Jiraiya understood what Ethan meant, but that wasn't what he was trying to say.

"I think you understand what I'm trying to get at."

Of course, Ethan understood. Jiraiya was concerned that Ethan had the ability to revive people, yet hadn't revived anyone from the Uchiha clan. If Sasuke saw Naruto reunited with his family, would he develop resentment toward Ethan or even toward Konoha?

There was no need to worry about Itachi. Given his circumstances, he wouldn't make such a request to Ethan. No matter how many reasons he had, he still wouldn't know how to face his own parents.

"You're overthinking it..."

"I hope that's all it is."

Ethan gave Jiraiya another look, certain he still hadn't grasped his true intent.

What Ethan really meant was: if Sasuke came to him and wanted his parents revived, he wouldn't refuse. Given that he had proactively brought Minato and Kushina back, he might even take the initiative to ask Sasuke if he wanted to do the same.

This had nothing to do with fairness or treating everyone equally. Compared to Naruto's family, whom he cared about because of the memories from his past life watching the anime, Sasuke was the person he'd interacted with the most in Konoha.

Helping Naruto was about changing the regrets from a story he once watched. Helping Sasuke was simply a matter of familiarity.

If Tsunade asked him to bring back Dan or Nawaki, maybe he'd consider it too?

The two of them continued chatting idly for a while, covering everything from food, to girls, to insights about ninjutsu. Ethan could even fluently talk about plot formulas in novel writing.

Given the themes of Jiraiya's novels, the conversation quickly turned wild, swerving down all sorts of questionable paths. If anyone happened to overhear them, they would definitely treat these two as dangerous men, warning all the women in their household to stay far away from them.

"I never imagined I'd find writing inspiration chatting with you. If I'd known earlier, I would've come to talk to you every day."

Jiraiya suddenly realized that his true kindred spirit in the entire village might actually be Ethan. Kakashi was just a reader at best. He was still far from being a kindred spirit.

Just as the two were drifting further and further off course in their conversation, Ethan suddenly stopped his endless string of questionable topics, put on a serious expression, and called out to Jiraiya.

"The signal just came through."

Though the two of them always looked unreliable, they were deadly serious when it mattered. One moment Jiraiya looked like a sleazy middle-aged man, and the next, he instantly turned back into the dignified Toad Sage.

"Let's go too."

First it was Itachi and Kisame infiltrating Konoha. Then, the Kazekage rescue mission. Now, it was Kakuzu and Hidan.

Konoha had already clashed with Akatsuki three times—four if you counted Ethan chasing Itachi. So far, Konoha had come out on top. Jiraiya didn't want to be outdone by a bunch of juniors.

He gathered his things and placed a hand on Ethan's shoulder. The next second, a dizzying sensation hit him. When his surroundings finally stabilized, he found himself in an open space, with a public restroom not far away.

"..."

Though he knew that underground bounty stations, for secrecy, would be placed where normal people wouldn't go, and that the stench from a public restroom could help mask the smell of corpses…

Knowing it was one thing. Seeing it in person was another. Jiraiya looked at the nearby building and felt mentally exhausted. He was just glad they hadn't appeared inside it.

He really didn't want to imagine what it would be like for multiple Kage-level ninja to battle inside a public restroom.

Ethan, standing next to him, heard Jiraiya mutter and couldn't help but picture the scene in his head. It was horrible. Just thinking about it was unbearable. Why did this guy have to open such a cursed door?

To shake the image from his mind, Ethan forced himself to focus on the scene in front of them.

Kakuzu and Hidan stood not far ahead. Behind them was the squad led by Asuma—except Asuma was clearly injured. Though not gravely hurt, he was bleeding.

"Sorry. I failed to complete the mission properly."

"It's fine."

It wasn't Asuma's fault. Though Kakuzu might have been a braggart, his strength was indeed far beyond that of a regular Jonin. In the original timeline, Kakashi couldn't defeat him alone. It was easy to understand why Asuma's team had ended up discovered and ambushed.

"But... you might be in trouble?"

"This minor wound is nothing."

What ninja doesn't get hurt? Forget the World Ninja Wars—even during routine missions, serious injuries and even death weren't uncommon. Even staying in the village training could lead to far worse injuries than a little cut on the face.

