Naruto: This Uchiha is too innocent.

Chapter 152 Jiraiya's Questioning

The load on Might Guy's back was far heavier than Uchiha Sora had anticipated. When Uchiha Sora put it on, he felt like an ancient cavalryman wearing heavy armor.

The heavy burden made his movements unusually slow, as if a 0.5x speed playback button had been pressed on him. Even during meals, Hyuga Ame couldn't help but look at him with a strange gaze, and even half-officially offered to feed him. Uchiha Sora naturally declined, after all, it was too embarrassing for a girl to feed him, and he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Fortunately, since Uchiha Sora successfully cut off the Iwagakure army's supply line, the enemy's offensive has slowed down and is no longer as fierce as before. Therefore, Uchiha Sora's workload has been relatively lightened.

The days quietly accelerated in this tense atmosphere. Uchiha Sora's daily life became monotonous and repetitive, with missions and training intertwined to form his entire existence. He would leave home before dawn every day and not return until nightfall, dragging his exhausted body home, collapsing into bed as soon as his head hit the pillow, too tired to even speak.

Under this constant pressure, Uchiha Sora looked much more haggard. His hair was disheveled, and dark circles were prominently displayed around his eyes. The weights he carried, except for brief moments when he showered, had almost never left his body, becoming his inseparable "partners." This sight deeply saddened some people.

During this time, Uchiha Sora encountered many acquaintances. The lively Kurenai Yuhi was still all smiles, but her eyes betrayed her worry. Kakashi's worry grew heavier; his father's influence was too profound, and he couldn't easily break free from the bonds of missions and comrades. Obito was disheveled, covered in the marks of battle; the troubled boy had become much more composed. And the exhausted Minato, hailed as the fastest ninja in the world, was also incredibly busy during this period, rushing from the easternmost to the westernmost edge of the battlefield like a never-ending spinning top.

"Seriously, even though the conditions here aren't great, you should still take good care of yourself."

That day, Kurenai Yuhi came to visit Uchiha Sora. When she saw Uchiha Sora's disheveled appearance, she couldn't help but frown with heartache. Ignoring Uchiha Sora's refusal, she forcibly pressed him into a seat and began to carefully comb his messy hair.

"Look at your hair, which used to be so beautiful, now it's all tangled up." Kurenai Yuhi's slender fingers tried hard to separate the stubborn knots in her hair, her eyes full of resentment as she muttered.

Uchiha Sora slightly raised his head, and his gaze met those ruby-like, dazzling eyes. Only then did he notice that Kurenai Yuhi had clearly lost a lot of weight; her once chubby cheeks were now almost oval-shaped. It wasn't that she looked bad, but her gaunt appearance was truly distressing.

He thought for a moment and then said, "How about I cut my hair short? That way it'll be easier to manage."

Actually, he had had this idea for a while, but his mother thought he looked handsome with long hair and insisted that he not cut it. Now, he hadn't seen his mother for two weeks, and without her to look after him, he started to think about cutting his hair.

Upon hearing this, Kurenai's hand tightened abruptly, the hand that had been gently combing her hair now unconsciously tugging at a strand of Uchiha Sora's hair. Her eyes widened, and she exclaimed, "No! How can you cut such beautiful hair?"

"I'm telling you, if you cut your hair, I'm not talking to you for a week." Originally, she was thinking of saying it for a year, but when the words came out, she couldn't bear to say it, so she changed it to a week.

Uchiha Sora looked at Kurenai's anxious and angry expression, smiled, and teased, "Is that so? Then I won't cut it, otherwise that crybaby will be heartbroken and cry again."

"Empty!" Kurenai Yuhi was both ashamed and angry, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness that echoed in the air.

The two of them joked and played around like that for quite a while.

"Alright, that looks much better now." Kurenai clapped her hands in satisfaction, then took two steps back, looking Uchiha Sora up and down. Looking at her "masterpiece," the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up slightly, and she nodded in satisfaction.

