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Chapter 4 - Old Faces - II

Hidden Leaf Village - Hokage's Office

"No."

"But—"

Tsunade raised a hand, silencing him. "It's not that I disagree with the profits your business shall give to the Leaf, but rather the business itself. The daimyo and his court have imposed heavy punishment on those who participate in narcotics. If there was a leak that our village's shinobi were taking part in it by guarding such institutions, it would deal a heavy blow to us both financially and in reputation, in time, of course. Maybe not immediately, but surely within a few years."

Interlacing her fingers and placing them above her mouth, the Fifth Hokage continued in a lighter and apologetic tone. "So, I am sorry to disappoint you, but I must reject your offer. Try other villages and see if they agree. I have heard Suna is rather lax in their laws recently."

The man bowed, shook her hand, and left the office; the only sign of his dissatisfaction was the annoyed twitches of his fingers. The door shut with a polite creak.

"I see you have settled well into that hat, princess."

Tsunade smiled widely at that voice. "And I see you have returned early..." She spun her chair towards the man who hung upside down, his clownish visage seen through her window. "Jiraiya!"

"Good morning to you, too, princess," the man gave her a thumbs up. A quick body flicker, and he was in her office. She swiveled her chair to face him.

"Where is Naruto?" she asked the first question on her mind. Her lip curled upwards as she remembered that yellow-haired, optimistic fool, the same brat who made her take up the most tedious job in the entirety of Konoha. She wondered how Mr. Charisma was doing.

Jiraiya scratched his chin and gave a nervous smile. "Ah, well..."

______________________________________________________________________

"Alright! Konohamaru, that jutsu is weak. Allow me to demonstrate!"

"Yes, boss!"

"Of course, boss!"

A salute. "It would be an honor, boss!"

"Behold my new, ultra-perverted ninjutsu!"

*Poof*

A beat. Then—

"Woah—"

"That's amazing—"

"Boss, your genius dwarfs all the Hokages combined."

__________________________________________________________________________________

Tsunade sighed and shook her head. "You know what, I don't want to know. He hasn't matured at all, has he? Your influence, I'm guessing?"

Jiraiya face-faulted at her words, his playful expression replaced with a sullen and defeated look. "No faith in me, princess? Here I am, the hermit of Mount Myoboku, the great and wise toad sage, the—"

"I've heard that a million times," the slug ninja waved a dismissive hand. Her face shifted into a cold, impassive mask. "I spoke with the messenger toad you sent me. He said it was something serious, so can we get on to the main topic?"

In an instant, the jovial and carefree demeanor of Jiraiya dissipated into thin air. His once relaxed posture straightened, and his eyes, once filled with warmth and mirth, now turned as cold as a tundra. "The elder toad sage said that the old prophecy in which there will be a child, that shall restore peace through cooperation, love... is rendered void and untrue."

What?

That was impossible, inconceivable, unthinkable—

How?—

Tsunade got up from her chair, her face the picture of shock. "How?! Didn't you say that so far all of his predictions have come true?"

"It did. Every future event he told me or the toads always came true, my summons can attest to that." He hadn't believed the old codger's ramblings at first, so the ancient sage had told him a few future outcomes, all proven truthful within a year or two. Since then, he never doubted the large toad… until now.

"I… see." She most certainly did not see.

"But now?" Jiraiya walked slowly towards the open window, a somber expression on his face. He sighed, "Sometimes I feel like it was all just a waste."

Tsunade frowned, confused. "What do you mean?"

With a heavy heart, Jiraiya turned to face her, his eyes carrying the weight of his thoughts. "Never mind. There's something else the Great Toad Sage revealed to me - a different prophecy. I'm simplifying this a bit, but he mentioned that another figure will emerge, one who will bring about peace by dismantling the current system. Those in positions of authority - like us - won't survive, and this person will forge a new, pristine future. The sage mentioned that the one who shall accomplish this feat possesses the eyes of God."

"A child with the eyes of God?" Tsunade reiterated. She racked her brain for anyone who had such powerful visual prowess. "My grandfather fought Madara, and he often described him as the Uchiha with the most powerful eyes. But he is dead."

Her eyes widened as she recalled two other individuals who had the same eyes as Konoha's most powerful traitor. "Wait, you fought Itachi, didn't you? Could he be the one?"

Jiraiya shrugged, uncertainty clouding his features. "Maybe. But if he possessed such god-like powers in his eyes, he wouldn't have fled from me the way he did. However, there's another issue. Remember those three kids from the Hidden Rain I trained? One of them had the Rinnegan."

This day was just full of shocking revelations after revelations. "Rinnegan?! Isn't that just a myth, some sort of folklore?"

Jiraiya's expression turned serious, his eyes narrowing as he spoke with conviction. "I thought so too until I saw it with my own eyes. However, there's a problem with that. Nagato, the one with the Rinnegan, was my student, and the Great Toad Sage made it very clear that the person he had envisioned is not my student."

"Then who could it be?"

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