Because...
"So that's how it is... Hokage, Konoha really is overflowing with talent, isn't it?!" Ōnoki's expression turned somewhat peculiar at this revelation. His ambiguous smile made it unclear whether he was praising or mocking them.
Wasn't that the truth? The entire Akatsuki group that had just arrived numbered only a dozen or so, yet no fewer than four of them were shinobi born in Konoha!
Four! A third of the current Akatsuki had come out of Konoha!
Konoha truly was a cradle of genius.
And those four members had all belonged to once-illustrious clans!
The Senju, Uchiha, and Hyuga had all been great Konoha clans renowned throughout the Shinobi World at their height. Although the Kurama Clan was less famous than the other three...
Was its standing as the strongest Genjutsu clan several decades ago a joke?
"Heh, heh..." Jiraiya gave a dry laugh, bitterness deep in his eyes. What could he do?
What Ōnoki said was indeed true. How prosperous would Konoha have been if those four had not abandoned the village?
But there were no ifs in this world. Now, those four prodigies had not only left Konoha, but had all taken their places on its opposing side.
How could Jiraiya resist this irony of fate?
Kakashi also stood silently behind Jiraiya, his eyes somewhat dim. After all, Sasuke had been a member of his Team 7.
Just as the atmosphere grew somewhat heavy, a deep male voice reached everyone's ears.
"It seems I've come at a bad time. I haven't interrupted your discussion of tactics, have I?"
Ōnoki and the others immediately grew alert and looked around, but soon noticed something unusual in one corner.
A spatial ripple slowly spread outward. Before long, a figure wearing a long blue robe, with a large gunbai on his