Naruto sighed and patted Jiraiya's face, which had swollen noticeably.
"I told you it was a misunderstanding, but you wouldn't believe me. What else could I do?"
He spread his hands, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness.
"Besides, you can't beat me anyway. Didn't you take that beating for nothing?"
Jiraiya said nothing. He merely raised a middle finger, his face filled with resentment.
Naruto had taught him that gesture just moments ago, claiming it represented a friendly greeting of some kind.
The two had stopped short of going all out. Other than the bathhouse caught in the crossfire, there had not been much damage.
A large group of guests wrapped in bath towels surrounded several ANBU members, noisily denouncing Jiraiya as a habitual peeping tom.
They had heard Naruto shouting while fighting, saying he was battling the old pervert to stop him.
Before the ANBU could sort out what had happened, the two had already used Body Flicker and slipped away.
The remaining ANBU were sprayed all over with spit, experiencing for the first time just how hard it was to make a living in the Konoha Military Police Force.
Jiraiya had spent recent years chasing Orochimaru. Even if he did not know the full extent of Orochimaru's plans, he had still managed to grasp a few pieces of them.
He simply had not expected Minato's son to have grown so powerful.
He had indeed held back, but he was certain Naruto had reserves of his own as well.
The two had tested each other in taijutsu. Without using chakra, he had actually been suppressed.
A storm surged through Jiraiya's heart.
After all, Senjutsu Chakra greatly enhanced one's physical abilities, and among the Sannin, his stamina had always been the strongest.
Tsunade's Monster Strength relied on chakra amplification,