Persuasion

Jiraiya hadn't expected his suspicions to be right. The other man really had been deliberately luring him in.

"What are you trying to do?"

He watched the other man with a grave expression.

"Hm?"

Uchiha Arashi blinked in surprise. "What am I trying to do?"

"You attacked Konoha, slaughtered Anbu Ninja, and then made it look like you were heading through the Land of Grass to the Land of Earth, all to lure me here. What exactly are you trying to do?"

Jiraiya asked again.

Uchiha Arashi suddenly didn't know what to say.

"Those questions make no sense. The Uchiha Clan was wiped out, and we were left homeless. All we could do was take revenge on the people responsible, then eliminate those who kept hunting us. And now you're asking what I'm doing? Have you not woken up yet, sir? How else could you say something so ridiculous?"

"Uchiha Itachi was the one who destroyed the Uchiha Clan. The village has already declared him a wanted criminal..."

"So what? Could Uchiha Itachi have wiped out the Uchiha all by himself? Do you take me for a fool? Besides, I'm an Uchiha too. Do you think I don't know what happened that night?"

"..."

Right. The man opposite him was an Uchiha, after all.

Jiraiya sighed silently.

"The Uchiha were plotting a coup. To maintain stability, the village had to eliminate every potential threat."

"Isn't that just an accusation without proof? Does saying I plan to stage a coup mean I deserve to die? If that's the standard, the Uchiha should've started by clearing out the villagers of Konoha. Plenty of them wanted the Uchiha dead. Anyone who harbored hatred toward the Police Force must be a threat to stability, too."

Uchiha Arashi followed Jiraiya's argument to its logical conclusion, then nodded.

"Killing shinobi isn't easy, but killing a few ordinary people would be a piece of cake. I may be a traitor to Konoha now, but I grew up there. For the peace of Konoha, I really ought to go back and slaughter a whole bunch of villagers."

"You..."

Jiraiya was at a loss for words.

He knew there were plenty of holes in his argument, but what he'd said was also true. As far as he knew, the Uchiha really had shown signs of plotting a coup, and it must have been on the verge of happening. Given what he knew about the Third and his teacher's character, there was no way he would have slaughtered an entire clan in the village without any evidence.

What's more, there were other shinobi clans of varying sizes in the village. If the village had acted without justification, did they really think the other clans would just sit back and do nothing?

Didn't they understand that when one's neighbor is harmed, one is at risk too?

The fact that no one had intervened meant the Uchiha must really have posed a grave threat. Their actions could easily have caused a major upheaval.

Maintaining stability was something everyone agreed on. It wasn't just the Third's excuse.

Unfortunately, Jiraiya was clearly no match for Uchiha Arashi in an argument.

"Come back with me."

"What?"

"You've committed serious crimes, but the Hokage is willing to spare your life. Come back with me and accept your punishment. You'll lose your freedom, but at least you'll live."

Jiraiya told him the Third's decision.

The Uchiha had been wiped out, and only a few survivors remained. Unless they all awakened the Mangekyo, they weren't strong enough to threaten Konoha. But as long as they remained at large, they would always be a potential danger. More importantly, if another country gained control of the Sharingan's power, it would pose a genuine threat to Konoha.

So after careful consideration, the Third had decided to spare them.

Even though they had attacked Konoha and caused many deaths, he was willing to make concessions as long as it ensured the village's safety.

Jiraiya's most important mission was to negotiate a truce. Continuing to fight would benefit neither side.

That was the greatest show of good faith the Third and the Konoha High Command could offer.

Uchiha Arashi was so angry he laughed.

"You killed over a thousand Uchiha, and now you want me to surrender and return to the village with you to accept punishment? Do you think I'm an idiot? You say you can guarantee my life. Why didn't you say that to the dead Uchiha? Let's see if they believe your lies."

"So you've decided to refuse?"

"What do you think?"

"Then there's no other choice..."

Jiraiya sighed.

"I'll just have to defeat you myself and take you back!"

Before the words had even left his mouth, he was already preparing a jutsu.

"Ninja Art: Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"

The next moment, Jiraiya's hair suddenly grew long, shooting toward Uchiha Arashi like a giant serpent.

The hair looked soft, but it was incredibly strong. Anything caught in its coils—even rock—could be crushed with ease. It also grew at an astonishing speed, and in the blink of an eye, it was already upon Uchiha Arashi.

Uchiha Arashi had already activated his Mangekyo. Just before the hair could touch him, he suddenly sidestepped and formed Hand Seals with one hand.

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

More than a dozen fireballs flew along the strands of hair toward Jiraiya.

Jiraiya reacted even faster. His hair retracted at a speed far greater than the fireballs'.

He immediately leaped aside, formed Hand Seals in midair, and slapped both hands against the ground the moment he landed.

"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!"

The ground beneath Uchiha Arashi suddenly began to soften. The solid rock, defying all reason, quickly transformed into a swamp.

The jutsu could create a swamp and deprive an enemy of solid footing, making it especially effective against large foes. Against a single opponent, even if it couldn't sink them completely, it could at least hinder their movements.

Unfortunately, this time Jiraiya had run into someone who didn't play by the rules.

"Earth Release? Interesting..."

Uchiha Arashi smiled faintly. Out of Jiraiya's sight, the Eye of God glimmered.

At the same time, Uchiha Arashi stamped lightly. The ground, which had been churning and was about to become a swamp, suddenly settled down. The softened earth turned back into solid rock.

"?!"

Jiraiya's eyes widened in disbelief. "What kind of jutsu is that?"

"Why, it's a jutsu that can defeat you!"

Uchiha Arashi clenched his fist. The surrounding rocks churned, and sharp pillars thrust up from the ground, stabbing toward Jiraiya.

Jiraiya could only retreat at full speed, constantly changing direction to dodge the attacks coming from beneath him.

At the same time, he watched the masked man opposite him and noticed that he hadn't made a single Hand Seal.

"Is it a Kekkei Genkai? Or a dōjutsu? He can control rock, and he has another space-time ability... This is trouble."

After dodging for a moment, Jiraiya abruptly stopped and slammed his right hand against the ground.

"Summoning Technique!!!"