#48 Divine Reward System

Looking at the tiny tadpole flopping on the ground, Jiraiya couldn't help but sigh, rubbing his temples.

"This kid really has no talent for this..."

As he glanced at Naruto, another face flashed through his mind—the face of a man with the same wild blond hair, but with a far more composed expression. The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze—Jiraiya’s first disciple.

Jiraiya muttered to himself, "Like father, like son? Not even close... Minato was a natural genius. Even Kushina was exceptionally talented. So why is Naruto struggling this much?"

Meanwhile, Naruto stared at the pitiful tadpole, his face scrunching up in frustration. Other people summoned massive toads, but he couldn't even manage a proper baby one!

"I must’ve messed up! Let me try again!" Naruto insisted, clenching his fists.

With renewed determination, he formed the hand seals and slammed his palm onto the ground.

Boom! Another puff of white smoke erupted. Jiraiya and Tatsuya leaned in, hoping for at least some improvement. But as the smoke cleared, their expressions deadpanned.

Another tadpole. The exact same size.

Jiraiya groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "Yeah… I probably shouldn't have gotten my hopes up."

Tatsuya snickered. "Maybe he's aiming to summon the Tadpole Sage at this rate."

Naruto's face turned red with frustration. "Shut up! Just watch, I'll get it right next time!"

Jiraiya patted him on the head. "Relax, kid. You just started learning this technique. Give it some time."

Naruto pouted but nodded. "Fine…"

Jiraiya then turned his gaze toward Tatsuya, a look of expectation in his eyes. "Alright, Tatsuya. Let’s see how you do."

Tatsuya smirked. "Sure."

He stepped forward, eyes narrowing in focus. Unlike Naruto, he didn’t hesitate. He formed the seals so fast that even Jiraiya’s trained eyes barely followed. Before Naruto could even register what was happening, Tatsuya’s palm had already slammed onto the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

A rush of chakra spread across the ground, forming intricate black markings. A thick cloud of smoke exploded outward. Jiraiya and Naruto squinted, waiting for the smoke to clear.

When it did, their jaws nearly hit the floor.

A massive toad loomed before them—far larger than any of the summoning toads they’d seen before. Not Gamabunta. Not even his brothers, Gamaken or Gamahiro. This one was enormous, easily ten times the size of the others.

Jiraiya gawked. "No way… that’s the Great Toad Iwasu from Mount Myoboku!"

The colossal toad blinked down at them and grumbled in a deep voice, "Who the hell summoned me?"

Jiraiya stepped forward, still in disbelief. "Master Iwasu… I wasn’t expecting to see you here."

The toad’s eyes narrowed. "Jiraiya? Is that you? It’s been ages. I didn’t think you had enough chakra to summon me."

Jiraiya scratched his head sheepishly. "Well, about that… It wasn’t me."

"Huh? Then who—?"

Jiraiya gestured at Tatsuya, who stood there looking just as surprised as everyone else. "It was him."

Iwasu turned his massive gaze toward the boy. His eyes widened slightly, then narrowed in scrutiny. "You’re telling me this kid just summoned me? On his first try?"

Jiraiya nodded. "I saw it with my own eyes."

Tatsuya, meanwhile, was still processing what he’d just done. He had expected to summon Gamabunta at best, but this…

He thought to himself, "If I put in even more chakra… could I summon the Great Toad Sage himself?"

But even as the thought crossed his mind, he knew it was probably impossible. The Great Toad Sage was ancient, a figure from the time of the Sage of Six Paths. Summoning him wasn’t just about chakra—it required an invitation from Mount Myoboku itself.

Still, the fact that he had summoned Iwasu was a feat in itself.

Iwasu hummed in thought. "Jiraiya, I trust your words, but I’d like to see this with my own eyes. Boy, can you summon me again?"

Jiraiya and Naruto froze.

Jiraiya gulped. "Master Iwasu… You’re not saying you want him to summon… them, are you?"

Iwasu chuckled. "Well, that depends. Let’s see if he can first."

Naruto blinked, completely lost. "Uh… who are we talking about?"

Tatsuya, on the other hand, knew exactly who Iwasu was referring to. If he tried again, there was a chance he could summon two other high-ranking sages of Mount Myoboku—Fukasaku and Shima.

Tatsuya cracked his knuckles. "Alright. Let’s give it a shot."

Shima and Fukasaku held a revered status in Mount Myoboku, known as the esteemed "Sages." Even Jiraiya, with all his skill, found summoning them a difficult task. These were not figures that could be called upon at will.

