Jugo returned to Otogakure in a few minutes, wearing his tank top and black pants. He walked with his hands in his pockets through the village gate, looking around and feeling that it was still as peaceful and stable as ever.
The guards bowed when they saw him, their gazes filled with fervor, the civilians regarded him with even more reverence. Most there recognized Jugo's face and knew who had made this peaceful life possible.
Jugo walked for a few minutes, receiving some small gifts from the villagers, but soon returned to his tower, and with a leap, he landed on the open window of his office.
Guren was there, still dressed as a secretary, organizing reports. She looked up and saw him, her eyes shone with momentary relief and happiness, but her face remained serious. Jugo smiled and said. - I'm back.
-Finally... - She looked Jugo up and down.
Jugo, once in its calm state, exuded a peaceful and gentle energy, now it seemed not even to be there, its presence making everything else irrelevant. A profound contradiction defined the current Jugo, like the most striking part of a landscape, yet still, just a landscape.
Jugo ignored Guren's gaze and began separating the wooden clones.
Clones to monitor, clones to train, clones to manage...
But soon Jugo separated a few more clones, only a few, just 10.
But there was a clear difference with these clones, they weren't shadow clones or wood clones, but like white snakes, they emerged from Jugo's body before slowly becoming a copy of Jugo.
Jugo called this clone Snake Clone.
In terms of resistance, it's even greater than the wooden clones, but the best part is that they were like parts of Jugo's body, so even if they suffered injuries, they didn't disappear, but turned into white snakes when they died.
Furthermore, these clones could use some of the power of the Chained Pathway, as well as mystical artifacts from the world of LOTM, these clones were injected with the power of the Chained and could use its abilities for a time.
It wasn't permanent, but it didn't matter, they were just clones after all.
The ten clones merged with the wooden floor and quickly disappeared. They would serve as the last line of defense, their strength was as good as Madara's clones in the Fourth Shinobi World War. Then they separated and went to do different things.
The downside of these clones is that they need to be absorbed back in order for him to regain his memory, not just "die".
Furthermore, each clone places a burden on Jugo's mind, not being entirely separate identities. Even if his physical state is fine, the constant consumption of mental energy affects Jugo over time.
Thus, he limited the number of clones of this type, but even so, his superior strength still makes up for it.
Guren just watched, slightly surprised, but she didn't say anything.
Jugo watched the clones leave and turned to Guren. -And what about Suna?
-The first trade has already been made, the alliance between Oto and Suna has also been formed, but...- Guren paused a moment before continuing. -A delegation from Konoha has arrived.
Jugo paused for a moment, confused. -A delegation from Konoha? What do they want?
-Uchiha Sasuke. - Guren said, giving him a curious look.
Jugo frowned, confused for a moment, but the next moment he understood, originally, Otogakure was considered a village, but in reality, it was just a bunch of Orochimaru's hideouts.
Not only was finding one difficult, but Orochimaru could be hiding deep within any of them.
Now Otogakure is a single, open village, although Orochimaru's hideouts still exist. For those who wanted to know, it wasn't difficult to guess that Orochimaru was part of Otogakure, some even thought that Jugo was just a decoy for Orochimaru.
-Who came?- Jugo finally asked, curious.
-Jiraiya.- Guren pointed out, a little worried. She didn't know Jugo's full strength, although she had seen him defeat Orochimaru head-on. Jiraiya wasn't weak and any disagreement could start a war.
Jugo paused thoughtfully for a moment before speaking. -Alright, I'll meet him later. In the meantime, how's our guest Jinchuriki doing?
Guren's eyes looked a little strange as she coughed lightly. -Well, he's fine, he didn't try to run away again, but...
Jugo raised an eyebrow without hurrying it.
-He and Tayuya have been showing themselves to be very... close.- Guren said cautiously.
-Tayuya? - Jugo's eyes widened slightly, recognizing the temperament of that violent girl, if she weren't a werewolf, she probably wouldn't even look at Jugo kindly.
Jugo wasn't interested in her, after all, she was a werewolf, her will completely focused on his interests. Having any kind of relationship with her was strange, but even as a werewolf, except when it came to Jugo, werewolves still had their own personalities.
It wasn't unusual for one of them to fall in love, but Tayuya didn't seem like the type of girl who fell in love easily.
-Well, they're not actually dating or anything like that, it's just that according to the reports, Tayuya has been acting strangely around him, not yelling as much, asking for more watch shifts, walking around the village with him...- Guren explained.
Jugo nodded before saying. -Maybe something's happening, maybe not, let's wait and see. Maybe Utakata will change his mind. If not, let's extract the Bijuu. With Kisho Tensei, he won't die anyway.
//-//
Jiraiya didn't come alone, he was accompanied by a whole delegation consisting of Kakashi, Guy and Asuma.
Even so, this didn't stop him from returning to his old hobbies, looking for a hot spring or a public bathing as soon as he arrived, but he soon discovered that all the public bathing were covered!
Even when he tried to make a small hole to look, he discovered that there were thick sheets of metal between the wooden walls!
Jiraya almost screamed in frustration. -Who the hell designed this kind of infernal bathhouse?
It was only a few days later that a warning came from a ninja of Otogakure. Their leader was waiting for him.
Jiraiya, who was already bored with the place, quickly gathered his squad and went to the building in the center of the village.
Kakashi seemed relaxed, but his posture indicated that he was always ready for combat. Guy walked around full of "youthful" energy and Asuma smoked a cigarette, as vigilant as Kakashi, but he let it show much more easily.
Jiraiya walked calmly ahead, a slight smile on his face as he smiled at any pretty woman who passed by. The Jonin from Otogakure quickened his pace, slightly embarrassed by the man.
Finally, the group met in Jugo's office.
Jugo was seated at his desk, Guren dressed as a secretary stood beside him, holding a clipboard. There were no other ninjas protecting him, he saw no need for them, but there were five of his snake clones fused with the wood of the room.
Not that he needed to, but he preferred to act like a boss who didn't even need to move.
As soon as he entered the room, the trio behind Jiraiya were surprised, they hadn't felt any gaze in the dark, there was no protection for Jugo. This could only mean two things, either Jugo was an idiot or he was overconfident.
Judging by what they heard, they thought it was the second option.
Jiraya, on the other hand, lost his smile as soon as he entered. Having learned the Sage Mode, even if incomplete, he was very sensitive to Natural Energy.
Jugo not only seemed like a natural powerhouse, but Jiraiya could sense that his current state was no different from his own when he entered Sage Mode, even stronger!
There wasn't any specific change in Jugo's face, but that alone made everything more frightening. Jugo, sitting there, was in sage mode, but he didn't even seem to be trying to be, he just saw the same kind of situation in the sage frog!
Jiraiya narrowed his eyes, his posture becoming more restrained. He knew well how powerful Sage Mode was and at that moment he knew that fighting was not an option to get Sasuke out of here.