At this moment, Uchiha Sora, with his hair tied up in a high ponytail with a golden crown, looked energetic and vibrant, like a young man in the prime of his youth. His plain black trench coat added to his dashing and handsome appearance. The phrase "a dashing young man in fine clothes and riding a spirited horse" suddenly popped into Kurenai's mind.

She had seen this sentence by chance in her father's study, but at the time she didn't understand its meaning. But now, looking at Uchiha Sora in front of her, she inexplicably felt that this sentence was the perfect description of him.

"Well, Sora, do you know how to ride a horse?" Kurenai tilted her head and asked softly.

"Horses?" Uchiha Sora's thoughts raced. Horses did exist in this world, but for the special group of ninjas, ease of movement and stealth were of paramount importance. Riding a horse through the city went against the ninja's philosophy of stealth and assassination, so almost no ninja would learn the skill of horseback riding.

"No, why are you suddenly asking this?"

Kurenai lowered her head slightly, her hands unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes, her voice soft and filled with longing: "Hmm—I was just thinking that after this war ends, you, Sora, can ride a horse and take me to travel the world. I especially want to see the boundless plains of Kusagakure, and I also want to go to Osakagakure at night to see the stars—"

Uchiha Sora listened quietly to the girl's innocent wishes: to travel the ninja world—what a beautiful dream. Unfortunately, he already had more important things to do. However, when he saw the light shining in Yuhi Kurenai's eyes, his heart suddenly softened.

After a long silence, he finally spoke slowly, "I'll take you there after all this is over."

"Really?! Sora, you're so amazing! I love you so much, Sora!" Kurenai Yuhi blushed with excitement and rushed over, wrapping her arms tightly around Uchiha Sora's neck. This sudden outburst of enthusiasm caught Uchiha Sora off guard, making it hard for her to breathe.

"Kurenai, let go, panting—I can't breathe—" Uchiha Sora managed to squeeze out these words, gently patting Kurenai Yuhi's back with both hands.

"Tsk tsk, kid, you're living the good life." Just then, a lazy, teasing voice suddenly rang out inside the tent. Kurenai Yuhi jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her face turning bright red. She immediately saw Jiraiya with his white hair tied up next to her and was so embarrassed that she wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

"Jiraiya-senpai, why are you here?" Kurenai Yuhi stammered.

Many people have seen Jiraiya in the past two weeks, and Kurenai Yuhi was naturally one of them, but she was still a little flustered when she suddenly bumped into him.

Uchiha Sora glanced sideways at the overly familiar Jiraiya, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, but he still politely asked, "Senpai, what brings you here all of a sudden?"

"Huh? Didn't I say last time that I would come to find you? What, have you forgotten so quickly?" Jiraiya crossed his arms and looked straight ahead.

Uchiha Sora then remembered this incident. At the time, he thought it was just a polite remark made by Jiraiya and soon forgot about it. He never expected that two weeks later, Jiraiya would actually come knocking on his door.

"Sigh, it seems I'm a terrible senior; the juniors don't even respect me." Jiraiya feigned sadness.

Uchiha Sora remained expressionless, quietly watching him.

Quite some time passed, and Jiraiya still hadn't received the comfort he'd hoped for. His expression instantly froze, and he coughed awkwardly twice. Jiraiya casually turned to Kurenai Yuhi, "Little girl, I need to talk to your boyfriend for a bit. Could I borrow him for a while?"

"Huh?" Yuhi's face flushed red like a ripe monkey's bottom in an instant. She waved her hands frantically and hurriedly explained, "No, Sora is not my boyfriend—" But the last few words were barely audible, as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

Seeing this, Uchiha Sora sighed helplessly and gently patted Kurenai Yuhi's shoulder. "Kurenai, you should go back first. It seems that Jiraiya-senpai has something important to discuss with me."

"Oh, oh, okay." Kurenai nodded obediently, then added worriedly, "Sora, you must get some rest. If I see those dark circles under your eyes again next time I see you, I'll—I'll—" Kurenai hesitated for a long time before finally managing to say, "Anyway, you must get some rest."

As Jiraiya watched Kurenai's hurried departure, he suddenly said thoughtfully, "She's a very good girl."

Uchiha Sora glanced at him, but Jiraiya simply smiled and said, "Isn't that right?"

