Jiraiya hadn't expected things to be this serious. If he'd known, he would have tried to contact Tsunade first. He wouldn't have come back at this moment—and now that Naruto and Fū knew, those two kids definitely wouldn't agree to go back.
He still asked, "Naruto, Fū, how about we return to Mount Myōboku?"
Naruto refused without hesitation. "Ero-sennin, with things this dire, how could we run away?"
Fū chimed in with a firm nod. "Yeah, yeah! Everyone's fighting. How could we hide? We can help too!"
An ANBU muttered under his breath, "Honestly, you two going back to Mount Myōboku would be the biggest help."
It was the truth. Akatsuki's current targets were the jinchūriki. If the jinchūriki weren't captured, that alone would be a victory—so the jinchūriki should hide on Mount Myōboku.
That place isn't easy to find. They could stall the enemy to death just by staying put.
Sure, not letting the jinchūriki fight was a waste and would leave them feeling guilty. But you have to think of the bigger picture. You can't ruin the world's affairs just to vent your feelings!
Unfortunately, Naruto and Fū weren't about to listen to that ANBU.
Even Jiraiya couldn't win against the two kids' stubbornness; no one else could control them either.
Right then, a member of the guard rushed in. "Bad news, Jiraiya-sama! Akatsuki is here!"
Nani?! How could they arrive so fast?!
And not even a hint of warning beforehand!
Jiraiya's face grew grim and he issued orders at once. "Mobilize every available force to provide support. I'll head to the fight in person! By the way, where did Akatsuki appear? How many of them are there?"
"Uh, at the main gate. And… just one person," came the quick reply.
"Eh? Just one? What's going on? Do we know who?"
"It's a blue-haired woman. Last time she came with Pain's Six Paths during the invasion. I think her name was Konan…"
"Konan!"
A bad feeling flashed through Jiraiya's chest.
He glanced toward Naruto and Fū—only to find them gone. He pressed a palm to his forehead. Those two had slipped off while he was distracted. [Most likely to go do something reckless[?].]
Kids like that are so hard to manage. Can't they be a little sensible?
Jiraiya hurried for the village gate.
At Konoha's main gate, Konan stood alone, motionless. She ignored the tense stares of the Leaf shinobi, simply waiting—for someone with the authority to speak.
Just then, Fū descended from the sky with Naruto.
The gate guards jumped in alarm and moved to block them. "Naruto! Fū! What are you doing here?! She's from Akatsuki! You're exactly who she's after! Get back!"
But both Naruto and Fū were headstrong, and a bit too confident in their own strength. Retreat wasn't in the cards.
The instant they landed, the two grew wary.
Naruto clenched his teeth, anger burning in his eyes. "Isn't Akatsuki trying to start the Fourth Shinobi World War? You showing up alone—do you think you can capture me by yourself?"
Konan looked at Naruto and said quietly, "I'm no longer a member of Akatsuki."
"You're lying!"
Naruto snapped back, furious. "You clearly took part in the last invasion of the Leaf—how are you not Akatsuki?!"
Fū, however, studied Konan and sensed sorrow in her eyes. There wasn't a hint of malice, nor any intention to fight. She quickly held Naruto back.
In a soft voice, she asked, "Then why did you come to the Leaf?"
Konan answered honestly, "I'm here to see Jiraiya-sensei."
Oh, so she came for Jiraiya—wait, huh?!
Naruto looked like he'd just heard the most impossible thing in the world. "You're saying Ero-sennin is… your sensei?! No way! How could Ero-sennin be your teacher?!"
Konan tilted her head. "By 'Ero-sennin' you mean Jiraiya-sensei? Mm, he really is quite pervy."
That silenced both Naruto and Fū.
Thankfully, Jiraiya arrived then. He saw Konan alone, exhaustion and sadness written across her face, and a terrible premonition surged up inside him.
His voice trembled. "Konan… why did you come alone? Where's Nagato?"
Tears welled up in Konan's eyes. "Nagato… is dead. He told me to find you, Jiraiya-sensei—he wanted to make amends for the wrongs he committed."
Jiraiya staggered back a few steps and fell heavily to the floor, pain twisting his expression.
He'd sworn he wouldn't let his students be hurt again. He'd sworn it loudly. Yet in the end, he'd still missed his chance to save Nagato. One by one, his students had slipped away from him…
It was his failure. He was so useless.
But at least… Konan was still here.
Forcing himself to hold back the grief, Jiraiya scrambled up and came to Konan's side. He reached out to wipe away her tears, gently stroking her hair—just as he had in the Land of Rain all those years ago, doting on his three disciples.
Konan broke down, throwing herself into Jiraiya's arms and sobbing.
Jiraiya's eyes grew red as well. He patted Konan's back even more tenderly.
Watching this, Naruto and Fū didn't know what to say. Seeing Jiraiya so heartbroken made them feel awful too.
They didn't really understand what was going on—why Konan was Jiraiya's student, why she'd taken part in the previous invasion, why things had turned out like this now.
So many mysteries—and it felt wrong to ask.
Remembering that the gate was no place to linger, Jiraiya brought Konan back to the Hokage's office. Naruto and Fū naturally followed.
As he poured water for Konan, Jiraiya spoke about how he'd taken disciples in the Land of Rain.
"During the Second Shinobi World War, I met three children in the Land of Rain and took them as my students. I spent three years teaching them ninjutsu. But then a mission took me away. When I heard news of them again, it was a tragedy—they were said to have died in the war. I never imagined they hadn't died after all, and that after certain twists of fate, they became the leaders of Akatsuki. But now…"
Naruto and Fū listened quietly, surprised by such a past.
They looked at Konan again.
During the last Akatsuki invasion, they hadn't actually seen Konan; they only heard accounts from other shinobi—how formidable she'd been, able to tangle with Shino for a long time.
Yet now, she looked like this. Who knew what she'd gone through, or why Nagato had died.
Only when Konan had calmed a little did Jiraiya ask, "Konan, tell me. What happened? Last time I saw Nagato, he was in bad shape, but not to the point of dying."
Konan took a deep breath, her expression turning solemn. "Jiraiya-sensei, Nagato's Rinnegan was—by Madara using the Mangekyō Sharingan […]."
(End of Chapter)
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