Chapter 602: Naruto and Sasuke’s Teachers Are Truly Terrifying

Chapter 602: Chapter 602: Naruto and Sasuke’s Teachers Are Truly Terrifying

Chapter 602: Naruto and Sasuke’s Teachers Are Truly Terrifying

"Actually, I’ve already created a secret organization."

Jigen looked at Jiraiya with a serious expression.

"I named it Kara."

"The organization’s ultimate goal is to make the entire Shinobi World happier and more prosperous."

"At the same time, I realized that the power of a single person is ultimately limited. That’s why I want to recruit like-minded companions, as well as scientists who can help the organization grow."

"If Kara becomes stronger, we’ll be able to help even more people."

Jigen smiled faintly.

"In fact, we’ve already begun."

"Right now, several members of Kara are operating in the Land of Wind, helping local residents improve their living conditions."

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

Kara?

Before all of this, he had never heard the organization’s name anywhere.

He had only learned of it through Kenichi.

"Scientists?"

Jiraiya chuckled.

"What exactly are scientists supposed to do?"

"I’m just a writer."

He deliberately played dumb, hoping to draw more information out of Jigen.

Of course, Jiraiya understood that directly asking questions about Kara probably would not get him very far.

Jigen was far too cautious for that.

So Jiraiya intended to approach the topic indirectly.

If he could keep Jigen talking, perhaps he could learn more about Kara without making the man suspicious.

"Scientists are extremely important, Jiraiya."

Jigen’s tone became more serious.

"They may be ordinary people."

"Some might not even possess enough physical strength to restrain a chicken."

"But if they can invent and create the right things, they can possess enough power to change the entire Shinobi World."

Jigen gestured around them.

"Take electricity and electric lights, for example."

"Could people in this world have imagined such things before they existed?"

"And think about how different people’s lives were before electricity became widely available."

At this moment, Isshiki still had no idea that his identity had already been exposed.

From his perspective, there was no possible way anyone in the Shinobi World could know who he truly was.

Even Kaguya, the traitor who had nearly killed him all those years ago, did not know that he had survived.

Because of that, Isshiki felt relatively secure.

The current Kara was still extremely weak.

Calling it a true organization might even have been generous.

At the moment, it was closer to a small private group that Isshiki personally managed.

Even so, Isshiki was extraordinarily careful whenever he recruited members or organized activities.

He had no intention of allowing his existence to become public knowledge.

Recruiting Jiraiya had been a decision he personally made.

Scientists were useful, especially ninja scientists capable of developing advanced technology.

But Isshiki also needed powerful shinobi.

People who could complete dangerous missions.

People who could accumulate resources and funds for Kara.

And, when necessary, people who could divert attention away from the organization’s true activities.

Jiraiya was one of the candidates Isshiki had selected.

That was why he had deliberately approached him.

There had also been an element of coincidence involved.

Previously, Jiraiya had returned to Konoha, so Isshiki had decided against making contact.

But then Jiraiya unexpectedly left the village again.

Even better, he was traveling alone.

That opportunity had immediately given Isshiki an idea.

"If you’re talking about electricity and electric lights, then I’ll admit those things are impressive."

Jiraiya deliberately sounded dismissive.

"But can these scientists create anything useful in war?"

He shrugged.

"This is a cruel world."

"In the end, the stronger fist decides everything."

Jiraiya deliberately portrayed himself as someone who did not understand science.

For a shinobi, that attitude was perfectly believable.

A faint trace of contempt flashed through Isshiki’s eyes.

He could not help feeling somewhat helpless.

Communicating with these primitive barbarians really was troublesome.

They understood nothing.

All they knew was chakra.

Ninjutsu.

Fighting.

Killing.

They squandered tremendous amounts of power without ever understanding the deeper principles behind it.

From Isshiki’s perspective, it was painful to watch.

Science was important even within the Otsutsuki Clan.

Naturally, Isshiki placed great value on scientific development.

Unfortunately, science in this primitive world was still in its infancy.

Isshiki knew about many technologies far beyond the current capabilities of the Shinobi World.

But knowing something existed did not mean he could personally reproduce it.

Without sufficiently advanced industries, specialized equipment, skilled researchers, and supporting infrastructure, he could not manufacture many of the technologies he remembered.

