"Mr. Jiraiya, you're putting us in a difficult position!"
"Ha... haha!"
Hearing the Land of Grass leader before him, Jiraiya—his clothes somewhat tattered and his face smudged with dirt—gave an awkward laugh and scratched his head.
Then he clasped his hands together, rested them on his knees beneath his chin, and said with a solemn expression, "Would you believe me if I said it was an accident?"
"What do you think?"
"..."
Right.
What had he even done since coming to the Land of Grass?
Bought intelligence, obstructed the spring planting, and now ruined the spring planting... Thinking about it, it really did seem suspicious.
But it really had been an accident!
Jiraiya let out a wistful sigh as he recalled that morning... He had thought it would be too troublesome to do himself, so he had directly summoned Bunta to help. He figured that with Bunta's size, it would be done in no time.
Though Bunta had initially been rather reluctant, arguing that he was a toad from one of the Three Great Sacred Lands. Was clearing wasteland really something the boss of Mount Myōboku should be doing?
But after Jiraiya begged him and played the brotherhood card, Bunta sighed and loyally agreed to help.
However.
He had guessed the beginning but not the ending.
Bunta was huge.
But toads...
They hopped!
And because he wanted to finish the work quickly, while the tiny hoe assigned by the Land of Grass was unsuitable for him, he ultimately... hoisted his massive blade and began hopping around energetically!
He chopped his way from one end of the village to the other.
By the time Jiraiya realized something was wrong, it was already too late!
Bunta had gotten carried away!
He could not hear Jiraiya shouting beside him at all. His massive body and enormous blade... terrified the surrounding Land of Grass civilians, sending them fleeing in panic.
Then.
The Grass ninja appeared.
After that.
He was restrained again.
So this really was an accident!
"Jiraiya! One of Konoha's Sannin! Arrived in the Land of Grass a month ago." As the Land of Grass leader, Kusana flipped through the documents in his hand and said sternly, "Purpose unkno—"
Before he could finish, Jiraiya seemed to have already guessed what the Land of Grass leader wanted to say and hurriedly said, "I only came to the Land of Grass to visit Teacher Ooki! Teacher Ooki! I really didn't intend to do anything else."
However.
"Purpose unknown." Kusana raised a brow as if he had not heard Jiraiya at all and continued, "Shortly after arriving in the Land of Grass, he privately contacted Kusagakure's upper ranks and secretly purchased intelligence!"
"Wait! Wait! Mujie was the one who approached me! And I only bought a book!"
However.
Kusana seemed not to hear him, still wearing a stern expression. "After that, he obstructed the Land of Grass's crucial spring planting plan!"
"That was a misunderstanding too!"
"And today, he caused widespread panic within the Land of Grass, severely damaged the Land of Grass's farmland, homes, and various facilities, frightened numerous Land of Grass civilians unconscious, and inflicted major losses upon the Land of Grass!"
"This... this was also a misunderstanding!" As Kusana went on, Jiraiya's voice grew weaker. He gave an awkward laugh. "I've really had terrible luck lately!"
"After an investigation... the director of the Land of Grass Guard Department—Director Oyakamon—suspects that you have ulterior motives! Under the pretense of visiting Teacher Ooki, you actually came to the Land of Grass to cause destruction!"
"..."
Wasn't that a bit exaggerated?
Jiraiya's mouth twitched, but before he could speak—
"Of course~" Kusana put down the documents in his hand and looked at Jiraiya with a smile. "Personally... I have great faith in Mr. Jiraiya. Who in the ninja world doesn't know that Jiraiya, one of Konoha's Sannin and the Sage of Mount Myōboku, is a ninja who loves peace?"
As soon as those words fell.
Jiraiya blinked, seemingly a little moved. Looking at the Land of Grass leader before him, he sighed inwardly, his emotions complicated.
To be honest.
He had never expected that ninja wearing an Amegakure forehead protector whom he had seen in the Land of Rain to be the leader who rebuilt the Land of Grass and Kusagakure!
During his time in the Land of Grass, he had also noticed several strange things.
For instance, there were quite a few more redheads around.
Thinking of "Gambling Shadow," the film the Land of Grass had made some time ago... perhaps not everything in it was fake?
The Uzumaki Clan...
Might be in the Land of Grass.
