Double-transformation: I, Sakura Haruno! Will crush the pirates!

"With her talent, it would be a waste for her to stay at the Ninja Academy, especially since Danzo is eyeing her."

"So I thought..."

Setting down his pipe, Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed wearily and explained why he had sent men to search for Jiraiya.

After all—when something happens, the disciple will do the work.

"No, it won't work, we can't manage it."

The white-haired man instinctively refused three times.

You want him, a wanderer who roams the ninja world, to travel with a girl? Don't be ridiculous!

How can he write his new works or flirt with those fair-skinned, voluptuous young ladies?

"Jiraiya, that child's talent is no less than mine... no, it far surpasses mine. I don't want to see her go astray!"

"Also, she's learned the Flying Thunder God Technique!"

A sharp light shone through his cloudy eyes, even as he turned his back to the dying old man.

Anyone who is being stared at like that can feel his seriousness.

"Tsk!" Upon hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, Jiraiya clicked his tongue: "Then I'll go and make contact with her myself, and I'll decide whether to bring her along or not!"

"can."

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled again, lit his pipe once more, and exhaled large plumes of smoke.

"Smoke less, old man, and if you really feel tired, then step down from the Hokage position!"

"Okay, then you'll take over my job?"

"I don't want to! Let whoever wants to be Hokage can be!"

"Hahahaha!"

.....

At the training ground on the west side of the village, Sakura, having finished her training, tossed her hair.

Sweat made her hair stick to her skin and also soaked her black ninja outfit.

"Sigh, let's not make things difficult for Mother. Let's just go to the village bathhouse instead."

Looking at herself covered in mud and sweat, not wanting to go home and face the interrogation of "How can you get married like this?", Sakura decided to go to the village bathhouse to clean herself up.

After tidying up her ninja tools and storing them in a scroll, Sakura followed her memory and headed south onto the street.

Tsuru no Kan, the most famous hot spring resort on the southern slope of Konoha Village, has always been loved by the villagers for its affordable prices and high-quality service.

When Sakura arrived here exhausted, her Observation Haki unexpectedly spotted a white-haired man on the outskirts of the women's bathhouse.

"Oh?"

Sakura grinned, her aura becoming subtly concealed as she tiptoed toward the man from behind.

"Hehehe, that's really good!"

A white-haired man, squatting outside the bamboo-supported fence and peeping through the gaps in the wooden planks at the women's bath, made slurping sounds as he scribbled notes in a small notebook with a brush in his hand.

Sakura Haruno sat next to him, looking at his notes.

To be fair, let's set aside phrases like "round and full long legs", "slender waist that can be covered by a single hand", "graceful and charming back", "perfectly soft mature curves"...

The depiction of the character's arc in this manuscript is quite clear.

No wonder this book topped the bestseller list in a ninja world lacking entertainment.

"Ah, please don't include that mole on her plump figure, it's too unpleasant to read."

The girl's clear voice startled the white-haired man.

After instinctively raising his finger, he realized he seemed to be in a village, so he dispersed the chakra he had gathered.

The man turned around and saw that the person squatting next to him was the target he wanted to approach.

His mouth gaped open, and he couldn't utter a sound for a long time.

Unbelievable! He, one of the legendary Sannin, was caught off guard by a child getting close to him without even noticing.

Although it was because they relaxed their guard in the village and focused on gathering materials that they paid little attention to the outside world.

The fact is that I was outmatched; if she were an enemy, I would probably be dead by now.

"You think you know a lot?"

Putting away his eating utensils, Jiraiya began to seriously examine the girl in front of him.

A massive amount of chakra, outstanding ninja academy grades, signs of diligent training, plus the old man's claim of having the talent to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique... what a genius!

There will always be a group of unreasonable beings in the world whose existence is meant to raise the bar for the human race.

Fortunately, Jiraiya was no less capable!

"Just kidding, I know it perfectly!"

Sakura grinned mischievously, gave a thumbs-up, and pointed to the inside of the women's bath.

"Damn, I'm so envious!"

Jiraiya, understanding Sakura's meaning, bit his knuckle and showed a longing expression.

"Speaking of which, you don't seem to mind that I... cough cough, gather material?"

Jiraiya looked at Sakura with suspicion. Have the children in the village become this open-minded now?

"It's simple, I enjoy watching it too, I don't have double standards."

"Shout out when you have desires, ignite when you have aspirations—isn't this dazzling greed the best proof that we are alive?"

"However, once a person makes a choice, they must be responsible for it. They must bear the consequences of their actions, whether it be infamy or praise, I will bear it all!"

A certain pirate's smile was clear and pure; she opened her arms, and her rising aura enveloped the heavens and the earth.