Ethan didn't say anything else. On the other side, Hidan had already started his act—drawing a strange symbol, licking the blood on his blade, and his body began undergoing a grotesque transformation. His skin turned pitch black, and white markings in the shape of a human skeleton appeared.

"Ethan, be careful. That guy's immortal."

"Yeah, I know." Ethan was fully aware that Hidan was immortal. But to him, that so-called immortality wasn't worth mentioning. "Besides, in this situation, you should be more worried about yourself than me."

"Me?"

Asuma was confused. Since Ethan had arrived, he had repeatedly told him he was in big trouble. Although he looked rough on the outside, that didn't mean he was careless. As an experienced Jonin, how could he not realize if something was wrong?

He thought back over everything that had happened, including Hidan's earlier actions, and gently touched the scratch on his cheek that was still oozing a small drop of blood.

"You mean..."

"Exactly."

Hidan, not far away, seemed to sense what Asuma was about to say. He pulled out a long, pointed spear from under his coat and answered Asuma's question with a sinister smile.

"You're already dead!"

Hidan thrust the spear into his own heart with brutal force. Because they were a short distance apart, and no one expected such a suicidal move, no one reacted in time. They could only watch as the spear pierced through Hidan's chest.

Only Ethan, at the very moment Hidan raised his spear, casually drew the long sword at his waist and slashed toward the space between Hidan and Asuma. It looked like a simple, effortless motion.

The two actions happened almost simultaneously, though Ethan's slash landed just a bit faster. A second later, Hidan had already impaled himself.

"Hahahahahaha! Accept God's punishment!" Hidan roared with laughter, the spear still lodged in his chest. Then, he waited calmly for Asuma to die, ready to savor the horrified expressions of the Leaf ninja.

"..."

But nothing happened. The scene he was anticipating never came.

Asuma was still standing there, alert and tense, while the young man beside him looked at him like he was an idiot.

"What's going on?"

Hidan suddenly recalled that Ethan had swung his sword a moment ago. Could it have disrupted the ritual?

"That's impossible!"

Ethan stood casually with his arms crossed, his long sword loosely held in one hand. Even more insulting, the sheath still had the price tag dangling off it, clearly showing that it was just something he picked up on the roadside. Aside from the time he used it to slash the Reaper, it had been lying around forgotten. Of course he never remembered to remove the tag.

Kakuzu saw Hidan's stunned expression and immediately realized they might be in serious trouble this time.

"Jiraiya of the Three Sannin, and that kid who killed Uchiha Itachi... the Leaf really pulled out all the stops for this."

Ever since Ethan killed Itachi, he had become a high-priority target for Akatsuki, with a threat rating even higher than Orochimaru's—after all, even Orochimaru couldn't defeat Itachi.

From Kisame and Zetsu's reports, they knew he was a super-genius who used Wood Style and wielded terrifying techniques similar to Susanoo. It was unbelievable how someone so young could have reached this level.

Still, none of the Akatsuki members feared him. In fact, many were eager to take him down and prove their own power.

Kakuzu was no exception. Unfortunately, Ethan wasn't well known outside, so he had no bounty on his head.

"What a shame. I thought I could cash in. But running into Jiraiya of the Three Sannin is lucky enough."

Only then did Jiraiya realize he was being underestimated. If it were just some clueless civilian, fine. But being dismissed by another ninja? That felt… unpleasant.

"Ethan, leave this guy to me..."

Jiraiya had intended to display the dignity of a Sannin. But unexpectedly, Ethan frowned and gave him a disgruntled glare, forcing him to swallow his unfinished sentence.

"What?"

"Because of you, that disgusting image won't leave my head."

"..."

Jiraiya was speechless. Was this really the time and place to bring that up?

"...Fine. My bad!"

"Forget it. Let's just destroy this place. It's not worth preserving anyway."

Ethan couldn't help but wonder how these underground bounty stations kept popping up. How strong must their backers be to dare put bounties on high-level ninja?

But regardless of their background, this particular station, hidden beside a public restroom, was doomed today.

"If my mind's already been tainted with such a disgusting scene, we might as well go all out and fight here!" As Ethan swung his long sword, searing flames erupted from the blade.

"All creation, turn to ash!"

(To be continued.)

◇◇◇

◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.

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