At Tatsuma's words, Kincho wavered. His stiff, defensive posture softened slightly, while Mou looked on in utter confusion.
Mou didn't remember saving Kincho. As far as he knew, Kincho was just a boy who had shown up on his doorstep a few weeks ago, asking to learn how to fish. Within two days, the boy's catch had completely eclipsed his own.
Kincho had eventually suggested a new arrangement: he would handle the fishing, and Mou would focus on the sales. Because their trial run had been so successful, Mou had agreed. His business had never been better.
Mou had even started making plans to leave his boat to the boy eventually. He had no wife or children; Kincho felt like the successor he'd never had. Before Jiraiya and Tatsuma opened their mouths, Mou hadn't seen anything wrong with their life.
Now, Mou stared at Kincho, his mind racing. Kincho fidgeted for a long moment before whispering, "Mr. Mou... my real appearance might scare you."
Jiraiya loosened his grip on Mou's throat. Truthfully, he hadn't been applying much pressure at all—just enough to keep the man from shouting.
Feeling the pressure vanish, Mou hesitated, then spoke with a trembling but firm voice. "Kincho, it doesn't matter what you look like. I believe in you. You're a good kid."
"Mr. Mou..."
Tears welled in Kincho's eyes. He gave a sharp nod. Suddenly, his body began to contort and twist. His height—which had been greater than both Minato's and Tatsuma's—shrank rapidly.
Seconds later, a creature no higher than a man's knee stood in his place. It was a black-and-white animal, a bizarre blend of a badger, a tanuki, and a raccoon. It still wore its straw hat, but that wasn't what caught the eye.
What truly arrested the attention of everyone present—even causing a seasoned Jonin like Jiraiya to nearly pop his eyes out of his head—was the creature's massive, floor-dragging scrotum.
"Uh... er..."
Seeing their expressions, Kincho's body began to tremble, and his fur started to bristle. But before he could panic, Mou spoke up. "So... so cute... Are you the one from the Land of Whirlpools?"
At those words, tears spilled from Kincho's small, beady black eyes. His trembling stopped. He held his tiny paws to his chest, looking up at Mou with pure devotion.
Jiraiya and the boys finally managed to tear their eyes away from the creature's... unique anatomy. One had to admit, if you ignored the dragging baggage, Kincho was undeniably adorable. But ignoring it was a tall order.
Mou finally found the strength to turn his head toward Jiraiya. "Lord Ninja, please, I beg you—have mercy on Kincho. He didn't do anything wrong. He only stopped the others from fishing to help my business. I won't let him do it anymore, I swear. Please!"
A flicker of hope appeared in Kincho's eyes. However, Jiraiya shook his head slowly.
"Mou, it's not that simple. When he says he 'stopped' people from fishing, he didn't use words. He used Genjutsu—or rather, a natural talent he doesn't even realize is harmful. He can't comprehend that what he's doing is wrong. Including those 'fish' you've been selling... the ones people have been buying to feed their families... they aren't fish. Kincho, why don't you show him?"
Kincho nodded solemnly. He raised a small paw. Instantly, the wriggling, silver fish in the baskets transformed back into a pile of cold, grey stones.
Mou's face fell into a mask of shock and guilt. But Kincho's expression remained unchanged. He simply couldn't grasp the gravity of the deception.
"Just today," Jiraiya continued, "a child nearly choked to death on one of those stones. Kincho doesn't care about that. To him, you are the only one who matters because you saved him. Other humans... to him, they aren't 'people.' They're just like the fish in the sea. Mou, do you care if you destroy a fish's family?"
Mou stood paralyzed. He looked down at Kincho. "Is... is what the Ninja says true?"
Kincho gave a slow nod. Mou fell silent. After a long pause, he whispered, "Lord Ninja, give him one more chance. I'll teach him better. I'll make sure he understands. Please, trust me."
"Why do you think the ninjas of the Land of Whirlpools sealed him in the first place?" Jiraiya countered. "He committed far worse atrocities in the past. Even after years behind a seal, he still hasn't realized his mistake."
