Chapter 309 - 309: 309 - Jiraiya's hearfelt words to Kakashi!!

Roshi had been toying with the idea of properly spreading the Sage Art system ever since he'd helped Anko with her training.

There had never been many people who could directly enter Sage Mode in the heat of battle; throughout the entire history of the Ninja World, such shinobi were extremely rare.

Roshi wasn't delusional enough to dream about mass‑producing Sages. His goal was much more grounded: to cultivate a group of ninja who could perceive, understand, and even initially guide Natural Energy.

Even if they couldn't independently enter Sage Mode, as long as they could use Natural Energy to slightly boost their physical abilities, expand their sensory range, or perform a few specific auxiliary Sage Techniques, that would already be meaningful.

In future battles, that kind of foundation could give them more flexibility and open up unexpected tactical options.

How much of a difference would it make? No one could say yet.

But at the very least, someone had to take the first step.

And he knew that, at the beginning, very few people would be able to walk this path.

After all, if one followed orthodox Sage Art training methods—without relying on technological shortcuts like Yakushi Kabuto—there were only two known examples: Jiraiya and Naruto. Both possessed a vitality, or Chakra level, rated at the maximum of ten. As for Senju Hashirama, he went without saying.

A Chakra level of ten was basically the standard that guaranteed qualification for Sage Art training at Mount Myōboku.

Anko, after a full year of training with his assistance, was estimated to have a Chakra level of eight.

The current Fifth Hokage, Senju Tsunade—the First Hokage's granddaughter—had a Chakra level of 9. Orochimaru's own Chakra level was seven. Even Yamato, who had transplanted some of Hashirama's cells and could use Wood Release, only reached seven.

By that measure, Anko being personally selected by Orochimaru really did speak to how exceptional her talent was.

Among the remaining named Konoha ninja, those with Chakra stronger than Anko's were Kakashi, and Hyuga Hizashi—who had died a few years earlier—with a Chakra level of nine.

Aside from them, many elite jonin, including the current Hyuga clan head Hiashi, were at most an eight.

This meant that, if he used Anko as a reference point, the minimum requirement for adult ninja even to attempt Sage Art training would be a Chakra level of seven.

Adult ninja generally had fixed potential and limited room for growth, so the basic threshold had to be set high and firm.

Students, however, were different. Their bodies were still developing, their potential not yet fully awakened, which gave them greater possibilities for the future.

So the selection criteria for them should emphasize potential and adaptability. Their current Chakra level didn't have to be sufficient; as long as, under proper guidance, they could safely perform the most basic meditation to sense Natural Energy, they were worth considering.

Among the younger generation, looking at those with enough Chakra potential to reach level seven by the time of the Fourth Great Ninja War—and who were already well‑known—four names stood out:

Akimichi Choji, Hyuga Neji, Rock Lee, and Uchiha Sasuke.

For adult candidates, the Hokage's Office can directly access the ninja archives and carry out an initial screening based on chakra levels.

For students, anyone ready to start immediately should already be in the Special Training Class.

—

Special Training Class – exclusive training grounds.

Before Roshi even stepped inside, Guy's thunderous voice rolled out like a physical shockwave.

"Yes! That's it! Feel your muscles stretching! The rush of your blood! This is the heat of youth!!!"

"Lee! Make your movements more precise! Even one more punch is a step toward the highest realm of youth!"

"You kid from Sunagakure over there! No slacking off! Taijutsu is the embodiment of will! Prove your worth with your sweat!"

Roshi stepped onto the stairway at the edge of the training field, and the whole scene opened up before him.

On the wide, hardened ground, ten figures were pushing themselves in different exercises.

Might Guy was a green blur, flashing to Rock Lee's side to shout encouragement, then appearing next to Kankuro to correct his form.

What made Roshi's eyebrow lift slightly was that among the group training so earnestly, he spotted an unexpected figure—

Deidara.

The bomber was, like everyone else, putting in honest, straightforward effort.

"Roshi!"

A green whirlwind skidded to a stop beside him.

"How rare, you actually have time to come here."

"Has the desire for ultimate taijutsu been reignited in your heart? Are you planning to return to the training ground?"

