Uchiha Patriarch !

When Jiraiya received the news of the Third Hokage's death, he didn't feel much sadness or grief. He was silent for less than a minute before he continued sitting on the tatami mat in the inn, leaning over the desk to resume writing. 

Everyone dies eventually. The old man was already over sixty, which was quite a long life compared to the average lifespan of the previous Hokages. Passing away at this time wasn't necessarily a bad thing; it was time for a new Hokage to bring something different to the village of Konoha. 

After thinking it over for a while, he decided to return to the village. 

It wasn't for the position of Hokage, as he had no aspirations for that. He returned to investigate some things and meet certain people. 

August, also known as Hazuki or the Month of Autumn Winds, marked the transition from summer to autumn according to the official calendar of the Land of Fire. However, unfortunately, Konoha's climate remained scorching. As Jiraiya returned to the village, he sighed at the harsh sunlight, bought a bouquet of white chrysanthemums from the Yamanaka flower shop, and wandered around the cemetery for a while before finding the small tombstone of the Third Hokage. 

Jiraiya knew this was just a symbolic grave. 

A ninja's body is highly valuable; otherwise, there wouldn't be specialized corpse disposal units. As the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi's body was undoubtedly of great value and couldn't be openly buried in Konoha's cemetery. The bodies of the previous Hokages were all secretly interred, with only a handful of the village's top officials knowing the actual burial sites. 

Jiraiya, as a wanderer away from the village, didn't have the qualifications to know such secrets. Of course, if he were willing to return and succeed as the Fifth Hokage, all the village's secrets would be open to him. But he had declined that option. 

There were many symbolic graves like this in the cemetery. 

They were mainly for comforting the living, providing a place for them to find solace while also confusing spies and those with ill intentions. 

After offering the white chrysanthemums at the tombstone, Jiraiya made no further moves. He didn't have anything to say to his deceased teacher. He was merely paying respects, fulfilling his duty as a disciple. It didn't even matter to him if this wasn't Hiruzen Sarutobi's real grave. 

Just as he was considering where to go next, visitors arrived. 

They weren't strangers—Hiashi Hyuga and Shikaku Nara. Although different in age and rank, they had dealt with Jiraiya many times during the Third Shinobi World War. 

"Lord Jiraiya, it's been a long time. You're still as impressive as ever!" 

Shikaku Nara's tone was full of respect. 

"Shikaku, you look a bit worn out, even growing a beard. Hiashi, too. You're... not the youngsters you used to be," Jiraiya sighed, recalling memories of fighting alongside the previous generation leaders of the Hyuga and Nara clans during the Second Shinobi World War. Now, the comrades of the past were no longer standing in front of him. 

"My son is already five years old," Shikaku said helplessly. 

Hiashi Hyuga didn't say anything; his daughter was also five. But before Jiraiya, they were still considered juniors. 

"Haha! Is that so? Speaking of which... Naruto should also be around five, right?" Jiraiya mused, having only seen Naruto when he was an infant. 

Five years ago, while traveling, Jiraiya received news of Minato's sacrifice and rushed back to the village, only to find he was too late to change anything. Minato and Kushina had both passed away, and the Third Hokage had reclaimed his position, leaving only infant Naruto in the nursery at Konoha Hospital. 

Seeing his old teacher don the Hokage hat once more, Jiraiya felt stifled. However, there was nothing he could do. The Third Hokage had been his mentor, and during the Nine-Tails attack, the Third hadn't just stood idly by; it was Jiraiya who hadn't arrived in time. 

The stifling feeling made it impossible for him to stay in the village. He declined the Third Hokage's request to stay and left again, continuing his endless journey after confirming that infant Naruto was well taken care of. 

Now, with the death of Hiruzen, Jiraiya had revised his travels and returned to Konoha. 

"How is Naruto? Has he started attending the Ninja Academy?" Jiraiya asked casually, but the simple question did not receive an immediate answer. Hiashi Hyuga maintained a distant demeanor, while Shikaku Nara couldn't avoid answering—after all, the acting Fifth Hokage was Danzo, and pretending to know nothing about the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki would be too obvious. 

