Chapter 13: The Eerie Voice
"The times have changed!"
Walking down the street, Jiraiya, clutching several books, couldn't help but let out an emotional sigh.
Of course.
He had no other intentions when he bought all of Teacher Oki's books.
He just wanted to take them home to observe and study Teacher Oki's advanced writing techniques.
This was for the sake of learning!
He just never expected that after only being away fighting in a war for a few years, a new literary giant would appear in the shinobi world, and he was only just now finding out about it.
Truly shameful.
And he had originally come to sell his own book to raise money for his travels.
But in the end...
He had ended up buying books instead!
And his own book was rejected!
But he had to admit, Teacher Oki was a true talent!
To be able to write stories that were so blush-inducing, blood-pumping, and full of imagination.
Worth every penny!
They were good books!
Impressive! Truly impressive!
"Unfortunately, I don't know where Teacher Oki actually lives."
Just then.
"Jiraiya~"
Hearing a familiar voice, Jiraiya quickly hid the books.
Then.
He leaned his right hand against a nearby wall, tossed his head lightly, and curled the corner of his mouth into what he thought was a handsome smile. "Yo, it's Tsunade! Long time no see!"
"...Didn't we just come back together the day before yesterday?" Tsunade looked at him strangely, her eyes filled with suspicion. "What are you doing? So sneaky! Don't tell me you're peeking at people bathing again!"
"Hahaha~! How could that be? I've been studying seriously recently! Enriching myself with books!"
At his words.
Tsunade: (￢_￢)
"Right, let's not talk about that!" Jiraiya quickly changed the subject, looking curiously at the cute, black-haired little girl standing next to Tsunade. "Who's this? Your daughter? How come she doesn't have blonde hair? What a cute little sister!"
"What nonsense are you spouting? Stay away from Shizune, you pervy toad!" Tsunade punched him directly, then said flatly, "She is Dan Katō's niece. She has no other relatives in Konoha, so I thought I'd take her with me."
"Dan's niece?" Hearing Tsunade's words, Jiraiya was taken aback for a moment. He fell silent, looked at Shizune who was shyly hiding behind Tsunade, then at the stoic Tsunade in front of him. He let out a melancholic sigh, and his expression turned serious. "So you've decided." His tone paused for a moment. "When are you planning to leave?"
"The day after tomorrow."
"So soon?"
"It's already slow. If I didn't have some clan matters to deal with, I would have left long ago." Tsunade sighed, a trace of confusion flashing through her eyes, then she looked at Jiraiya with a smile. "By the way, do you want to buy a house?"
"???"
"Forget it! A failed writer like you, how could you have the money to buy a house! Just pretend I didn't ask." Tsunade gave Jiraiya a disdainful look, then fell silent again. "Are you planning to leave too? When?"
"This is my training, you know that! I go out to train every so often. Probably the day after tomorrow as well." Jiraiya patted the books in his coat, a confident smile on his face. "The next time you see me, I will definitely be a best-selling literary giant!"
"What Child of Prophecy are you going to look for this time? I think Orochimaru was right about one thing, you're just looking for trouble. Forget it, why do I care so much about you?" Tsunade grumbled. "Where are you planning to go this time?"
"Fate will guide me to where I need to go!" Jiraiya said mysteriously, but upon seeing Tsunade raise her fist, he quickly added, "If possible, I think I'll make a trip to the Land of Grass!"
"The Land of Grass? That small country that was just rebuilt not long ago?" Tsunade also remembered the Kusa-nin she had met in the Land of Rain that day. "What are you going there for?"
"What for? To pursue my dreams, of course!" Jiraiya lifted his head, a slight smile on his lips, his eyes filled with hope as if gazing into the distance. "The war has made me neglect my writing for many years. So, this time, I'm preparing to calm down and seriously study writing techniques, to see more, and to think more! Tsunade, I'm telling you, this time I met a great write—"
However.
Before he could finish his sentence.
"Forget it! I don't want to hear it! Who knows how long it'll be until we meet again," Tsunade waved her hand dismissively, cutting Jiraiya off. Then, she continued walking forward with Shizune. "It's not like I particularly want to see you anyway. If you come looking for me, it's definitely for something very troublesome! So, it's best we don't meet at all!"
With that.
Her figure gradually receded into the distance, leaving Jiraiya, who had been excitedly planning to share his discovery of a new literary giant with Tsunade, frozen in place.
Watching Tsunade's departing figure, Jiraiya still had a faint smile on his face. He stood there, watching in silence.
Only after her figure had disappeared.
He said softly, "I hope you find someone who gives you the strength to carry on again, Tsunade."
After saying that.
He stretched comfortably and muttered to himself, "Teacher Oki... what kind of experience must one have to be able to write a book that makes one's blood boil like this?"
Although he hadn't found out who Teacher Oki was, from what the store manager said... their books were all contracted from the Land of Grass. Therefore, according to the analysis of the great Jiraiya...
"Teacher Oki must be in the Land of Grass!"
"Achoo~"
Kusa Hikaru rubbed his nose. He felt like someone was talking about him.
But after a moment's thought, he didn't care.
After all, there were too many people in the Land of Grass who were thinking about him.
He lowered his head and continued to look at the affairs of the Land of Grass.
The war had just ended not long ago, and the Land of Grass had only begun its reconstruction during the tense period of the Second Great Ninja War. Therefore, everything in the country was just starting.
Two meetings had confirmed the development path for the Land of Grass over the next five years: construction, stealing people... ah, recruiting talent, developing the population, economy, animal husbandry, people's livelihood, and military, all on the path to becoming a strong nation.
Everything was progressing steadily.
As for the school... it was already completed, and his textbooks were also finished.
Although the weather was cold... counting the days, it was about time for school to start.
But...
Kusa Hikaru looked at the document in his hand and fell silent.
[Academy Haunting Incident!
According to the descriptions of some workers during the investigation: while working, they allegedly heard strange sounds coming from underground, and even heard words like "poop, poop," accompanied by what seemed to be a cold and eerie laughter.
The strangeness of the voice is indescribable, and many workers have stated that they heard it.
This has caused considerable panic.
The situation is currently unknown, suspected to be a haunting. There have been no casualties, and the strange sounds have not reappeared since.
]
Kusa Hikaru: "..."
Don't tell me a White Zetsu just happened to be passing by the construction site, made a sound out of curiosity, and was overheard by the workers?
Speaking of which, the Kannabi Bridge was in the Land of Grass, a vital route connecting the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire.
Later, during the Battle of Kannabi Bridge, Obito was crushed by rocks and then taken back by White Zetsu.
And at that time, the White Zetsu army... just happened to be digging a tunnel nearby.
A tunnel that could connect to all Five Great Nations.
Honestly, with that kind of ability, what couldn't they do? And they chose to dig tunnels?
If they had gone into logistics, they would have long since become the number one logistics company in the shinobi world.
Of course, he didn't care about this. He had even dared to bring back Mrs. Fusō's... son, Nagato. Why would he be afraid of a bunch of White Zetsu?
What's more, these White Zetsu were still hiding for the sake of their thousand-year plan and wouldn't expose themselves over a small country like the Land of Grass.
Kusa Hikaru looked at the [Black Zetsu: To see Mother one more time!] mission in his system and said flatly, "No one can stop the children of the Land of Grass from going to school."
With that.
He wrote on the document.
[Begin School]!
Two large characters.
(End of Chapter)