Naruto: I Roamed the Ninja World as a Woman

Chapter 222 Reunion with Jiraiya

Loulan, the land of wind.

Several gray birds flew across the azure sky and chirped as they landed in a palace.

They huddled together, the lead bird bowing its head to patiently preen the ruffled feathers of its young.

The young Princess Sarah happened to be standing by the window and witnessed this scene.

The girl looked at the heartwarming scene in the tree, but her heart was filled with worry, as if a huge stone was pressing on her chest, making it difficult for her to breathe.

The Queen of Loulan fell ill a few days ago.

Young Sarah is now forced to temporarily assume the regency in place of her mother to manage the current chaotic situation in Loulan.

At this point, half a month had passed since the Sand Village forcibly expanded the mining efforts of the dragon vein.

In the past two weeks.

The lives of the people of Loulan remained peaceful, seemingly no different from before.

Thanks to the vigorous development of Sunagakure, the lives of the people are now much more hopeful than they were in the past when they were poor.

Some of the ministers who had previously supported the Queen turned against her, believing that the Sand Village's initial promise of a "safe mining plan" had indeed been fully implemented.

They can serve as heirs to the royal bloodline.

Like her mother, Sarah was born with a subtle connection to the dragon vein.

Even though she is still young.

But Sarah still sensed the restlessness of the underground dragon vein.

It was as if a dangerous aura was brewing beneath his feet, ready to explode at any moment, blasting the entire Loulan into the sky.

This premonition was not unfounded.

The most obvious example is this: if you crouch down and look closely, you'll notice that the scattered gravel on the ground occasionally trembles involuntarily.

Unfortunately.

This meticulous observation went unnoticed, and everyone took it for granted.

The Sand Village built such a large underground factory —

What's wrong with the slight vibration?

"Your Highness."

Just as the girl was gazing at the birds in a daze, a white-haired minister with a long beard strode in, his voice tinged with panic: "Something's happened at the factory, at the Dragon Vein Factory!"

Sarah's face turned pale upon hearing this.

What you fear most is what will happen.

Her fist clenched tightly in her sleeve, but she tried her best to maintain a calm expression as she asked, "What happened? Has the dragon vein gone berserk?"

The minister exclaimed in alarm, "No! On the contrary, it's the dragon vein's chakra that has suddenly weakened!"

Sarah was taken aback.

I never expected the answer to be like this.

"The Sand Village is already conducting an investigation and analysis."

The minister continued, "Their initial assessment is that the dragon vein's chakra is flowing backward and gathering for unknown reasons—"

The underground arms factory was under the full control of Sunagakure.

In Loulan, almost all the information they could get was what Sunagakure wanted them to know.

Sarah understood.

It's clear that even the Sunagakure ninjas were a bit confused about this situation, so they simply leaked the information to see how the locals would explain and respond.

But the young girl was equally bewildered.

Dragon vein chakra flowing backward?

I've only ever heard of dragon veins flowing outwards, never inwards!

My mother never told me about this situation!

However, Sarah must not show weakness in front of her subjects.

She waved her hand dismissively, "I know, but it shouldn't be a big deal. Tell Sunagakure that I'll go to the factory myself later."

The minister responded, his panicked expression calming down considerably, before turning and leaving.

The palace fell silent again.

Sarah took a deep look at the nest of birds in the tree.

Her gaze lingered on the chirping baby birds for a moment, then she bit her lip and prepared to leave.

Just then.

Suddenly, a figure jumped down from the sky and blocked Sarah's path.

Jiraiya, disguised as a middle-aged man, appeared before Sara and said with a smile, "Please wait a moment, Your Highness Sara."

Sarah was startled.

She was startled, took a few steps back, and gripped the short knife at her waist, while hissing, "Who are you?"

"Ha ha!"

"Your Highness, rest assured, I'm not a bad person!"

Jiraiya struck what he thought was a cool pose, a smile plastered on his face, and then announced his origins: "I am Jiraiya-sama, the Toad Spirit of Mount Myōboku, disciple of the Third Hokage, a renowned bestselling author in the ninja world, an elite Jonin of Konoha, and one of the Legendary Sannin!"

What a long list of titles!

However, the alert Sara only heard the sensitive word "Konoha".

