"That's basically the situation."
Minato pointed at the map on the desk, his finger landing heavily on the location of the Grass Village. "The Uchiha Clan's blockade has been in effect for some time. According to our intelligence, the internal order of the Grass Village is on the verge of collapse. Mui, the warden of Hozuki Castle, likely won't be able to sit still much longer."
He looked up, his eyes meeting the white-haired hero standing before his desk. His tone was gentle yet suggestive. "It's time to recover that legendary ninja tool of the Sage of Six Paths—the Box of Ultimate Bliss. Master Orochimaru has been coveting that box, which can open spatial rifts and may even be related to the Otsutsuki Clan, for a long time now."
Jiraiya sat cross-legged on the sofa with his arms folded. After hearing Minato's words, his eyes darted around the room.
First, he turned his head to look at the curtains on the left, then peeked at the bookshelf on the right, and finally even crawled on the floor in an exaggerated manner to peek under the desk.
"Teacher, what are you looking for?" Minato asked helplessly.
"I'm looking for someone!"
Jiraiya patted the dust off his knees and sat back down on the sofa, spreading his hands innocently. "For such an important S-rank mission—retrieving a legendary tool of the Sage of Six Paths and facing a monster that could potentially go on a rampage—you obviously need a powerful, handsome, reliable, and steady top-tier ninja, right?"
He pointed at himself, then at Minato, and finally at the purple toad perched on Minato's shoulder.
"Besides you, who can't leave the village at will because you're the Hokage, and a stinky toad, all that's left is an old man who just wants to gather material for his books."
Minato smiled and complimented him, "In my heart, Teacher has always been a powerful, handsome, reliable, and steady top-tier ninja."
Seeing that Minato was about to pin the task on him, Jiraiya shook his head like a rattle. "No way, no way. For this kind of manual labor, you should find Kakashi or just let Fugaku handle it on his way. I'm busy lately, very busy."
"Busy?"
Gamakon, perched on Minato's shoulder, rolled his eyes and exposed him mercilessly. "Busy staking out the entrance to the Konoha Hospital? Or busy hanging outside Lady Tsunade's office window like a weather doll?"
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Jiraiya's face turned beet red, and he nearly choked on his own saliva. He jumped up and pointed at Gamakon, shouting with faux indignation, "You damn toad! What do you know? That's research! Research! Besides... besides, Tsunade just returned to the village and her mental state is still unstable. As an old teammate, what's wrong with me showing some concern?"
"Give it a rest."
Gamakon stuck out his tongue, curled it around a pastry on the desk, and stuffed it into his mouth. "Ever since I told you Naruto is the Child of Prophecy, you've wanted to stick to Tsunade's side every single day."
"Otherwise, why would I be so bored that I'm sitting here with Minato looking at documents?"
Beside them, Minato intentionally put on a sorrowful expression, as if asking, 'Am I really that unwelcome?'
"Nonsense! Am I that kind of person?"
Jiraiya's face was flushed, but his eyes were shifty. "I'm doing it... for the village's medical infrastructure! Yes, medical infrastructure!"
"Teacher."
Minato looked at the clowning Jiraiya, a helpless yet warm smile curling on his lips.
He naturally knew what Jiraiya was thinking.
Ever since learning that Naruto was the 'Child of Prophecy' who would bring change to the ninja world, Jiraiya seemed to have let go of a heavy burden. Lately, his mind had been entirely on Tsunade's side.
"Regarding Lady Tsunade, I've already arranged for Shizune to help her rebuild the medical system. She's been so busy she can't catch her breath; you'll only get scolded if you go there now."
Minato stood up, personally poured a cup of tea for Jiraiya, and pushed it toward him. "Besides, this mission has to be you."
"Why?" Jiraiya picked up the tea and asked grumpily. "Is Fugaku's Sharingan just for show? Just let him charge in and take it."
"Patriarch Fugaku isn't in an easy position either."
"There are people within the Uchiha Clan who have grievances about the Hokage making them play the role of bandits. Patriarch Fugaku is currently pacifying those restless elements."
"Teacher, you should also understand Fugaku's desire not to cause unnecessary trouble. After this mission, I plan to have the Uchiha participate in other village affairs."
Minato held up a finger and shook it gently. "So you see, Teacher, this mission absolutely has to be you."
"Has to be me?" Jiraiya arched an eyebrow.
"That's right."
