When it made a contract with Hakushi, it already meant that it would fight for Hakushi.
Moreover, since it is a friend of the Living Katsuyu, it should respect the Living Katsuyu's way of life, even if the man being helped by the Living Katsuyu makes itself quite displeased.
"Is there really no way to interfere?"
Jiraiya was somewhat unwilling.
"Can't do it means can't do it… don't even think about interfering with the Living Katsuyu's will through me. Otherwise, it will kill you first."
Tsunade's words were not a threat, but a statement of fact.
Although she had never seen the Living Katsuyu angry, as a thousand-year-old summoning beast, its angry stance must be extremely terrifying.
Jiraiya's request obviously touched the principle of the Living Katsuyu as a summoning beast.
Jiraiya helplessly sighed.
This action is crucial; before the battle, it's important to weaken the opponent's strength as much as possible.
As a contractor of one of the Three Great Sacred Lands, he knows the power of the Shikkotsu Forest Sage Katsuyu Sage.
Its usual iceberg-like power is already terrifying enough; one can only imagine how dreadfully terrifying its true form is.
"If that's the case, then there's no way around it."
Jiraiya stood up, unable to find a breakthrough from Tsunade's side, he had no choice but to fight head-on.
"Leaving so soon?"
Tsunade was a bit disappointed, having finally someone to accompany her drinking.
"Time is tight, I have to act immediately."
After speaking, Jiraiya walked towards the outside of the room.
"Don't die."
The voice suddenly came from behind.
Jiraiya paused in his tracks, turned his head, and revealed a bright smile to Tsunade.
"Don't show such a sad expression, I'm one of the Sannin after all; I won't be defeated so easily. Also, if young people stray off the path due to erroneous beliefs, it's our responsibility as elders to bring them back on the right path."
Watching Jiraiya's gradually receding figure, Tsunade took a sip of wine and turned her gaze back to the pond.
"This fool is as naive as ever... Renegade means renegade, just like Orochimaru, they can't be bound by the past anymore..."
Shizune quietly listened beside her, showing a confused expression on her face.
"Um, Lady Tsunade, is Lord Jiraiya going to do something?"
"I don't know. Who cares what he's going to do."
Tsunade's drunken voice echoed in the room.
◎
In a forest outside the main gate of Konoha Village.
One by one, Konoha ninjas gathered here.
"Guy, this task is incredibly important, so don't drop the ball halfway through!"
The encouragement came from his father.
The young man with a bowl-cut hairstyle immediately raised a thumb, his white teeth shining brightly.
"Don't worry, dad, youth does not allow failures!"
"Guy!"
Might Duy stared blankly at his son, Might Guy.
"Dad!"
After speaking, the father and son embraced each other, tears of excitement streaming from their eyes, expressing the passion of youth.
"...Um, could I ask you two to quiet down a bit?"
Sarutobi Ryu looked at this peculiar father-son duo somewhat helplessly.
What could he say, are they just fools, or simply fools?
Next, they were to execute an important and secretive S-Class mission, with no extra time to waste on comedy and ridicule.
"Sorry, Captain, you may continue with the explanation."
Duy also seemed to realize that his and his son's behavior was somewhat too rash, scratched his head awkwardly and apologized.
Sarutobi Ryu didn't blame them, but instead glanced at the people in front of him.
Besides the father-son duo of Might Duy, there were ninjas from various major ninja clans as well as capable members from the Anbu and Root.
And as the Minister of the Anbu himself and his wife Sarutobi Linko, as the Deputy Minister of the Anbu, were the two deputy commanders of this S-Class mission squad.
The chief commander was Jiraiya, who had already taken action beforehand.
Currently, he should be moving towards the Land of Wind faster than them.
Due to the lack of intelligence on the Land of Demons, it is fundamentally unrealistic to infiltrate the Land of Demons and eliminate the three targets in the mission.
Cooperation with Hidden Sand is the only viable option, leveraging Hidden Sand's power to create a safe combat environment.
Thus, the main battleground will only be in the Land of Wind.
Such deep infiltration behind enemy lines is exceedingly perilous.
Being discovered would mean mission failure.
And they only have one chance.
"So, let me be direct. This S-Class mission is extremely important, and only success is permitted, failure is not an option. If the mission fails, Konoha could fall into a grave crisis, and lose face internationally... Therefore, everyone must be committed with full effort. Like everyone else, I will fight with a mindset prepared for death."
Sarutobi Ryu's expression was resolute, knowing this mission was exceptionally risky. Facing three unknown and powerful adversaries, he was long prepared for sacrifice.
As the eldest son of the Hokage and the Minister of the Anbu, he had a reason to live and die with his companions.
"Yes."
Everyone responded earnestly.
Subsequently, Duy asked: "So, what is the content of this S-Class mission? We only received the dispatch order, but we don't know the mission details..."
Due to the need for confidentiality, the selected Konoha ninjas basically only received orders to execute the S-Class mission; as for the mission content, it was top secret, not to be leaked.
"Uchiha Ruri, Hyuga Ayane, Chiba Hakushi... Our mission is to go to the Land of Wind and cooperate with Hidden Sand to eliminate these three S-Class renegade ninjas threatening Konoha's safety."