Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode

Chapter 89: Jiraiya's Desire for Peace

"Yahiko, who do you think that person was talking to Jiraiya-sensei?"

The blue-haired girl asked a boy in a low voice.

"I bet he's a Konoha ninja, but why is he wearing that mask? Is it because he's ugly?"

Yahiko tilted his head back, lowered his eyes, thought for a moment, and then answered.

"Konoha ninja!"

The red-haired boy, who had been silent until now, trembled upon hearing Yahiko's words. He instinctively dared not look at the Konoha ANBU ninja outside the door, and the image of his parents being murdered involuntarily flashed through his mind. He immediately covered his head with his hands, squatted on the ground, and trembled.

"Nagato, are you alright?"

The blue-haired girl noticed the red-haired boy's situation and asked him with concern.

"Nagato, are you feeling unwell? I'll go find Jiraiya-sensei right now. Konan, you stay here and take care of Nagato."

Upon seeing this, Yahiko immediately went to check on Nagato's condition. He found that Nagato's face was extremely pale and he was sweating profusely, indicating that something was wrong. He decisively chose to go and ask his teacher, Jiraiya, for help.

But as soon as he turned around, Nagato suddenly grabbed his clothes, holding on tightly, and said in fear, "Don't go, you'll be killed, don't go..."

"Nagato..."

Seeing Nagato in this state, Konan felt both heartbroken and anxious, and didn't know what to do.

"Don't worry, Nagato, I won't die."

Yahiko smiled confidently at Nagato, a smile so infectious that it lessened Nagato's fear, and Nagato slowly released his grip on Yahiko's hand.

"what happened?"

At this moment, Jiraiya rushed back into the house. He noticed that Nagato was not in a good condition and asked the three of them with concern.

With Jiraiya back, Yahiko and Konan immediately felt reassured, and their tension quickly dissipated.

Seeing that the Konoha ANBU ninja hadn't come in, Nagato calmed down again, gave Jiraiya a forced smile, and indicated that he was alright.

"If you're feeling unwell, be sure to tell me, Nagato. I happen to know a very skilled medical ninja, and she's incredibly beautiful—absolutely the most beautiful woman in the world. With her help, no illness in this world will be a problem..."

Jiraiya asked Nagato with concern, and then began to praise Tsunade's medical skills without hesitation.

"Jiraiya-sensei is here again. You really do have a crush on that older sister named Tsunade, don't you?"

Xiao Nan teased.

"That's right, that must be it, otherwise why would he keep talking about that older sister? And I've seen the teacher give that older sister's picture a strange smile several times..."

Yahiko joined in the commotion and, without hesitation, revealed some of Jiraiya's embarrassing past.

"Yahiko, don't talk nonsense, I didn't do it..."

When his dark past was unearthed, Jiraiya panicked and tried to cover Yahiko's mouth, but the quick-witted Yahiko had already run away.

The two of them immediately started chasing each other around the room.

Konan cheered Yahiko on from the sidelines.

Nagato watched the three of them playing around in the room, and her mood inexplicably improved, a happy smile appearing on her face.

"It's so wonderful, I wish life could stay like this forever..."

Nagato thought to himself.

……

Time passed quickly, and it was late at night.

Jiraiya suddenly opened his eyes from under the covers, then quietly got up so as not to wake the three little ones who were sleeping on the floor nearby.

Then, he used the Shadow Clone Technique to leave a shadow clone in his bed, glanced at the three sleeping kids, smiled, and secretly left the house.

He had barely left the house when the Konoha ANBU ninja who had come to his door during the day quickly appeared in front of him.

"Has the person been found?"

Jiraiya asked in a low voice.

"Ha, the target is currently in a small town a few dozen kilometers away, and our people are keeping an eye on him."

The ANBU ninja nodded.

"Very good, lead the way."

Jiraiya smiled slightly, a hint of anticipation on his face.

During the day, he had already received a letter from the old man from the ANBU ninja in front of him, informing him of the mission he was to undertake.

He is very much looking forward to it.

He had a premonition that if he could persuade Hattori Masanari to cooperate with Konoha, the country would usher in a long-awaited peace.

He was filled with enthusiasm at the thought that he could contribute to the peace of this country.

He once embarked on a journey to find the prophesied child in order to change this war-torn world, but he never found the prophesied child. He only witnessed the various tragedies caused by war among people in various countries during his journey, and felt powerless for a time.

But he did not give up because of his powerlessness. Instead, he became more and more convinced of the Toad Sage's prophecy that he would find the prophesied child who could bring peace to the world, take him as his disciple, and guide him onto the right path.

However, before that, if he could personally create a small peace for this world, that would be something that would excite him, and he would be willing to fight for it tirelessly.

"I hope this matter can be resolved smoothly. This country has been crying for too long and needs peace to soothe her."

Jiraiya, following the ANBU ninja leading the way, looked up at the rain falling again from the sky and sighed.

