I am the most popular character in Naruto!

If Jiraiya hadn't intervened and saved Chiaki at the last minute, Chiaki would probably be unconscious right now, not just sobbing.

Yes, Hiruzen Sarutobi has extremely strong control; even when using ninjutsu, he can control it to the very last bit of its limit.

"What is my path in the film industry? Is it lewdness?"

Jiraiya stretched his neck, relieving the fatigue from writing hard last night and gathering material in the women's bathhouse. "In my opinion, being a Kage is actually about understanding yourself completely, sticking to your path and choices, having unwavering faith in yourself, and having absolute confidence in yourself no matter what the external circumstances are."

"Look at our Sannin, and the old man, and Hanzo and Chiyo over there, aren't they all like that?"

Chiaki, who was sobbing, suddenly froze after hearing Jiraiya's words. She looked up at Jiraiya blankly and asked, "Jiraiya-sensei, what happens if someone fundamentally questions their own path?"

"Well..."

Jiraiya stroked his chin and said hesitantly, "That's hard to say."

"If you haven't reached the Kage level, it won't really have much of an impact. You just need to confirm another path."

"However, such people usually don't grow much, because if a person has a firm goal and path from the beginning, their ceiling after becoming a Kage will be higher."

"Of course, unless this person has some other extraordinary encounter, or the new path suits him better than the old one, then his achievements after becoming a Kage should not be underestimated."

Hmm...like Naruto and Sasuke.

Chiaki nodded knowingly. Naruto, who was determined to follow his own path, and Sasuke, who later became powerful, fit the two types of people that Jiraiya had described.

"If you've already reached the Kage level, then that's going to be difficult..."

Jiraiya remarked with emotion, "The Kage level is itself an extension and further affirmation of one's own path, allowing one to integrate into the world and thus elevate one's own limits..."

"If a Kage-level expert has doubts about their own path and beliefs, it means they have doubts about their own strength..."

"If this question isn't resolved, it could very well cause this Kage-level character to lose his will, or even turn into an extremist..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped the table thoughtfully. "It's too early for Chiaki to say that. We can wait until she's ready to break through to Kage level!"

"It's getting late. Do you think it will take Xiao Qianqiu a long time to reach that level of strength?"

Jiraiya crossed his arms and looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi with disdain. "Old man, if you train this kid for a while longer, you'll find that she'll quickly exhaust all the things you can teach him."

"What a joke! If Chiaki could drain all my skills, I might as well train her to be Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi slammed his hand on the table with an air of authority. As a ninja prodigy and a professor of ninjutsu, he was proficient in all of Konoha's ninjutsu and could use almost all the common ninjutsu in the entire ninja world, including taijutsu, genjutsu, ninjutsu, the five elemental ninjutsu, and even Yin-Yang ninjutsu!

If someone could truly inherit his abilities completely, that would be a true genius.

However, Hiruzen Sarutobi was too distracted, leading Konoha out of the predicament of having lost the First and Second Hokage, having a strong national power but a weak military, and was preoccupied with securing his position as the number one ninja nation. He hadn't seriously trained for a long time.

Otherwise, with his abilities, it wouldn't be a problem for him to reach an even higher level.

"Yes, yes, you're awesome!"

Jiraiya clapped his hands in praise, saying that the old man was indeed formidable, a fact universally acknowledged and beyond dispute.

However, Jiraiya secretly thought to himself that once he mastered Sage Mode, he would be able to overpower this old man. He planned to give him a good beating to avenge the grudge he had held for so many years.

"Speaking of which, surely no ninja would have any doubts about their own path, right?"

Tsunade ignored the matter between the father and son and continued along Chiaki's line of thought, saying, "How could you possibly be easily swayed by a path you've adhered to for at least twenty years?"

"No...it will happen."

Chiaki shook his head gravely and climbed out of Future's arms. "I think I know where things went wrong..."

"Hopefully it's not too late..."

She stumbled and ran out. Others might say it's bad, but this person's path will definitely be shaken.

Because his path is different from the understanding of the entire ninja world and all ninjas.

It was precisely because of his accident that the entire Hidden Leaf Village was awakened, and Hiruzen Sarutobi, after much painful reflection, shifted his focus.

It was precisely because of this person's incident that a series of stories unfolded in the future, establishing Naruto's core values.

"Sakumo Hatake..."

"Please, please don't die..."

"We can talk about core values ​​and things like that gradually, and we can work on changing them..."

"But when a person dies, they have nothing left!"

Chiaki gritted her teeth, dragged her ten-year-old body, and ran towards the Hatake residence with her short legs.

If Sakumo Hatake dies, then her path, the path of "protecting those who deserve protection," might also collapse...

Chapter 203 Foresight is Priceless

"what's the situation?"

Seeing Chiaki suddenly rush out, Tsunade was completely baffled.

"I'll chase him!"

Mirai immediately stood up. She understood what Chiaki was thinking and knew exactly what she was going to do.

