Jiraiya immediately pressed his hands together and begged for mercy:
"I was wrong! Lady Tsunade! Teacher Orochimaru! I was ignorant—I daydreamed through class!"
He promptly admitted defeat, but then his curiosity flared up again.
"Still, Orochimaru, you mentioned a 'higher specialized institution' just now?
Besides the traditional Jonin-led team model, are there other options?
And what is Konoha University? It sounds pretty impressive."
Tsunade and Uchiha Gen also looked intrigued as they turned to Orochimaru.
Apparently, even they did not know much about this "Konoha University."
Seeing that everyone was curious, Orochimaru gathered his thoughts and explained:
"According to the information I collected, and the occasional hints from Sarutobi... Lord Advisor, Konoha University was part of Lord Hokage's plan
to provide graduates who showed exceptional theoretical talent or research potential in specific fields
with a new kind of school where they could deepen their studies and access higher-level theoretical knowledge and techniques.
Unlike traditional master-disciple instruction or tempering through missions, it placed greater emphasis on systematic knowledge building, exploration of cutting-edge subjects, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
That is all I know for now. The specific subjects and faculty structure are still highly confidential."
"I see..."
Everyone understood. It sounded like a higher hall of learning.
Jiraiya clicked his tongue.
"Damn... Orochimaru, how do you even know internal information like this? Even Tsunade doesn't seem to know the details."
He looked at Tsunade, who nodded as well, indicating that she only knew the general direction and not the specifics.
Orochimaru spoke evenly:
"Earlier, when Uncle Sarutobi... ahem, Lord Advisor, discussed chakra material stability with me, he also mentioned Lord Hokage's long-term plans for developing talent.
He mentioned that the new building complex under construction in the eastern district had functional designs and an architectural style completely different from the traditional Ninja Academy