Four Against Jiraiya

Yes, the young man who had appeared was none other than Jiraiya, the Mentor Teacher Soji and the other three had been waiting so long for.

At that moment, any thoughts of giving him a show of strength were thrown to the back of their minds.

Come on, Jiraiya was going to be their Mentor Teacher. They would have gladly waited another day and night for him!

"But Jiraiya-sensei, how did you suddenly become our Mentor Teacher? Weren't you still on the front lines?" Of the four, Minato Namikaze was undoubtedly the happiest.

Minato was already Jiraiya's disciple. Now that Jiraiya had become his Mentor Teacher as well, he would definitely receive the best care from now on.

Unlike the other three, Minato was Jiraiya's personal disciple, while Soji and the others were merely one group of students Jiraiya would guide. The two situations could not be compared.

"Ah, I got tired of fighting on the front lines, so I came back to rest for a couple of years. And while I'm at it, I'll teach you lot." Jiraiya spoke casually and stretched lazily.

This only made Soji and the others suspect once again that Jiraiya had simply overslept.

In truth, recalling Jiraiya had been the Third Hokage's decision.

Their squad was simply too special. Even an Elite Jonin might not be able to keep them in line.

After much consideration, it was safer to have Jiraiya serve as their Mentor Teacher in order to protect Kushina Uzumaki.

Over the next few years, the battlefronts against the four major ninja villages would be handled separately by Hatake Sakumo, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Shimura Danzō.

"Now then, to assess you four little brats, let me see what you can do." After leading the four out of the classroom, Jiraiya brought them all the way to the Forest of Death on the edge of the village.

This forest was said to have been created by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, using Wood Release. Though it looked frightening and gloomy, none of them were remotely flustered.

They exchanged glances and nodded at one another. After so many years together, they were extremely familiar with each other.

"Then, Jiraiya-sensei, here we come."

After saying that, Minato immediately drew two Shuriken from his ninja tool pouch and threw them at Jiraiya, then formed a hand seal.

Ninja Art—Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu

In an instant, dozens of Shuriken sealed off Jiraiya's paths to either side.

Jiraiya showed no intention of dodging and was immediately riddled with Shuriken like a porcupine.

Not good!

Minato thought to himself, then leaped high into the air. He had sensed movement beneath the ground.

Earth Style—Double Suicide Decapitation Technique

A hand reached out from the spot Minato had jumped away from, while the distant Jiraiya had already turned into a log.

What a fast Substitution Technique. I didn't even see him form seals. Soji silently marveled at the sight. As expected of a Kage-level powerhouse.

He did not just stand there watching. He charged directly at Jiraiya.

Beside him, Kushina Uzumaki and Uchiha Homura were each forming hand seals, preparing to unleash ninjutsu.

Fire Style—Flower Phoenix Fire Technique

Uchiha Homura was the first to unleash his ninjutsu.

One small fireball after another flew toward Jiraiya while avoiding Soji.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

Jiraiya remained completely calm. He strolled leisurely between the fireballs, dodging every one of them while actively closing in on Soji.

Gentle Fist—Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms

Seeing Jiraiya arrive before him, Soji immediately launched into a Gentle Fist assault.

But before his right hand could fully strike, Jiraiya caught it.

Before Soji could even raise his left hand, Jiraiya fiercely flung him away.

And he threw him straight toward Kushina Uzumaki, who was still forming seals.

Forced into a corner, Kushina Uzumaki could only abandon the seals she had formed halfway through and dodge aside.

Soji twisted in midair. After landing, he slid a long distance across the ground.

"Little brats, don't tell me this is all you can do. That won't cut it." After doing all that, Jiraiya even had the leisure to pick his ear, looking thoroughly bored.

"So this is a Kage-level ninja? He's really strong!" Uchiha Homura said excitedly.

"As expected of Jiraiya-sensei. Our squad's average strength is above Chunin level, yet we can't do anything to him at all." Soji could not help sighing as well.

