In truth, many of Jiraiya's ideals had come from the Third Hokage. The master and disciple shared very similar beliefs, except Jiraiya liked to keep talking about peace and such, and Minato had been influenced by him as well.
Fortunately, Minato was not as stubbornly old-fashioned as the Third Hokage, or Ronglin would truly have had a headache.
"Ever since the three major ninja villages joined forces to attack the Artisan Ninja Village, many things have inexplicably veered off their original course."
Jiraiya spoke to himself as he looked at Ronglin. Ronglin did not interrupt him and simply listened quietly.
"Then came the Nine-Tails incident, along with the involvement of the Small Nations Alliance and Kirigakure. It feels as though an invisible hand has been pushing everything from behind. Haven't you found any valuable intelligence?"
"Catch Orochimaru, and you'll know everything."
Ronglin replied with a smile, nearly driving Jiraiya mad.
Come on, I'm being serious here!!! Don't make fun of me with something so embarrassing!!
"..."
After a speechless pause, Jiraiya could only confess honestly:
"I didn't find Orochimaru, but I did gather some intelligence regarding Akatsuki."
Because of Ronglin's appearance, reality had diverged from the original story. Orochimaru had defected earlier, and Danzo had fled along with him.
Even Akatsuki's plans had grown more radical. Though Akatsuki had carried out its plans well, certain intelligence had consequently become easier to uncover.
Not everyone could be like Black Zetsu—sneaking around unnoticed, moving through the darkness with such ease and swagger, leaving no trace for a thousand miles.
This was mainly due to Black Zetsu's abilities. Unless someone already knew, ordinary people would never pay attention to the flowers and grass around them, much less suspect that they might be an enemy's eyes and ears—or that an enemy might suddenly leap