"Looks like the old man didn't tell me everything about you..."
Jiraiya climbed out of the water and stood on the shore, looking carefully at the beautiful little girl in front of him.
But as he looked at Sakura again, he paused for a moment. Just now, he hadn't noticed it, but now his eyes fixed on a purple diamond-shaped mark on her forehead.
That symbol...
If this child had already mastered that technique, it would explain how she could hold her own against Orochimaru, even if only briefly.
"What are you staring at?" Sakura frowned slightly, catching Jiraiya's lingering gaze.
"You pervert," she said bluntly, not bothering to hide her irritation.
"Ah, that's really rude! After all, I am your senior," the tall, white-haired man said with a smile, patting his dripping clothes as he faced the girl.
Jiraiya wasn't angry at the punch Sakura threw at him earlier. Instead, he was impressed—at most, he'd praise Sarutobi Hiruzen's teaching ability and sigh with satisfaction that Konoha still had talent to rely on.
"Hey, hey, hey," Sakura waved her hand dismissively, her emerald-green eyes narrowing as she looked at Jiraiya by the riverside.
"There's no need to say more, right? I trust the old man has already explained things to you."
"If you have..."
Sakura balanced on the bridge's railing, about to explain some details about sensory-type ninjutsu to Jiraiya, when her peripheral vision caught two figures approaching from a distance.
One was Naruto—Sakura knew him well enough by now.
The other was a man dressed in a black shinobi outfit, wearing a black headband, and a ridiculously old-fashioned pair of sunglasses perched on his nose.
Ebisu?
Sakura looked at him in surprise.
"Naruto!" Naruto waved excitedly when he spotted Sakura's familiar pink hair.
"Miss Sakura," Ebisu looked at her with a mix of surprise and recognition.
As Naruto's private tutor, Ebisu naturally knew the Third Hokage's young disciple. He hadn't expected to encounter her while temporarily training the blonde-haired boy on Kakashi's behalf.
Then Ebisu's gaze shifted to another figure.
That... that was Lord Jiraiya?!
Jiraiya had returned to the village?!
"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Sakura asked, somewhat confused. She had been in this world for quite some time now, and many of the small details in the story had just passed by her without much notice.
"Kakashi-sensei went to teach Sasuke," Naruto explained, "so he left me with this big pervert!"
Naruto looked at Ebisu with obvious displeasure. It was clear he didn't think much of the man. After all, Ebisu had once been easily defeated by Naruto's infamous "Harem Technique"—he didn't exactly strike anyone as a good teacher.
"Naruto, Ebisu is actually a very capable teacher," Sakura said, having some familiarity with him. The man's theoretical guidance was indeed solid—though only in theory.
Meanwhile, Ebisu approached a soaking wet Jiraiya.
"Lord Jiraiya, I didn't expect you to return to the village."
Ebisu spoke respectfully to the bedraggled man.
"Hmm, are you training that kid?" Jiraiya looked at Naruto and Sakura conversing nearby, stroking his chin as he asked.
Naruto's voice was loud enough for Jiraiya to hear.
"Yes, Kakashi entrusted me with him," Ebisu answered without hesitation.
"Give me a chance to train this kid," Jiraiya said, patting Ebisu on the shoulder without waiting for a response, then walked toward Naruto and Sakura.
Ebisu stared blankly at the white-haired man's retreating back.
Suddenly, he felt something familiar about the contrast of white and blond hair. He could have sworn he'd seen a scene like this before...
Maybe he was imagining things...
No way could that blond kid be like that one person...
He shook his head, dismissing the unrealistic thought from his mind.
That blond kid couldn't possibly be him...
—
"Huh?"
"You pervy old man was peeping into the women's bathhouse!"
"And now you want to teach me?"
"Someone like you teaching me? Not in a million years!"
Naruto's eyes narrowed with disdain as Sakura told him about the white-haired man's attempt to spy on the women's bath.
"I told you, you didn't have to tell him that," Jiraiya looked helplessly at Sakura.
"What, you mean if I start teaching Naruto, you'll stop spying on the bathhouse?" Sakura rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, right. It's impossible to not spy!"
"And this isn't spying at all—it's 'research for novel inspiration,' damn it!"
Jiraiya silently cursed in his heart but smiled as he looked at the energetic blond boy before him. Then, biting his finger, he quickly formed hand seals.
A puff of smoke appeared, and a one-meter-tall armored toad materialized before Naruto and Sakura.
Jiraiya flicked the droplets of water from his wet hair, splashing them on Naruto and Sakura's faces, striking a dramatic pose that Sakura found utterly ridiculous.
"I am Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Three Ninja, the White-Haired Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku! The handsome man who can silence crying children instantly! I am the great Jiraiya!"
Naruto barely noticed the water droplets on his face, eyes shining with excitement as he stared at the incredibly "handsome" toad beneath Jiraiya's feet.
"Wow, what a cool toad!"
Sakura rolled her eyes, unimpressed by the toad's so-called handsomeness as she wiped the water from her face.
"Well? Kid, do you think I'm qualified to teach you now?"
Jiraiya folded his arms, wearing a proud grin as he looked at Naruto, who had just fallen for his little trap.
"Yeah, yeah! Totally qualified!" Naruto nodded enthusiastically.
"Pervy Sage, I want to learn this!"
Jiraiya looked pleased with Naruto's reaction but soon felt something was off.
Since when had he become the "Pervy Sage"?
He was the Toad Sage, after all!
But Jiraiya didn't bother arguing over titles. He glanced at Sakura nearby, then thoughtfully at Naruto.
Jiraiya already knew about Sakura's situation from Sarutobi Hiruzen.
What she needed was a sensory ninjutsu that could move with her body.
The Heavenly Cover Formation.
A technique almost perfectly suited to Sakura's needs.
It could cover nearly a hundred meters around the user, keenly sensing everything nearby, and move seamlessly with her.
But if Sakura simply asked him for this technique, wouldn't that make him look cheap?
Jiraiya glanced at Naruto with an inexplicable smile.
This made Naruto shiver slightly...
That pervy old man... what was he thinking?
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End of Chapter
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