Am I Too Late, Teacher Jiraiya?

Normally, a ninja's prime lasted from their twenties to their forties.

A few powerful individuals could extend that period.

Jiraiya had been chosen by Hiruzen Sarutobi as a child because of his enormous chakra reserves.

His training at Mount Myōboku had transformed him from a dead last into someone who caught up to Orochimaru.

Among the Three Legendary Sannin, his fighting style was the closest to Hiruzen Sarutobi's—exceptionally versatile and capable of handling nearly any situation.

The title of Three Legendary Sannin had originally carried a hint of humiliation.

It was Orochimaru and Jiraiya's performances in the war afterward that turned that title into legend.

Jiraiya had already reached the limit of what an ordinary person could achieve.

Unfortunately...

He was facing monsters.

The savage battle continued.

A vast stretch of forest along the border of the Land of Hot Springs had been reduced to flat ground.

Half-transformed into a Tailed Beast, Blue B raised his head as Yin-Yang chakra compressed into a sphere at a ratio of two to eight.

Boom!

The immense pressure cracked the ground and caused it to cave in.

The A-B Combo stood behind him, their clothes somewhat damaged.

"B, when we get back, eat more meat and grow up faster."

"If you could use Lariat with the same strength as me, you could definitely take that guy down!"

"Got it, big bro! Yo! Bakayaro~"

"Jiraiya, I can't block that thing..." Gamabunta, gripping a short sword in his frog claws, was breathing somewhat unevenly.

Ordinary Tailed Beast attacks were manageable, but he had no way to deal with a Tailed Beast Ball.

"Bunta, go back first."

"If there's time, reverse summon me to Mount Myōboku."

"Hey! You think—"

Poof!

Before Gamabunta could finish, Jiraiya actively dismissed the summoning.

He could not bring himself to use his Summoning Beast companion to block a Tailed Beast Ball.

Earth Release: Multiple Earth Style Wall.

Thick earthen walls rose from the ground one after another, then...

Ninja Art: Needle Jizo.

His white hair wrapped around Jiraiya from every direction, leaving only one eye exposed.

I wonder if this can hold...

If Orochimaru were here, his Threefold Rashomon would definitely be able to stop it.

Whoosh!!

The enormous Tailed Beast Ball roared toward him with the power to destroy everything. Wherever it passed, the earth shattered, and even the air seemed to burn.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sturdy Earth Release: Mud Walls were like thin paper, utterly useless!

Like a rampaging prehistoric beast, it charged forward with unstoppable force.

In its wake, it left a bottomless trench.

It was close.

Wrapped in layers of silvery-white hair, Jiraiya could only hope his scalp was tough enough to last until Bunta found a frog to summon him away.

"Am I too late, Teacher Jiraiya?"

Warm chakra, like the sun itself, made Jiraiya lift a corner of his heavy hair.

"Minato!"

"Kagami!"

"Hey, hey! Can't you see me?"

Flaming red hair danced in the wind, spilling crimson chakra.

"Kushina! How did you..."

"Let me knock this thing away first, then we can talk!"

A chakra cloak formed instantly, and a black mass of energy condensed.

Jiraiya's pupils shrank sharply.

Kushina... can already use the Nine-Tails' power?!

The air seemed to freeze at that moment, the immense pressure making it nearly impossible to breathe.

Two massive forces collided like comets.

BOOM!!!!!!

A brilliant light erupted in an instant, stabbing painfully at their eyes. It even eclipsed the sun's radiance.

A massive shockwave spread wildly outward in a circle from the point of impact!

The ground looked as though it had been smashed by a giant's hammer, countless enormous cracks appearing across it.

Flying sand and stones, billowing dust—it was as though an apocalyptic storm had swept across the entire battlefield.

When the dust settled, Jiraiya withdrew his hair.

"You look pretty miserable, you pervy old man."

The handsome, slightly curly-haired youth turned around, a trace of amusement in his scarlet eyes.

"It was only one Tailed Beast."

"Ha..."

Jiraiya laughed heartily, greatly relieved.

"Brat, show your teacher some respect!"

"It's Konoha's Crimson Eyes..."

Kagami Uchiha's appearance had long circulated through the black market, and every major ninja village had records of him.

"What's with that woman... Isn't Konoha's Jinchuriki Kagami Uchiha?"

A's mind was truly unsuited for analysis, and he could not make sense of the scene before him.

At that moment, Jiraiya spotted the inconspicuous little old man and looked surprised.

"Uncle Kosuke! You're here too!"

"Yes, Lord Jiraiya."

"...Please don't call me that."

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

A group of Cloud Ninja flashed into place. The two sides faced each other from several hundred meters apart, the atmosphere incomparably tense.

"Red hair... Didn't the intelligence say the Jinchuriki was an Uchiha?"

Compared to the ninja clans with all manner of hair colors, the Uchiha Clan had always possessed pure black hair from generation to generation.

"That is..."

"Kagami Uchiha, the Crimson Eyes!"

A hint of anger appeared on Kagami Uchiha's face.

Which bastard came up with that nickname? It's too embarrassing!

He noticed the young Killer B. That guy was easy enough to identify.

Then the burly man beside him had to be the Fourth A.

So the Eight-Tails was still Blue B.

Kagami Uchiha vaguely remembered that Orochimaru had used underhanded methods to cause the Eight-Tails to break free from Blue B. Only afterward did Killer B become the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki.

According to past intelligence, Blue B should have become a Jinchuriki not long ago.

Dragging him out for a test so soon—truly worthy of Kumogakure.

Whether the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was that red-haired woman or Kagami Uchiha.

In any case, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki had definitely arrived.

A battle between Jinchuriki was practically the same as an all-out war, and Kumogakure was not prepared for that.

Their original goal had only been to test the Eight-Tails' power. It would have been even better if they could take advantage of the Land of Fire along the way.

"Tch! Kumogakure!"

Kushina did not hide her disgust.

She still felt lingering fear whenever she thought of being kidnapped by Kumogakure years ago.

If not for Minato...

"Teacher Jiraiya, can you still fight?" Minato asked quietly.

Jiraiya sensed the pull from Mount Myōboku. After cutting off the connection, he said,

"Of course I can. Let Kagami see his teacher's handsome fighting stance!"

"Don't worry. After discovering that you peeped on the women's bathhouse, I already gained a thorough understanding of just how handsome you are."

Kagami Uchiha let a short blade slip from his sleeve. Holding Sode no Shirayuki, he walked step by step toward the Kumogakure camp.

He showed not the slightest fear toward the half-transformed Blue B.

If it had been Killer B, who had fully reconciled with the Eight-Tails, Kagami Uchiha would have needed to give it some thought.

But someone who had only just become a Jinchuriki was probably even easier to deal with than Roshi.

"Brat... walking over here just like that, aren't you being too arrogant?"

A could not stand people that arrogant. He strode out from the formation.

Kagami Uchiha remained unhurried. Every step covered precisely the right distance, as though he were taking a stroll across the battlefield.

His scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan contained not a trace of emotion.

"Get lost."

Overwhelming slashes poured down like a torrential rain!