Chương 67

Fury didn't speak about the 10 bucks but rather spoke of the problem he had been facing with his arc reactor and how his father was the founder of SHIELD and he had a legacy to look after. Both Tony and Haku were surprised to know this, as this was very new information.

But it didn't take long for Tony to figure out the legacy that his father had kept behind and within a week, with the help of Yinsen, who was now a doctor and running a clinic sponsored by Stark himself, and Haku, they were able to make the first clean arc reactor. Tony knew that he would soon be the pioneer of energy on this planet and nobody could ever come close to him. And unlike the original story where he had to fight in the Expo. It never happened.

Meanwhile Justin Hammer joined hands with Allied Universal and had downsized the company by a lot after selling off assets and just making weapons for the military. The US Government had just lost two great arms companies. Of course that didn't mean there were no other companies to fill the blanks. As long as profits exist, things to fill up holes would always exist. [A/N: Easy there, big guy] [A/N: From here on I have tried to use different narration to make the story enjoyable. Though it isn't significant as I am very new to this but I hope you like it]"This is life... Ahh.." Naruto relished as he lowered himself into the hot spring. The hot spring was named Mokuyō Onsen. It was nothing like the ones in the Land of Hot Springs, but it was one of the best in Konoha.

"Your life has no meaning if all we do is be here and laze around." Sasuke commented but didn't stop himself from lowering into the hot spring bath with the rest. The warm water hit his skin like a welcome relief after weeks of training. But would Sasuke admit it? Nope. He would rather die than choose to change his words, especially in front of Naruto.

"Hey.. We both have been training like mad. We need some rest, I say. You better believe it." Naruto said while having the time of his life in the onsen (hot spring).

"See? This is what happens when someone spends too much time brooding." At the end, he turned and complained to Rei.

"Who are you complaining to? You think he will laze around like you? He is the most hardworking among us." Sasuke said.

"That's not true. I have seen him sleep on the branch of a tree a few days ago." Naruto said.

"That's not sleeping, that is called meditating.." Sasuke was serious. Rei was confused about how this guy knew if he was sleeping or meditating. He could be sleeping too. Both of these guys are hopeless.

"Guys.. Guys.. Just enjoy the moment okay. Why are you both so hell-bent on fighting each other?"

"He was the one who started." Naruto defended himself.

"Yeah, because you have been stupid." Sasuke too barged in. Rei couldn't help but sigh looking at these two. Ashura.. Indra.. Can you guys stop? I just want to lean back and enjoy the warm water splashing on my skin. Naruto and Sasuke both just looked in opposite directions as if it would settle their rivalry. Rei didn't bother and just enjoyed the distant birds chirping and the slow steam drift that would hit his face once in a while. Well the silence didn't last long as Naruto suddenly noticed something.

"What is that?" Naruto spoke, questioning his own eyes. Both Sasuke and Rei followed his gaze. At first neither saw anything. Then a head appeared above the wall for a brief second. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. And then vanished. It happened a few times, allowing them to see the face and the moment everyone realized what this person was doing, Naruto and Sasuke were both disgusted.

"Is this guy peeking?" Both Naruto and Sasuke by now had been in the modern world for quite some time, so suffice to say they had consumed quite a lot of modern stuff and being a pervert was high on the intolerance list now. At least for Sasuke now.

"A pervert!" Sasuke felt anger rising inside of him.

"GET HIM!" And just like that both idiots launched themselves over the edge. Rei remained exactly where he was. The water felt nice. The weather felt nice. The steam felt nice. The... felt nice. Fine, I admit, not everything is nice. Why do these guys just ruin some moment of peace? Besides he knew who this pervert was. He had already felt his chakra long before they entered this onsen. Rei slowly lowered himself further into the water. There were some battles not worth fighting. This was one of them.

Well, battle would be a tough word. It was just playing. Several rooftops away, Naruto and Sasuke were discovering this fact personally. The white-haired man casually glanced behind him.

"Oh?" Naruto pointed furiously.

"You were peeking!"

"I was conducting research."

"THAT'S NOT RESEARCH!"

"It absolutely is." Sasuke's eye twitched.

"Stop running."

"Then stop chasing." The old man laughed and immediately vanished.

"What is up with this white-haired old man?" But would Sasuke just give up? Nope. Never. He activated his Sharingan and shouted.

"There!" The chase continued. Across rooftops and through streets. Across another district. And somehow the gap never got smaller. In fact it seemed to get bigger. The white-haired man wasn't even trying. That was the most insulting part. Several minutes later both boys stopped on top of a building breathing heavily. Naruto looked horrified.

"... How is he so fast?" The old man moved like someone completely outside their league. Even with his Sharingan, he could hardly keep up. Sasuke by now knew that this old man wasn't normal and this excited not only Sasuke, but also Naruto. And then suddenly the man appeared directly behind them. Both of them froze.

"... Not bad." The man said casually. Naruto nearly jumped out of his skin.

"WHEN DID YOU GET THERE?!"

"Just now."

"We are going to take you down, old man.." And before they could make a move, Rei suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"You both need to stop." The man who had been having fun running away from these kids narrowed his eyes when he saw how another kid just appeared. It was definitely not Shunshin. So was it teleportation? Had the Hiraishin finally found its inheritor and that also so young? Had the village changed that much?

"Why do we need to stop? He needs to be apprehended." Naruto was having none of it, and Rei just decided to ignore him and bow to the old man a little and said.

"Welcome back to Konoha, Lord Jiraiya.."

"Eh!"

"Who again?"

"Oh! I didn't expect someone to recognize me after I have been out for such a long time." The man was surprised.

"One couldn't help but notice the long white hair of someone like you." Rei said.

"Hey, Kakashi sensei also has the same kind of white hair." Naruto said.

"Point.." Rei admitted.

"Oh so you are the brats that are under Kakashi.. Hmm.. That's good too.. Anyways, I won't hold a grudge for obstructing my research. Now off you go." Jiraiya said and was ready to bail but Naruto was having none of it and chased after him, who didn't bother to reply to Naruto and just ran. Meanwhile Sasuke just stayed back and asked Rei instead.

"How come you know this guy and we have no idea who this person is?"

"I keep myself updated. I always told you. This world doesn't have an information network like that world, but that doesn't mean one can't keep up. I did my research long ago and it's imperative that you should do too. It will save you a lot of time in important moments." Rei replied. Sasuke just looked deeply into Rei and looked in the direction where the old man vanished.

"So who is he?" Sasuke asked and Rei gave him a brief description of the man. Sasuke was flabbergasted. No wonder Rei slightly bowed in front of this man.

"So if I train under him, can I take down that snake guy you have been talking about?" Sasuke asked.

"Heh? You want to train under him? Isn't Kakashi sensei enough?" Rei was confused about how this guy was suddenly attracted to Jiraiya. Wasn't he supposed to be under Kakashi? Hadn't the Chidori learning made him look elsewhere for power? Had the timeline derailed that much? Rei couldn't imagine Sasuke and Naruto summoning frogs during the last fight and both having Senjutsu. Wait? The Ryūchi Cave also has Senjutsu, though a more violent and unstable one. (or was it?) Learning Senjutsu was essential for the ninja war and even for taking down that clan. So Rei was always going to allow Naruto to be with Jiraiya, but Sasuke going with Jiraiya? Was that okay? Besides, could Sasuke learn Senjutsu? If Sasuke could manifest Truth-Seeking Balls during the fight, that would be groundbreaking. Even if it was momentary. Sigh! I need to find Jigen.