Chapter 274: Yuto's Probe, Jiraiya's Speculation
As a country rich in hot springs, the Land of Hot Springs was, in Jiraiya's mind, the perfect place for a cultural excursion... no, for gathering intelligence.
A slight blush crept onto Jiraiya's face as if he'd remembered something, but he quickly returned to his usual serious expression.
Unrolling the scroll before him, a grave expression rapidly replaced the calm on Jiraiya's face.
The First Mizukage, Yuto, had actually appeared in the Land of Hot Springs, and moreover, he was accompanied by a Hyuga clan ninja!
A Hyuga clan ninja?
After a moment of thought, Jiraiya realized that the Hyuga ninja mentioned in this information was none other than the rogue, Neji.
Why would these two appear in the Land of Hot Springs?
Jiraiya frowned, his eyes flickering with thought. Any information concerning the First Mizukage, Yuto, required extremely careful handling from Konoha's perspective.
After all, compared to the currently quiet and subdued Uchiha Madara, Yuto of Kirigakure was constantly provoking Konoha.
In Jiraiya's view, at least for the time being, Yuto posed a much greater threat than Uchiha Madara.
Placing the information on the desk, Jiraiya scratched his messy white hair.
Whether it was because of Hyuga Neji or because the Land of Hot Springs was an ally of Konoha, someone needed to be sent to investigate the situation.
"This Yugakage... has really presented me with a difficult problem."
Jiraiya let out a soft sigh, an unpleasant expression crossing his face.
Although it seemed the Yugakage had simply sent Konoha a piece of information, if this matter escalated between the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Springs, it would no longer be just about the information.
The Land of Fire, which possesses Senju Hashirama. The Land of Water, which possesses the First Mizukage, Yuto.
This was a multiple-choice question, one posed by the Yugakage to Konoha.
As an ally of the Land of Fire, if Konoha did nothing now, the alliance between them was bound to develop cracks.
It was even possible that the Land of Hot Springs might side with the Land of Water!
Although this possibility seemed low to Jiraiya, given Konoha's current situation, he dared not take any risks.
Recently, Kirigakure had been quite active.
According to intelligence gathered by the ANBU, Takigakure had already formed an alliance with Kirigakure. Then there was Amegakure, the village of the former "Semi-God." Although there was no definite information yet, it seemed they were also trending towards an alliance with Kirigakure.
What made Jiraiya particularly tense was Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages!
Chiyo-baasa, the acting Kazekage, had disappeared for a period of time, and during that time, no one knew where she had gone.
But Jiraiya had a bad premonition.
During her disappearance, Chiyo-baasa had likely visited Kirigakure.
Although this was merely a guess by Konoha's higher-ups, it subtly revealed that the current situation in the shinobi world was not optimistic.
Therefore, at this time, Konoha could not afford to lose the Land of Hot Springs as an ally, and now, Konoha needed to show the Land of Hot Springs its stance.
Thinking of this, Jiraiya couldn't help but furrow his brows.
The First Mizukage, Yuto, was far too powerful. Besides Senju Hashirama, no one had the confidence to face Yuto in a fight.
In this situation, sending anyone to the Land of Hot Springs would be like sending them to their deaths.
Of course, sending someone to the Land of Hot Springs wasn't meant to fight the First Mizukage. The primary objective was naturally to investigate the situation.
But if they did encounter him, given Yuto's attitude toward Konoha, the likelihood of him attacking was extremely high.
Just as Jiraiya was buried in deep thought, trying to figure out how to solve the current problem, a strange idea suddenly appeared in his mind.
Wait!
Although Jiraiya currently didn't understand Yuto's sudden appearance in the Land of Hot Springs, he could still analyze from the information sent by the Yugakage that Yuto didn't have much interest in the Land of Hot Springs, or rather, Yugakure.
Otherwise, this information would likely never have been sent.
The fact that the Land of Hot Springs was an ally of Konoha was known throughout the shinobi world, so the First Mizukage, Yuto, naturally couldn't be unaware of it.
Jiraiya lowered his head again, looking at the information on the desk, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
Although this information was sent by the Yugakage, in a sense, it might have been deliberately sent by the First Mizukage, Yuto, through Yugakure.
This was Yuto's probe of Konoha!
"Damn it! The way that old monster operates is such a headache."
"Come to think of it, when Senju Hashirama-sama was seriously injured, Yuto didn't appear even under those circumstances. Perhaps it's because someone suddenly appeared and stopped the First Mizukage, Yuto!"
Jiraiya muttered to himself, a wry smile on his face.
How could he only be thinking of this now!
Back then, Tsunade had taken the heavily injured Senju Hashirama to the Forest of Wet Bones, and there was no corpse of the First Mizukage, Yuto, at the scene.
So, at that time, Jiraiya was very worried that the First Mizukage, Yuto, might launch another attack on Konoha while Senju Hashirama-sama was injured.
However, after many days, the First Mizukage, Yuto, never appeared.