That frustrated him.

He possessed knowledge of countless powerful things.

Yet this world lacked the foundation required to create them.

"Science is far more powerful than you think, Jiraiya."

Isshiki spoke earnestly.

"If you have time, I can take you somewhere."

"Once you see what I want to show you, you’ll understand just how incredible science can be."

Then his expression became serious.

"But I have one condition."

"After you see it, I want you to join my organization."

His gaze was sincere.

His tone sounded warm and friendly.

Jiraiya only became more suspicious.

Why was Isshiki so determined to recruit him?

Still, Jiraiya decided it would be better to test him further.

Even if he eventually joined Kara, that did not necessarily mean Isshiki would control him.

As long as Isshiki had no technique capable of directly controlling his mind or body, Jiraiya could still act according to his own judgment.

"That..."

Jiraiya deliberately hesitated.

"I’ll need some time to think about it."

He looked toward Jigen.

"You don’t mind, do you?"

Isshiki was not angry.

Instead, he smiled pleasantly.

He patted Jiraiya on the shoulder.

"Of course not."

"Take your time."

Then he continued drinking and chatting with Jiraiya as though the conversation had been nothing particularly serious.

Isshiki understood that recruiting a powerful shinobi like Jiraiya would never be simple.

In fact, if Jiraiya had agreed immediately, Isshiki might have become suspicious.

His hesitation was far more believable.

That reaction felt just right.

Jiraiya looked at Isshiki and gave him an equally strange smile.

This guy thought he was dealing with an idiot who understood nothing.

But Jiraiya knew exactly what was going on.

So, eventually, he intended to accept the invitation.

He simply could not agree too quickly.

That would only make Isshiki suspicious.

Instead, Jiraiya intended to play hard to get.

He would refuse or hesitate the first time.

Perhaps even the second.

Then Isshiki would have to keep inviting him.

That would make Jiraiya’s eventual acceptance appear much more natural.

More importantly, it would buy additional time.

As long as Isshiki remained here drinking and fooling around with Jiraiya, he would not be elsewhere causing trouble.

That meant the rest of the Shinobi World could continue preparing.

The two men, each hiding his own intentions, looked at one another.

Then they both smiled sincerely.

A moment later, they were drinking with their arms around each other’s shoulders again.

They even agreed to visit the women’s bathhouse later and see what excitement they could find.

Neither trusted the other in the slightest.

...

"Jiraiya is actually drinking with Isshiki?"

Kenichi stared at the intelligence report in complete disbelief.

"And they even agreed to go spy on the women’s bathhouse together?"

For a moment, he was genuinely speechless.

He had never expected Isshiki to spend his time drinking with Jiraiya.

Even more absurdly, the two of them were apparently planning to visit the women’s bathhouse together.

Still, after reading the report more carefully, Kenichi understood what was probably happening.

Isshiki clearly had some purpose involving Jiraiya.

The unfortunate part for Isshiki was that he had no idea Jiraiya already knew who he was.

Worse, Jiraiya was secretly transmitting information back to Konoha.

"Sensei really does make people worry."

Minato looked equally helpless.

"He’s already this old, yet he’s still doing things like this."

His expression became complicated.

"Collecting intelligence shouldn’t require going that far."

Minato honestly wanted to send Jiraiya a message saying:

Sensei, that’s enough intelligence gathering. Please come back already.

Unfortunately, that was not possible.

Jiraiya had already established a connection with Isshiki.

If he suddenly abandoned everything and returned to Konoha, it could immediately arouse Isshiki’s suspicion.

That was precisely what made the situation so troublesome.

Kenichi, however, was not particularly surprised by Jiraiya’s decision.

He knew the man’s personality.

In the original story, Jiraiya had died at Nagato’s hands precisely because he stubbornly insisted on gathering more intelligence about Akatsuki.

During that battle, Jiraiya had more than one opportunity to retreat and return to Konoha.

But he had refused.

He stayed.

He kept investigating.

He wanted to uncover as much information as possible.

And eventually, that stubborn persistence cost him his life.

It had been an extremely regrettable death.

