Three days later.
Jiraiya stood on the roof of the Hokage Building, looking out at the village that was being rebuilt bit by bit from the ruins.
He was just preparing to go downstairs to the hot springs to find some material to soothe his weary body and mind when two figures blocked his path.
"Jiraiya, you know why we have come to see you."
"Hiruzen is gone, and Konoha now needs a new Hokage. You are Hiruzen's student, one of the Legendary Sannin. You are the most suitable choice to succeed as the Fifth Hokage."
Jiraiya crossed his arms in front of his chest and grinned. "Forget it. The position of Hokage doesn't suit me. I'm used to being laid-back. If you make me sit behind a desk and sign documents every day, Konoha's treasury will be spent on paper and pens for writing novels within three days."
Jiraiya put away the joke, and his voice returned to normal. "I recommend Tsunade. She is the granddaughter of the First Hokage, one of the Sannin, the strongest medical ninja, and possesses immense strength and prestige on the battlefield. There is no one more suitable than her."
Koharu and Homura exchanged a glance.
Tsunade was indeed the most suitable candidate besides Jiraiya. The bloodline of the First Hokage, a student of the Third Hokage, and her prestige on the battlefield were enough to convince any Konoha ninja.
Moreover, her medical ninjutsu was exactly the resource Konoha needed most for post-war reconstruction.
The problem was that Tsunade had left Konoha many years ago, and no one knew where she was now.
Jiraiya patted his chest. "I will go and bring her back. But before that, I have two conditions."
"First, if we cannot find Tsunade, you must find someone else to be the Hokage. I will absolutely not take this position."
"Second, I can go find Tsunade, but I must bring someone with me."
Jiraiya gestured with his chin toward Naruto, who was walking out of Ichiraku Ramen in the distance. "I want to bring Naruto with me."
Koharu and Homura frowned at the same time.
Jiraiya said, "Naruto is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Now that the village has just suffered a major blow, taking the Jinchuriki away from the village is simply too risky."
"You have all seen Naruto's performance in this Chunin Exams. Rasengan, Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, and completing an A-Rank mission alone to bring back Sasuke—his strength is long past the Genin level."
"Taking him out on this trip is partly to let him see the world, and partly to protect him. Root has been blown to bits, and Danzo hasn't recovered yet, but when he does, the first person he will look for is Naruto. Keeping Naruto by my side is safer than leaving him in the village."
"Additionally, in my capacity as his teacher, I formally suggest to the Council: promote Naruto's ninja rank."
"Based on his performance in the Chunin Exams and completing an A-Rank mission independently, and with a pile of merit reviews to be evaluated after the war, he cannot remain a Genin."
Koharu and Homura exchanged a look and finally nodded.
"After Tsunade returns to the village and officially takes over as the Hokage, she will preside over the promotion of Naruto's ninja rank."
Jiraiya waved at the two Advisors and turned to walk into the village.
He prepared to go see Kakashi first to explain the situation, then go ask for Naruto's opinion to see if he was willing to go on a long journey with him.
As for Tsunade, Jiraiya sighed in his heart. Hopefully, her hemophobia has improved over the years.
...
After walking out of Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto began to plan his training schedule for the coming period.
Konoha is currently in a reconstruction period and no missions are being assigned to Genin. This means he has a rare period of time that can be used for training.
The Flying Thunder God Technique and Kurama Chakra Mode have currently reached a relatively mature stage. Although there is still room for improvement, the short-term returns are diminishing, so he can slow down on those for now.
There are two directions for training at this stage.
One is to integrate Lightning Chakra into the Rasengan to develop the kind of Rasengan that disappears, like Boruto's.
The other is Chakra Fusion.
These are the fastest ways to increase his strength at this stage.
Thinking of this, Naruto leaped rapidly toward the back mountain area where he had previously trained with Jiraiya.
After passing through several streets that were still under repair, his field of vision gradually opened up.
Just at this moment, a ripple from a Flying Thunder God Mark suddenly appeared in his perception.
Naruto continued to leap forward calmly while focusing his perception on the activated Flying Thunder God Mark.
Sensing that the signal source was not in the Land of Fire, he instantly thought of one person.
Kusagakure, Uzumaki Karin.
...
Arriving at the back mountain where he had previously trained, Naruto habitually activated Negative Emotions Sensing, scanning the surrounding area for several kilometers.
After confirming there was no one around, he locked his mind onto the activated Flying Thunder God Mark and vanished from the spot.