Jiraiya and the Reinforcements

Evening.

Uchiha Iori stepped out of his tent and headed toward the welcome party, hoping to hitch a ride on Minato Namikaze's momentum to secure political capital for his own rise.

Furthermore, as one of the few users of Sage Art in the Ninja World, Jiraiya was someone Uchiha Iori found quite intriguing.

If one were to find an equivalent for natural energy in the Type-Moon World, it would likely be Mana or True Ether.

If he could learn the method of utilizing it, it would be immensely helpful for developing Sage Art: Susanoo or strengthening his Noble Phantasm.

Although Jiraiya's Sage Mode itself was imperfect and quite crude compared to those of the First Hokage and Naruto Uzumaki.

Not only was the wind-up long, but it also required two toads for assistance, yet his chakra ratios and cultivation methods were still worth referencing.

Iori secretly decided that if the opportunity arose, he must not miss the Sage cultivation methods of the Three Great Sage Regions.

By the time Iori arrived, many people were already present, and the reinforcements from the village were all familiar faces.

Nearly a third of the chunin from Kakashi Hatake's generation had come, including the likes of Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi.

Leading them, besides Jiraiya, were elite jonin such as Hizashi Hyuga and Aburame Shibi.

However, after scanning his surroundings, Iori noticed something off; why were so many genin here as well?

The war had only just begun, so was manpower already that scarce? Could it be that other villages had also declared war on Konoha?

After carefully considering the subsequent fate of Konoha in the original work, Uchiha Iori's heart sank.

It was likely that Sunagakure or Kirigakure had already begun their offensives; in the worst-case scenario, both sides had started attacking.

Only by factoring in the troops guarding against Kumogakure and those defending the village could one explain why Konoha was sending out genin who had only just graduated.

Thinking of Konoha's Will of Fire and their current tactics, Iori couldn't help but laugh.

[They say that where the leaves of Konoha dance, fire burns. The fire will continue to illuminate the village and allow new leaves to sprout.]

[The youth are the hope of the future; the older generation must trust and protect them.]

[The sacrifices of the older generation are not meaningless; they inspire the youth to become the pillars that carry the future.]

[Yet, the old men huddle in the village, refusing to move, while sending the youth out to die.]

[This is clearly a superhuman world where the strong can stand against ten thousand.]

[Yet, the Hokage and advisors, who are the top powerhouses, have stepped onto the battlefield only a handful of times. Instead, it is the arch-villain Shimura Danzō who is more qualified.]

[At the very least, he lost an arm on the battlefield before retreating to the rear. Before he transplanted the Sharingan and the First Hokage's cells, his strength was far from what it once was.]

"Iori, you've arrived. Come with me to meet Master Jiraiya; he's heard of your exploits and is very eager to see you."

Minato Namikaze's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Very well. The name of the Legendary Sannin is like thunder in my ears; I have long admired them."

Uchiha Iori had never formally met Jiraiya before, not least because there was little intersection between the Hokage's faction and the Uchiha.

After Jiraiya accepted the mission from Mount Myoboku to find the Child of Prophecy, he hadn't spent much time in the village.

Of the Sannin, the most approachable was actually Tsunade; one could see her by visiting Konoha Hospital.

In the past, when Iori was injured during training, Tsunade had even treated him once in passing.

"You must be Uchiha Iori. You did a beautiful job with that last mission, heavily damaging the Iwagakure vanguard and buying us time."

Jiraiya took the initiative to greet him; the deeds he had heard of in the camp recently had greatly increased his favor toward Uchiha Iori.

Jiraiya believed that Iori had the potential to become Minato Namikaze's right-hand man, leading the Uchiha clan to integrate into the village.

"You are too kind, Lord Jiraiya. In the coming war, please do not spare my strength; use me as your sharpest blade."

"I will make them understand what the power of Konoha truly is."

Iori spoke with bravado, deliberately downplaying his Uchiha identity and emphasizing only that he was the power of Konoha.

Jiraiya nodded. "Because the current situation in Konoha is dire and reinforcements at the front are limited, I would like to test your strength."

"If you are capable enough, I hope you will become a member of the vanguard squad, specifically responsible for operating behind enemy lines to sabotage their supplies and strongholds."

Jiraiya was direct; on one hand, he wanted to see if Iori's strength qualified him for the vanguard squad and give him a chance to showcase his power.

On the other hand, he wanted to demonstrate his own strength; after all, it had been over a decade since the last great war, and the new generation only knew the Sannin were strong without knowing their actual prowess.

"It is truly my honor to cross blades with one of the Legendary Sannin."

Iori was excited; this was the first Kage-level powerhouse he would face, and unlike Minato Namikaze, whose combat style was too specialized to serve as a benchmark, this was different.

Before activating Sage Mode, Jiraiya was essentially a weakened version of the Third Hokage in his prime—a standard Kage-level fighter.

The two walked to a distance; one was Kage-level and the other was at least an elite jonin. If they were too close to the camp, they would certainly be restricted during the fight.

"Let's go, let's watch their battle. A fight of such high caliber is a rare sight indeed."

Minato Namikaze called out to his subordinates, and jonin like Gekko Nobuhiko also brought their own men to watch.

Looking at the crowd gathering around, while he understood their intentions and Jiraiya's goal of boosting morale by showing off his strength.

Uchiha Iori still wanted to complain: Are you people not afraid of dying? Are you all bloodthirsty spectators of the magnetic field?

He almost wanted to say, [Gwah! It's a duel between top-tier powerhouses! Even if I die here, the price of admission was worth it!]

Thinking that Minato was also nearby, Iori no longer worried about the safety of the spectators.

He prepared to initiate a Fire Release, intending to first test how Jiraiya planned to gauge his strength.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique."

Iori exhaled a fireball, the massive sphere of flame rushing straight toward Jiraiya and leaving a scorched trail upon the ground.

Having mastered the nature transformation of fire-attribute chakra, his Fire Release techniques had improved once again.

"Fire Release: Flame Bullet."

Intent on demonstrating his own prowess, Jiraiya did not dodge or evade, choosing instead to counter directly with a Fire Release.

As one of Jiraiya's signature ninjutsu, the Flame Bullet—which utilized chakra-infused oil as an accelerant—possessed power far greater than the Great Fireball.

After obliterating the Great Fireball, the Flame Bullet flew straight toward Uchiha Iori.

Iori leaped to the right, dodging the attack as a crimson spear appeared in his hand.

"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld." Anticipating Uchiha Iori's movement, Jiraiya used the Swamp of the Underworld, preparing to bind his actions.

The corners of Iori's mouth curled upward; he thrust the spear in his hand downward, and the mud swamp beneath his feet instantly disintegrated, reverting back into soft soil.

With a slight burst of strength, Iori leaped out from within it. "Regrettably, Lord Jiraiya, your attacks are not very effective against me."

Iori said with a smile.