Apprentices

At the end of the gathering, Shimura Danzō still did not appear. It was assumed that something unexpected had occurred, and he had to deal with it. Sometimes the ANBU organization faced such situations. Therefore, even though Danzo didn't show up, the others didn't blame him for failing to uphold the agreement and sympathized with the weight of his responsibilities.

Once the arrangements to have the students meet each other were completed, people left one by one. Fumori Masaki paused, watching Uchiha Kagami bid farewell and leave, and he had an urge to share his suspicions with him.

However, when he thought of Kagami's contentment with the recent state of his clan, Masaki hesitated. Should he tell him? Kagami still maintained an optimistic attitude towards his people, and he seemed to genuinely believe that the changes in the Uchiha were for the better. He might prefer to trust in those changes, rather than suspecting ulterior motives.

Better to observe things for now and wait for solid evidence. Right now, there's no clear fault in Uchiha Setsuna's actions. If Kagami refuses to believe Masaki, it could strain their relationship, Masaki thought to himself. He decided to meet with Uchiha Setsuna in the future to confirm his intentions. If Setsuna's goals were as he suspected, then Black Zetsu would soon begin to take action.

In terms of combat strength, Black Zetsu wasn't particularly formidable. During the Fourth Great Ninja War, he borrowed the power of Wood Release to engage in a stalemate with the ninjas led by the Fifth Mizukage, only to eventually be defeated by Chōjūrō. If FMasaki's guesses were correct, Black Zetsu's Wood Release was derived from Uchiha Madara's research on Hashirama's cells. It's unlikely Black Zetsu had learned Wood Release now, meaning his combat strength would be even lower.

That said, his weak combat abilities only applied to direct confrontations. Black Zetsu possessed powerful skills in other areas, particularly his ability to blend with the ground undetected. Thanks to this stealth ability, he was able to manipulate Uchiha Obito into resurrecting Uchiha Madara, sneak behind Madara, and guide the revival of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Even though Madara let his guard down, believing Black Zetsu to be an extension of his own will, it demonstrated the potency of Black Zetsu's stealth.

Letting such a figure roam free was dangerous. Once Black Zetsu made his move, they had to fully contain him. Without him sowing discord, the relationship between the Senju and Uchiha clans might have endured peacefully for centuries. Who knows? Perhaps hundreds of years ago, the reincarnations of Indra and Asura could have found peace.

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In a future training field, three figures stood. One was Jiraiya, and the other two were a long, black-haired boy and a girl with short hair. Jiraiya, being rather impatient, had brought his companions early, even before their teacher, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had arrived.

"Jiraiya, what kind of students of our sensei's classmates?" the girl asked.

After Tsunade was accepted as a student by Masaki, Hiruzen naturally took on a new student as well. The girl speaking now, Asuka, was that new student. Like Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Asuka was also from civilian family. She was talented, ranking in the middle of her class, though she couldn't quite match those from prominent ninja clans.

"Last time I saw some students from sensei's friend, there was a girl with blonde hair, a boy with white hair, and a short kid," Jiraiya replied.

"Hmph. That's just their appearance," Asuka said, unimpressed.

"I didn't really interact with the other two, but I do know that girl has a terrible temper," Jiraiya said, clearly still traumatized by his encounter with Tsunade.

"You probably provoked her," Asuka teased. She knew Jiraiya well enough to understand why people might want to hit him. Even she had the urge to smack him from time to time.

"We're from the same group, don't side with her!" Jiraiya wailed in mock frustration.

"You don't exactly inspire confidence," Asuka retorted.

At that moment, Orochimaru, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. "Jiraiya, what about their strength? Could you tell anything from what you saw?"

"Strength? How would I know? I didn't fight them," Jiraiya replied, rolling his eyes.

"Even if you didn't fight them, you must have some impression," Orochimaru pressed.

"I'm telling you, I don't know. If you're so curious, why don't you try and figure it out yourself?" Jiraiya shot back.

Orochimaru turned to face the tree nearby, and for a moment, his pale skin and long black hair gave him an eerie appearance. From behind the tree, a figure hung upside down, silently observing them. Orochimaru, calm as ever, was the first to notice, but soon Asuka and Jiraiya also turned to see the upside-down figure.

"Aren't you that short guy from the hospital?" Jiraiya exclaimed.

"How rude," the person hanging from the tree—Hattori Heizo—remarked. "How old are you, kid?"

"Uh, six. What's it to you?" Jiraiya answered, confused.

"I'm eight. I'm older than you, so show some respect, brat," Hattori Heizo said before flipping down from the tree and disappearing in a flash.

Orochimaru turned his head again, noticing that Heizo had reappeared on the opposite side of the clearing. "You've got some strength, but those two are weaker, especially you, brat," Heizo said, directing his words at Jiraiya.

"What?!" Jiraiya, now provoked, was about to charge at Heizo, but Orochimaru stopped him.

"He's right. Don't make things worse for yourself, Jiraiya," Orochimaru said flatly, though his eyes were serious.

Deep down, Jiraiya knew that Heizo's skills exceeded his own. The boy's movements were precise and quick, far beyond Jiraiya's current ability. Still, Jiraiya wasn't ready to admit defeat. He only backed down because of Orochimaru's intervention. Stupid Orochimaru, Jiraiya thought bitterly. If they had been alone, he would have made a face at him.

Moments later, Tsunade and Sakumo Hatake entered through the gate of the training field. Heizo greeted them.

"Heizo, why are you here so fast?" Tsunade asked.

"I was just testing their abilities. Since they're also students of sensei's friend, I figured they wouldn't be too bad," Heizo replied. "But this kid here," he gestured to Jiraiya, "is clearly the weakest."

Tsunade's expression turned into a smirk. "No wonder. He's never focused on training seriously, so it's no surprise he's weak."

"Just you wait! One day, you'll all respect my strength!" Jiraiya declared, trying to sound confident.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll believe it when I see it," Tsunade said, unimpressed.