Over the past two years, all of them had improved greatly. Soji and Minato were already roughly as strong as ordinary Jonin.

Kushina Uzumaki and Uchiha Homura were not weak even among Chunin.

Yet even four people like them could not cause the slightest trouble for a Kage-level powerhouse.

"Minato, Soji, Homura, I need your cooperation. I'm going to use a ninjutsu." Kushina Uzumaki's competitive nature flared up.

The others nodded at once and began discussing a strategy.

Jiraiya did not interrupt as he watched the four little brats in the distance discussing their plan.

He also wanted to see what kind of surprise they could give him.

"Alright, we'll do it this way."

At last, they finalized their plan.

Shadow Clone Jutsu ×4

All four cast the Shadow Clone Jutsu at the same time, instantly turning the field into eight against one.

Fire Style—Flower Phoenix Fire Technique ×2

Ninja Art—Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu ×2

Gentle Fist—Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm ×2

In an instant, a sky full of techniques came pouring down upon Jiraiya, who stood leisurely in place.

Soji's Byakugan allowed him to clearly see the Chakra pathways flowing inside Jiraiya's body.

Therefore, the Jiraiya before them could not possibly be a substitute or a Shadow Clone!

"Oh? Are you planning to overwhelm me with numbers? But that won't work on me." Even when facing this composite ninjutsu attack, which could make even an Elite Jonin reveal an opening, Jiraiya remained unmoved.

Ninja Art—Earth Style Wall!

A massive stone wall instantly blocked all the incoming ninjutsu.

Even so, Soji and the other two did not stop. Instead, they intensified their barrage, continuously unleashing long-range ninjutsu.

They kept going until their Chakra was exhausted, at which point their Shadow Clone Jutsu was also dispelled.

By the time all the ninjutsu finally stopped, Jiraiya's Earth Style Wall was already riddled with damage and looked ready to collapse at any moment.

However, as Jiraiya dismissed the Earth Style Wall, several chains shot out from behind him from two Kushina Uzumakis!

Ninja Art—Adamantine Sealing Chains ×2

Iron chains immediately bound Jiraiya's hands and feet.

"This is? The A-rank Sealing Technique, Adamantine Sealing Chains! Is this really a ninjutsu that students who just graduated from the Ninja Academy can use?" Jiraiya looked as though his entire worldview had been shaken.

Then he recalled what the Third Hokage had told him, and understanding dawned on him.

"The Uzumaki Clan's physique, plus a Nine-Tails Jinchuriki... No wonder she has enough Chakra to use ninjutsu at this level."

"Jiraiya-sama, what means do you have left to fight back now?" Kushina Uzumaki said smugly, convinced that victory was hers.

After using Shadow Clones and then the A-rank Adamantine Sealing Chains, there was barely any Chakra left in her body.

But Jiraiya-sensei could not move anymore, could he?

"Nice work, Kushina!"

The other three, whose Chakra had been completely drained, congratulated her happily as well.

"You had those three little brats continuously use long-range ninjutsu to restrict my movement and obscure my vision, while the main attacker secretly prepared a ninjutsu that required a great deal of time to form seals, aiming to defeat me in one blow." Feeling the Adamantine Sealing Chains suppress the Chakra within him, Jiraiya analyzed the four's coordination.

"However, the biggest flaw in your teamwork is that you can't deliver a fatal blow now! Though I can't use Chakra, I'm still an adult. An adult's speed and strength aren't something children can compare to."

Glancing at the three in the distance, still gasping for breath, Jiraiya grabbed the chains binding his hands and yanked Kushina Uzumaki over from across the field, then flung her directly at a nearby rock.

Bang!

White smoke rose as Kushina Uzumaki's Shadow Clone dispersed.

Then Jiraiya repeated the same move, grabbing the chains binding his feet and flinging Kushina Uzumaki's real body away, sending her crashing into a large tree.

"Ugh."

