"Hey, Yueshu, how've you been?"
After a long time apart, Minato Namikaze appeared before Yueshu once again.
"Huh? Minato, weren't you away on a mission?"
School had just let out. With nothing better to do, Yueshu was wandering the streets when he ran into Minato Namikaze.
"I just got back. There haven't been as many missions lately, so I finally have some free time."
Minato Namikaze was still the same, wearing a warm smile.
"How's life as a Genin?"
"Not bad. The missions are still pretty simple, though. Lots of stuff like looking for things."
"Well, you have to start with the little things."
"That's a good way of putting it."
"Haha. Speaking of which, who's your Jonin instructor again? Since you graduated early, I'm guessing you weren't assigned to a team with the other graduates."
As soon as Yueshu finished speaking, Minato Namikaze's eyes lit up.
"Speaking of that, you'd never guess who my Jonin instructor is."
"Oh?"
Yueshu was curious. It was rare to see Minato Namikaze this excited.
"You know about the Second Ninja War, right? Three great shinobi emerged from Konoha during that war. They were the Sannin."
Minato Namikaze spoke slowly. The more Yueshu heard, the more something felt off.
"One of the Sannin is my Jonin instructor."
"Jiraiya?"
Yueshu looked at Minato Namikaze in surprise.
"How did you know?"
"Okay."
Yueshu was speechless.
He hadn't expected it to really be Jiraiya. This had completely caught him off guard.
At this point in time, Jiraiya shouldn't have been in Konoha.
"Then where is he now?"
Yueshu asked.
"Jiraiya-sensei? He was with me just a moment ago. We were walking, and then he suddenly disappeared."
Minato Namikaze scratched his head, at a loss.
"Ahhh!"
A girl's shriek rang out, immediately drawing Yueshu and Minato Namikaze's attention.
"There's a pervert!"
It sounded like there really was a pervert around.
"..."
Yueshu already knew what was going on. Jiraiya had come back, and someone was yelling about a pervert. Anyone who'd watched Naruto would put those two things together.
Jiraiya wasn't known as one of the Sannin so much as the Perverted Hermit.
"Let's go take a look."
Minato Namikaze was brimming with a sense of justice. He wasn't about to stand by after hearing someone shout about a pervert. As soon as the cry faded, he headed toward where it had come from.
"I don't think I should let you go, but I'll come along anyway."
Yueshu looked at Minato Namikaze with sympathy.
That poor kid had no idea that one of the Sannin he admired was actually a lecher.
"Ow, ow! Those girls could've gone a little easier on me. All I did was sneak a few peeks."
Nearby, a man with somewhat long white hair was sprawled on the ground, gently touching his cheek.
"Hey."
"Hm?"
Hearing someone call from behind, Jiraiya turned around instinctively.
"So you're the pervert from earlier?"
Even though he already knew, Yueshu pretended to be surprised.
"Jiraiya-sensei, what are you doing here? Yueshu can't be right, can he?"
"I—"
For a moment, Jiraiya couldn't come up with an excuse.
Yueshu watched Jiraiya from the side. His face, which had looked decent enough before, was swollen now and resembled a pig's head.
"By the way, Minato, what are you doing here? And that kid over there—you're the one I met back then, aren't you? How's life in Konoha?"
Jiraiya coughed, stood up straight, and tried to change the subject.
"I was walking around over there and ran into Yueshu."
Minato Namikaze was so guileless that Jiraiya managed to change the subject with ease.
"Oh, I see. What a coincidence. I was doing the same thing."
Jiraiya smoothly followed up, while Yueshu watched in silence.
"Himeshima Tsuki, right? So, how's Konoha treating you?"
"Not bad. Thanks for helping me back then."
"That's great. No need to thank me. I'm the Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku, Jiraiya!"
"Right, the Perverted Hermit."
Yueshu nodded. Jiraiya, who'd been striking a pose, collapsed to the ground.
"I'm not the Perverted Hermit! I'm the Toad Sage!"
"Sorry."
"That was way too casual!"
Yueshu's expression remained calm as Jiraiya kept grumbling beside him.
"Haha, you and Yueshu seem to get along really well, Jiraiya-sensei."
"That's an illusion."
Yueshu replied at once.
"Not even a moment's hesitation?"
Jiraiya clutched his chest, looking heartbroken.
"Hehe."
Minato Namikaze chuckled. He thought Jiraiya and Yueshu got along pretty well.
It was just past noon when Yueshu and Jiraiya, master and disciple, happened to meet near one of Konoha's bathhouses.
"By the way, I can't believe Tsunade took you in."
The three of them sat in a dango shop. Claiming seniority, Jiraiya had offered to treat Yueshu and Minato Namikaze to some dango.
Five-Color Dango was a long-established Konoha shop, and it was Mitarashi Anko's favorite snack in the original story.
"Really? I think Lady Tsunade is a wonderful person."
Minato Namikaze took a bite of dango and joined the conversation.
"That's not what I mean. It's just that someone with Tsunade's status can't exactly take in just anyone."
Jiraiya took a bite too. Master and disciple really were master and disciple; they did have quite a bit in common.
"I don't know anything about that. Anyway, I'm still grateful to Tsunade."
Yueshu took a bite of the dango, the very treat that Mitarashi Anko loved in the original story.
It was sweet and a little sticky, but overall, it was delicious. No wonder it was one of Konoha's oldest shops. The food was good, and the prices were cheap.
"By the way, you beat Minato in a duel. What do you think? Any plans to graduate early?"
Jiraiya dropped the subject of Tsunade and turned the conversation toward Yueshu.
"That's right."
Yueshu glanced at Jiraiya, who was looking back at him.
"How about it? If you graduate early, I can be your Jonin instructor. I'm only teaching Minato right now, anyway."
"It's a rare opportunity."
"How rare?"
"The Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku could be your Jonin instructor. That's a rare opportunity."
"True. Having the Perverted Hermit as your Jonin instructor would be rare."
"Hey, hey! Change that nickname!"
"No."
"Tch, what an unlikable brat."
"Yueshu could graduate early too," Minato Namikaze said softly.
"We could be on the same team, go on missions together, and have Jiraiya-sensei with us. That sounds great."
As Minato Namikaze spoke, Yueshu pictured it too.
He had to admit, it was a great idea. Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze were both important figures from the original story, and each was a first-rate powerhouse—dozens of times stronger than the people at school. Any ordinary person would've chosen that path without hesitation.
"I'll think about it."
After hearing Minato Namikaze say that, even Yueshu couldn't reject it as casually as he had before.
Life at school was dull, and being a Genin wasn't so bad. He could still take it easy when he wanted.
"Mm."
Minato Namikaze smiled. Yueshu was his best friend and his only male friend. He'd be overjoyed if they could be on the same team.
"All right."
Jiraiya suddenly stood up. Yueshu and Minato Namikaze both looked at him.
"Let's go, Minato. Time for the next mission."
"Okay."
Minato Namikaze quickly finished the dango in his hand and got ready to leave.
"See you next time, Yueshu."
"See you next time, brat. Whatever happens, I'm looking forward to having you join us."
"Yeah, see you next time."
Jiraiya started walking, with Minato Namikaze following behind him.
They weren't especially tall, but somehow, Yueshu thought the sight of their two retreating figures was a little cool.
In Naruto, Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze were widely known as true men, the kind who stood tall and proud. One was a hero, the other a Hokage, and both master and disciple had tragic lives.
As Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze's figures slowly faded into the distance, Yueshu found his hand tightening around the dango.
He gripped it very, very tightly.
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