Tanjuko Town, Land of Fire.
Shikaku, wearing a mask, stood before his troops, his expression grim.
Beside him, Kakuzu crossed his arms.
"Jiraiya, one of the Three Sannin, is leading the charge himself. This won't be easy," Kakuzu muttered, eyeing the white-haired ninja at the forefront of Konoha's forces.
In the underground bounty market, Jiraiya's head was worth a staggering 100 million ryo—a massive fortune.
Shikaku glanced at Kakuzu and smirked.
"Didn't think I'd see you nervous."
Kakuzu shook his head, his yellow-green eyes calm.
"If Jiraiya's involved, the price goes up."
Shikaku twitched at the response.
No wonder this guy ended up working under Simu—his greed was just as bad.
His expression turned serious as he addressed a young ninja beside him.
"Have you reached your teacher yet?"
In the Freedom Fighters, aside from Shikaku and Simu, the third key figure was Kakashi.
His heroics on the battlefield had won over most of the troops.
Kakashi gave a slight nod.
"I contacted him through Katsuyu. Don't worry."
To swiftly crush the Freedom Fighters and demonstrate Konoha's strength, the village's leadership had sent Jiraiya to personally lead the assault—despite the irony of him being tasked with destroying an organization founded by his own students.
Jiraiya had brought four thousand shinobi—an army strong enough to overpower any nation outside the Five Great Countries.
Against a newly formed group like Freedom Fighters, it was overkill—like using a warhammer to swat a fly.
Victory seemed inevitable.
Standing atop Gamabunta, Jiraiya surveyed the battlefield.
"Jiraiya, are we starting or what?" Gamabunta grumbled, pipe clenched between his teeth.
To him, the Freedom Fighters weren't weak, but they weren't much of a challenge either.
With Jiraiya leading Konoha's forces, it should be an easy sweep.
"Wait."
Jiraiya raised a hand, stopping Gamabunta before he could act.
Gathering intelligence had always been one of Jiraiya's greatest strengths.
Before attacking Tanjuko Town, he had thoroughly studied the Freedom Fighters' defenses, battle strength, and—most importantly—the civilians caught in the crossfire.
The investigation results were completely unexpected.
Jiraiya had assumed the people here lived in misery—oppressed and struggling to survive.
But reality was the opposite.
The citizens were at peace, working and living without fear.
Without noble oppression, they only paid minimal taxes, leaving them with more than enough food.
Even more surprising, the Freedom Fighters had introduced a two-year tax reduction policy, allowing people to quickly rebuild their lives.
This shook Jiraiya to his core.
Was the one-village, one-country system really just?
Was it right to allow corrupt nobles to continue exploiting the people?
Doubt weighed heavily on his mind, making him hesitate to order the attack.
"Jiraiya-sama, it's time to act."
The voice came from Aburame Ryoma—one of Danzo's most trusted operatives and Jiraiya's assigned observer from Root.
Jiraiya remained silent, staring at the town below.
"Wait a little longer... Let me try persuading them first."
Jiraiya raised his hand to his mouth and coughed before forming a seal.
"Ninja Art: Toad Amplification Technique!"
His voice boomed across Tanjuko Town:
"Listen up, everyone! I am Jiraiya, one of the Sannin of Konoha.
Lay down your weapons and surrender, and I guarantee your safety!"
The message echoed through the town.
But the response was silence.
Then, voices began to rise from the crowd:
"Surrender? We finally have our good day why would we go back to living under those nobles?"
"That's right! We don't want nobles! We want a revolution!"
"Die with the old system!"
In the distance, Shikaku and Kakashi exchanged looks, smiling helplessly.
"Jiraiya-senpai is as naïve as ever," Shikaku sighed.
Kakashi nodded but then turned his gaze toward the Konoha forces.
"Looks like Root isn't going to wait any longer."
Even before Jiraiya could react, Konoha's forces suddenly moved.
This mission to destroy the Freedom Fighters had been officially assigned to Root, with Jiraiya merely placed in command.
The Root operatives embedded within the army had been waiting for this moment.
Without hesitation, they launched the first attack.
Explosions erupted across the battlefield, signaling the start of the battle.
"What are you doing?!"
Jiraiya glared at Aburame Ryoma, his voice filled with anger.
He was supposed to be the commander, yet the battle had begun without his order.
Ryoma, however, remained calm and expressionless.
"Some ninjas may have panicked under pressure," he replied smoothly.
Jiraiya clenched his fists in frustration, but there was nothing he could do.
The battle had already begun—there was no turning back now.
All he could do was move forward and subdue the Freedom Fighters as quickly as possible.
Just then—
BOOM!
