The Third Hokage's Summons

"Jiraiya... Teacher?"

Jiraiya was taken aback by Naruto's words.

How did this child recognize me when he'd never seen me before?

Furthermore, Naruto even refers to himself as... "Teacher"?

What on earth is going on?!

Even though he was full of doubts, he was, after all, Jiraiya, the old Toad who had been struggling in the Ninja World for decades.

Jiraiya's expression changed like a flippant face, from initial shock to smugness, and he introduced himself in a loud voice:

"Hahaha!!"

He opened his arms wide, his red coat fluttering in the wind, and his long white hair dancing over his shoulders.

"That's right! I am none other than the white-haired toad sage of Mount Myoboku, Toad Sage Lord Jiraiya!!"

Jiraiya's voice echoed through the empty streets, startling a few Crow that were dozing on a distant telephone pole.

Naruto and Sasuke both fell silent for a moment.

They exchanged a glance and, unusually, reached a consensus.

"This guy is a weirdo."

Naruto's inner world at this moment.

Through Naruto's perspective, Minato watched the white-haired man gesturing wildly before him, a gentle light rising in his blue eyes.

A slight upturn at the corners of his mouth revealed a nostalgic smile on his gentle face.

"No matter how many times I watch it, I still think it's incredibly cool... Jiraiya- Teacher's self-introduction."

"No, that lecherous old man doesn't look 'handsome' at all..."

Kushina stood beside him, her words filled with undisguised disdain.

Minato gave an awkward laugh, not daring to refute.

Naruto tilted his head, listening to the sounds of his parents bickering in his head.

His sky-blue eyes squinted slightly in the sunlight, observing the flamboyant middle-aged man before him with great curiosity, and he silently asked himself:

"Hey, Dad, Mom, is this strange-looking man someone you know?"

The voice of the Minato echoed in his mind, a voice tinged with laughter:

"Ah, he's the Teacher I told you about before, the one who had a great influence on me."

Jiraiya, a disciple of the Third Hokage Lord Hokage and one of the Sannin, was a legendary and incredibly powerful ninja!

Minato's voice was full of pride, like a father introducing his hero to his child.

"He's also a very unreliable and extremely lecherous guy."

Kushina's voice immediately followed, her tone both like adding insult to injury and a reminder:

"Don't let him corrupt you, Naruto!"

"Well... that's a bit much, Kushina."

The Minato's voice sounded somewhat helpless.

"I didn't say anything wrong!"

Kushina immediately retorted:

"That kid Kakashi was corrupted by him!"

He carries around a pornographic book everywhere Tenten now. How is he ever going to find a girlfriend like this?!

Do you also want Naruto to always be carrying around a pornographic book in the future?!

"Hahaha..."

Minato was momentarily speechless, then gave an awkward laugh.

"Hmm, he does seem to be a strange fellow."

Naruto listened to his parents' words and confirmed it in his heart:

"However, Mom and Dad seemed quite happy when they saw him... He must be a good guy."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto in front of him. Although Naruto still maintained his cheerful expression, his mind was filled with many thoughts.

His gaze lingered on Naruto's face for a moment, as if searching for the figure of an old friend.

"His eyes and hair resemble Minato's, but his face is more like Kushina's...?"

Jiraiya looked at Naruto before him, a deep sense of nostalgia rising in his heart.

Just as he was about to speak to Naruto and try to get closer to him, a figure appeared silently behind Naruto.

He was wearing a Anbu blue bodysuit over a vest, and an animal mask on his face.

But those who know him well can recognize him at a glance from his silver-white hair and languid demeanor.

A genius who was on par with Uchiha Kuro, known as the Black Lightning, during the Third Ninja World War!

Known as the Second White Fang, Kakashi Hatake Jonin elite Jonin of Konoha who currently serves as the head of the Anbu!

Kakashi reached out his right hand, grabbed Naruto by the collar, lifted him up, and said lazily:

"Got you?"

"Ah!"

Naruto turned his head, looked at the face behind him that was mostly covered by an Anbu mask, and his voice suddenly rose:

"Kakashi! When did you get here?!"

"You should call him Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi used his other hand to push up his Anbu mask, revealing a lazy, half-drooping, dead fish eye underneath.

He gently tapped Naruto's head, his tone languid yet tinged with helplessness as he said:

"I'm telling you, at least show some respect to your nominal guardian."

Minato-sensei and Kushina- sensei have told you this several times already, haven't they? You should at least listen to your parents...

"Snort!"

Naruto gave a soft snort and stubbornly turned his head away.

"Yare yare..."

Looking at Naruto in front of him, Kakashi sighed helplessly.

He raised his head and looked at the distant blue sky, a complex emotion flashing in his dead fish eyes:

"I'm definitely not suited to taking care of kids. If it were Kōji or Obito, they would have been able to bond with this kid much faster..."

Kakashi murmured to himself, seemingly recalling past memories, a hint of regret appearing in his eyes.

Unlike Naruto's shocked reaction, Sasuke, standing next to Naruto, showed no surprise at Kakashi's sudden appearance.

He simply raised his eyes, which appeared exceptionally deep due to the dark circles under them, and glanced indifferently at Kakashi's exposed eye:

"Kakashi, if I remember correctly, it should still be your working hours now."

You didn't come here just like me to catch this big idiot, did you?"

