Jiraiya: Are You Sure He's Chiaki Setsuna, Not Senju Setsuna?

Just then, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally arrived.

Worried about Asuma Sarutobi and the others' safety, he had slowed down somewhat to keep them from being taken hostage by the "spy" lurking in the shadows.

Seeing the shattered ground and scorched forest, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a jolt of alarm.

Ninja had always excelled at assassination, particularly targeted kills. As long as they held an intelligence advantage, even a Genin could potentially assassinate a Jonin. But battles that practically reshaped the terrain, like the one before him, were rare among ninja.

Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly noticed a trench in the ground that appeared to have been formed by a shockwave. Following it, he indeed found Setsuna and the "spy" Obito Uchiha and the others had mentioned at its end.

"Wait, that person is..." Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes gradually widened. Although the man's injuries were severe and his face had swollen like a pig's head from scraping across the ground, Hiruzen Sarutobi still recognized him at a glance—his disciple, Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin.

"Haha! Big Brother Setsuna caught that spy!" Obito Uchiha was extremely excited.

"This is what it looked like after Senior Setsuna fought the enemy?" Asuma Sarutobi could not help drawing a sharp breath. Seeing the "spy's" miserable state made him even more frightened in retrospect. Good thing he had only sparred with his senior. If he had truly fought him, his little body would probably have been turned into a meat patty with one punch.

Might Guy's eyes burned brightly. "Can Taijutsu ninja be this powerful too?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to keep his voice calm. "By the way, why did you think he was a spy?"

Kakashi said, "I found him peeping into the women's bathhouse and tried to catch him, but he defeated me easily. Even ordinary Jonin couldn't possibly possess that kind of strength. And after being discovered, he didn't explain himself—he only wanted to run away. No matter how you looked at him, he seemed like a spy from an enemy village, right?"

Hearing that Jiraiya had been beaten into such a state for peeping, Hiruzen Sarutobi's beard trembled slightly. "Ha... haha, children, you did very well."

But inwardly, he thought, I can't use that anymore... No, whenever I use the Telescope Technique in the future, I must be twice as careful. Otherwise, I'll ruin my reputation in my old age.

At that moment, Setsuna came jogging back while carrying Jiraiya, pretending ignorance. "Lord Hokage, this man's forehead protector has the character for 'oil' engraved on it. Do you know which ninja village this symbol belongs to?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled awkwardly. "Haha, he is not a spy from an enemy village. He is this old man's disciple, Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin."

Obito Uchiha looked as though his fantasy had been shattered. He muttered in disbelief, "The Legendary Sannin are like this?"

Setsuna grumbled inwardly that rather than calling them the "Legendary Sannin," it would be more fitting to call them the "Three Plagues." Lewdness, gambling, and poison—they had it all.

Of course, in the chaotic Ninja World, Jiraiya, who merely indulged in lewdness, could practically be considered a moral paragon. At the very least, he would not repay kindness with enmity, nor did he harbor any extreme ideas about slaughtering villages or exterminating clans. He was practically a breath of fresh air in the Ninja World.

Kakashi was equally surprised. He had once met another of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru. That was a man who inspired fear at first sight. Kakashi truly could not connect this pervert who peeped into women's bathhouses with the Legendary Sannin.

Asuma Sarutobi, meanwhile, looked suspiciously at his old man. He had once seen his father reading a book with a lecherous grin on his face. When Asuma had asked who the author was, his father had said it was a work given to him by his disciple Jiraiya, and that it contained profound ideas.

But now, could someone who peeped into women's bathhouses really write a good book?

Seeing the children's gazes grow increasingly strange, Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed. "Jiraiya was sent out by me to gather intelligence. As for peeping into the women's bathhouse, that should have been a misunderstanding. There may have been an important person inside whom he needed to keep under surveillance."

Obito Uchiha felt somewhat guilty. "Huh? Then we beat up the wrong person?"

Kakashi frowned. He carefully recalled the lecherous smile that had appeared on this Legendary Sannin's face at the time. That absolutely was not the expression of someone conducting surveillance.

Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly reassured them. "You cannot be blamed for this. Jiraiya himself was careless and exposed his whereabouts. His long peaceful life has made him lose his caution, which is very dangerous for a ninja. I should thank you for making him alert again."

