"Orochimaru-sensei is back!"
During their idle chatter, Shihōin Naraku suddenly brought up the news.
Jiraiya nodded. He already knew about it.
Originally, Jiraiya hadn't planned to stay in the village for long. Whether by accident or design, after meeting Naruto Uzumaki, he had decided not to leave for the time being.
"Jiraiya-sensei, what do you think Orochimaru-sensei will do?"
"You still call him your teacher?" Jiraiya looked up at Shihōin Naraku, then gazed thoughtfully at the sake cup in his hand. "Who knows what he wants to do?"
Shihōin Naraku chuckled. "Orochimaru-sensei taught me for a long time and helped me understand what ninjutsu truly was... This time, if he harms Konoha, I'll kill him myself!"
Jiraiya acted as though he hadn't heard those words, merely toying with his sake cup. Only after a long while did he speak. "Is that so? It seems the three of us taught you well. But why tell me something like that?"
Shihōin Naraku could be called an outstanding student brought up through the combined efforts of the Sannin: Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru!
Jiraiya had helped Shihōin Naraku build the firmest possible foundation, Orochimaru had taught him a vast array of ninjutsu and knowledge, and Tsunade had finally honed Naraku into an exceptional medical ninja.
Even before the system appeared, Shihōin Naraku had already secured his position among Konoha's leadership and had even been all but confirmed as a Hokage candidate.
That alone was enough to prove that the Sannin's teaching had indeed been a great success.
Seeing that their conversation had grown a little too heavy, Shihōin Naraku changed the subject. "Have you seen Tsunade-sensei in the past few years?"
Jiraiya's hand trembled around his sake cup as though he had suffered a blow. It took him a long time to answer. "Just