Hearing the absurd conversation among the group, Jiraiya was left utterly stunned.
No way... no way...
Am I really going to be killed by my own disciple?
That's way too tragic...
Unless Tsunade was with me at the time...
Jiraiya turned his gaze back to Uchiha Obito. Seeing his **** expression, he sighed and touched his chin. "It really might be possible..."
Just then, Payne's questioning voice echoed:
"Uzumaki Naruto... who is he?"
Uzumaki Naruto?
Who the hell is that?
Just as Jiraiya was about to respond with a shrug, the name suddenly struck him.
Wait... Could it be that kid?
The same name as the protagonist in my "Tale of the Gutsy Ninja"? The child of the Fourth Hokage?
Jiraiya recalled a certain blond boy in his mind, then remembered that moment with the red-haired woman.
"Sensei, I want to name my child after the character in your book."
"Uzumaki Naruto."
Jiraiya stroked his stubbly chin in contemplation.
That kid should be in Konoha by now. What, around eight or nine years old? Probably close to graduating from the ninja academy.
A light bulb flicked on in his head. A few days ago, the Third Hokage had sent him a message, urging him to return before the Chunin Exams.
Could it be… for this child?
The more Jiraiya thought about it, the more it made sense.
After the Fourth Hokage died, the Third resumed power. Jiraiya was both the Third's student and the Fourth's teacher. Entrusting the Fourth's son to him—yeah, it would be logical.
Still… he had no idea what kind of person that kid would grow up to be.
Uzumaki Kushina was from the Uzumaki clan, and the child had taken the Uzumaki name. He's probably got red hair too.
Jiraiya chuckled at the mental image of a red-haired Minato.
"It can't be him. He's still a kid," Jiraiya muttered.
"As far as I know, he hasn't even graduated yet. If he wants to take me down, he'd have to train for decades."
Even Jiraiya had to laugh at that.
He wasn't bragging—he was the one and only Toad Sage, after all. The only powerful shinobi in the world who'd mastered Sage Mode.
Could he really be taken down that easily? Just like that?
His eyes drifted to the answer board.
Once the right answer was revealed, he was going to hunt these disrespectful brats down one by one and teach them a lesson.
Let them learn what it means to respect your master!
What it means to not bite the hand that trained you!
---
Meanwhile…
"So, the kid with the Rinnegan really is Jiraiya's disciple, huh?"
Ōnoki floated in the air, watching the live feed, sneering. His sharp old eyes saw through everything.
The Akatsuki... the Fourth Great Ninja War...
They were nothing but Konoha's ploys to flex its power.
He had known from the very first question that this was Konoha's doing.
Now, his suspicions were only confirmed.
Just look at Jiraiya's disciples and their disciples—they're all monsters!
Ōnoki took a long drag of his pipe.
He was jealous.
So damn jealous.
Why did Konoha always produce such prodigies? Was it the only cradle for shinobi genius?
He sighed deeply. As much as he hated to admit it, it was the truth.
No matter the era, there was a massive gap between the Hidden Stone and Konoha.
Honestly, there was a gap between Konoha and every other village.
Thinking about it that way, maybe the Hidden Stone wasn't the most miserable.
But it sure was bad enough!
In his own generation, the Hidden Stone had only produced him… but Konoha? They had Sarutobi Hiruzen, the "Professor", and even Danzo.
Then the next generation came. Hidden Stone had a few elite Jonin... while Konoha?
They produced the legendary Sannin!
And that's not even counting the White Fang, who died too early!
Then came the next generation...
Ōnoki sighed again. He looked up at the names glowing on the screen and his thoughts drifted.
Before the First Great Ninja War, Konoha had two gods who dominated the world.
In the Second War, they birthed the Sannin to fight Hanzo the Salamander.
In the Third War, they had the Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze, whose speed alone crushed armies.
What about the Fourth?
What kind of monsters were they cooking up this time?
"No way..."
Ōnoki's eyes widened as he stared at the list of names.
Forget Minato and Naruto for now—Nagato and Obito clearly had major roles in the Fourth War, according to the system.
Ōnoki recalled what the test space had said:
Nagato died before the war, and Obito betrayed them during it.
So… that's two key Konoha-related figures already.
If Konoha's involved again in the Fourth Great War...
That's terrifying.
The power balance of the entire ninja world could tip completely in Konoha's favor.
It might become a one-party system, ruled entirely by them!
"I'm overthinking," Ōnoki muttered, trying to calm himself.
As for this Uzumaki Naruto kid?
He didn't pay it much mind.
As the Tsuchikage, he knew a lot about shinobi like the Sannin.
Especially wild cards like Jiraiya and Tsunade, who were constantly out and about.
But Jiraiya hadn't taken on any new disciples lately.
Which meant...
Naruto Uzumaki hadn't been accepted as one yet.
So what's the big deal?
There were still more than ten years until the Fourth Great War. By then, this Naruto kid might still be a Genin.
Could someone really go from Genin to god-tier warrior in just a decade?
That would require insane talent!
And besides, if this kid was really that strong, why would Jiraiya be running all over the world?
Why not just stay in Konoha and train the kid?
Ōnoki clicked his tongue, recalling Minato's calm elegance, Obito's madness, and Nagato's chilling power.
If Naruto also joined the Fourth Great War…
That'd mean Jiraiya fought in World War II, trained someone who fought in III, and then mentored someone for IV?
He'd basically become the godfather of global warfare!
"If that really happens… I, Ōnoki, will eat my hat. Live. On camera."
Cough cough.
Okay, that was a stretch.
If Jiraiya really could train that many god-tier freaks...
He wouldn't need to investigate anything.
Just sit back and teach a few more monsters, and the ninja world would be at peace.
Still...
Ōnoki smirked.
If all of this turns out true—
Then wouldn't that mean Sarutobi Hiruzen was the one who got Jiraiya killed?