The Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Jiraiya for a while, then withdrew the hand from his shoulder and said cautiously:
"ANBU has many important tasks, but do you really want to go out on a mission at this time? You can stay in the village for a while..."
Jiraiya shook his head. "I think ANBU missions are more important, and I can't become a knife pointed at my own people."
Hearing this, the Third Hokage returned to his seat with a blank expression, took out a task scroll from the drawer, and tossed it to Jiraiya:
"This is a long-term S-rank mission. You can go wherever you want, and you can come back anytime."
Jiraiya took the scroll and left the Hokage's office without looking back.
After the door closed, the Third Hokage took out his pipe, looked at the portraits of the previous Hokage not far away, and puffed out smoke one after another, trying to numb himself with nicotine.
Since Tsunade left and Orochimaru defected, he had already lost the trust of another student.
But even so, he still couldn't deal with Danzo Shimura. Once Danzo was gone, stains would inevitably appear on him. Hokage must remain bright and spotless—otherwise, other ninjas would start doubting the Hokage himself.
"Let's delay it a little longer…"
"When the new leaves grow, Konoha will return to its former glory…"
After leaving the Hokage Building, Jiraiya was not followed by ANBU. Any tracking tricks were meaningless in front of one of the Sannin. After a short while, he arrived at a remote, uninhabited forest.
Kakashi Hatake had already been waiting there. When he saw Jiraiya, he smiled and said,
"Jiraiya-sama, did you manage to persuade the Third Hokage?"
Jiraiya didn't answer, but his expression said everything.
Kakashi sighed inwardly. Although he had opposed Jiraiya presenting evidence to bring down Danzo, he still hoped the Third Hokage would deal with him. That way, they wouldn't keep running into walls every time they tried to act.
But reality slapped them in the face.
The Third Hokage had no intention of touching Danzo.
Not only did it show that the Third Hokage valued personal bonds—it also meant he was unwilling to let go of the past and face the future. At this rate, the village had no chance of being reborn like a phoenix.
Maybe… only by changing the Hokage could this rotten situation be fixed.
But could Jiraiya really become the Fifth Hokage?
Kakashi used to be confident.
Now… he wasn't so sure.
As if reading Kakashi's thoughts, Jiraiya slowly said,
"The old man has no intention of dealing with Danzo, nor does he plan to hand the Hokage position to me. He's probably worried I'll clean up that bastard the moment I take the seat."
"Kakashi, should I have made my stance clearer about dealing with Danzo?"
Kakashi shook his head with a faint smile.
"Jiraiya-sama, your persuasion still worked. At least you've given up unrealistic expectations and set a goal—to become the Fifth Hokage. That's enough."
"Besides… you're younger than the Third Hokage. That's your biggest advantage."
Jiraiya blinked, slightly stunned.
Was he really that unreliable in Kakashi's eyes?
Still, he could sense it—Kakashi's hostility toward his former teacher and Danzo was growing stronger. A few years ago, Jiraiya would've corrected that thinking immediately.
But now…
His mindset had changed too.
Neither the Third Hokage nor Danzo represented Konoha.
They were just parts of it. Nothing more.
After a brief pause, Jiraiya asked,
"Kakashi, what's next? Do we keep collecting evidence on Danzo… or do something else?"
Kakashi didn't answer directly. Instead, he changed the topic:
"Jiraiya-sama, have you heard about the recent battle in the Land of Waves? One side was Naruto… and the other was the leader of the Akatsuki organization."
Jiraiya froze for a moment at that familiar name.
Akatsuki…
An organization founded by Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
He had believed those three died over a decade ago.
Yet recently, the name kept resurfacing like a ghost that refused to stay buried.
"I've heard of Akatsuki. If they can match Naruto, then they're definitely strong."
Kakashi gave a faint, knowing smile.
"It seems you don't fully understand how terrifying they are…"
"A few years ago, the masked man who attacked Konoha was part of Akatsuki. Sasori of the Red Sand and Orochimaru are also members. And if someone can lead a group of S-rank missing-nin like that… their strength is beyond imagination."
"According to incomplete intelligence, the leader of Akatsuki possesses the Rinnegan—the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths."
At the mention of the Rinnegan, Jiraiya's expression turned serious.
"The Rinnegan? That's Nagato's eyes. Why would they appear on someone else? Are they… not dead?"
Kakashi shrugged.
"I don't know. But if the leader of Akatsuki really is your student… our situation might become a hell of a lot more complicated."
Jiraiya narrowed his eyes and suddenly looked at Kakashi sharply.
"Where did you get this information? You've been in the village this whole time—there's no way you should have access to intel like this."
Kakashi smiled mysteriously.
"Jiraiya-sama, this is information the higher-ups already have… they just didn't tell you."
"As for how I got it… I spent ten years in ANBU. You pick up a few tricks."
Jiraiya fell silent.
So… the Third Hokage had been wary of him all along.
But a new doubt soon surfaced.
If the leader of Akatsuki really was Nagato… why would he clash with Naruto?
There was no direct conflict of interest between them.
Unless… Nagato had his own plans falling apart.
After digesting everything, Jiraiya felt as if the world he once knew had been a complete illusion.
How many truths had been hidden from him?
How many lies had he unknowingly lived with?
Letting out a deep sigh, Jiraiya said,
"Looks like I need to leave the village and investigate this myself. Kakashi, stay here and be careful. Don't get dragged into trouble because of me."
Kakashi waved it off with a relaxed smile.
"Thank you for your concern, Jiraiya-sama, but the higher-ups won't touch me. There aren't many elite jonin like me—clean background, no clan backing. I'm too useful to get rid of."
With that, he watched Jiraiya leave the forest.
Afterward, Kakashi casually went into town, bought some saury, picked up a new magazine, and headed home.
The house was just as familiar as ever.
He lay down on the tatami and started reading.
After finishing Make-Out Paradise, Kakashi glanced at the Flying Thunder God kunai in his living room—and noticed something new beside it.
A scroll.
It had clearly been delivered via the Flying Thunder God Technique, sealed with Konoha's standard sealing method.
And the information he had just told Jiraiya?
Yeah… it all came from that scroll.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
I upload 2 chapters daily on Patreon!
There are 150+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
📢 Check out my new Naruto fanfic!
[One Piece: Pirate Chat Group]