Chapter 288: Chapter 288: Have You Entered Sage Mode of Mount Myōboku?

Chapter 288: Chapter 288: Have You Entered Sage Mode of Mount Myōboku?



Twenty Jonin, with Jiraiya leading them-such a force could easily wipe out smaller villages, barring places like Amegakure with someone like Hanzō the Salamander.

But even with such overwhelming power, this mission was still incredibly risky.

As soon as they approached the islands controlled by Kirigakure, they could be surrounded by their forces at any moment. Not to mention, they needed to destroy military installations on those islands while under enemy encirclement.

They also had to hold their position until reinforcements arrived.

Before the reinforcements came, the pressure on them was immense-even for someone like Jiraiya, an elite Jonin.

Among all of them, the only one who seemed truly relaxed was Takuya.

Sure, if you look at it in a certain way, a lot of ants can bring down an elephant-consider how the Third Raikage was taken down by thousands of Iwagakure ninjas in the original story. But for ants to take down an elephant, they also needed to pick their elephant carefully. A dwarf elephant, an Asian elephant, an African elephant-or even a mammoth.

The Third Raikage was surrounded and worn down by thousands of enemy soldiers, but Takuya was confident that such a scenario wouldn't happen to him.

Even assuming Kirigakure had the opportunity, would they have enough manpower?

Sure, Iwagakure managed to deploy thousands of shinobi against the Third Raikage, but could Kirigakure do the same?

It wasn't that Takuya looked down on Kirigakure, but the fact remained that their military had been weakening year by year.

They were brothers-in-arms with Sunagakure in terms of decline. At least Sunagakure had the excuse of being weakened due to the Great Shinobi Wars. What about Kirigakure?

They were simply ruining themselves from the inside out.

At this point in time, whether Kirigakure could even mobilize ten thousand competent shinobi was uncertain.

Even for Konoha, it wasn't easy to mobilize such a large force, let alone Kirigakure.

"Alright, everyone, you can head back to rest and review the intelligence reports. I'll have everything prepared, and tomorrow we board the ship to begin the mission. I hope you're all mentally prepared," Jiraiya said.

He wasn't one for long-winded speeches, and he wasn't about to start now.

Whenever the Third Hokage gave speeches that lasted hours, Jiraiya always felt it was pure torture.

He had no intention of turning into that.

So, he kept the meeting short and to the point.

He said what needed to be said, handed out the intelligence reports, and called it a day. Those who needed rest could rest, and those who wanted to study the intel could do that. There was no need for everyone to just sit in the command room listening to pointless talk. "Takuya, stay for a moment."

Takuya had just stood up, ready to leave, but had no choice but to sit back down.

He gestured towards Minato and Nawaki, and they nodded before leaving with the others.

Once everyone else had gone, Jiraiya let out a sigh, rubbing his face vigorously.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Among the Sannin, Jiraiya was the type who started slow but eventually surpassed Tsunade and Orochimaru by leaps and bounds in the later stages.

Most of Jiraiya's improvements came from mastering the Sage Mode of Mount Myōboku.

Even if Jiraiya's Sage Mode wasn't perfect, it was still better than Orochimaru and Tsunade,

who couldn't access it at all.

Narrowing his eyes, Takuya scrutinized Jiraiya before casually saying:

"You've mastered the Sage Mode of Mount Myōboku, haven't you?"

"How did you..."

Jiraiya's eyes widened to the size of saucers, his jaw practically hitting the floor. He

stammered:

"How did you know that? Was it Tsunade? No, that can't be. I haven't told anyone!"

Jiraiya felt like he'd seen a ghost. How could Takuya possibly know?

"Just a guess," Takuya shrugged, standing up to leave.

"Wait, how did you really know?" Jiraiya shouted, snapping out of his stupor.

Takuya waved a hand dismissively without turning back.

"I saw some information in Tsunade's notes. She also told me a few things about the Three Great Sage Regions. Don't forget, I can summon Manda too. Is it really that strange that I

know?"

"Consider yourself lucky you didn't turn into a stone statue. Next time you decide to show off, make sure you pick the right audience, or you'll be embarrassed."

Jiraiya: "..."

I really am an idiot!!

Tsunade wouldn't hide anything from Takuya, and with Manda in the picture, of course

Takuya would know.

Mount Myōboku, Shikkotsu Forest, Ryuchi Cave-these were the Three Great Sage Regions,

and Manda hailed from Ryuchi Cave.

Next Bonus: 500 Power Stones. ( ́¤`) J

(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 340+ at patreon com/ Emiko1._