"Phew~! Sunagakure sure gets cold at night!"
Jiraiya pulled his coat tighter and gazed toward a spot in the distance where dust and sand were flying.
"A tornado at night? Huh? Wait—no, that's not right!"
The moment he spotted a few figures emerging from the swirling sand, his expression changed. He hurried toward them at once.
"What's going on? What's going on?!"
"Huh? Pervy Sage?!"
"What do you mean 'Pervy Sage'? Call me the Toad Sage!" Jiraiya shot Naruto a glare, gave everyone a quick once-over to confirm no one was seriously hurt, and then—thunk!—rapped his fist down on Naruto's head. "Well? Explain. What happened here? A bunch of brats actually starting a fight?"
Especially since…
That's the Fourth Kazekage's kid?
He'd seen him several times before—very recognizable.
"What's this? Dancing in the desert? Want me to add a soundtrack for you?"
"Yo, Konoha shinobi!" At that moment, Shukaku spat out several mouthfuls of sand and jumped out, speaking with disdain. "Your Konoha brats are something else—ganging up on one little kid?"
"???"
Jiraiya was dumbfounded. He lowered his head to look at Naruto.
"What happened?"
"Well, um…"
Naruto scratched his head, not sure how to answer. Even though he'd been buried under more sand than anyone else, he wasn't angry—after all, Gaara had even let them ride the coin-operated kiddie rides. They were friends. As for bullying…
He bent down toward Gaara.
"Sorry!"
"So you really were bullying him~"
Jiraiya was now surprised. He scanned the group of Konoha kids and chuckled.
"Well, well—Akimichi Clan, Nara Clan, Uchiha Clan, Yamanaka Clan… all here. Getting bold, are we?"
Kids fighting was one thing, but a group beatdown? That was harder to excuse.
"Uh…" Nara Shikamaru stepped forward with a troubled look, unsure how to explain. "Actually, it wasn't really a fight. More like… a disagreement."
Or rather, they hadn't even gotten to the fighting part before that fat tanuki jumped out and spat at them.
"And of course… it had nothing to do with me."
At most, he was just a spectator.
"A disagreement?" Jiraiya looked at Shikamaru curiously. "What could a bunch of brats possibly be disagreeing about?"
Whose pee goes farther?
"Well…" Shikamaru hesitated. Ratting people out as a kid was a bad move—it would just make you a target. He shrugged. "Just something small, nothing serious. We were just joking around."
"Yeah~" Gaara also spoke up, nodding. "We were playing!"
"Hey, brat." Shukaku immediately protested at Gaara's words. "I clearly saw your eyes turn red—what are you afraid of them for? Just a bunch of Konoha shinobi! Spitting at them is nothing for me."
"Really, I wasn't bullied." Gaara scratched his head, feeling embarrassed by Shukaku's words. He spoke seriously: "Dad said you're not allowed to attack people. I'll tell him about this later."
"Brat, you ungrateful little—turning on me? With such a black heart at your age? Who'd you learn that from—your old man?"
"Looks like I misunderstood."
Seeing that there really wasn't a problem, Jiraiya didn't press it further. Kids being noisy was normal. Back in the day, he and Orochimaru had once argued over who could pee farther. Granted, Orochimaru would always swat his hand away with disdain and refuse to compete—hurting Jiraiya's feelings greatly—but that was childhood for you~
Stroking his chin, he studied Shukaku. "Sand Release? Never thought a tanuki like you would use Sand Release. You Sunagakure's summoning beast? But why hide inside a kettle?"
"Who are you calling a tanuki? I'm the great Lord Shukaku!" the beast snapped. "Believe it or not, I'll blast you to death with one breath of sand!"
"Hah! A mere tanuki, talking big." Jiraiya grinned, finding the chubby beast rather amusing. Laughing loudly, he struck what he thought was a dashing pose. "Don't you know who I am? Since you clearly don't, allow me to introduce myself."
Dun dun dun!
His wooden clogs tapped out a rhythmic beat on the stone pavement.
"Toad Sage is just the humble name I hide from the world. Whatever I set my mind to, I accomplish with ease. Across the whole world, none can match me—the legendary Sannin, the White-Haired Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku! A man so dashing he can make crying children instantly quiet and have women throw themselves into his arms—yes, that's me, the one and only Jiraiya-sama!"
"…"
The scene fell silent. The Konoha kids just stared blankly at the strange man in front of them.
"Naruto, you know this guy? He's a Konoha shinobi?"
"Uh… not really!"
"He doesn't seem normal."
"I think so too."
"…"
Jiraiya's face darkened at the utter lack of appreciation from the brats. Just as he was about to properly teach them what it meant to be one of Konoha's Sannin—
"Wah~!"
The surrounding spectators suddenly cried out in excitement, followed by loud applause.
Clap clap clap!
"Nice, nice! Do it again, one more!"
"Good rhythm! Come on, one more!"
"Hahaha!" Seeing the crowd so enthusiastic, Jiraiya wasn't shy at all. e put his hands on his hips and laughed heartily. "In that case, this great sage will—"
...
Meanwhile, a short distance down the street—
"Should we head out now?"
Yahiko looked helplessly at Konan and Nagato. When both rolled their eyes, he chuckled awkwardly.
"You're right, you're right. Jiraiya-sensei still loves his jokes. We'll go later!"
"No. I don't want to see him anymore," Nagato said flatly. "I suddenly feel like changing teachers."
But before he finished speaking—
"Huh? Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan?!"
The all-too-familiar voice, tinged with excitement, rang out.
"You've all grown so much! Looks like the clothes I prepared for you won't fit anymore."
"…"
Nagato exchanged a weary glance with Yahiko.
I told you we should've left!
And those damn clothes… who even wants them~
Without hesitation, the three turned and bolted in the opposite direction.
They… didn't know that man.
...
Konoha Year 53, September 1st
The Second Shinobi World 4WD Grand Prix officially began.
Compared to the first tournament, this year's event was larger in scale, with more participants and a bigger audience.
As the first booming cannon shot rang out that morning, the crowd erupted in cheers.
"Hello, all you fired-up fans in the stands and at home! Welcome to the Second Shinobi World 4WD Grand Prix, here in Sunagakure! I'm your little cutie—Tobi!"
"And I am—across the entire world, none can match me—the legendary Sannin, the White-Haired Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku—"
"Alright, alright! This here is Jiraiya from Konoha!"
"…."