Chapter 498: Raikage's Plan
"Iwagakure? That's possible, but may I ask something a little rude—why?"
Kakashi was a bit curious.
As far as he knew, the Kumogakure Village and the Iwagakure Village weren't exactly close allies, right?
Not to mention anything else—the Fourth Raikage's father, the Third Raikage, was basically worn down to death by the Iwagakure Village.
And now, when such a good opportunity like learning Sage Mode appeared, the Raikage's first thought was actually the village that killed his father?
As the saying goes, the hatred of killing one's father is irreconcilable… ah, sorry, wrong setting. The ninja world doesn't have that saying.
"You're wondering why I'd recommend Iwagakure even though they're my father's killers, right?"
The Raikage slapped the table and stood up, turning to look out the floor-to-ceiling window at the sky behind him.
"Uh…"
Kakashi hadn't expected the Raikage to be so direct. That was… very in character for him.
"I don't approve of Iwagakure. I approve of Ōnoki."
"Hmm?"
Kakashi immediately became alert.
That sounded even worse.
Isn't Ōnoki the one who commanded the operation that killed the Third Raikage?
Could it be that the Raikage really, like in those shady novels, had some kind of improper relationship with Ōnoki?
"Don't misunderstand. I mean that stubborn old man Ōnoki has changed."
"He not only handed over the position of Tsuchikage to the younger generation, but for the sake of the ninja world's safety, he is now willing to make certain sacrifices."
After hearing Kakashi's "hmm?", the Raikage quickly explained.
But if anything, the explanation made things worse. It only confirmed one thing—he had definitely read those "Buff Man Paradise" novels too.
Kakashi suddenly felt a bit uneasy.
But then he thought about it. Even the Raikage could forgive Iwagakure and Ōnoki—what did it matter that he published a few novels?
"Kumogakure intelligence reports say that Ōnoki and Uchiha Madara went to pursue Chiyo."
"I don't believe that old man would really do something like that. He's definitely doing it to get close to Uchiha Madara."
The Raikage continued.
And that part was actually true.
As someone who knew the inside story, Kakashi silently confirmed it in his heart.
He didn't expect that Ōnoki and the Fourth Raikage, once enemies, understood each other this well.
"If Ōnoki can make that kind of sacrifice, it moved me. So I decided to let go of hatred. A changed Ōnoki for the sake of the ninja world is the most respectable kind of person!"
"?!"
Kakashi looked at the Raikage's back in shock.
He never expected the Raikage to have such a high level of awareness.
This was almost on par with Naruto.
If you just replaced "most respectable" with "the coolest", it would be perfect.
"Raikage-sama, I understand. Our second destination will be Iwagakure. I, Hatake Kakashi, give you my word."
Kakashi bowed toward the Raikage.
He hadn't expected this trip to become something that would witness the ninja world moving toward peace—and that he would be part of it.
He suddenly felt the weight on his shoulders grow heavier.
Now he could understand why Jiraiya liked wandering around the ninja world so much.
Indeed, only by leaving Konoha and traveling to other villages could one truly understand how to achieve peace.
"Thank you, Kakashi."
The Raikage still didn't turn around.
In Kakashi's eyes, the Raikage was probably too moved and was silently crying, unwilling to show his vulnerability in front of an outsider.
"Raikage-sama, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave?"
"Mm."
Kakashi left the Raikage Building with complicated feelings.
After he left, the Raikage finally let out a long breath and sat back down.
Crying with emotion? That didn't exist.
Why would he cry?
The reason he kept his back turned the whole time was simply because he wasn't good at acting. If he faced Kakashi directly, Kakashi might notice subtle changes in his expression and reject the proposal.
As for his real intention?
Of course it was a good one.
Letting Iwagakure become second only to the Kumogakure Village in mastering Sage Mode—what's wrong with that?
That was an objective fact.
But behind that "objective fact", the Raikage also had his own little calculations.
Just like he told Kakashi, he acknowledged Ōnoki's willingness to make sacrifices for the sake of approaching Uchiha Madara.
That part was true.
But at the same time, the Raikage also wanted to see just how far Ōnoki would go for Iwagakure and the ninja world.
Kumogakure's chosen Sage Mode candidate was Motoi.
The Raikage not stepping forward didn't mean he wouldn't train later.
On the contrary, for the Kumogakure Village, he would definitely train.
And he believed Ōnoki would do the same for Iwagakure.
If the Raikage didn't train, he still had ninja taijutsu—using lightning to enhance his body. Even if his raw stats weren't enough, at least his fighting style wasn't countered by the Ōtsutsuki clan.
But Ōnoki was different. Ōnoki mainly used ninjutsu.
As for taijutsu—he was already over seventy. He could barely walk without twisting his waist. Forget about that.
And that was exactly what the Raikage wanted to see—the image of Ōnoki being forced to stand up and push himself for Iwagakure.
This wasn't like approaching Chiyo just for intelligence on Uchiha Madara, where a few words would do. This required real physical effort.
Still, Ōnoki had one advantage: at his age, he would probably finish training quickly. Unlike those young and middle-aged bachelors who would need to rack their brains and use special methods.
——
Land of Rain, Amegakure Village.
Jiraiya had handed the Sage Mode promotion mission to Naruto, and to avoid being beaten by Tsunade, he had really gone to Amegakure.
For Jiraiya, Amegakure now felt quite "modern"—completely incomparable to Konoha.
The only downside was the lack of a red-light district.
Even today, Jiraiya was walking the streets with a notebook, jotting down inspiration for novels.
Suddenly, a familiar female voice came from behind him.
"Jiraiya? Is that you? Jiraiya?"
"You are… uh-oh!"
Hearing a woman's voice, Jiraiya instinctively turned around—only to see an elderly kunoichi. He immediately felt disappointed.
But as that disappointment faded, old memories surfaced in his mind, and he instantly realized something was wrong. He turned to run.
"Jiraiya, stop! We made a promise—are you really going to go back on it, one of the legendary Sannin?!"
The kunoichi shouted after him, but she couldn't keep up with Jiraiya's speed. All she could do was watch him escape.
Bang!
A flash of blue light passed by, and Jiraiya was sent flying back through the air, crashing down at the woman's feet.
(End of this chapter)