You've Really Had Enough, Kid!

Some things could not be hidden forever. Better to spit them out sooner.

Konoha kept much secret intelligence from lower- and mid-ranking ninja for the sake of stability, but hiding it from Jiraiya would practically be a sign of distrust. The Third Hokage had no intention of concealing the information Danzo had provided.

However, he could not directly expose the fact that his old friend had once attempted an assassination. He could not let Shimura Danzō alone ruin the reputation of Konoha's older generation of high-ranking officials.

After compiling both sides' intelligence, they reached a conclusion: Konoha's newly minted rogue ninja, Yin-Yang—or rather, Zetsu—had been created by Orochimaru. He was exceptionally skilled in the Flying Thunder God Technique, yet had never revealed his talent for Wood Release. He had always been privately dispatched by Orochimaru.

After Orochimaru defected, Zetsu had decisively fled Konoha as well... As for why he had gone to the Land of Grass, perhaps Orochimaru had a hideout there, or perhaps he had other plans.

This had been confirmed. Border outposts between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain had sent Konoha intelligence concerning Orochimaru. Shed snake skin found at the scene had confirmed his identity...

The S-rank rogue ninja had encountered Jiraiya and his disciple, then fled north. He had fought an unknown person in the Land of Rain, which happened to border the Land of Grass.

Kitahara: "..."

Though he had no idea why Orochimaru was desperately making his presence known, the crow instinctively felt that Orochimaru had definitely been wronged... What nonsense. The crow itself had done it...

Still, Konoha had indeed stumbled onto news of Zetsu.

He was clearly one of the most deeply hidden figures in the future Akatsuki and villainous lineup, yet he had been exposed because of some old pot-bellied geezer fighting for power... After all, who would normally bother paying attention to some new person appearing in a tiny ninja village?

"Do you need me to make a trip to the Land of Grass?" Jiraiya glanced over the latest intelligence. The situation there was currently rather chaotic. It lay at the border junction of Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Konoha, with four or five small countries scattered throughout the region. Everyone was on edge now.

Not much time had passed since the Third Shinobi World War. Most ninja villages among the Five Great Nations were still licking their wounds and were probably deeply afraid of another major war breaking out...

"...I sent Hatake Kakashi. He directly encountered Zetsu before."

In truth, Hiruzen Sarutobi had sent out nearly every idle Anbu operative he could, including Danzo's Anbu training class. He had also stationed many ninja squads along the borders.

One report from the Land of Grass said that Zetsu had been there for some time. Although the Land of Grass had always been Konoha's ally, that did not mean there was no possibility that the small country had been jointly controlled by Orochimaru and Zetsu.

And in the neighboring great nation, the Land of Earth, the Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, Ōnoki, was not someone easy to deal with. Aside from Kirigakure being too far away, he had practically schemed against every other great nation.

He was a crafty old bastard...

Thus, after Hiruzen Sarutobi convened several high-level meetings, Danzo himself had headed over as well... After all, in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes, Zetsu had defected from under Danzo's command.

Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly pulled out a document and handed it to Jiraiya, casting a discreet glance at Uchiha Itachi. "Take a look at this. The situation in the village is a little unstable."

"Uchiha..." Jiraiya understood Konoha's longstanding policies toward the Uchiha. So long as they did nothing to harm Konoha, he did not particularly care about anything else.

The problem was that he now had a disciple, Uchiha Itachi...

Ever since Konoha announced news of its second S-rank rogue ninja, the Uchiha clan's dissatisfaction had escalated again. In just a few days, the village had received seven complaints regarding the Konoha Military Police Force, including conflicts between the Aburame clan and the Uchiha clan.

The Third Hokage meant for Jiraiya and Uchiha Itachi to remain in the village for the time being. On the surface, it could serve as a calming gesture, while Jiraiya's presence was also a form of deterrence... Fugaku Uchiha's attitude remained fairly neutral.

"Ha! They all look like minor matters..." Jiraiya scratched the back of his head and set down the paper in his hand. "...In that case, Itachi and I will rest in the village for a while!"

"There's one more thing..." After coughing twice, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved for Uchiha Itachi to leave for the moment... The master and disciple had something private to discuss.

The little boy had barely left the room with the crow in his arms when complaints and arguments erupted inside, loud enough to nearly carry through the entire Hokage Building...

"We can't delay choosing the next Hokage any longer!"

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't decide that on your own!"

"Jiraiya, I'm already very old. It's difficult for me to spare the energy to handle all the village's affairs... You've seen it too. If you became Hokage, many things could be resolved easily!"

"Old man, there's still Chakra left in this crystal ball... Let me see what I can find in it, okay? Don't take it away! I have an excellent spot I've been scouting for a long time to share with you... Hehehe..."

"..."

Uchiha Itachi and the crow looked at each other, both at a loss.

Not long afterward, Jiraiya walked out looking thoroughly satisfied. He patted the little boy on the head. "Itachi, go home first! I have some personal matters to handle..."

Kitahara, who somewhat wanted to follow him: "..."

Uchiha Itachi nodded and hurried toward the clan compound with the crow, muttering to himself along the way. "First, I'll go see Father, Mother, and Sasuke... Then I'll visit Shisui... If there's time..."

"Caw~"

Kitahara gave a light cry. If there was time, he would go see Uchiha Izumi too, right? He might as well go find the little veterinarian!

Still, he had put visiting Shisui ahead of seeing Izumi...

Kid, you really were amazing!

Kitahara and Itachi had mostly overlapping social circles. Counting them up, they only had Shisui, Uchiha Izumi, and Inuzuka Hana as friends in Konoha.

Uchiha Itachi liked practicing sparring with Shisui, while Kitahara preferred snatching snacks from the little veterinarian. The little veterinarian was busy nearly every day and was carefree enough not to worry about so many things...

As for Uchiha Izumi, it did not seem quite appropriate to say they were merely familiar faces. After all, Itachi and Izumi could still be considered friends, and the little girl's feelings were so obvious...

While the crow and Uchiha Itachi were discussing this, a petite figure suddenly stopped at the street corner and called out loudly, "Itachi! You're back?"

"..."

Kitahara fell silent. Some people truly could not stand being talked about... Listen to that! How was this girl supposed to make him sick? Uchiha Izumi, whose IQ and emotional intelligence plummeted whenever she saw Uchiha Itachi, completely ignored the crow...

Whether it was Shisui or Inuzuka Hana, they would definitely greet them one after another...

Love-struck fool!

"Izumi, why are you here?" Uchiha Itachi looked at her curiously. By all rights, girls her age should still be attending the Ninja Academy at this hour.

"We had shuriken practice today, so it's fine to leave a little early! If school lets out too late, it'll be hard to buy Three-Color Dango..." Uchiha Izumi spoke as she held up the bag in her arms.

Both Uchiha Itachi and Kitahara remembered this time very clearly. That sweets shop should have been about to sell out, and even if they hurried over, they might not make it in time.

Uchiha Itachi's face reddened slightly as his gaze gradually fixed on her. "...It's been a while. Want to sit down together?"

"Caw..."

For once, Kitahara was irritated enough to want to beat the kid... Seriously, show some backbone!

Second update, a little late. Sorry! But I still hope for recommendation votes...