Chapter 19: Jiraiya
"Ehehehe, another round!"
Jiraiya's cheeks were flushed from the alcohol, his eyes hazy from the fumes. His arm was still wrapped tightly around the waist of the bar hostess beside him.
"My, you can really hold your liquor, sir. This is your third cup," the hostess said, pressing her chest against his arm.
"Not at all, not at all." Jiraiya waved his hand with a lecherous laugh, his fingers giving her waist a light, familiar squeeze. "It's just that a lovely lady like you has a special skill for pouring. It makes the sake taste even better."
The hostess poked his red cheek. "If you keep drinking, you won't even be able to make it out the front door."
As she spoke, she lifted a handkerchief to wipe a smudge of sake from the corner of his mouth, her fingertips "accidentally" brushing the stubble on his chin, drawing another laugh from him.
Jiraiya shook his head, the alcohol making his gaze even more unfocused, but he didn't forget to flirt. "How could that be? I can drink a thousand cups and not get drunk."
As he spoke, the arm around her waist tightened. He lowered his voice. "And even if I couldn't leave... I'd still have you, wouldn't I? You wouldn't just abandon me, would you?"
The hostess was just about to laugh and call him a scoundrel when a sharp CRASH came from outside. The wooden window shattered, shocking the other patrons at a nearby table into silence.
A pitch-black hawk flapped its wings, landing steadily on the corner of Jiraiya's table, a tough paper envelope clutched in its talons. It pecked lightly at the envelope's wax seal, where the Konoha emblem was unmistakable in the dim light.
The smile on Jiraiya's face froze. His arm, wrapped around the hostess, unconsciously loosened. His hazy eyes snapped into focus, staring at the hawk and the letter. Even his breathing slowed.
The hostess, startled by the sudden intrusion, shrank behind him. "Wh-What is this?"
Jiraiya didn't answer. He gently pushed the hawk's talon aside and took the envelope.
The moment he saw the seal, he recognized it. It was the kind only used by Konoha's high command.
"Stay put," he muttered to the hostess, gently pushing her away. He sat up straight, carefully breaking the seal with one hand.
The handwriting on the letter was neat and clear. The signature read: "Tsunade."
"Tsunade... is writing me a letter?" Jiraiya scratched his head, surprised.
As far as he could remember, ever since Tsunade left the village, she almost never contacted him, let alone in such a formal way.
He unfolded the paper and quickly scanned the contents:
Jiraiya:
Go to Otogakure in the Land of Rice Fields immediately and find Orochimaru. You must bring him back to Konoha.
Konoha's survival is at stake. Do not delay.
—Tsunade
"Ha?" Jiraiya's brow furrowed. "She wants me to find Orochimaru? And Konoha's survival is at stake?"
He checked the letter over and over, confirming there were no codes or hidden messages. The contents were just too abrupt.
Orochimaru had been a rogue ninja for years. Jiraiya had searched for him many times and found nothing.
How could Tsunade, who had been out of touch for so long, know something that even Jiraiya the Spymaster couldn't find?
"This isn't some kind of prank, is it?" he muttered. But then again, Tsunade wasn't the type to make this kind of joke.
"Ah, whatever. If she's the one saying it, I guess I'll go check it out."
He folded the letter, and with a single leap, jumped straight out the broken window.
"Sir? Sir! You haven't paid!" The hostess, stunned for a moment, finally reacted and shouted after him.
But Jiraiya's figure had already vanished from sight.
"Ugh, another day of work for nothing," she grumbled, turning to clean up the messy table. But when she picked up a dirty plate, she found a neat stack of bills underneath—enough to pay the bill three times over.
She froze, then a small smile touched her lips. "He really is a thoughtful customer."
...The Land of Rice Fields, on the outskirts of Otogakure.
Jiraiya stood on a high tree branch, gazing at the Village Hidden in the Sound in the distance.
This wasn't his first time here. He'd visited once before, right after the village was founded.
Back then, Otogakure had sent an alliance treaty to Konoha, and his sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had sent him to scout the situation.
"Jiraiya," Sarutobi had instructed, "a small ninja village has suddenly popped up in the Land of Rice Fields. Go see what it's about. If there are no major issues, we'll ally with them. Konoha desperately needs allies right now."
There were no other instructions, no grand send-off.
He'd brought only a single scroll and a few kunai, disguised himself as a wandering monk, and set off for the Land of Rice Fields.
The Otogakure of that time had been even more primitive than it was now. It didn't even have defensive walls, just a few temporary genjutsu barriers.
The village itself was just a dozen low, wooden huts. The roofs were covered in poorly packed thatch that scattered to the wind.
The "roads" were just uneven paths of gravel. Occasionally, he'd see shinobi in matching uniforms rushing by with lumber or water. Based on their posture and aura, they were just run-of-the-mill rogue ninja.
If he hadn't been told it was a new ninja village, he would have assumed it was just a normal hamlet that had hired a few shinobi for protection.
But the Otogakure before him now was nothing like that dilapidated place.
The village was surrounded by high walls. The shinobi patrolling the gate walked in unison, their chakra signatures potent and solid. Their tool pouches were full; they were clearly well-equipped.
Looking closely, he could even see traces of Konoha in its design.
Back when his sensei had sent him, his only concern was whether the village was hostile. He never imagined it could develop to this scale in just a few short years.
"Just as I'd expect from Orochimaru. Turning an unknown little hamlet into a thriving village in just a few years," Jiraiya said to himself, impressed.
He, Orochimaru, and Tsunade were the Sannin. He knew exactly what his former teammate was capable of.
Orochimaru's obsession with jutsu allowed him to master Konoha's most secret techniques in no time.
His strategic mind meant he'd known how to rally fringe shinobi and build intel networks since he was a boy.
He even understood civil engineering. Back when Konoha was expanding its training grounds, the designs Orochimaru submitted were more comprehensive than those from the veteran counselors.
If it hadn't been for his obsession with immortality and forbidden jutsu, Orochimaru should have been a pillar of Konoha, not the universally feared rogue ninja he was today.
"Tch. That guy is a certified dangerous person now..." Jiraiya rubbed his chin, thinking.
If Tsunade's intel was right, this was Orochimaru's turf, crawling with his agents. Rushing in blind would be stupid.
He had no desire for that kind of "reunion" with his old friend. He needed a solid infiltration plan.