Discovering the Truth

Ren persuaded Jiraiya, and there were no procedural problems.

While mission participants do have the right to know, the information they receive will be quite scarce and vague before they fully accept the mission.

Therefore, even though the entire Konoha knew that an operation was about to be launched against the Land of Earth and the Iwagakure, they were still aware of the danger.

Given that Jiraiya was unaware of this Jiraiya, it's understandable that Ren wouldn't tell him.

After Jiraiya accepted the mission, Ren indeed handed over the complete set of information to Jiraiya, and knew it in more detail and more comprehensively than the rest of Konoha.

After all, he's the commander; he can't keep deceiving everyone forever.

Jiraiya, completely unaware of the situation, followed Xuanyue to the Konoha Military Police Force.

Even in Jiraiya's eyes, Root seemed incredibly mysterious, so it's understandable that Jiraiya would choose Root's information first given the opportunity.

It has become the Root of history; there is no recent information at all, only outdated information.

Filled with curiosity, Jiraiya opened the scrolls from the former Root.

This truly showed Jiraiya what darkness was; Danzo's title of "Darkness of the Shinobi" was well-deserved.

To be honest, everything Danzo did, whether it was the Wood Release experiments, the White Fang mission, or instigating wars, was detrimental.

Danzo meticulously documented each operation, making out the omissions.

One reason was Hiruzen Sarutobi's request; after all, Danzo lurking in the shadows, and having leverage over him was one aspect, but another was to keep a Danzo.

Secondly, Danzo didn't really think he had done anything wrong; it was a good opportunity to record his contributions to Konoha and the darkness he carried.

Furthermore, the version recorded by Danzo differs slightly from the version given to Hiruzen Sarutobi; it always adds "[Approved by: Hiruzen Sarutobi]" at the end.

Whether Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed or not, not stopping it is tantamount to approval, since Hiruzen Sarutobi knew everything.

Jiraiya even saw the records of the Land of Rain's activities, which documented Yahiko's death and the origins of the Akatsuki.

It turns out that the Akatsuki, which he had been searching for so desperately, was already documented in Konoha.

Jiraiya recalled his first meeting with Ren, and he felt that Ren must have already known something back then.

Meanwhile, the fact that the records did not mention the deaths of Nagato and Konan gave Jiraiya a vague sense of unease.

Disturbed, Jiraiya pulled out the last scroll and found that the time recorded on it was several years ago. He then got up and left the room.

"Lord Jiraiya, have you finished checking?"

"No, let's leave it at that for now. Where can we find the most comprehensive information about recent developments?"

Having answered Xuanyue's question, Jiraiya, disgusted by the information from Root, decided to take care of business first.

"Naturally, it's the Konoha Military Police Force. They have complete records of everything that happens in the Shinobi World, as well as major and minor events in Konoha."

Jiraiya, having returned to the Konoha Military Police Force's intelligence storage room, didn't start reading from the beginning, but instead pulled out the most recent intelligence to examine.

Jiraiya also produced the first intelligence report, was shocked by its contents.

Iwagakure?

Land of Earth!

Jiraiya, as if struck by a sudden thought, immediately pulled out the file folder that Ren had given him. After quickly opening it, he saw the large characters written on the cover and froze on the spot.

[Operation to Save the Land of Earth and Iwagakure]

After quickly skimming through the documents, Jiraiya finally understood.

What rescue operation?

This is clearly blatant aggression and plunder!

No wonder so many ninja villages could suddenly forget their hatred and unite.

The document records the establishment of the Shinobi Alliance, and contains far more details than Ren described.

From those grand and eloquent words, Jiraiya only saw a monster attempting to conquer the Shinobi World with war and death.

The day it was founded was the very day the Great Toad Sage made his prophecy.

Jiraiya didn't witness any rescue operation; he only saw a war sweeping across the entire Shinobi World.

Without any hesitation, Jiraiya left the Konoha Military Police Force.

Half an hour later.

"Smack!"

Inside the Hokage's Office, Jiraiya angrily slammed the documents onto Ren's desk.

"Fifth Hokage, is this the kind of action you call maintaining peace in the Shinobi World?"

It seemed that without giving an explanation, Jiraiya was about to be condemned from Konoha, Ren did not answer Jiraiya's question.

"Jiraiya is in charge. I suppose you've finished watching, but you seem to have forgotten something."

After Ren finished speaking, a flash of Kakkō engulfed the documents on the table, burning them to ashes.

Seeing that Ren's focus was completely off-topic, Jiraiya knew that Ren wasn't failing to understand, but rather simply didn't want to answer.

Feeling he had found the reason, Jiraiya immediately started to act shamelessly.

"Don't call me Commander. If I had known beforehand that it was to start a war, I would never have accepted it. I resign from my position as Commander now."

Ren responded calmly.

"Jiraiya, whether you admit it or not, you are now the commander. Don't forget the agreement you signed, and this isn't about starting a war, it's about maintaining peace!"

"I have found the reason for the annihilation of ninjas as prophesied by the Great Toad Sage. The war caused by the existence of the Shinobi Alliance will not end in the Land of Earth; it will eventually engulf all ninjas until they are completely wiped out!"

Jiraiya confidently stated his guess, adding at the end.

"I will stop all of this! Ninjas should not perish because of ambitious people like you!"

Ren shook his head slightly and said with a smile.

"No, you can't stop it. If you're unwilling to take on the role of commander, you won't even be able to leave this room. And the operation to save the Land of Earth will continue, under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief Jiraiya!"

"The Fifth Generation! You..."

Jiraiya wanted to take action, but found that not only could he not mobilize his chakra, but his body also felt incredibly heavy.

Inside the office, the intricate Sealing Jutsu that filled every space now emitted a glow.

"Jiraiya, if you truly believe the Shinobi Alliance is the cause of the ninja's disappearance, then you should be the commander and prevent the future you speak of from happening, instead of shirking your responsibilities here!"