I just returned to Konoha and found that all my clan members were gone.

"There is an Uchiha site nearby. I need to investigate. You go first."

Not long after the team set off, Ye Lan spoke.

The mystery of Uchiha is about to be revealed, and Ye Lan can't help but feel a little anxious, so he finds an excuse to leave the team.

"Yeah, well, hurry up then, we'll meet up in Konoha."

Asuma was a little surprised by Ye Lan's excuse for leaving the team, but he still agreed. This kind of private action was not allowed during the mission.

They all knew Ye Lan's surname as Uchiha, and the mission had been completed, so he couldn't refuse Ye Lan's reason for inspecting the ruins.

After seeing Asuma's agreement, Ye Lan left the team directly. This time he did not bring Sasuke with him. It would be too suspicious for two people to leave together.

"Is this really good?"

Hong came to Asuma and left the team to take care of personal matters, which was not allowed during the mission.

"It should be fine..."

Asuma murmured as he watched Ye Lan leaving.

The rest of Ino and others could not get a word in and could only watch Ye Lan leave in silence. Only Sasuke guessed what Ye Lan was thinking.

He suppressed his desire to explore and continued to move forward with the team.

...

Tang Country

In addition to the Water Country, this country is also a country that has separated from the Ninja Continent.

Although the country is poor and there are countless cases of robbery and theft, there have been almost no major wars here because it is far away from the mainland.

A figure in a robe came to a tourist attraction in the Land of Hot Springs and found a small shop to go in and prepare lunch.

When she saw a familiar figure, she immediately wanted to turn around and run away, but when she heard the two people chatting, she found a corner and sat down.

These two people have only seen me a few times, so there shouldn't be any danger.

The person wearing the cloak is Tayuya.

When it was swallowed by the Ten Thousand Snakes, it was not digested in time by the Ten Thousand Snakes due to the state of Curse Seal 2.

After Ye Lan killed Wanshe, she crawled out of Wanshe's esophagus with her will to survive.

When she came out, all the fighting had subsided. She had completely given up on Orochimaru and instead came to the Land of Hot Springs, far away from the center of the Ninja World.

The person he met in the shop this time was Jiraiya, who was training with Naruto.

Without Orochimaru, Tayuya would have no source of intelligence. She didn't realize it before, but after surviving alone, Tayuya also understood the importance of intelligence, so she simply stole some intelligence here.

"Naruto, you have to hurry up and train. I heard that the second Chunin Exam has already started. I guess your classmates have all been promoted to Chunin."

Jiraiya admonished Naruto that Naruto's training progress was really giving him a headache.

Without any competitors, the boy's progress slowed down significantly. I'm not a very demanding teacher, so I can only use my classmates to stimulate him.

"What! The second Chunin Exam has begun! Lecherous Sage, let's get back to Konoha as soon as possible. I want to become a Chunin!"

Naruto got excited remembering his first Chunin Exam.

"It's too late even if you go back now. The exams are probably over. And how many times have I told you not to call me a lecherous immortal?"

Jiraiya said angrily that according to seniority, he was this kid's master, but this kid refused to change no matter how many times he said it.

"Why are you telling me now? My chance to become a Chunin is gone!"

"Humph, you don't even have enough basics to become a Chunin! And I heard from Tsunade that Sasuke is almost going to become a Jonin!"

Jiraiya has been in contact with Tsunade all the time, and although he doesn't have a complete understanding of the situation in the village, he has a pretty good idea of ​​it.

"Jounin! Like Kakashi-sensei?"

Naruto was really surprised this time. He thought it was natural for his classmate to become a Chunin. It had been almost a year since he and Jiraiya came out, so he was very clear about the strength of other ninjas in the ninja world.

It was just that Sasuke becoming a jonin so quickly made him a little jealous and dissatisfied. We all graduated together, how come you became a jonin so quickly.

