Konoha: I have a clone in One Piece.

Chapter 210 Tailed Beast Fruits

Hiruzen Sarutobi considered himself a well-informed person.

After all, he is the head of the Sarutobi clan, one of the ancient ninja clans, and has lived since the Warring States period.

Who were the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and Madara Uchiha, the Asura of the Shinobi World? Jiraiya didn't know, but he did.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't sensed the aftershocks of their battle in Konoha, and hadn't later led his disciples to explore the Valley of the End, he wouldn't have believed that ninjas could be that powerful!

How could anyone be stronger than them?

Even Hiruzen Sarutobi, who couldn't even imagine it, couldn't help but look at Jiraiya with a suspicious expression.

"It's true!"

Faced with the teacher's skeptical gaze, Jiraiya quickly patted his chest and affirmed:

"How could I have fallen under an illusion?"

"Many people witnessed that battle in the Land of Rain that shattered the sky; those two were truly indescribably strong!"

Upon hearing this, Mitokado Homura, a high-ranking member of Konoha, inquired:

"Do you remember what those two people looked like? Can you draw them?"

Jiraiya scratched his head, embarrassed, and said:

"Uh... they were too fast, I couldn't see them clearly."

"I only saw one of them, which was shining with a silvery-white light all over its body, and the other one looked like it was wearing a monk's robe."

Upon hearing this, Koharu Utatane, a high-ranking member of Konoha, frowned and pressed for an answer:

"Then why are they fighting?"

"have no idea……"

"And what was the outcome of their battle?"

"have no idea……"

Faced with Jiraiya's complete ignorance, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado exchanged a glance. They were somewhat helpless, but they could understand, after all, when the First Hokage fought Madara Uchiha, no one in Konoha dared to approach.

"Alright, since you don't know anything, let's talk about something else first."

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, interrupted their exchange, walking over to Jiraiya and sighing:

"Jiraiya, you should have brought your disciple with the Rinnegan back to Konoha immediately. What a pity!"

Jiraiya had just told Hiruzen Sarutobi about the three disciples he had taken in from the Land of Rain, one of whom possessed the Rinnegan. Hiruzen felt it was a great pity.

"Hmph, what's there to regret?"

"That brat even tried to kill his own teacher. He's just like Obito Uchiha—an ungrateful wretch who can't be raised!"

Danzo Shimura, who had also arrived at the office, couldn't help but speak up and mock.

At the same time, he was cursing inwardly.

Hanzo, that piece of trash, not only failed to kill the remnants of Akatsuki back then, but now, after consuming such a powerful treasure, he still hasn't managed to kill that brat.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Jiraiya glared at Shimura Danzo, whose words sounded as if he and Minato had been insulted together.

"Hey... don't be impulsive." The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, restrained Jiraiya, who was about to rush forward, and tried to appease him, saying, "Danzo's words were indeed too harsh. What teacher would want to fight to the death with their disciple?"

"When we accept and teach our disciples, we treat them like our own children!"

"well……"

Jiraiya sighed deeply, then looked at his disciple Minato Namikaze and said with a wry smile:

"Minato, you were absolutely right."

"Your senior brothers and sisters have changed drastically for some reason, and Yahiko has even been turned into a puppet..."

As he spoke, Jiraiya recalled Nagato's remarks that he had overheard at the Akatsuki base, and a sense of urgency welled up within him:

"Your senior brother Nagato is in great danger right now. He's planning to build massive weapons to threaten the ninja world in order to achieve his so-called peace."

"Minato, we can't stand idly by, Akatsuki..."

"teacher."

Minato Namikaze interrupted Jiraiya, his expression calm:

"What is Senior Brother Nagato's plan?"

"Well……"

Back at the Akatsuki base, Pain only shared his dream and didn't announce his plan to capture the Tailed Beasts. Therefore, Jiraiya was momentarily stunned.

But Jiraiya quickly came to his senses and hurriedly said:

"Although I don't know Nagato's plans, he has the Rinnegan!"

"Your senior brother Nagato definitely has the ability to realize that dangerous dream, Minato, we must stop him!"

"I'm sorry, Jiraiya-sensei."

Minato Namikaze shook his head. As a qualified Hokage, his current stance was primarily focused on the interests of the entire Hidden Leaf Village.