The impact struck her back. Already almost out of strength and Chakra, Kushina Uzumaki could only helplessly release the Adamantine Sealing Chains.

As all the chains binding him vanished, Jiraiya once again felt the Chakra flowing through his body.

This time, Jiraiya did not wait any longer. He used the Body Flicker Technique to dart over and knocked down Hyuga Soji, Minato Namikaze, and Uchiha Homura one by one with a punch each.

"Whew."

Jiraiya himself secretly sighed in relief. He truly had not expected that he would nearly stumble against four little brats fresh out of the Ninja Academy!

If he had lost and Orochimaru and Tsunade found out, they would laugh their heads off at him.

Fortunately, they had not considered saving a bit of Chakra to launch one final attack.

He had been careless too. Otherwise, he would never have been pushed this far.

After quite a while, when Soji and the others had gradually recovered a little Chakra, they finally had the strength to climb back to their feet.

They were quite frustrated as well. They had thought of everything, even considering that Jiraiya might underestimate them when facing all four at once.

But they had forgotten to save a little Chakra to determine the final outcome.

If time could be turned back and they were given another chance.

Soji would definitely save some Chakra to use one Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!

"Hahaha, you four little brats shouldn't be discouraged. Just now, any Elite Jonin would have suffered bitter defeat against your coordination. But who told you that you had to run into the great Jiraiya? You didn't lose unfairly." Looking at the four little ones gathered around him again, Jiraiya praised them while not forgetting to boast about himself.

"Yes, Jiraiya-sama. Now that you've seen our strength, can we make a small request?" Soji asked timidly.

The others seemed to have thought of something too and looked at Jiraiya with equally earnest expressions.

"Oh? What is it? Don't be shy, just say it. From now on, you're my subordinates, and I'll look after you. I understand your strength now, and I'm very satisfied!" Jiraiya crossed his arms over his chest, looking as though they could ask for anything.

"Growl."

Someone's stomach rumbled, clearly revealing their request for them.

"Ahem, ah, what? The weather is really nice today, hahaha. Well, as a reward for becoming my subordinates today, I'll take you to a newly opened ramen shop in Konoha. It's delicious, and you can eat your fill." Jiraiya seemed to remember something. He was embarrassed at first, then spoke generously.

His words earned him resentful looks from the group.

You've got some nerve saying that. If we hadn't been waiting for you, would we have gone hungry while waiting and fighting without even having time to eat?

That was the shared thought in all their hearts!

Then Jiraiya led Soji and the others toward the ramen shop that was supposedly very delicious.

When they reached the entrance, Soji took one look and was stunned. Sure enough, it was "Ichiraku Ramen."

The place that had been mentioned many times even in the original story, and Naruto's favorite food!

The ramen shop owner had even been jokingly dubbed Otsutsuki Ichiraku by enthusiastic netizens!

Soji had not expected Ichiraku Ramen to have already opened during the Second Great Ninja War.

Then again, that was what it meant to be a businessman. He really knew how to do business.

After entering the shop, everyone ordered a bowl of ramen. As Soji watched the owner place the fragrant, beautifully presented ramen before him, his appetite surged.

After shouting "Let's eat" together, they all started digging in.

The moment the noodles entered his mouth, Soji felt as though his entire tongue had come alive. It was not merely delicious—it was unbelievably delicious, perfectly suited to his tastes!

No wonder Ichiraku Ramen had become so popular in the original story, remaining open from the era of the Second Ninja World War all the way into later generations.

Everyone ate with great enjoyment.

In the end, Soji and the other four boys each ate three huge bowls. Even Kushina Uzumaki, despite being a girl, could not resist eating two large bowls.

Of course, Jiraiya was the one who paid in the end.

After leaving the ramen shop, Jiraiya told them where to gather the next day and dismissed the squad.

After all, it was already nearly five in the afternoon after they finished their ramen. There was no need to rush into any missions.

Thus, the squad's first gathering as a five-person team passed happily!

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