Roshi waved a hand.

"If I did extreme training right now, I'd just wear myself out."

"That's a shame. I remember you completing your entire regimen perfectly back then," Guy said. He knew what Roshi was currently involved in, so he didn't press.

Roshi's gaze shifted to Deidara.

"Deidara?" Guy immediately brightened, pointing at the boy doing frog jumps.

Clenching his fist, his voice unconsciously climbed another notch:

"His almost obsessive focus, his passion, his relentless drive to pursue constant breakthroughs in the 'art' he loves! That stance of devoting himself completely and burning his life for it!"

"Without a doubt, that is one of the most extreme manifestations of youth!!!"

Guy's unrestrained volume carried every word straight to Deidara. In the middle of his exercise, Deidara turned his head toward Guy. A smile, tinged with defiance and pride, spread across his dust- and sweat-streaked face as he flashed a gleaming thumbs-up.

He had finally found someone who truly appreciated his art.

And this guy was insanely strong.

Deidara could still picture the moment he'd been about to put on a little "art performance," only for Guy to appear in front of him in an instant and clamp a hand down on his shoulder.

This village—Konoha—really did have more and more interesting people.

Guy's fervent speech finally wound down. He turned back to Roshi; the heat in his expression cooled slightly, and his tone grew much more serious:

"Hmm. I've come up with some new ideas, and I plan to start by observing and evaluating them with the Special Training Class first."

Roshi's gaze drifted slowly over every struggling figure on the training field before finally lingering on Hyuga Neji a moment longer.

Judging from his current level of self-potential development and chakra control, this kid is probably one of the closest to reaching that threshold.

Roshi pulled his attention back and turned to the energetic Jonin beside him, asking—

Joint Affairs Bureau Building

Anko Mitarashi felt like a spinning top being whipped without mercy, twirling at a ridiculous speed under a lash called "work."

If she had heard Roshi tell Tsunade, "Anko is struggling too much on her own,"

she would have jumped in right away to object.

"Struggling too much on her own"? That would be the softest description of brutality she'd heard all year.

Her Excellency Anko wasn't just "struggling"; she was on the verge of being beaten into red bean paste.

Preparations for the Ninja Village Joint Conference were in full swing, and right on its heels came the emergency Five Kage Representative Meeting Iwagakure had called regarding Jinchuriki safety.

With two major conferences overlapping, this building had become the busiest hub in the entire shinobi world.

The whole Bureau was a frenzy of movement: representatives from the Five Great Ninja Villages, liaisons from minor villages who were about to arrive—important people were coming in an endless stream.

And the detection for the Spore Technique was far from a one-time security check.

High-profile figures needed regular re-examinations, new arrivals required initial screening, and anyone showing even slightly suspicious signs was bumped to priority re-checks.

Once, twice… she could feel her chakra and stamina constantly draining away.

"Anko, Reception Room Three. Jōnin Fūga from Iwagakure is here for his third re-examination."

"Anko, Bi-san from Hidden Mist wants to know if his entourage's group testing can be moved up?"

"Anko, Kakashi says if you've got any strength left, help go over this list of newly arrived Kusagakure squads and prioritize marking anyone who might have accessed core intelligence…"

Voices came at her from every direction, tangled with hurried footsteps, the rustle of scrolls, and faint arguments echoing down the corridors. Anko was starting to feel dizzy, half-convinced that "Anko" had turned into the standard code word for emergencies.

If she got a do-over, she definitely wouldn't have just asked for the assistant title.

On the other side of the building, Kakashi wasn't being pulled in quite as many directions.

But he didn't get to stop either.

Itachi set down a fresh briefing on his desk.

"Kakashi-senpai, Yugakure's latest reply says they might not be able to attend the Joint Conference as scheduled."

"Oh?" Kakashi looked up from a stack of new amendments on border passage rights. "What's the reason?"

"The letter states that a rogue ninja inside Yugakure, extremely dissatisfied with the village's new peace policies, launched an attack—resulting in a relatively large number of casualties."

"Yugakure has dispatched a pursuit squad, but no confirmed reports have come back yet."

