Drip…
drip…
cough.
A trickle of blood ran across the cracked earth. In the smoking ruins of a new crater, a single sandal lay abandoned.
A battered hand twitched. A leg, twisted awkwardly, stuck up from the rubble.
On the edge of the crater, Jiraiya lay face-down in the dirt, sage cloak torn and spattered. And on top of his back...
Sat Tobi, legs crossed, mask shining in the sunlight, looking for all the world like a tourist on vacation.
He hummed a little tune, swinging his feet idly.
"Yare yare~ Jiraiya-sensei! I told you: orange spins in circles, ruins your day, and never gets dirty! Tobi is a good boy… but sometimes, Tobi is just built different! BRRR!"
He patted Jiraiya's back sympathetically.
"Don't feel bad! Even Gojo-sensei would be jealous of my style! Want me to spin again? Ehehe~!"
He stuck out a peace sign for the imaginary camera.
"Smile for the bingo book, Jiraiya-sensei! This pose is going viral!"
Jiraiya's face pressed into the dirt, every breath heavy with pain and exhaustion. All around him, the sounds of the world seemed distant—muted beneath the ringing in his ears.
Damn it… So this is how far Konoha's enemies have come…?
He tried to move, but his body refused—every limb aching, heavy as stone.
That masked fool… No, not a fool. Not at all. To think he could overwhelm me so completely, even in Sage Mode…
This pressure… This power… It's not something any ordinary ninja should possess. What is he? Who is he… really?
He remembered his fight with Danzo, that overwhelming despair. But even then, there had been an answer, a sliver of hope.
But now, as Tobi sat laughing on his back like a child, Jiraiya felt something colder than fear.
Is this what the new era will be? Are we, the old guard, already relics...outpaced by monsters in masks and boys with eyes like storms?
A slow, burning frustration built in his chest.
No. I can't let it end like this. I still have people to protect. Naruto… Tsunade… Konoha…
I have to survive. I have to warn them. There's no telling what this man will do next…
He gritted his teeth, feeling blood drip into the dirt.
What gnawed at Jiraiya even more… was the Wood Style.
That same, cursed sensation he'd just felt tearing through Danzo's body days ago.
First Danzo… now this idiot-in-a-mask?
His stomach tightened.
If someone was casually handing out Hashirama's power…
If someone was experimenting on Hashirama cells…
If someone was connecting all these threads behind the scenes...
Then this ambush isn't a coincidence at all.
A sick, heavy certainty started forming in his gut.
Something huge is moving in the shadows.
Something I can't ignore anymore. If my guess is right… the world won't stay calm for long. This level of danger can't stay hidden.
He forced his fingers to twitch.. subtlety, buried beneath Tobi's weight. Just enough to weave the smallest bit of chakra. A message! Anything...
He coughed, spitting dirt, blood trailing from his mouth as he glared up sideways at the masked figure perched on his back.
"…Are you from the Akatsuki?" Jiraiya rasped, voice hard and probing.
He didn't expect a direct answer.
He was stalling for time.
Tobi froze mid‑swing of his legs.
Then he slowly leaned down, mask tilting, eyehole staring straight at Jiraiya's half-buried face.
"Akatsuki?" Tobi repeated, voice unnervingly cheerful.
He tapped the side of his mask with one finger.
"Eheheh… Jiraiya-sensei, do I look scary enough for Akatsuki to you?"
He wiggled his fingers dramatically, "Boo~!"
Jiraiya's facial expression remained the same, he didn't humour this bastard that was obviously toying with him.
Tobi tilted his head further, eye narrowing beneath the mask.
He seemed to have noticed something.
He placed a single hand on the ground beside Jiraiya's face.
Just one finger pressed down.
And the soil compressed like iron.
"I wouldn't do that," Tobi said quietly...no goofiness, no childishness. Just flat, chilling certainty.
"This is one of those days… where you stay down."
Suddenly, just as the pressure on Jiraiya's hand threatened to crush bone, Tobi sat up straighter, mask swiveling toward nowhere in particular.
