Necessary Developments

It was a man's promise.

And the oath of a hero.

"Jiraiya!"

As his closest friend,

and now the Hokage,

Tsunade frowned deeply the moment she heard Jiraiya take all the responsibility upon himself in advance. From her perspective, Jiraiya was naturally the most important. It would be best if they could find a way to help Naruto, but if that proved impossible, simply retrieving the Nine-Tails would still be acceptable. Though Tsunade had a certain relationship with the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, and sympathized with Naruto's plight, facts were facts. She might disagree with and even despise Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, the so-called Hokage Advisors, but there was one point on which she agreed with them: the village's interests and safety came first. And from that perspective, Tsunade didn't want Jiraiya to take on unnecessary responsibility or face needless risks because of "Naruto's situation"!

"It's all right, Tsunade. I know what I'm doing!"

Jiraiya understood the concern behind Tsunade's words, too.

But a hero ought to have the spirit and boldness befitting one.

Twelve years ago,

his prized student had died.

He hadn't returned right away to take care of Naruto.

He had let him endure such a miserable childhood.

That was something Jiraiya deeply regretted.

The moment he learned that Naruto had deserted the village,

Jiraiya hadn't blamed Naruto, nor had he shifted the responsibility onto the village.

Instead, he had been consumed by deep remorse.

He believed it was his responsibility!

If twelve years ago he hadn't hesitated, but had returned to the village at once and taken responsibility for caring for Naruto, giving him a complete and ordinary childhood, Naruto would never have chosen such an extreme path!

That thought came from the depths of Jiraiya's heart.

It was all my fault!

Jiraiya the Hero