Chapter 125: What? Jiraiya Wants to Teach Me Ninjutsu!
It was noon when the sun of the Land of Fire rose overhead.
Not far from the camp,
Tsukasa jumped down from the Green Snake's head with exhaustion and embarrassment, returning to his tent along the tunnel dug by Orochimaru.
The tent still retained the scene from when he'd left last night—scattered scrolls, a tilted table, an overturned candlestick, charred blade marks on the ground, and a large hole in the center.
Looking at the mess in the tent, Tsukasa wanted to clean it up.
But he really had no strength left.
After battling with countless snakes last night and "dancing with Manda," he'd run around all night, and now his legs were weak.
He just wanted to fall headfirst into bed and sleep deeply.
However, just as he was about to put this idea into action,
a cold shout suddenly rang out from outside the tent—
"Uchiha Tsukasa, come out!"
At that moment, Tsukasa felt like cursing. He propped himself against the tent frame and lifted the flap,
only to see
a tall, stern young man wearing an Uchiha shirt and a Jōnin vest outside, frowning at him.
Tsukasa was slightly surprised. He had a vague impression of this guy, but couldn't recall where he'd seen him.
He frowned slightly and asked unhappily,
"Who are you?"
"Shin'ya Uchiha."
The tall man folded his arms, glanced coldly, and announced his name.
Hearing this name, Tsukasa finally remembered who it was.
Yesterday, Shisui had mentioned someone who was supposed to teach him ninjutsu, and he'd also been on the list of names the Great Elder had given when he left the village.
It was Shin'ya Uchiha, the Jōnin and captain of the Uchiha Clan's team sent to the Land of Rain.
But why was this guy looking for him now?
Tsukasa raised his eyes and said weakly, "What do you want?"
Shin'ya glared at the young man with displeasure, snorted, and scolded,
"Have you forgotten?"
"When you're not on missions, you must gather in the forest behind the mountain at nine o'clock every day. I'll give you special training."
He looked Tsukasa up and down, seeing his ragged clothes, his bare chest, and the exhausted look on his face.
Through the opened flap,
he could still see the overturned candlestick and the messy bed in the tent. Shin'ya's eyes widened with jealousy.
Damn,
this kid's having quite the time!
As a bridge between the clan and village, he was fortunate enough to be accepted as a disciple by one of the Sannin. But not only did this brat not cherish this opportunity, he actually used his status to mess around and dishonor the Uchiha clan.
Damn, this is the front lines!
Shin'ya's blood boiled with anger.
"I heard from Shisui earlier that you were the pride of the clan."
He glared at him, scoffing disdainfully, "Now it seems you're nothing special."
"The way the others describe you is the real you."
"You're still young, yet you're not taking your duties seriously, violating the three shinobi prohibitions. Back in the village, I heard you frequented entertainment districts and used your clan's privileges to complete missions and amass wealth."
"Hmph, you're truly greedy and lecherous."
"I thought after becoming Orochimaru-sama's student, you'd become more disciplined, that you'd strive for self-improvement and shoulder your responsibilities."
"Now, hah,"
Shin'ya scoffed disdainfully, his gaze darting sharply into the tent, trying to spot the hidden companion before unleashing his Sharingan.
"No, wait!"
Tsukasa was stunned, barely processing Shin'ya's barrage of criticism.
He was accustomed to the Uchiha clan's sharp tongues, and the other party was right—he was greedy and lecherous to begin with, so there was nothing he couldn't admit.
But what was with that look?
It was filled with envy, jealousy, and resentment, almost enough to activate his Sharingan to observe the details and savor imagined scenes.
Tsukasa followed the other person's critical gaze into the tent. Seeing the candlestick toppled by last night's battle, the messy bed from Orochimaru's abrupt awakening, and the large pool of drool on the table from his sleep,
he immediately realized this guy must have misunderstood.
"Damn it, what terrible luck this early in the day."
"If you want to look, then look! I'll lift the flap and show you!"
Tsukasa, with an expression of indignation, forcefully pulled open the tent's curtains, revealing the entire scene inside.
He thought if someone caught him in the act, that would be one thing—after all, doing that kind of thing in camp would definitely have a bad impact.
But he didn't do it, and he couldn't bear this kind of false accusation!
However, upon seeing Tsukasa lift the door flap,
Shin'ya immediately turned around, his back to him with arms folded across his chest, refusing to look no matter what.
