I, Konoha's Sage of Life

"To be honest, I thought you were just going to let him go," Kyoichi remarked.

"I wanted to, but he insisted on coming. Besides, this matter does require an explanation. Once we return to the village, I'll report it to my teacher," Minato sighed.

Off to the side, Kakashi couldn't hold back his curiosity any longer. "Sensei, that person just now…"

Everyone knew who Minato's teacher was—one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya. A renowned figure across the ninja world.

But to think that such a legendary shinobi actually had three disciples from Amegakure?

Unbelievable!

Kakashi felt like his worldview had just been overturned. Compared to this shocking revelation, Kyoichi's profound and philosophical discussion earlier seemed far less relevant to the six young ninja.

After all…

Most of it went over their heads.

That included Shisui.

He was only five years old—how could he possibly grasp such deep ideological concepts? However, unlike the others, he had forced himself to memorize Kyoichi's words.

Even so…

Right now, he was no different from the rest—just another curious bystander, waiting for Minato to reveal the truth.

"My teacher… trained them for a period of time. Calling them his disciples isn't wrong. He never explicitly stated it, but in his heart, that's what he believed," Minato explained.

He thought about it for a moment and decided there was no need to hide the truth.

It wasn't a secret anyway.

Many high-ranking officials in Konoha already knew about it.

Kakashi's eyes widened.

Three disciples from another village…

And if his calculations were correct, the timing lined up—

After the battle that made the Sannin famous, Jiraiya spent several years away from the village.

So, during those years, he had been training disciples elsewhere?

Minato then turned to Kyoichi, curious. "You shouldn't have known about this, but judging from your reaction, it seems like you did…"

"I've heard bits and pieces. Besides, that woman made it obvious," Kyoichi replied without hesitation.

When Konan saw Minato, her first instinct was to say something. He was certain that, at that moment, she had been debating whether to use their connection as leverage to escape.

But Yahiko had stopped her.

Kyoichi had to admit—

Among the three, Yahiko was the one who thought things through the most. Konan cared primarily about their small group, while Nagato only focused on the two of them.

This difference in perspective was what ensured that after Yahiko's death, the other two would no longer be a concern.

Which meant…

Even if Yahiko didn't die at Hanzō's hands, his future would still be full of danger.

Kyoichi narrowed his eyes.

"Konan, huh?"

Minato thought about it and nodded. "That makes sense."

Konan's behavior had been a bit too obvious—when she saw him, she had looked familiar and hesitant, as if she wanted to say something.

So, concluding that they knew each other wasn't unreasonable.

Minato let out a quiet sigh.

This situation…

He wasn't sure if it was good or bad.

"When we get back to the village, none of you are to say a word about this. Understood?" Kyoichi turned to the six younger ninja.

This was important.

If Danzo decided to exploit this, he could easily use it to tarnish Minato and Jiraiya's reputations within Konoha.

"It's fine…" Minato, however, didn't seem too concerned.

Still…

Kakashi and the others nodded seriously.

As they made their way back to Konoha, Kyoichi and Minato walked side by side at the front.

Minato lowered his voice and asked, "That red-haired guy earlier… he seemed to have some kind of close-range ability, didn't he?"

"I'm not sure what it was, but it felt dangerous. So I made sure to avoid him. Judging by the effect, it seemed like some kind of repulsion-based secret technique," Kyoichi responded.

"I thought so too," Minato mused, as his curiosity deepened.

After a brief hesitation, he added, "You might not believe this, but I suspect he has some connection to Kushina."

"Kushina?"

"Ahem! Sorry, I meant Uzumaki Kushina."

Minato had spoken too casually and accidentally used her nickname, forgetting that Kyoichi wasn't from his generation and probably wouldn't understand.

"Because of his red hair?" Kyoichi asked.

"That's part of it. But more importantly, his chakra reserves are massive, and his physical resilience is remarkable—it reminds me of your Senju Clan," Minato analyzed.

Earlier, when he had observed Nagato through his clone, he had gotten a close look at his condition. There was no mistaking it.

Of course…

Kyoichi already knew the truth.

Nagato was related to Kushina—his mother had been from the Uzumaki Clan.

But…

That was about it.

Minato seemed unusually talkative today, and Kyoichi quietly listened. He figured Minato was feeling a bit anxious—probably concerned about Jiraiya's situation.

But…

There was nothing Kyoichi could do about that.

The only thing he could do was keep his mouth shut and not spread this information.

After a brief exchange, the two separated.

One leading, the other following—just in case of an ambush.

However…

Once they entered the Land of Fire, both Kyoichi and Minato used their sensory abilities to scan the surroundings. Then, they finally relaxed.

It was safe.

As they took a break, Kyoichi glanced at his system panel.

[Mission Complete: Guiding the "Akatsuki" Organization]

[Evaluation: First Stage – Good | Second Stage – Outstanding!]

[Reward: Water Release – Black Rain Jutsu, Dance of the Shikigami]

Kyoichi blinked in surprise.

The first reward wasn't anything special—just a Rain Village technique that produced black oil-infused rain. But the second…

Dance of the Shikigami!

Konan's unique origami-based ninjutsu.

Technically, it was only a B-rank technique, but it represented endless potential.

In fact…

Konan herself hadn't even fully developed it yet. Her current paper-based techniques mostly revolved around disguises and forming shields or weapons like paper shuriken. She hadn't yet evolved it into the true Dance of the Shikigami or Paper Person of God Technique.

That would come later.

Not bad…

Kyoichi claimed his reward.

Since they were resting, he took the time to carefully absorb and integrate the knowledge of the origami-based techniques.

As for the Black Rain Jutsu…

It wasn't particularly difficult, but the underlying principles intrigued him—it taught him how to convert chakra into a black oil-like substance.

If he combined that with his paper techniques and explosive tags…

Kyoichi's eyes lit up.

That was an interesting idea.

He'd have to test it later.

"Minato, that Konan girl's paper technique is quite fascinating," Kyoichi commented offhandedly.

"Sensei never mentioned it, so it must be something she developed recently," Minato mused.

"It's worth studying. I'll look into it later."

Kyoichi casually planted the idea.

Minato didn't overthink it and even offered a few thoughts of his own on how to refine the technique.

The two exchanged quite a bit of insight during their journey.

By the time they reached Konoha…

Kyoichi and Minato's relationship had noticeably improved—they were far less formal with each other now.

Upon returning to the village, there was no time for pleasantries. Minato immediately went to find Jiraiya.

This was important.

Fortunately, Jiraiya was still in the village.

He had been worried about Minato and had postponed his departure.

As for what happened afterward, Kyoichi wasn't sure. All he knew was that the next day, Jiraiya showed up at his door—carrying a pile of food and drinks.

His expression was complicated—somewhere between joy and deep contemplation.

Kyoichi could only guess how Jiraiya had reacted after learning the full story.

But judging by his gift-bearing visit…

It seemed things hadn't turned out too badly?

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