Chapter 32: Princess Tsunade Returns to the Village for Money
A head of blonde hair danced in the wind, giving her an heroic and valiant appearance.
Hiruzen Sarutobi walked forward, trembling, looking as if his body was failing him, "Cough... Tsunade, you've returned too..."
"Tch, old man, what are you doing here!" Unfortunately, his feigned weakness was completely ignored. Tsunade even took two steps back in disgust... The meaning was clear: don't try to scam me!
"Hey, that person over there... Oh, it's Fugaku..." Tsunade's initially unrestrained and flamboyant voice dropped a few decibels, and she reined in her emotions slightly. "The one Jiraiya is testing today, is it a little brat from the Uchiha clan?"
Uchiha Fugaku's expression was somewhat unnatural, "He's my son..."
It was unknown whether it was due to the natural animosity between the Senju and Uchiha clans, or because he remembered his wife's contemporary, that little brat who always used to follow him and Mikoto around...
"In the blink of an eye, your and Mikoto's son has grown up too..." After a few sighs, Tsunade turned her head and saw the panting little girl behind her, "Shizune, go see if that idiot is dead or not?"
"...Yes, Lady Tsunade!"
This encounter was purely accidental. Tsunade had returned to Konoha for money... After traveling for too long, her funds had run into a bit of a problem. There was also a small private matter.
As soon as she arrived in the village, she heard news of Orochimaru's defection and Jiraiya's return to Konoha. She hurriedly inquired about Jiraiya's whereabouts at the Hokage Building... She knew exactly what that idiot was thinking...
As their teammate, she understood their temperaments. Both Jiraiya and Orochimaru were stubborn people. Once a dispute arose between them... especially a defection, it was something Jiraiya absolutely couldn't tolerate!
A battle was inevitable...
Jiraiya would surely be afraid of killing the other, while Orochimaru would surely be afraid of not killing the other... Was the result even a question? That idiot was eighty percent likely to be done in by Orochimaru, so she had to rush here to stop him.
On the other side.
Jiraiya sat up, clutching his forehead. He looked at the stunned Itachi beside him and said in a displeased tone, "Kid, don't you know to come and help me up?"
"Sorry..."
Jiraiya noticed the crow that had suddenly appeared on his shoulder and casually remarked, "Eh? You're raising a Ninja Crow too... This kind of summoned beast is useless... Why does it feel a bit cold..."
"Caw!"
Kitahara forcefully suppressed the urge to condense a Tailed Beast Bomb. This person has issues with his thinking...
"Lord Jiraiya, he is my friend..."
"From now on, you should call me Teacher..."
"Yes!"
Seeing the little boy's obedient appearance, Jiraiya seemed to see the shadow of another blonde youth through him. He whispered in Itachi's ear, "That question I asked you just now..."
Shizune stood before them, holding a small pink pig, and asked worriedly, "Lord Jiraiya, are you alright?"
"Ha, it's Shizune!" The white-haired old man glanced at the blonde woman conversing with Fugaku in the distance and gritted his teeth, "Tsunade slammed a fist down, you tell me how I could be alright!"
"...Then... is it life-threatening?" the little girl asked timidly. She was only fifteen, and her medical ninjutsu couldn't be called exquisite. And Tsunade's side...
"Even if it were, it's not something a washboard could cure!"
"Hmph!"
Uchiha Itachi could only watch his new teacher clutch his foot and cry out in pain... He remembered his father's other comment: Personality, terrible, extremely terrible...
After the assessment ended, everyone present more or less had things to do.
The Third Hokage was still very busy... And his two disciples didn't seem inclined to be respected towards him; they had much to say to each other, so he could only go back to work by himself.
Uchiha Fugaku took Itachi to register as a ninja, collect his headband, and so on.
After watching them leave, Tsunade asked, "You took that Uchiha brat as your disciple?"
"The old man couldn't find anyone suitable... Besides, that child doesn't have the dark side of the Sharingan. He seems to live more righteously and openly than anyone..."
"That's because the few disciples you took in the past were all orphans with war trauma..." Tsunade rolled her eyes at him.
Hearing Tsunade's words, Jiraiya felt a subtle emotion. Taking a child with living parents and a happy family as a disciple, he really wasn't used to it... He himself even felt a bit envious.
"It's still because of peace..."
If they knew that Uchiha Itachi had been killing on the battlefields of the Shinobi World War since he was three... one wonders what expressions would appear on their faces... Would they be astonished by his horrifyingly mature mind?
The Fugaku family was very lively that evening.
Uchiha Fugaku, breaking character, took out a small bottle of sake. He had rarely drunk at home since getting married, a habit he had maintained for many years.
"I didn't expect Itachi to become a ninja so quickly!" Uchiha Mikoto specially made a table full of Itachi's favorite foods. "Only one day of school, and he graduated directly..."
Fugaku's face was flushed, "Hahaha... Truly my son!"
The old father's alcohol tolerance... seemed a bit poor!
"Actually, it's still a pity... After all, the school teaches a lot of ninja knowledge..."
"Itachi! Don't regret those things, they're useless!" Fugaku tapped the table emphatically, "Senior Jiraiya is an excellent ninja, you probably couldn't find a more outstanding ninja in the entire world..."
Since graduating from the Ninja Academy, Fugaku had looked up to the achievements of the Konoha Sannin. Two Shinobi World Wars, multiple S-rank missions – there was almost nothing that could stump Jiraiya.
In the entire ninja world, Jiraiya was undoubtedly the most respected ninja... aside from his criticized lecherous personality...
Most importantly, Jiraiya had a great influence on the Hokage, probably the type who could get the Hokage position with a mere flick of his finger. And indeed, that was the case.
Honestly, this guy was quite detestable... From the old to the young in Konoha, who didn't wish for their own statue on the Hokage Rock? Jiraiya, however, treated it as nothing.
He had also cultivated a Hokage before; the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was Jiraiya's only disciple in the village... Uchiha Itachi would become Jiraiya's second publicly acknowledged disciple.
"Itachi! My son! Congratulations on becoming a ninja!" Uchiha Fugaku raised his sake cup and said loudly, "From today onwards, act according to your own will! Change the Uchiha, change Konoha!"
"Fugaku-kun, you've had too much to drink..." Uchiha Mikoto forced a bitter smile, quietly turning aside to wipe away her tears... The pressure on him was too great...
Uchiha Itachi frowned, "Dad, drink a little less..."
Sasuke beside him grabbed his brother's arm and babbled noisily. He probably didn't know it would be difficult to see his brother much in the future... The dinner table instantly became lively.
After the three family members had fallen soundly asleep, Itachi and Kitahara stood in the courtyard, gazing at the night sky, "Kitahara, what do you think of Teacher Jiraiya?"
"Caw..."
Meeting him is a good thing.
It was just that with Uchiha Itachi becoming Jiraiya's student, the Fugaku family couldn't prevent a student from following their teacher out for training. And given Jiraiya's teaching style, he definitely wouldn't take Itachi on low-level missions.
Uchiha Itachi had finally, in a practical sense, left the Uchiha. This might have been Hiruzen Sarutobi's objective... Uchiha Itachi would be more easily baptized by the Will of Fire.
In the future of the Uchiha clan, if a clan head appeared who openly supported Konoha, then that would truly be... the assimilation of the Uchiha, right?
(End of this chapter)