Animal Path inquired in the Land of Rice Fields and learned that a Ninja with silver long hair, a black mask, and a forehead protector covering his left eye had asked about Kubisaki Ridge. He understood everything then: Konoha Village's Jonin, Kakashi! I've noted this down! Don't you ever fall into my hands!
"Huh?" Ino, who was in a small town in the Land of Waterfall, found another 'blame pot' added to her side. She was a bit surprised. Whose blame pot was this? And who was it being thrown at?
She didn't have time to think too deeply; her attention was focused on her front left.
At this moment, Jiraiya, transformed into Sasuke's appearance, was hunched over, peeking into the women's changing room.
Ino was hiding around a corner. She wasn't Uzumaki Naruto, nor was she the Child of Prophecy mentioned by the Toad Sage, so Jiraiya had no obligation to teach her.
What to do?
She roughly came up with a plan, mentally reviewed it twice, and feeling there were no flaws, she then pretended to be dusty and travel-worn, walked around the corner to the town entrance, and then along the main road, looking around as if searching for someone.
"Oh? Sasuke-kun?!" When she reached the women's changing room, she looked surprised, with a hint of joy in her expression, but more of confusion, as if wondering why Sasuke would be in the Land of Waterfall.
Jiraiya being caught peeking was not a one-time or two-time occurrence; being chased and beaten by seventeen or eighteen aunties and young girls was practically an everyday affair. He didn't feel ashamed, but rather proud. Being caught peeking was not a big deal for him.
But the problem was that he recently discovered that Sasuke's handsome face was indeed very useful. He could save a third of his drink money when drinking, let alone peeking. Now that he was in Sasuke's form, it would normally be fine, but being seen by someone familiar with Sasuke, that was just too embarrassing.
Kakashi had just told him a few days ago about Ino wanting to become Tsunade's disciple, and he had also seriously mentioned it to Tsunade. He just hadn't expected Ino to arrive so quickly.
You child, so impetuous in your actions, do your elders know?
Seeing Ino stare at him with a strange expression.
"Ah? ...Cough, cough. My... I'm an old man, no, I was going to...?"
He racked his brains for an excuse. Seeing the confusion on Ino's face grow thicker, he knew his Transformation Technique was about to be exposed. He suddenly pointed behind Ino.
"Look, Kakashi's here!"
"Where? Where is Kakashi-sensei?" Ino, just as he had predicted, turned around to look behind her. There was no one there. When she turned back, she found that "Sasuke" had disappeared.
Ino stood in place, scratching her head: "How strange? Was that really Sasuke or not?"
She mumbled to herself for a bit, then dashed off to the town's casino! After all, her stated reason for coming out this time was to become Tsunade's disciple. All the conditions were met, and only the final interview remained.
Jiraiya, hiding in the shadows, found Ino asking about Tsunade's whereabouts.
He immediately realized something was wrong!
Tsunade was in the town just ahead, not far away. If Ino found Tsunade and casually mentioned, "I saw a suspicious Sasuke in the previous town," Tsunade would definitely ask, "Why suspicious?" And Ino would say, "That Sasuke was peeking into the women's changing room from the back door..."
Given Tsunade's understanding of Jiraiya, would she not guess that this was someone using the Transformation Technique to peek?
The relationship between the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan was indeed bad, very bad, but Tsunade couldn't tolerate someone tarnishing the Uchiha Clan's reputation like this, could she? If the Uchiha Clan was infamous, how much better could the Senju Clan, as their old rivals, be?
The more Jiraiya thought about it, the more scared he became. He was afraid of being beaten to death by Tsunade if she discovered the truth!
Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely must not let Ino find Tsunade! At least not today.
He racked his brain. Harming a junior from the Village went against his principles, so that was definitely out.
His method was to stall for time, let Tsunade get further away, and after a few more days, he could simply deny everything. What does your search for a peeping Sasuke have to do with me, the Mount Myōboku Sage?
Hmm, he truly was too clever!
An hour later, Ino, beaming with joy, left the small town after getting Tsunade's whereabouts from the casino owner. Suddenly, she spotted Jiraiya reading on a large rock by the roadside.
"Mount Myōboku Sage! Do you still remember me?" she asked cheerfully.
Well, well, you've finally arrived.
The weather was too hot. Under this blazing sun, lying on a rock, he, the Mount Myōboku Sage, was almost roasted.
"Ah, I remember, it's the Yamanaka Clan's brat, hmm..." He didn't know how much importance Ino placed on the "Sasuke" matter, and he drew out his words: "Why are you not in Konoha Village, running all the way to the Land of Waterfall? Are you alone? Where's your squad leader Jonin?"
Ino solemnly stated her purpose: "I know you, you are Lord Jiraiya, right? I came out to find Lady Tsunade. I want to become Lady Tsunade's disciple and learn Medical Ninjutsu!"
Jiraiya couldn't let Ino become a disciple, so he immediately adopted the tone of a master: "Become Tsunade's disciple? Hahahahaha—little girl, you haven't even laid a good foundation and you already want to become a disciple? Tsunade won't teach you that easily. Listen to me, go back to the Village, practice your basics well, and then come back to seek discipleship."
Ino put on a stubborn expression: "No! I must become Lady Tsunade's disciple, I want to..."
She stammered, clearly having something on her mind but unsure whether to say it.
Jiraiya said in an encouraging tone: "You're a Ninja now, not a child. Speak boldly, I, an old man, will definitely keep your secret!"
He wore an expression of "tell me your grievances so I can be entertained" and waited for Ino to pour out her heart.
"Sigh, actually, I want to become Lady Tsunade's disciple because of Medical Ninjutsu, but coming so urgently is also because of the Chunin Exams. My strength is too weak, and I feel a lot of pressure, so I want to get some guidance from Lady Tsunade..."
Chunin Exams? Just for this? Although this exam was quite distant for Jiraiya, as a high-ranking official of the Village, he knew that Konoha was preparing to host a large-scale Chunin Exams this time.
He knew about the matter. Ino, as the top student of her graduating class, would definitely participate in the exam. This was perfectly normal.
In Jiraiya's view, a bunch of Genin fighting each other, what was the difference from a bunch of weaklings pecking at each other?
This was easy to solve. He could just give Ino a few pointers, string her along, and delay her for two or three days without any problem.
"How about this, I, an old man, have nothing to do right now, so I might as well give you some guidance."
"Really? Lord Jiraiya?!"
"Of course, it's real. What Ninjutsu are you good at? Water Release? Alright, come to the water's edge, let me see your Water Release."
Fifteen minutes later...
Jiraiya stood in the water like a drowned rat, completely soaked, as if he had just been pulled out.
He looked at Ino with a very strange gaze. You're going to participate in the Chunin Exams? And you're under pressure?
Since when did Konoha Village's Genin reach this level? If all of Konoha Village's Genin were at this level, Konoha would have unified the Ninja World long ago!
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