"Nagato might pose a threat to the ninja world, but he doesn't pose much of a threat to Konoha right now."

"As you said, senior brother is very strong. If we want to stop him, we will most likely have to pay a considerable price, which is not in the interest of Konoha Village."

"That's right!"

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, nodded with a pleased expression, then looked at Jiraiya and said in a deep voice:

"Jiraiya, you must understand, the ninja world has five great ninja villages. If we weaken, they won't let us go just because Konoha stopped the Akatsuki's plan. Besides, how can Konoha invite enemies for no reason?"

"……All right."

Although he felt that what the two said made sense, Jiraiya still couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

soon.

The people in the Hokage's office began discussing how to strengthen Konoha.

"We must be wary of those two mysterious and powerful individuals."

"Indeed, Konoha must have a trump card to withstand such powerful opponents!"

"How about we look through the Book of Seals?"

"That's not a good idea. The forbidden techniques inside are a double-edged sword. I think we should focus on finding the secret treasure."

"That makes sense. Kushina's strength increased dramatically again because she consumed a powerful treasure. Hanzo was able to contend with the Rinnegan, so the treasure he consumed was probably extraordinary as well."

"..."

Nearby, Tsunade, who was also not interested in participating in the discussion, noticed Jiraiya's disappointed expression and walked over to him, whispering:

"Let's go for a drink."

"what?"

Jiraiya's expression was somewhat surprised.

But he was quickly pushed out the door, and Tsunade forcibly dragged Orochimaru out of the office with her.

Not long after.

Inside a restaurant in Konoha Village.

Tsunade chuckled casually as she drank her wine:

"Hahaha, so that red-haired brat back then was Reincarnation... Ugh..."

Jiraiya quickly covered Tsunade's mouth:

"Keep your voice down! How can you just shout about something like this?"

"Ugh... let... go..."

Soon, under Tsunade's murderous gaze, Jiraiya reluctantly released his grip.

"hehe."

Seeing the two of them playfully bickering after so long, Orochimaru chuckled, picked up his wine glass, took an elegant sip, and then remarked:

"No wonder you chose to stay in the Land of Rain for three years, Jiraiya."

"Such a disciple is truly rare and hard to come by."

As he spoke, Orochimaru thought of Minato Namikaze again.

Thinking of this outstanding young man who had stolen his Hokage position, and who was also the disciple of his carefree friend beside him, Orochimaru couldn't help but look at Jiraiya with a strange expression:

"You're really lucky!"

"Your disciples are all extraordinary. Could the toad of Mount Myōboku have been right? Is there a prophetic child among your disciples?"

"The matter of the prophesied child is already ancient history."

Jiraiya shook his head, just as he was about to talk about the Great Toad Sage's latest prophecy, when the restaurant door was pushed open and Kushina Uzumaki walked in carrying Naruto, along with her friend Mikoto Uchiha carrying Sasuke.

"Huh? Jiraiya-sensei, Tsunade-neechan, Orochimaru-senpai, you're here too."

Kushina Uzumaki greeted her warmly, and Mikoto Uchiha returned the greeting politely.

"Haha, Kushina, and Mikoto, right? Come, sit here."

Tsunade smiled and waved.

After a while.

"Naruto, look, this is your grandmaster!"

Kushina Uzumaki pointed at Jiraiya and whispered to Naruto, who was only a few months old.

"He's quite handsome, haha, just like I was back in my prime!"

Looking at baby Naruto's smooth, fair face, Jiraiya couldn't help but reach out and pinch it.

"Wow--"

"Wow--"

Naruto started crying as he was being pinched, and Sasuke, who was standing next to him, seemed to be following suit and started crying as well.

Suddenly, the restaurant was filled with the continuous cries of babies.

……

……

after a while.

The Land of Rain, the Akatsuki organization's secret base.

Nagato's frail body sat in a wheelchair, looking down intently at the ninja world news in his hands.

[Shocking! Tailed Beast Fruits Make a Shocking Appearance!]

"Some time ago, an unimaginably fierce battle broke out in the Land of Rain. After learning about this, our reporter rushed to the scene and interviewed Hanzo of the Salamander, one of the ninja world's demigods and the leader of the Rain Village."

"During the interview, we learned that the participants in that battle, besides Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha, included a user of the Rinnegan and two mysterious and powerful beings. This battle..."

