Naruto Time Control

Chapter 301

Chapter 301Jiraiya turned his head with great effort, looking toward the source of the voice.

There, he saw three figures approaching, led by a boy around twelve or thirteen years old.

The boy had white hair and two red dots on his forehead between his eyebrows. He watched Jiraiya with extreme vigilance, clutching smooth white bones in his hands.

It was Kimimaro Kaguya.

Behind him...

Orochimaru leaned against the shoulder of another twelve-year-old boy.

The Sannin's face was deathly pale, and both his chakra and breathing were weak and erratic; he appeared to be severely wounded.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru locked eyes. Neither had expected to encounter the other here, let alone in such a pitiful state.

"Did you... encounter him as well?"

Orochimaru spoke to Jiraiya in a raspy, thin voice. He struggled to pull his hand from the boy's shoulder and commanded, "Haku, tend to his injuries.""I understand."

Originally, Haku was destined to serve Zabuza, but thanks to Yeruashi’s intervention, Orochimaru had found him first. As a result, Haku had become the Sannin's follower instead.

Haku nodded and immediately hurried to Jiraiya, beginning a focused examination of his wounds.

As the examination progressed, Haku's expression grew grim. "Lord Orochimaru, his injuries are far too severe. I lack the skills to handle this."

"Cough... cough... it's fine..."

Jiraiya spat out several mouthfuls of blood and addressed Haku, "Just help me... perform the Summoning Technique..."

Haku glanced at Orochimaru, and upon receiving his silent approval, he pulled Kimimaro’s bones away from Jiraiya's reach and helped lift his arms.

With Haku’s assistance, Jiraiya pressed his palms against the earth and activated the Summoning Technique.

Poof!

A small toad appeared and cried out in shock at the sight of Jiraiya's battered body, "Jiraiya, what happened to you..."

Jiraiya didn't bother with the details. "Just help me first..."

"Understood."

The toad nodded and lashed out with its long tongue, wrapping it around Jiraiya’s wrist.

Vibrant emerald chakra flowed through the tongue into Jiraiya’s body, instantly preventing his condition from worsening.

After the first aid was administered, Jiraiya’s face looked less deathly, and he finally stopped coughing up blood. "Ugh, Yeruashi was far too ruthless... But what happened to you?"

Orochimaru was stunned. "Yeruashi did this? Is he actually here?!"

He had initially assumed that Jiraiya had run into the same opponent he had faced, but now it seemed that wasn't the case.

"Ah..."

Jiraiya was equally surprised by Orochimaru’s reaction. "Yeruashi is only a few dozen kilometers from here."

He certainly wasn't going to explain the humiliating circumstances of his injury, so he quickly changed the subject, eyeing Orochimaru intently. "How can you be in such a state? Who did you cross?"

"He was a very interesting and powerful individual."

Orochimaru spoke in a hoarse whisper. "I had never encountered chakra like that before and wanted to capture him for experimentation, but as a result..."

The Sannin didn't elaborate on what had followed.

That unusual man had come to his base. Orochimaru had intended to capture him for research, but instead, the Sannin had been easily defeated, and his base had been utterly leveled.

Fortunately, Kimimaro and Haku had been out on a mission away from the base at the time. He had relied on the Cursed Seal on Haku’s body to reconstruct his physical form and was searching for a safe place to recover when he unexpectedly stumbled upon Jiraiya.

Due to Orochimaru's weakened state, Kimimaro had been on high alert and instinctively viewed Jiraiya as a threat, attacking him with several bone spears without a second thought.

If Orochimaru hadn't sensed Jiraiya’s chakra and ordered Kimimaro to redirect his attack at the last second, one of the Sannins might have actually died at the hands of a twelve-year-old.

"That person must be truly strong if even you couldn't beat him."

Jiraiya looked at Orochimaru in shock.

As one of the Sannin, Jiraiya understood exactly how powerful Orochimaru was. There weren't many shinobi in the world capable of besting him, let alone leaving him near death, especially since Orochimaru possessed such incredible regeneration and survival skills that allowed him to retreat from almost any opponent.

But this time, Orochimaru was clearly devastated.

His chakra and physical body were in an extremely fragile state.

Jiraiya couldn't remember the last time he had seen Orochimaru so broken.

"Where exactly is Yeruashi?"

Orochimaru asked Jiraiya, his voice barely a whisper.

Jiraiya struggled to sit up, leaning against a tree, and pointed in the direction he had just come from. "There, in a town a few dozen kilometers away..."

"I’m going to see Yeruashi. Are you coming?"

As Orochimaru asked this, his gaze turned strange.

The Sannin could already guess the circumstances under which his old teammate had been wounded and thrown dozens of kilometers by Yeruashi. Orochimaru didn't think Jiraiya was brave enough to provoke Yeruashi on purpose; it was more likely he just had the terrible luck of running into the man under the worst possible conditions.

"I'm not going back there."

Jiraiya let out a heavy sigh.

He wanted to live for a few more years and write a few more bestsellers.

'I didn't even get to see anything...'

Jiraiya whispered quietly, feeling a deep sense of grievance and injustice.

But at that moment, a cold voice suddenly reached his ears: "If you had seen anything... you would have already departed for the Pure Land."

Upon hearing that voice, Jiraiya felt a chill race down his entire spine.

Haku, standing nearby, tensed up instantly and instinctively drew a kunai. Someone had managed to close in on them at such a short distance without a single sign!

Kimimaro reacted even more decisively, immediately hurling two bone spears toward the appearing figure.

Thud! Thud!!

Yeruashi, dressed in a white robe, raised his hand and flicked away the bone spears thrown by Kimimaro with a single finger.

Kimimaro’s eyes widened in shock.

He immediately produced two more bone spears and gripped them tightly, watching Yeruashi with extreme caution and tension.

This man was incredibly strong!

Considering his sudden appearance had completely eluded the perception of both Kimimaro and Haku, one could only conclude that he was a master of stealth. But by deflecting Kimimaro's spears with a mere flick of his finger, he had demonstrated immense power.

His bones could pierce through steel, yet this man had brushed them aside as if they were nothing!

That speed and strength were terrifying!

"..."

Yeruashi didn't care about Kimimaro's sudden attack at all.

He had simply intended to check on Jiraiya's state after sending him flying dozens of kilometers, but he had unexpectedly sensed Orochimaru's presence and realized that he, too, was severely injured, so he had quickly donned his robe and hurried over.

Swish!

Yeruashi’s figure vanished and reappeared directly in front of Orochimaru.

"!!"

Kimimaro, standing right next to Orochimaru, jerked in surprise.

That speed...

In a situation where it was unclear whether he was friend or foe, Kimimaro lunged forward with his bone spear, trying to force Yeruashi away from Orochimaru.