"I remember that Jiraiya-sama already left Kikyo Castle," Yamanaka Inoichi added. "He's currently on his way to reinforce Rakuyō City."
The main reason Jiraiya personally led a force to support Rakuyō City was something everyone present understood without needing it said aloud.
Two of his prized disciples were trapped there.
Everyone in the tent knew it.
"Minato… and that guy Yoshimaru…" Akimichi Choza sighed. "They're really something. Holding Rakuyō City for this long…"
It was true.
A battered remnant force managing to resist the Sand army for such a long time without losing the city was nothing short of remarkable. Among them, Minato had been the greatest contributor.
During this battle, the young shinobi had displayed extraordinary command ability—and a terrifying speed that struck fear into the hearts of Sand ninja.
The nickname "Yellow Flash" had already begun spreading across the battlefield.
It seemed Konoha might soon see the rise of another dazzling new star.
"Still… I don't think the Sand is only targeting Kikyo Castle," Tsunade said quietly.
The unease in her heart had only grown stronger.
Nara Shikaku's mind worked quickly. He had already considered similar possibilities, so he immediately followed her line of thought.
"Tsunade-sama, are you suggesting that the Sand's failure to capture Rakuyō City was intentional?" he asked. "That the entire city is simply bait? A trap meant to lure Jiraiya-sama into reinforcing it?"
"…Yes." Tsunade paused briefly before nodding.
"In that case, I believe you can rest assured," Shikaku replied calmly.
"This is still the Land of Fire. Any intelligence will reach us immediately. If Sunagakure wanted to surround and eliminate Jiraiya-sama, how many ninja would they need to mobilize?"
"A troop movement on that scale would be impossible to conceal from our intelligence network."
He continued firmly:
"And the shinobi who enter the ANBU are beyond question in terms of strength. Their intelligence reports are equally reliable. Just like how they detected the Sand army's withdrawal the moment it happened."
But Tsunade's brows remained tightly furrowed.
Shikaku's reasoning failed to calm the unease gnawing at her.
A heavy shadow seemed to linger in her heart.
"Don't tell me you have so little faith in Jiraiya?" Orochimaru suddenly asked, his pale golden eyes narrowing slightly.
Then he added coldly,
"Or is the real reason you oppose my plan… because you're worried about Jiraiya's safety?"
"No… that's not it. I just…" Tsunade faltered.
"I… I just…"
Her words trailed off.
Orochimaru interrupted her hesitation once more, his tone turning unexpectedly serious.
"Jiraiya is strong."
For a moment, his gaze seemed distant, as if recalling something from the past.
"He's stronger than he used to be."
"The Sand alone won't be able to do anything to him."
He straightened slightly before continuing.
"Rather than worrying about Jiraiya's safety—or the situation at Kikyo Castle—we should focus on the battle in front of us."
"The more we weaken Sunagakure here, the more it will help them… and Konoha."
Tsunade sighed inwardly.
Maybe Orochimaru was right.
If it's Jiraiya… he should be fine.
"…Alright. I agree with Orochimaru's plan," she finally said.
...
Not long afterward—
Deep within the dense forests of the Land of Fire, a lone figure was racing forward at a speed the naked eye could barely follow.
His destination lay to the south.
After briefly speaking with a Konoha reconnaissance squad earlier, Shimizu had learned about the dire situation at Rakuyō City—and that Jiraiya was already leading a large force to reinforce it.
So after explaining what he could, casually shifting the blame for the previous incident onto Kakuzu…
Shimizu abandoned his original plan of returning to Konoha.
Instead, he headed south alone.
He did, in fact, possess extremely important intelligence that had to be delivered personally to the Third Hokage. There were also questions weighing heavily on his mind—questions he needed the Third Hokage himself to answer.
But right now…
His comrades were on the brink of death.
The scenes Madara had shown him kept replaying in Shimizu's mind.
Minato—golden hair blazing—fighting alone against overwhelming numbers until exhaustion claimed him.
And that frail, slender girl…
The glaring crimson that had spilled while saving him.
Without realizing it, Shimizu began pushing his body harder and harder.
Every cell in his body seemed to scream with life, frantically producing chakra before sending it surging into his legs and core.
His Body Flicker Technique grew even faster.
...
Rakuyō City.
The Sunagakure army surrounding Rakuyō City launched another assault.
"Minato… I don't think we can hold out this time," Yoshimaru muttered, glancing around.
Only a handful of comrades were still standing.
They had fought until the very last drop of strength had been squeezed from their bodies.
Fate had not favored them.
No miracle had come.
The Konoha reinforcements they had been desperately waiting for had yet to arrive.
Had they… been abandoned?
As the vast Sand army closed in once more, a wave of despair rose in everyone's hearts.
How were they supposed to survive this?
Even Minato knew the truth.
There was no overcoming this hurdle.
Less than thirty Konoha ninja remained standing here.
Facing them were thousands of Sand shinobi.
What could they possibly use to resist?
And yet, Minato still stepped forward first.
He stood firmly at the front of the formation, drawing the three-pronged kunai that had long since been stained dark red with blood.
Raising it, he pointed the blade directly at the sea of enemies in the distance.
His voice was low but steady.
"We can't retreat. And we can't give up."
"If we fall… the comrades behind us will have no chance of survival."
He tightened his grip on the weapon.
"We've already held on for this long. Why can't we hold on just one more time?"
"They've entrusted their lives to us."
"We can't betray that trust."
Minato's eyes burned with unyielding determination.
"…The path we chose ourselves," Yoshimaru said hoarsely, straightening up again, "even if we have to crawl, we walk it to the end."
Inspired by Minato's resolve, Yoshimaru regained his fighting spirit.
And he wasn't the only one.
The remaining twenty-something Konoha ninja all steadied themselves, drawing kunai and shuriken as they prepared for what might be their final battle.
Earlier in the fighting, Minato had risked his life to briefly tear open a gap in the enemy's defenses.
But only a small number of wounded had managed to escape through it.
Many others had been intercepted and forced back into Rakuyō City.
Those injured comrades who couldn't break out in time were the main reason Minato and Yoshimaru had refused to leave.
With their abilities, the two of them could have carved out a path to survival without much difficulty.
But bringing everyone with them?
That would have been nothing more than a fantasy.
Before the Sand army had fully sealed the encirclement, those wounded still had a sliver of hope.
But now the siege had become an iron cage.
Given their mobility, the injured would never outrun the Sand shinobi pursuing them.
So Minato and Yoshimaru made their decision together.
They would stay.
They would hold the line until Konoha's reinforcements arrived.
And they would save everyone.
But fate…
had other plans.