Joining

With the topic of the Uchiha Clan concluded, Jiraiya prepared to discuss the ninja world with Shisui Uchiha, so he began, "Shisui, do you have any thoughts on the current state of the ninja world?"

"Although there are no large-scale wars in the ninja world right now and it appears peaceful on the surface, this is only because it hasn't been many years since the Third Great Ninja War. Every village is still in a state of recuperation. Once that ends, new wars will immediately break out for the sake of plundering land and resources," Shisui Uchiha replied earnestly after a moment of reflection.

Jiraiya nodded after hearing this and said, "That is only one reason for the wars in the ninja world. Furthermore, everyone's ideologies differ. The ninja world is small—only so large in area—yet it is also very vast, containing too many factions. With so many large and small hidden villages, each village inherits a different will, and because those wills differ, everyone's ideologies are also inconsistent. This is also a factor in why the ninja world is not at peace."

"Beyond that, it is also because there is currently no force in the ninja world capable of suppressing everything. This has led some ninjas to act unscrupulously, massacring civilians on a large scale, which in turn has intensified the conflict between ninjas and civilians."

Upon hearing this, Shisui Uchiha nodded repeatedly. "Then, what is Lord Jiraiya's intention?"

"I intend to establish an organization with the goal of achieving peace in the ninja world, and I would like to invite you to join," Jiraiya said, looking earnestly into Shisui's remaining left eye.

This was a decision they had reached after deliberation. Minato Namikaze had not yet been resurrected, and even if he were, he would have other matters to attend to. As for Kushina Uzumaki, there was no need to mention her; her temperament and personality were simply not suited for leadership. As for Naruto Uzumaki, he was too young and lacked the necessary authority to be convincing. Therefore, the position of leader could only be held by Jiraiya, as he was not only powerful but also commanded great prestige throughout the ninja world.

With immense strength and high prestige, it would be easier to recruit ninjas who shared the same ideals later on, and it would make those recruited more willing to follow orders. If an organization's leader were less powerful than their subordinates, that organization would soon exist in name only.

After listening to Jiraiya's invitation, Shisui Uchiha lowered his head and pondered seriously for a moment, then looked up at Jiraiya with a firm gaze. "Thank you for your high regard, Lord Jiraiya. I am willing to join the organization."

"Hahaha, just as Naruto said, you are a ninja who truly hopes for peace in the ninja world," Jiraiya said with a laugh.

At this moment, Shisui Uchiha glanced at Naruto beside him and then asked, "Lord Jiraiya, I wonder where the organization will be established? And how many helpers have been recruited so far?"

Hearing this, Jiraiya pointed at himself and Naruto.

Shisui understood, and with a bewildered expression, he said, "Lord Jiraiya, do you mean that including me, there are only three people in the organization right now?"

Jiraiya shook his head and replied, "There are two others, as well as a fox. I will introduce them to you later. As for the organization's base, that is our next mission."

Shisui did not ask further questions after hearing this. He believed that under Lord Jiraiya's leadership, the organization's banner would one day be planted across the entire ninja world, and the world would truly know peace.

With the serious business concluded, Naruto was finally able to chime in, and the three of them sat there chatting for the entire morning.

After resting at the hotel for two more days, Shisui Uchiha had returned to normal, though his right eye socket remained empty. Seeing this, Naruto bought him a black, single-eye patch.

After eating breakfast and packing their luggage, they set off for the Land of Fields.

Their current location was not too far from the Land of Fields, and without traveling at a forced march, it would take about a week to arrive.

Moreover, they did not have the specific location of Orochimaru's experimental base. Once they reached the Land of Fields, they would have to use the clumsy method of activating their sensory abilities and walking bit by bit. Fortunately, the Land of Fields was not very large, so the workload would not be too heavy.

During the journey, Naruto had Jiraiya pass the Myriad Spirit Longevity Art to Shisui Uchiha; he did not give him the other techniques, as it was not yet the right time.

While traveling, Naruto and Jiraiya did not remain idle; they practiced spiritual energy splitting as they walked, and at night, they cultivated their respective techniques.

In his spare time, Jiraiya would study the Encyclopedia of Artifact Refining. By now, he had acquired a great deal of theoretical knowledge regarding artifact refining in his mind, waiting only for the organization's base to be established before he could begin experimenting.

On the second day of their journey, Naruto heard Kurama calling him in his mind: "Naruto, I want to go out and look around. I haven't basked in the sun for a long time."

Naruto naturally would not refuse this, and he immediately agreed to Kurama. Both Naruto and Kurama knew that if a Tailed Beast left its Jinchuriki, the Jinchuriki would die. Therefore, unless a way was found to do so without harming Naruto, Kurama would not come out.