Gamakon took over the conversation with a smirk. "Right now, the Grass Village is starving to death. An internal riot is about to explode. At a time like this, Warden Mui of Hozuki Castle will surely find a way to use the Box of Ultimate Bliss to turn the tables. They say the box can grant any wish, but at the cost of consuming chakra and fear."
"Once they open the box and release the monster 'Satori' inside, the entire Grass Village will become a living hell."
Gamakon stared at Jiraiya, his golden horizontal pupils gleaming with calculation. "That's when a legendary Sannin, the Toad Sage Lord Jiraiya, must descend from the heavens. You won't just defeat the monster; you'll 'conveniently' save the innocent civilians. Finally, to prevent the Box of Ultimate Bliss from causing more harm, you'll righteously 'seal' it and bring it back to Konoha."
"That way, we get the Box of Ultimate Bliss, and the remnants of the Grass Village will be eternally grateful to you, treating you like their savior."
Gamakon clapped his hands. "You get the item, earn the fame, and help Konoha establish a new puppet regime in the Land of Grass. For a job that requires both prestige and profit, who else could pull it off as brilliantly as a hero with your chivalrous flair?"
Jiraiya's hand holding the teacup froze in mid-air.
He stared blankly at the man and the toad before him.
Minato was smiling as warmly as a spring breeze, while Gamakon smirked as craftily as a fox.
In that moment, Jiraiya wasn't angry about being schemed against. Instead, he felt a sense of relief.
The sunny boy who once scratched his head and shyly said 'I want to become Hokage' could finally stand on his own and manage things independently.
He was probably comparable even to the records of the Second Hokage—Tobirama Senju.
"Minato..."
Jiraiya put down his tea and let out a long sigh, his tone a mix of sentimentality and teasing. "You've changed. Now that you've become Hokage, you've even started scheming against your own teacher."
"How can you call it scheming?"
Minato blinked, looking completely sincere. "This is a student's trust in his teacher's strength. Besides, Master Orochimaru said that if we can get the Box of Ultimate Bliss, he might be able to analyze some new techniques regarding soul and body reincarnation. Then, it might even help Lady Tsunade solve some side effects caused by 'Creation Rebirth'."
"Really?"
Jiraiya's eyes lit up, and he leaned forward. "Did that guy Orochimaru really say that?"
"When have I ever lied to you?" Minato smiled.
"Fine!"
Jiraiya slapped his thigh and stood up. The lazy aura around him vanished, replaced by the sharp, cold pressure of a true powerhouse. "I'll take the job! It's just a damn box, isn't it? This Sage will go carry it back right now!"
He walked to the window and pushed it open, letting the evening breeze ruffle his wild white hair.
"By the way, Minato."
Jiraiya stepped onto the windowsill and looked back. "When I get back, remember to have Teuchi save me a seat at Ichiraku. I want the largest portion of Chashu Ramen, and you're paying."
"No problem," Minato agreed with a nod.
"And..."
Jiraiya's gaze lingered on Gamakon for a moment, a mischievous grin appearing. "Stinky toad, aren't you coming? Your mouth might be foul, but at critical moments, you're pretty good at drawing aggro."
"Hey! I am the great..."
Before Gamakon could protest, Jiraiya snatched him up.
"Then I'll leave it to Mr. Gamakon to assist my teacher." Minato watched the scene with a beaming smile.
Jiraiya stuffed the purple toad into his robes, laughed heartily, and vanished into the twilight like a blurry afterimage.
Silence returned to the office.
Minato walked to the window, watching the direction Jiraiya had left. His smile gradually faded.
"The Box of Ultimate Bliss..."
He murmured softly, pulling a top-secret scroll from his vest.
It was the information about the Otsutsuki Clan that Gamakon had transcribed for him earlier.
"If that box really is a weapon left behind by the Sage of Six Paths, then the 'key' required to open it should be a massive amount of chakra."
Minato's fingers lightly tapped the windowsill. "Grass Village doesn't have a Tailed Beast; they can only fill it with human lives. Mui... how far will you go for that ethereal wish?"
...
Land of Grass, Hozuki Castle.
This giant prison, built on a lonely island and surrounded by the sea, was currently shrouded in a suffocating, deathly silence.
Naturally, the Uchiha hadn't forgotten about Hozuki Castle, and the prison's supplies had also been cut off.
The prisoners' eyes were turning green with hunger. Riots had occurred several times. Although they were suppressed, the smell of blood in the air grew thicker.
In the deepest underground hall of the prison.
