Bab 68: Chapter 68: Last Minute Changes Are Never Appreciated
"Ikkaku, you're here too?"
"Sakumo?"
While grilling barbecue outside, Sakumo Hatake greeted a black-haired ninja named Umino Ikkaku. Ikkaku was a Jonin from Konoha, though not particularly famous among the Naruto fans. However, when it came to his son, he was well-known.
Umino Ikkaku's son was none other than Umino Iruka, one of the saviors and senseis of Naruto Uzumaki in the original story. However, he wasn't born yet since Umino Ikkaku had chosen to follow to the policy of marrying and having children late, and he was still a single man curently.
He was a few years older than Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru, and he was in the same generation as Sakumo Hatake, making him a senpai to Tsunade and the others. Naturally, he was also on Jiraiya's invitation list.
As the two were chatting and about to enter the barbecue place, they noticed two people blocking the way at the entrance, lifting their heads.
Sakumo Hatake glanced at them and then asked, "Shinku, Kunugi, why aren't you going in? What are you doing here?"
Shinku Yuhi and Kunugi Mokume looked somewhat puzzled. Upon hearing Sakumo Hatake's words, Shinku Yuhi lowered the head he had raised and looked towards Sakumo Hatake. However, he pointed upward and said:
"I remember the invitation mentioned Jiraiya taking on apprentices."
"Yeah, what's the matter?"
Sakumo Hatake and Umino Ikkaku also raised their heads in confusion. After a moment, both of them were taken aback. The "Jiraiya's Apprentice Ceremony" was fine, but ahead of it, there were also "and Tsunade" added.
"I prepared a gift just for one person. This is troublesome now."
Umino Ikkaku slapped his forehead and said, "Did you all only prepare a gift for one person?"
Shinku Yuhi and Kunugi Mokume nodded. Sakumo Hatake took out the invitation and examined it again. It indeed mentioned Jiraiya taking on apprentices, but he looked up at the banner and then said:
"Originally, it was supposed to be only Jiraiya taking on apprentices. Later, they added Tsunade. Look, the handwriting and layout are clearly off. But Jiraiya and Tsunade, really, if there were any changes, they could have informed us in advance."
"Do we go buy the second gift now?" Kunugi Mokume asked. Shinku Yuhi and Umino Ikkaku nodded. Umino Ikkaku said, "We can only do that. This time, when accepting a disciple, Hokage-sama and a few advisors might come over. If our gifts aren't ready, it would be embarrassing and show a lack of manners."
After saying that, he looked at Sakumo Hatake. Sakumo Hatake shook his head and said, "I won't be going. I've just ordered a new Chakra blade, and I'll be able to get it in a few days. I'll give this old blade as a gift. Although it's old, it holds significant meaning, doesn't it?"
With that, Sakumo Hatake revealed a meaningful smile. Shinku Yuhi shrugged and said, "After customizing a new blade, you must be short on money, right? I've told you before, you need to save."
Having his situation exposed by Shinku Yuhi, Sakumo Hatake blushed slightly. After clearing his throat, he said firmly, "Regardless, my blade is made of Chakra metal; it's much more valuable than your gifts!"
Umino Ikkaku waved his hand and said, "Alright, let's go buy gifts first. Sakumo, inform those who are coming later about the details so that they don't bring insufficient gifts."
"Sure, you guys go ahead."
Sakumo Hatake nodded, then conscientiously stood at the entrance of the barbecue restaurant. Having served as a Hokage guard for several years, he stood there with a sense of professionalism, appearing like a security captain hired by the barbecue restaurant.
Inside the barbecue restaurant, in a large private room, Jiraiya and Minato sat in the main, both wearing expressions of confusion.
Especially Jiraiya, who frequently glanced at the clock inside the private room. There were only about ten minutes left until the time written on his invitation. According to common etiquette, guests should arrive half an hour or even earlier. Although not everyone arrives early, it's unlikely that everyone would be so late, right?
"Could it be that my reputation is so bad that they are unwilling to attend my disciple acceptance ceremony? That doesn't make sense. Tsunade, Orochimaru, and sensei wouldn't miss it, would they?"
Jiraiya felt a bit anxious in his heart. This was his first time accepting a disciple, and facing this situation, he truly didn't know what to do.
The purpose of holding the disciple acceptance ceremony for him was not solely to receive gifts. Instead, it was to bring his disciple, Minato Namikaze, into the view of the village elders, a move to expand Minato Namikaze's network. After all, Minato Namikaze came from a common background, and getting to know the elders and elites of the village in advance would be beneficial for his future development.
Most importantly, Jiraiya knew that he couldn't be there to guide Minato at all times, and there were many areas where he wasn't proficient. At a time like this, if Minato had enough connections, he could visit and learn from others.
However, in this social gathering, not a single guest had arrived. If things continued this way, not only would it be difficult to expand Minato's network, but it might also make him a laughingstock in the village.
Amidst Jiraiya's anxiety, he considered getting up several times, but seeing Minato still sitting in his place, Jiraiya, as his sensei, didn't want to appear more agitated than his disciple. So, he could only endure it.
Outside the door, Tsunade and her disciple Tatsuma were acting sneakily. One was listening inside the room, while the other was gazing outside. After a while, Tatsuma slipped to Tsunade's side and whispered, "Sensei, Orochimaru-sama has already taken Nawaki and returned. If we calculate the time, the others should gradually come back in the next ten minutes."
Upon hearing this, Tsunade nodded and pointed to the door, chuckling, "Jiraiya, that fool, probably hadn't realized something is amiss yet!"
"So, should we go in as well?" Tatsuma asked. Tsunade nodded, stood up straight, took a deep breath to suppress the smile on her face, then pushed the door open and walked in.
"Tsunade! You've finally arrived!" Seeing someone enter, Jiraiya almost teared up, saying, "I thought no one would come to my disciple acceptance ceremony, and I didn't expect you to be the first guest."
"Guest? What guest? I am also a protagonist of this disciple acceptance ceremony!"
After Tsunade domineeringly finished speaking, she walked over to Jiraiya, gave him a push, and made room for herself to sit. Tatsuma also took a seat opposite Minato.
"Huh? What's going on?" Jiraiya was a bit puzzled. Before he could inquire further, Orochimaru, accompanied by Nawaki, walked in. Orochimaru expressed some dissatisfaction, saying, "Next time there's a change in the plan, give a heads-up."
Afterward, he tossed out two scrolls and said, "These are some insights from my own developed Ninjutsu. I hope they'll be of some help to the both of you." Minato, looking somewhat dazed, accepted the scrolls without understanding what had happened. At that moment, another person entered the room, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Upon seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen, the group was about to stand up, but Sarutobi Hiruzen gestured for them to stay seated. He then cast a peculiar glance at Tsunade and Tatsuma, pulling out two scrolls as well, and said, "These are my research notes on composite Ninjutsu, suitable for beginners. I hope you make good use of them. However, Tsunade, Jiraiya, both of you are already senseis, and yet, you're still so unreliable."
"Since you decided to jointly hold the disciple acceptance ceremony, it should have been clarified in advance. Now, it's just causing inconvenience for the other guests," Sarutobi Hiruzen stated in a few words, directly characterizing Tsunade's actions. Jiraiya wore a bewildered expression, not understanding why He felt like an accomplice when he hadn't done anything!
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