The ninja spoke as he nodded to Mingye. Pointing at where Jiraiya had been sitting and the footprints by the cliff, he offered his judgment based on experience.
Mingye could see Jiraiya's efforts as well. He silently endured his suffering alone and never spoke of it—that was Jiraiya's way. He left all his smiles for others and carried all his troubles himself. Though his life might have seemed like a failure, it was also one worthy of pride. Nagato, Konan, Yahiko, Minato Namikaze, and Uzumaki Naruto—the glory of these five disciples had to be shared half with Jiraiya, decorating the title of that Gallant Hero.
He abandoned the small family for the greater whole. Such people were always worthy of respect. Seemingly free and unrestrained as he roamed the world, Jiraiya's carefree spirit could not be concealed by anyone. Glory might truly have been far from him, and success and fame were no more than a laughing matter after a cup of liquor, or perhaps mere posturing beneath lofty words. Yet it was precisely such a man who freely radiated his own light and unknowingly influenced everyone around him. Whether enemy or friend, all would come to admire him.
For over fifty years, he had laughed at life while silently protecting Konoha in his own way, shielding it from countless storms. Yet the villagers never truly understood him. His carefree Sage style made him resemble one of the kabukimono from the Warring States era.
Shaking his head, Mingye stopped thinking about and envying Jiraiya's life. Even if he admired him, that had been a matter of his previous life. In this life, the two were destined to take opposing paths. Perhaps in less than thirty years, Jiraiya would become his stumbling block, just as he would become Jiraiya's!
Holding a