Jiraiya's Disciple

Taking a deep breath, Zhi Ge shook his head. He did not want to think about that for now and headed straight toward Konoha Village.

"Hello, please come over here and register."

Before long, a Chunin guarding the gate stopped him. With the Chunin Exams underway, Konoha had greatly increased its security to prevent spies from other nations from infiltrating.

There were more than a dozen Chunin and several Jonin in plain sight.

Yet Zhi Ge's powerful senses detected ANBU hidden in the shadows as well—at least twenty of them!

"What is your name? Which country are you from? Are you here for the Chunin Exams? If so, register here. If not, leave immediately!"

The Chunin guard fixed his gaze on Zhi Ge's unfamiliar face and questioned him relentlessly.

The surrounding Chunin also glanced in his direction, either openly or covertly, as if they would strike the instant he made any suspicious move.

After all, the Chunin Exams required a Jonin instructor to lead a team of at least three people, yet this guy had come alone. It was strange!

"Zhi Ge, a resident of Konoha Village in the Land of Fire. I came back this time to take part in the Chunin Exams."

Zhi Ge replied calmly, his expression unruffled.

"You're from Konoha?"

The Chunin handling the records paused his pen, looked up at Zhi Ge, and narrowed his eyes.

At the same time, the dozen or so Chunin nearby rushed over and surrounded Zhi Ge.

"Yes!"

Zhi Ge answered openly.

"Where are your companions?" The Chunin's expression grew increasingly hostile.

"I have no companions."

"Where is your teacher?" The Chunin's face darkened further.

"He sacrificed himself for art!"

"Take him down!"

The moment Zhi Ge finished speaking, the dozen Chunin surged forward to capture him.

At such a critical time, protecting Konoha's safety was their foremost duty.

This man was suspicious and spoke nonsense.

For people like him, it was better to kill by mistake than let one go!

Just as the tension reached a breaking point, Zhi Ge slowly pulled a forehead protector from his pocket. Only one word was written on it: Oil!

"Wait!"

At that moment, a loud shout rang out, and a man stepped forward.

He hurried over, staring blankly at the forehead protector in Zhi Ge's hand.

Zhi Ge looked at the man before him and froze slightly.

The newcomer was Naruto's first teacher, Iruka!

An ordinary yet great Chunin schoolteacher! One of the most important people in Naruto's life, he had been the first person to acknowledge Naruto and had also been Naruto's guiding light!

It took Iruka a long while to recover from his daze.

His voice trembled as he asked, "Y-you... are you that lord's disciple?"

Zhi Ge nodded calmly. He held considerable respect for Iruka.

"What?!"

Only then did the group of Chunin snap out of it. They stared blankly at the forehead protector in the boy's hand, utterly horrified.

They knew better than anyone what that forehead protector represented!

This...

This was the mark of Jiraiya, one of the legendary Legendary Sannin!

This boy was actually that lord's disciple?

Damn!

They had nearly caused a disaster!

Zhi Ge gave Iruka a slight nod, then looked at the Chunin recording his information and asked calmly, "May I enter now?"

"Y-yes! P-please, come in!"

The Chunin immediately parted to make a path for Zhi Ge.

Zhi Ge walked slowly through the crowd without the slightest hurry.

Zhi Ge's back gradually receded into the distance.

As the Chunin watched him leave, they all unconsciously swallowed.

"H-he's actually Lord Jiraiya's disciple?"

"Lord Jiraiya hasn't returned to Konoha for many years. Who would have thought he had taken another disciple?"

"Wait, Lord Jiraiya's previous disciple was..."

At those words, everyone froze. Then they were all stunned, their eyes instinctively turning toward Hokage Rock.

There stood four massive statues of men—the statues of the successive Hokage.

And on the fourth position of Hokage Rock was a handsome face.

The Fourth Hokage!

The man who had been like the wind!

The man known as the Yellow Flash!

The man who had protected Konoha with his life!

"If that's the case, then that boy is the Fourth's... junior fellow disciple?"

Someone blurted it out unintentionally. All the Chunin swallowed again and stared blankly at the boy's retreating back.

Zhi Ge ignored the reactions behind him. His eyes casually swept toward a hidden direction, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

Perhaps it was an inborn ability. Though he could not produce even the slightest bit of Chakra, his ability to sense Chakra had been exceptionally strong since childhood.

Within a hundred meters, he could clearly sense every person's Chakra, even those concealed in the shadows.

In the shadows.

A man with a face full of scars froze slightly and instinctively took several steps back. Did that brat notice me?

But he quickly dismissed the absurd thought.

How could that be possible!

How could a mere Genin detect his movements?

It was a coincidence—definitely a coincidence!

Who was he?

Ibiki Morino!

A Special Jonin of Konoha Village in the Land of Fire.

The captain of the Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force, as well as the chief examiner for the first stage of this Chunin Exams.

Known as the "sadistic chief examiner"!

A Genin discovering his whereabouts?

How could that be possible!

He recognized the boy at once—the Uchiha child from back then.

He had not expected him to still be alive!

At the same time, the ANBU hidden in the shadows immediately relayed this information to the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura.

The Uchiha remnant was still alive!

And he had become the disciple of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin!

He had even... returned to Konoha!

For a time, these reports caused an enormous uproar among Konoha's upper ranks!

When Danzo Shimura received the news, he furrowed his brow tightly.

He immediately rose from his seat, wishing he could order the ANBU to assassinate this Uchiha remnant at once!

But because of his concerns over the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya, he held back from acting.

"Send people to monitor him at all times. If he dares do anything that threatens Konoha's security, execute him on the spot!"

After wrestling with the matter for a long time, Danzo Shimura issued the order. Soon, several ANBU leaped away.

Storm clouds gathered, but Zhi Ge, the man at the center of it all, knew nothing. He walked deeper into Konoha, then soon stopped.

Because he saw someone in the distance.

A boy dressed in a green training suit, with white bandages wrapped around his hands and feet.

And three people stood before him.

Naruto, Sakura, and... Sasuke Uchiha!

Seeing Lee strike a pose, his eyes resolute and his entire body brimming with confidence as he occasionally stole glances at Sakura Haruno, Zhi Ge's lips curled upward.

Heh, that familiar iconic scene had arrived!