Within a distance of 140 meters—less than the time it takes for a single breath—Shimizu saw the newcomer.
Long white hair. A forehead protector bearing the kanji for "oil." A dark green shinobi outfit, a crimson sleeveless coat draped over his shoulders, wooden sandals on his feet.
Such a bold and unrestrained style could only belong to one of the Legendary Sannin—
Jiraiya.
The speed just now had been almost on par with Shimizu's own limit.
And there was no way Jiraiya had been moving at full speed just to come see him. He had clearly held back.
Shimizu could tell from his breathing—steady, unhurried.
That meant that level of speed was effortless for him.
So even Shimizu's fastest movement still fell significantly short of a Sannin's.
As for chakra…
Jiraiya possessed roughly four to five times Shimizu's base chakra (excluding the strange fish). That was extremely close to Kage-level reserves.
In his previous life, internet forums had often claimed Jiraiya had been a so-called "dead last" as a child.
A "dead last" who became a jōnin at fourteen.
The strongest "dead last" in history—one who could thrash countless prodigies.
Heh, I'd love to drag all those commenters into this world with me so they could see for themselves who the real dead last is.
"Senior Jiraiya." Shimizu nodded respectfully.
Jiraiya stood casually atop a tree trunk, right hand resting against the main trunk, left hand on his hip, looking down at Shimizu.
But he didn't speak.
An awkward silence.
"Um… Lord Jiraiya?" Shimizu tried again.
What was this? He comes all this way and says nothing?
Suddenly—
Jiraiya burst into exaggerated laughter.
"I can't hold it in, I can't hold it in! Shimizu, what on earth are you wearing? You look just like some country village girl! No wonder you hid yourself in the Forest of Death—you're secretly playing cosplay out here, aren't you?"
What the fuck?!
English swear words practically manifested in Shimizu's mind.
Seeing Jiraiya laugh harder and harder until he was gasping for air, his face turning beet-red and tears streaming down his face, it was clear he genuinely found Shimizu's current state hilarious.
Wait... is it really that funny?
Shimizu looked down at himself doubtfully.
Because he had performed multiple Water Release techniques, his hair was a mess and he was soaked to the bone. Coupled with the fact that he hadn't cut his hair in a while, it did look somewhat disheveled and draped over his shoulders... but was such a reaction necessary?
It felt incredibly performative.
"I—"
"Don't explain, little Shimizu. I won't tell anyone about this particular hobby of yours," Jiraiya suddenly stopped laughing and switched into a solemn expression.
"I—"
"I won't threaten you either. No forcing you to do favors, no hush money," Jiraiya declared righteously.
Then he added,
"By the way, I just finished a brand-new epic masterpiece. I'm sure you won't refuse, right?"
"…Of course not."
Are you sure that wasn't a threat?
But speaking of Jiraiya's writings... was it the R-rated Make-Out Paradise? That would get me banned!
"Tadaaa! The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi! Grand debut!" Jiraiya used Body Flicker to appear instantly before Shimizu and handed him the book.
"Ah—thank you!" Shimizu reflexively accepted it.
As expected of a Sannin.
He hadn't even noticed when Jiraiya formed hand seals—if he formed any at all. That Body Flicker was truly extraordinary.
"Since you're being so sincere, I'll give you a customized VIP service."
Jiraiya promptly pulled out a small notebook and a pen, muttering as he wrote:
"Shimizu Uzuki. Premium VIP. Lifetime validity."
Shimizu hadn't agreed to any of this at all, okay?
Was it really fine to make decisions for someone else like that?!
"Alright, business concluded." Jiraiya put away his props and suddenly grew serious. "Shimizu, I came to tell you a few side tidbits."
Seeing Jiraiya instantly switch into a proper, solemn demeanor, Shimizu couldn't shake the feeling that he'd just been tricked into something…
"The ten tons of gold the Land of Wind was supposed to compensate Konoha—confirmed stolen. The location: Sunagakure."
At that, Shimizu stopped caring about Jiraiya's flippant use of the phrase "side tidbits."
So something really had happened.
When Minato returned from the mission, Shimizu had only heard that the stolen-gold report was supposedly false. He hadn't known the details.
"The Third Kazekage's handwritten letter is real. The seal is real. But the intelligence was false. Minato was ambushed."
Shimizu was stunned speechless.
Someone tried to assassinate Minato?
"But the Third Kazekage has gone missing. Very recently."
"!!"
"The envoy sent by the Hokage has been detained by Sunagakure. They claim the Kazekage's handwritten letter is forged and demand proof of its authenticity. Otherwise, they'll shift all blame onto Konoha."
Konoha claimed the gold was stolen based on information from the Third Kazekage.
But now Sunagakure reported that the Kazekage himself had disappeared.
They were demanding verification of the letter.
If the letter were genuine, there would still be room for negotiation.
If it were proven false, Sunagakure would undoubtedly suspect Konoha of involvement in the Kazekage's disappearance.
Especially considering the two sides had recently clashed at the border.
Sunagakure had always harbored ambitions toward Konoha.
"Is the Third Kazekage's letter authentic?" Shimizu asked directly.
"We've confirmed it. Absolutely genuine. I suspect the Hokage will take action tomorrow."
If it was real—
Then the problem lay with the Third Kazekage.
What exactly was Sunagakure trying to do?
Find an excuse to start a war?
"That's what I came to tell you. Now I'm heading to inspect the site where Minato was attacked."
"Who ambushed him?"
"All we know is that it was a shinobi wearing a white spiral mask. Extremely powerful. He used the First Hokage's Wood Release."
Shimizu's heart jolted violently.
"Wood Release?! The Senju clan?!" he exclaimed in disbelief.
Jiraiya didn't find Shimizu's reaction strange. Anyone who heard about a Wood Release user would be shocked—though this young man's reaction seemed slightly stronger than usual.
"That's all I have to say."
A cold sweat broke out across Shimizu's back.
Fortunately, he had reacted quickly and shouted "Wood Release."
Because what truly shocked him wasn't the Wood Release—
It was the white spiral mask.
Isn't that Tobi?
Uchiha Obito?
But Obito should still be here playing in the dirt!
Had the timeline changed?
Or was there something he didn't know?
In his memory, the shinobi wearing the spiral mask was Uchiha Obito. After witnessing Kakashi kill Rin—manipulated by Madara—Obito fell into darkness, later calling himself Tobi and operating within the Akatsuki.
He was also the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha. The Fourth Hokage—Minato Namikaze—died that very night.
Could it be—
That the white spiral-masked shinobi was Madara himself?