Of course, he had no intention of saying much about it. The Uzumaki Clan involved too much. If it were only one or two people, Konoha might be able to take them in, but an entire Ninja Clan... Konoha as it was now could not possibly accept them.
After all, none of the Five Great Ninja Villages would accept a massive Ninja Clan into their own village!
Moreover, Tsunade seemed dissatisfied with how Konoha had handled the Uzumaki Clan, so it was best to play dumb for once~
Besides... not every redhead was necessarily from the Uzumaki Clan~
And even if someone said Kusagakure had taken in the Uzumaki Clan, no one would probably believe it!
Jiraiya looked at Kusana across from him, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
This Land of Grass leader possessed a truly astonishing breadth of mind!
Given what Jiraiya had done, if this were Konoha, he would have already taken a trip through Anbu!
He was a good person~
"Thank you for the Grass Ninja Village Leader's tru—"
Before he could finish.
Suddenly.
"However!!!"
A voice rang out.
Powerful and resolute!
Each word struck like a hammer!
The Land of Grass leader before him once again placed his hands beneath his chin and said sternly, "As the leader of the Land of Grass, I must give everyone in the Land of Grass and Kusagakure an explanation!"
"Of course! Of course!"
"There must be punishment!"
"Absolutely! Absolutely! After all, I did bring the Land of Grass so much trouble and such huge losses!"
"..."
Was he really this easy to deal with?
Kusana raised a brow, then soon sighed emotionally.
"Since their founding, Kusagakure and Konoha have been close allies, neighbors separated only by a strip of water. The Land of Grass lies west of Konoha and, as Konoha's ally, has always defended Konoha against Iwagakure's invasions. Konoha and Kusagakure are like brothers, supporting and helping each other. We are beloved friends! Brothers in arms!"
"..."
Jiraiya's face twitched slightly. The moment those words were spoken, he felt an ominous feeling rise in his heart. After hesitating for a moment, he cautiously asked, "Um... how much is needed?"
"Talking about money hurts our relationship! You have to trust us! Kusagakure and Konoha are brothers! We're family! Family doesn't cheat family!" Kusana smiled at Jiraiya and waved to Kana behind him. "After calculating the losses! One village within the area you were responsible for suffered severe destruction. The land and the Land of Grass's newly built roads were severely damaged as well. Then there are the frightened villagers and those accidentally injured villagers..."
"Um... Bunta didn't seem to hurt anyone!"
"Ordinary people, you know? Seeing such a huge toad running around, they might suddenly get frightened and lose their bearings. Then, while disoriented, they could step on a stone by the road, suddenly fall, crash into a tree, and suffer serious injuries!"
"Don't worry. We Grass ninja have always been honest, diligent ninjas, and Kusagakure and Konoha are brothers. How could we possibly deceive you?" Kusana sighed. "Of course, don't worry! You should trust us! The compensation is merely something we mention. It's just to give the people outside an explanation!"
He patted his chest. "What is the relationship between Kusagakure and Konoha? Brothers! Dear friends! How could we ask you for compensation?"
"I... I..."
Jiraiya froze for a moment as he looked at the Land of Grass leader before him, wearing that kindly smile.
He sighed with emotion. "I had heard in the ninja world that Kusagakure's ninjas had no integrity, that they would do anything for money! That they sold fake intelligence! But now... having seen you today, it seems I had misunderstood."
"..."
"You're a good person!"
"..."
Kusana fell silent for a moment, then sighed emotionally. "I only do it for peace in the ninja world! Though I am merely an ordinary Grass ninja, I still care about peace in the ninja world!"
As he spoke, before the moved Jiraiya could say anything, he accepted the document Kana handed over and said, "Of course, as I just said, we still have to give the people below an explanation."
Then.
He handed it to Jiraiya.
"Here! Take a look... No money is needed. We only need Mr. Jiraiya to do us a small favor."
"Of course! Of course! Is it farming again? Don't worry, this time I, Jiraiya, guarantee that I'll do it myself."
"How could we ask that of you? You're one of Konoha's Sannin, the dream of countless young women across the ninja world. How could you do something like that?"
"I..."
"Do you have dreams? Do you want to become famous? Do you want countless young women across the ninja world to know you?" Kusana directly interrupted Jiraiya, spreading his arms wide with a devout expression, as though embracing the future itself. He looked at Jiraiya. "If you do, what are you waiting for? Come! Come to Grasswood! All you need to do is sign it!"
"???"
Before you continue