Jiraiya and the other two swiftly and cleanly dealt with the convoy's ninja. From atop a towering rock in the distance, two figures silently observed. The Anbu ninja let out a quiet sigh of admiration. "Such seamless coordination. Konoha's next generation truly is brimming with talent. That jonin has seen the battlefield before as well. As for the ones called Jiraiya and Orochimaru, although they've been doing their utmost to conceal their strength, they're at most close to jonin level. But if those two work together, they could probably even kill an
Elite Jonin.
Most frightening of all, they can coordinate with that girl Tsunade. The three of them together would be even stronger. Heh, didn't even you suffer a small loss on that rainy night a few days ago?"
An awkward look immediately flashed across Jinin Akebino's face before vanishing in an instant. He muttered, "I was careless at the time. They were children, after all. If we did it again..."
At that point, his voice abruptly stopped. He quickly lowered his head. "My apologies, Mizukage-sama. I misspoke." The Anbu ninja beside him—or rather, the Second Mizukage—gently waved a hand. With an amused smile on his face, he said, "No need to apologize. You're not wrong, but I've told you many times: for ninja, there are no 'ifs.' It isn't that failure is not allowed, but that one must bear the consequences of failure oneself.
The so-called heart of a ninja is something you must firmly grasp for yourself."
With those simple words, he looked toward the convoy again and sighed softly. "With children like these, Konoha's next generation has hope of flourishing. It seems the title of the greatest village will not be easily shaken." Jinin Akebino lowered his voice. "In that case, Mizukage-sama, once this mission is