At the gates of Konoha.
A tall, burly man with white hair—Jiraiya—looked up toward the Uchiha compound. The area had already been renovated under the Third Hokage's orders.
The old Uchiha residences were gone, replaced only by layers of walls.
Now, the Uchiha clan had moved even farther out from the village.
"Uchiha Natsuki… Mangekyō…" Jiraiya muttered the name to himself, then stepped into Konoha.
—
Inside the Uchiha compound.
"Lord Natsuki, the Hyūga Clan just sent word," Uchiha Qiming reported.
"Jiraiya has returned to the village."
"Oh?" Natsuki, who was inspecting the defensive perception barrier, straightened up.
Maintaining good relations with the Hyūga was paying off—any disturbances along the patrol perimeter would be passed to the Uchiha first-hand.
"Understood. I'll leave the rest of the inspection to you."
Natsuki had already assigned Qiming to oversee the barrier's daily upkeep. Once Qiming, Izumi, and Daichi became familiar with it, he had selected a few more talented clansmen to train as backups for rotation.
As for Jiraiya, Natsuki knew him well, and even admired him to some extent. But his moral conduct was far too questionable. Since the Third had summoned Jiraiya back, he would surely go visit Naruto.
Natsuki could not allow Jiraiya to lead Naruto astray.
With a few quick leaps, he headed for the Police Force.
Not long after, he emerged again, tucking a scroll into his robes.
—
"Old man, I'm back!" Jiraiya barged into the Hokage's office carelessly.
The Third Hokage had already received word of his return. Jiraiya's sloppy attitude no longer surprised him.
Without even looking up from his paperwork, the Hokage asked, "Any news of Orochimaru?"
Jiraiya scratched his nose, slightly embarrassed. Though officially tasked with pursuing Orochimaru, he had long since grown lax, preferring to "collect materials" at hot springs.
Slouching in his chair, he replied, "Nope. Only know he fled north. Where exactly, I couldn't say."
At that, the Hokage finally raised his head, lit his pipe, and drew in deeply.
With some weariness, he said, "Konoha is in troubled times. Since you've returned, stay for now."
Jiraiya looked at his teacher's aged face, his smile fading.
In just a few short years, the Hokage seemed to have aged ten more. None of his former heroic vigor remained.
Sensei… had truly grown old.
"Old man, how did you get this worn out?" Jiraiya's voice carried a strange mix of sadness, worry, and anger.
"Hmph!" The Hokage's irritation flared at those words. He knocked his pipe against the desk.
"If you had been willing to shoulder this burden, would I have had to grow old like this?"
Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Old man, you know I don't like this kind of work."
Knowing Jiraiya's temperament, the Hokage didn't press further, instead shifting the topic to the Uchiha.
"Did you see their new compound on your way in?"
Jiraiya nodded. "Why did they move so far away?"
The Hokage sighed helplessly. "We oppressed the Uchiha too harshly before. Add Danzō's actions to that, and now they want nothing to do with Konoha."
The truth about Danzō coveting Shisui's eyes, gouging them out, and nearly driving the Uchiha to full rebellion had, after so long, spread across the entire ninja world.
Now, even the most remote nations had heard. Konoha's Hokage faction had become a laughingstock among the villages.
Whether on missions or in business abroad, Konoha shinobi were mocked over this incident.
Naturally, Jiraiya had heard the news. He had never looked kindly upon Danzō.
He even suspected that Orochimaru's defection might have been connected to Danzō—but the old fox had covered his tracks too well.
Fortunately, the Hokage had now ordered Root disbanded.
"Still, leaving the Uchiha isolated outside the village doesn't seem right either," Jiraiya said.
The Hokage spread his hands helplessly. "Nothing can be done. The Uchiha just offered us a major gift, and they've shown no intent of rebellion.
"They even handed over all authority of the Police Force. On what grounds could I force them back inside the village?"
Jiraiya scratched his head—matters like these were never his strong suit. "Well, I don't have a solution either."
The Hokage shook his head. "The Uchiha now have two Mangekyō Sharingan users. There's no one left in Konoha who can restrain them."
"Mangekyō…" As one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya understood its power well.
"Old man, you don't mean to have me test Uchiha Natsuki, do you?" Jiraiya asked.
The Hokage replied helplessly, "Do you expect me to go myself?"
Jiraiya sighed. "Alright, I'll find a chance."
"I'm going for a walk!" Without waiting for a response, he vanished out the window in a flicker.
The Hokage took a long drag from his pipe, then bent back over his paperwork.
—
"Ahhh! Pervert!"
Screams rang out as countless women rushed out of a hot springs inn.
Jiraiya, who had claimed he was "going for a walk," had in fact slipped into the women's baths to gather "research" for his books.
Unfortunately, members of the Hyūga clan happened to be inside at the time, and he was immediately discovered.
He had no choice but to flee.
News of a peeping tom at the hot springs spread quickly.
Nearby, the Hyūga patrol unit soon arrived, just in time to see a white-haired man in red clothing being chased by a furious mob.
"Beat that pervert to death!"
"Don't let him escape!"
Among the crowd, patrol leader Hyūga Yuto spotted his younger sister. Alarmed, he rushed forward.
"Aiko, what happened!?"
Hyūga Aiko turned her head, still running, and explained breathlessly.
"I was relaxing at the hot springs with some friends. Then I heard this disgusting laugh, used my Byakugan, and saw him peeping from the wall!"
Yuto's rage erupted. How long had it been since Konoha saw such a pervert? Did he think the Police Force didn't exist!?
He immediately launched into pursuit.
But the man ahead was incredibly fast. With just a few leaps, he left the civilians behind.
Only Yuto, his sister, and their teammates kept up, bounding across the rooftops.
Just as the distance began to widen, several Root operatives suddenly blocked their path.
Helplessly, they could only watch as the peeping pervert vanished into the distance.
---
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