Especially after Tatsuya had just summoned the mighty Iwasu, the current state of his chakra was uncertain. He might not have enough left.

Tatsuya, however, looked completely unfazed. He turned to Jiraiya, grinning.

"Pervy Sage, I can give it a shot!" he said confidently. "Even if it doesn’t work, it’ll be good training."

Jiraiya studied him, a slight frown on his face. "How do you feel right now?"

"I’m fine. No problem at all."

Jiraiya was astonished. Summoning Iwasu should have drained him significantly, but Tatsuya looked as fresh as ever.

Even Gamamaru himself was skeptical. "Just how much chakra does this kid have?" he murmured to himself.

Jiraiya exhaled and finally nodded. "Alright, since Lord Iwasu wants to see it, let’s give it a try."

With Jiraiya’s approval, Tatsuya wasted no time. His hands moved swiftly, forming seals with practiced ease.

The first time had been random. This time, he had a clear goal in mind. One by one, figures appeared in his thoughts.

A red glow flared to life around him.

Seeing Tatsuya enveloped in red chakra, Iwasu's eyes widened. He could feel the immense power surging within the boy. This only reinforced what Jiraiya had claimed—this kid was something else.

And Tatsuya wasn’t aiming to summon just one toad. If he was going to do this, he was going big.

He envisioned them: Gamakichi, Gamatatsu, Gamaken, Gamahiro... and finally, the Toad Sages, Fukasaku and Shima.

His palm slammed onto the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

Boom!

A cloud of thick, white smoke erupted, obscuring everything. As it cleared, the sight before them left Jiraiya and Naruto completely dumbfounded.

"Where… is this?"

The first to speak was Gamabunta, standing tall with his signature pipe and giant blade strapped to his back.

"Big bro?" Gamaken and Gamahiro called out in unison, just as shocked.

Before Gamabunta could process what was happening, two smaller voices piped up.

"Dad!"

Gamabunta froze.

His two sons, Gamakichi and Gamatatsu, stood right in front of him.

And the surprises weren’t over yet.

Two more voices, raspier and more aged, echoed in the clearing.

"Bunta, Ken, Hiro… why are you three here?"

Fukasaku’s voice carried both confusion and authority.

"And you two little rascals!" Shima added, hands on her hips as she scowled at Gamakichi and Gamatatsu. "Why are you getting involved in this mess?"

At that moment, seven toads—three generations of the Gamabunta family—stood together, all looking at each other in stunned silence.

For a brief moment, they suspected Jiraiya was responsible. But they quickly dismissed that idea. Summoning one of them was one thing. Bringing out all of them at once? Impossible.

Then, a small voice piped up, breaking the tension.

"Hey, isn’t that Grandpa Iwasu?"

Gamakichi’s words made all the toads snap their attention toward the towering form of Gamamaru. Their eyes widened further.

Sure enough, the legendary toad himself was standing there, watching the scene unfold.

This was unreal. This had never happened before in the history of Mount Myoboku.

Gamabunta narrowed his eyes at Jiraiya, his deep voice laced with suspicion. "Jiraiya… what the hell is going on?"

Jiraiya, still trying to wrap his own head around it, snapped out of his daze. He never imagined Tatsuya would be capable of this. Even Iwasu was baffled.

Fukasaku crossed his arms, his sharp gaze shifting to Jiraiya. "Don’t tell me this was your doing, Jiraiya."

Shima’s voice was equally skeptical. "I don’t see anyone else here who could pull this off."

Jiraiya shook his head and quickly raised his hands in defense. "No, no! It wasn’t me!"

He motioned toward Tatsuya and Naruto. "It was him."

The moment Jiraiya pointed at Tatsuya, the entire group of toads turned their attention to the young shinobi.

Silence fell over the clearing. All eyes were locked on Tatsuya.

"Jiraiya…" Gamabunta’s voice was low, almost hesitant. "You’re serious? This kid summoned all of us?"

Iwasu let out a deep rumble of a laugh. "I was skeptical at first, too. But after what I just saw, there’s no doubt in my mind."

Hearing the great Iwasu confirm it, Gamabunta and the others were left in utter disbelief. This was beyond extraordinary.

If even the Great Toad Sage was within the summoning range, then just how far could Tatsuya’s abilities go?

The thought sent a ripple of unease through the toads. This wasn’t just a matter of talent anymore.

Was this kid… the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths himself?