Naruto did not care whether the Nine-Tails truly understood or not. It had only been a whim of his anyway. Besides, he had promised the Nine-Tails last time, so he might as well get it done while he was free.
With a snap of his fingers, Naruto's consciousness vanished from the Sealing Space.
The sky gradually darkened, and the midsummer night was stiflingly hot.
Outside the convenience store, Naruto was squatting by the roadside, licking an ice pop, when a pair of man's legs entered his field of vision.
"What is it?"
"You damn brat, call me the Toad Sage! And quit blocking the way."
The old man who called himself the Toad Sage had a head full of unruly white hair. He wore an iron forehead protector bearing the character for "oil," a fishnet training shirt over a brown undershirt, and a red outer robe. Two vertical streaks of red oil paint ran down either side of his cheeks.
"Hey, old man, you're still this chuunibyou at your age." Naruto recognized Jiraiya, yet showed no intention of moving aside.
He licked his ice pop, then shot Jiraiya a sidelong glance.
"What a pathetic adult."
"You brat, watch your mouth! Keep being this rude and you'll get punched, damn it!" Jiraiya was beginning to lose his patience. The smile on his face was nearly impossible to maintain as he rolled up his sleeves and threatened him carelessly.
"Hey, old man, you should be more careful. Last time, I saw you using some cheap tricks to peep into the women's bath." Naruto slurped at his ice pop, his smooth forehead exposed. He had grown used to not wearing his forehead protector when he was not on missions.
No one cared anyway. He could do whatever he wanted.
"Cheap tricks?" Jiraiya frowned