Seeing that the other party didn't seem to have any hostility, she temporarily suppressed her nervousness and asked, "Are you a ninja from Konoha?"

Why are you here?

Loulan is located deep in the desert.

Although it is nominally not under the jurisdiction of the Land of Wind and the Sand Village, Sara had heard of the Leaf Village and knew that it had always been at odds with the Sand Village.

Jiraiya's expression turned serious upon hearing this.

"Although I am a ninja of Konoha, I am not here on the orders of the village!"

He looked at the girl with a stern face and said seriously, "I came to Loulan at this time because I was guided by the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku, and I want to prevent a disaster from happening."

Before Sarah could speak...

Jiraiya continued, "Your Highness, I know that your current concern is nothing more than the matter of the Dragon Vein, and I am here precisely to resolve this matter!"

Sarah's expression softened considerably.

She wasn't foolish enough to blindly believe Jiraiya's words.

Sarah knew that regardless of whether what the other person said was true or false, she had no ability to investigate or discern the truth.

What can she do right now besides believe?

At least from the surface perspective, the other party seems to share the same thoughts as me.

"Alright, this is... Mr. Jiraiya."

Sara glanced at the Konoha headband on the ninja's head, then switched to a more polite form of address, saying in a deep voice, "Thank you for your assistance, but please forgive my bluntness, how do you intend to resolve the Dragon Vein issue?"

"Sealing Technique!"

Jiraiya pointed to the two toads on his shoulders and said seriously, "With the help of the two toad sages, I can use the secret sage seal of Mount Myōboku to completely seal the dragon vein!"

The words fell.

Fukasaku and Shima, the two immortals, then let out a "quack" in unison as a response.

Mount Myoboku, a sacred site with a history spanning millennia, boasts a profound cultural heritage.

Besides the most famous Sage Techniques, he has also mastered ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, and even sealing techniques!

Seeing how intelligent the two old toads were, Sarah couldn't help but take a second look at them with some surprise.

"Let's set aside whether the sealing was ever successful."

The girl then asked, "Even if we succeed, how do we solve the problem on the Sand Village side?"

Jiraiya hesitated for a moment, then continued, "I plan to seal their memories and use genjutsu to alter their perceptions, making them forget the specifics of the Dragon Vein incident, leaving only the absolute concept in their minds that the Dragon Vein seal cannot be broken!"

"Nearly a thousand ninjas in Sunagakure know about the Dragon Vein. Are you going to seal them all away?"

Sara shook her head, disagreeing with his idea: "Besides, there's the Kazekage and advisors far away in Sunagakure. Can Mr. Jiraiya seal away their memories?"

Jiraiya opened his mouth, but had nothing to say.

Only then did he realize that, perhaps because it also came from the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage, he had, like before, fallen into the mindset of a lone wolf.

He thought he could solve the dragon vein problem on his own!

But in reality...

"The dragon vein of Loulan has become the largest arms production site in Sunagakure, and is Sunagakure's greatest asset for launching the Third Shinobi World War in the future."

How could it be so easily ignored?

If you want to change this situation, you must first have the ability to have an equal dialogue with the Sand Village!

Jiraiya frowned.

He wondered if he should ask the old man for help.

But would the old man believe the prophecy of the Great Toad Immortal?

He doesn't even believe in prophetic beings, let alone such a classic charlatan-like statement about "destroying the world" —

Sara saw that Jiraiya had nothing to say.

The few glimmers of hope she had felt earlier vanished in an instant. She shook her head in disappointment and turned away.

The Loulan princess was ready to continue with her previous plans.

"Get the car ready!"

"At the same time, prepare gifts and visiting cards."

Sarah stepped out of the palace and instructed the servants outside, "I need to go to the hot spring residence of Jonin Yekura immediately!"

"Why has Your Highness changed your mind again?"

Jiraiya, hearing her order, was somewhat puzzled: "Didn't you say before that you were going to the Dragon Vein Factory to observe the Dragon Vein?"

"I've never heard of anything like the dragon vein flowing back."

"Besides, there are Sand Village ninjas watching over me there, so even if I go to the factory, there's nothing I can do right now!"

""

Therefore, instead of wasting time going to the factory and staring blankly at the dragon vein...

