Just like the "Ninjutsu Doctor" was to Sarutobi Hiruzen, and the "Golden Flash" was to Namikaze Minato, Roy naturally also has his own reliance... The young man stared directly into Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes, pretending not to notice the old man's furrowed brows, and simply said, "Will I receive the next ninjutsu once I've mastered this one?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen exchanged a glance with Namikaze Minato, slowly put down his smoking pipe, and after a brief silence, solemnly nodded: "Of course."
"The premise is, you must be able to master it!"
The Second already revealed the difficulties of the Clone Technique, so there was no need for him to specially emphasize it to the young man...
Sarutobi Hiruzen leaned back on his chair, "I'll allow you to copy it down and take it with you. When you've mastered it, come back."
Based on his experience, as well as the experiences of several Jonin who have trained in the Clone Technique, even if the young one is a genius, it would take at least several months to learn it, and even then, it's uncertain if he can master it.
This is evident from Namikaze Minato, who couldn't master the Clone Technique and switched to the Flying Thunder God. It proved... Minato's talent did not lie in "Cloning" but was more aligned with "Time-Space Ninjutsu"...
"No need,"
"You can prepare the next ninjutsu now,"
In just a glance, Roy transformed the notes on the scroll and the hand gestures recorded by Senju Tobirama into "Nen words", recording them in his mind. He then tossed the scroll back to Sarutobi Hiruzen without pause and began to recreate the Clone Technique in his mind.
As a forbidden technique developed by the Second, the Clone Technique indeed had many "potential prerequisites" for learning, such as a deep understanding of Clone Technique, enough chakra to support the simultaneous creation of hundreds or even thousands of chakra clones, and more...
Roy was well aware that he truly met these two conditions,
Not to mention, he had already learned Swamp Clones from the Swamp Demon through the Demon Compendium. Currently, with nearly 0.8 of Shukaku's chakra volume, there's nearly no one who could outlast him, excluding Jinchuuriki...
"Hum~" A faint Nen aura emanated from the young man's body...
After being advised by Sarutobi Hiruzen to obtain a new ninjutsu, Roy simply closed his eyes and began practicing the Clone Technique right in front of the two of them.
Leaving Namikaze Minato and Sarutobi Hiruzen bewildered for two seconds, they exchanged glances, utterly confused...
"This kid has some sense," after a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen regained his composure, discreetly signaling to Namikaze Minato.
Minato said nothing, resting his chin while watching Roy, suddenly returning a look that said, "Maybe he actually can do it..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's old heart inexplicably skipped a beat, recalling the young man's brief showcase of Wood Release while taking a walk with him in the southern forest. The old man took another puff from his pipe, silently thinking that this tobacco tasted bitter and not at all refreshing...
'Can he really do it?'
Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly felt unsure...
"Whoosh~" A gust of wind blew away the noise in the study...
In the quiet, Roy slowly absorbed and comprehended the key points recorded on the scroll, referencing Swamp Clone, continuing his usual path of "Learning"—"Imitating"—"Recreating", attempting to leverage his internal Nen aura, breaking it down exponentially more finely... At a certain moment, as he opened his clear eyes, his hands formed seals as he softly said, "Clone Technique, activate!"
"Puff... Puff... Puff..."
Ten strands of swirling Nen vapor emerged,
Ten Roys lined up, revealing their forms...
'Succeeded?' Sarutobi Hiruzen leaned forward,
Namikaze Minato craned his neck to look,
Both focused their gaze on the smoke... As soon as the ten Roys' feet touched the ground, five of them went limp like noodles, collapsing to the floor. Though not entirely successful, to Namikaze Minato, this was much more than what he could achieve with just two clones despite exerting all his effort...
"Clap clap clap..." A series of applause sounded...
Namikaze Minato's eyes shone brightly, just like when he tested Roy for the first time, witnessing his display of Light Release, he praised lavishly: "Splitting into ten clones on your first attempt, even if only five managed to stand,"
"Is quite an impressive feat..."
'Indeed... He really did succeed...' Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't remember how many years it had been since he saw anyone successfully perform the Clone Technique. The last time... seemed to be in his teenage years, when he first saw his teacher, Senju Tobirama, splitting into a hundred, holding off an entire opposing ninja army alone, buying precious time to escape for himself, Danzo, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado...
Sarutobi Hiruzen watched Roy intently, momentarily recalling his teacher saying to him and others, "I'm your teacher, so naturally, I will hold off the enemy..."
Thinking back, the glorious years are no longer...
"Puff... Puff... Puff..." Five Roys collapsed, the remaining four clones were wiped out by Roy and absorbed back into his body,
The young man's black hair swayed in the wind, he frowned and said, "This doesn't count as success,"
He opened and closed his eyes, not at all basked in joy as Minato praised, instead, he concentrated his spirit again, cautiously attempting to make his Nen aura more refined and accurate,
After a brief few breaths,
He opened his eyes again, solemnly declaring: "Clone Technique!"
This time, "Puff... Puff... Puff..." Twenty clones appeared, two of which collapsed, the success rate slightly higher than before,
But collapsing means failure!
Roy wasn't a perfectionist, but having embarked on this path, he needed to do his utmost within his abilities, and clearly... with the Clone experience and ample Nen amount assured,
Twenty collapsing two was nowhere near the limit,
'Again!' The young man furrowed his brows, not even glancing at Sarutobi Hiruzen and Namikaze Minato, he closed his eyes once more,
Afterwards... fifty collapsed three... one hundred collapsed four... two hundred collapsed five... five hundred collapsed six...
"Puff... Puff... Puff..." Nen vapors flared up and vanished, blooming and withering like flowers, incessantly with the passage of time... In a flash, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Namikaze Minato watched this scene, silently taken aback...
What terrifying growth speed is this?!
Was 'Ninjutsu' so easy to learn?
"Puff... Puff... Puff..." Another six hundred Roys emerged, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Namikaze Minato filled their vision with Roy's semblance, their pupils crowded full, unable to discern how many had collapsed this time...
But Roy knew,
At the moment the Nen disperses and lands, he already knew the answer—
It was four,
Six hundred, four collapsed,
Still need to continue!
"Puff... Puff... Puff..." Five hundred and ninety-nine clones were ruthlessly absorbed back into Roy's body,
The young one continued closing his eyes and forming seals,
Behind the desk,
Beside the window,
Only Sarutobi Hiruzen and Namikaze Minato, the present and future Hokage, remained silently, starting to feel somewhat disarrayed and lacking confidence...
"Puff... Puff... Puff..."
"Puff... Puff... Puff..."
In the morning, sunlight streamed through the window into the study, bringing a hint of brightness to the quiet room,
About ten minutes passed, after countless attempts, finally...
One thousand clones, zero collapsed, for the first time opened...
Konoha, in Sarutobi Hiruzen's residence, was instantly filled with countless Roys,
As Sarutobi Asuma returned with gifts, opening the courtyard door,
Suddenly, a courtyard full of Roys slowly turned to him,
The cigarette in the young man's mouth,
"Pfft~" dropped to the ground...