Jiraiya shook his head, his refusal final. Mou's voice broke. "How can this be?"
Then, a second later, Mou's eyes snapped up. He screamed at the top of his lungs, "Kincho! Run! Don't worry about me! Just go!"
"Tatsuma! Minato!" Jiraiya roared.
Kincho spun on his heel to bolt, but Tatsuma and Minato were already moving. They unleashed the techniques they had been holding in reserve.
"String Light Formation!" they shouted in unison.
The two boys slammed their hands down. Two glowing sealing arrays erupted from beneath them, lashing out across the ground to intersect beneath Kincho. The creature, who had been about to leap away, suddenly found his movements slowed to a crawl, as if he were running through waist-deep honey.
Jiraiya shoved Mou aside and whipped four sealing tags from his sleeve. He hurled them with pinpoint accuracy, the kunai pinning the tags to the surrounding walls to form a perimeter. His fingers blurred through a sequence of signs.
"Ninja Art: Sealing Binding Formation!"
In an instant, Kincho's slowed movements ground to a complete halt. He was frozen mid-stride.
Seeing the beast neutralized, Jiraiya pulled out the specialized scroll prepared by Uzumaki Mito. But just as he was about to initiate the final seal, Kincho's fur suddenly exploded outward like needles.
The four tags on the walls began to shred as if torn by invisible hands. Tatsuma and Minato's hands began to shake violently as they struggled to maintain the String Light Formation.
Gurgle... gurgle...
A low, muffled engine-like sound began to vibrate from within Kincho.
"No choice, then," Jiraiya muttered. He bit his thumb, blood blooming across the skin, and slammed his palm onto the ground.
"Summoning: Toad Mouth Bind!"
Poof!
A massive cloud of smoke erupted. In an heartbeat, the entire area was encased in the fleshy, ribbed interior of a giant toad's esophagus. The sudden shift shattered the stalemate; Kincho broke free of the restraints, but the force of his release sent Tatsuma and Minato flying, both boys crashing into the soft, pulsing walls of the meat-chamber.
Kincho spun around frantically, but there was no exit. He was trapped inside a living stomach.
Jiraiya glared down at the creature. "Kincho, I've placed a seal on this space. If you dare to cast another illusion, then..." He turned to look at the terrified Mou. "This place will swallow Mou whole. The choice is yours. Will you accept the seal, or will you try to flee—even if it means the man who saved you dies?"
Kincho froze. His panic mirrored Mou's. "I don't want to... I don't want to..."
Mou, regaining a sliver of his composure, grabbed the hem of Jiraiya's coat. "Lord Ninja, you're so powerful... can't you just... can't you just seal his powers? Don't lock him away again. If he has no power, he can't hurt anyone, right?"
"You should worry about yourself," Jiraiya said coldly.
But Mou shook his head, his eyes burning with resolve. "No! I'm the one who brought him here from the Land of Whirlpools! His mistakes are my mistakes! If there has to be a punishment, punish me!"
"I'm sorry," Jiraiya said, turning his gaze away. "That isn't for you to decide. Nor is it for me."
He unfurled the scroll once more. "Kincho. Your decision?"
"I..." Kincho looked at Mou, who was still trying to plead for his life. "Seal me."
"Kincho!"
"Mr. Mou... being sealed isn't that scary," the creature said, a small, raccoon-like smile appearing on its face. "I remember the last time. I just fell asleep and then I found you. It's okay."
Jiraiya waited, giving them a final moment to say goodbye.
"Mr. Mou, you have to keep fishing. Like you said, you need to save money to find me a wife. I still don't know what that means, but you have to do it. Catch the fish, save the money, and find me a wife."
"I... I will. I promise."
Tears carved deep tracks through the weathered wrinkles on Mou's face. Jiraiya knelt, pressing his hand into the center of the scroll's array.
"Drunken Dream Seal!"