Uchiha Sora gently shook his head, his tone calm, "She is indeed a good girl."

"Is that so?" Jiraiya narrowed his eyes slightly, a meaningful smile appearing on his face. He suddenly winked and said, "I didn't realize you were such a lucky girl."

"What?"

"That Hyuga girl from last time, I think she's got a bit of a crush on you too. What do you think? Which of the two do you like better?" Jiraiya asked with a gossipy look on his face.

"boring."

"What? Kid, you need to be more respectful to your seniors," Jiraiya said, feigning seriousness. Then, he changed the subject, saying earnestly, "And seriously, you have to choose one, right? I think this girl is pretty good. Hmm—the one from the Hyuga clan is pretty, but her personality is too cold, and she shows signs of violence. As someone who's been there, let me tell you, never date a violent person, or you'll be in big trouble—"

Uchiha Sora listened to the endless rambling of the man next to him, and felt a throbbing headache coming on. Jiraiya's image was getting worse and worse in his eyes.

"Senior, is there something important you need from me?" Uchiha Sora interrupted Jiraiya's endless rambling.

Jiraiya's words were cut off, but he showed no anger. The carefree smile that had been on his face slowly disappeared, replaced by a serious expression that Uchiha Sora had never seen on his face before. "Indeed, I have something to discuss with you. I heard that Hanzo's death is related to you?"

"I don't have that ability yet," Uchiha Sora vehemently denied.

"I think so too." Jiraiya nodded slightly and said softly, "Was it Nagato who did it?"

Uchiha Sora fell silent. He lowered his head slightly, pondered for a moment, and said, "Hmm, you already have the answer in your heart, so why did you specifically ask me for confirmation?"

Upon hearing this, Jiraiya appeared somewhat agitated. He unconsciously shuffled his toes, grabbed a handful of hair with both hands, and frowned deeply, saying, "I've been to Amegakure, but I searched everywhere there and couldn't find any trace of Nagato. He doesn't want to see me."

"The three of them have relied on each other since childhood, and their bond is as deep as that of biological siblings. Now that Yahiko is dead, I'm afraid Nagato might do something foolish."

"I brought them into the world of ninjas, but when they needed me most, I was far away in another country. Do you think they would blame me?" Jiraiya said, his eyes filled with confusion.

Uchiha Sora listened quietly. He could clearly sense the confusion in the eyes of the hero before him. He could tell that Jiraiya genuinely regarded the Nagato trio as his disciples.

"Nagato—" Uchiha Sora spoke softly, "He respects you greatly, as does Konan. The tragedy we've witnessed is caused by the world, not by any one person. They won't blame you."

Jiraiya took a deep breath. "If possible, could you tell me everything that happened in Amegakure?"

Uchiha Sora did not refuse. What happened in Amegakure was not important to him. At this moment, it was a good deal to do Jiraiya a favor by going with the flow.

Soon, he concealed his own part and told Jiraiya everything Nagato had done.

After hearing this, Jiraiya's eyes dimmed slightly. He felt heartbroken for Nagato's plight and regretted letting Nagato and the others leave.

Most importantly, the prophesied child and the anomaly.

He believes that Nagato is the prophesied child in the Toad Sage's dream, and now that such a big change has happened to the prophesied child, will it change something?

He felt a sense of unease. The Child of Prophecy had suffered such a change, and he had no clue about the anomaly that the Toad Sage had foreseen. His worries only compounded his troubles.

"What's your relationship with Nagato like?" Jiraiya stared intently at Uchiha Sora. "Can you find him?"

Uchiha Sora shook his head. "We have some connections, but he probably doesn't want to see anyone right now."

Nagato is currently hiding somewhere in the Land of Rain, gathering his strength and waiting for the right moment to strike. When he reappears, it will likely be a time of great chaos in the ninja world.

Jiraiya was somewhat disappointed, but he quickly adjusted his mindset, looked at Uchiha Sora, and smiled slightly, "We've finished discussing the first matter. Now we should talk about the second one."

"I've heard that you can summon the toads of Mount Myōboku."