The three of them traveled unhindered through the Land of Rain.
After breaking through the Land of Rain's defensive line, hardly anyone paid attention to them. To outsiders, the three were simply passersby.
Of course, that was provided they did not get caught up in any troublesome incidents.
If they encountered Amegakure shinobi, they still needed to avoid them.
But Amegakure shinobi operating within the Land of Rain... generally had dealings with local forces, rather than being there because fighting had broken out somewhere.
At their pace, another day would more or less bring them out of the Land of Rain and into the Land of Grass.
However, before leaving the Land of Rain, as they passed a lake, a sudden disturbance on its distant surface caught their attention.
Someone seemed to be fighting.
Even Sasori and Yubi could clearly sense the chakra fluctuations.
"Hmm?"
"Someone's fighting..."
The three wore different expressions.
Arai looked particularly grave.
Because chakra of this intensity... was not something an ordinary shinobi could produce.
Even without witnessing it firsthand, he could imagine how astonishing the form and power of those nature transformations would be.
A short while later, they appeared in the woods along the shore, gazing out over the lake, where thick white vapor billowed.
It was steam evaporated by intense heat... There were not as many people as they had imagined. Only two... were fighting.
On the left was a strangely dressed man with long white hair and wooden sandals... Facing him, standing in the lake, was a girl with a graceful figure but a very resolute gaze.
She looked about the same age as Yubi and Sasori.
"Fire Release, perhaps..."
Arai guessed as he studied the traces of battle on the lake.
Rain was still falling. Since entering the Land of Rain, they had hardly seen a clear sky... Even when it did not rain, the sky remained overcast.
With steam covering such a vast area, one could imagine how powerful a Fire Release technique would have to be to cause it.
However, all three could tell that the man and the girl were not truly fighting to the death. They were merely sparring.
To put it more plainly, the man was guiding her training through actual combat.
It was much like when Arai coached Yubi.
But the scale was far greater.
At that moment, the girl was breathing heavily as she splashed across the water to launch another attack on the white-haired man. As she charged toward her opponent, her hands began forming hand seals. Sheets of folded paper spun around her like hidden weapons, shooting toward him one after another.
Yet none struck their target.
Her peculiar ninjutsu could not help but seem novel.
While Sasori and Arai were still watching, Yubi's expression changed.
The moment he saw the white-haired man's back, an inexplicable sense of familiarity rose within him. In the entire Naruto world, there was only one person with that appearance and outfit... It was far too distinctive!
Coupled with the girl's equally unique paper-controlling ninjutsu...
Yubi recognized their identities at first sight.
One of the Konoha Sannin, Jiraiya.
And a future founding member of the Akatsuki, Konan!
It's them!
Yubi's breath caught.
Although they had rarely encountered trouble while traveling through the Land of Rain,
Arai had still chosen a relatively secluded and remote route to avoid certain situations... keeping away from towns and main roads.
But he had never imagined that, through sheer coincidence, they would stumble upon these two characters from the story.
Judging by the power of her ninjutsu and the speed of her hand seals... her current level isn't very high. She probably hasn't been training with Jiraiya for long.
It should be the second year... Only next year, in Konoha Year 42, will the three officially finish their three years of study and training under Jiraiya.
Yubi instinctively recalled the plot.
"That figure... looks a little familiar."
Standing on a tree trunk, Arai frowned.
He seemed to be considering the man's identity.
Jiraiya's appearance was simply too distinctive... And Sunagakure and Konoha were old enemies with deep grudges. To a certain extent, both were familiar with the major figures in each other's villages, especially the "Konoha Sannin," whose fame had truly spread through this Shinobi World War.
Even setting aside the "title" they had received from Hanzō, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru... any one of the three had an incredibly dazzling record in this Shinobi World War.
The reason Arai had not immediately remembered was... he had not expected Jiraiya to be in the Land of Rain.
"Jiraiya."
Sasori spoke beside him.
By then, the look in Sasori's eyes had already begun to change... He even released killing intent.
His hatred for Konoha... was far from slight.
But even before Sasori revealed his identity, Jiraiya had dodged Konan's ninjutsu attack on the lake and already dropped his fighting stance. Standing motionless in the water, he turned his head slightly, glancing out of the corner of his eye toward the spot on shore where the three were hiding.
Clearly, he had noticed their approach long ago.
When he heard the name Jiraiya, Yubi could distinctly feel Arai's entire body tense in an instant.
Even his breathing lagged half a beat.
With a whoosh,
Almost without hesitation, he reacted like a cat whose fur had stood on end, instinctively grabbing Yubi and Sasori with both hands and retreating at top speed.
As though he had put every last ounce of strength into it.
Yes... the name alone had already scared Arai into fleeing.
And he had no choice but to run... Although large-scale hostilities between Sunagakure and Konoha had now ceased and the flames of war had died down, the two sides were still enemies. Jiraiya might still attack them. Even if he did not discover they were from Sunagakure... a monster renowned throughout the Shinobi World was not someone they could casually provoke.
Arai understood that very well.
Anyone capable of achieving such accomplishments on the battlefield... was no ordinary person.
Besides, he had two of the village's "future prospects" with him... He dared not take the risk.
Even if being frightened off by a mere glance was a little humiliating.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Carrying Yubi and Sasori, Arai moved at remarkable speed, racing madly through the woods without so much as looking back. Even after putting some distance between them, he had no intention of setting the two boys down, nor did he slow in the slightest.
"Sensei..."
Meanwhile, on the lake, Konan saw Jiraiya abruptly stop, as though he had noticed something, and asked hesitantly, "What's wrong?"
Three people... Amegakure shinobi...?
Jiraiya pondered.
Being discovered by Amegakure shinobi would still cause some trouble.
He was mainly afraid of involving Konan and the other two.
Fortunately, this was not their hiding place, their "home"... merely a training ground.
Hearing Konan's voice, Jiraiya put away his serious expression and immediately scratched his head, laughing loudly. "Nothing... Hahaha, I got a little distracted. I was thinking about what we should have for dinner tonight..."
"..."
Konan smiled faintly, wisely choosing not to question him.
Although she felt that Jiraiya-sensei... was sometimes baffling and very strange,
That did not stop her from liking this teacher... He felt very close to her.
He was her family.
Jiraiya said, "Let's continue..."
"Okay."
Konan replied.
Arai ran for nearly a quarter of an hour before setting Sasori and Yubi down, having confirmed that Jiraiya had not followed them.
"Come on. We're taking another route."
Arai swallowed.
Clearly, he was still shaken.
Jiraiya had already noticed them, but simply had not attacked.
They could count themselves extremely lucky.
"Why is he in the Land of Rain?"
As the three set off again, Sasori suddenly asked.
Much as Sasori hated Konoha, he also understood that the three of them alone... could not possibly handle Jiraiya.
"I'm not sure... Of the current Konoha Sannin, apart from Orochimaru, he and Tsunade have already withdrawn from the main battlefield. They rarely show themselves anymore."
Arai was also somewhat puzzled. "And... who was that girl? From the look of it, she seems to be Jiraiya's student... She should be from the Land of Rain. There's no way she's from Konoha."
"We need to send this intelligence back to the village. Even if we can't make use of it ourselves, leaking something to Iwagakure or Kumogakure, or simply letting Hanzō know about this... would be enough."
Although the major shinobi villages fought among themselves, they shared an unspoken understanding: none of them wanted things to go well for Konoha.
The butterfly effect, huh... It made Sasori and Konan meet ahead of time.
Yubi, meanwhile, was thinking about something else.
He silently quipped to himself.
It was Konan who had approached Sasori and invited him to join the Akatsuki...