became somewhat jealous of Minato's talent.
Then, when Minato revealed his Light Release, his heart calmed down again.
After all, a Kekkei Genkai was something that couldn't be forced, and the gap between the two was currently too vast.
But when Minato used Wood Release and revealed his dual Kekkei Genkai, he couldn't even feel a hint of jealousy anymore; simply put, he was stunned.
Seeing the Light Sword in Minato's hand, Jiraiya became interested.
"Oh? It can even be condensed into a weapon? I wonder how strong it is."
"This technique... I'll use it on Orochimaru instead."
Minato swung the long sword in his hand, the tip pointing toward Orochimaru.
Orochimaru chuckled upon hearing this.
"Oh? Does this mean that in Minato-kun's eyes, my strength is more reliable than Jiraiya's?"
"What? Minato, do you really think so?"
Jiraiya suddenly felt like he'd been betrayed, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
The Great Jiraiya sparred with you for so long and almost got beaten badly by you, yet you actually think Orochimaru is more reliable than me?
"They're... they're both very reliable, haha..."
Minato laughed awkwardly, for a moment not knowing what to say.
He just felt that Orochimaru's survival methods were superior to Jiraiya's.
Looking at the entire ninja world, there might be disputes over who is the strongest, but when it comes to who has the best survival ability, Orochimaru is definitely the undisputed master!
"A Light Sword?"
Tsunade rubbed her chin, sizing up the Light Sword in Minato's hand with great interest.
"When it comes to swordsmanship, it is indeed Orochimaru's forte."
"Tsunade, even you..."
"Beat it! Stop making so much noise!"
"Okay."
Jiraiya immediately shut up.
Under their expectant gazes, Minato held the Light Sword, his figure suddenly flashing as he appeared before Orochimaru, slashing toward Orochimaru's waist!
Here it comes!
Orochimaru used the Body Flicker Technique to retreat, pulling back two steps.
Just as he drew a kunai to counterattack, he saw Minato's movement suddenly pause, the sword tip pointing at his lower abdomen.
"This is... not good!"
Noticing Minato's unnatural movement, Orochimaru twisted his waist sharply.
At the very moment he dodged the direction the sword tip was pointing, the tip of the Light Sword suddenly flared with light.
A large section of the light blade extended out of thin air, scorching a black mark on the side of Orochimaru's flak jacket!
"As expected..."
Jiraiya shook his head with a laugh and clapped his hands.
"Despicable, how despicable!"
"Bastard! Who talks about a child like that?"
Tsunade punched Jiraiya on the head, making him stagger.
On the other side, seeing that Minato didn't continue the attack, Orochimaru quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking at the ten-meter-long blade of light in the other's hand, he was somewhat speechless, not knowing whether to be angry or laugh.
"Minato-kun's battle intelligence is very high."
Low EQ: Despicable!
High EQ: High battle intelligence.
"Haha..."
Hearing this, Minato smiled sheepishly.
"Humph, in the end, isn't it just because you guys lack experience?"
Tsunade pulled Minato to her side and rubbed his soft blond hair.
"Since it's a Light Sword, isn't it reasonable that it can extend?"
"Makes sense, I was bound by common sense."
Orochimaru chuckled, not angry either.
"Minato-kun, can you show me the strength of your Light Sword?"
Minato nodded, took out a kunai, and struck it against the Light Sword.
The moment the two collided, the edge of the kunai instantly turned bright red.
In just a few seconds, it was melted through by the high temperature contained in the Light Sword!
"Wonderful..."
A flash of excitement crossed Orochimaru's eyes.
"Phew..."
The kunai melted, and Minato dispersed the Light Sword, breathing a sigh of relief.
Maintaining the Light Sword continuously consumed physical strength, and the drain was much greater than that of a Laser Beam; with his current small body, he couldn't hold it for long.
"Alright, let's end it here for today."
Tsunade looked at Minato with a smile.
"Good performance, I'm very satisfied! To celebrate, we're going to eat barbecue today, my treat!"
"Oh!!"
Hearing about eating barbecue, Nawaki immediately got excited.
Minato's eyes also lit up; he hadn't eaten barbecue for a while, and thinking about it really made him crave it.
"By the way, shouldn't you have been the one treating for this meal anyway?"
Jiraiya muttered softly while rubbing the large bump on his head.
He and Orochimaru had originally come for this barbecue meal.
"I only said I'd treat everyone to barbecue, I didn't say which day."
Tsunade snorted, waving her hand as if shooing away a fly.
"Wouldn't it be the same if I treated you six months later?"
"Then we'd have to calculate interest..."
"Huh? You have an objection?"
"No, no, no... Hahaha, ah, eating barbecue is such a wonderful thing~"
Jiraiya laughed it off, and the group arrived at the barbecue restaurant, chatting and laughing along the way.
Minato and Nawaki sat on either side of Tsunade, while Jiraiya and Orochimaru sat opposite them.
Soon, several plates of meat were brought out, the fresh meat sizzling on the grill, the aroma wafting out and making everyone's mouth water.
"Let's eat!"
As the first piece of meat finished grilling, Nawaki and Jiraiya couldn't wait to reach out with their chopsticks.
They dipped it in sauce, blew on it twice, and impatiently stuffed it into their mouths, only to hiss in pain from the heat; their comical appearance made Tsunade chuckle.
Minato watched this scene quietly, a smile on his lips.
Suddenly, a piece of grilled meat was placed on his plate.
Minato turned to look at Tsunade beside him, and she smiled gently.
"What are you thinking about?"
Minato shook his head.
"Nothing, it's just been a long time since things were this lively around me."
"I see..."
A soft, fair hand gently rested on Minato's head, Tsunade's gaze tender.
"It will always be like this from now on."
Minato nodded and revealed a smile.
That smile was as sunny and gentle as before, but Tsunade still keenly sensed a feeling different from the past.
More real, and more tender...
"Oh my..."
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and grinned.
A smile played on the corners of Orochimaru's mouth, appearing a bit less cold and a bit more gentle than usual.
As early as the first time he met Minato, he felt as if he saw his former self.
Handsome, outstanding, and with an elusive heart like a flower in a mirror or the moon on the water.
But looking at it now, although the two were similar, they were not the same.
Minato not only had even more outstanding talent, but in some aspects, he also seemed to have qualities completely different from his own.
This also made him more curious about Minato's future and full of expectations...