The space here was massive and empty, with dim, eternal lamps flickering along the walls.
In the center of the hall stood a giant black box.
The surface of the box was covered in hideous carvings of human faces, each one twisted as if enduring immense agony.
That was the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
The Grass Village's last hope—and its greatest nightmare.
A thin middle-aged man in a warden's uniform was kneeling before the box.
This was the warden of Hozuki Castle, Mui.
His face was as pale as paper, his eyes deeply sunken. He looked like a walking corpse.
"Lord Warden."
A trusted subordinate ran in hurriedly, his voice trembling. "The blockade outside is continuing. Two more squads of shinobi tried to break out just now, and... they were all killed by those masked 'bandits.' Their heads were hung from the trees."
"Their methods are becoming increasingly brutal."
Mui didn't look back; he just stared intently at the box.
"How is the village?" His voice was raspy, like sandpaper rubbing together.
"The leader... the leader has gone mad."
The subordinate swallowed hard. "He ordered all injured shinobi to be gathered together and then killed, saying it would save food."
"Heh..."
Mui let out a scoffing laugh that echoed eerily in the empty hall. "That old man just wants to save his own life."
He slowly stood up, stroking the cold surface of the Box of Ultimate Bliss.
The sensation from his fingertips reminded him of many years ago, when he personally pushed his son—Muku—into the box.
"A wish..."
A glimmer of madness flashed in Mui's eyes. "If this box really can grant wishes, then... give me back my son."
"Lord Warden?" Seeing Mui's bizarre expression, the subordinate instinctively stepped back.
"Go."
Mui turned around, his eyes cold and devoid of humanity. "Bring all the prisoners in the cells here. And... bring those injured who can no longer fight."
"M-my Lord? What are you going to do?"
"Open the box."
Mui opened his arms as if embracing some unspeakable horror. "Since those people outside want to starve us to death, then let this world be buried along with us."
"As long as there is enough chakra, as long as there is enough fear..."
"It will wake up."
...
Outside Grass Village, deep in the dense forest.
Fugaku Uchiha stood on a treetop, his crimson Sharingan glowing with an eerie light in the night.
He keenly sensed a massive, evil chakra slowly awakening within the village they had surrounded.
It felt like a demon sleeping deep underground was opening one eye.
"Patriarch."
Yashiro appeared behind him using Body Flicker, his tone solemn. "Something is wrong inside. That chakra fluctuation... it's extremely evil."
"It seems they finally can't hold back any longer."
Fugaku crossed his arms, a cold smirk touching his lips. "Lord Hokage was right; a cornered dog truly will jump the wall."
"Then what should we do? Should we attack?" Yashiro asked.
"No."
Fugaku shook his head, looking toward the distant horizon. "Our mission is the 'blockade.' As for the monster that's about to come out..."
"Someone else will handle it."
If expectations were correct, the Grass Village mission would come to a close today. He had come specifically to oversee things and prevent the Grass Village from pulling any more tricks in their desperation.
Just as he spoke.
A dull boom suddenly resounded from the distant sky.
Immediately following, a pillar of pitch-black light shot up from the direction of Hozuki Castle, piercing through the heavy clouds.
The pillar was mixed with countless shrill screams, as if the gates of hell had been forced open.
A wave of sickening malice swept across dozens of miles in an instant.
Even the battle-hardened Uchiha clan members couldn't help but feel their hair stand on end when they felt this malice.
"It's coming."
Fugaku narrowed his eyes. "The Box of Ultimate Bliss has opened."
Meanwhile, on the main road ten kilometers away from Grass Village.
The sprinting Jiraiya abruptly stopped.
He looked up at the black light piercing the sky, and the playful grin on his face vanished instantly.
"Hey, Pervy Sage."
Gamakon poked his head out from Jiraiya's robes, looking at the black light with eager anticipation. "Looks like we're just in time."
"Yeah."
Jiraiya reached up to adjust his forehead protector, his gaze becoming incredibly sharp. "That ominous chakra... it seems it really is a big guy."
"Sit tight, Gamakon."
Jiraiya's clogs slammed against the ground, and he launched himself forward like a cannonball.
"Now it's time for the appearance of the Mount Myoboku Toad Spirit Immortal Sage!"
The wind howled.
The wild arrogance of a 'Sannin' was fully revealed in this moment.
And the monster 'Satori' about to crawl out of the box probably didn't know that it was about to face the most unreasonable 'hoodlum' duo in the ninja world.