"Old man, why did you call us back in such a hurry?"
"Don't tell me it's to choose the next Hokage? If it's for something as stupid as that, there was no need to call me back."
Across from the man and woman speaking stood a slightly hunched elderly man.
He was none other than the current Hokage of Konoha, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Normally, Hiruzen would have laughed off such remarks from his students.
But this time, his expression was serious, and he sat upright.
"That's part of it, but... it's not the main reason."
As soon as he finished speaking, Tsunade, who had been standing in front of Hiruzen, turned to leave, while Jiraiya yawned boredly.
"Orochimaru is back."
Hiruzen's words made Tsunade pause mid-step.
Jiraiya, on the other hand, reacted dramatically, his mouth hanging open in exaggerated surprise, "What did you say? Orochimaru is back? Where is that guy?"
"Even if that bastard is back, it has nothing to do with us. The title of the Sannin has long been irrelevant."
With that, Tsunade continued to walk away.
Hiruzen sighed, "Don't be so hasty. Let me explain."
---
"So... old man, you're saying Orochimaru is targeting Sasuke and might infiltrate Konoha? Does he want to experiment with the Sharingan?"
"The Uchiha Clan should have been wiped out long ago. Leaving one child behind won't cause any trouble."
Hiruzen shook his head, "That child has already awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan, and he's only twelve years old."
Hearing this, Tsunade, who had been mocking earlier, fell silent.
A twelve-year-old with the three-tomoe Sharingan was indeed impressive.
"Old man, you called us back just to deal with Orochimaru? Konoha is so big. Can't one Orochimaru..."
Jiraiya said, but all he saw was Hiruzen's face full of age spots... the pair of eyes looking at him calmly.
"Well, Konoha really doesn't have anyone else who can handle Orochimaru right now."
The conversation fell into a brief silence.
At this time, Tsunade spoke up, "I'm not interested in this. I'm more interested in Konoha's gambling dens. I won't play this stupid Hokage game with you."
Hiruzen sighed, "When did Tsunade become like this?"
Jiraiya glanced at Hiruzen, "After Nawaki and Dan died..."
Bang!!!
Tsunade stormed out, her strength causing the already battered door to creak dangerously.
Then... teacher and student sat in silence, staring at each other.
Jiraiya glanced at the shadows following Tsunade and sighed. "You know she hates being followed by Anbu."
Hiruzen shook his head and said, "No... this isn't about following her. It's about clearing the area of spies."
"These are critical times. The news of your return can't leak."
Jiraiya frowned and asked, "Isn't she going to the gambling dens? Those places are crowded. How can it not leak?"
Hiruzen shook his head again, "This is Konoha's gambling den. She's been in debt for decades. Do you think she'd dare to walk in openly?"
Jiraiya suddenly laughed in relief.
"Classic you, old man! Thinking so far ahead! I was just wondering what she'd do if she didn't go to the gambling dens... but as the legendary 'Sucker,' not going to the gambling dens just isn't her style."
---
At this point, Hiruzen skillfully opened his phone and directly clicked on the final level of Volume 3.
He pushed it toward Jiraiya and said, "Take a look. You'll understand what will happen in the future."
"The future?"
Jiraiya caught the keyword and took the rectangular device Hiruzen handed him.
"What is this thing?"
---
On the day of the Chunin Exams, after sending his students into the exam hall, Kakashi and the other Jonin Instructors waited in the lounge.
Bored out of his mind, Asuma, after finishing his cigarette, pulled out his phone and called out, "Kakashi, want to play a round?"
At that moment, for some reason, Guy shouted excitedly, "Aha! Kakashi is my rival! I should be the one to challenge him first!"
Asuma rolled his eyes. "You should focus on beating the AIs in the practice matches first. I've never seen someone struggle so much with the story mode."
Despite being called out, Guy laughed, "Haha! As long as I keep persevering and working hard, I'll surpass you all eventually! Especially you, Kakashi!"
"Ahh~ Well, keep at it. I'm going to play a couple of ranked matches first."
Kurenai, who had been watching the scene, chuckled, "You guys really do act like the kids about to take the Chunin Exams."
Then she also pulled out her phone, "Well, if you don't mind, I'll take you on."
That's right, thanks to Kakashi's relentless efforts, most of Konoha's top-tier fighters now had a phone.
Of course, the main reason was the report Kakashi had submitted to Hiruzen.
It detailed how the items in the Points Mall could bring about such powerful changes for Ninjas!
Though most of the information came from records Kakashi had later asked Yuto for.
After hearing Kakashi describe Sasuke's changes, Yuto fell silent.
Although Sasuke had always been a bit of a drama queen, earning him the nickname 'Crazy Avenger,' according to Kakashi's account, Sasuke's behavior wasn't just dramatic anymore… It was outright delusional.
Yuto is confused by this. After all, he knew Sasuke should have been relatively normal at this point.
But after hearing that Sasuke had already awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan, he understood why Sasuke had gone off the deep end early.
'Oh, so his brain got overstimulated... that makes sense.'
'But why had Sasuke awakened his Sharingan so early?'
After Kakashi explained the whole story, Yuto fell silent again.
He opened his mouth to say something, then thought better of it and silently patted Kakashi on the shoulder.
"You did well. Just... don't do it again. I'm afraid Sasuke might not make it to his reunion with Itachi."
"Huh?"
---
"The first exam is over. Naruto and the others did pretty well, huh..."
"Yeah, that guy's answer was really unexpected. But the second exam is already underway. Is everyone in position?"
As the captain of the Torture and Interrogation Force, Morino Ibiki was pleased with Naruto but also worried about the upcoming battles.
"Jiraiya-sama is already preparing. Let's go too. Oh, and the Anbu should be sealing off the Forest of Death by now. Make sure Orochimaru doesn't escape!"