Jiraiya knew this legend.
Indeed, there was an ancient legend about the Sage of Six Paths circulating in the Ninja World.
Perhaps Hana meant that the Sage of Six Paths shared a small portion of his chakra with others, which was then passed down from generation to generation and eventually became the possession of today's ninjas.
"And now,"
Hana smirked coldly, a smirk that sent shivers down the spine,
"there is someone, or more precisely an organization, that plans to revive that Juubi, the Ten-Tails."
Jiraiya and Sasuke held their breath simultaneously.
"Once the Juubi is fully revived,"
Hana continued,
"it will automatically reclaim all the chakra in this entire world, including the chakra within the body of every living creature. I don't think I need to tell you further what will happen to people whose entire chakra has been completely absorbed, right?"
"They... they will all die."
Jiraiya nodded slowly in response, his face now looking very grim and filled with worry.
He knew very well what it meant.
Chakra is a mixture of a ninja's physical and spiritual energy, and it essentially represents a person's body and soul.
If all the chakra in a person's body is extracted, it means their entire physical and spiritual energy will also disappear.
How could someone who has lost their body and soul survive? It's tantamount to their vitality and life being directly sucked out, leaving only an empty, lifeless shell.
Jiraiya took a deep breath, trying hard to suppress the shock and horror that crept into his heart. He looked at Hana with a sharper gaze.
"Who... who would be so insane as to want to do something so horrifying? What is their real purpose? Is it just to destroy the world and create chaos?"
"You must have heard this person's name before."
Hana's eyes turned extremely cold, and a strong, dense killing aura began to faintly emanate from around her body, making the air within Naruto's subconscious feel heavier and more suffocating.
"Uchiha... Madara."
Jiraiya's pupils suddenly constricted drastically, and he unconsciously clenched both his fists tightly until his knuckles turned white.
Even with all his vast knowledge and experience as a Sannin, he truly didn't know how to begin the conversation or respond to such shocking information.
He could only swallow hard to try and alleviate the anxiety and fear that now gripped his heart.
"Uchiha Madara...? But... but he's supposed to have died long ago! He died in the legendary battle against the First Hokage! And... and how do you know all these secret things?!"
"Hehe, I have no obligation to answer all your questions, Toad Sage."
Hana's words were filled with cold sarcasm.
"And whether all these things I've said are true or not, you will soon find out for yourself. An organization called 'Akatsuki' is a reserve force deliberately left behind by Uchiha Madara to continue his plans. And next, you might soon meet two members of that Akatsuki organization. Their main purpose for coming to Konoha later will be to determine my exact location, where I am sealed, because their plan to start capturing all the tailed beasts will soon begin."
Jiraiya looked at Hana in silence, his mind racing.
His common sense told him that the possibility of everything he had just heard becoming reality was very small, almost impossible.
Uchiha Madara was dead. The Juubi was just a legend.
But... Hana's gaze was so convincing, and the information she provided was too detailed to be mere nonsense.
At this moment, Hana suddenly smirked again, this time a slightly cunning smirk. She said,
"By the way, Pervy Sage, the current leader of the Akatsuki organization is an orphan who was once your student. He comes from the same Uzumaki clan as this prince of mine, his name is Nagato. And beside him, there is always a beautiful blue-haired woman called an angel, her name is Konan."
"WHAT DID YOU SAY!!!" Jiraiya couldn't believe his ears at all.
His entire body trembled violently. He quickly stepped forward towards Hana, who was still behind the bars, his previously worried eyes now glinting with a mixture of shock, pain, and unbearable anger.
"Nagato... and Konan?! ARE THEY BOTH... STILL ALIVE?!" His voice was hoarse and filled with turbulent emotions.
Hana said nothing more.
S he just looked at Jiraiya with a flat gaze, as if letting the Sannin digest all the heavy information he had just received.
She then waved her hand with a graceful motion, telling Jiraiya to immediately train the two brats beside him more seriously, because they both had immense potential and would become important keys in the future.
This information was truly too heavy for all of them to digest, especially for Sasuke and Naruto who had been standing silently listening with their mouths slightly agape in shock.
Without saying anything more, and without giving Jiraiya a chance to ask further questions, Hana, with a single blink, expelled the consciousness of all three of them from her subconscious, back to the real world.
Leaving Jiraiya, Naruto, and Sasuke now standing dazed in the middle of the forest.
The morning sunlight illuminated the forest where Naruto, Sasuke, and Jiraiya had set up their temporary camp.