He started fidgeting, voice pitching higher...his entire demeanor shifting from menacing to pure comic relief in a blink:
"Ah—crap, crap, crap… Oops! I really messed up big time! Captain's gonna kill me—ugh, I got too hyped seeing you and Danzo throw hands, so I just kinda… went wild, ehehehe…"
He tugged nervously at his mask, feet kicking the dirt like a scolded child.
"Man, I really hope Captain isn't watching right now. He always says 'Tobi, don't make a mess…' But what can I say? You Sannin are way too much fun!"
He peered down at Jiraiya, cartoonishly worried.
"D'you think he'll forgive me if I bring you as a souvenir?"
For the first time, Jiraiya's expression truly changed. His brows shot up.
Wait...captain? He's reporting to someone? Someone strong enough to boss this lunatic around…?
If this guy's just a subordinate, then whoever his "captain" is…
A chill ran down Jiraiya's spine.
His mind quickly piecing things together. For a monster like this to act nervous about his superior—either the captain is truly terrifying, or there's something even darker at work behind the scenes…
With his heart pounding madly, Jiraiya realized he wasn't just staring at an enemy.
He was looking at a signpost...one that pointed to a far deeper abyss than even he'd suspected.
Jiraiya's thoughts turned more. He said he was watching me and Danzo fight? That means… this was all connected! That masked freak, Danzo's rampage, even the Wood Style… it all comes back to this "captain." Dammit!
But he kept his tone casual, feigning curiosity as he coughed another mouthful of dirt.
"Oi… this captain you keep talking about—is he your friend or something?"
Tobi straightened up with a goofy, almost bashful energy.
"Ehehehe! Friend? Waaah, you could say that! Captain's the coolest! And he..."
But just as Tobi was about to blurt out more, the air between them suddenly twisted—like reality itself was being sucked down a drain.
A swirling black vortex opened.
Tobi's mask tilted instantly, all giddiness wiped away in a snap.
"Ohhhh—uh-oh! Looks like I talked too much again!"
The hairs on the back of Jiraiya's neck prickled—a different kind of chakra had entered the clearing.
A shadow flickered behind Tobi, and suddenly, with no warning, another figure stood there. He wore a dark cloak, one sleeve empty, his face half-hidden by an orange mask with a single Sharingan spinning inside.
Obito Uchiha.
"Ah—C-Captain! You're here! Haha, I was just, um… talking about the weather, you know? Big fan of clouds!" Tobi suddenly started to play dumb, hoping he could get away with it.
Obito's voice was low, but every syllable rang out clearly.
"Enough, Tobi. I told you not to make a mess."
Then he glanced over the shattered ground, the aftermath of Tobi's overzealous antics making even him sigh.
Dealing with Jiraiya directly had been in the plan but Tobi had begged for it to do it himself, bouncing like an idiot until Obito finally gave in.
Now, though, he realized: cleaning up after an encounter with a Sannin was a colossal pain.
Obito's attention shifted. Jiraiya was staring at him, a rare look of open shock on his face, eyes sharp and haunted. The older man seemed to be trying to burn a hole straight through the mask with his gaze.
Obito chuckled softly, folding his arms.
"Why the suspicious glare, Jiraiya? Staring at me that hard, you'll make me think I'm in danger."
But Jiraiya's focus wasn't broken by the banter—he kept his eyes fixed on Obito's spinning Sharingan.
"Wood Style… and the Sharingan…? Just how many secrets are you people hiding…?"
The words were half a question, half a bitter mutter.
It was as if every answer only unraveled another, even bigger mystery.
And then, somewhere in the fog of pain and memory, Jiraiya remembered...
The Great Toad Sage's prophecy.
A man with powerful eyes would bring about a great change in the world.
His breath caught, the realization slamming into him all at once.
"…So it's you…"
The words slipped out...a whisper, but heavy with the weight of fate.
Obito's brow furrowed, caught off guard for just a moment.
"Hm? What's that supposed to mean?"
But Jiraiya was already fading into unconsciousness, vision swimming. He tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come.
Pain and memory blurring at the edges. He remembered Hiruzen's tired smile. Tsunade's silent rejection, the Uzumaki brat's stubborn eyes he saw in the streets of konoha.
I said I'd come back sooner… Maybe even take Naruto as my own student. Ha. Some Sannin I turned out to be, Sensei…
He could feel darkness pulling at him, heavy and cold. But just as he let his eyes start to close, a voice—smooth, bored, and deeply irritating—cut through the haze.