After a few seconds of silence, Jiraiya frowned and looked at Shikaku Nara's troubled face. "Shikaku, has something happened to Naruto?" 

"It's not exactly like that. Naruto... isn't in the village right now," Shikaku answered hesitantly. 

"Not in the village?" 

Jiraiya repeated the bewildering answer. What did it mean that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki wasn't in the village? He suddenly recalled that the village had recently gone to war with the Mist. Could it be that they sent five-year-old Naruto to the battlefield? 

"Shikaku, tell me, where is Naruto?" 

"If nothing went wrong, he should be with the Uchiha clan leader in the Land of Water," Shikaku replied. 

"The Land of Water?" 

Jiraiya's eyebrows shot up, anger flashing in his eyes. 

"Shikaku? Don't tell me the situation in the village has deteriorated so much that you had to send a five-year-old Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to the battlefield. Explain, what's going on?" 

Cold sweat dripped from Shikaku's forehead as he inwardly cursed. What was this situation? They were supposed to seek Jiraiya's advice, not be questioned by him, especially about such a sensitive matter. 

If Jiraiya weren't the Third Hokage's disciple, Shikaku could have candidly explained Naruto's predicament. But since Jiraiya was the Third's disciple, he couldn't tell how close their relationship was, even if he suspected something. 

It was the classic dilemma of "I can criticize him, but others can't." 

The last thing Shikaku wanted was for Jiraiya to think they were shifting the blame onto the late Third Hokage. 

"The situation is complicated. In fact, it's safer for Naruto to be with the Uchiha clan leader," Shikaku said, trying to avoid the "danger zones" of the conversation. 

Jiraiya's frown deepened. 

"Jiraiya, let me explain," Hiashi Hyuga stepped in to help Shikaku. Shikaku breathed a sigh of relief and gave Hiashi a grateful look. 

"Hiashi, what exactly is going on?" Jiraiya asked in a more familiar tone, realizing that Naruto's situation was more complicated than he had initially thought. 

"It's... quite a complicated story," Hiashi began, pausing to organize his thoughts. "Lord Jiraiya, are you aware that the Third Hokage concealed Naruto's identity as the Fourth Hokage's child?" 

"I know." 

Jiraiya nodded. "The old man told me. To protect Naruto, he planned to change Naruto's surname to keep people from discovering his identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. By the way, what is Naruto's surname now?" 

Upon hearing the question, Hiashi and Shikaku exchanged surprised glances. 

"It's Uzumaki, Uzumaki Naruto," Hiashi answered. 

"Uzumaki?" 

Jiraiya was stunned. 

Changing from Namikaze to Uzumaki? What kind of strategy was that? Were they trying to make it obvious that Naruto was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki? The two previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki of Konoha were both from the Uzumaki clan. Especially after the destruction of the Land of Whirlpools, the surname Uzumaki had become even rarer than Namikaze. 

"This name was...?" 

"It was chosen by the Third Hokage five years ago, not long after you left the village," Hiashi explained. "Unfortunately, the secrecy within the Anbu didn't hold. At some point, a rumor spread in the village that Naruto was the 'demon fox,' and now almost everyone believes he is the reincarnation of the fox that attacked the village five years ago." 

Jiraiya closed his eyes. 

He wasn't a fool. 

He could read the implications behind Hiashi's words: Naruto's life hadn't been as well cared for as he had imagined. In fact, it was the opposite. The life of a child accused of being the 'demon fox' would be anything but pleasant... 

He didn't doubt the truth in Hiashi's words. 

There was no reason for Hiashi to lie to him, even if some statements were subjective. The fact that Naruto was regarded as the demon fox seemed undeniable. In his spare time, Jiraiya had often thought of Naruto, imagining him happily growing up under the village's careful protection. He had wondered if Naruto would grow up to resemble Minato more or Kushina. 

But reality had cruelly shattered all his expectations. 

"What does all this have to do with Naruto being sent to the Land of Water?" Jiraiya asked, setting aside further questions about Naruto's life. He planned to look into it himself