I’m Not Naruto, But I Got a Better Bloodline

"Sigh… I wonder how things are going on their end now."

Inside Konohagakure, Hiruzen was pacing anxiously, waiting for Jiraiya and the others to return.

It had already been quite some time since their last communication.

And yet they still hadn't made it back to the village. His concern was turning into dread—had something gone wrong?

"Also… it looks like Kumogakure is starting to move. It won't be long before they figure out what happened."

Hiruzen felt a massive headache coming on. Kitagawa Gen and the others had made their move in full view of the public.

In other words, once the people from Kumogakure arrived at that small border town, it was only a matter of time before they gathered intel.

"If only no one had seen anything…"

Hiruzen let out a long sigh. Suddenly, he thought of his old comrade—Danzō.

If it were up to Danzō, he'd probably…

Use Earth Release to trap everyone in that little town—and then follow it up with a Fire Release jutsu?

"Ugh!"

Hiruzen drew in a sharp breath through his teeth. He immediately realized he couldn't allow himself to think like Danzō—that was far too extreme!

"I wonder how things are going with that guy and Hanzō of the Salamander…"

Cutting off the dangerous thoughts swirling in his mind, he knew better than to keep going down that path.

Just then, an ANBU rushed in, cradling a large toad in his arms.

"Hokage-sama! New intel!"

"Mm."

Hiruzen instantly straightened up.

The toad sprang out of the ANBU's arms and, with practiced ease, spat out a scroll.

Hiruzen unrolled it at once—and the moment his eyes swept over it, he suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe.

…

"Finally here."

In the Land of Fire, on a mountain not far from Konohagakure—

Jiraiya gazed down at the village below, a wave of emotion washing over him. It had only been a little over a month since he left, yet it felt like a lifetime.

So much had happened during this past month…

"Tch. So we're really back, huh?"

Tsunade also stared down at Konoha, her expression mixed. After all these years, returning again brought a strange feeling with it.

If not for certain unavoidable reasons, she honestly wouldn't have come back.

But in the end, this was still her home—and coming back was something she had to do.

She glanced sideways at Shizune, who was beaming with excitement—and instantly felt a little exasperated.

In the end, she didn't scold her. Instead, she turned her head to Jiraiya.

"Later, you go explain everything to the old man. This guy insisted on tagging along no matter what—that's on you, not me."

"Yes, yes, leave it to me."

Jiraiya managed a strained smile. His mood soured further as he glanced behind him—at the Fourth Raikage, silently trailing them, his eyes fixed on them the entire time.

Honestly, it was starting to give him a headache.

"All right, we're all back now. Let's head in."

Sensing how awkward everyone was feeling, Kitagawa Gen—the one who had started it all—finally stepped in to ease the tension.

"Besides, we're lucky this time. At least Kakashi-sensei doesn't have to go to the hospital."

"…"

Kakashi, who hadn't dared to speak this whole time, shot a sharp glare at Kitagawa Gen the moment he heard that.

What the hell kind of comment was that?

Did this kid seriously think that every mission had to end with someone being hospitalized?

"Hmm? Someone's coming."

Before he could say anything, he spotted several ANBU approaching from the front. A quick glance at the Fourth Raikage told him exactly what this was about.

"Looks like we've still got work to do."

"Indeed. It's a serious matter, after all."

Jiraiya and Tsunade both nodded in agreement. Then Jiraiya turned to Kitagawa Gen.

"Gen, go on ahead and get some rest. We'll contact you if anything comes up."

"Sounds good."

Kitagawa Gen immediately nodded. He'd been looking for an excuse to leave!

Right now, what he wanted most was to take stock of everything he'd gained—and do some research on his eyes.

"Well then, I'll take my leave!"

Before the words had even fully left his mouth, Kitagawa Gen had already vanished from sight.

"You're just letting that brat go? He was the one who started all this, wasn't he?"

Tsunade couldn't help but ask as she watched Gen disappear. Jiraiya simply sighed.

"Keeping him here would only make things worse… Forget it. Despite the unexpected twists, things turned out all right in the end. Wouldn't you say, Kakashi?"