"Since you gave me a riddle, Jiraiya, I'll send you off with one too."
Jiraiya's eyes flickered open, confusion and anger warring inside. He wanted to curse, but couldn't even move.
Obito crouched nearby, mask gleaming with amusement.
He sounded almost… thoughtful.
"I was thinking, you know... there was this one time Tsunade was having a really rough day."
Obito sighed, as if weighed down by the memory. "Being the helpful man I am, I lent her a hand—or, well, more than just a shoulder. She finally got to experience what it means to be a real woman."
He grinned beneath the mask, enjoying every syllable. "So don't worry, Jiraiya. Don't be sad about the future. I'll take care of her. Maybe have children and we'll even visit your grave someday."
He paused, pretending to consider it.
"Though… can you even have a grave if there's nothing left to bury?"
Jiraiya's vision swam, a deep sadness settling in his chest. Regret mingled with anger and a strange, bitter humor.
Damn… Even at the end, I get upstaged by a guy in a mask.
He didn't even know whether what this guy said was true but that made it even worse.
He tried to curse Obito to hell. But nothing came.
So this is how it ends, huh…?
Guess I always knew the life of a shinobi wasn't a happy one.
The pain faded, replaced by a strange, numb stillness. All around him, the world was just a blur...sunlight through leaves, the distant echo of birds, Obito's laughter vanishing into nothing.
I never kept my promises.
Sorry, Sensei… Sorry, Naruto.
There were so many things I wanted to do. So many things left unfinished.
He remembered the ramen shop, Tsunade's fists, Naruto's beaming smile. He remembered the lonely boy with dreams too big for his body.
If only I'd been braver… if only I'd come back sooner… Maybe I could have protected you, brat. Maybe I could have changed something.
The cold crept deeper. Jiraiya let out one last breath, almost a chuckle.
But a shinobi dies with regrets, right?
At least… at least I never found my answer.
The next generation… will always surpass the last. That's what makes a village grow. That's what makes the world keep turning.
Yeah… that's good enough for me…
My tale comes to an end. But the story… always goes on.
Then a sudden, burning pain ripped through every part of him. It was as if his very soul was being torn to pieces...his memories, his dreams, even his regrets scattering like ash on the wind.
A formless darkness swallowed him whole.
Obito stood above the crater, a bored expression on his face as he snapped his fingers.
A swirl of unnatural black chakra twisted reality itself, forming a monstrous Devouring Coffin—a grotesque, shifting prison that swallowed body and soul alike.
"Took you long enough, old man," Obito muttered, shaking his head as if disappointed. "You shinobi love to monologue at the end… but you know, a guy's got things to do."
He dusted off his hands. "Well, that's done. Guess I'll add 'Legendary Sannin' to the ingredient list. He'd probably taste like sake and regret."
Within moments, the last trace of Jiraiya—body, chakra, even soul...was dissolved into glimmering red items that hovered in Obito's palm, ready for devouring.
Obito examined the red items for a second, then pocketed them with a nonchalant flick of his wrist.
Behind him, Tobi was crouched on the ground, poking at a line of ants that had somehow survived the destruction.
"Oi. Get to work," Obito said, voice dry.
He turned and delivered a light kick to Tobi's backside.
"Eeeh—! Yes, Captain!" Tobi yelped, scrambling to his feet and brushing imaginary dust from his coat. "I was just, uh, making sure the ecosystem's okay, y'know?"
Obito ignored him, already focusing his chakra. With a series of swift, practiced seals, he used Wood Style to reshape the shattered earth, covering up any trace of their battle.
Broken trees regrew, stones settled, and in moments, the clearing looked untouched—a perfect crime scene wiped clean.
Tobi zipped around, "helping" by pointing at rocks and making sound effects, but mostly just getting in the way.
When it was done, Obito opened a swirling vortex in space.
Without another word, the two vanished, slipping from the world as quietly as shadows at dusk.
Only the faintest echo lingered—a legend gone, a secret buried, and the wind whispering through the leaves as if nothing had ever happened at all.
A/N: F Jiraiya
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