Planning and Trials

Time is always the most ruthless of forces. Amidst the endless patter of rain and the steady guidance of Jiraiya, a year slipped by in the blink of an eye, leaving behind nothing but the sweat and innocence of youth.

Yuehua Ai was now six years old. He had grown significantly taller, standing at over 110 centimeters—an outstanding height among children his age.

His skin was fair, and he wore his jet-black hair at a medium length, letting it fall loose. His eyes were as brilliant as the stars, framed by exceptionally long lashes, and with his rosy lips and white teeth, he looked for all the world like a porcelain doll.

His lips were thin, and his features were delicate and refined. While his pretty face leaned toward the feminine, a pair of sharp, sword-like brows lent him a sense of heroic spirit. Dressed in loose, casual attire, he appeared clean and composed; with his striking looks and temperament, he was truly a rare, handsome young boy.

The changes in the other youths were also quite apparent. While the most obvious shift was in their height, Yahiko and the others had also matured in temperament, appearing far more composed and confident than they had a year ago.

In their daily lives, Yahiko and Nagato were relatively indifferent, maintaining their appearance only minimally. Konan, however, had reached the age where girls begin to care about their looks. When training wasn't too heavy, she began to learn how to dress herself up. With a touch of light blue eyeshadow, a princess-style hairstyle, and a hint of lip gloss, she began to reveal a trace of feminine charm amidst the flower of her youth.

The world of ninjas is one governed by strength. More than the changes in their appearance, the greatest transformation over the past year was in the youths' capabilities and their understanding of the world.

Shortly after they began learning the Three Basic Jutsu, Jiraiya shifted the focus of their physical training. The initial simple runs and squats were replaced by the mastery of ninja tools. The use of shuriken, the throwing of kunai, the handling of various weapons, and the identification and setting of traps became the main themes of their training alongside ninjutsu.

The youths approached this technical training with a passion and diligence that rivaled their practice of hand seals. Having endured countless hardships, they cherished this hard-won opportunity far more than children from the great ninja villages.

They were good students, and he was a good teacher. Although Jiraiya was a lecherous middle-aged man and often unreliable in his personal life, he was truly dedicated to the education of his disciples. After teaching them the basics of being a ninja, he began to instruct them in academic knowledge.

This so-called academic knowledge was neither difficult nor profound; in fact, it was almost excessively simple and rudimentary. For Yuehua Ai, however, it was quite embarrassing. They were learning to read and write, and the instruction was primarily aimed at him. After all, before Yahiko and the others became orphans, their families had taught them the basics. Yuehua Ai, by contrast, had been fleeing for his life since birth; he had never had the chance to learn.

The dominant language of the ninja world was the Japanese of his past life. Yuehua Ai had become quite fluent in spoken language after living here for so many years, but he knew very little about the written script.

Jiraiya tailored his teaching to the students' foundations, spending the most time on basic literacy with Yuehua Ai. As a powerful ninja, Jiraiya didn't just teach them simple characters; he also imparted the secret codes and ciphers used for intelligence gathering. After all, being a ninja was a high-risk profession; to survive in the cruel reality of war, they had to be prepared for everything.

Beyond the essential skills of a ninja, Jiraiya's favorite pastime was introducing the youths to the customs, cultures, and landscapes of different nations and villages. The anecdotes he shared greatly broadened their horizons, giving them a deeper understanding of the ninja world.

While Yahiko and the others were curious about the outside world, their hearts remained tethered to the Land of Rivers. Yuehua Ai was different. He yearned for the vast world beyond. To be honest, he was tired of this godforsaken place where it rained incessantly. He loathed the damp, soggy atmosphere. Although he had liked rainy days in his past life, six years of feeling like he was constantly soaked in water had been miserable. For him, there was nothing worth lingering for in Amegakure, save for Konan, Yahiko, and the others.

His heart craved a wider horizon. He wanted to venture into the vast world to pursue his own interests. He wanted to leave his footprints in the five great ninja villages and the various unique nations.

Sometimes, seeing the smiles of Konan and the others left Yuehua Ai feeling melancholic. He had decided that when Jiraiya left, he would follow him. He wanted to go to Konohagakure. Since arriving in this world, his greatest wish had been to witness the splendor of the Hidden Leaf Village. He wanted to taste the Ichiraku Ramen that Naruto loved so much, see the legendary hidden boss, Old Man Ichiraku, and visit Yakiniku Q, where the "Twelve Rookie Genin" often gathered, to see if the barbecue was truly as delicious as rumored.

Thinking of Konohagakure, Yuehua Ai couldn't help but picture that stunning figure—the tall stature, the perfect face. Tsunade, the woman Jiraiya had loved in secret his entire life, the greatest beauty in the ninja world, a kunoichi who combined both beauty and boldness. Princess Tsunade, the strongest medical ninja in Konohagakure. Thinking of his own field of study in his past life, Yuehua Ai truly wanted to learn medical ninjutsu from her. He couldn't imagine what kind of sparks would fly if the medicine of Earth were combined with the medicine of the ninja world.

When Master Jiraiya leaves, I must go with him. Yuehua Ai made a secret resolution. Though he was reluctant to leave the others, they all had their own paths to walk. To gain the strength to control his own destiny, he had to go to Konohagakure. Moreover, by the time Jiraiya returned to the village, Orochimaru should not yet have defected. With the knowledge he possessed from his past life, there were many things he wanted to discuss with Orochimaru.

