Land of Rain, Northern Coast.
The damp sea wind, carrying the smell of fish and the lingering gunpowder from distant battles, brushed against this port city temporarily sheltering a large number of refugees.
Several dilapidated ships from the direction of Amegakure were docked crookedly at the simple piers, unloading groups of sallow, thin people with hollow eyes.
They carried simple luggage, their faces etched with the exhaustion of escaping disaster and deep confusion about the future.
Ajisai's temples were beaded with fine sweat, her purple short hair somewhat messy from her busyness.
She and several other Amegakure's Genin companions, all young people dissatisfied with Hanzo's rule, were shuttling through the crowd, doing their best to assist the few local staff with settlement.
Looking at these people who had lost their homes, especially the children curled up in their mothers' arms, their large eyes wide with fear, she felt a deep sense of powerlessness.
Return to Amegakure?
It had just experienced a bloody power transition. Whether the new ruler was friend or foe was still unknown.
Stay here?
This port city had limited resources and clearly couldn't accommodate so many refugees long-term.
Jiraiya stood at the ship's bow, arms crossed, gazing at the chaotic scene.
After two days of self-care and treatment, his injuries had partially healed, at least no longer affecting basic movement.
His gaze finally settled on the busy purple figure, his expression complex.
This kind-hearted Amegakure girl had let him see a rare glimmer of humanity in this land filled with betrayal and slaughter, and also stirred up the warm yet painful memories of Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato in his heart.
"Hey! Strange old man!" Ajisai finally noticed Jiraiya on the bow. She nimbly jumped over several piles of ropes, landing on the deck like a swift swallow, slightly out of breath.
She asked with concern: "Your injuries... how are they? Still hurt?"
She remembered the terrible state he was in two days ago when they found him, covered in blood and holes.
Jiraiya turned around, forcing a bright, reliable smile onto his face, even deliberately puffing out his chest: "Hahaha! Don't worry, little girl! For someone like me, Jiraiya-sama, who's traveled the world and seen countless storms, these minor injuries are no worse than a mosquito bite!"
He tried to use an exaggerated tone to dispel the heavy atmosphere.
After laughing, his expression became slightly more serious. His eyes swept over the still anxious faces on the pier and Ajisai's tired but persevering companions. His tone became gentle and earnest: "What about you all? What are your plans next? Preparing to return to Amegakure?"
Hearing this, the vitality on Ajisai's face dimmed. She subconsciously looked towards the direction of Amegakure, where the sky seemed still shrouded in an intangible gloom.
She said in a low voice: "Well... the news of Hanzo-sama's death has spread everywhere. It seems the village... has a new leader."
She pursed her lips, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes, showing her inner struggle: "A few of my friends think... since the new leader overthrew Hanzo-sama's rule, perhaps... Amegakure will see changes. They want to go back and see the situation."
Her tone wasn't firm, clearly filled with doubts herself.
Jiraiya sighed inwardly.
He was almost certain that Ajisai and her companions were the kind of young Ninja deeply dissatisfied with Hanzo's later tyranny, yearning for change in their hearts, 'potential rebels' under the old system.
However, he knew better than anyone that the one now sitting atop Amegakure's highest tower was his own disciple, twisted by pain and proclaiming himself a god… Nagato!
These young people carrying simple hopes would most likely be absorbed and used by the cold war machine that was the Akatsuki, becoming its peripheral members.
He might not be able to interfere too much with the fate of other unfamiliar Ninja, but looking at this girl who still helped others in desperate straits, with eyes as clear as the sky after rain, a strong sense of atonement surged in Jiraiya's heart.
Because Ajisai was too much like Konan and the others back then.
He couldn't just watch Ajisai jump back into that fire pit.
Jiraiya changed the subject, pretending to be relaxed asking: "Speaking of which, where's that brat who was with you? Why isn't he by your side protecting you? Leaving such a cute girl alone in this chaotic place is really lacking in gentlemanly manners."
He tried to probe for information about the mysterious Shura's whereabouts in a teasing way.
Ajisai was momentarily stunned, a flash of disappointment that even she hadn't fully realized quickly passing over her face. She lowered her head, gently kicking a small, inconspicuous knot on the deck with her toe, her voice also lowering: "He... he's not an Amegakure's Ninja. He was just... passing through. He has things he must accomplish... and has already... left."
She was silent for a few seconds, as if weighing something.
Then she looked up at Jiraiya's face, which seemed unreliable but held sincerity and experience in its depths, and felt she could perhaps trust him. She added softly: "Actually, the name 'Ichiraku'... he made it up on the spot."
Hearing this, Jiraiya let out a loud, even somewhat exaggerated laugh: "Hahaha! Just as I thought! I knew that kid wasn't honest! From the very beginning, in my little ramen shop, his eyes seemed like they could see right through a person! Very sharp, that one!"
As he laughed, he carefully observed Ajisai's subtle reactions when she mentioned that name.
