The Five Kage Summit ended smoothly.
The next day, the Four Kage left Konoha one after another.
Only then did Konoha gradually begin returning to its usual state.
"Jiraiya, until Naraku comes back, you have to keep impersonating him. You absolutely cannot let anything slip."
Tsunade stared at Jiraiya and gave him a warning.
She was worried that once the Ninja and civilians from the other villages left, Jiraiya would let his guard down completely.
That would not do.
Right now, apart from the higher-ups, no one in Konoha knew that Shihōin Naraku had disappeared.
So they had to keep concealing it.
Jiraiya scratched his head in distress. He really wanted to refuse to keep impersonating Naraku.
But that was not his decision to make.
"Hurry up and find a way to bring Naraku back. I can't keep this up."
Suddenly, Jiraiya's eyes lit up amid his frustration, as though he had remembered something. "Wait, didn't Naraku say he was going to step down after the Chunin Ninja Exams and make Kakashi the new Hokage?"
"The Chunin Ninja Exams just ended, so why not put Kakashi in charge now?"
"Once Kakashi officially becomes Hokage, I won't have to impersonate Naraku anymore."
Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Stop dreaming. Unless Naraku is here, no one can authorize a change of Hokage."
"Besides, Kakashi is working with Shikaku to handle village affairs right now. He can't spare the time."
"So keep filling in."
At that, Jiraiya muttered a few words under his breath.
But his voice was too quiet for Tsunade to make them out.
Meanwhile, Shihōin Naraku knew nothing of this.
He was still sealed in the Alternate Space.
The white mist of Time Freeze sealed his entire body within a single frozen frame, his mind awake, his body utterly still.