Jiraiya, you still say you didn't kill him!

"Ultimate! Unleash your ultimate!"

Tsunade solemnly placed the last ten-tael note on the table.

After Rope Tree withdrew its investment, this was her last ripple.

"Oh my, you have no idea, the bounty hunting grounds are awash in blood!"

"Really?!"

"Absolutely! I saw it with my own eyes! A Konoha ninja fought his way from south to north, killing anyone he saw!"

Nawaki, Tsunade: ? ? ?

What happened?

How did we end up fighting our way from the north to the south?

Rope Tree grabbed the speaker by the collar: "Hey! What bounty agency?!"

Just as the man was about to get angry, his gaze fell on the goggles on Rope Tree's forehead.

"Konoha ninja... Ah!"

He actually fainted right there in Rope Tree's hands.

The casino was thrown into chaos instantly.

A hand grabbed Rope Tree from behind by the back of his neck, and the two of them vanished on the spot.

...

On Le Street, the ruins stood out starkly.

The reddish-brown soil stood out starkly from its surroundings.

The bounty is gone.

The person is gone too.

Yang Xiang and the others... have also disappeared.

Tsunade was dumbfounded.

She had intended to lead Rope Tree away, guessing that Yang Xiang was going to cause trouble for the bounty agency, and didn't want to get involved.

But she never expected that Yang Xiang's murderous intent would be so extreme.

Rope Tree was so anxious that it spun around in circles.

Where are the people from Yangxiang?

Why didn't you take me with you on such a big trip?

Yang Xiang... There's already a sadly thick barrier between us.

...

Governor's Office of Yamato Province.

Aragaki Shun was awakened by a series of urgent knocks on the door.

"Who?"

Captain Kosuke, the samurai, knelt outside the door, leaning on his sword, his forehead dripping with cold sweat. He was ready to commit seppuku.

"...You mean, the bounty office is gone?"

"They were all killed by Konoha ninja?"

Aragaki Shun took a sip of herbal tea to calm himself down.

Upon waking from his afternoon nap and hearing this, he felt as if he were still dreaming.

Is this still the Land of Fire?

Did I encounter the Konoha serial killer?

Such heinous acts are beyond the reach of ordinary rogue ninjas; a heavy blow must be dealt to them!

"Has the identity of the Konoha ninja been confirmed?" he asked in a deep voice.

Such a vicious criminal must not be allowed to roam freely within our territory; we must immediately notify Konoha.

The reputation of Konoha ninjas has always been good.

He thought about it, and the last rogue ninja seemed to be...

Madara Uchiha.

"Among those present were Jiraiya and several members of the Uzumaki clan." Kosuke lowered his head even further. "The one who made the move was a Senju ninja named Yosho."

Jiraiya?

swirl?

Thousand Hands?

He had heard all of these words before.

But when you say it all together, I just can't understand it.

"...The Senju from Hashirama Senju?"

Aragaki Shun's face instantly turned green.

Kosuke waited for a long time, but his superior did not move. He then quietly looked up and glanced at him.

"Should I... send a text message to Konoha?"

What a load of crap!

Aragaki Shun glared at him fiercely.

If Konoha really sends people, who will they beat up first?

Even if they really fight the Senju ninjas, will my prefectural government, like the Valley of the End,... crack open?

"...Report it." He waved his hand wearily. "This is not something we can decide."

...

The news was reported that evening.

The man was apprehended in the early hours of the morning.

No, the person came back on their own.

Yang Xiang's team has returned to Konoha and is currently submitting their mission report at the Hokage Building.

The Third Hokage warmly received the Uzumaki clan members.

"The mission was completed excellently, everyone. You've all worked hard. Go back and rest now."

The group of people left the office one after another.

A masked member of the secret service brushed past Yang Xiang, then suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"Hokage-sama, urgent report from Kyoto."

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned slightly and gave Kouichi Uzumaki an apologetic smile.

He had intended to take this opportunity to promote the Will of Fire to the young people of the Uzumaki clan, and if they thought the Konoha ninjas were really good, he might be able to recruit a few of them to join Konoha.

But the young leader's gaze always seemed a bit strange to him.

...My beard wasn't done properly today?

Puzzled, he unrolled the intelligence scroll.

Turn the page.

That's all.

He reread the scroll carefully from beginning to end.

A wisp of smoke rose from the pipe.

They really had a tough journey.

He was afraid that Jiraiya would cause trouble, and he was also afraid that Tsunade would cause trouble.

But to everyone's surprise, they caused such a big problem.

The official inquiries were made in writing by the person in question.

In his entire life, he only received a personal letter from a daimyo when he was serving as Hokage.

After a while, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly realized that there were still people in the office.

"It's too late today, let's take the envoys to rest first." He waved his hand at the secret service.

The group from Whirlpool covered their noses and nodded.

This old man smokes way too much. Does he have some kind of smoke-related ability?

"Go and summon Jiraiya."

...

Jiraiya was biting his pen on the desk.

He was rushing to finish a report for the Third Generation Headmaster.

The problem was that the turbulent events along the way left him completely at a loss for words.

It is said that Yang Xiang was so strong that he almost cracked his own skull with a single punch.

Or did the entire Iwagakure delegation from Uzushio Village ascend to the heavens and become stars?

Or perhaps Yang Xiang had a dozen or so merchants "split up" within the Land of Fire?

If you pick any item at random, he can't come up with any decent wording.

As for whether Yang Xiang did the right thing or the wrong thing...

He couldn't understand it anymore.

He's right, isn't he? He's absolutely right.

To say he's wrong—well, I really can't bring myself to say it.

As a Konoha ninja, seeing what Yang Xiangqian had done, he had only one thought in his mind:

That's impressive.

As a disciple of the third generation, he knew all too well what kind of expression the old man would have when he found out.

"Jiraiya, the third generation, requests permission."

...

The door to the Hokage's office remained firmly shut.

The window was suddenly flung open.

"You wretched creature! Look at the mess you've made!"

The reel came crashing down on me.

Jiraiya caught and launched the attack.

Isn't this information about the incident on Le Street?

What does this have to do with me?!

Hiruzen Sarutobi clearly didn't think so. He pulled out a thick club from behind his back.

"Wait, old man!"

Jiraiya hurriedly shoved the scroll in front of Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes, his fingers tapping away at the line of text:

The killer was Yang Xiang.

It's written in black and white! Can you see it?

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes were bloodshot.

He hit Jiraiya on the head with a stick.

"Traitor! You still dare to say you didn't kill him!"

You've really gotten to be capable now, haven't you!

They even managed to bribe officials in the Land of Fire to shift the blame onto a recent graduate!

OK!

Countless memories flashed through Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind.

Young Jiraiya, the young Jiraiya, that kind and ambitious man...

Beautiful bubbles, like a fleeting spark.

All your promises were lies!

"Jiraiya, it really was you who did this!"

Jiraiya was astonished.

How dare you slander someone's innocence for no reason!

Although he also wanted to sneer like the villain in the novel, "Now that I've been discovered, there's no point in pretending to be a good person anymore."

The problem is, he really didn't do it!

"Wait, old man!!"

Suddenly, a pair of eyes opened on the pitch-black rod, and a deep male voice emanated from it:

"Sarutobi, kill him!"

Jiraiya: ...

You little devil!