"Huh? Who are you calling an idiot?! You Sasuke, you're the idiot, the absolute biggest idiot!!"

Naruto's voice came from mid-air, filled with undisguised anger.

His body struggled violently in Kakashi 'Kakashi hands, but it was clear that his struggles were futile.

Kakashi ignored Naruto was still bouncing around in his hands.

He looked at Sasuke, the languidness in his voice fading slightly, replaced by a more serious tone:

"Well, while catching this idiot is part of the mission, I'm here for something more important."

As she spoke, she turned her gaze to the white-haired man standing in front of her who had remained silent.

Kakashi looked at Jiraiya and said in a complicated tone:

"It's been a long time, Lord Jiraiya..."

Jiraiya was too preoccupied to respond to Kakashi's greeting at that moment.

At this moment, his mind was completely focused on the information contained in Naruto and Kakashi's conversation, and he was completely unable to think about anything else.

Jiraiya was completely stunned, frozen in place as if struck by lightning.

Minato and Kushina... are they still alive?!

The moment this guess surfaced in his mind, Jiraiya's eyes widened suddenly, his bold face filled with shock.

Jiraiya could barely contain his excitement and wanted to rush up and grab Kakashi to get an explanation.

His lips parted, the words he wanted to say already rising in his throat:

"Lord Jiraiya-- "

Kakashi's voice rang out first, as if deliberately stopping his impulse.

Looking at the emotionally charged Jiraiya before him, he fully understood Jiraiya's feelings at that moment.

After all... when I first learned about Minato-sensei and the others' situation, I wasn't much Jiraiya.

I know you have many questions right now.

Kakashi waited until Jiraiya's emotions had calmed down a bit before speaking in a languid tone:

"But this is not the time to talk about these things."

His gaze drifted towards the end of the street, towards the large building in the center of the village with the words "Hokage" hanging on it.

"The Lord Third Hokage is waiting for you in Hokage office."

Hearing Kakashi's words, Jiraiya opened his mouth, but swallowed back all the questions that were already on the tip of his tongue.

He slammed his lips shut, then nodded heavily.

"Hey, Kakashi! It's about time you put me down, isn't it?!"

Naruto's protest came from mid-air, his tone filled with strong dissatisfaction.

He swung his forearm in mid-air, trying to turn his head to glare at Kakashi.

Kakashi looked down at him, and his one exposed dead-fish eye curved slightly.

He looked at Naruto's sullen expression, his tone lazy but unyielding:

"That won't do. You have to go with Lord Jiraiya to find the Lord Third Hokage too."

"Well?!"

Naruto's voice rose several octaves, his sky-blue eyes filled with resistance.

"Well, don't be so resistant..."

Kakashi's voice softened slightly:

"You should already know from the Teacher, right? Lord Jiraiya is a trustworthy person."

He paused for a moment, then lowered Naruto down from mid-air.

Kaka crouched down, looked Naruto straight in the eye, and said in a serious tone:

"I'm going to take Sasuke back now, Lord Jiraiya to find the Lord Third Hokage is now in your hands."

"Huh? A mission?!"

Upon hearing the word "mission," Naruto's eyes lit up instantly, and he shouted excitedly:

"I'll go!!"

Sasuke glanced at them silently from the side.

He didn't say much, but simply turned around and walked towards the west side of the street.

Kakashi had just put Naruto down when he caught a glimpse of that black figure out of the corner of his eye and instinctively took a step forward.

"Kakashi, you don't need to come along."

Sasuke didn't stop walking, nor did he turn around while speaking.

He just kept walking forward, his back looking particularly thin and lonely in the sunlight.

Sasuke turned his head slightly, and sunlight streamed over the roof tiles, illuminating half of his face and casting shadows of his eyelashes beneath his empty eyes.

"I'm not so badly disabled that I can't even find my way back. Don't treat me like some child who needs taking care of..."

He paused, his voice lowering further:

"I am a... Avenger."

After saying that, he walked straight ahead.

The figure gradually shrank at the end of the street, eventually disappearing around the corner...

Kakashi stood there, looking in the direction Sasuke had disappeared, his one exposed eye closing for a moment.

He sighed deeply, turned to look in Jiraiya's direction, his voice softer than before:

"Let's set off quickly, Lord Jiraiya."

Jiraiya stared intently at Naruto, who was watching Sasuke's departing figure, in Kakashi's hand, and nodded heavily.

Kakashi put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, and the three of them turned and walked towards the Hokage Building...

Not long after they disappeared, several masked figures silently emerged from the rooftops and the depths of the alleyways.

They dragged the middle-aged man Naruto had kicked into the shadows, out of the depths of the alley.

He was still groaning softly, his eyelids and lips so swollen they were almost unrecognizable, but his breathing was still relatively steady.

The Anbu leader gestured to both sides, and the two groups quickly lifted the man up.

They took him and disappeared into the bright afternoon sunlight.

After a few more breaths, the tightly closed wooden doors on both sides of the main street began to open a crack one by one.

First one, then two or three, and then almost all the doors on the street opened at the same time.

People cautiously peeked out of the house, making sure the middle of the street was empty before daring to push the door open.

Soon after, the streets were filled with sound again, with people again, with everything an afternoon should have...

(Sigh, I feel like there's so much to write in one chapter... I've written too much again without realizing it, and it's taking too long to write one chapter. I'm numb.)

(One more chapter today.)