A thick cloud of smoke erupted at the center of the battlefield.
From within the haze, a massive figure emerged—
A colossal Katsuyu, bathed in a soft blue glow.
And standing atop it—
A coat of justice billowed in the wind.
The moment the warriors on both sides saw it, they knew exactly what it meant.
The "Golden Flash," Hanyū Simu, had arrived.
"Simu?!"
Jiraiya's eyes narrowed as he stared at the towering Katsuyu.
And in that instant, two names resurfaced in his mind.
"Tsunade… and Simu?"
Jiraiya's gaze locked onto the figure standing atop Katsuyu.
And that coat of justice—
Only someone trained under him would wear it.
"Why are you here?"
His confusion deepened.
According to the village's plan, Simu was supposed to be in Amegakure, working with the Rain Shinobi to counter threats from the Land of Wind and the Land of Ten.
But then—
As the smoke finally cleared, Jiraiya noticed something behind Simu Three cages.
"Huh? Why do they look so familiar?"
He rubbed his eyes, focusing on the figures inside. Three young men—one in orange, one in red, and one in blue.
Their faces stirred a deep memory.
And then— His eyes landed on Nagato's Rinnegan. The realization hit him like a bolt of lightning.
"Nagato… Yahiko… Konan?!"
Jiraiya's voice wavered. His first students. And Nagato—his first Child of Prophecy.
From within the cage, the three figures stirred.
"Teacher Jiraiya!"
Their voices carried a mix of relief, excitement, and disbelief. Especially Yahiko. If not for their complicated situation—if not for the blurred lines between student and enemy— They would have searched Jiraiya long ago.
"Simu, the three of them?"
Jiraiya was no fool, she knew something was wrong when she saw the cage on them.
Simu simply smiled.
"Teacher, you have too many questions, before answering your questions..."
Simu's eyes turned golden, and a powerful coercion descended on the entire battlefield in an instant!
"Everyone present, can you give me a face and call a temporary truce?" After his words fell, the entire battlefield instantly became quiet.
Shikaku sighed, shaking his head. This guy just loves making a scene.
Immediately thereafter, he ordered all the members of the Freedom Fighter to stop their movements.
The same goes for Jiraiya.
Only the root guys want to continue to stir up trouble.
Simu gently raised his finger, and laser beams pierced through the bodies of these root ninjas precisely.
The battlefield was completely quiet.
Yahiko stared at Simu's back with wide eyes.
And the two big characters [Justice] on it.
He couldn't help but think of when he was just starting to build the Akatsuki organization.
No matter how much Yahiko tried to mediate, the conflict wouldn't stop.
But Simu?
One sentence.
Thousands fell silent.
This… was the kind of power that could truly uphold peace.
"Finally quiet."
Simu rolled his neck, then turned to Jiraiya.
"My three senior brothers and sisters attacked Konoha's forces. That's why I captured them."
At those words, Yahiko immediately snapped back.
"That's a lie! You were the one who led Konoha's troops to occupy Amegakure first!"
Simu's golden eyes flickered—
"Shut up."
The sheer weight of his killing intent crushed Yahiko's voice.
Jiraiya frowned.
"What's really going on here?"
With years of experience, one thing was clear—
He had walked right into the village elders' trap.
Simu dragged out the half-dead Hanzo.
"Danzo's Root, Amegakure's Hanzo, Sunagakure's Pakura, and Iwagakure's Tsuchikage—all of them worked together to kill me."
He revealed an earth-shattering truth as if it were nothing.
"What?!"
Jiraiya's expression darkened.
This wasn't just a minor conspiracy. If proven true, it would shake Konoha to its core.
If the village's higher-ups had really teamed up with other nations to kill one of their own heroes…
"That's nonsense! We never did such a thing!"
Aburame Ryoma immediately stepped forward, verbally denying it.
But Simu wasn't in a rush. He just shook Hanzo's limp body.
"The Yamanaka Clan has a secret technique to read memories. Whether Root was involved or not, we'll know soon enough."
At those words, Ryoma's face twisted.
Because he knew—
Root members were implanted with failsafe seals.
If anyone tried to read their memories, their brains would be completely destroyed.
But Hanzo was different.
As the leader of Amegakure and a demigod in name and power, there was no way Danzo could have placed a curse mark on him.
If Hanzo were brought back to Konoha, the secret dealings between Danzo and Amegakure would be exposed instantly.
Realizing this, a flash of determination crossed Aburame Ryoma's face.
"Who's to say that's the real Hanzo?!"
Without hesitation, a swarm of parasitic destruction bugs erupted from his sleeve, surging toward Hanzo like a black cloud.
.
.
TO BE CONTINUED
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