After Naruto agreed, a golden spiritual energy flowed from the location of the seal in his lower abdomen. Although it was spiritual energy, it was as viscous as water. The energy quickly condensed on the ground into the shape of a fox, while Kurama, inside the Sealing Space, lay down.

The fox formed by spiritual energy in the outside world slowly took on the appearance of Kurama (not the muscular version), though it was very small, only about thirty centimeters long. However, nine tails still swayed behind its rear. As the last bit of spiritual energy merged into it, the small Kurama crouching on the ground opened its eyes.

This was the method Kurama had devised: he could attach his consciousness to his spiritual energy. He first merged his consciousness into the spiritual energy to seep out of Naruto's body, then condensed into the desired form in the outside world, while his main body remained asleep inside Naruto.

He wanted to come out not only because he hadn't seen the outside world in a long time, but primarily because of the two idiots in the Sealing Space. Although both were currently soul bodies and couldn't do anything scandalous, their public displays of affection were more than Kurama could stand.

When Kurama emerged, both Jiraiya and Shisui Uchiha saw him. Jiraiya had been going into the Sealing Space almost every night for the past few days to chat with Minato and discuss the implementation standards of their plan, so he had gradually become familiar with Kurama as well.

Shisui Uchiha had never seen Kurama before, so when Kurama opened his eyes, Naruto said to him, "Brother Shisui, this is my partner, Kurama."

Hearing Naruto's introduction, Shisui Uchiha reacted. This must be the Nine-Tails inside Naruto, but why did it look so different from the rumors he had heard? What happened to the giant beast? What happened to the earth-shaking power when its tails moved? It was no wonder he had such questions; the Q-version Nine-Tails looked truly adorable.

However, he did not ask further. Although he was an honest man, that did not mean he wasn't clever. He smiled and greeted Kurama.

Although Kurama did not have any affection for the Uchiha Clan, he knew that Shisui Uchiha had been recruited by Naruto and Jiraiya, so he responded.

The three of them and the one fox continued on their way. As for Kurama, he did not walk on his own but stood on top of Naruto's head, looking left and right, chatting with the three of them from time to time, adding a bit of joy to their monotonous life.

A week later, the three of them and the fox arrived at the border of the Land of Fields. They stopped there, as it was already dusk.

They decided to rest there for the night. After a week of continuous travel, everyone except Kurama, who remained full of energy, felt inevitably exhausted.

After Jiraiya summoned Gamatatsu and took out the necessary camping supplies, the three of them began to set up tents and build a stove. Before long, the camp looked quite professional. After lighting a fire and eating a simple meal, the three of them and the fox sat around the campfire.

On the first day of their journey, Naruto had told Shisui Uchiha about their objective: Orochimaru.

At the time, Shisui Uchiha hadn't asked much while traveling. He had never met Orochimaru and knew almost nothing about his situation.

Now that they were sitting down, Shisui Uchiha looked at Jiraiya and asked, "Lord Jiraiya, could you tell me about the intelligence on Orochimaru?"

Jiraiya recalled the past while telling them about Orochimaru.

Orochimaru was one of Hiruzen Sarutobi's direct disciples. From a young age, he had been praised by Hiruzen Sarutobi as "a brilliant youth, a genius who only appears once every few decades."

However, having witnessed the deaths of his parents and companions one after another, the naturally kind-hearted Orochimaru felt the fragility of life. Because he loved research, he began to study the art of immortality and the resurrection of the dead.

In order to collect various ninjutsu, he initiated the Hashirama cell transplantation experiments that had long been banned by Konoha. He kidnapped sixty infants from the village's Genin, Chunin, Anbu, and surrounding villages. He extracted genetic material from the First Hokage's corpse and injected it into the bodies of the sixty infants for human experimentation. But the rejection reaction was intense, and they died one after another... Just as Orochimaru was about to dispose of the bodies, his other experiments were exposed, and he eventually left Konoha...

As Jiraiya narrated, the image of Orochimaru slowly took shape in Shisui Uchiha's mind. In the end, he couldn't help but sigh, "He is a genius, and also a madman."

Naruto, who was already aware of Orochimaru's affairs, remained silent, sitting quietly while continuing to practice spiritual energy splitting in his hands.

After finishing the briefing on Orochimaru, the three of them saw that it was very late, so they crawled into their tents and lay down in their respective sleeping bags.

Shisui Uchiha had used the Myriad Spirit Longevity Art to recover from all his injuries over the past few days, so there was no point in using it now. Naruto and Jiraiya did not intend to cultivate that night; although cultivation could replace sleep, they had not been practicing for long and were not yet accustomed to it.

Thus, all three of them drifted off into dreamland...