Jiraiya felt as though he had fallen into darkness.
Everything around him was pitch-black.
Suddenly—
High above him, two scarlet eyes appeared.
One eye contained fury.
The other was filled with hatred.
"Die!"
Jiraiya's expression turned extremely grave.
The power of the two men collided and clashed.
Jiraiya gritted his teeth.
"If I had not been crippled… if I were still in my peak condition… Uchiha Fugaku, I might not necessarily lose to you."
"This time, you win."
"But I will not let this matter end here."
"I will make those filthy things you've done known to the public. I will expose your true face."
"I will let the truth behind Minato's death come to light."
"The current me cannot defeat you. But if I want to leave, you absolutely cannot stop me."
A strange chakra erupted from Jiraiya's body.
Then, Gamamaru's voice rang out.
Jiraiya forcefully broke free from the illusion created by Uchiha Fugaku.
After taking one deep look at Uchiha Fugaku, he abruptly turned and fled.
Uchiha Fugaku watched the direction in which Jiraiya had escaped. He wanted very much to keep Jiraiya there, but he had only just awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. On top of that, he had been startled by the strange power that had suddenly appeared just now.
The current Uchiha Fugaku did not have the strength left to stop Jiraiya.
He could only watch as Jiraiya left.
Uchiha Fugaku's eyes were filled with hatred.
"Who exactly was that?"
Uchiha Fugaku looked at the three Uchiha ninja lying on the ground, and his heart bled.
There were already not many Uchiha left in his faction.
Those who still remained in Konoha numbered only a few dozen.
Now, three had died at once, and they were elites among those few dozen. The loss to the Uchiha could not be called small.
"Why would such a strange attacker suddenly appear?"
"He looked like a monster."
"Not like a human. More like a monster made from a human and a toad."
"What deep hatred does he have against the Uchiha clan?"
Uchiha Fugaku frowned deeply as he recalled the scene just now.
"And the way that man looked at us Uchiha was as though we had done something utterly unforgivable, as though we had committed some sin against the entire world."
"No. Not the Uchiha. Me. Uchiha Fugaku."
"That person came for me."
"What did I do wrong?"
Uchiha Fugaku racked his mind, but he could not think of anything he had done that would make someone so persistent in trying to kill him, hate him so deeply, and desire his life so strongly.
"Ever since I was born, even with my status as the clan head's heir, I have always been cautious, walking on thin ice. Because I understood very clearly the Uchiha's situation in Konoha."
"Searching my own conscience, I have already endured more than enough for Konoha's sake."
"As for the Uchiha rebels, I secretly warned them as well. Even though they did not believe me, my warning still made their defection a little easier."
With a heavy heart, Uchiha Fugaku buried the bodies of the three Uchiha ninja where they lay.
"I can feel that compared to before, my strength has increased greatly."
"So this is the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan?"
"The power Lord Madara possessed back then. It was precisely by relying on this that he could contend with Senior Hashirama."
"What a pity. I awakened this power too late."
"The Uchiha clan has already become like this."
"Even with this power, what can I do?"
"The Uchiha sailing group will not accept me."
"Konoha will not trust me either. If they learn of this power, they will only fear me."
"Will that person leak information about my situation?"
"Once it is leaked, I will be in danger."
A trace of worry appeared on Uchiha Fugaku's face.
A toad leapt swiftly through the terrain. Bound to its back by ropes was Jiraiya, with the Iron-Armed Toad serving as his legs.
Before long, the Iron-Armed Toad arrived at a high place with its back facing Konoha.
From there, Jiraiya could see Konoha.
Looking at Konoha, Jiraiya's emotions were extremely complicated.
The moment Uchiha Fugaku revealed the Mangekyo Sharingan, Jiraiya had concluded that the Uchiha who caused the Nine-Tails' rampage and killed Minato Namikaze was Uchiha Fugaku.
"There are two possibilities."
"First, it was for revenge. The Uchiha clan suffered targeting within Konoha, and before Uchiha Fugaku awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, he could do nothing. He could only watch helplessly as everything happened."
"After awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan, Uchiha Fugaku wanted to create the Nine-Tails' rampage to take revenge against Konoha."
"But…"
Jiraiya frowned.
"If Uchiha Fugaku could control the Nine-Tails, why didn't he take revenge on the people who truly targeted the Uchiha clan? People like Teacher Sarutobi, people like Shimura Danzo."
"Was his control insufficient? Was releasing the Nine-Tails from Kushina's body already his limit?"
"But if that were the case, and if Uchiha Fugaku did not know the date of Kushina's childbirth, then if he wanted to hurt Konoha as badly as possible, he should have chosen a time when Konoha's defenses were at their weakest."
"Not when Teacher Sarutobi, Minato, and Orochimaru were all inside the village."
"Since Uchiha Fugaku didn't do that, it proves his goal was not revenge against Konoha."
"If not revenge against Konoha, then what was it?"
"Choosing Kushina's childbirth date means Kushina would definitely be a victim, and Minato would definitely be present. In fact, it was indeed Minato who went on to resolve the Nine-Tails."
Jiraiya's eyes flickered uncertainly.
"The second possibility is the rumor that appeared before."
"Even if I do not want to believe it, even if I do not want to suspect Teacher Sarutobi…"
"Judging by the current situation, that possibility is undoubtedly greater."
"Teacher Sarutobi… could it really be you?"
Jiraiya took a deep look in Konoha's direction.
Afterward, he had the Iron-Armed Toad turn around and head in another direction.
"No matter which possibility is true, once the news that Uchiha Fugaku possesses the Mangekyo Sharingan and is the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails' rampage is made public…"
"There is a high chance the truth of the matter will naturally come to light."
As a best-selling author, Jiraiya naturally had his own channels.
They were not as strong as Ninja World Weekly.
But spreading a piece of news was not difficult for him.
Very soon, this news began to spread throughout the entire shinobi world.
"The true culprit behind Konoha's Nine-Tails rampage is Uchiha Fugaku."
"Uchiha Fugaku awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, the same eyes Uchiha Madara possessed back then."
"To take revenge against Konoha, Uchiha Fugaku triggered the Nine-Tails' rampage."
"Minato Namikaze was killed by Uchiha Fugaku."
"The pattern in the Nine-Tails' eyes was Uchiha Fugaku's Mangekyo Sharingan pattern!"