In truth, when he first met the Sannin, Orochimaru had been the teacher Yuehua Ai most desired, as they shared many similarities in temperament. Given their mutual interest in biological research, they would surely have had much to talk about.

Unfortunately, Orochimaru's nature was fundamentally different from Jiraiya's. Jiraiya would choose to stay and care for orphans from enemy villages, whereas Orochimaru, upon seeing that someone had no value, would often choose to cut the weeds and eliminate the roots.

Compared to Jiraiya, Orochimaru would never be a good teacher. Yuehua Ai understood this clearly. In fact, he felt that Orochimaru was more of a kindred spirit. If he hadn't had the experiences of his past life and had instead suffered the same fate as Orochimaru, Yuehua Ai felt their choices might have been very similar.

This world was one of survival of the fittest, where the law of the jungle was laid bare. Here, only by possessing great strength could one obtain everything they desired and prevent tragedy from befalling them.

Since coming to this world, what Yuehua Ai craved most was strength. Unfortunately, while he had some talent, he was far from being the best. At the end of the day, he had the physique of an ordinary person. He had no Kekkei Genkai, no protagonist halo. The strength he wanted could not be achieved through Jiraiya's teaching; after all, he was not the protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki. He did not have the body of an Uzumaki, nor was he a Jinchuriki capable of controlling the power of a Tailed Beast. The strength he sought could not be gained through conventional study. He needed secret arts, forbidden techniques, and other research results to change his fate. Therefore, he needed to cooperate with Orochimaru. Only by working with the man who held the greatest "black technology" in the ninja world could he gain the power to control his destiny and alter the trajectories of others' lives. Otherwise, even if he attained the strength of a Special Jonin in the future, what could he change or protect if he couldn't even withstand a single Tailed Beast Bomb?

Entering Konohagakure, making contact with Orochimaru, and cooperating with him to get what he wanted—this was Yuehua Ai's plan for the future. Although Jiraiya had only been with them for a year and it would be some time before he decided to leave, this didn't stop Yuehua Ai from preparing early. He needed to continuously improve his strength over these next few years. He couldn't rely solely on his knowledge in front of Orochimaru; he needed to possess a certain level of power. Only by being difficult to manipulate would he have more leverage and room for choice when they worked together in the future.

"Everyone, come over here. I have something to say." Jiraiya beckoned to the youths who were in the middle of their morning training from the doorway.

Jiraiya's call pulled Yuehua Ai back to reality, and he followed the others back into the house.

"Is something the matter, Master Jiraiya?" Yahiko asked as they took off their rain gear and stepped inside.

"It's nothing major, just a small task for you to handle. Consider it a test," Jiraiya said, sitting lazily on the tatami mat and tugging at his chin.

"A test? What kind of task is it?" Yahiko's tone was excited. After such a long period of monotonous training, everyone was feeling a bit bored. Hearing that Jiraiya was assigning them a mission, he couldn't help but be thrilled.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes at Yahiko, sat up a little straighter, and pulled his hand away from his chin.

"While this might not be difficult given your current strength, the task itself is a true test of character. It's the kind of thing you will encounter frequently as ninjas."

Frequently encountered? A real test? Hearing Jiraiya's description, Yuehua Ai, Konan, and Nagato couldn't help but feel curious. What kind of thing did ninjas encounter all the time?

Jiraiya didn't feel like playing coy. "You should know the village on the other side of the river, the one I've taken you to before. It seems they were recently raided by bandits."

"When I passed by yesterday, I noticed the atmosphere was off, so I asked around. It turns out that a group of unknown bandits raided the village not long ago, causing significant losses to the villagers."

"Based on their patterns, I've discovered that these aren't just wandering thieves. They've been quite active between several villages lately, and it looks like they intend to stay in the area. To prevent them from returning and causing further casualties, I want you to go and help the villagers deal with them."

Yuehua Ai had been to the village across the river; it was the closest one to their hideout. After crossing the river and passing through the woods on the other side, there was a small village. Previously, the daily necessities they needed were all traded for by Jiraiya from that village.

The youths had only been there once, and it wasn't exactly close. At their current speed, it would take about an hour to get there. That was actually quite good; before they had learned to channel chakra, it would have taken an ordinary child an entire day to make the trip. Since becoming ninjas, their travel speed had increased more than tenfold.

"Bandits!" Hearing that they were to deal with a group of bandits, Yahiko couldn't help but rub his hands together, eager for action.

"Will Master Jiraiya be coming with us?" After such long, dry training, everyone was eager for a new mission. Although they wanted to leave immediately, they were still curious if Jiraiya would accompany them.

Jiraiya shook his head. "Of course not. They're just a bunch of petty thieves; why would I need to get involved?"

"Ah, if it's just us, will there be any danger?" Konan asked, looking concerned.

"They are just ordinary bandits." Jiraiya's voice turned serious. "And I said this is a test for you. If you've spent this long with me and still can't subdue a few commoners, then don't bother calling yourselves my disciples."

"Uh... understood." The group nodded at Jiraiya, saying no more.

"Good. Go get ready and head out on your own. You can decide how to deal with those bandits yourselves. I'm quite busy—I need to think about where to go for my next bit of 'research'!"

Jiraiya waved them off, signaling that they could handle the bandits however they saw fit. His tone had been casual when he told them to prepare, but as he mentioned his "research," a lecherous aura that he couldn't quite hide crept into his voice.