Obito Uchiha looked at Jiraiya's pig-like face, and admiration rose within him. "As expected of one of the Legendary Sannin. Even after being beaten like this, he didn't take the initiative to reveal his identity. He's truly dedicated."

"Fortunately, Lord Hokage, you arrived in time. Otherwise, I might have accidentally killed Lord Jiraiya." Setsuna sighed, then lightly tapped Jiraiya several times.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed in shock. He even knows Acupoint Striking?

Jiraiya endured the pain and rose to his feet, laughing awkwardly. "Haha, I was actually testing you. Mm, you all did very well. I never expected that after being away from the village for so many years, so many outstanding ninja would emerge here."

Setsuna naturally knew this was not Jiraiya's true strength.

In Sage Mode, Jiraiya's attack, defense, perception, and recovery abilities all far surpassed his normal state. With the assistance of two other sages, that was Jiraiya's complete form.

But Setsuna did not belittle himself either. Unless Jiraiya prepared in advance, he simply could not use Sage Mode in front of him. Setsuna's current strength was definitely among the best in the Ninja World.

As Jiraiya spoke, he looked at Setsuna. "Especially you. You're a newly promoted Jonin of the village, right?"

Judging by Setsuna's appearance, he seemed to be fourteen or fifteen years old. For a genius ninja, becoming a Jonin at that age was not unusual.

Setsuna shook his head slightly. "I only graduated from the Ninja Academy today. I don't even know when I'll be able to take the Chunin Ninja Exams."

Jiraiya almost wanted to curse. This is a fucking Genin?

Seeing that no one else showed any strange reaction, Jiraiya knew Setsuna was not lying. He could not help mourning for the candidates of the next Chunin Ninja Exams. Being in the same class as a monster like this would simply be hell-level difficulty.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Children, you've worked hard today. Go back first. I still have something to discuss with Jiraiya."

Only after Setsuna and the others had gone far away did Jiraiya let out a howl of pain. Even Hiruzen Sarutobi was startled by him. Annoyed, he said, "Shouldn't you have long since gotten used to being beaten by Tsunade?"

Jiraiya bared his teeth in pain. "That brat hit way too hard. His fists are even heavier than Tsunade's."

Hiruzen Sarutobi snorted. "You only have yourself to blame. You're already so old, yet you still go peeping into women's bathhouses. You deserved to be beaten."

Jiraiya's mouth twitched slightly. Teacher, did your conscience really not hurt saying that?

But since his teacher had rescued him this time, he had no way to argue. He could only sigh. "I originally wanted to create a new work and give it to Minato Namikaze."

Thinking of Kushina, who was like a little chili pepper, Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed several times. "If you don't want to get beaten again, you should give him something more normal."

Jiraiya glared. "What's abnormal about my Tales of a Gutsy Ninja?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi sneered. "Normal enough that you need to visit women's bathhouses for inspiration?"

Jiraiya argued, "This time, I wasn't gathering material. I was stimulating inspiration. Just like how you need to smoke to ease fatigue when handling official business, I occasionally need a little visual stimulation to inspire my creativity."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head slightly and asked, "By the way, how exactly did you lose? Were you careless?"

Jiraiya's expression turned solemn. "I was not careless. Other than not using Sage Mode, I had already used close to my full strength. He was too fast. There was no time to form hand seals for overly complicated ninjutsu, and his strength was even more terrifying. Not even the flesh wall of the Rock-Dwelling Great Toad I summoned could block a single punch from him. He's practically a monster."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes brightened. With a little cultivation, Konoha could gain another top-tier powerhouse, and one who was a war machine like the Raikage.

Jiraiya asked again, "By the way, Teacher, what's that brat's name?"

Hiruzen said, "His name is Chiaki Setsuna."

Upon hearing that, Jiraiya asked suspiciously, "Teacher, are you sure he's Chiaki Setsuna, not Senju Setsuna?"

Hiruzen smiled and shook his head. "I understand what you mean, but he truly isn't from that clan. Like Orochimaru, he is a hardworking genius born from an ordinary bloodline."

"Sigh, I'm always a stepping stone for geniuses." Jiraiya sighed gloomily. "I'd better wander around outside for a while longer. If Orochimaru and Tsunade see the injuries on my face, who knows how badly they'll mock me."