"Because of this sudden internal security issue, their Leader believes they have to stay in the village to handle it personally and can't leave to attend the conference."

Kakashi skimmed through the new reply in one swift read.

"One rogue ninja… Did they attach any intel?"

"No," Itachi answered, crisp and direct. "Aside from classifying it as an incident, there's no concrete information."

"As I thought. 'One rogue ninja' is too vague." Kakashi's visible eye narrowed. "For a village known for hot springs and tourism to be so on edge they can't attend an international conference… that one person is probably not simple." He glanced at Itachi. "They're likely observing us—or probing."

"Observing Konoha's response to the Takigakure incident and how far we're willing to go," Itachi followed his train of thought without missing a beat, "hoping we'll show them the same level of concern. Asking directly for aid might seem undignified, so they use their absence as a subtle request for help."

"Exactly." Kakashi nodded, picked up a pen, and began to write quickly on a memo pad. "Since they've sent a signal, we'll kick half the ball back to them."

"In the name of the Joint Affairs Bureau, send an official reply to Yugakure."

His tone turned crisp, his thoughts arranged in order. "First, express our deep concern and condolences for the unfortunate incident in Yugakure. Second, stress how important this Joint Conference is for building a new order in the ninja world—including dealing with internal security issues—and gently express regret over their absence. Finally, and most importantly—"

"State that to accurately assess how this incident affects their ability to attend, and to consider what form of future cooperation the Bureau might offer to help maintain stability among member villages, they must provide detailed intelligence on this rogue ninja."

"Including but not limited to: identity information, a detailed account of the motive for defection, known abilities and threat assessment, specific casualty and damage reports, and the current status of the countermeasures Yugakure has in place."

When he finished, Kakashi handed the memo to Itachi.

"This way, we can confirm whether they're sincerely asking for help, and we can evaluate the risk before deciding whether to intervene."

"Understood."

Itachi took the memo and left the office. Almost as soon as the door closed, it opened again.

Jiraiya stepped in, glanced around the room, and his gaze settled on Kakashi, who was rubbing his temples.

"The Hokage's office really isn't as lively as your place, Kakashi."

"Jiraiya-sama, that kind of comment doesn't make me feel any better."

Jiraiya let out a booming laugh. "Don't say that. I came to help."

Kakashi immediately stood up, slid his chair back, and moved to stand behind Jiraiya.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Jiraiya-sama. On the desk is the priority list for the pending documents: red tags are urgent, yellow are important, and green can wait a bit. The pantry is at the end of the hall—turn left when you exit. There's coffee and tea."

"If you need to find anyone, you can ask Itachi—"

Kakashi said this as he started toward the door.

A large hand suddenly slapped down on the door panel.

Jiraiya was already there, blocking the way, a bright grin on his face.

"Your Body Flicker isn't fast enough, Kakashi." With his other hand, he pulled a gaudy, bound booklet from his robes. "When I said I came to help, I didn't mean help you process documents."

"Here, a consolation prize! Icha Icha Violence, Collector's First Edition, with a special bookmark signed by yours truly. How about it? Isn't it like a goddess's light shining down into this bitter sea of work?"

Kakashi glanced down at the small book in his hand, its cover plastered with exaggerated illustrations, then looked back up at Jiraiya.

In any other situation, he would have been overjoyed. Right now, though… "…Thank you." His voice came out weak.

"You're welcome!" Jiraiya clapped him on the shoulder hard enough to make him sway. "As for where I can actually be useful—"

He jerked his thumb over his shoulder.

"Anko's side."

"She's the one who's about to be overwhelmed."

With that, Jiraiya turned to go. As his hand closed around the doorknob, he hesitated. Without looking back, the easy playfulness in his voice thinned.

"Kakashi."

"Hm?"

"The fact that there's a place in the ninja world where all the villages can sit down and talk… I never thought I'd see something like that."

"If Minato, Kushina… and all the others who couldn't live to see this day, could know that the ninja world now has such a place, and such a possibility…"

Jiraiya let the words trail off.

"Anyway, thank you for your hard work. This job is important—more important than most people realize."

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