"That's right. If you see Sasuke when you return to the village, you must use honorifics. After all, you are only a Genin."

Jiraiya said jokingly.

"Ahhh! How could this happen!" Naruto scratched his head, and his already messy hair had been scratched into a mess by him.

This is exactly the effect Jiraiya wanted, so that Naruto could work harder for a while.

But thinking of this trip, he couldn't help but sigh and talk to himself.

"I originally wanted to come to the Land of Hot Springs to get some ingredients, but I didn't expect the most famous hot spring in the Land of Hot Springs to be closed."

"It has nothing to do with this! Lecherous Immortal, I need to practice!"

Naruto stood up, he had no time to waste now.

"Collecting materials is also a part of training, but how long do these people next to you want to eavesdrop?"

Jiraiya fixed his eyes and spoke to the people at the table next to him.

Tayuya was startled, thinking she was discovered, but to her surprise, the people sitting next to Jiraiya stood up.

The leader looked to be less than 20 years old and was handsome, but a scar on his face reduced his good looks.

At this moment the man spoke slowly.

"As expected of Jiraiya, the Toad Sage, one of the Three Ninjas. It is true that we have a reason why you cannot enjoy the hot springs in the Land of Hot Springs, but we also have our reasons for doing this."

"Xiu, you were originally a jonin of Yugakure, but you killed the nobles who provided funds for the village. Yugakure has also issued an S-rank wanted order for you. What reason do you have for doing such a thing?"

Jiraiya hated this kind of traitorous ninja the most, not to mention killing such nobles who provided tasks for the village. They were simply not worthy of being ninjas.

Xiu sneered and said, "Just because they are the source of funds for the village, they can do whatever they want? Haven't they killed enough people? Konoha, which has always been known for its peace and justice, made a judgment so easily?"

Xiu killed Mo Zi's mother's family. Not only did he slaughter all the members of the clan, but he also scattered all their land and property into the hands of those who could not afford to eat.

Jiraiya couldn't take a hot spring bath when he came to Hot Spring Country because the hot spring here was originally opened by Mo Zi's mother's family, but everyone there died, so naturally no one was taking care of it.

(For those who don’t know about Mozi and Xiu, please refer to Chapter 47.)

"I don't know why you did this, but betraying the village is the most unforgivable act in the ninja world!"

Jiraiya was a little dissatisfied. It had been a long time since anyone except Naruto dared to talk to him like this. Did they really think that his title of the Three Ninjas was given for nothing?

"The so-called rules are just made by you. Even though I have asked for help from the village leaders many times, they just turned a blind eye. To them, the lives of the nobles are the most important, and the lives of us ninjas and civilians are not lives at all!"

Xiu looked very excited. He had run around the village in search of help. Even as a senior ninja, he could not change the rules. He could only watch An's family die tragically and be labeled a traitor to the village.

Even some of his companions left him one after another, and the village leaders tried to persuade him from time to time. Xiu had almost given up until the news came that Kakuzu had killed Mozi's family.

The fire in Xiu's heart that was about to go out was reignited. Since the village couldn't help him, he had to do it himself, so he launched this series of actions.

Naruto watched the conversation between the two and felt a little overwhelmed. This complicated matter made him have no idea how to deal with it. He only remembered that a ninja's life is not a life.

I wonder why the other party would say that. Becoming a ninja is something that every child in Konoha feels honored and yearns for, so why did it become like this in his mouth?

Looking at Jiraiya, I found that he was also speechless. This problem was something that all ninjas understood but dared not face directly.

"Xiu! How dare you be in Tangyin!"

At this time, the nearby Yugakure ninja heard the commotion and rushed over. As soon as they arrived, they found Xiu, who was labeled as a traitor.

"Master Jiraiya, goodbye!"

Xiu bowed slightly to Jiraiya, which was the final respect for the strong. He turned around, took out a kunai, looked at the two companions who were still following him and said.

"Kill out!"