So when Kenichi learned that Jiraiya had once again chosen to remain close to a dangerous enemy for the sake of gathering intelligence, he found nothing particularly strange about it.

That was simply the kind of person Jiraiya was.

If Jiraiya suddenly abandoned the mission and returned to Konoha without trying to learn anything more, Kenichi would probably find that far more unusual.

Even so, Kenichi did not expect Jiraiya to obtain anything truly important in the short term.

Isshiki was extremely cautious.

Until he was completely certain of Jiraiya’s loyalty, he would never expose Kara’s deepest secrets.

So there was always the possibility that Jiraiya’s entire infiltration attempt would ultimately fail.

Still, when Kenichi thought about Kara, he suspected Isshiki did not possess many reliable methods for controlling his subordinates.

Kenichi had never watched all of Boruto, but he remembered one important detail.

Amado had eventually defected from Kara and gone to Konoha.

That alone suggested Kara’s control over its members was not absolute.

And even if the worst happened and Jiraiya died...

Kenichi could deal with that too.

If Jiraiya was killed, Kenichi would simply continue with the plan against Isshiki.

After Isshiki was defeated, he could resurrect Jiraiya.

Minato, standing right in front of him, was already living proof that such a solution was possible.

"By the way, Kenichi."

Minato suddenly changed the subject.

"I have a question."

"Should Naruto and the others continue their current training?"

Although Isshiki was obviously important, Naruto remained Minato’s son.

Naturally, his son’s safety mattered even more to him personally.

Naruto was also one of the combatants being prepared for the future battle against Isshiki.

That made Minato increasingly nervous.

If something happened to Naruto during training, the consequences would be difficult to accept.

Of course, Minato also understood that with Kenichi around, Isshiki should not be able to overturn everything easily.

Still...

There was no such thing as being too careful.

"Of course the training continues."

Kenichi looked at Minato in confusion.

"There’s no question about that."

"Why are you suddenly asking?"

The instructors Kenichi had arranged for Naruto were Hashirama, Tobirama, Hiruzen, and Jiraiya.

Jiraiya was temporarily absent.

But honestly, Kenichi did not think Jiraiya had that much left to teach Naruto at this stage anyway.

Kenichi himself also guided Naruto from time to time.

So Jiraiya’s absence was not a major problem.

Naruto’s training still needed to continue for quite a while.

"Recently, I noticed that Lord First Hokage’s method of training Naruto is... somewhat unusual."

Minato looked worried.

"So I’m a little concerned."

Kenichi’s mouth twitched.

Hashirama?

Well...

If Hashirama was involved, then something strange happening was not particularly surprising.

The First Hokage had always possessed a carefree personality.

His teaching methods could easily become somewhat unconventional.

Still, Hashirama’s strength was unquestionable.

He could certainly help Naruto improve his understanding and mastery of Sage Mode.

Of course, Kenichi also knew that Naruto’s most important future breakthrough depended on something else entirely.

Kurama.

Naruto needed to build a genuinely cooperative relationship with the Nine-Tails sealed inside him.

Kenichi had previously used overwhelming force to suppress Kurama and make the fox behave.

But fear and obedience were not the same thing as cooperation.

Ultimately, Naruto himself needed to win Kurama over.

And on that point, Kenichi was extremely confident.

Naruto had grown into a strong and optimistic person despite being raised in an unbelievably harsh environment.

If anyone could break through Kurama’s resentment, Kenichi believed Naruto could.

There was an expression from Kenichi’s previous life that fit him perfectly.

Sincerity was the ultimate move.

"Relax a little, Brother Minato."

Kenichi gave him a wry smile.

"If you saw how Madara trains Sasuke, you’d probably be even more devastated."

Compared with Madara’s brutal methods, Naruto’s current training could almost be considered comfortable.

Kenichi genuinely wondered whether Madara was taking all the frustration he felt after discovering that Black Zetsu had manipulated him and venting it onto Sasuke.

Whatever the reason, Madara’s current training regimen for Sasuke was brutal enough to make almost anyone who witnessed it feel sympathy.

"I actually know a little about that."

Minato’s expression became strange.

"Mikoto mentioned it when she came over to talk with Kushina."

Clearly, even Sasuke’s mother had noticed just how terrifying her son’s training had become.

....

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