Jiraiya Returns

"Confirmed dead. The body has already been taken away by Lord Danzo."

"Did he expose the Mangekyo Sharingan?"

"He did. The Mangekyo Sharingan."

A flicker of fear crossed the messenger's eyes as he spoke.

Last night's battle had truly shown them the terror of the Mangekyo Sharingan.

It was fortunate that Danzo had fought with such desperation, exhausting many of his trump cards. Root had suffered heavy losses, barely managing to force a mutual destruction.

"Find a way to retrieve the Mangekyo Sharingan."

Uzumaki Naruto ordered.

Once the man had left, Uzumaki Naruto began to review the spoils from the previous night.

First was the Flying Thunder God obtained from Minato, though Uzumaki Naruto had yet to master the basics.

Then there were the sealing techniques obtained from Kushina: the Four Symbols Seal, the Fire Sealing Method, the Five Elements Seal, and others.

Name: Uzumaki Naruto
Bloodline: Uzumaki Bloodline
Cultivation Method: Triple Inversion
Skills: Fire Style, Twin Palms, Adamantine Sealing Chains, Mind's Eye of the Kagura, Flying Thunder God, Four Symbols Seal, Five Elements Seal.
Chakra Level: 1000 Kaka
Restrictions: Cinnabar Mark
Lottery: 5

The number of lottery attempts had also accumulated to five.

At the same time, the seal on the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox within his body had been completely undone. If not for his mastery of the Triple Inversion, he would have died the moment the seal broke yesterday.

Therefore, it was better for the Uchiha Clan to be wiped out.

"The power within my own body has been fully developed; what remains is external power."

Uzumaki Naruto had now fully reached the level of the Fourth Great Ninja War.

Just as Uzumaki Naruto was preparing to draw a card to celebrate, he suddenly sensed Hinata's chakra.

The incident with the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox yesterday had been suppressed, but the great clans were not idiots; that specific chakra signature could not be faked.

Hinata was deeply worried, having rushed over first thing in the morning.

Just as she was about to knock, Uzumaki Naruto opened the door.

"Naruto, are you alright?"

Her chubby, youthful face was full of concern.

"I'm fine. What could possibly happen to me?"

Uzumaki Naruto felt a warmth in his heart; the young girl's feelings were incredibly pure.

"Phew! That's a relief."

"Everyone is saying the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox appeared last night. You scared me to death."

Hinata did not know that Uzumaki Naruto was the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox; she was simply afraid that something had happened to him.

"Since you're here, come in and rest for a moment."

It was clear Hinata had been in a hurry, as she was still panting for breath.

Just as Hinata prepared to enter, Uzumaki Naruto turned his head to the side.

"Uzumaki Naruto, the elders request your presence."

An Anbu suddenly appeared, bowing his head respectfully.

"Has Jiraiya returned?"

Seeing the man's expression, Uzumaki Naruto knew this person was under his control.

"Yes."

"Very well, I will go now."

"Hinata, you should head back first. Don't wander around; just wait at home for further notice."

He turned to say this to Hinata.

Both of their bodies vanished instantly.

The Body Flicker Technique was a fundamental ninja skill that almost every ninja knew, and each would modify it slightly based on their own circumstances.

The version Uzumaki Naruto used was naturally the one improved by Minato.

Minato had possessed naturally fast reflexes and was a speed-type ninja even before he had mastered the Flying Thunder God.

Therefore, the Body Flicker Technique he had improved was also extremely fast.

In the blink of an eye, Uzumaki Naruto arrived at the Hokage Building.

Due to the great battle last night, the place was severely damaged, and in a building far off to the side, several elders were holding a meeting.

As soon as Uzumaki Naruto approached the entrance, the Anbu at the door opened the Space Gate for him directly.

The people in the room who were discussing matters frowned simultaneously.

"Insolent, who gave you permission to open the door for him?"