"Hmph, you think I'll look just because you want me to?"
"How ridiculous!"
Tsukasa gritted his teeth angrily and cursed:
"Look! I'm showing it openly—why won't you dare to look?"
Shin'ya still had his back to him, arms folded, and snorted sourly:
"Hmph!"
"No need!"
"Do you think I haven't seen anything before?"
Tsukasa glanced at the other person's back, his stubborn tone, and the drops of blood from his nose that kept falling in front of his toes.
He was filled with frustration, but also confirmed this guy was inexperienced—all desire but no courage.
He didn't know what images were conjuring up in his mind at this moment.
Damn, his nose is bleeding.
Tsukasa took a deep breath, feeling helpless.
Finally, he could only grit his teeth and ask,
"So, Shin'ya-san, what exactly are you doing here?!"
"Looking for trouble?!"
Hearing this, before Tsukasa could get angry, Shin'ya's shoulders trembled with rage.
He turned his back, raised a hand to wipe his nose, pointed to the sky and cursed,
"You little brat, don't you see what time it is!"
"I've been waiting for you in the back mountains for three hours—three hours!"
"The flowers have wilted, and you're doing this in camp!"
"Clean this up quickly! Now, immediately, get yourself to the back forest!"
"Complete your training with me!"
"Otherwise, don't blame me for telling the Great Elder about this!"
With that, Shin'ya covered his nose and strode forward without looking back.
He walked so fast and hurriedly that he was soon out of sight.
Tsukasa was left standing alone before the collapsed tent, unable to even call after Shin'ya.
He closed his eyes in agony, feeling wrongly accused beyond measure.
"Damn it, you should have just looked!"
Frustrated, Tsukasa slammed his fist into the tent's support.
With a creak, the tent collapsed.
Tsukasa felt physically and mentally exhausted.
He sighed, not bothering to clean up anymore.
With dark circles under his eyes and a weary body, he walked toward the forest behind the Land of Fire camp.
Crossing the border, leaving the Land of Rain and returning to the Land of Fire,
the weather brightened noticeably.
Passing through the Land of Fire camp, he saw more people around him.
A peaceful atmosphere filled the scene, and
the tune of "Konoha's Peace" seemed to play in his ears.
White birds fluttered and took flight. Shinobi gathered in groups of three or four to play cards. Busy medical ninja nervously carried stretchers through the camp, shouting, "Make way, make way!"
Walking through, he saw a few familiar faces.
The weapons merchant who used to sell ninja tools in the village was now pushing a cart of them into camp, hawking his wares and even greeting Tsukasa.
An Inuzuka family dog crouched beside a tent. Tsukasa knelt down, petted the dog's head, and asked, "Good boy, will I be lucky today?"
The dog, a fierce and spirited one, bared its teeth and chased Tsukasa halfway down the street.
So, strolling around, enjoying a long-awaited moment of peace,
Tsukasa wasn't in a hurry, just relaxing.
Shin'ya, that jerk, just defied my will, so I'll let him wait a little longer.
Finally,
after a complete tour of the camp, he was about ready to head for the back mountains.
From behind, a large hand suddenly clapped his shoulder.
Then a hearty, unrestrained, and carefree voice echoed.
"Yo~"
"Young man, you have great hair!"
"I have a really powerful technique here—would you like to learn?"
Tsukasa turned around and
saw a smiling, cheerful middle-aged man with spiky white hair. He wore a red outer coat with a brown inner garment and a forehead protector with the kanji "Oil" inscribed on it. He grinned and raised his thumb to his hair.
"This is my specialty—a powerful ninjutsu that not even my students can master!"
Tsukasa was involuntarily stunned, as if witnessing something absurd.
Wasn't this Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin alongside his teacher Orochimaru?
Wait, what's going on?
Why would Jiraiya approach me while I'm walking by and teach me ninjutsu?
However, he'd never met Jiraiya before, so he could only ask politely,
"Who are you?"
Jiraiya's grin widened when he heard this. He immediately leaped up, slapped his sandals on the ground dramatically, and landed with his arms outstretched in an impressive pose!
He laughed heartily and declared,
"Good question!"
"I am the white-haired sage of the Legendary Sannin, the Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku!"
"Commonly known as the Gallant Jiraiya—pleased to meet you!"
End of Chapter 125
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