From his perch on Naruto's hospital room's window, Jiraiya remembered Orochimaru's betrayal and sighed into the wind. "You're no ordinary kid, Naruto," he eventually said. "You have the Nine-Tailed Fox spirit. Someday you will face an enemy greater than Orochimaru. You must forget Sasuke."
Naruto's silence was the only response he needed. Jiraiya knew what the boy was thinking. He used to think it too. He still did, in his few vulnerable moments.
"Don't blame yourself. You must forget. To be a shinobi you need more than courage, strength and jutsu. You must learn to weigh your options and make the difficult decisions. You must be smarter. In this reality… there is no place for a fool."
Minutes passed until Naruto spoke. Jiraiya listened to his pupil – the burdened young boy that he was now so fond of despite their short time together – and felt the weight of his words. There was sadness, and hurt, and perhaps resignation, but more than those there was anticipation, determination and utter conviction.
Long ago, Jiraiya faced the same choice and backed down from the enormity of it. Naruto was different. In spite of himself, the old sage allowed a smile to creep onto his face, though Naruto could not see it. Jiraya lifted himself from the window ledge with a grunt and stepped onto the head of his patient toad summon.
"Very well," he said. "You are a certain kind of fool, and a fool as great as you might be able to handle this. Since you've disregard my words and you're determined to do as you please, I have no choice."
He turned to Naruto, and their gazes locked in mutual understanding. "When you're discharged from the hospital we will be leaving. Prepare yourself, Naruto." There was a poof of smoke, and then there was no Jiraiya.
Naruto broke into a large smile as he felt gratitude towards his mentor well up inside him. The foundations of the hospital shook from the force of his loud reply:
"Yes sir!"
…
If being smart means what you say, I'll remain a fool my entire life.
…