"We weren't talking about you. We were talking about Uchiha Yi." Orochimaru shot Jiraiya an exasperated look. "You're always going on about how powerful Sage Mode is. If you're so capable, show us!"
"What? Uchiha Yi? You're saying Uchiha Yi is training in Sage Mode?" Jiraiya pieced together what he had heard and asked in disbelief.
Jiraiya knew Uchiha Yi was a genius. Tsunade had used the Rasengan in front of him recently, and he had been itching to learn it ever since.
He felt the technique suited him perfectly. But Uchiha Yi had developed it, and Tsunade could hardly teach it to him without Yi's permission.
Was Jiraiya the sort of man who would ask someone younger to teach him the Rasengan?
Actually, yes. He probably was.
There was no time for that now, though. It would have to wait until they returned to Konoha. Learning that Uchiha Yi was training in Sage Mode was good news for Jiraiya.
Who in Konoha knew the most about Sage Mode? Jiraiya would say that if he ranked second, no one would dare claim first.
He could trade his insights into Sage Mode for the Rasengan.
The thought put Jiraiya at ease.
"Mm. Grandmother sent Yi to Shikkotsu Forest to train in Sage Mode." Tsunade nodded, then gave Jiraiya a disdainful look. "You've been training in Sage Mode for over two years, haven't you?
"How about a bet on which of you masters it first, you or Uchiha Yi?"
Orochimaru's eyelid twitched. Tsunade's luck with gambling was terrible. Did that mean Uchiha Yi really would learn Sage Mode after Jiraiya?
What he didn't know was that Tsunade hoped this bet would break her streak of losing every wager.
Tsunade had absolute faith in Uchiha Yi. Even though Jiraiya had started training in