Chapter 189: Senior
Although the trip to Ryuchi Cave ultimately left Masahiko somewhat disappointed, outside of the cave, he gained something else: the Tenbin Clan agreed to move to the Land of Whirlpools.
"I am terribly sorry, Senior Masahiko Uzumaki. You helped us repeatedly, yet we misunderstood you before..." the tenth generation leader of the Tenbin Clan said.
Masahiko waved his hand. "It's fine. Seeing how unlucky you are, I won't hold it against you."
The Tenbin leader: "..."
He suddenly felt a little worried about the future of the Tenbin Clan.
Fortunately, while Masahiko liked to tease, he was still very serious when it came to business.
The Tenbin Clan's population wasn't large, but it wasn't small either, totaling more than one hundred and twenty people. Masahiko could activate Sage Mode and fly them back to the Land of Whirlpools, but while one person was fine, flying more than a hundred people through the air would cause too much commotion.
But walking back seemed too slow for Masahiko. After all, only five of these hundred-plus people had Genin-level strength. Crossing the Land of Fire might take nearly a month.
"Let the Shadow Clone take them back?" Masahiko muttered. Actually, this was the best solution, but that jutsu, the Shadow Clone...
"Might as well fly back!" Masahiko gritted his teeth, flying with more than a hundred people for the first time.
Because most of them were ordinary people, Masahiko didn't dare fly too high or too fast—only about a hundred meters up. People on the ground could see their faces clearly.
Thus, on this day, many civilians and ninjas in the Land of Fire witnessed more than a hundred people flying through the air, creating a spectacle for a while.
In the Land of Whirlpools, Masahiko briefly explained the origins of these people to Izuko-kun, asked her to settle them down properly, and then returned to Konoha.
The trip to Ryuchi Cave took a total of three days, much faster than he had imagined. He had assigned a month's worth of training courses to the three children, so it was still early.
Previously, Tsunade had told him that Jiraiya was writing a book, which Masahiko cared about quite a bit.
Over the past few days, Masahiko recalled that the title of Jiraiya's book seemed to be The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Ninja, and it seemed to be written using Nagato as a template, with Naruto's name originating from it. But now that Nagato had become his disciple, heaven knows what Jiraiya would write.
And speaking of writing...
"Let me, a senior writer, go and give him some pointers!" Masahiko remembered that he was also a writer who had written three books and published two. Although they weren't widely circulated, he was still a writer.
It was Masahiko's first time visiting Jiraiya's house. As an orphan, even though he was now an S-rank ninja, Jiraiya's home wasn't very spacious.
"However... unexpectedly tidy." Masahiko didn't knock and walked directly into Jiraiya's house.
"He's quite engrossed; didn't even notice me walking in." Masahiko chuckled inwardly, sensing Jiraiya's chakra fluctuations in the inner room.
About to push the door open, Masahiko suddenly hesitated. Knowing Jiraiya's character, there wouldn't be any eye-searing activities inside, right?
While he was slightly distracted, the door in front of him opened, and Jiraiya appeared before Masahiko with heavy dark circles under his eyes.
His spirit was somewhat listless. Seeing Masahiko, he didn't react for a moment.
Masahiko looked him up and down. This kidney-deficient appearance made the corners of his mouth twitch. "Jiraiya, take care of your health."
"Okay." Jiraiya agreed, went around Masahiko, and headed for the toilet.
"This guy..." Masahiko muttered. This reaction was a bit off.
Walking into the inner room, Masahiko saw a bookshelf for the first time in the Naruto world.
"As expected, writing novels isn't easy... except for a genius like me."
Turning his gaze to the desk, several pages with wet ink appeared before Masahiko.
Masahiko picked up a page. "A ninja's talent doesn't depend on the number of jutsu mastered, but on the guts to never give up. To walk straight ahead and never go back on one's word, and the determination to never give up no matter when."
Masahiko nodded, smiling as he put it down.
"Accidentally got fed a mouthful of chicken soup for the soul..."
Just as he was about to pick up the second page, Jiraiya rushed in from outside.
"Se... Senior, why are you in my house?"
Masahiko didn't answer but smiled and asked, "Why aren't you calling me 'Old Monster' anymore?"
Jiraiya mumbled, "I was young and ignorant before..."
Masahiko just showed a gratified expression when Jiraiya added, "I might have to call you Great-Great-Grandpa in the future, so calling you Old Monster isn't very appropriate."
Masahiko was speechless for a long while.
"You're beautiful (You're thinking too much)."
Regardless of whether Jiraiya understood the meme, Masahiko continued, "I came here as a senior writer, thinking of giving you some guidance."
Jiraiya was stunned. "Senior writer?"
His face was full of disbelief.
Masahiko waved his hand and looked at the bookshelf. "You might even have books written by me here!"
"Impossible." Jiraiya curled his lips.
Masahiko immediately got up to look.
The bookshelf was divided into upper and lower sections. The upper section... Masahiko took a quick look and gave Jiraiya a contemptuous glance. They were all pornographic magazines, and... they looked very boring.
Yes, boring was the key point.
The lower section was normal. From ninja knowledge to world geography introductions, to the origins and disputes of the Five Great Nations, everything that should be there was there... No, everything that shouldn't be there wasn't.
"Really none. You don't even read my books; what books are you writing..."
Masahiko muttered, shifted his gaze, and caught sight of a familiar book in the upper section out of the corner of his eye.
"Dreams of Village Building... Isn't this written by me?"
Masahiko had a bad premonition and turned to look at Jiraiya.
"The title of this book is quite normal. Why is it placed with the pornographic magazines?"
Jiraiya was startled, took the book, scanned it twice, and suddenly realized.
"Senior, you don't know this book? It was written by an unknown author when Konoha was first established. Unfortunately, this senior went astray."
"Astray?" Masahiko's face darkened.
Jiraiya continued, "That's right. The book tells the story of the two legendary ninjas, Madara Uchiha and the First Hokage... the friendship between men."
Jiraiya emphasized "friendship between men," showing a heartbroken expression.
"If this senior wrote about matters between men and women, it would probably become a classic. Unfortunately..."
He shook his head as he spoke. "It's too late to say anything now. When he wrote this book, Madara Uchiha was still in the village. This senior's bones have probably gone cold by now. There aren't many copies of this book left. I had a hard time collecting it, so don't break it."
"I originally wanted to ask if you had another book by this senior. I didn't expect you to not even know him, yet dare to call yourself a writer?"
Masahiko gritted his teeth. "Never mind another one; I even have the third one he didn't publish."
"There's a third one?" Jiraiya looked pleasantly surprised.
"You want to read it? Sage Mode: Open! Seventh Gate: Gate of Wonder, Open!"
Boom!
Jiraiya's house exploded instantly.
"Old Monster, what the hell are you doing!"
The title "Senior" only survived for one episode.
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