Chapter 74:
"Hahaha, why are you running? If you hand over the scroll, everything will be fine!" Jiraiya laughed, his voice carrying across the dense trees as his figure blurred in pursuit of the fleeing ninja.
"Damn it, are you kidding me?" the panicked genin cursed, sprinting through the underbrush. But it was too late.
Whoosh!
Two kunai with explosive tags flew past him, embedding into the ground just ahead. The ninja barely had time to gasp before the blast threw him through the air.
Boom!
When the dust settled, the unfortunate ninja lay unconscious, and Jiraiya calmly dropped next to him, untying the scroll from the man's waist and adding it to his collection. With a smirk, he inspected his belt, now hanging heavy with three or four scrolls.
"Heh, done! Oh wait, when did we get here?" Jiraiya said, finally noticing the massive central tower looming ahead. His carefree expression shifted to confusion as he saw the Third Hokage, ANBU, and several examiners standing in front of the tower, all of them staring at him and the giant python behind him in stunned silence.
The two ANBU members who had rushed outside the tower just moments earlier were the most surprised of all.
"What's going on? Could they be the reason the other teams have failed to complete their missions?" one of them muttered, still shocked at the sight of the enormous snake and the nonchalant boy riding it.