Chapter 68: The Fifth Bout. The Land of Whirlpools. A Meeting Across Eras!
(Extra Chapter for Ice of the Great Banyan Tree)
It had been half a month since Jiraiya brought Naruto to the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools. Their training journey was nearing its seventh month, deep into the harsh winter of Konoha's Year 61.
Seven months ago, Kakashi was attacked at the Uzumaki Clan's Mask Hall. That incident gave Jiraiya a new understanding of Sasuke's strength.
Jiraiya saw Naruto's unwavering resolve to bring Sasuke back. He had to abandon his previous idea of using this trip to compensate for the boy's childhood. Instead, he threw himself into a brutal, day-and-night training regimen.
The results were dramatic. Naruto's power grew by leaps and bounds.
In just three months, he mastered the Giant Rasengan—a technique that had taken him years in another timeline. By now, he had already begun training in nature transformation.
Tsunade worried that using Shadow Clones for new jutsu development might cause the Nine-Tails' chakra to run wild. When she learned of the plan, she summoned "Tenzō" ahead of schedule. She bestowed upon him the name "Yamato" and dispatched him to Jiraiya's side to assist with Naruto's training.
On the training ground, wooden posts studded with iron spikes stood upright. Yamato held his right wrist with his left hand, the character for "Sit" on his palm aimed forward.
He'd held this position for a long time. His stamina was starting to waver.
He had thought this would be a simple assignment. Reality had proven him very, very wrong.
"Like this!"
"I think I got it!"
"Damn it, failed again!"
"Ganbatte!"
"One more time, dattebayo!"
Young Naruto and his thousand-odd Shadow Clones trained shirtless in the frozen landscape. Their fiery, boisterous energy churned the air into a hot wind, threatening to melt the very snow around them.
Yamato groaned. "Ugh, Naruto, training requires a balance of work and rest. Let's take a break, okay?"
Through their time together, Naruto and Yamato had built a solid rapport. Naruto was quite considerate of his instructor.
So, half an hour later, Naruto called an end to the session.
Poof! Poof! Poof!
The Shadow Clones vanished. All their experience and fatigue flooded back into the original. Naruto collapsed onto his back, panting with exhaustion and satisfaction.
"Hah… another step forward. Maybe two more weeks… and I'll have this jutsu down!"
His clear, azure eyes looked at his battered right hand. He clenched it tight.
"Can't wait to see the look on Sasuke's face when he sees this new move! Hahaha… Will he just give up and come back to the village, dattebayo? Though… that'd be kinda boring~!"
Naruto's gaze was innocent yet determined. Yamato felt a stir of admiration, but he still offered a reminder. "Don't get overconfident. The Sasuke of now isn't someone you can easily handle. Rumor has it even Kakashi-senpai had a hard time against him. Just mastering a new jutsu isn't enough. You need to improve all aspects of your skills as a ninja to truly maximize its potential."
"Hahaha, of course I know that! That's why I gotta get strong enough to meet Ero-sennin's expectations, so I can finally go to that sacred place he mentioned, Mount Myōboku, dattebayo!"
Naruto laughed heartily, then kipped up into a sitting position in one fluid motion. He smacked a fist into his palm. "Yoshi! Back to training!"
Yamato forced a pained smile, raising his hands again. "Oi, oi… I get how you feel, but have some mercy on me, will you?"
And so, Naruto's training continued with relentless fervor.
Deep beneath the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools, protected by a barrier, lay an archive that had survived the nation's fall.
Jiraiya successfully breached the barrier and entered.
If the goal was just training, they could have gone anywhere. There was no need to specifically bring Naruto here.
Yes… Jiraiya had come with a purpose.
Before embarking on this journey with Naruto, he had visited Kakashi in the Konoha hospital.
Aside from Sasuke's strange surge in strength, Kakashi had provided another crucial piece of information.
It was about the specific mask Sasuke had risked so much to infiltrate Konoha and steal from the Uzumaki Clan's Mask Hall.
That mask was undoubtedly significant.
Through the intelligence scroll Kakashi provided, the mask's image was burned into Jiraiya's memory.
Connecting the dots—Uzumaki Clan, Orochimaru, Reaper Death Seal—Jiraiya formed a bold hypothesis. The mask was related to Orochimaru's hands, sealed away by the Reaper Death Seal.
That was the reason for his visit.
He hadn't held much hope initially.
But now, holding the Uzumaki Clan's document on the Reaper Death Seal, reading the method to release it… the mask described as the medium was identical to the one in Kakashi's memory.
"So… it's true after all."
Jiraiya's grip tightened on the scroll.
Now he understood. Sasuke took that mask to help Orochimaru retrieve his hands from the Shinigami's grasp.
If it were just about Orochimaru getting his hands back, that would be one thing.
What truly horrified Jiraiya, sending a cold sweat down his back, was another passage on the scroll:
—'As the synchronous medium for the Shinigami, the sacrifice must pay with their life to release all souls sealed within the Shinigami's belly.'
The sacrifice must pay with their life.
"Orochimaru would never do it himself… Who would pay that price in his place? Could it be Sasuke Uchiha? If Sasuke truly died… how would Naruto react?"
Release all souls.
"The only ones who have used the Reaper Death Seal are Minato and Sarutobi-sensei. But what's sealed inside that Shinigami isn't just Orochimaru's hands. It's the soul of the Fourth Hokage… and the other half of the Nine-Tails!"
"With Orochimaru's ambitions… would he settle for just his hands? No. The worst-case scenario… he could gain control over the souls of all four Hokage."
Jiraiya knew exactly what that meant.
"If he manipulates the Four Hokage and the other half of the Nine-Tails to attack the village again… Konoha would face certain annihilation. The entire shinobi world would be plunged into chaos."
"It seems Naruto's training will have to be put on hold. I must return to Konoha and report this to Tsunade myself."
Rolling up the document, he tucked it inside his robes. Shouldering his giant scroll, Jiraiya left the Uzumaki archive.
He planned to take Naruto and depart immediately.
Whoosh…
But then, the icy winds sweeping across the Land of Whirlpools turned bone-deep, sharp.
The sound of wooden sandals in the snow stopped dead. The white-haired sage turned his powerfully built frame.
When a ninja's power reaches a certain level, their very presence can influence the environment—a form of phenomenal intervention.
A figure approached from the distance, his white cloak blending seamlessly with the snowy world.
"You are one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya, correct?"
The question was calm. The young man slowly pushed back his hood, shaking loose the snow from his hair.
Jiraiya's eyes widened, a flicker of disbelief crossing his face.
The youth's demeanor was composed, yet not without a thread of respect. "I am Sasuke Uchiha. I wish… to test myself against you."
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