Rain Country,
Under the shadow of war, Amegakure, which had only taken off a few days ago, was forced to hit the brakes. The once bustling streets had become bleak and desolate.
The occasional civilians who went out to buy necessities hurried along with anxious expressions, while rain ninja patrol teams went door to door checking identities. Anyone suspicious was executed on the spot.
"Sigh..."
Outside the Barbecue Restaurant, Jiraiya, dressed in rough linen clothes, sighed and shifted his gaze from the deserted entrance to the white-haired Konan-nee cleaning nearby.
"Xiao Bei, take a break. Looks like we won't have any customers again today."
"Since I'm getting paid, I have to work seriously."
Hiruko shook his head. His current identity was a waiter at the Barbecue Restaurant, so he had to strictly uphold professional ethics.
During the New Year, he had taken advantage of a mission to visit Jiraiya, only to discover that his childhood friend, whom he had worried about for so long, had actually hooked up with a widow and was even helping her raise a child.
How could that be allowed?
Afraid that his friend had been deceived by a bad woman, Hiruko immediately wrote back to request a transfer, saying that Jiraiya was alone and weak in Rain Country and needed organizational reinforcements.
And so, things became what they were now: Hiruko had replaced Jiraiya as the front-of-house waiter, while Jiraiya had been reduced to a chef cutting meat in the back kitchen, spending less and less time with the boss lady.
Fortunately, business had been slow lately, so Jiraiya could continue his unfinished wall-digging operation.
"Caw! Caw!"
Suddenly, a black crow silently landed outside the door. Seeing no one around, Jiraiya quickly took out a piece of jerky and fed it to the crow, receiving