"I understand your situation, Kaede. You're now a direct special Jōnin assigned to the frontlines. Go ahead and get some rest for now. When the time is right, you'll be given a mission," Jiraiya said to Kaede.
Although Jiraiya wasn't keen on relying too much on Kaede's strength, he understood the bigger picture. He couldn't afford to let such a powerful asset like Kaede sit idle, depleting Konoha's fighting force. So, he would soon draft a comprehensive battle plan, launching an all-out assault on Sunagakure. With Kaede's presence and the destruction of their surprise attack plan, the chances of victory were greatly increased.
"Got it," Kaede nodded.
He was indeed ready to rest. After running from the camp in the Land of Grass, and even rescuing Yūhi Kurenai along the way, his body could recover with the Time Reversal technique, but the mental exhaustion couldn't be alleviated in the same way. He needed rest to adjust his state.
Watching Kaede leave the tent, Jiraiya turned to Minato, shaking his head. "Next battle, don't lose to him, Minato."
Kaede, being Orochimaru's student, was younger than Minato. If Kaede outperformed him in the next battle, it would be an awkward situation for Minato when facing Orochimaru later.
Jiraiya's thoughts were simple. He himself didn't want to be Hokage, and he knew both Orochimaru and Minato were vying for the position. One was his student, the other his companion. Who became Hokage didn't matter too much to him, but he did care about whose student was more outstanding.
Minato chuckled. "He's an excellent ninja, but he won't surpass me. Maybe in the future, but not now, he's still too young."
"No." Jiraiya shook his head, looking at Minato. "Minato, don't underestimate him just because he's young. Not long ago, he single-handedly wiped out a squad of elite Sunagakure ninjas who were trying to sneak attack our rear in the Amegakure."
This was intel Jiraiya had just received, and Minato didn't know about it. Hearing it now, Minato couldn't help but look stunned.
"A squad trying to sneak attack our rear? How many ninjas?" Minato asked, his expression turning serious.
Jiraiya's eyes darkened as he spoke. "Nearly a hundred… at least ten were Jōnin."
"What?!" Minato's mind was in turmoil.
To single-handedly eliminate a squad of nearly a hundred elite ninjas, with at least ten Jōnin among them, he could do it using the Flying Thunder God technique, but he hadn't actually fought such a battle, so he couldn't be sure. The real question was: how had Kaede done it?
A force of that size, to be wiped out by a single person, meant one thing: every attack and limitation they could've used would have to have been rendered completely ineffective.
Using Flying Thunder God, Minato could achieve that, but Kaede, how had he done it? Kaede didn't seem like a high-defense type, and although his speed was extraordinary, it shouldn't be enough to negate every technique and limitation.
Could Kaede also use Flying Thunder God?
"I don't know how he did it, but the result is real," Jiraiya said, looking at the direction Kaede had disappeared. His voice was deep. "Even I couldn't do something like that. So while Kaede may be young, he's undeniably a monster. Don't treat him like a normal ninja."
The words were meant as a warning to Minato, not to underestimate Kaede.
As for whether he could do it... Jiraiya himself couldn't, but if he summoned the two sages from Mount Myōboku and entered Sage Mode, even a hundred elite ninjas wouldn't be a problem for him.
But even so, comparing it to his own abilities wasn't relevant, because he and Orochimaru were of the same generation. It would be natural for him to defeat Kaede. The real issue was if Minato were to lose out in terms of performance against Kaede, it would be quite troublesome.
"I'll take it seriously, Jiraiya-sensei," Minato nodded, his calm eyes now gleaming with a hint of determination.
Now he was serious.
Before hearing about Kaede's accomplishments in the Land of Grass, he'd just been curious about him. But now, after hearing about this particular feat, Minato truly realized his earlier judgment of Kaede was wrong. Kaede wasn't an immature ninja who still needed to grow, he was someone who had already caught up to him at this age!
Kakashi, Obito, and Rin, who hadn't left yet, were all stunned into silence.
They couldn't even speak.
Jiraiya's words were so unbelievable they seemed like something from a fantasy, a single person wiping out a squad of elite ninjas, nearly a hundred of them, ten Jōnin among them... what kind of reality was this?
Even Kakashi, who was on the verge of becoming a Jōnin himself, was still in shock.
Obito and Rin were still just Genin.
Even Kakashi, the closest to Kaede, had to pause and couldn't help but give a bitter smile.
Now, Kakashi was no longer afraid of facing Jōnin. After almost defeating one in a previous encounter, he knew he was almost at that level. But against someone like Kaede, there was no comparison.
"Kaede... is way too strong..." Rin murmured, her eyes wide with shock, her voice barely a whisper, as though it was all a dream.
…
Meanwhile, in Sunagakure's front-line camp, in the central command tent...
After several days of scouting, the reconnaissance team sent by Sunagakure found traces of Pakura and the others in the Amegakure. However, the traces left behind didn't provide any meaningful information.
The only thing they could confirm was that Pakura and her team were most likely wiped out.
There had been no survivors encountered so far. If even one person had survived, they should have made contact by now. But sadly, there was no word.
The news spread back, and the entire camp fell into a heavy silence.
"Impossible..." Chiyo's eyes were filled with disbelief.
She knew Pakura's strength well. SHe had led a squad of nearly a hundred elite ninjas, her combat ability was extremely high. Even if Konoha sent twice that number, they might not have been able to annihilate Pakura's team.
To completely wipe them out, ensuring no one escaped, they would need at least three times the number of elite ninjas. But it was impossible for Konoha to mobilize three hundred elite ninjas without Sunagakure noticing.
If that were the case, the war would have already been over.
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