Jiraiya scratched the back of his head, laughing as he asked, "So, what brings you all the way out here to find ?"
Orochimaru withdrew his lingering gaze from the children, his tone casual. "The old man told to tell you that you've been away long enough. It's ti to get to work."
"What kind of work?"
"Hunting a rogue ninja." Orochimaru pulled a scroll from his robes and tossed it over. "Shisui Abura. You should rember him.
That Abura kid who defected three years ago. Recent intel suggests he's hiding sowhere around the Land of Waterfalls."
Jiraiya caught the scroll, flipped through it absentmindedly, and stuffed it into his vest. "Got it. I'll get to it when I have a spare mont."
Orochimaru arched an eyebrow. "When you have a 'spare mont'?"
"I've got students to teach here." Jiraiya clasped his hands behind his head. "Can't it wait? Send soone else—like you."
Orochimaru's smile thinned. "I naturally have other important matters to attend to. Besides, as the Head of the Intelligence Division, this is technically your responsibility."
In truth, Orochimaru had known Shisui Abura's exact whereabouts for so ti, but for reasons known only to him, he hadn't breathed a word of the specifics to anyone.
He felt a perverse curiosity, wanting to see other Konoha shinobi—especially his clumsy teammate—trip over themselves dealing with Shisui.
The thought of Jiraiya's flustered face as he was forced to retreat was... exhilarating.
He turned to leave but paused. "By the way, any anomalies in the Land of Rain lately? Do you know where Hanzo of the Salamander is hiding?"
Jiraiya fell silent for a mont before throwing another scroll back at him. "It's all in there. This broken country... the war might be over, but it's crawling with orphans, refugees, and wandering ronin.
Hanzo has gone to ground; no one knows where he is. Plus, the Rain nobility and the samurai factions are at each other's throats. It's a ss."
As he spoke, Jiraiya felt a pang of guilt. The catastrophe in the Land of Rain was deeply intertwined with Konoha's actions.
Even as a Sannin, he felt a profound sense of powerlessness, able only to take in a few orphans while the rest of the country suffered.
His gaze drifted toward Nagato, and a spark of hope returned to his eyes. It will be over soon. Once the Child of Prophecy erges, he will build a bridge between people.
They will understand each other, communicate, and let go of hatred. Peace will be permanent.
However, as he looked at Nagato, his eyes occasionally flickered toward the orange-haired boy, Yahiko. During their ti together, Yahiko seed more like the "child" spoken of in legends.
He had inherited Jiraiya's will perfectly and possessed a natural charisma—a leader's magnetism. Sotis, Jiraiya wondered if there might be two Children of Prophecy.
Orochimaru snatched the scroll out of the air. After a quick scan, he muttered, "Thanks." Then he vanished into the woods.
The three children stood frozen, having heard every word of the exchange. Konan stepped forward first, whispering, "Jiraiya-sensei... are you leaving?"
Jiraiya turned to see the flickering anxiety in their eyes, and his heart softened. "Just going to handle a bit of business. I'll be back before you know it."
He squatted down, ruffling Konan's hair before looking at Yahiko and Nagato. "Before I go, I'll leave you enough money and food. I've also prepared so weapons for self-defense. Practice hard; I'll be checking your progress when I return."
Yahiko nodded fiercely. "Don't worry, Sensei! I'll protect them both!"
Only Nagato kept his head down, his thoughts unreadable. Jiraiya watched them, feeling a complex swirl of emotions.
He had considered having them sign a contract with Mount Myoboku to beco true Toad Sages, but he hesitated. They were still too young.
"We'll talk more when I get back," Jiraiya muttered to himself, heading inside to pack.
Shortly after Jiraiya's departure, a massive pitcher-plant-like figure rose from the ground and silently sank back into the earth.
The Deep Palace
In a vast, cavernous space, the statue of the Gedo Mazo stood in eerie silence. Before it sat a withered, white-haired old man, looking like a dried husk.
The pitcher-plant humanoid, Zetsu, erged from the floor. "Lord Madara, Jiraiya has left."
"Left?"
"Yes. It seems Konoha gave him a mission to hunt a rogue. My Lord, should we find another teacher for those three? There's no telling when Jiraiya will return."
Madara remained silent for a long ti before slowly shaking his head. "Unnecessary. Only Jiraiya believes in that old toad's prophecy, and therefore only he will teach those three pawns with his whole heart."
He looked up at Zetsu. "Find a way to guide Jiraiya. Ensure he completes his mission quickly so he can return to his post."
"Understood, My Lord."
Several Days Later
Following the clues Orochimaru provided, Jiraiya tracked the trail to the border of the Land of Waterfalls. He quickly picked up breadcrumbs in the local villages.
While no one claid to have seen a "bug-user," he found scattered carcasses of common kikaichu along the paths.
Every clue pointed toward Takigakure—the Hidden Waterfall Village. For the first ti, he realized that the village had undergone a total transformation compared to a few years ago.
"Aya-ya... this change is so obvious, it's screaming that sothing is wrong. How has no one noticed this? What is our intelligence departnt even doing? They're working to the bone!"
In a small tavern in the nearest city, Jiraiya sipped on local shochu while grumbling over his findings. He felt that Konoha's reconnaissance techniques were severely lacking.
Finding a rogue Abura shouldn't have been this easy. In fact, it felt suspiciously simple.
"So he really is here."
Standing on a distant ridge, he peered through binoculars at the shimring silhouette of the Hidden Waterfall. He was certain that "that snake" Orochimaru had already been here; the anomalies were too glaring for him to have missed.
"So why send ? What is that stinky snake planning?" Jiraiya shook his head and turned to leave. He didn't rush blindly into the village. Instead, he decided to return to the rendezvous point to et Orochimaru.
He wasn't an idiot. If Orochimaru had potentially suffered a setback here, he wasn't going to go charging in alone. After all, he was just the "Intelligence Chief."
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