"At the same time, our reporter also inquired about the 'secret treasure' with Mr. Hanzo, and received a surprising answer!"

"Hanzo the Salamander, a demigod of the ninja world, did not eat ordinary or ancient treasures, but a completely new kind of treasure. That treasure did not correspond to any creature that existed or ever existed in the ninja world, but to a giant creature with a bull's head and a spider's body that only exists in mythology—the Gyuki!"

Why do mythical monster leaders also give rise to corresponding secret treasures?

"Our reporter conducted a detailed investigation and ultimately found that this was not the case!"

"As everyone knows, there are nine tailed beasts in the ninja world, but many people don't know their names. After consulting numerous ancient texts and interviewing many Jinchuriki, I, as a reporter, have learned the names of the tailed beasts. The One-Tail is called Shukaku, the Two-Tail... and the Eight-Tail is called Gyuki!"

"Yes, so the Ox-Demon isn't a fictional being; it truly exists!"

"Then why is the Gyūki Fruit shaped like a bull with a spider's head, instead of the eight-tailed Gyūki's octopus form?"

"This is probably related to us intelligent beings."

"Most intelligent beings in our ninja world do not know the Eight-Tails' real name, but many of us have a lot of knowledge about the long-standing demon, Gyūki."

"Therefore, when the Eight-Tails' secret treasure was born, it was influenced by the collective consciousness of us intelligent beings... Ultimately, the Gyūki Fruit appeared in the form of a bull's head and a spider's body!"

"The nine tailed beasts are also real beings that exist in the ninja world, and they are also beings that are deeply loved by the world."

"Now that the Eight-Tails has a corresponding treasure, will the other eight tailed beasts also have corresponding treasures?"

"The Ox-Oni Fruit, which is only associated with the Eight-Tails, is so powerful that it has made Hanzo the Salamander, who was already at the pinnacle of the ninja world, surpass his own peak and become as powerful as if he had been blessed by a real Eight-Tails."

"Then how powerful would the Nine-Tailed Fruit, the strongest of the nine tailed beasts, be?"

"I report..."

[—The above news is reported by the Ninja World News!]

The Nine-Tailed Secret Treasure...

This is a pretty good thing.

Nagato looked up at the beautiful blue-haired figure standing beside her, then looked down at her own withered legs, a thoughtful expression on her face.

As far as he knew, those ordinary treasures could greatly enhance a person's recovery and defense after consumption.

If it were the Nine-Tailed Fruit, could it make him stand up?

Nagato turned his head to look in the direction of Amegakure, his eyes filled with murderous intent, and the newspaper in his hand clenched so tightly it made a creaking sound.

Hanzo the Salamander!

This guy, who should have been too old to have much strength left, actually lost his sickly appearance after consuming the secret treasure, and his strength became no weaker than his.

The Land of Rain is now almost split in two by him and Hanzo.

We must improve our strength!

In this increasingly bizarre ninja world, the Rinnegan alone is unlikely to be enough to sweep everything away.

Thinking of Yahiko's body, which has yet to be properly repaired, Nagato felt a chill run down his spine, but then his expression hardened.

He was determined to complete his peace plan no matter what!

Nagato looked at the beautiful blue-haired figure beside him and said in a deep voice:

"Xiao Nan".

"Go and inform them that the main objective of their mission from now on will be to find the secret treasure."

Seeing that Nagato hadn't become despondent, Konan breathed a sigh of relief and nodded slightly.

"Okay, sure!"

……

The Ninja World News' report on the Tailed Beast Fruits caused a huge stir throughout the entire ninja world.

The existence of Tailed Beast Fruits gave new hope to many ninjas who had reached their limit and had no hope of improving their strength in their lifetime. Among them, the Nine-Tails Fruit was especially coveted by many powerful ninjas.

However, because the Devil Fruits in the ninja world have only recently appeared, their strange shapes make them difficult for ninjas to recognize.

As a result, all the treasures were immediately snatched up.

……

……

February 31, 49th year of the Konoha calendar.

Unlike the bustling and exciting outside world, the Land of Waves is incredibly peaceful. All the waves seem to dissipate here.

Ark Maxims Base.

In a dimly lit room.

Suzuki sat in the armchair, stroking the ten-tailed beast that dared not move beside him, calmly awaiting the arrival of the fifty-second return.

(End of this chapter)