A Hyūga's Gate Between Worlds

In a closed room, the three Sannin sat around a table.

Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya sipped their drinks while listening to a Root ninja report on information regarding the Hyūga clan.

"What do you think about this?"

Orochimaru dismissed the Root ninja in front of him, a look of keen interest appearing on his face.

"That brat… he's not simple at all!"

"If I remember correctly, the old man also studied the Caged Bird before, but in the end, he couldn't do anything about it."

"Who would've thought that kid actually managed to break it?"

Jiraiya looked shocked.

If it had been the clan leader or an elder who had broken the Caged Bird, he wouldn't have been so surprised. But according to the Root ninja's report, the one who did it was a child—someone who, until just recently, had still been attending the Ninja Academy.

"Hahaha! He must be having a headache right now! He barely managed to outlast the Senju and the Uzumaki clan, leaving only the Uchiha to deal with, and now a Hyūga suddenly emerges."

"Tonight, I bet he won't be getting any sleep."

Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Tsunade's fair complexion now carried a faint flush, making her already stunning beauty even more alluring.

However, when she spoke of the Third Hokage, the smile on her lips revealed a trace of mockery—there was no sign of respect in her tone at all.

"Tsunade, you misunderstand the old man."

"The Great Ninja War was unpredictable, with countless casualties. Do you really think the old man could control all of that?"

"The Senju and the Uzumaki weren't the only clans to suffer heavy losses or even be wiped out."

Jiraiya's expression turned a bit ugly—partly awkward, partly conflicted.

He knew that allowing the Senju clan to wither away during the war was something Sarutobi Hiruzen had done dishonorably, but…

One was his teacher, the other his comrade.

Caught between the two, he was stuck in a dilemma.

"Oh, like how Sakumo got tired of living and stabbed himself with his own blade, right?" Tsunade glanced at Jiraiya, leaving him completely speechless.

Everyone else might not know the truth behind Sakumo's death, but the Sannin certainly had an idea.

What kind of mission could possibly outweigh the life of a Kage-level—no, an above Kage-level ninja?

What kind of idiotic shinobi would, after being saved at the cost of a mission, not only fail to show gratitude but instead stab their savior in the back?

"Heh…" Seeing Jiraiya at a loss for words, Tsunade let out a cold chuckle and said no more.

In terms of talent, she was the strongest of the Sannin.

In terms of lineage, she had the best background.

Even in political foresight, she surpassed the other two.

In the past, she had been too young, and with the First Hokage, the Second Hokage, Mito, her parents, and the Senju clan protecting her, she had grown up without worries and never needed to concern herself with the village's darker side.

But after two Great Ninja Wars—especially after Mito's death—she had gone through the deaths of her brother Nawaki, the decline of the Senju clan… She had long since matured.

How could she not see the truth?

The Uchiha clan, suppressed and marginalized by Konoha, had still endured and carried on.

Yet the Senju, a clan that had produced both the First and Second Hokage, had been wiped out—leaving only her, the First Hokage's granddaughter, who didn't even carry the Senju name.

She didn't believe for a second that there was nothing suspicious about it.

If there really were no problem, then Orochimaru—who was once the Third Hokage's most prized disciple—wouldn't have immediately aligned himself with Danzō right after Nawaki's death.

And then there was Sakumo…

Though Konoha had covered up the news of the White Fang's suicide before it spread throughout the village, as one of the Sannin, how could she not know?

Sensing the increasingly tense and oppressive atmosphere in the room, Jiraiya could only shoot desperate glances at Orochimaru.

"Interesting, truly interesting."

"I had thought Minato was already a once-in-a-generation prodigy, but I never expected someone even more remarkable to appear."

Orochimaru ignored Jiraiya's pleading looks—his focus wasn't on the fact that the Hyūga clan had lost control over its branch members, potentially becoming another Uchiha situation.

No, his interest lay in this young branch house boy, who had begun to stir the winds of change, making the great gears of Konoha shift once more.

Clearly, Tanaka had successfully caught Orochimaru's attention.

"Hey, hey, hey! Orochimaru, I won't deny that the Hyūga kid is a genius, but if you're saying Minato is inferior to him, then as his teacher, I can't just pretend I didn't hear that."

"Which eye of yours saw that Minato was worse than him?"

"Take the Caged Bird, for example. That kid broke the seal, but Minato also improved the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques."

"And space-time ninjutsu—sure, the Hyūga kid can use it, but Minato has the Flying Thunder God, and his mastery even surpasses the Second Hokage's!"

Minato wasn't here, so Jiraiya spoke up on his behalf, refusing to back down.

"Tanaka comes from the branch house. Within the Hyūga clan, his status is insignificant."

"He has no access to the main house's secret taijutsu, no access to the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques, and no access to the Second Hokage's Flying Thunder God."

"In other words, whether it was breaking the Caged Bird or developing space-time ninjutsu, he had to rely solely on his own talent."

Orochimaru shook his head, speaking purely from an objective standpoint, with no personal bias.

In his eyes, Tanaka and Minato were indeed quite similar.

Both were prodigies.

Both had mastered space-time ninjutsu.

However, while Minato excelled at learning and improving existing techniques, Tanaka excelled at creating and innovating.

As someone who had pioneered an entire branch of forbidden techniques, he knew all too well the immense difference in difficulty between learning a jutsu and inventing one from scratch.

"Speaking of original jutsu, Minato also developed a technique—Rasengan!"

"That's an authentic A-rank jutsu."

"According to him, it's still an incomplete jutsu. If he incorporates nature transformation into it, it would absolutely be an S-rank ultimate technique."

Jiraiya knew that Minato's extraordinary talent was undeniable.

However, much of Minato's success was built upon the foundation of the Uzumaki clan, the Second Hokage, and himself—one of the Sannin. Essentially, Minato had been standing on the shoulders of three giants.

In contrast, Tanaka came from the branch house—completely alone.

His only asset was his innate talent.

One followed the path of those before him, merely widening the road. The other forged his own path—and succeeded.

The two simply could not be compared.

But knowing this was one thing—no teacher would stand by and let their disciple be downplayed.

Between Tanaka and Minato, Jiraiya remained firm—he would always choose Minato.

"He is only eight years old."

Seeing Jiraiya still refusing to back down, Orochimaru dropped the ultimate argument right in his face.

"…"

Jiraiya opened his mouth, but although his heart still held the banner of "Minato never loses to anyone!", he had no rebuttal.

Eight years old.

What had Minato been doing at eight years old?

Oh, right—he had been developing a jutsu.

What was it called again…?

Shuriken: Throw Everything Out at Once Technique.

At that thought, Jiraiya lowered his head, his face slightly flushed.

"Come out."

After successfully silencing Jiraiya, Orochimaru turned toward the door.

Whoosh!

The tavern door remained shut, yet a shadowy figure appeared before them, as silent as a ghost.

"Orochimaru-sama, the Hokage summons you."

"You are to report to the Hokage Building immediately."