A meaningful smile appeared on Koji Kashin's face.
That was right. From the very beginning, he had never truly intended to kill Kawaki.
Because only if Kawaki, the perfect vessel for reincarnation, remained alive would the one behind Jigen be forced to act in order to reincarnate.
As long as the other party used Jigen's body to perform an imperfect reincarnation, Koji would have a chance to kill him.
But if Kawaki died, the one behind Jigen would most likely choose to continue lying low.
At that point, killing him would become far more difficult.
After all, the other party had already lived for thousands of years. Who knew how much longer he could survive?
After thinking it over briefly, Koji vanished from where he stood.
Kara.
Base.
Jigen sat up from his private recovery chamber.
Looking at Amado Sanzu, he frowned and asked, "Why did you wake me?"
Amado said in a deep voice, "Koji Kashin sent word that he has discovered a vessel suitable for perfect reincarnation."
Hearing that, Jigen instantly appeared in front of Amado.
"Are you telling the truth?"
Amado said respectfully, "Leader, how would I dare lie about something like this?"
"Good. I'll go meet Koji Kashin right now."
Even after living for thousands of years, Jigen could not help feeling somewhat excited.
A vessel for perfect reincarnation...
As long as he obtained it, he could truly be reborn!
Jigen quickly arrived at the meeting hall, swept his gaze around, and then asked, "Where is the vessel?"
Koji bowed slightly, his voice carrying a hint of self-reproach. "At the time, I was searching for a suitable vessel for reincarnation in Silent City, and I encountered Jiraiya."
"He discovered a boy named Kawaki in the outskirts outside Silent City. The Karma reacted strongly to Kawaki in a way that only a perfect reincarnation vessel would trigger."
As he listened to Koji's endless explanation, Jigen's brows gradually furrowed. He interrupted impatiently, "I don't want to hear this. I asked you where the vessel is."
Koji said in a low voice, "Jiraiya used one of Mount Myoboku's toads to perform the Reverse Summoning Technique, summoning both himself and Kawaki to Mount Myoboku."
"So... the vessel was lost?"
"Yes."
Slap!
A crisp slap rang out in the meeting room. Jigen's eyes were bloodshot as he panted heavily.
Right now, he felt as if his mood had plunged from the clouds straight into the abyss.
"Mount Myoboku again. One day, I will wipe out every toad in this world!"
Even after being slapped by Jigen, Koji showed no particular reaction.
Watching Jigen's rage, he merely said calmly, "It was my failure."
Only after venting for a while did Jigen barely suppress the anger in his heart.
"Notify everyone. No matter what method they use, they must bring Kawaki to me!"
"Yes!"
After Koji left, Jigen sat down in the chair, still seething with anger.
If he had never received news of the perfect vessel, he would have been willing to keep waiting.
But now that the vessel had been found and then lost again, he could no longer restrain himself.
It had taken several thousand years for such a vessel to appear. If he missed this chance...
He did not have another several thousand years to wait!
Konohagakure.
Hokage Building.
Hokage's Office.
Uchiha Yuzuru pushed open the door and immediately saw Jiraiya and Kawaki standing beside him.
Yuzuru paused for a moment, then asked without showing any change in expression, "Jiraiya, what brings you back here?"
"Hahahahaha... This is my hometown. Of course I have to come back and take a look."
"And besides, we master and disciple haven't seen each other in a long time. Tonight, you'll have to treat me to a good bath."
After saying that, Jiraiya winked at Yuzuru.
Seeing his unserious behavior, Yuzuru nodded with a slightly helpless expression.
"Fine. I happen to be free tonight."
No matter how one put it, Jiraiya could be considered the matchmaker between him and Nadeshiko Shizuka, so entertaining him a little was only natural.
Seeing Yuzuru agree, Jiraiya nodded in satisfaction.
Obito Uchiha, who was standing nearby, said impatiently, "Jiraiya, what exactly is this kid's background? Why did you insist on calling Big Brother Yuzuru over too?"
"If it's just a matter of arranging a place for him to stay and enrolling him in the Ninja Academy for further study, I can handle that for you."
Hearing that, Jiraiya glanced at Kawaki, and his expression became serious.
"This child's name is Kawaki. I met him in the outskirts of Silent City."
"When I was originally planning to bring him to Konoha to settle down, a mysterious man named Koji Kashin attacked me and insisted on killing Kawaki."
Obito rubbed his chin and pondered. "Koji Kashin?"
"If he dared attack you, then he must be quite strong."
"But even so, there should be no need to alarm Big Brother Yuzuru, right?"
Jiraiya shook his head. "Koji Kashin isn't just strong. The key is the power he uses!"
"He can use all the techniques I specialize in."
"And most importantly... he can also use senjutsu!"
Hearing that, Obito's brows furrowed as well.
Aside from Minato Namikaze back then, Jiraiya had never taken any other disciples.
Many of his ninjutsu were also techniques he had created himself, and his senjutsu had come from Mount Myoboku.
How could there be someone in the ninja world who could use the techniques Jiraiya specialized in?
"Jiraiya, what do you think?"
"I'm not sure, but I keep feeling that things aren't that simple. That's why I specifically came to inform Yuzuru," Jiraiya said, voicing the thoughts in his heart.
Hearing this, Obito slowly said, "I do have one guess."
"What is it?"
"Kawaki is just an ordinary child. Why would that guy named Koji Kashin only choose to act after you found him?"
"And even if he did attack, why would he openly use techniques unique to you?"
"Also, you said that during the battle, you had Kawaki run first, then found an opportunity to escape and took Kawaki back to Mount Myoboku... wasn't that process a little too smooth?"
"If I were Koji Kashin, I definitely wouldn't choose to fight you. I would do everything possible to attack Kawaki instead."
After hearing Obito's analysis, Jiraiya asked, "So what you mean is..."
Obito summarized, "Koji Kashin never intended to kill Kawaki from the start. His actions were more like he was passing a message to you."
"Kawaki is special. You need to take him seriously and protect him well!"
After listening to Obito, Jiraiya suddenly felt enlightened.
"That's right. It does seem to be the case."
"Although I don't know what his true goal is, after causing such a commotion, Kawaki will definitely be protected by me until we figure out the truth."
"Obito, you seem much smarter than before."
Hearing Jiraiya's praise, Obito proudly raised his chin. "Of course. I've always been clever, okay?"
"Big Brother Yuzuru, what do you think?"
Seeing Obito's smug expression, Yuzuru could not help finding it a little funny.
He slowly said, "Obito, your analysis does make a lot of sense, but it's still not enough!"