Morning light streamed through the gaps in the tent. Jiraiya jolted upright from his cot, a vicious hangover pounding at his temples. He instinctively clutched his forehead, his knuckles turning white from the force.
"Awake?"
That familiar voice made Jiraiya's entire body stiffen. He slowly looked up and saw the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, seated at the low table in the center of the tent, wisps of smoke rising from the pipe in his hand. The old man's wrinkles looked especially deep in the morning light, and his aged eyes, which seemed to see through all worldly affairs, watched him calmly.
"Old man?" Jiraiya's voice was terrifyingly hoarse. "Why are you here?"
"I came to ask you to return and become the Fourth Hokage." Hiruzen cut him off directly, getting straight to the point.
The tent suddenly became terrifyingly silent. Jiraiya's expression froze. He blinked, then suddenly gave a dry laugh. "Ha! Old man, what kind of joke are you making now? I don't want to be Hokage, and aren't you doing just fine?"
Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and slowly exhaled. "The Four Kage joined forces to invade the Uchiha. The Uchiha... have perished."
"They were the ones who did it. What does it have to do with you? Don't tell me you're muddled enough to admit you were involved?" Jiraiya's smile vanished, replaced by a self-mocking question.
"The Uchiha's barrier had a distress broadcast set up. The instant the invasion began, it broadcast across all of Konoha." Hiruzen's voice was terrifyingly calm. "All of Konoha heard their plea for help, but I stopped an immediate rescue on the grounds that the situation was unclear."
Jiraiya's face instantly turned deathly pale. He staggered back two steps and knocked over the water flask behind him. Clear water