Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Jiraiya's Return
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"Old man! I'm back!"
The window of the Hokage's office was shoved open from outside, and Jiraiya—reeking of booze—stumbled inside.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had been seated in the Hokage's chair sorting through documents while lost in heavy thought, was startled awake by the sudden arrival. He turned to see Jiraiya tripping through the window and tumbling to the floor.
The Anbu ninja stationed nearby for the Hokage's protection held back their laughter, quietly averting their gazes.
"Ah, Jiraiya, perfect timing on your return." Sarutobi Hiruzen swiveled his chair, picking up his pipe and taking a couple of puffs before catching the stench of alcohol wafting off Jiraiya.
Hiruzen's brows furrowed into a knot as he asked, "Where have you been all this time?"
In the 51st year of Konoha, after the end of the Third Great Ninja War, both Jiraiya and Tsunade had left the village for their own reasons—off on journeys of travel and training.
Of the Three Nin, only Orochimaru remained in the village, but he was occupied with all sorts of experiments and had even gotten tangled up with Danzo.
Long before Orochimaru's live human experimentation on Konoha ninja was exposed, he had already lost his shot at becoming the Fourth Hokage.
He had picked the wrong side, aligning with Danzo, which distanced him politically from his teacher, Sarutobi Hiruzen, and his faction.
Thus, Orochimaru's defeat to Minato in the Fourth Hokage election had been inevitable.
"Wasn't I out gathering inspiration in the Land of Hot Water this whole time?" Jiraiya scratched the back of his head as he hauled himself up off the floor.
After the war between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud Village broke out, though Jiraiya hadn't gone to the front lines, he had been traveling the borders of the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Water. That way, if the battlefield situation shifted or Hiruzen needed him urgently, he could show up right away.
He had returned once after the Hidden Cloud Village signed the armistice with Konoha.
"Speaking of which, I had something to tell you too, old man." Jiraiya grumbled to himself, grabbing a teapot from the desk and pouring himself a cup.
"The Great Toad Sage prophesied that the shinobi world is about to face an unprecedented catastrophe. The entire world will be shrouded in darkness!" Jiraiya finished his tea and said gravely.
"Yeah, and so you're looking for that Child of Prophecy who can save the shinobi world, right?" This wasn't the first time Sarutobi Hiruzen had heard Jiraiya go on about "shinobi world catastrophes" or the "Child of Prophecy."
He was used to it by now.
For a village leader like him, there had to be some hidden secrets behind such prophecies.
The masters of the three sacred sites weren't human, after all. Hmph, as if they truly cared about humanity's future.
"No! This situation is even more dire!" Jiraiya's face flushed slightly as he argued fervently.
One moment he was talking about the "Child of Darkness who would destroy the shinobi world," the next about a "catastrophe unlike anything the shinobi world had seen in a thousand years."
Sarutobi Hiruzen neither confirmed nor denied it, simply nodding lightly as he handed a scroll from the desk over to Jiraiya.
"Orochimaru has defected." Sarutobi Hiruzen's casual remark left Jiraiya frozen in place.
Snapping out of it, Jiraiya exclaimed in shock, "Old man! You're joking, right? Orochimaru would never—"
Before he could finish, Jiraiya spotted the testimonies on the scroll Hiruzen had handed him—accounts from Konoha ninja who had survived Orochimaru's live experiments.
His hand trembling, he took the scroll and read it carefully.
It detailed the ninja rescued from Orochimaru's secret lab during the operation, along with the massive amounts of experimental materials discovered, and the horrific experiment logs.
After going through it all, Jiraiya's expression turned solemn. He fell silent for a long time.
Even the prophecy about the "Child of Darkness" was thrown to the back of his mind.
"I'll go drag him back right now!" Jiraiya slammed the materials onto the desk and leaped out the window with fierce momentum.
Sarutobi Hiruzen stood from his chair, pipe in hand, and positioned himself by the window. He watched Jiraiya's fading afterimage darting across the village rooftops, then let out a deep sigh.
Northern Land of Fire.