"Eh?! Old man... you knew him before?" Ajisai's eyes widened in surprise, her pure pupils filled with curiosity.
She had always thought their meeting at the ramen shop was just a coincidence.
Jiraiya stroked his wild white hair, pretending to be profound and pondering for a moment, as if organizing some earth-shattering words: "Well... you see... the threads of fate are always intricate and complex."
"Strictly speaking, we hadn't truly met before. But fatefully, it was as if there was an intangible bond... well, you could say we were destined to meet and clash at the crossroads of fate!"
He saw Ajisai become even more confused by his mystical words, her small nose wrinkling as she tried to understand, and couldn't help but find it a bit amusing.
He stopped beating around the bush and got straight to the point: "Alright, enough about that kid. Let's get back on topic. Little girl, I see you're skilled and have a good heart. There's a mission at hand, I wonder if you'd be interested in taking it?"
"Mission?" Ajisai blinked, temporarily setting aside her confusion about the relationship between Menma and Jiraiya.
"That's right, an escort mission." Jiraiya nodded, his expression becoming slightly more formal: "I'm planning to set off for the capital of the Land of Stars. But as you can see, these old bones of mine just went through a fierce battle, injuries not fully healed. Traveling across the border alone, on a long journey, I'm bound to run into some troublesome characters, and dealing with them would be a hassle."
"Since you're a Ninja, would you be interested in accepting this commission and acting as my temporary bodyguard?" He paused, his gaze meaningfully glancing towards the direction of Amegakure, his tone carrying admonishment.
"Coincidentally, Amegakure's situation is unstable right now. No one knows the new leader's temper or policies. For safety's sake, I think it's better for you not to return for now. Taking this opportunity to travel, see the outside world, might not be a bad thing."
'To... the Land of Stars?'
Ajisai's heart skipped a beat.
'Menma... he was a Ninja from the Land of Stars!'
'If I accepted this mission and went to the Land of Stars, would it... be possible to see him again?'
That powerful, mysterious boy who occasionally showed a gentleness different from any Ninja she knew...
Once this thought arose, it quickly wrapped around her heart like vines.
She forcibly suppressed the inexplicable anticipation and a hint of shyness in her chest, trying to make her voice sound calm and professional: "I... I need to discuss this with my companions. After all, it involves leaving the Land of Rain. And..."
She looked up, seriously looking at Jiraiya: "According to Ninja regulations, cross-border escort missions, especially to a country with a special situation like the Land of Stars, the mission rank is at least B-Rank, and the commission... isn't low."
Jiraiya waved a hand grandly, appearing very generous: "We'll calculate it at the top B-Rank mission rate! Half paid upfront, the remainder upon mission completion! Don't worry about the money at all!"
He puffed out his chest: "Forgot to mention, standing before you is a bestselling author known throughout the Ninja World! My manuscript fees and royalties are enough for me to travel the world and squander for several lifetimes!"
He stroked his non-existent beard proudly.
"Famous author?" Ajisai's curiosity was completely piqued. She tilted her head, her pure, innocent large eyes seemingly filled with a yearning for 'literature'.
"Old man, what kind of stories do you write? Are they adventure legends? Or heroic epics?"
Looking at the girl's completely unworldly, purely inquisitive eyes, Jiraiya's old face instantly turned bright red, his previous pride vanishing without a trace.
He coughed violently, his eyes awkwardly darting around, not daring to meet Ajisai's gaze: "Cough, cough, cough...! This... this is... it's the kind that... deeply explores the complex emotions between adults and the mysteries of life's great harmony... well... literary works! Yes! Literary works! Deep in meaning, extraordinary significance! But..."
Jiraiya quickly waved his hands, his tone urgent: "You're still too young! Your mind isn't mature enough! Not suitable for such deep content! Talk about it when you're older! When you're older!"
He almost ended the topic in a panic: "In short, the commission will be calculated at the B-Rank rate, absolutely no problem! Go discuss it with your companions quickly! Let me know once you've decided, and we'll set off as soon as possible!"
While Jiraiya was egging on Ajisai to go to the Land of Stars...
Land of Wind, Sunagakure.
In stark contrast to the atmosphere of indecision and sorrow permeating the Land of Rain's port, the air in the Kazekage's office in Sunagakure was so heavy it seemed it could drip water.
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, sat behind his large desk, fingers unconsciously tapping the hard desktop, emitting a dull tapping sound.
His face, usually known for its hardness, was now tightly furrowed, his brows locked with each other.
Before the desk stood Sunagakure's two elder advisors.
Chiyo's wrinkled face seemed even more furrowed than usual, her eyes narrowed, making it hard to see the emotion within.
Ebizo, known for his deep wisdom and extensive intelligence network, wore his signature heavy headband wrapped tightly above his forehead, his two long eyebrows hanging to his jaw.
He held a red scroll marked with the highest emergency level, just delivered by the fastest messenger hawk.
