"Hoo—"
"I almost died. That was truly dangerous..."
Seeing Naruto return with his usual foolish expression, Jiraiya, covered in blood, finally let out a long breath of relief.
In the end, he wasn't some invincible executioner who could casually kill people in an instant.
Facing the power of half of the Nine-Tails was already beyond what he could safely handle. Being alive at all was pure luck.
Beside him, the giant toad Gamaken lowered his head gloomily while looking at the injured Jiraiya.
"I'm sorry. It's because I was useless..."
"It has nothing to do with you. My reaction was too slow."
Jiraiya weakly waved his hand and continued, "Thanks for this time. You should head back now."
As soon as he finished speaking, Gamaken disappeared with a pop.
"Ah!"
"What happened to you, perverted old man?"
"Did you get caught peeping and beaten up? Hahaha!"
Naruto noticed Jiraiya's miserable appearance.
But instead of showing concern, he laughed happily, clearly believing this kind of sneaky peeping pervert deserved it.
Beside him, Sakura—face slightly red—and Sasuke, whose expression was awkward, also walked over.
After Naruto recovered, Sasuke had also returned to normal, meaning Sakura had gone from hugging a frog to hugging Sasuke.
The atmosphere was briefly awkward.
Trying to break it, Sakura quickly shifted the topic toward Naruto.
"This pervert wasn't beaten by someone else. After he attacked you two, Lock came out and beat him half to death!"
Hearing this, Sasuke sneered.
"Serves him right. I already warned this disgusting pervert."
Jiraiya: "..."
Called a pervert from both sides, Jiraiya felt his lifelong reputation collapsing.
He really shouldn't have relapsed into old habits and gone peeping again.
"I told you, I'm not a pervert! And I didn't mean any harm. I really am the teacher the Third Hokage arranged for Naruto."
Afraid they wouldn't believe him, Jiraiya pulled out Make-Out Paradise along with letters exchanged between himself and Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"I was just gathering artistic inspiration to defeat the mortal enemy who's recently been suppressing my work."
"And these letters were personally written by the Third Hokage."
The reason Jiraiya returned so quickly and agreed to teach Naruto was simple.
Hiruzen had told him Naruto's alternate personality had mastered the Nine-Tails' power.
Now Jiraiya was certain he had come to the right place.
That level of power could overturn the entire shinobi world—bringing either peace or destruction.
Combined with the name Naruto, perhaps the Child of Prophecy he had searched for stood right before him.
The situation matched perfectly.
A kind Naruto using this power could bring peace.
A violent Lock using it could overturn the world.
Wasn't that exactly the change foretold by the Great Toad Sage?
Ahead, the three stared at what Jiraiya had taken out, their eyes fixed on Make-Out Paradise.
Then they exchanged looks.
"Naruto, he writes dirty books too!"
"And the mortal enemy suppressing his art… could that be Lock?"
Sakura voiced her guess, and Sasuke nodded slightly.
"Lock… A-Naruto… Uzumaki Naruto, Uzumaki Lock?"
Jiraiya repeated the names several times before suddenly crying out in shock.
After swallowing nervously, he cautiously asked,
"That book Young A-Ming… it wasn't written by Naruto's alternate personality, Lock… was it?"
"That's right! Lock wrote it!" Naruto confirmed proudly.
"And the stories inside… they're all based on your real experiences?"
The more Jiraiya spoke, the more twisted his expression became. His earlier excitement at finding the Child of Prophecy turned into jealousy.
"How could that be! I'm still just a kid!"
Naruto frowned, looking at Jiraiya as if his brain had malfunctioned.
"Hahaha! That's good, that's really good!"
Jiraiya instantly relaxed and burst into laughter.
It was a relief that the stories weren't real—otherwise his immersion would have been completely ruined.
Seeing Jiraiya so happy after learning the stories weren't real, Naruto suddenly became furious.
"You write dirty books just like Lock and still say you're not a pervert!"
Putting himself in Lock's position, Naruto believed Lock wrote so well because he frequently snuck into women's bathhouses.
And Jiraiya, who also wrote well, clearly relied on long-term peeping too!
"A kid like me doing it is just a prank!"
"But someone your age peeping is a crime!"
"I'm reporting you! I'll expose all your evil deeds!!!"
"Don't! We're both artists—we should show understanding—cough, cough, cough…"
Jiraiya became so anxious that he coughed up blood.
The wounds he had barely sealed with chakra began bleeding again.
Just as Jiraiya didn't know what to do—
The delayed Anbu finally arrived.
"Jiraiya-sama?!"
"So it really was you fighting that ancestor!"
The leading Anbu, wearing a mask and hood, was Elephant—the same one who had guided Naruto earlier.
He hurried over and signaled behind him.
"Quick! Someone, treat his injuries and stop the bleeding!"
A medical ninja stepped forward, hands glowing with green chakra from the Mystical Palm Technique.
"Thank you for your trouble."
Jiraiya smiled kindly in gratitude.
Then he pointed at Naruto and the others.
"Please explain things to them. They don't believe me."
"Who would believe you, you big pervert!" Naruto glarey.
Sasuke and Sakura nodded in agreement, faces full of disdain.
Elephant: "..."
The elephant instantly understood what must have happened.
Internally, he applauded Lock for beating Jiraiya, but outwardly, he respectfully explained,
"Naruto Uzumaki, Jiraiya-sama is indeed the teacher chosen by Hokage-sama for you—a teacher capable of helping you control the Nine-Tails' power."
After Elephant listed Jiraiya's achievements and reputation, the trio finally changed their attitude.
"This big perv… I mean, Pervy Sage… is actually that amazing!"
Upon hearing he could help control the Nine-Tails, Naruto upgraded the title from "pervert" to "sage."
Jiraiya nodded proudly.
"Of course!"
"You'll come with me later. I'll check your condition during the lunch break."
At this moment, Sasuke hesitated before stepping forward.
"Gama Sage Teacher, please train me as well. You don't need to focus on me—just some guidance is enough."
"The last Uchiha?" Jiraiya examined Sasuke carefully.
After a moment, he shook his head.
"I don't understand the Sharingan well. You should look for Kakashi."
Jiraiya only accepted disciples related to the Child of Prophecy. Others didn't interest him.
Without waiting for further treatment, he grabbed Naruto and left.
Watching Naruto leave, Sasuke clenched his fists tightly, jealousy and unwillingness flashing across his face.
Then, with a dark expression, he turned and walked away without a word.
"Sasuke..."
Sakura was caught off guard.
For some reason, a faint premonition rose in her heart—
That Sasuke might soon walk a different path from them.