Jiraiya, who was looking for Orochimaru, didn't expect to meet Linto and Sasuke here.
The Destruction Sword on Linto's back was too obvious. Plus, Sasuke and Momo-chan were with him. Anyone who thought about it a little could guess his identity.
But guessing was one thing, and wanting to bother him was another.
After time and distance had passed, Linto's victory over two members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had changed. It became that he alone had defeated Kirigakure's best fighters, killed many members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and drove away the Mizukage, Yagura, before leaving gracefully.
Jiraiya had heard about the Uchiha family's tragedy. Jiraiya knew some of Danzo's secret dirty deeds – it was one of the reasons he didn't want to go back to the village.
With his personality, he couldn't stand it if he saw it.
So he decided to ignore it and left the village under the excuse of looking for Orochimaru.
Jiraiya had heard of Linto a long time ago, one of the last Uchiha Clan members.
Some said he was a bloodthirsty killer, and others saw him as a savior. Jiraiya wanted to see for himself what kind of person Linto was.
"Toad Sage?"
Before Linto could speak, little Sasuke tilted his head and noticed that the special dish at the bar was frog sushi.
"Mister, are you here to get customers?"
Jiraiya's eyes twitched a little.
"This Uchiha kid is really not cute."
"I wanted to warn you, this reward is very dangerous."
Linto looked him up and down: "Are you a broker?"
"You could say that."
Jiraiya made a "please" gesture: "How about we talk over drinks? I know a place where the owner is fair-skinned and beautiful, and the drinks are good too."
Linto thought for a moment and decided to talk to this broker who called himself "Toad Sage."
Even though he was from Konoha, the memories of his past life were too vague. Linto probably knew more about Kirigakure and the Land of Water than about Konoha and the Land of Fire.
He needed information from someone local.
The group went to the bar that Jiraiya mentioned.
Jiraiya was right.
The owner was fair-skinned and beautiful. Her kimono collar was slightly open, and when she bent over to pour drinks, you could see a small mole on her chest.
However, when the owner was about to pour Linto a drink, Mayuri stopped her. Gently but firmly, she took the bottle from her and poured the drink for Linto.
Linto thanked her and asked Jiraiya, "Why do you say the reward is dangerous?"
Jiraiya took a sip of his drink and sighed with satisfaction. He crossed his legs, put one hand on his knee, and picked up a grilled chicken skewer with the other:
"You've heard of Orochimaru, right?"
Linto nodded slightly.
After meeting Kambara Hayato, Linto had hired him for a long-term intelligence mission: finding out about Uchiha Itachi.
Uchiha Itachi was a complete madman, and those kinds of people usually had very strong obsessions.
Linto's gut told him that as long as he and Sasuke were alive, they would face Uchiha Itachi again one day.
While investigating Uchiha Itachi, he also got some information about Orochimaru:
A Konoha traitor, one of the legendary Sannin, Uchiha Itachi's teammate after he joined the Akatsuki organization, later betrayed the Akatsuki organization, whereabouts unknown.
"So, you're saying that this murderous madman is Orochimaru?" Linto asked.
"No, the one doing the killing is Orochimaru's creation."
"You mean... something like a cyborg?"
"Cyborg?"
Jiraiya paused, vaguely understanding what Linto meant, and nodded.
"I see."
Linto remembered the description of the killer on the wanted poster:
Fierce, burly, able to transform into a monster, good at using bones as weapons.
From Linto's understanding of ninjutsu, he hadn't heard of any ninjutsu style that had this ability.
If it was a cyborg, it all made sense.
Jiraiya quietly watched Linto, who was deep in thought.
The village was short on talent. Minato and the jinchuriki Uzumaki Kushina were dead, the Uchiha Clan was gone, and Jiraiya and Tsunade were wandering outside... All that was left were the clan leaders and Kakashi, Guy, and others.
Jiraiya had seen the world because he was always outside the village.
Apart from Kirigakure, which was going straight to destruction, the other big villages were either developing their military strength, like Kumogakure, or hiding their power, like Iwagakure Village.
Everyone was getting stronger, but Konoha, which used to be the strongest, was getting weaker.
With Jiraiya's influence in Konoha, he could protect Linto and Sasuke and bring them back to the village.
But...
That depended on whether Linto was a truly evil person.
Jiraiya was going to test him.
"If you go after that... 'cyborg,' you might attract Orochimaru's revenge. The Land of Fire government isn't offering much money. Instead of taking such a big risk, maybe you could—"
Jiraiya took out a gold bar and a photo from his pocket.
The gold bar was as thick as two fingers, about half a pound.
The photo was of a smiling girl.
"This is the Land of Iron daimyo's daughter. Help me kidnap her, and—"
He tapped the gold bar.
"This is just the deposit. After the job is done, there are five more."
Six gold bars. With the buying power in the Hokage world, you could live it up for a whole year, even if you spent money like water.
Compared to that, the official reward wasn't even as much as the deposit.
The Land of Iron had no ninjas, only samurai, which suited Linto's fighting style. This job would be easy, relaxing, and profitable for him.
Jiraiya watched Linto and the people with him.
As he watched, Jiraiya noticed something was wrong.
Linto turned his head and looked out the window at the rising moon, not looking at the gold on the table, and ignoring Jiraiya.
Sasuke, Momo-chan, and the others also didn't look at the gold. They just looked at Jiraiya with scorn.
Not one person, not even for a second, was tempted by the gold on the table.
They didn't even hesitate. No one looked at Linto for instructions. It was as if they knew, without speaking, that Linto would never take such a dirty job.
Unbelievable!
What kind of personal appeal did he have?!
Linto was just a young man compared to the middle-aged Jiraiya, but the way he quietly sat and drank gave Jiraiya a feeling of pressure.
This pressure didn't come from "power." It was something more uncertain.
Linto finished his drink and put two bills under the cup.
"The drink wasn't that expensive," Jiraiya said.
"The rest is for your information."
Jiraiya realized that Linto was talking about the information that the wanted criminal was connected to Orochimaru.
"You know you'll be getting involved with Orochimaru, but you're still going?"
Linto picked up the Destruction Sword next to him and put it back on his back: "Of course. Besides, it's not me getting involved with him."
"He's getting involved with me."
Jiraiya was stunned, then punched the table and laughed loudly.
"Linto! You... you're really interesting! Sorry, I lied to you. Let's start over."
Jiraiya stood up, walked over to Linto, and held out his hand in a serious way.
"My name is Toad Sage. You can also call me Jiraiya."
Linto looked at his outstretched hand.
"How can you prove it?"
How to prove "I am who I am."
Anyone else would be stumped by this question, but Jiraiya smiled.
"If you hold my hand, you'll know."
A touch of green appeared in his palm.
Sage Art Chakra.
---
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