The moment Jiraiya heard someone praise him, he straightened his back and burst into proud laughter.
"Hahaha! Akira, you've got good taste, kid! Want me to give you a collector's set too? I've got plenty of copies!"
Before he could finish, a fist packed with terrifying strength slammed straight into his face.
"Shut up! Corrupting one Kakashi wasn't enough for you, and now you're trying to drag Akira into it too? Give me one good reason I shouldn't beat you into the floor today, you old creep!"
Jiraiya slid down the wall like a discarded sack, the corner of his mouth twitching, half his face swelling up.
"Tsu… Tsunade, your strength is getting more unreasonable every time… You don't even know whether Akira likes reading that stuff. What I write is art…"
Before he could finish, a chill ran down his spine. He looked up and saw Tsunade clenching her fist, her knuckles cracking like a countdown to death.
Jiraiya instantly shut his mouth and curled up in the corner, trembling. He did not dare say another word.
Akira smiled and stepped in to smooth things over. "All right, all right. Hokage-hime, calm down. We have serious business to handle. Shouldn't we head to Training Ground Three now? Weren't you going to personally evaluate those two?"
Tsunade snorted coldly and lowered her fist, though her gaze still cut across Jiraiya like a blade.
"If we didn't have work to do right now, I'd hammer you into the ground. If you ever teach Akira any bad habits, I'll skin you alive."
She did not care if other people picked up bad habits, but if Akira was led astray, Tsunade would absolutely go to war with Jiraiya.
Akira was her one untouchable line now. Anyone who crossed it would end badly.
Jiraiya rubbed his face and gave a bitter smile, though he did not suspect anything strange. He knew how much hope Tsunade had placed in Akira.
And honestly, he had high expectations for that unfathomable boy too.
But it was just a novel. How could reading a novel count as being corrupted? That was cultural enrichment.
Just then, the door to the Hokage's office opened again.
Shikamaru, with his pineapple-style ponytail, and Temari, carrying her massive fan on her back, walked in side by side.
Seeing the office so lively, especially the blond boy inside, both of them froze for a moment.
"Naruto?"
Shikamaru's usually sleepy eyes brightened slightly as he recognized him first.
Naruto grinned and walked over, slapping Shikamaru on the shoulder. "Shikamaru! Didn't expect you to still look exactly the same. You haven't changed at all!"
Shikamaru looked him up and down, then smiled. "You've gotten a lot taller. You actually look like an adult now."
Temari, standing nearby, looked at Naruto in surprise.
"So this is that short kid who used to shout all the time? I didn't expect him to grow this much in three years. Boys really do change fast."
After sizing up Naruto, Temari's gaze naturally shifted to Akira, who stood calmly beside Jiraiya.
Temari was now an elite jōnin of Sunagakure.
She walked briskly to Tsunade's desk and handed over a thick file.
"This is the full procedure and schedule for the joint Chūnin Exams. Fifth Hokage, please review it."
Tsunade took the file and quickly flipped through it, her expression turning serious.
Temari took the chance to turn toward Akira, her eyes softening slightly. "Akira. We meet again."
Over the past three years, Akira had traveled frequently between nations on missions. He had cooperated with the Suna more than once, and Temari had often acted as their contact, so the two had become quite familiar.
They had even worked together on two difficult A-rank missions, and their teamwork had been excellent.
Akira looked at Temari and smiled. "No need to be so formal. You're the proctor for the Chūnin Exams now. You're the busy one."
Temari smiled faintly.
She admired that part of Akira. He was clearly unfathomably strong, yet he never put on airs. He treated people with an easy warmth that made others feel comfortable.
That lack of arrogance was rare in the ninja world.
Tsunade finished reading the file, closed the folder, and nodded approvingly. "Good. The plan is solid and very detailed."
Temari replied with a smile, "This Chūnin Exam being held in Konoha is fairly large in scale. I wonder if he'll be participating?"
As she spoke, her gaze shifted toward Naruto with a hint of teasing.
Only then did Tsunade suddenly remember that although Naruto's strength had improved dramatically, his file still listed him as a perennial genin.
She rubbed her temple helplessly. "If the conditions allow it, let him participate."
In truth, Naruto's current strength had long since reached jōnin level, but the formal process still needed to be followed.
After all, his peers from the same generation had already become chūnin, and some had even reached jōnin.
Only he and the missing Sasuke were still officially listed as genin.
Naruto was chatting excitedly with Shikamaru when he heard Tsunade mention him. He scratched his head.
"The Chūnin Exams? Of course I'll take part! I'll definitely pass!"
At that moment, Naruto was still completely in the dark. He had no idea that, aside from him and Sasuke, all of the old Konoha Twelve had already become chūnin.
He still naively thought everyone was standing on the same starting line.
Sakura and Naruto caught up for a while in the office before leaving with Shikamaru and Temari.
The office instantly quieted down.
Jiraiya walked to the window and looked out toward the Hokage Rock in the distance. His voice lowered, becoming heavy and serious.
"The Akatsuki have started moving through the ninja world again. They're hunting down jinchūriki at a frightening pace. But so far, we still haven't figured out their true goal."
Jiraiya was deeply wary of the mysterious Akatsuki.
It was a terrifying organization made up of multiple S-rank rogue shinobi.
Worse still, they operated from the shadows while the rest of the ninja world stood in the open. Gathering tailed beasts, those strategic-level weapons, could only mean they were planning something enormous.
For Naruto, as a jinchūriki, and for Konoha, which possessed the Nine-Tails, the Akatsuki were like a blade hanging over their heads.
Tsunade also frowned and walked to the window, standing shoulder to shoulder with Jiraiya. She folded her arms, her gaze dark and thoughtful.
"At their core, they're a pack of outlaws. They built themselves by taking dirty jobs from different countries. What kind of goal could people like that possibly have? Don't tell me they're doing this to maintain world peace."
Collecting tailed beasts was something the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, had once done as well. Apart from the One-Tail, he had captured nearly all of them.
But back then, the tailed beasts were still roaming free, and Hashirama possessed Wood Style, which could suppress them. Capturing them had been easy for him.
Now, things were different.
Trying to rip jinchūriki away from the major shinobi villages was almost impossible.