In his previous life, Jiraiya infiltrated Amegakure Village alone to obtain intelligence about the Akatsuki Organization. In the end, due to a lack of information, he met his defeat at Pain's hands.
Though the end came abruptly, it still left a deep impression and lingering memories.
Saitama stood motionless on the balcony as cold wind sneaked in from outside, battering against his body.
He wasn't wearing a coat, just a form-fitting black combat suit that fully revealed the muscular lines of his upper body; for the lower body, he wore slightly loose training pants—his regular workout attire, which allowed perfect execution of many high-difficulty movements.
Saitama had complete faith in Jiraiya's combat strength. If it were only Kakuzu and Zetsu, they would find it hard to threaten him. As for Hidan, Jiraiya probably wouldn't even give him a chance to attack.
In Saitama's memory, Jiraiya was hailed as the peak of all ninja—a supreme example of what a ninja without Kekkei Genkai could achieve. Everything he possessed was earned through relentless training and cultivation.
Of course, luck also played a part—like signing the contract with Mount Myoboku.
This was also one reason why Jiraiya reached such heights. Mount Myoboku gave him another opportunity to improve himself, and he seized that chance wholeheartedly.
"Heh, life and death are fate, fortune and rank are up to heaven!"
Exhaling slowly, Saitama walked toward the coat rack, took down his clothes, and began dressing.
...
Since Sunagakure Village, Iwagakure, and Konoha reached an agreement, the three parties have been searching along the route from Sunagakure Village to the River Country for any traces previously left behind by Saitama and Sasori.
The place where Saitama faced off against Rasa was near the border of the Land of Wind and the River Country. They suspected the enemy's goal couldn't be far off—perhaps near the River Country. So the three village teams began combing the area.
During this period, with the help of ninja animals and tracking ninjutsu, they did discover some traces.
Though much of the evidence had already been largely eroded by natural forces over time, following these clues with extreme patience and perseverance eventually led them to the River Country.
But once here, every clue completely disappeared.
So recently, the search teams fell into a state of frustration, without the slightest lead.
On Konoha's side, the operation involved Kakashi—one of Minato's disciples—and other young jonin and chunin from Konoha.
Sunagakure Village's team was led by a jonin named Baki. Though he appeared quite old, he was actually barely in his early twenties.
Iwagakure was represented by a well-known jonin leading their squad.
Though the three groups operated in the same general area, most of the time they worked independently without interfering with each other, simply sharing intelligence when needed.
Coming from three different villages, they lacked real trust or coordination, and no one had authority over ninja from other villages. To minimize problems, they chose this style of collaboration.
"Kakashi, I smell something strange—it feels oddly familiar!"
Under Kakashi's feet stood his boss summon, Pakkun.
Wearing a forehead protector, Pakkun rubbed his nose with a paw and said to Kakashi, "Found anything?" Kakashi crouched down, his silver hair fluttering slightly. "What did you find?"
Behind Kakashi were several ninjas who had accompanied him on this mission. They were Might Guy, a taijutsu expert; Kurenai Yuhi, a genjutsu specialist; and Ebisu, who knew a little of everything.
Among the four, Kakashi and Might Guy were jonin. Kurenai and Ebisu were chunin, but their actual combat strength could rival many weaker jonin.
As Hokage, Minato saw great potential in Might Guy and made no secret of how much he valued him. A year ago, he'd promoted Might Guy to jonin, giving him the freedom to manage his own schedule and operate independently.
Though only chunin, Kurenai and Ebisu complemented the team well alongside Kakashi and Might Guy, creating a more balanced and effective squad dynamic.
Since both Kakashi and Might Duy weren't skilled in genjutsu, Kurenai filled this gap for the team. Also, as the only female member, she brought vitality to the otherwise male-dominated group.
As for Ebisu, despite coming from a civilian background and having somewhat scattered training, he served as the essential glue of the team. His broad but shallow knowledge made him a jack-of-all-trades on the team.
Pakkun crouched low and sniffed the air. "Not too clear," he said. "But there's something oddly familiar in the scent."
They had already ventured deep into the River Country tracking enemies but now had completely lost all traces.
"Then let's go check it out! We don't have any other clues anyway!" Kakashi turned back toward his three teammates who were watching him expectantly, issuing his command.
Though the youngest among them, Kakashi was actually the most experienced ninja and thus the leader of the team with final authority.
Might Guy wore his green one-piece spandex suit with a ninja vest over it. He didn't object at all, his eyes full of determination. All that boring searching lately had really been eating at him.
Kurenai pursed her lips and nodded. She'd always trusted Kakashi's decisions and respected how quickly he could make them.
Right now, the mission had hit a dead end. They had no choice but to move forward carefully — with no idea what lay ahead.
"No objection from me! I'll follow Kakashi's plan!" Ebisu, wearing sunglasses, pushed up his glasses resting on his nose with his right index finger, expressing his stance.
"Good then," Kakashi continued issuing orders after receiving his teammates' opinions, signaling Pakkun to lead the way. "Pakkun will take point. Ebisu, you send word to the others about our position. We'll follow Pakkun to see what's ahead."
Ebisu quickly pulled out his own ninja pigeon to inform the other teams about their movements.
"Follow me, it might be a long way!" Hearing Kakashi's words, Pakkun nodded, straightened his body, sniffed the air, and started moving forward.
...
Boom! Two massive walls of flame continuously collided, burning intensely.
This was not just a contest of chakra—it was also a fierce battle of ninjutsu.
Very quickly, it seemed the outcome had already emerged.
On Jiraiya's side, flames surged forward relentlessly, suppressing Kakuzu's flames and forcing them into retreat.
"Hmph!" Kakuzu clasped both hands together, his body beginning to tremble.
Although the Mask Beast was releasing the ninja technique, Kakuzu himself still controlled the chakra and crucial details.
Being suppressed by Jiraiya's technique naturally made him feel quite uncomfortable.
His jade-green eyes shimmered coldly. Kakuzu had already begun considering withdrawal.
Another Mask Beast stepped forward. Kakuzu's gaze flickered briefly toward Hidan standing behind him.
"Little Jiraiya, put in more effort!" The words of Sage Shima echoed in Jiraiya's ears.
Facing the surging flames, Jiraiya took another deep breath and spewed forth even fiercer flames from his mouth.
Boom! Driven by this surge, the flames advanced faster, seemingly ready to swallow the enemy whole.
"Damn it!" Kakuzu began regretting not leaving immediately when he first encountered Jiraiya.
He hadn't expected that even with multiple hearts and the ability to freely combine techniques at the level of ninjutsu, he would still be completely overwhelmed by Jiraiya.
As for his teammate Hidan, he had already become merely an extra in this battle, unable to cause any real damage.
Counting silently to himself, Kakuzu cut off the chakra output to his ninjutsu.
Boom! Flames instantly surged over, effortlessly consuming the spot where Kakuzu had just stood.
Hidan had dodged aside a few seconds earlier. He might've been reckless, but that didn't make him dumb.
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