The scent of morning dew and damp earth filled the air. Naruto, with burning determination, had been awake since dawn.
In his hands, he held two precious items: Karin's handwritten notes detailing her experience using the Adamantine Sealing Chains, and an old, dull-colored scroll – the Uzumaki clan's scroll left by his mother, Kushina, given to him by the Third Hokage.
"Alright, Hana-neechan, let's start again!"
Naruto exclaimed inwardly, his eyes focused on the intricate diagram on the Uzumaki scroll.
He sat cross-legged, trying to concentrate his chakra, imagining strong golden chains emerging from his body, just like he had seen Karin use so admirably.
The process was difficult and exhausting, but Naruto didn't give up. Every failure only fueled his spirit further.
"Fufufu~ My prince is so spirited this morning,"
Hana's voice sounded softly from within her seal, a note of pride in it.
"Remember, Naruto-kun, the key to this Uzumaki jutsu is not just the amount of chakra, but also emotional control and strong imagination. Imagine the chains as an extension of your soul, strong yet flexible."
"I know, I know!"
Naruto replied a little impatiently, sweat starting to bead on his temples.
"But this is really harder than Rasengan!"
While Naruto struggled with his chain training, Jiraiya sat not far away, observing Sasuke who was performing basic physical exercises with impressive intensity.
The legendary Sannin looked slightly perplexed.
How to train this Uchiha Sasuke effectively? The brat was a genius, cold, and had a clear target for revenge.
Giving him ordinary physical training or standard jutsu seemed insufficiently challenging.
'This kid is different from Naruto,'
Jiraiya thought, scratching his chin.
'Naruto is like a sponge, enthusiastically absorbing anything. Sasuke is more like an already sharp sword, just needing to be honed on the right edge and given a strong scabbard. He has the Sharingan, meaning he can copy taijutsu and see chakra flow. Elemental jutsu... yes, that might be the best option. He has a strong lightning affinity, just like Kakashi. Maybe some Chidori variations, or other more flexible lightning jutsu? Or perhaps high-level fire jutsu to maximize his Uchiha potential?'
Jiraiya smiled faintly.
A ninja of his caliber could be said to be like a walking ninjutsu library.
The collection of jutsu he had mastered or at least knew the principles of was vast.
It wouldn't be difficult to find some strong elemental jutsu suitable for Sasuke's fighting style.
And with the help of the two-tomoe Sharingan Sasuke had already awakened, his learning process would surely be much faster than an ordinary ninja's.
' Yes, that's the plan. After we reach the next town, I'll start teaching him some interesting things.'
The next day, after a rather long journey, the three of them finally arrived at a bustling small town, a stopover for travelers and merchants.
Wooden buildings lined neatly along the main street, and the sounds of bargaining and laughter could be heard from various corners.
They immediately headed to a simple but clean inn to rest.
After booking rooms, Jiraiya turned to the two brats with a knowing smile that Naruto and Sasuke recognized all too well – the 'I-Have-Important-Business-That-You-Can't-Interfere-With-But-Actually-I-Just-Want-To-Seek-Adult-Entertainment' smile.
"Now, you two,"
Jiraiya said, slightly adjusting his robe,
"just wait quietly in this room, okay. Don't cause any trouble or go anywhere. I'm going out for a bit to 'gather important information' about Tsunade's whereabouts around this town."
He emphasized the words 'gather information' with a very suspicious tone.
Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other, then at Jiraiya with very clear accusing gazes.
"Gathering information?"
Naruto repeated, one eyebrow raised.
"What kind of information do you usually look for in places like sake bars or... well, you know, Ero-sennin?"
"Or perhaps the 'information' you're looking for is at the women's hot springs?"
Sasuke chimed in coldly, his tone flat but full of sarcasm.
Jiraiya paid no attention at all to the accusing glares and sarcastic remarks from the two brats.
He just chuckled, waved his hand with an air of self-importance, then quickly left with steps that were too eager for someone who was supposedly going to 'gather serious information'.
"That Pervy Sage never changes!" Naruto grumbled, throwing himself onto the tatami mat.
When Jiraiya had completely gone and the sound of his footsteps could no longer be heard, the atmosphere in the room became silent for a moment.
Suddenly, Hana's voice sounded again in Naruto's mind, this time addressed to Sasuke.
"Uchiha Sasuke," Naruto said (conveying Hana's message), his voice calm. "There are some important things I want to discuss with you privately. This concerns your future... and perhaps also your survival."