Naruto: The Immortal Sage

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"So, Jiraiya, here's what you need to do," Hiruzen began.

But he never finished.

"Summoning jutsu!"

Jiraiya carried out the hand seals quickly, sensing his chakra flow through his body. He completed the entire sequence in a single smooth movement.

"JIRAIYA, STOP!" Hiruzen's eyes shot open. "You haven't entered into a summoning contract! If you use the technique without one, you might cause an uncontrolled spatial disturbance. You can never tell where it might send you!"

Hiruzen rushed forward, desperately trying to stop Jiraiya before he completed the technique, and moved before he had finished shouting his warning.

He was one step too late.

Jiraiya fastened the last seal in position and chakra shot out from his body.

White smoke shot across the training ground, and when it had dispersed, only a faint trace of chakra remained at the place where Jiraiya had been. He was no longer there.

"No! Jiraiya!" Hiruzen stopped short and stared at the empty patch of ground, his face drained of color.

The fact that Jiraiya had used the Summoning Jutsu without a contract meant that he might have ended up in any of the summoning realms with no guarantee of ever returning.

If Jiraiya was lost in some empty part of a strange realm, cut off from the shinobi world by endless barriers, how could Hiruzen ever find him? He didn't know any space-time jutsu that could help.

The more Hiruzen thought, the worse it seemed. Jiraiya might starve alone in a strange wilderness. He could end up in a dangerous beast's territory and be killed right away.

Hiruzen made himself stop. He couldn't just stand there picturing the boy's death.

"This is bad… Enma, is there any way to find him?" Hiruzen turned to the Monkey King for help.

"An uncontracted summoning has no fixed destination." Enma shrugged his broad shoulders helplessly. "If his luck is especially bad, you might find what remains of him wedged in a crack in one of Konoha's cliffs in a few days. Spatial turbulence can do that."

"What?!" Hiruzen's face grew even paler.

Jiraiya was his student, a child he had taken in and taught himself. If the boy died because of this mistake, Hiruzen knew he would never forgive himself.

Enma watched Hiruzen struggle for a moment, then crossed his arms.

"Don't give up yet. If he was sent to one of the major summoning realms, he still has a chance. The summoning world is far more orderly than it used to be. Most clans won't kill a human just for entering their territory."

Enma could speak with confidence because the Grand Sage of Mount Myōboku now had authority over every major summoning realm.

Long ago, the realms had agreed on how to handle outsiders. Whenever a human accidentally entered one of their territories, the resident summon would report the matter and wait for instructions before taking action.

Several shinobi have stumbled into summoning realms over the years. Each of them had been returned safely to the shinobi world once Gamamaru, who managed Mount Myōboku in the Grand Sage's absence, gave the order.

"But Jiraiya…" Hiruzen clenched his fists and paced back and forth, blaming himself.

If only he had stopped the boy in time. Why had he shown the Summoning Jutsu in front of Jiraiya at all? He knew how reckless the child was. He should have known Jiraiya would try to copy him as soon as he looked away.

Enma watched Hiruzen pacing on until he had made a path in the ground and then sighed heavily. He couldn't just remain passive and do nothing.

"Hiruzen, the Monkey King Clan has always helped those in need. We also have some standing in the summoning realms. I will visit the major territories myself and inquire about the boy."

"Thank you, Enma. I'm counting on you," said Hiruzen at once.

"I make no promises. The summoning world is enormous, and I may not find him." With that warning, Enma released the Summoning Jutsu and disappeared in a burst of smoke.

..............

Meanwhile, far away in the wilds of Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya stood by himself and looked around.

"What in the world? Where did that jutsu send me? This isn't Konoha."

Soft green grass was under his feet. Huge old trees rose all around him, each much taller than any person. Their strange branches and leaves filled the area.

The sky above glowed with the colors of sunset. It seemed as if the sun had just gone down, but Jiraiya could not see it anywhere.

"If there's no sun, then where is all this light coming from?" He slowly turned around, looking up for an answer.

The land, the plants, and even the thick energy in the air felt nothing like the Land of Fire. It was hard to believe this place and Konohagakure were in the same world.

Was he even on the same planet? Jiraiya turned again, and a huge shadow fell over him. A red toad almost as big as he was had appeared behind him without a sound.

"That's a huge toad!" Jiraiya cried out.

Giant summons were not rare in the shinobi world, but having one show up behind him without warning still scared him.

Before Jiraiya could react, the toad spoke in a deep, calm voice.

"You look lost, human. I guess you ended up in Mount Myōboku by accident." Gamabunta looked at him with mild curiosity.

"You… You can talk?!" Jiraiya stopped in his tracks, pointed at the toad, and struggled to speak.

"Everyone here can talk." Gamabunta gave him a small smile, as if the question was odd. "Come with me. The Sage knew you were coming and has been waiting for you." He motioned for Jiraiya to follow.

"He knew I was coming?" Jiraiya was still confused, but being alone in this strange place felt worse than trusting the talking toad. He quickly followed Gamabunta.

Soon, they reached the main city of Mount Myōboku. Jiraiya stopped at the entrance, speechless.

Mountain ranges stretched far into the distance, and tall buildings rose up toward the clouds between them. Wide roads formed a neat grid through the city, and streetcars carried people along tracks in the pavement.

Jiraiya had never seen anything like this. He had not even heard of most of what he saw.

"What is this place?" Jiraiya asked, still staring at the city.

"Human civilization is still in the Stone Age compared to ours. Of course, you wouldn't understand any of this." Gamabunta laughed, clearly amused by Jiraiya's surprise.

As they walked down the road, Jiraiya saw toads moving among groups of White Zetsu. Then he noticed some humans with pale eyes and familiar clothes that caught his attention right away.

"Wait! Aren't those people from the Hyūga Clan in Konoha? What are they doing here?" Jiraiya called out.

His voice echoed down the street.

Toads, White Zetsu, and Hyūga clan members all turned to look at the unfamiliar boy.

"Who is that? Some country boy from the mortal world?"

"Wait, how did someone from the mortal world get in here? Where is security?"

Questions spread through the crowd as everyone watched Jiraiya walk down the road.

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