The white-haired Sannin finally sighed, lowering his drink. "Yes… I am Jiraiya. And you're Sarutobi's new disciple, huh? The old man never mentioned it, but you've got that Uchiha crest, the Hyuga girl, and a Hatake wannabe—yep, you're Konoha all right."
Shigure didn't waste time. "Senior Brother Jiraiya, what's your business here in the Land of Hot Springs?"
Jiraiya's gaze flicked sideways, sharp beneath his usual aloof grin. "Not here. Too many ears. Let's find a secure place."
They slipped into a local izakaya, taking a private room. Jiraiya, pouring himself sake, seemed more like a drifting wanderer than one of the fabled Sannin. His casual smirk belied steel hidden behind his eyes.
"Well, well. The old man's taking new students at his age? That's rare. If you're his disciple, then by tradition you're my little brother." He raised an eyebrow. "But you're Genin, right? What are you doing this far from home? Where's your overseeing Jonin?"
Hongdie answered softly, "He's gone to investigate another lead. We're continuing the mission here."
"And what about you, Jiraiya-senpai?" Shigure asked bluntly.
The Sannin chuckled. "Me? S-rank mission."
Even Kusuo's throat bobbed in awe. S-rank—that was a world unreachable to Genin like them.
"Don't look so rattled, kid," Jiraiya said with a sideways glance at Kusuo. "When you're my age, you'll have stacked so many missions that S-rank barely fazes you." He then leaned closer to Shigure. "So, junior brother, what's your mission?"
The room cooled instantly. After confirming privacy, Shigure explained their orders and the mysterious word they pursued. "We're tracing stolen intel. We're looking for something… or someone… called White Rose."
Jiraiya's lazy grin vanished. "White Rose? You mean the hotel on Rose Street, don't you?"
"What?!" Shigure jolted.
"That inn. Its name is White Rose. I've been eyeing it too."
Kusuo clenched his fist. "Then that's our lead."
"It'd be too suspicious if I stroll in," Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head. "Handsome as I am, I do get recognized."
"…You're too narcissistic," the three Genin muttered under their breath.
Shigure's eyes gleamed. "No problem. I'll enter as one of them." With a hand seal, smoke curled—and suddenly he stood as the Kumogakure rebel they'd slain days before.
Jiraiya slapped the table, impressed. "Good head on you, kid. With this, you might fool them yet. We'll shadow from outside. Be sharp."
The White Rose's Secret
Shigure knocked on the White Rose hotel's door. The alluring woman from before greeted him, her smile sly but her eyes cautious.
"You're here."
"…Yes."
"Did you wipe out the Konoha rats?"
Shigure's nod was firm. "All gone."
"Good. Then come."
She led him past perfumed halls into a hidden chamber. Her movements were fluid, serpentine, dripping with allure. She tugged a book from a shelf—click—and a hidden passage silently opened.
"This way, dear." Her voice dripped like honey, but Shigure's Sharingan was already open, burning beneath his disguise.
The tunnel's end froze him.
Bound in the chamber ahead—Hizashi. Noguchi. Both bruised, chained.
"Teacher?! Mr. Noguchi?!" Shigure almost slipped.
Something's wrong. This is a trap.
The woman smirked, testing him. "Little bonus news for you… one pesky Jonin and his precious charge were captured. The High Priest himself dealt with them."
Shigure steadied his voice. "Ahh… yes. He was tenacious. I nearly killed him, but it seems you finished the job."
Her smile widened. "Perfect. Then come pay your respects."
The Cult Revealed
The underground hall opened, torches casting crimson shadows. Dozens of fanatical eyes turned toward him. At the altar stood the so-called Grand Leader, arms raised to the darkness.
"Grand Master, the Uchiha is here," the woman purred.
"Heh… wonderful. Another subject." The man did not turn, his robes marked with unnatural spiral symbols.
Then his voice rang like a sermon:
"Lord Evil God, bless us! Another Uchiha vessel for our experiments!"
Shigure's heart lurched. Evil God? The Jashin Sect?! The very cult tied to Hidan of the Akatsuki?!
The Grand Leader spun suddenly, eyes wild with zeal. "Tell me, Uchiha brat… where are your little companions?!"
His words were drenched with fanatic madness.
"Exposed…?!" Shigure's mind raced. His disguise had limits, his nerves steel.
The Grand Leader laughed madly toward the cultists. "Bring him to the altar! Tonight we harvest meteorite's power—and the power of an Uchiha!"
Shigure cursed under his breath, fists tightening.
So the White Rose wasn't just a front—it's the mouth of Jashin's cult. And they're the ones behind the meteorite.
P.S. This chapter brings the mystery to light: the White Rose is the lair of the Jashin Cult—the same fanatics who would one day spawn the immortal Hidan. Shigure has walked into the lion's den, Hizashi and Noguchi captured, with the cult's Grand Master demanding possession of his very eyes.
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