Chakra Reacts

Konoha

The Fifth Hokage Orochimaru's laboratory.

This was Konan's first time hitching a ride with the Flying Thunder God.

The instantaneous shift through space left her slightly uncomfortable.

Just moments ago, there had been dense explosions and endless smoke.

Then, in an instant, the scene had changed to a quiet laboratory.

But Nagato was the most pressing concern now.

Nagato was badly injured. Several ribs in his chest were clearly broken, and his overall condition was terrible.

Fortunately, the moment they arrived,

Minato immediately went to find someone to treat him.

But Orochimaru was absent, and only Karin was there.

Karin hurried over and, without a word, shoved Nagato onto a bed.

Then she pushed Nagato all the way into a treatment room.

Aside from Konan, Karin did not allow anyone else to follow.

Only Jiraiya and Minato remained outside.

Minato had no intention of acknowledging his teacher right now.

"Lord Jiraiya, I'm going to find Lord Orochimaru."

"Wait! Hold on!"

Jiraiya was uninjured; he had merely expended some Chakra.

He was in the best condition of them all.

Minato ignored him completely and vanished with the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Shamu had already spoken to Minato and the others. They might have to deal with the Third Hokage later.

If they recognized each other now, it could create complications afterward.

So Minato slipped away as well.

Since Jiraiya already knew he could use the Flying Thunder God Technique, there was no need to hide it anymore.

As long as his teacher had no proof...

Suddenly, Jiraiya was the only one left.

Jiraiya looked around the empty laboratory.

For a moment, his thoughts were in disarray.

But he was Jiraiya, after all, and he quickly sorted through his thoughts.

If you won't admit it, then I'll find the clues myself!

Jiraiya clasped his hands together and opened his mouth.

A single orange toad emerged from his mouth.

Its body was covered in blue-green patterns, and it was itself a rolled-up scroll.

It was the scroll toad, Gamatora.

After Minato Namikaze placed the seal on Naruto, he had added another layer of insurance.

Gamatora held the key to opening and closing the seal on Naruto's abdomen.

Simply put, Minato had worried that after his death, the seal would weaken, so this could be used to reinforce it.

Or, conversely, to release the seal.

After emerging, Gamatora crossed his arms over his chest.

"Jiraiya, what did you summon me for?"

Jiraiya looked at Gamatora with some emotion.

"Yeah, there's something I need to ask you."

"Go ahead."

Jiraiya's expression turned serious.

"I'd like you to sense Minato's Chakra through his contract and see whether you can detect it."

Gamatora frowned.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Minato died over ten years ago."

Gamatora was different from other toads. The scroll key on him had been inscribed by Minato Namikaze.

The seal on the scroll had also been written by Minato, and Minato's Chakra still remained on it to this day.

Through Minato's Chakra, the scroll toad could sense him.

If the scroll toad were proficient in the Summoning Technique, it could even use Reverse Summoning to summon Minato.

The scroll toad did not know Reverse Summoning, but using Chakra to locate Minato was not a problem.

That was only possible if Minato was alive, however.

"I know it sounds unbelievable, but please help me try."

Jiraiya spoke solemnly.

Gamatora sighed.

"You really are impossible."

Gamatora clapped his hands together!

His body abruptly unfurled, turning into an enormous scroll.

The Chakra Minato had once left on the scroll began to fluctuate violently.

"This...!"

Gamatora closed his eyes, and sweat even formed at his temples.

"How is this possible?!"

Jiraiya asked impatiently, "Well, Gamatora?"

Gamatora lowered his hands and rolled his body back up, his expression filled with surprise and uncertainty.

"Minato's Chakra is reacting."

"That shouldn't be possible. And this reaction... it's one only a living person should have."

"Jiraiya, did you discover something?"

Gamatora asked with a frown.

Jiraiya was now basically certain that man was Minato.

But he was puzzled as to why Minato had not acknowledged him.

And as for how Minato had come back to life, Jiraiya had no clue at all.

Jiraiya's voice was full of confusion.

"I found someone who looks very much like Minato, and he can also use the Flying Thunder God Technique. I suspect he is Minato."

"But he didn't acknowledge me, which is why I summoned you to confirm it."

Gamatora said doubtfully, "I did sense Minato's Chakra, and he should indeed be alive."

"But reviving a person should be an extremely difficult thing."

"Besides, Minato used the Dead Demon Consuming Seal back then. His soul should be with the Death God, so reviving him should be impossible."

"The Dead Demon Consuming Seal is a secret technique of the Uzumaki Clan. There should be no solution to it."

The first person who came to Jiraiya's mind was Nagato.

Nagato was also a member of the Uzumaki Clan.

But Nagato had been a war orphan since he was very young.

So that was impossible too.

Jiraiya sighed.

"I know. In that case, I'll gather more information first."

Gamatora agreed.

"Fine. Let me know if there are any developments."

After Jiraiya responded, Gamatora jumped back into Jiraiya's mouth.

Jiraiya walked out of the laboratory.

Orochimaru happened to be returning, with Anko following behind him.

"You came at just the right time, Orochimaru."

Jiraiya's eyes lit up when he saw Orochimaru.

"Who exactly is your bodyguard, Number One?"

A flicker of a smile passed over Orochimaru's face as he waved a hand.

"My subordinate. Why should I tell you?"

Jiraiya choked on his words, but still unwilling to give up, he asked, "Is Number One really him?"

Orochimaru replied with an ambiguous smile.

"I don't know who you're talking about, but Number One is no longer by my side."

"If you want the answer, go find him yourself."

"Now that I'm the Fifth Hokage, I'm a little busy. Excuse me."

"Let's go, Anko."

Orochimaru shot Jiraiya a faintly amused glance, then called Anko away.

As Anko passed Jiraiya, she bowed to him.

Anko had finally returned to Orochimaru's side.

Jiraiya could not help sighing inwardly.

After Orochimaru had defected years ago, Anko had suffered greatly.

Now, she had finally found her happy ending.

After all, Orochimaru had become Hokage.

Anko could now be considered the Hokage's disciple.

Who would have thought that Orochimaru could actually become the Fifth Hokage?

Jiraiya had received news that Orochimaru had become the Fifth Hokage, delivered by a Konoha messenger bird.

But the message had been brief and had not explained what else had happened.

So Jiraiya still knew nothing about the Third Hokage's situation.

With no progress on Minato's side, Jiraiya looked toward the treatment room nearby.

He wondered how Nagato was doing.