"…"

Kakashi glanced at Jiraiya's expectant look, then gave a resigned nod. By now, the ANBU had caught up to them.

"Jiraiya-sama, Tsunade-sama, Kakashi-senpai."

"Mm. Good work."

Jiraiya nodded, then got straight to the point.

"Where are we headed? Where does the old man want us to meet the Fourth Raikage?"

Naturally, they couldn't just escort the Fourth Raikage directly into the village. Some things needed to be settled before he stepped inside.

"Uh…"

The ANBU seemed hesitant. After a long pause, he finally lowered his voice and said: "Hokage-sama wants you to decide. He'll join you shortly."

"…Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well… Hokage-sama is currently recovering at the hospital, so…"

"…"

The ANBU's words left Jiraiya momentarily frozen. Tsunade, equally stunned, stared blankly for several seconds before finally spitting on the ground.

"As expected… Konoha's medical system has just as many holes as its shinobi education."

"…"

...

"What the hell is going on?!"

Inside a hidden ANBU base outside of Konohagakure, Hiruzen glared furiously at a visibly awkward Jiraiya.

The Fourth Raikage couldn't be brought into Konoha freely, so finding a proper place to temporarily house him was the more reasonable course of action.

Jiraiya had chosen this location, and Hiruzen had rushed over as soon as he got the news. However, instead of going to meet the Raikage, there were things he needed to understand first.

His complexion was somewhat pale, and there was still the scent of medicinal salve lingering on his body—clearly, he had just come straight from the hospital.

The moment he received Jiraiya's message, he had completely lost his composure.

His chest felt tight, and he was even a little dizzy and lightheaded.

Fortunately, the ANBU had discovered him in time and immediately rushed him to the hospital. Otherwise, who knows what might've happened?

"Well, uh, this might be a bit of a misunderstanding," Jiraiya said, quickly shifting his gaze to Tsunade, eyes filled with pleading.

"Tch."

Tsunade didn't originally feel like getting involved, but after thinking it over, she decided to help Jiraiya out a little.

"Old man, I don't really know how it happened either. That Fourth Raikage guy insisted on coming no matter what we said. No matter how we tried to talk him down, he wouldn't listen. It was like if we let him go, we'd be sending him to his death."

"Letting him go would be the same as killing him?"

Hiruzen looked baffled. How could releasing someone possibly be equivalent to killing them?

"That's exactly how he acted," Tsunade replied bluntly.

She shot a glare at the relieved Jiraiya, then turned to look at Kakashi and added casually, "Though... it might have something to do with him secretly eavesdropping on our conversation."

"...What exactly did you say?"

Hiruzen stared at the unconcerned Tsunade, trying to keep his breathing steady.

He could already sense something was off. Was there some major issue here? Or had they said something truly outrageous?

"Don't ask me—I'm too embarrassed to say it aloud," Tsunade scoffed, then added with a cold snort, "Old man, I never expected Konoha to come to this."

"…"

That only made Hiruzen feel more unsettled. He glanced at Jiraiya, then finally fixed his gaze on Kakashi.

"Kakashi, explain."

"Uh? Me?" Kakashi's scalp tingled. But in the end, he gave a resigned nod.

"Actually, there really was a big misunderstanding."

"Get to the point!"

"Gen suggested that we release the Fourth Raikage in a crowded place, then use the Flying Thunder God mark we planted on him to—"

"That's enough. Say no more."

At that, Hiruzen no longer needed to hear another word to understand why the Fourth Raikage had insisted on coming to Konoha in person.

As someone who had dealt with Raikages many times during his tenure as Hokage, he understood the mindset of those battle maniacs all too well.

Death—they weren't afraid of that.

Otherwise, the Third Raikage wouldn't have fought barehanded against ten thousand Iwagakure shinobi for three days and three nights just to cover his comrades' retreat.

But being taken out in some underhanded, shady way? That was something they would never accept.

That's exactly why the Fourth Raikage had decided to come to Konoha himself—because he knew Konoha wouldn't dare lay a real hand on him.

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