Like many powerful rulers on the sea, they never bother to hide their thoughts.

As kings, they inevitably possess stronger desires, are more unrestrained, and are more easily angered than anyone else.

And it is also because they live more intensely than anyone else that they become so captivating, and from this arises the immense power that can overturn the world!

At that moment, Jiraiya truly saw in this girl a more real human being than anyone else, one who contained both purity and impurity!

"you...."

His throat bobbed, and a dryness rose in his throat.

In the brief few minutes that he met Sakura Haruno, Jiraiya finally understood what the old man was worried about.

If such a child is not properly guided, what if he produces another Uchiha Madara in Konoha years later?

Since that's the case...

Jiraiya formed hand seals and quickly summoned a giant toad beneath him, placing one leg on the toad's back.

He shook his head like a geisha, letting his two long, tail-like hairs swirl in the air.

"Let me, the Toad Spirit of Mount Myōboku, the Immortal Taoist, commonly known as the Toad Sage—Jiraiya!"

"Let me guide you onto the right path of a steadfast ninja!"

Jiraiya spread his five fingers and stretched them out in front of Sakura.

"Kid, become my disciple!"

"do not want!"

"what?!"

Chapter 51 Then I'll ask you, then I'll ask you

Konoha, the underground prison.

Footsteps echoed above the spiral staircase as clusters of fire were ignited.

Danzo Shimura, inside the fence, looked up and saw his old friend who had come to rescue him.

"You've finally arrived, Hiruzen!"

Danzo Shimura gripped the prison bars with both arms, looking somewhat desperate.

"You actually restarted the research experiment on the cytokine cells without permission! And you even transplanted and modified yourself?"

A test document, still fragrant with ink, was thrown into the cell, with white scraps of paper fluttering everywhere.

Danzo Shimura didn't even glance at the report; after all, the matter hadn't even been weighed yet, which meant it wasn't a big deal at all.

Moreover, he believed that Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that he did all this for Konoha!

—Monkey, you should understand me!

"Stop all research now! And what else are you hiding from me?!"

Upon hearing his old friend's voice, Shimura Danzo paused for a moment before replying in a low voice:

Which one are you referring to?

Silence spread through the prison.

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "..."

His withered hands trembled as he pulled a cigarette butt from his pocket and forcefully lit the pungent tobacco.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took several deep breaths before he could calm his lungs, which were on the verge of bursting.

"all!"

Danzo Shimura kept his mouth shut. Although he appeared calm and composed on the surface, the bandages on his back were already soaked with cold sweat.

Could he possibly tell Hiruzen Sarutobi about the shady things he did? No, he couldn't bring himself to say it!

Therefore, at this moment, Danzo Shimura's brain was working at high speed.

—Think of something! You're so dense! Come up with a reason that can fool Hiruzen!

Oh, right, that pink-haired one!

"Ahem, Hiruzen, there's something I need to report to you!"

Without hesitation, Shimura Danzo abandoned his usual aloofness and eagerly raised his hand to report to his old friend.

"Sakura Haruno, that girl, she knows my trump card, her information source is suspicious! She must have stolen village secrets! A wicked brat like Hiruzen should be let go..."

Danzo would have been fine if he hadn't brought it up, but the mere mention of it fueled Hiruzen Sarutobi's anger, his deep gaze feeling like a sharp knife scraping across Danzo.

"Do you think I don't know who killed Shisui?"

The suicide note, the remains, and even the eye he left for Itachi Uchiha were all things that Hiruzen Sarutobi cleaned up for Danzo Shimura!

Not to mention that Sakura Haruno, as Itachi Uchiha's junior, would not have been informed of Danzo's danger, given that she was fully involved in the Uchiha rebellion.

"That's enough. I've already handed that child over to Jiraiya. Don't even think about taking her again!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe against the iron bars, and the metal prison bars instantly melted, leaving a large hole.

"Stay put in the village with Genbu during this time. If anything else happens, I will hold you responsible!"

After uttering what seemed like the umpteenth harsh remark, Hiruzen Sarutobi left without looking back.

Danzo was left alone, staring at his Hokage attire, and a sigh that sounded like both longing and ambition echoed in the prison.

...

Meanwhile, Sakura, who had rejected Jiraiya, returned to her own home.

As she stepped through the door, a tuft of white hair and an old face beaming with smiles came into her view.

Oh no! Something unclean has followed us into the house!

"Oh my god, Sakura-chan, why didn't you tell us earlier that Jiraiya-sama was coming to visit our house!"

Haruno Meibuki, carrying hot tea and snacks, came out of the kitchen and scolded Sakura reproachfully.

She then placed the food on the table in front of Jiraiya and warmly invited him to try it.

"No, madam, it was impolite of me to come here so abruptly."