Danzo was instantly furious; acting lawlessly, letting him in without even reporting—who gave them the authority?

Uzumaki Naruto glanced at the man.

Damn, I almost forgot about this troublemaker.

Because of some situations involving the Uchiha Clan, Danzo had barely focused his attention on the jinchuriki, which had led to Uzumaki Naruto almost forgetting about this troublemaker entirely.

Now that Danzo had jumped out, Uzumaki Naruto finally noticed him, wondering whether to kill this bastard or control him directly.

Noticing Uzumaki Naruto's gaze, Danzo felt a chill in his heart.

The two elders, having witnessed Uzumaki Naruto's strength, immediately spoke up to smooth things over.

Having power is not scary; what is most terrifying is a youth with power but an immature temperament. If he were to lose his head, there might truly be no one on the scene capable of stopping him.

The two elders had clearly felt the pressure from Uzumaki Naruto.

Therefore, they assumed those Anbu were also in awe of Uzumaki Naruto's strength and did not think much more of it.

Sitting in the seat of honor was Jiraiya.

Jiraiya's gaze also turned toward the young man who had entered.

So alike, far too alike.

Uzumaki Naruto's current appearance already bore a thirty percent resemblance to Minato.

"Alright, Danzo, serious matters are more important."

Fearing that Danzo might say something else to provoke the other party, the two elders changed the subject.

"Uzumaki Naruto, this is the disciple of the Third Hokage, Jiraiya."

At the same time, the elders did not forget to introduce him to Uzumaki Naruto.

"Lord Jiraiya."

Uzumaki Naruto nodded.

"You are quite impressive."

Jiraiya nodded; if not for the explanation from the two elders, he would not have believed it.

An eight-year-old child had actually mastered the power of the Nine-Tails. Although it was all a coincidence, the reality was right there before them.

As for the explanation Uzumaki Naruto provided, even if they did not believe it, they had to.

The Third Hokage had severely damaged the soul of the Nine-Tails, leading to Uzumaki Naruto seizing the chakra of the Nine-Tails and controlling a portion of the Nine-Tails power.

"I am already aware of the situation. I will set out this afternoon to find Tsunade, and this child will come with me."

"Jiraiya, is it appropriate to take this child with you?"

The two elders still did not want Uzumaki Naruto to leave the village.

"Rest assured, I will take good care of him and, incidentally, teach him how to control his power."

Since Jiraiya had put it that way, none of them raised any further objections.

As for Danzo himself, his gaze was currently fixed entirely on the Uchiha Clan.

The Uchiha Clan had finally revealed such a significant handle; how could Danzo let it go? He was now single-mindedly focused on completely annihilating the Uchiha Clan.

Hearing that Jiraiya was going to take him to find Tsunade, Uzumaki Naruto felt not a shred of surprise.

Whether out of political considerations or his own factors, Jiraiya taking him along was the best choice.

Once the meeting concluded, Danzo hurried out.

"Don't go too far. It is best to wait until Tsunade returns and let her decide on this matter."

Jiraiya frowned; he originally did not want to participate in these messy affairs, but he also feared that Danzo would go too far.

"Rest assured, the two of us will keep an eye on him."

The two elders nodded.

"Kid, go back, pack your things, and come with me."

Jiraiya walked over.

Naruto Uzumaki said nothing more and turned to leave.

A ninja needs no excess baggage when heading out, only a few weapons.

Since Naruto Uzumaki was not yet a ninja, he went back to change his clothes and grabbed a weapon.

He had intended to say goodbye to Hinata, but Jiraiya had already sought him out.

"In such a rush?"

Naruto Uzumaki was puzzled.

"The sooner, the better."

Jiraiya offered no explanation, primarily fearing that Konoha and the Uchiha Clan would destroy one another.

What Naruto Uzumaki did not know was that the Root and the Anbu had suffered heavy casualties the previous night.

Danzo might not have cared about such things, but others certainly did.