"How's that possible?" Sawako's eyes widened. "Aren't you under the Tsuchikage's orders to take us back?"
She couldn't believe Ebara's words.
"Why not?" Ebara grinned.
He removed the armband from his right arm, drew a kunai, and scratched it.
"Now you get it," he said, smiling at Sawako.
"A rogue ninja from the Land of Earth!" she exclaimed.
Ebara shrugged. "Konoha or Iwa—it's your choice."
Sawako hesitated, caught in a dilemma.
During their escape, they'd avoided Konoha because Kushina's father believed Konoha betrayed the Uzumaki (Naruto canon).
But now, with nowhere else in the ninja world to go, Konoha had Mito Uzumaki.
"If you get Kushina to Konoha, I'll be your servant," Sawako said, resigned.
"Good. I'll not only get her there but find her a great teacher," Ebara boasted.
He released her neck. "Now, call me 'Master.'"
Sawako's face flushed like September maples, her red hair making her stunning.
It stirred pity and desire.
"M-Master…" she stammered after a long pause.
Ebara felt a rush of satisfaction. "Nice. Keep calling me that."
"Yes… Master…" Sawako said, struggling.
"Let's head back," Ebara said.
They returned to where Jiraiya and Kushina rested.
Jiraiya eyed them. "What took so long?"
"Guess," Ebara said with a sleazy grin.
Then he told Sawako, "Come massage my legs."
A flash of irritation crossed her eyes, but she obeyed, kneeling beside him, her delicate hands gently kneading his calves.
"Not bad. You've got talent," Ebara praised.
Jiraiya gaped, then stretched out a leg. "Massage mine too?"
"Get lost!" Sawako snapped.
Jiraiya: "…"
Same saviors, different treatment?
He glared at Ebara, who basked in smugness.
"What's going on?" Jiraiya asked.
Ebara smirked. "Think about our looks gap. Clear now?"
Jiraiya felt stabbed. He hated to admit it, but Ebara was indeed handsomer—even after their disguise scrolls (Chapter 47).
"Just a bit! Does being hot mean you can do whatever?" Jiraiya grumbled.
"Sorry, it does," Ebara replied.
After half a day's rest, they hit the road.
By noon the next day, nearing Konoha, Jiraiya, mid-sprint, tensed. "Careful. There's fighting ahead."
"What's up?" Ebara frowned.
A battle just two or three hours from Konoha? It could only mean an invasion.
"Let's check," he said.
Led by Jiraiya, the four rushed to the battlefield.
Ebara first saw a woman, about five feet tall, roughly forty years old.
"Chiyo!" he recognized instantly. "What's she doing here? Has Wind declared war on Konoha? Is the Second Ninja War starting?"
Alarmed, he looked to the battle's center.
It was Tsunade!
Besides Chiyo, three ninjas with five puppets were relentlessly attacking her.
Tsunade's teammates lay on the ground, faces blackened, poisoned, and out of commission.
Though Tsunade was skilled, her foes were formidable.
She couldn't afford a single hit from the puppets, or she'd end up like her team.
"Wind Style: Wind Cutter!"
As Ebara appeared, a fierce gale slashed at him, carving gashes in the earth.
"Wind Style: Great Vacuum Bullet!"
As the blade-like wind neared, Ebara finished his seals.
The two winds collided, forming a terrifying vortex that gouged a pit in the ground.
They canceled each other out.
"Hm? He blocked it," Chiyo said, surprised.
Though not at full strength, her casual jutsu wasn't something most could counter.
"Likely jonin-level," she mused. "But why's an Iwa ninja here, helping Konoha? Are they allied?"
As she pondered, Ebara reached the battle's center.
"Sosuke, stop him!" one ninja shouted.
He and a female ninja intensified their attack on Tsunade.
Tsunade noticed Ebara but didn't recognize him in his Iwa disguise (Chapter 47).
Still, any help was welcome.
"Scram!" Sosuke roared.
He controlled a humanoid puppet with six blade-wielding arms, lunging at Ebara.
Ebara didn't dare slack—those blades were surely poisoned.
One hit, and he'd be like Tsunade's team.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Bullet!"
Air bullets shot at the six-armed puppet.
Sosuke's fingers twitched, chakra strings guiding the puppet to dodge.
"Sosuke's talent is limited," Chiyo said, shaking her head.
Ebara's target wasn't just the puppet—it was Sosuke himself.
Against puppeteers, always aim for the master.
Sosuke dodged the bullets with his puppet.
Too late, he realized they were aimed at him.
Pfft!
The bullets struck, blood bursting from Sosuke like dazzling fireworks.