Naruto: Pay-to-Win Ninja System

Two days earlier, before the Konoha army set off.

The Third Hokage Sarutobi had a private conversation with Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya, do you know why I've decided to start this war?"

"To gather material for my novels from Iwagakure?"

"Pah! Even now you won't be serious!"

Sarutobi spat out a curse.

"Is it for Elder Koharu Utatane... or...?"

"That's part of the reason... Of course, the main reason is for the future of the village!"

"I'm getting older, and my strength has greatly diminished from my prime. Although Konoha still holds the position as the strongest among the Five Great Hidden Villages these years, its prestige has long since faded."

"The previous Uchiha defection was just a spark that ignited things, drawing Iwa's covetous eyes. The fact that they even used a Tailed Beast shows many things!"

"Therefore, while I'm still able to fight, I intend to seize this opportunity to launch a preemptive strike, carving out another ten or twenty years of peace for Konoha!"

Sarutobi sighed, yet his eyes seemed ablaze with the Will of Fire (the spirit embodying Konoha's heart and sacrifice).

"Sarutobi-sensei..."

Jiraiya's heart trembled as he looked at this teacher who once peeked into women's bathhouses with him. Now his face was lined with wrinkles, bearing the weight of age.

A lump rose in his throat.

"Jiraiya, I haven't sought the Daimyo's court permission for starting this war."

"No matter the outcome."

"Even if I return alive, I will certainly face questioning from the Daimyo's court."

"At that time, I'll take full responsibility, accept whatever punishment comes, and resign in disgrace."

"Jiraiya, after that, Konoha will be in your hands!"

Jiraiya was taken aback again, quickly objecting:

"B-But I'm not cut out to be Hokage!"

"You know my character, sensei."

"And besides, if we're choosing someone, shouldn't Tsunade—who's more capable than my lazy self—be better suited?"

He had lost the ones he loved and been betrayed by those he trusted. And those he had taught either defected or died.

This was Jiraiya's tragic life indeed.

Although earning the formidable reputation as one of the Sannin, deep down, Jiraiya never truly accepted himself, believing he'd failed.

To him, the Hokage was an unreachable standard; naturally, he lacked confidence to succeed as Hokage.

Certainly not because being Hokage would allow open indulgence in power plays with women. But for a refined gentleman, overt actions could never match the thrill of secret peeping!

"Jiraiya, must only the Hokage protect Konoha?!!"

"Uh..."

"Whether you become Hokage or Tsunade does -"

"In any case, Konoha's future is entrusted to you! Promise me you'll guard it well!"

Sarutobi earnestly implored.

Perhaps in his youth, he'd lusted after power, made many mistakes...

But now, at his age, what he couldn't let go of most was still the village.

Scratching his head of white hair, Jiraiya muttered grumpily:

"Fine, fine! I will."

"But sensei, don't talk like you're settling your final affairs!"

Leading the Vanguard Squad, just before infiltrating Iwagakure again.

Jiraiya couldn't help but glance toward the southeast one more time.

Clearly, his mission had been decided long ago.

Whether it was Plan A, Plan B—or even Plans C and D if needed—there were only two objectives.

First: Destroy Iwagakure as much as possible, eliminating its combat forces!

Second: Draw away as many Iwagakure ninjas as possible to give Jiraiya and his team the chance to hit Iwagakure's Vault hard!

In war, aside from gaining prestige, you also wanted to walk away with something tangible.

For this battle, Konoha had basically bet everything it had.

If they couldn't make a huge profit from Iwagakure's Vault, even winning might leave Konoha itself facing economic collapse.

That's exactly why Konoha formed such an elite vanguard unit,

and personally assigned Jiraiya, who possessed overwhelming strength, to lead it—hoping to completely empty Iwagakure's Vault in one fell swoop!

To make that happen, Sarutobi didn't hesitate to take personal action,

using himself as bait to lure Onoki and most of Iwagakure's ninja far away.

Even so, facing over 3,000 Iwagakure ninjas in pursuit, Sarutobi and his team would be in extreme danger! Their lives would be walking a razor's edge!

But as long as they emptied Iwagakure's Vault, their side could reap massive gains!

Risk and reward often went hand in hand!

...

Konoha's plan wasn't particularly brilliant.

But under specific circumstances, combined with Iwagakure being totally blindsided,

the plan turned out surprisingly effective.

The vast majority of Iwagakure's ninja had followed Onoki in pursuit.

Combined with the aftermath of the recent battle, Iwagakure was in chaos.

The wounded were everywhere, villagers cried out for help...

The few remaining Iwagakure ninjas simply weren't enough to handle everything.

They scrambled to search for trapped civilians, treat the injured, and clear rubble.

They didn't notice at all how a small squad of fully cloaked Konoha elites slipped into the village once again, speeding rapidly toward Iwagakure's Vault.

Indeed, along the way, a few sharp Iwagakure ninjas did detect their presence.

Unfortunately, under the overwhelming power of one Kage-level and twenty Jonin-level warriors,

those few who managed to sense them were practically wiped out instantly.

They didn't even have time to issue a warning.

Thus, Jiraiya's group nearly advanced unimpeded straight into the heart of Iwagakure.

Thanks to Nonou, Kabuto, and the other Konoha spies who had infiltrated Iwagakure over years,

they'd mapped out every corner of Iwagakure inside and out.

So, guided by that detailed map,

Jiraiya and the others quickly arrived at their target—the Vault.

This place, located deep within Iwagakure behind the Tsuchikage's headquarters, remained untouched by attacks and was well-preserved.

However, it was obvious

that nearly twenty Iwagakure ninjas guarded the Vault's attic. The weakest among them were Chunin, and five were even Jonin-level.

Plus, each of their positions had been carefully chosen.

Mutual coverage left no blind spots, completely eliminating any possibility of stealth infiltration.

This showed just how serious Iwagakure Village was about guarding their vault after being burned before.

...

"Hiss— Are all these Iwagakure ninjas just money-hungry?"

"Their whole village is already in chaos."

"And yet they guard their vault so tightly!"

"No way we can sneak in now. Looks like we'll have to use brute force!"

Jiraiya frowned softly as he muttered.

If possible, he really didn't want to attack head-on!

Otherwise, once exposed, their entire squad would be in danger...

"Jiraiya-sama, allow me to handle this."

Right then, a crisp female voice cut through the tension.

Kurenai stepped forward from the squad.

This beautiful Konoha genjutsu master—long black hair flowing, captivating crimson eyes alight—volunteered with quiet confidence.

Despite being a woman, she'd never shown fear in battle—true ninja spirit.

"Do you have confidence?"

"I can try!"

Kurenai replied with quiet confidence.

Among these twenty elite jonin, she was the only tokubetsu jonin—her overall strength arguably the weakest.

Yet as one of Konoha's rare genjutsu prodigies,

At just 22, she was already a master of her craft.

She was already showing signs of surpassing Sarutobi to become Konoha's top genjutsu master—Uchiha Clan excluded.

For such a covert operation,

Using genjutsu to silently subdue those Iwagakure ninjas guarding outside the vault seemed ideal.

"Alright, give it a try."

"If you fail, we'll launch a frontal assault!"

Jiraiya gave a quick nod.

Kurenai immediately calmed her mind and prepared to cast her illusion.

However, at this moment, both sides—the Konoha ninjas and all the Iwagakure guards—were unaware.

Inside that supposedly impenetrable Iwagakure vault,

A young boy had already been sitting on the rooftop window sill, sipping watermelon juice and watching the scene unfold below with great interest.

...

p.s. happy lantern festival, everyone!

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