At the Uchiha compound.
When Jiraiya arrived, the great gates were already open. Natsuki was standing there with a smile, as if waiting just for him.
"Yo, Jiraiya-sama, you're here. I've been expecting you for quite some time."
Jiraiya felt as though a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head. Expecting me? Is he deliberately provoking me?
He narrowed his eyes. "Uchiha Natsuki, you knew I'd come?"
Natsuki nodded. "I was worried you wouldn't, so I had someone distribute those flyers to lure you out."
Jiraiya no longer dared to underestimate Natsuki. He simply asked in a low voice, "Why are you targeting me?"
Natsuki waved his hand. "Targeting? No, no. Everything I said was true."
"You—!" Jiraiya had just opened his mouth when Natsuki's expression suddenly turned cold.
"What, can't handle it? The grievances my clan has endured all these years aren't even a fraction of what you're feeling now.
"During the Nine-Tails' rampage, you were away on a mission and didn't return. It was us Uchiha who evacuated villagers, yet we were the ones hated for it. Why is it you came back unscathed?"
"Just because you're the Third Hokage's student, right? Otherwise, who's to say you weren't deliberately avoiding the Nine-Tails' attack?"
Jiraiya let out a long breath, then chuckled bitterly. "So you resent me for that? Are you out of your mind?"
Natsuki rolled his eyes. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm simply telling you this: we Uchiha are moving out of the village because we no longer want ties with you people.
"No matter what we do—right or wrong—we get blamed. We're tired. We've given up all power in Konoha. We don't care about the Hokage's seat, so stop testing us."
Jiraiya hadn't expected Natsuki to be so blunt. Scratching his head, he muttered, "If that's the case, you could've just said it outright. Why drag me into this mess?"
Natsuki shrugged. "I didn't set you up. You got caught peeping on your own. How's that my fault?"
Jiraiya's face flushed red, then pale, then red again. Finally, he huffed.
Still, he decided to carry out the mission Hiruzen had given him. "I hear your Susanoo is unrivaled. Care for a little spar?"
Natsuki didn't refuse.
"I've also heard tales of the Toad Sage dominating battlefields. I'd like to see it for myself."
"Let's head to the training grounds."
Natsuki led the way. He had long known this fight was inevitable, and had already cleared the compound of other Uchiha.
When they stood opposite each other, Natsuki raised a single finger and formed the seal of confrontation.
"Oh?" Jiraiya's expression shifted, and he too formed the seal.
Natsuki struck first. Forming rapid hand seals, he spat out a Great Fireball and charged alongside it.
Jiraiya pressed his hands together.
Ninja Art: Needle Jizō!
His long white hair expanded, wrapping around him to block the flames.
Then, with another change of seals—Wild Lion's Mane Technique! White strands lashed out like whips.
Natsuki met them with kunai, sparks flying. He hurled one, but Jiraiya kicked it aside.
The two clashed directly, Natsuki's powerful kick blocked by Jiraiya's arm. With a twist, Jiraiya sent him flying.
Mid-air, Natsuki threw shuriken in quick succession. They collided mid-flight, ricocheting into new angles, sealing off Jiraiya's escape paths.
Jiraiya's eyes narrowed. Uchiha shurikenjutsu…
"Summoning Technique!"
With a puff, Gamaken appeared, raising his shield to protect himself and Jiraiya.
Natsuki's hands blurred. "Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire!"
Shuriken ignited mid-flight, blazing like fiery petals. Gamaken grunted, spinning his tessen and shield desperately to block them, barely holding on.
Jiraiya burst forth from behind, a glowing Rasengan forming in his hand.
Natsuki ducked low, ramming into his chest—but Jiraiya's hair shield absorbed the impact. Natsuki's kunai angled for his jaw, even as the Rasengan threatened to strike.
At the last moment, Jiraiya compressed his frame, stomping hard and kicking Natsuki away.
Gamaken, battered by fiery shuriken, groaned. His shield and spear were full of cracks. "I'm too clumsy for this—!" With a puff, he disappeared.
As Natsuki reeled from the kick, Jiraiya puffed out his chest. Fire Style: Flame Bullet!
Flames engulfed Natsuki—
But he burst into a cloud of crows, cawing as they swarmed Jiraiya.
"Crow Clone Technique…"
Jiraiya quickly summoned another toad wielding twin blades. The toad cut down the birds, dispersing them into smoke.
From the haze, Natsuki appeared, spitting out a Dragon Fire Jutsu!
Flames roared forward—only to hit an earthen clone. The real Jiraiya rose behind him, Swamp of the Underworld!
The ground beneath Natsuki turned to muck, dragging him down.
His Mangekyō spun. Susanoo!
With a crash, the skeletal giant burst forth, tearing free of the mire.
But oil splattered over its frame.
"Fire Style: Giant Flame Bomb!"
The blaze ignited the oil, setting Susanoo ablaze. Natsuki immediately dispelled it and slipped out through a gap, retreating in a blur.
He landed, panting, and raised a hand. "I surrender."
He was drained. The chakra expenditure had been immense.
Jiraiya dispelled the Rasengan he had been preparing, frowning slightly. "Your Susanoo—it can grow larger, can't it?"
Natsuki plopped onto the ground unceremoniously. "Not with the chakra I've got."
The earlier techniques—especially the crow clone and dragon fire—had eaten up most of his reserves. Susanoo demanded both chakra and ocular power.
Jiraiya judged silently. He held back… and I didn't even use Sage Mode. If we went all out, I could probably win.
Susanoo demanded immense chakra. Its time limit was short.
He approached as Natsuki got back on his feet. They exchanged the Seal of Reconciliation.
Then Natsuki simply lay down flat.
"If you can drop that peeping-habit of yours, maybe we could even be friends."
Hands behind his head, he gazed up lazily.
In Natsuki's eyes, Jiraiya was still too frivolous—womanizing, unfocused, irresponsible. If he had truly dedicated himself to hunting down Orochimaru, that snake would never have gotten away with building his forces for so long.
Today's bout had been a test. Compared to his dream duels with Shisui and others, Jiraiya's style was direct, reliant on massive ninjutsu exchanges—less finesse than an Uchiha's.
But Natsuki also realized his own shortcomings. His chakra reserves were pitiful compared to top-tier fighters. Unless he ended battles swiftly, he would lose against stamina monsters.
Jiraiya hadn't even used Sage Mode, nor summoned the two elder toads.
If this had been to the death, Natsuki would've gone straight into higher-stage Susanoo. Even without awakening new ocular powers, its brute force would've been overwhelming.
But his chakra remained a fatal flaw. Susanoo was a bottomless drain.
Still, after the fight, Jiraiya sensed something: Natsuki's combat rhythm and intent weren't those of an ambitious schemer.
He sat cross-legged, a bit weary himself.
"What do you think of Konoha?"
Natsuki shook his head. "None of my business. Whether Konoha thrives or falls—it has nothing to do with me. As long as no one messes with the Uchiha, we just want to build our businesses, give our people—many of whom are civilians—a better life."
Rested, Natsuki rose and walked back toward the compound. "I've got things to do. I won't see you out."
Jiraiya frowned, watching his back with a pensive gaze.
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