Jiraiya had originally thought that Yuto had been delayed by matters in Kirigakure.
And coincidentally, that was precisely the period when Chiyo-baasa of Sunagakure had disappeared.
This was also the fundamental reason why Konoha's higher-ups analyzed that during her disappearance, Chiyo-baasa had likely appeared in Kirigakure.
But now, in Jiraiya's view, that was completely just their own assumption!
Even if the acting Kazekage, Chiyo-baasa, had really gone to Kirigakure, this wouldn't require the attention of the First Mizukage, Yuto.
The current Mizukage, Mei Terumi, was no mere figurehead!
"Come to think of it, under those circumstances, the only person in the entire shinobi world who could possibly stop Yuto from going to Konoha now is that one person—Uchiha Madara!"
A hint of shame appeared on Jiraiya's face; he couldn't believe it had taken him so long to realize this.
And what currently made Jiraiya even more alarmed was why Uchiha Madara had done this.
There was one thing Jiraiya could be certain of: Uchiha Madara would never be so kind!
Uchiha Madara definitely had his own objectives in this. As for what Uchiha Madara truly wanted to do, Jiraiya had no way of knowing and no time to consider it.
What Jiraiya had to deal with now was the probe from the First Mizukage, Yuto!
Tap! Tap!
A thoughtful look flashed through Jiraiya's eyes as he raised his hand and lightly knocked twice on the desktop.
A slight breeze sounded, and in the next instant, an ANBU ninja knelt in the Hokage's office.
"Please, help me summon Team 7."
Jiraiya looked at the ANBU ninja and spoke softly.
"Yes, Jiraiya-sama."
The ANBU ninja nodded, stood up, and instantly disappeared from the room.
Watching the ANBU ninja leave, Jiraiya let out a soft sigh.
Once he had sorted out his thoughts, what the First Mizukage, Yuto, wanted to probe about Konoha became somewhat clear to Jiraiya.
The information about Senju Hashirama-sama going to the Forest of Wet Bones was known only to Jiraiya and Tsunade.
What Yuto wanted to probe was nothing more than the current state of Senju Hashirama.
If Senju Hashirama's current condition was poor, then Yuto's appearance in the Land of Hot Springs would undoubtedly make Konoha nervous, and they wouldn't send anyone to the Land of Hot Springs.
And if they did send someone, it would, from another perspective, prove that Konoha had at least some confidence.
Of course, in Jiraiya's view, Yuto's purpose didn't end there.
If it were merely a simple probe, Yuto would have had no need to bring Hyuga Neji along.
"It seems that regardless of the reason, someone needs to go to the Land of Hot Springs."
Jiraiya sighed, gently rubbing his temples, which had begun to throb.
"Really, compared to racking my brain over something like this, it would be much more satisfying to just get into a fight."
Jiraiya muttered to himself, unable to help but complain.
Not long after.
As the doors to the Hokage's office opened.
Might Guy entered, followed by Rock Lee, Tenten, and a Hyuga clan branch ninja replacing Neji, the four of them walking in slowly.
Might Guy flashed a brilliant white-toothed grin, his face full of fiery passion, as he looked at Jiraiya and said:
"Jiraiya-sama, you summoned us specially. Is there a special mission?"
Jiraiya glanced at the passionate Might Guy, then his eyes swept over the less enthusiastic Lee, Tenten, and the others behind him, a determined look flashing in his eyes.
Lee, Tenten, Shikamaru, Chouji, Hinata, Naruto, Sakura, and the future Ino-Shika-Cho team... in Jiraiya's eyes, these young genin were the hope of Konoha.
It was time to settle things. He couldn't let them continue to mope around.
"There is indeed a special mission. You need to make a trip to the Land of Hot Springs, but this mission carries great danger, so you need to consider it carefully before you go."
Jiraiya fell silent for a moment, then a smile appeared on his face as he spoke to Might Guy and the others.
The Land of Hot Springs?
Might Guy was slightly taken aback. Just as he was about to ask about the mission's details, he saw a scroll tossed over by Jiraiya.
"A Hyuga clan ninja? Neji!"
Might Guy caught the scroll with his hand, and when he clearly read the few lines on it, he couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation.
And as the name "Neji" was spoken, Lee, who had been hanging his head in silence, along with Tenten and the Hyuga clan genin, all simultaneously looked up at Might Guy.
"Guy-sensei! Is this news about Neji?"
Lee flashed forward and appeared beside Might Guy, wanting to look up at the scroll.
But in the next instant, Might Guy extended a large hand and pressed Lee's head back down.
With one hand still on Lee, Might Guy's eyes continuously scanned the information in his hand, and a grave expression gradually appeared on his face.
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Hey everyone,
I need to tell you what's actually happening.
I just got hit with mass cancellations. On top of being buried in academics until the 9th. I'm in deep financial trouble right now—like, genuinely don't-know-how-I-cover-next-month trouble.
I want to do more for you. I have another Naruto fic ready to drop the moment this academic hell ends. But I can't keep creating if I can't survive.
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