"So powerful!"
"This is on a completely different level from us!"
"The legendary Sannin are actually this strong!"
In front of the mansion, the stationed Sunagakure's guards and miscellaneous-duty Genin gathered at the entrance to watch the fight.
Jiraiya's Ninjutsu, summoning, and now his Taijutsu had given them a tremendous shock.
However...
That was only the miscellaneous Genin. The Jonin, even if inferior to Jiraiya, still had the experience to recognize his level.
Though still shocked, they weren't as overwhelmed, quickly regaining their composure to analyze the battle's progress.
"The Sannin is formidable, but Ryuji-sama has him suppressed."
"The Sannin's Ninjutsu and summoning are powerful, but they're ineffective against Ryuji-sama. Now even his Taijutsu is being suppressed."
"So this is the legendary Sannin? Ryuji-sama is truly more impressive."
"Um..." One Genin voiced confusion. "Although Ryuji-sama is strong, isn't he a puppeteer? Why isn't he using puppetry or puppets?"
"..."
Everyone was speechless.
They were more confused about this than the Genin.
A genius puppeteer said to rival Sasori of the Red Sand, the commander of the Puppeteer Corps... yet he doesn't use puppets or puppetry in battle, fighting personally instead... they wanted to know why too!
If his duel with Setsuna five months ago could be explained by thinking the opponent too weak to warrant his best, that was understandable.
But his current opponent was one of the legendary Sannin, a figure standing at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World.
Was even such an opponent not worth using his full power?
They didn't know. Instinct told them that wasn't the case.
They could only watch the battle unfold.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!!
Fists and feet continued to clash, but Jiraiya was steadily forced back.
It wasn't that his strength was inferior, but his Taijutsu skill wasn't as high. His timing for offense or defense was slightly off, making each move somewhat rushed, forcing him to retreat step by step.
"Jiraiya, what drove you to risk shattering Konoha-Suna relations by coming to trouble me?" Amidst his attacks, Ryuji found a moment to ask.
Jiraiya hastily blocked, roaring angrily, "The hatred from my disciples' deaths, of course!"
"Is that so." Ryuji sneered. "In that case, why did you ask me why I did it?"
"What do you mean?"
"You can't even control your own hatred, coming to trouble me. Why would you expect others to make concessions?"
Hearing this, Jiraiya's heart jolted, his movements freezing for an instant.
Ryuji seized the opening, kicking him away.
Jiraiya flipped mid-air to disperse the force, landing steadily on a large boulder.
Crouched on the rock, he looked at Ryuji with a complex expression.
Ryuji's words had struck a nerve.
Influenced by the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, he firmly believed lasting peace could be achieved. But he also deeply understood the difficulty of stopping war; it wasn't something individual strength alone could solve.
After traveling the Shinobi World, witnessing countless displays of human depravity and nobility, Jiraiya attributed the cause of war to people's inability to understand one another.
He believed people weren't inherently good or evil; everything was shaped by external factors. If everyone could understand each other, appreciate each other's difficulties, and make concessions, then war wouldn't exist.
He believed this and even wrote this philosophy into his novels, hoping to spread the idea.
But saying and doing were different things.
Jiraiya had previously observed problems from a bystander's perspective. When it happened to him personally, he found achieving mutual understanding and making concessions incredibly difficult.
He knew war was merciless… kill or be killed.
He knew Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko's deaths in war couldn't be blamed on others.
Yet even so, he couldn't suppress the pain in his heart, coming to trouble Ryuji.
"Is this the price that must be paid for peace?" Jiraiya was in agony, unable to stop himself from howling at the sky, tears streaming uncontrollably from the corners of his eyes.
Memories of his time with Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan flashed through his mind, increasing his pain. He really, really, really, really... wanted to seek revenge without regard for anything else.
To hell with prophecies, to hell with the bigger picture… he really wanted to cast it all aside and seek revenge regardless.
But...
Memories of missions with his teacher Hiruzen, Orochimaru, and Tsunade; life with the toads of Mount Myoboku; teaching Minato; daily life in Konoha... whenever Jiraiya considered reckless revenge, these beautiful memories surfaced to stop him.
Revenge could satisfy hatred but would invite more hatred.
Reason told him to abandon revenge; his heart urged him to seek it.
These conflicting emotions intertwined, leaving him tormented and lost.
"Jiraiya!"
A shout came from afar.
Everyone looked toward the sound. Orochimaru and Tsunade were rushing over from a distance.
Muttering their names, Jiraiya's conflicted, pained heart finally leaned toward reason.
"Tsunade, Orochimaru..."
He murmured their names, emotionally moved, running to greet them.
But what greeted him was Tsunade's iron fist.
"You idiot! What are you doing!?"
After knocking Jiraiya to the ground, Tsunade shook her still-smoking fist, angrily scolding, "At your age, still so reckless! Do you have any idea your actions could cause misunderstandings between Suna and Konoha? Who will take responsibility if war breaks out!?"
Jiraiya was dumbfounded.
'Weren't you worried I'd lose and came to help?'
'Why am I the one getting hit?'
"Apologize now!"
Tsunade dragged Jiraiya before Ryuji, then pressed the back of his neck into a deep bow. "We sincerely apologize. Jiraiya's mind isn't quite right, so he acted offensively. Please forgive him."
'This...'
Witnessing this, everyone was stunned.
'What was this?'
'Shouldn't the script be Ryuji-sama fighting the Three Sannin alone?'
'Why did the legendary Three Sannin gather just to apologize to Ryuji-sama?'
Not just the watching Sunagakure's shinobi, even Ryuji's mouth twitched at the sight.
'Jiraiya was one thing, but you're Tsunade!'
'Where's that overwhelmingly strong Medical-nin?'
'Where's your dignity?'
'Wait, Tsunade probably never had dignity to begin with.'
Remembering Tsunade's habit of transforming into a little girl or an old woman to dodge gambling debts, Ryuji understood.
However, he wasn't planning to let them off so easily.
"You think you can brush me off this simply? You're thinking too naively," Ryuji said with a half-smile, looking at Tsunade. "If I let you off this easily, wouldn't every stray cat and dog come looking for trouble later?"
Hearing this, Jiraiya's anger surged. He lifted his head, glaring furiously. "Tsunade, don't be afraid of…"
Before he could finish, he was pressed down again.