Chiaki had told her about Sakumo Hatake, and she understood and respected him greatly, and also regretted his death.

Now that we have this opportunity to save him, we absolutely cannot let it go!

"excuse me!"

Mirai hurriedly bowed to the people in the Hokage's office, ran towards Chiaki, picked her up as she ran with her short legs, and quickly carried her towards the Hatake residence.

"?"

Jiraiya was equally clueless. He had been holed up in his room writing lately, and the first volume of Icha Icha Paradise was almost finished. He had already contacted a bookstore to prepare for publication, but he had no time to worry about anything else.

"I do not know either……"

Tsunade, on the other hand, was focused on training Shizune. She discovered that Kato Dan's little niece did indeed have some talent in medical ninjutsu and greatly admired her.

Most importantly, this little girl can do all kinds of housework and is especially good at taking care of people.

Cooking, washing clothes, serving tea and water—Tsunade was practically pampered to the point of being useless during this time, truly experiencing what it's like to be a princess.

From both a personal and rational perspective, Tsunade felt that it would be good to train Shizune a bit and make her a little follower.

Although Jingyin isn't as quick to grasp concepts as Qianqiu, and can skip ahead to a miraculous recovery, she is diligent, hardworking, and very obedient, making her a truly good follower.

Tsunade doesn't mind spending more time training her. She doesn't expect her to be extremely strong or achieve great results in medical ninjutsu. As long as she can handle any situation, that's enough.

The true disciple who closed his doors to the master? The one who inherited the mantle?

Is there even a need to consider this?

Wouldn't it be wonderful to live a thousand years?

"They went to the Hatake residence. What happened? Did something happen to Hatake Yin-Yang?"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, realizing that he hadn't done a good job with his intelligence work recently and was no longer able to fully grasp the current situation in Konoha.

"Hatake Sakumo?"

Tsunade paused for a moment, then frowned as she recalled, "I remember hearing some rumors when Shizune went out to buy groceries... but I didn't pay much attention to them."

"Under normal circumstances, Sakumo Hatake should be able to handle it, right?"

Jiraiya picked up where he left off, turning his gaze to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and said to Tsunade, "It seems this matter might be a bit tricky for that guy, Yin-Yang Hatake."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was frowning and deep in thought. Tsunade followed Jiraiya's gaze to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and considering Chiaki's previous behavior, she couldn't help but feel nervous.

"Hey, could it be that Sakumo Hatake's Shadow Path has run into trouble?"

"Probably."

Jiraiya, equally serious, asked Hiruzen Sarutobi, "Old man, do you know what's going on?"

"I roughly understand what's going on..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's brow, which had been furrowed in thought, relaxed, and he sighed softly, saying, "Besides Sakumo Hatake himself, I'm afraid no one can help him with this matter."

"What exactly is a ninja, and what are their ideologies?"

"If what he wants to do goes against the original intention of a ninja, then where will his future lead him..."

Tsunade grew increasingly panicked, exclaiming incredulously, "Hey, hey, it can't be that bad, can it? That's Sakumo Hatake! His path to Kage could be in trouble?"

"Even for me, the Path of Shadows could run into problems."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head with a wry smile, "If someone could reach Kage level using only one ninjutsu and then beat me to a pulp, I'm afraid my mental state would collapse."

Indeed, it's hard for most people to accept that having a full set of powerful ninjutsu is not as good as someone else having a single specialty.

"Well... I'm fine, basically nothing can shake my path to becoming a shadow."

Jiraiya shook his head with a sigh, and Tsunade glared at him with displeasure. "We're talking about Sakumo Hatake right now. If he really encounters a problem with the Path of Shadows being shaken, it's very likely that our Konoha will lose White Fang, a powerful source of damage."

"I know... but what can I do?"

"It's going to rain, and my mother wants to get married, so let it be."

Jiraiya was unaware at this time that, in the original story, his indifference would become a point of regret for him throughout his life.

In fact, no one would have guessed that someone as powerful as Konoha's White Fang would lose his life because of the instability of the Path of the Shadow.

It's truly incomprehensible that he would choose to end his own life.

"Xiao Qianqiu has already gone. Although she may not be of much help, we can only wait and see what happens next."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed. The path of the Shadow is a path that each person insists on. No matter how much others talk about it, if you don't believe it or don't stick to it, then you don't believe it. The only thing that can shake your own beliefs is yourself.

"Too."

Jiraiya smacked his lips. His relationship with Sakumo Hatake wasn't as good as Chiaki's, and he wasn't a beautiful girl like Chiaki. Going to her door directly would only annoy her, so he might as well stay home and write his book.

Writing books can make you stronger; Jiraiya's methods are still ruthless.

"No, I'm still not at ease."

Tsunade was more sensitive than Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya, but in the end, she was defeated by reality.

Swoosh

"Lady Tsunade, a lady named Shizune has sent you a distress call. An ordinary person in Konoha has fallen ill, and she is trying her best to treat her..."

A masked ANBU member suddenly appeared next to Tsunade, leaving her completely bewildered.