Jiraiya had a slight headache, his eyes filled with displeasure.
Yes!
He wasn't the same person who had just returned; he was a master of intelligence, and over the past few days, he had investigated the matter thoroughly.
In his view, this entire incident was completely engineered by these old men.
On the Nine-Tails Attack Night, Minato died.
His heart was more sorrowful than anyone else's, but he also understood that the Uchiha were highly unlikely to be the perpetrators. Otherwise, they could have rebelled immediately then; there would have been no need for Danzo to corner them alone in their compound, nor would they have obediently surrendered their compound afterward.
They moved directly from Konoha's prosperous district to the outskirts of the Village.
And if that wasn't enough, they were subsequently monitored by Anbu and Root, and even had Uchiha members disappearing daily.
Enemy Village spies?
Nonsense!
If other Villages truly possessed this capability, Konoha would likely be close to destruction.
In Jiraiya's opinion, the Village's hostility toward the Uchiha was excessive.
Furthermore... regarding the Nine-Tails Attack Night incident, combined with the Village rumors, he actually harbored suspicions toward the three elders in front of him.
The reason was simple!
The only person who truly fought the enemy that night was Minato Namikaze. Even his teacher right here hadn't actually engaged; he had merely poked the Nine-Tailed with Enma's Adamantine Staff once.
If all of Konoha's Jonin had acted, even if the enemy used Space-Time Ninjutsu, Minato Namikaze would have been tying them down.
If the Village had acted at all, the outcome wouldn't have been Minato's tragic death!
Of course.
Even though he practically had the answer in his heart, he still kept the matter buried, afraid that if he spoke of it, he and Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't even be able to maintain their master-student relationship.
More importantly, Minato was already dead.
Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi was truly responsible, could he actually kill his own teacher?
So, forget it.
It was better to be oblivious!
Especially now that the Village situation was so complicated, he didn't want the Village to descend further into chaos. Thus, even though he had issues with Hiruzen Sarutobi, he still came after receiving Hiruzen Sarutobi's summons.
At most... his attitude toward Hiruzen Sarutobi would just be a little unpleasant!
At this moment, Jiraiya just wanted to quickly resolve the Village's mess and then leave this suffocating Village. Even if he couldn't find the Savior mentioned by the Toad Sage outside, at least he wouldn't have to get involved in the Village's internal troubles.
"Jiraiya, what is your attitude?"
"We are the Village Elders, show some respect!"
Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado, seeing Jiraiya before them, immediately started putting on airs as 'Elders.'
In response to this.
Jiraiya yawned, picked his ears, and completely ignored the two of them.
Nonsense!
While he was too lazy to get involved in the Village's troubles, it didn't mean he had to tolerate these two old fogeys.
If it weren't for the stability of the Village, he would have run off long ago.
As one of Three Legendary Sannin of Konoha, he also held special privileges in the Village.
"Hiruzen, look..."
"What kind of attitude does this good student of yours have!"
"Control him!"
Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado, seeing themselves ignored by Jiraiya, immediately began complaining.
In response to this.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed.
These two companions of his were truly useless; they couldn't handle the smallest thing and just kept causing him trouble.
"Enough, both of you shut up!"
"The situation is so serious now, and you still have the mind to argue about this?"
"Let's talk about the main business first."
Hiruzen Sarutobi slammed the table.
Following that.
He didn't bother with his two companions, immediately gave a brief summary of the situation, and then asked for Jiraiya's opinion.
Although Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado were quite dissatisfied, they could only grudgingly hold it in for now.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Jiraiya, whose expression had been normal moments before, completely exploded after hearing the news.
What the heck?
All the Ninja Clan in the Village, big and small, who had even a little foundation, had all defected to the Uchiha?
Jiraiya's scalp tingled, and upon learning of Danzo's actions, he nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.
Good heavens!
What a guy!
Even if Root suffered heavy losses, you shouldn't drag others down like that!
Thinking of this, Jiraiya immediately slammed the table.
"Where is that old bastard Danzo? Why wasn't he called here?"
"Teacher, kill him!"
"If we keep that old bastard Danzo around, Konoha will only continue to be chaotic."
"We must kill that source of disaster!"
Jiraiya's fury erupted.
His eyes were now full of killing intent, and his white hair danced wildly in the air.
Clearly.
He had had enough of that idiot Danzo and had long wanted to kill him, but he had previously been stopped by Hiruzen Sarutobi and could only allow Danzo to continue harming Konoha.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Facing Jiraiya, who was radiating intense killing intent, Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado fell silent.
They couldn't help it!
Old fogeys like them, who hadn't been on the battlefield since the end of the war, didn't dare provoke this lunatic when they saw Jiraiya truly entering a state of rage.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart trembled.
After today's incident, he truly hated Danzo to death.
However.
Seeing the killing intent in Jiraiya's eyes now, his heart couldn't help but soften again.
Really kill Danzo?
In his heart, he shook his head slightly.
Of course.
This was not the time to discuss such a matter, so he merely coughed and began to console Jiraiya: "We'll talk about Danzo later. For now, let's find a way to solve the current problem."
"Jiraiya, we have to rely on you!"
"We old guys aren't suitable to go out. Given your status and position, you are the right person to go to the Uchiha compound on our behalf."
"Go talk properly with those Ninja Clan. Tell them that Danzo's actions have nothing to do with me, the Hokage."
"Tell them to stop fooling around and return to their compounds as soon as possible."
"I disavow all of Danzo's actions. As long as they are unwilling to join Root, I, as Hokage, will not force them."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was faint.
Yes!
He was truly terrified by the situation, so he was preparing to back down.
As long as these Ninja Clan were willing to return to their compounds, he would never provoke them easily in the future. On the contrary, he would tacitly allow them to remain neutral.
They would not be required to participate in actions against the Uchiha in the future.
He couldn't help it.
Knowing that all these Ninja Clan had defected to the Uchiha, he truly felt uncertain!
Hokage's Order?
Forcibly joining Root?
He no longer had that idea!
Even if the Hyuga Clan hadn't made a choice yet, and all the commoners still supported him, and even if he still had Sarutobi and the Four Clans backing him, facing the Uchiha plus all the other Ninja Clan... honestly.
He was still a little apprehensive!
In response to this.
After hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's idea, Jiraiya couldn't help but look utterly bitter.
Persuade those Ninja Clan to return?
Even if he was naive, he knew how difficult that would be.
However... for the stability of the Village, after a sigh, he reluctantly agreed.
"Fine, I understand."
"I will go to the Uchiha compound now, but as for whether I can actually persuade them..."
"Old man, I really can't guarantee anything!"
"You must prepare for the worst."