Sarah calmly said, "Why not take advantage of this unexpected turn of events to find a way to confirm the danger of the Dragon Vein, fundamentally stop Sunagakure's development plan, and restore the Dragon Vein to its previous state!"

Jiraiya was stunned upon hearing this.

He thought to himself, "That makes sense!"

The ninja scratched his head and suddenly looked at the young girl in front of him with newfound respect.

"So how will you convince Sunagakure?"

Jiraiya asked curiously, "Is it coaxing? Or deceiving? Or bluffing?"

"All the methods you mentioned are completely useless."

Sarah gave him a strange look, as if puzzled by his naiveté.

The girl shook her head again: "So—I have to go see another adult, an adult who can influence the thoughts of Sunagakure."

Sarah hasn't been idle these past two weeks.

She figured out Ayane Amamiya's identity, knowing that she was a distinguished guest of Sunagakure, possessed extraordinary strength, and had a good relationship with both Sasori and Pakura.

More importantly...

When we met at the factory last time, the other party seemed to treat my mother and me quite well.

Try anything, even if it seems hopeless.

Even though Sarah wasn't entirely confident, she could only hope that Lord Amamiya would listen carefully to her thoughts.

The wheels keep turning.

Sara jumped into the carriage and headed towards the hot springs.

Jiraiya stood there with a solemn expression.

Sarah's words made him realize that if he wanted to resolve the dragon vein issue, he would most likely have to face that troublesome fellow again.

"Little Jiraiya?"

The sage on his shoulder whispered, "What do we do now? Should we follow?"

Master Shima asked疑惑地问道, "Just who is this Amamiya, that you are so wary of him?"

The two immortals had known Jiraiya for a long time and were very familiar with his personality.

After entering the city, and having stayed by Jiraiya's side, these two toads naturally realized that Jiraiya was wary of Ayane Amamiya.

"It's nothing —"

Jiraiya took a deep breath and rallied his spirits: "However, both of you immortals, please be prepared for battle at any time."

0

He said seriously, "If we're not careful, we might all end up here!"

Jiraiya glanced in the direction the carriage had traveled, tightened his headband, and then vanished in a flash!

Above the hot spring.

Ayane Amamiya sat cross-legged on the stone platform and began refining her Sage Chakra once again.

Because of the panel.

She doesn't actually need to cultivate Sage Mode to a very high level.

All you need to do is work hard to get the "Sage Mode" entry on the panel.

Subsequently, the girl can directly add points through achievement points to upgrade the "Sage Mode" attribute in one step!

But this is easier said than done.

However, without guidance, the entry barrier to Sage Mode is higher than you can imagine!

Ayane Amamiya has been training in bits and pieces for a year and a half, starting from the very beginning with sensing natural energy, and she's still stuck at the threshold of "Sage Mode."

It was afternoon.

After finishing her meal, the girl repeated the actions she had done countless times before.

The steam from the hot spring was wisps all around.

The mist slightly dampened her clothes, then continued to drift upwards, sticking a few stray hairs to the girl's smooth forehead.

Ayane Amamiya simply untied her hair tie, letting her long, fiery red hair fall down her back.

Now, she can actually perform most ninjutsu without hand seals.

But in order to explore the principles of immortal techniques.

The girl had no choice but to return to her original state, performing the hand seals meticulously, just like the ninja students in the school who were encountering ninjutsu for the first time.

巳, 未, 午, 亥.

She mastered a very basic C-rank ninjutsu.

Water Release: Water Chaos Technique.

The ninjutsu, which was usually gentle, became surprisingly difficult to control after being mixed with Sage Chakra.

Ayane Amamiya puffed out her cheeks.

A torrent of liquid flew from his lips, its power quite formidable!

However, the water flow was unstable, sometimes intermittent and sometimes continuous, which made the subsequent scene look somewhat comical.

Still not working?

The girl dispelled the spell.

This is still my most proficient and frequently used Water Release ninjutsu.

If it were a ninjutsu of another attribute, or even a bloodline limit like Dust Release, then the corresponding Sage Mode would probably be even more difficult.

You have completed a training session in immortal arts!

[Achievement Points +54!]

Despite the prompt that popped up on the panel, Ayane Amamiya was not discouraged.

Just as they were about to continue their attempts, they suddenly heard someone announcing from outside the door: "Lord Amamiya, Princess Sara of Loulan requests an audience!"

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