When the dream card showed Jiraiya's name, Rasa was a little surprised.
The card was supposed to be limited to Konoha jonin. But after a second thought, it made perfect sense.
Jiraiya was definitely shadow-level—hell, he was one of the strongest in that tier. Still, he wasn't an actual Kage. That put him in jonin territory.
And right now he was wrecked—missing two legs and an arm, basically a cripple. His power had dropped hard.
"Alright then," Rasa muttered. "Let's give Jiraiya a real nice dream."
He'd used the dream card plenty of times by now. He knew the formula.
First, mix in events that hadn't happened yet but were almost certain to happen. That way the dreamer wouldn't feel like it was just a random dream. They'd think they'd seen the future.
That made them way more likely to believe every detail.
"Keep it something I know but don't make it too obvious I'm involved."
Rasa thought for a moment.
"Whether Jiraiya knows about Naruto or not, I can drop that in. Plus a little Akatsuki intel—Nagato and Konan are still alive, but Yahiko's dead. And Danzo had a hand in it."
"If Jiraiya wants to verify any of this, he'll find a way."
Then came the main event.
…
Jiraiya dreamed.
But it didn't feel like a dream. It felt real. Like he was standing right there watching everything unfold.
Minato stood in front of him. Kushina lay on the bed, heavily pregnant, drenched in sweat and pain. Biwako Sarutobi stood beside her.
Minato held Kushina's hand, encouraging her through the contractions.
Then two figures appeared nearby.
One was Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The other wore a mask. Jiraiya couldn't see the face underneath, but the eyehole revealed something terrifyingly familiar.
"Sharingan!"
A baby's cry rang out.
The next second the Mangekyō Sharingan spun.
A massive surge of chakra exploded from Kushina's body. The Nine-Tails burst free in an instant.
"ROAR!"
The beast's feral howl shook the night.
Jiraiya watched in horror.
Biwako's shocked face was crushed by a single swipe of the Nine-Tails' paw.
Minato chased the masked man.
Kushina, barely holding on, still managed to throw out her Adamantine Sealing Chains to slow the fox.
But Hiruzen was nowhere to be seen.
Leaf ninja died one after another. Houses crumbled. Kushina's strength finally gave out.
Minato's eyes filled with blood as he made the impossible choice. He used the Reaper Death Seal, sacrificing his own life to seal the Nine-Tails inside his newborn son.
Jiraiya felt every second of it.
"Why, Lord Hokage?"
A quiet question from somewhere in the dream made Jiraiya's pupils shrink.
Then the dream shifted.
He saw an ANBU carrying something into the Land of Wind and meeting with Sand ninja.
Much later, the dream showed Jiraiya himself—crippled, lying in a hospital bed with only one arm left.
A shadow fell over him.
"Sorry, Jiraiya."
"I never wanted this, my student."
"Just rest now."
Jiraiya snapped awake, bolting upright, gasping for air.
The room was dead silent.
A faint glow crept across the horizon outside the window.
It took him a long time to calm down.
"Was that… just a dream?"
"But it was so damn clear. Like I was really there."
"So many people. So many things."
"Minato's son… Naruto. Konan. Nagato. Yahiko. That masked guy with the Sharingan—I've never seen anyone like that before."
"Did I just imagine him? Why the hell would I dream he was working with Sensei?"
"I saw Minato die because of Sensei… and then Sensei ordering my death too."
"Does that mean I actually don't trust him? That deep down I've been doubting him this whole time?"
Jiraiya had always believed he trusted Hiruzen completely.
And Hiruzen trusted him.
The rumors were just that—rumors. Enemy propaganda meant to divide them.
But that dream… it made him wonder if part of him had already started questioning everything.
"Summoning Technique!"
A small toad appeared.
A moment later Jiraiya held it to his ear.
"Great Toad Sage…"
He told the toad everything he'd just seen.
"Is this just my subconscious messing with me? Because I'm hurt and I heard those rumors?"
Gamamaru sat on his high perch, eyes half-lidded, speaking in that cryptic old-man voice.
"Daytime thoughts become nighttime dreams. These are your own thoughts… but they could also be a warning…"
Jiraiya frowned.
"Great Toad Sage, are you saying the things I saw might actually be real?"
Gamamaru stayed vague.
"Truth and lies… lies and truth… fate has its own plans…"
When he noticed Jiraiya starting to nod off, the old toad finally spoke clearly.
"Little Jiraiya, if you want to know whether your dream was real or not, why don't you just check?"
"After all, you said some of those things you saw were things you never knew before. Things that haven't even happened yet."
Jiraiya's eyes lit up with understanding.
"You're right."
He already knew the perfect thing to verify.
"Yahiko…"
"I thought all three of them were dead. Turns out Nagato and Konan are still alive. Only Yahiko died."
"And Danzo was involved in it."
"If I ask directly, Danzo will never admit it."
"But Orochimaru and Danzo are close. Going through Orochimaru might be easier."
Jiraiya's eyes flashed.
Not long after, a ninja found Orochimaru.
"Lord Orochimaru, Lord Jiraiya would like to speak with you."
Orochimaru's brow lifted slightly.
"Understood. I'll go see him soon."
By the time Orochimaru reached the medical wing it was already noon.
He didn't walk straight in. He stood in the doorway for a moment, watching a nurse help feed the man who now had only half a body and one arm left.
For a second, Orochimaru felt something almost like regret.
They'd known each other for years. Been through hell together.
Orochimaru had seen a lot of things, but he'd never imagined Jiraiya would end up like this.
"Jiraiya."
"Orochimaru. It's been a while."