Hiruzen Sarutobi had already regarded Jiraiya as his successor.
For Jiraiya to gain access to the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques and grow even stronger—this was undoubtedly excellent news! After all, Jiraiya's Will of Fire burned intensely, and his sense of belonging and loyalty to the village was unwavering. There was no chance he would ever do anything to harm Konoha's interests.
Moreover, there was another reason. If Jiraiya mastered the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques, wouldn't that essentially mean Hiruzen himself would gain access to them as well? As long as he asked Jiraiya, it was unlikely Jiraiya would refuse.
Hiruzen had always been deeply interested in the Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques. During the invasion of Uzushiogakure, Konoha's shinobi had joined the attack under disguised identities with the specific goal of obtaining these powerful techniques. However, the Uzumaki shinobi had foreseen the danger and transferred both their clan members and their most important scrolls beforehand. As a result, after Uzushiogakure fell, the major shinobi villages only managed to acquire some basic sealing techniques. The truly advanced ones remained out of reach.
Hiruzen had long known that Uzumaki Mito held the clan's most powerful sealing techniques. But with the Nine-Tails sealed within her, he wouldn't dare try to forcibly obtain them, no matter how tempting.
Now that Uzumaki Mito had willingly passed those techniques to Jiraiya, it was an unexpected boon. This meant that Hiruzen himself could potentially learn them in the future.
In the original story, Hiruzen's Dead Demon Consuming Seal was learned from Kushina Uzumaki, who had in turn been taught by Mito. Kushina had lived with Mito for some time after being brought to Konoha.
"Sensei, I want to learn the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu," Jiraiya said directly to Hiruzen.
"Why do you want to learn this technique? The Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu consumes a massive amount of chakra when used. If you're not careful, it could lead to chakra depletion and death. When the Second Hokage created this technique, it was tailored to his own immense chakra reserves. He never intended for shinobi with low chakra reserves to use it."
Hiruzen frowned as he responded. Since taking office, he had allowed a few chakra-rich shinobi to train with the technique, but without exception, all of them had died from chakra exhaustion. This was why the jutsu was classified as forbidden and strictly prohibited for most Konoha shinobi.
Jiraiya was a prodigy Hiruzen valued highly. He certainly didn't want Jiraiya experimenting with such a dangerous technique. If anything happened to Jiraiya, it would be an enormous loss for Konoha.
"Sensei, I've heard about the dangers of this jutsu, but my chakra reserves far exceed those of a typical jonin. Even the Great Toad Sages of Mount Myoboku have marveled at my chakra and declared that I possess the Sage Body."
Jiraiya revealed this information, deciding there was no longer any reason to hide his unique constitution. With his current strength, he didn't fear being targeted for research. Even if Hiruzen himself attacked, Jiraiya was confident he could escape once he entered Sage Mode.
"What?!"
Hiruzen's eyes widened in shock. He stood abruptly from his chair, staring at Jiraiya in disbelief.
"I don't know exactly what the Sage Body is, but the elder sages of Mount Myoboku said I have this kind of constitution," Jiraiya explained.
Hiruzen and Danzo had previously speculated that Jiraiya had awakened some kind of kekkei genkai, given his rapid growth in strength. But despite their prolonged observations, Jiraiya had never displayed any specific kekkei genkai abilities, leaving them puzzled.
Now that Jiraiya revealed he possessed the Sage Body, everything made sense. The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju—revered as the God of Shinobi—also had this body type. Although much of his power stemmed from his mastery of Wood Release, the Sage Body played an indispensable role.
Hiruzen's initial shock quickly turned into joy. With the Sage Body, Jiraiya had the potential to become an unparalleled powerhouse. Even if he didn't reach Hashirama's level, he could still achieve incredible heights and push Konoha to a new era of strength. He could become a hero remembered for generations.
As Jiraiya's teacher, Hiruzen believed his own legacy would also be elevated alongside Jiraiya's accomplishments.
"If the Great Toad Sages have recognized your Sage Body, then there's no doubt about it. You're qualified to train in the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu," Hiruzen said, suppressing his excitement as he sat back down.
The Sage Body was characterized by its vast chakra reserves, making it perfectly suited for this technique. Hiruzen summoned a scroll, tossing it to Jiraiya.
"This contains the instructions for the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu. Once you've mastered it, you're forbidden to share it with anyone else without my permission."
"Don't worry, Sensei. I would never recklessly pass it on to others," Jiraiya assured him. He opened the scroll, memorized the technique's details, and then set it back on the desk.
"You've just returned from your training at Mount Myoboku. Rest well tonight. Tomorrow morning, you'll head out to complete this mission," Hiruzen said, handing Jiraiya another scroll.
Jiraiya opened it and saw it was a reconnaissance mission near the border. Clearly, Hiruzen was aware of the Sage Body's exceptional sensory abilities. As he said, there was no one more suited to the task than Jiraiya.
"And one more thing—I've been telling you to visit your teacher's wife, but you've yet to do so. Go to my home and pay her a visit now," Hiruzen added with a laugh.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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