Rumors Can Kill

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Naruto and Eiji spent every day together, diligently studying the techniques of ninjutsu.

And given that Naruto's comprehension might not be particularly strong, Eiji also lacked any teaching experience.

Thus, to outsiders, their teaching method looked rather abstract.

It was just like in the book where Naruto taught Konohamaru the Rasengan by saying "first do this, then do that."

The upside, however, was that Naruto's learning progress was fairly fast.

He could now throw a couple of decent-looking punches.

As for Eiji teaching Naruto, and even throwing in some academic lessons on the side, the Third Hokage showed no clear disapproval.

Over this month, Kakashi had been secretly observing Naruto every day, recording every detail and reporting it back to Hiruzen.

Aside from feeling like he was on the verge of burning out, everything was passable.

And gradually, the news of an Uchiha teaching the Demon Fox began to spread through the village.

On both sides of the street, clusters of three or five villagers huddled together, whispering.

"Hey, look—standing next to that Demon Fox brat is that White Hair from the Security Division."

"He's got decent looks, I guess, but what a shame he's mixed up with that Demon Fox. Such bad luck."

"I heard his name is Uchiha Eiji, and they're supposedly promoting him to squad leader or something."

"No way, how old is he?"

"I have a friend whose friend married into the Uchiha clan, and she quietly told me that Fugaku is planning to take him as an adopted son, so..."

Hearing this, the crowd collectively gasped.

Fugaku taking him as an adopted son?

"Nonsense. Why don't you say Fugaku divorced Mikoto and is now courting Lord Tsunade?"

"That's a thing?!"

A tall White Hair widened his eyes. "Who did you just say is courting Tsunade?"

Jiraiya gritted his teeth in fury. He'd only been gone a few days—how had his home been stolen?

The villagers, seeing who had arrived, shut their mouths and scattered like birds and beasts.

"Hey, you bastards, don't run off."

Jiraiya rolled up his sleeves, thinking he'd give those ignorant villagers a good beating.

If they were going to gossip, they should at least use their brains.

Could Tsunade ever get together with Fugaku?

That degenerate gambler was probably off somewhere being fleeced like a Fat Sheep right now.

Just then, a robed Anbu ninja appeared behind Jiraiya.

"Lord Jiraiya, the Hokage requests your presence."

Jiraiya clicked his tongue. Lucky for them.

Soon, Jiraiya arrived at the Hokage's office.

The room was thick with smoke, as if he'd stepped into a celestial realm.

"Cough, cough, cough." Jiraiya waved his hand, opened the window, and grabbed a few file folders to fan himself wildly.

"Old Man, smoke less. Aren't you afraid of choking to death?"

Hiruzen rolled his eyes and reluctantly set down his pipe.

"Jiraiya, you still remember how to return to the village? And what's that thing on your head? Where's your Konoha headband?"

Jiraiya waved a hand, looking utterly unconcerned.

"Old Man, you know I'm carrying an important mission personally assigned by the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku—to search for the legendary Child of Prophecy."

At this, Jiraiya perked up.

"Old Man, let me tell you—over these past few years, I've traveled to every corner of the ninja world, big and small, and met all kinds of people..."

Hiruzen cut off the rambling Jiraiya with a wave. "Shut up. I don't want to hear it."

If it weren't for the fact that Jiraiya was no longer a child, he'd really want to knock some sense into his head.

As his student, instead of thinking about sharing his burdens, Jiraiya spent his time running off to those big toads.

If what the toads said were actually useful, the ninja world wouldn't be at war every day.

Jiraiya suddenly remembered something.

"They say Naruto has gotten close to some Uchiha guy?"

"Mm. Eiji's father was a student of Kagami, and he inherited the same will as him."

At this, Jiraiya suddenly realized something.

"Naruto is Minato's son after all, so in principle it'd be better to hand him over to you."

"I think Naruto's doing just fine as he is. I've got too many heavy tasks on my plate—when would I have time to teach a student?"

Hiruzen rubbed his aching lower back and knocked on his stiff neck.

"I won't be Hokage much longer either. It's about time you came back."

Jiraiya shook his head like a rattle-drum. "That Hokage seat is too hot to sit in. I can't take it. My lifelong wish is just to find the Child of Prophecy as soon as possible."

"Get out, get out," Hiruzen said, grabbing a scroll and hurling it at him. "Get lost already. Seeing you just annoys me."

Jiraiya caught the scroll steadily and gently placed it back where it belonged.

"Old Man, take care of yourself. Who knows when I'll be back next time."

"I know. Just go already. Don't hold up my work."

Jiraiya wiped the smile off his face. "Old Man, stay safe."

"Don't worry. I've still got a few years left in me."

Hearing this, Jiraiya's face showed a conflicted expression. "I'll go hand over the intel at Anbu. Later."

With that, Jiraiya leaped out the window and quickly disappeared around a street corner.

Watching Jiraiya's fading back, Hiruzen's brow furrowed deeply.

In recent years, he could clearly feel himself growing old, but Konoha was in a lull with no one ready to take over. Who could still bear the weight of protecting the village?

And then there was the Uchiha problem. How was he supposed to solve that?

He called for an Anbu ninja. "Summon Danzo and the two advisors. We'll have a small meeting."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

At that moment, Danzo and the advisors were already gathered together.

They, too, were still studying the Uchiha issue.

"Ryoma just sent over some materials. Based on this content, the villagers' resentment toward the Uchiha and the Jinchuriki is growing stronger."

Danzo glanced at his two old friends.

"I really want to know what's going through Hiruzen's head. How could he let the Uchiha get close to the Jinchuriki? And now he's even gone so far as to teach him ninjutsu."

Koharu hummed in agreement, deeply sharing Danzo's view.

"The teacher once said the Uchiha are a clan born evil. Even if Eiji seems to have inherited Kagami's will, who knows if he'll be assimilated by those madmen?"

"Once the Jinchuriki sides with the Uchiha, Konoha will truly be finished."

Homura added, "That's right. The Jinchuriki's power is far too dangerous. We must keep it firmly in our grasp."

But the question remained: how to control Naruto.

Years ago, Danzo had already proposed an idea—just lock Naruto up, brainwash him, and turn him into a war machine loyal to Konoha.

But Hiruzen had strongly opposed this, and the two had a massive argument that nearly tore the roof off the Hokage Building.

After that, Hiruzen even cut off Root's funding for half a year to make his stance clear.

Danzo had no choice but to back down, and only then did the matter settle.

Thinking about it now, Danzo still felt a burning frustration.

Sure, he was an advisor, ostensibly the second-in-command of Konoha.

But on many major issues, only Hiruzen held absolute authority.

Even with both advisors on his side, it was useless—Hiruzen could still veto them with a single vote.

Danzo said, "Both of you, on this matter, Hiruzen is being foolish. The three of us can't follow his lead."

The two looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

A dangerous glint flashed in Danzo's eyes. "Hiruzen cares a great deal about public opinion. If we spread rumors about the Uchiha everywhere, can he really stay still?"

Homura and Koharu exchanged a glance. "That's it? Doesn't sound like anything special."

Danzo let out a cold laugh. "What if the Uchiha can't take the rumors and raise their blades against the villagers?"

"And of course, if the Uchiha won't kill, we can kill for them."