Wok Shadow Ninja

Chapter 108: Encountering Jiraiya Again

The Animal Path, after inquiring in the Land of Neck, learned that a shinobi with silver hair, a black mask, and a forehead protector covering his left eye had been asking about Shukibi Ridge. He immediately understood it was Kakashi, the Jonin from the Hidden Leaf Village! He made a mental note of this. You better not fall into my hands!

"Huh?" Ino, currently in a small town in the Land of Waterfalls, noticed that she had somehow gained another point of blame. She was puzzled. Where did this blame come from? And who's being framed this time?

She didn't have time to dwell on it, as her attention was focused on what was happening ahead of her.

At that moment, Jiraiya, transformed into Sasuke's appearance, was crouching outside the women's bathhouse, peeking inside.

Ino hid around a corner. She wasn't Naruto, nor was she the "Child of Prophecy" that the Great Toad Sage had spoken of. Jiraiya had no obligation to teach her.

What should she do?

She quickly came up with a plan, rehearsed it twice in her mind, and after ensuring there were no flaws, she put on a weary expression, walked around the corner to the town entrance, and then strolled along the main road, looking around as if searching for someone.

"Eh? Sasuke-kun?!" When she reached the women's bathhouse, she feigned surprise, her expression a mix of delight and confusion, as if she couldn't understand why Sasuke would be in the Land of Waterfalls.

Jiraiya had been caught peeping more times than he could count. Being chased by a dozen or so women and girls was practically routine for him. He wore it as a badge of honor, and being caught in the act wasn't a big deal to him.

The problem was, he had recently discovered that Sasuke's handsome face was incredibly useful. It could even save him a third of the cost when drinking, not to mention its effectiveness for peeping. Now that he was using Sasuke's appearance, being seen by someone who knew Sasuke was beyond awkward.

Kakashi had mentioned to him a few days ago that Ino wanted to apprentice under Tsunade, and he had even brought it up with Tsunade himself. He just hadn't expected Ino to arrive so quickly.

Kid, you're so impulsive. Do your parents know about this?

As Ino stared at him with a strange expression, Jiraiya began to sweat.

"Ah? Uh... I, uh... Old man, no, I mean"

He scrambled for an excuse, but as Ino's confusion grew, he realized his transformation was about to be exposed. In a panic, he pointed behind her.

"Look, Kakashi's here!"

"Where? Where's Kakashi-sensei?" Ino, as he had anticipated, turned to look behind her. Seeing no one there, she turned back only to find "Sasuke" had vanished.

Ino scratched her head, standing still. "That's so weird... Was that really Sasuke?"

After muttering to herself for a moment, she headed straight for the town's... gambling den! After all, her official reason for being here was to apprentice under Tsunade. All the conditions were met; she just needed to pass the final interview.

Jiraiya, hiding in the shadows, overheard Ino asking about Tsunade's whereabouts.

He immediately realized the problem.

Tsunade was in a nearby town, not far from here. If Ino found her and casually mentioned, "I saw a suspicious-looking Sasuke in the last town," Tsunade would undoubtedly ask, "Why was he suspicious?" And when Ino replied, "That Sasuke was peeping into the women's bathhouse..."

Given Tsunade's understanding of Jiraiya, she would immediately figure out that someone had used a transformation jutsu to peep.

The relationship between the Senju and Uchiha clans was indeed terrible extremely so. But even Tsunade wouldn't tolerate someone tarnishing the Uchiha clan's reputation like this. If the Uchiha's name was dragged through the mud, how could the Senju, their old rivals, fare any better?

The more Jiraiya thought about it, the more terrified he became. He was afraid Tsunade would beat him to death if she found out the truth!

He absolutely, positively, could not let Ino find Tsunade! At least not today.

He racked his brain for a solution. Harming a junior from the village was against his principles, so that was out of the question.

His plan was to buy time, to let Tsunade get farther away. In a few days, he could simply deny everything. You're looking for a peeping Sasuke? What does that have to do with the Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku?

Hah, I'm such a genius!

An hour later, Ino, having learned Tsunade's whereabouts from the gambling den owner, left the town with a smile. Suddenly, she spotted Jiraiya sitting on a large rock by the roadside, reading a book.

"Toad Sage! Do you remember me?" she asked cheerfully.

Finally, you're here.

The weather was scorching, and under the blazing sun, the Toad Sage was practically roasting on the rock.

"Ah, yes, the little girl from the Yamanaka clan, right? Hmm..." He wasn't sure how seriously Ino took the "Sasuke" incident, so he dragged out his words. "What are you doing in the Land of Waterfalls, all by yourself? Where's your Jonin sensei?"

Ino put on a serious expression and explained her purpose: "I know who you are you're Jiraiya-sama, right? I'm here to find Lady Tsunade. I want to apprentice under her and learn medical ninjutsu!"

Jiraiya, determined to stop Ino from finding Tsunade, adopted a sage-like tone. "Apprentice under Tsunade? Hahaha little girl, you haven't even mastered the basics yet, and you want to apprentice under her? Tsunade won't teach you so easily. Listen to me, go back to the village, train your basics, and then come back to seek her guidance."

Ino put on a stubborn expression. "No! I must apprentice under Lady Tsunade. I want to..."

She hesitated, clearly wanting to say more but unsure if she should.

Jiraiya encouraged her in a comforting tone. "You're a shinobi now, not a child. Speak your mind. I'll definitely keep it a secret!"

He wore an expression that seemed to say, Tell me your troubles so I can have a good laugh.

Sighing, Ino said, "Well, the truth is, I do want to apprentice under Lady Tsunade for medical ninjutsu, but the reason I'm in such a hurry is because of the Chunin Exams. I'm too weak, and the pressure is overwhelming, so I wanted to get some guidance from Lady Tsunade..."

The Chunin Exams? That's it? Though the exams were a distant memory for Jiraiya, as a high-ranking member of the village, he knew the Leaf was preparing to host a large-scale Chunin Exam.

He was aware of the event, and as the top rookie of her year, Ino would undoubtedly participate. It was perfectly normal.

To Jiraiya, a bunch of Genin fighting each other was no different from a bunch of chickens pecking at each other.

This was an easy problem to solve. He could just give her a few pointers, stall her for a couple of days, and everything would be fine.

"Alright then, I've got nothing to do right now. How about I give you some pointers?"

"Really? Jiraiya-sama?!"

"Of course! What's your specialty? Water Release? Alright, let's head to the water. Show me your Water Release."

Fifteen minutes later...

Jiraiya stood in the water, drenched from head to toe, looking like he had just been fished out of a river.

He stared at Ino with a strange expression. You're worried about the Chunin Exams? You feel pressured?

Since when do Genin in the Leaf Village have this kind of skill? If all Leaf Genin were like this, the Leaf would have already unified the shinobi world!

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