"Kazekage-sama." Ebizo's voice was low and hoarse, breaking the dead silence in the room.
"According to the desperate report from the Third Patrol Squad on the northern border... it's confirmed that in the [Sea of Death] uninhabited zone in the north of the Land of Wind, bordering the Land of Stars, a giant creature... beyond all our previous knowledge has appeared."
He deliberately paused, then slowly unrolled the scroll, reading the contents written in a trembling hand: "According to eyewitness descriptions, the creature is preliminarily estimated to be over three hundred meters tall, its form... similar to a Tailed Beast. But the most unbelievable part is... it possesses ten tails."
Ebizo looked up, his gaze sweeping over Rasa and Chiyo's instantly changed expressions, emphasizing his tone: "The Chakra pressure it emitted... according to the report from the two Chunin who personally experienced the One-Tail's full rampage... was like facing a natural disaster, far exceeding their memory of Shukaku... by dozens of times, or more."
"Ten tails?!" Rasa shot up from his seat, leaning on the desk with both hands, his body leaning forward, his eyes filled with doubt.
"Absurd! How could such a Tailed Beast exist in the world? From the One-Tail to the Nine-Tails, that's common knowledge in the Ninja World! There has never been any record of a 'Ten-Tails' in the Ninja World!"
Chiyo slowly lifted her eyelids, her cloudy eyeballs turning slightly, looking at her brother. Her voice, carrying the hoarseness accumulated over the years, also held a trace of gravity: "I have lived over sixty years, dare not claim to have read as many secret scrolls as there are stars, but I consider myself well-read in strange tales and records. This Ten-Tails... it's unheard of. Ebizo, the reliability of the intelligence..."
Ebizo took a deep breath, placing the heavy scroll gently on Rasa's desk, his finger tapping the special encryption mark and bloodstain on it: "Kazekage-sama, Nee-san. The source is one of the border patrol squads, the captain is an experienced Special Jonin. They didn't dare approach, only observed from the maximum distance for a short while, but their descriptions of its size and those ten nightmare-like dancing tails were highly consistent."
His gaze became extremely sharp: "Most importantly, the fear of those two Chunin who experienced Shukaku's rampage cannot be faked. To make Sunagakure's Ninja raised in the shadow of a Tailed Beast feel such despairing pressure... the vastness of its Chakra has probably surpassed our previous understanding of 'Tailed Beasts'."
In Sunagakure, and indeed the mainstream understanding of the Ninja World, Tailed Beasts were monsters formed over millennia from the world's endless hatred, resentment, and negative chakra, natural disasters bringing calamity and destruction.
They had never considered communicating or coexisting with Tailed Beasts like Kumogakure did.
Chiyo's bony fingers trembled slightly. She mused: "If... if Tailed Beasts truly breed from the darkest aspects of the human heart... then in these years of continuous war and the cycle of hatred, the conception of a 'Ten-Tails' gathering more malice, more powerful... from this twisted logic, it seems... not entirely impossible."
However, in Rasa's eyes, after the initial doubt, a flame called 'ambition' gradually ignited.
As the Fourth Kazekage, he had devoted his life to revitalizing the barren Sunagakure and raising its status among the Five Great Nations, even not hesitating to use his Magnet Release Gold Dust Ninjutsu to accumulate funds for the village.
Rasa clenched his fists tightly: "No matter what it is! No matter where it came from! Since it has appeared on the territory of the Land of Wind, we absolutely cannot leave it unchecked!"
His voice carried a hint of barely suppressed eagerness: "A Tailed Beast... stronger than Shukaku! If Sunagakure can successfully capture and seal it, create our own, more powerful ultimate weapon..."
Rasa's breathing became slightly rapid, as if he already saw Sunagakure looking down on all others with this power: "This will be the key to changing the village's fate! Our perfect opportunity to break free from resource scarcity and ascend to the pinnacle of the Ninja World!"
He jerked his head up, his gaze sweeping over Chiyo and Ebizo like a hawk's: "More importantly, its location is too sensitive! Right next to the Land of Stars! That Shura who slaughtered nobles and Daimyo, overturned the Ninja World's order! We absolutely cannot let him get to this 'Ten-Tails' first!"
He hesitated no longer, quickly issuing orders:
"Elder Chiyo! Please immediately assemble the Sealing Team and Barrier Team, prepare the village's most powerful inherited Sealing Techniques and related ninja tools! I want to ensure we can suppress this unknown Tailed Beast as much as possible!"
"Elder Ebizo! Immediately, in my name, notify the Anbu Commander and the Jonin Commander, draw the most elite Ninja, including those skilled in long-range attack, restraint, barriers, and sensing, to form a special operations unit! Bring all portable heavy ninja tools!"
Rasa walked around the desk to the window, looking out at the sand-filled sky, his back exuding an all-or-nothing determination:
"This operation will be led by me personally! There is only one goal-"
"Capture the Ten-Tails!"