On the other side, in a small town where more than half of the buildings have been destroyed.

Kirito's White Zetsu clone, disguised as Hattori Masanari, is drinking alone in an izakaya. He disappeared here in the afternoon using the Mayfly Technique and reappeared here at night, which can be considered as giving Hanzo of the Salamander an explanation.

On the one hand, it shows that he possesses excellent concealment and ninjutsu skills; on the other hand, it shows that he has no intention of breaking his promise.

To his surprise, not long after he appeared, he discovered that there were many foreign ninjas who were not from the Rain Village. Judging from the fact that they had been following him silently, these people had come to find him, and there were several groups of people from different factions.

These ninjas followed behind him without attacking him, which made Kirito somewhat frustrated.

There was no reason to take action.

He's the kind of person who won't bother others unless they bother him. While these ninjas following him around are annoying, it would be too much to kill them just for that reason.

As for attracting powerful enemies, he doesn't need to worry. With his soul perception, which has an extremely wide range, and his chakra perception, which is formed by natural energy, he is confident that he can leave before these powerful enemies arrive.

"Hmm~, finally two barely passable ninjas have arrived."

Suddenly, Kirito sensed two Jonin-level chakra streams rapidly approaching him.

Soon, a handsome man and a beautiful woman entered the izakaya, both wearing headbands from Sunagakure.

Upon seeing Kirito, the red-haired beauty said something to the black-haired beauty beside him and then walked towards Kirito alone.

"You must be Mr. Hattori Masanari. Let me introduce myself. I am Akazawa from Sunagakure. Could you come with me for a moment? I have something very important to discuss with you."

The red-haired handsome man, acting as if he knew Kirito well, sat down opposite him and smiled politely.

"Shouldn't the person come in person to introduce themselves and ask for a consultation? Is it really appropriate to send a puppet? The puppeteers of Sunagakure are indeed a bunch of guys who only know how to hide in the shadows and play dirty tricks."

Upon hearing this, Kirito sneered and then brought the wine in his glass to his mouth.

Relying on his soul perception, the puppeteer's trick of using puppets to impersonate him was completely ineffective against him.

Upon hearing this, the red-haired beauty in front of him froze instantly.

The next moment, a sharp spike shot out from the palm of the red-haired man's right hand, which was resting on the table, and then he swung his hand to stab Kirito.

But before he could finish his movement, a huge water sphere instantly enveloped him, rendering him unable to move.

Water Release: Water Prison Technique!

Chapter 90: The Puppet Master

"You're such an impatient person. All I did was say a few words to you Sand Village puppeteers, and look how anxious you are."

Kirito looked at the puppet he had controlled with the Water Prison Technique and said coldly.

As he spoke, he clapped his hands, and a wall of water suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking a large number of poisoned projectiles that were ejected from the mouth of the puppet disguised as a black-haired beauty at the door.

Water Escape·Water Formation Wall!

Meanwhile, everyone else in the izakaya fled in a panic but also with practiced ease, disappearing in an instant.

"As expected of a water-style ninja who has recently gained fame, his water-style ninjutsu released without hand seals is indeed powerful."

After the area was cleared, a Sand Ninja who called himself Red Sand suddenly fell through a hole in the roof of the izakaya and appeared behind Kirito. At this time, all ten fingers of his hands were connected to fine chakra threads, and he was simultaneously controlling four humanoid puppets with different shapes.

The black-haired beauty also released chakra threads from her ten fingers, and she simultaneously controlled four humanoid puppets to appear.

Generally speaking, a puppeteer's skill is judged by the number of puppets they can control. An excellent puppeteer who can control two puppets at the same time is considered passable, while one who can control four puppets at the same time is definitely a first-class puppeteer.

This shows that both Sand Ninja were highly skilled elite puppeteers.

The two worked together seamlessly to use the puppets to block all of Kirito's escape routes.

Every puppeteer is a master of killing techniques. It's not that they are particularly strong, but rather that the puppets they control are equipped with a large number of unpredictable hidden weapons, and they are also skilled in using poison. Opponents of the same level usually find it very troublesome to encounter them.

Because if you are accidentally hit by the opponent's hidden weapon, you may face a desperate situation.

"Your way of greeting others in Sunagakure is quite unique."

Despite being surrounded by two Jonin-level puppeteers skilled in killing, Kirito remained calm and composed, sitting in his seat drinking and speaking with a serene expression.

"I apologize, but we Sunagakure only cooperate with the strong. Please forgive our probing just now."

Akasuna, unfazed by Kirito's taunts, replied...

After saying that, he exchanged a glance with his wife, Sara, and then immediately controlled four puppets to launch an attack on Kirito using hidden weapons.

Sandstorm also launched an attack.

In an instant, a large number of poisoned projectiles shot towards Kirito from all directions at high speed, including deadly poisonous smoke and a considerable number of extremely powerful bombs.

……

The essence of ninjas lies in disguise and deception.

From beginning to end, Akasa's words were full of deception.