Tsunade and Jiraiya were both powerful shinobi, and neither of them could have failed to notice the talent Shinji Uchiha had displayed.
But...
First, Shinji was an Uchiha. The mysterious Mangekyo Uchiha who had appeared in such numbers within the Akatsuki Organization had made them instinctively wary and suspicious of the Uchiha.
Second, Shinji had yet to awaken his Sharingan.
For an Uchiha, no matter how skilled he was in ninjutsu or Taijutsu, he could never compare to someone with a dojutsu.
That was why Shinji had outperformed Sasuke in every subject at the Ninja Academy, yet even Kakashi had favored Sasuke.
Because the Sharingan was what made everyone fear the Uchiha!
Without the Sharingan, an Uchiha was, at best, just an ordinary shinobi skilled in Fire Release.
Those two reasons had caused them to overlook Shinji.
However, Shinji's recent string of accomplishments had made them reconsider whether they had handled him poorly.
Previously, they could have chalked up Shinji's victory over Yakumo to her having only recently mastered Wood Release and not yet being proficient with it. But now, Shinji had defeated a mysterious, powerful enemy. That was an achievement they could no longer ignore.
And now Shinji had become Utatane Koharu's disciple and joined the Advisor Elder Council's camp. Whether he would eventually compete with the rising generation in their own faction remained to be seen.
Jiraiya put the thought aside. "We should investigate the attacker first!"
Tsunade nodded.
Clearly, their most urgent task was to identify the attacker and learn why he had attacked Konoha and abducted Neji.
Before long, several ANBU found the body of Otsutsuki Toneri's replica puppet and brought it over.
After reattaching the puppet's head to its body, Tsunade examined it, clicking her tongue in amazement. "What exquisite craftsmanship! Compared to this, Sunagakure's