The yuans obtained from the various city gangs were more than enough for the trip and beyond. Jin settled for carrying a few bundles of bills for quick cash, along with some coins at hand.
He got himself a sturdy travel bag, some changes of clothes, canned food just in case, and spent the rest of the day calmly wandering around Republic City.
"Hey, you! Hand over your wallet or I'll—"
(Sound of someone being slammed deeply into a brick wall)
With such a free and sunny day, how could he not do something productive?
His first stop was the park where Korra would eventually roast some fish to eat not long after arriving in Republic City. As always, she had managed to get everything she needed, but forgot to bring a purse with a few yuans.
His target? Gommu, the homeless man who lived in a beautiful bush—though in reality he was more of a sewer dweller.
The man was friendly and gladly accepted money in exchange for a small errand, a trivial task that would barely require a few words paired with his charming charisma to get done.
As Jin walked away toward his next goal, Gommu curiously watched the back of his generous blind benefactor.
"A woman dressed like a waterbender but using firebending?" He scratched his head at such a contradictory and oddly specific description, then shrugged.
He had seen weirder things in this city.
He already had the money for food and only needed to wait—he was a man of his word!
Jin only needed half an hour of walking to reach his next destination: Republic City's Pro-bending Arena.
"Where are those two? Mako and Bolin usually don't stay apart for long."
If he remembered correctly, around this time the two brothers were living in the arena's attic. Not long after, when Korra joined their team, they would need to raise thirty thousand yuans to enter the tournament and be allowed to compete.
Mako would try to earn extra money at the power plant, while Bolin would end up being tricked by Shady Shin and then kidnapped (along with his deceiver) by the Equalists.
That event not only led to Korra facing Amon for the first time, but afterward Future Industries would become the team's sponsor.
Why was he here?
For starters, he didn't like Mako.
He respected that he took care of Bolin as best he could, that he had left the Triple Threats and was trying to stay "clean" through sports. He understood that the two orphans hadn't had it easy, and that Mako, as the older one, had to be the rational survivor.
But the guy was a complete jerk when it came to women.
It was obvious that after his accidental meeting with Asami Sato, he used the chance to casually bring up their need for money—an act of shamelessness. As a result, Asami, kindhearted as she was and not thinking too deeply about it, naturally mentioned it to her father and—bam!
Team sponsored by Future Industries.
Then, when his relationship with Asami was beginning to blossom and Korra confessed her feelings, at first he acted like a man and turned her down. Sure, it caused tension in the team, but Jin would have respected him for keeping a firm stance and making his intentions clear.
Mako didn't.
After the match, not only did he admit to Korra that he had feelings for her too, but he also wanted to stay with Asami. He basically exposed his hidden greed, excusing it as "confusion."
At that point, Korra impulsively kissed him, and Mako—rather than pulling away—kissed her back eagerly.
Not only did he break Bolin's heart right there (since Bolin was present and had his own little hopes about Korra), but he also betrayed Asami's trust without a second thought.
Later, when the authorities shut down the Arena, he shamelessly accepted Asami's offer, showing no guilt or embarrassment about his betrayal. But even after all that, when Korra voiced her suspicions that Asami's father might be working with the Equalists, he flat-out refused to believe her—not because he thought it was unlikely, but because he believed Korra was just jealous of Asami and trying to break them apart to have him for herself.
How big was this guy's ego?!
And don't even get started on how he kept stringing Korra along while deceiving Asami after moving to Air Temple Island. He didn't even have the courage to give Asami an honest answer when she confronted him in the temple's kitchen, telling him straight out that she knew what he'd done.
Hell, the worse Asami's situation became, the more Mako ignored her in favor of Korra!
In the end, it was Asami who had to break up with him, at her lowest and most vulnerable point, with her father arrested, Future Industries in dire financial straits, and her company's reputation ruined by the Equalists.
As if that wasn't enough, Mako took advantage of Korra's peak moment—when she first mastered all four elements, her emotions running high—to kiss her and make themselves a couple.
New power connection secured.
Of course, later he didn't hesitate to betray Korra by ratting out her plan to go directly to the United Forces president, Raiko. Soon after that, he even took the initiative to break up with her.
Later still, he even flirted with Asami again while she was suffering from the robberies targeting her company!
How could anyone not call him a bastard?
"Even I, who had three women, was always open and honest with them," Jin thought bitterly. "I didn't lie to them, I didn't play with their feelings, I didn't use them for my own benefit. They knew each other, they worked together happily, we were all clear about what we wanted, and things just happened naturally."
Jin hadn't even intended to have more than one partner, but life just unfolded that way.
…
He already had a rough idea of what to do with the traitor's spirit—not even plot armor would be able to save him from it.
Anyway, the main reason he sought out the brothers was Bolin.
Jin liked Bolin far, far more than Mako.
A bit naïve, good-hearted, hardworking, and determined when he set his mind to it.
As for dating Opal… well.
But the most important part was that he would become Nuktuk, and his advertising influence would be quite remarkable for a time—something Jin intended to make use of.
And the best time to be remembered is when you help someone in need.
At first, Jin thought about buying a house for the brothers with the Triple Threats' money—something small but decent. However, his niece would no doubt suspect where he had gotten enough money for such a purchase.
Earning a day's worth of money for a bag, clothes, and canned food was still acceptable. But a house?
So he had to take a less direct approach.
"Excuse me, sir, do you need help crossing the street?"
Jin blinked. Wasn't this a big coincidence?
"I'd appreciate a little help."
Bolin looked both ways before helping the stranger—an incredibly handsome blind man—cross the road.
"Thank you," Jin said as he set his plan in motion. "Your voice sounds familiar. By any chance, are you on a Pro-bending team? I think I heard you on the radio once."
Mako wouldn't have taken the bait—after all, only the commentator's voice was broadcast on the radio. But Bolin did.
"Actually, yes!" Bolin puffed out his chest at being recognized by a fan, then remembered Jin couldn't see his proud pose and deflated slightly, relieved that it went unnoticed. "I'm Bolin, part of the Fire Ferrets."
Pabu, a true fire ferret and the earthbender's pet, climbed onto Bolin's shoulder and sniffed curiously toward Jin.
"The Fire Ferrets?" Jin pretended to reflect. "Yes, I know of you. You must be the team's earthbender—your movements give it away."
"That's me!" Bolin grinned, not even questioning how a blind man could know how he moved.
"Bolin, right?" Jin searched through his bag. "Since you helped me, let me give you something in return."
"Oh, sir, that's not necessary. I didn't do it for that."
Jin smiled faintly—he could tell Bolin was being sincere.
"I know, but consider it a matter of principle." He pulled out a sealed envelope prepared beforehand. "I'll give you this—but don't open it until you're home! Also, I can give you some advice, if you don't mind it coming from a poor blind man like me."
"Don't worry! It's always good to learn something new every day!" Bolin took the envelope hesitantly, squeezing it between his fingers. It felt pretty solid. He had no idea what it was and his curiosity burned, but he decided to heed the man's words.
"Show me your arm."
Bolin stretched out his arm, and Jin held him by the wrist, as if checking his pulse.
"I've got good news and bad news."
"I thought it was just advice?"
"I'll give you a bonus one, for being a good person."
"Oh, great!"
Free things were the best!
"As an earthbender, you don't have any talent for metalbending…"
Bolin's eyes widened so much he almost fainted on the spot.
"Are you sure?" he asked nervously.
Becoming a metalbender was one of his dreams!
"…but you do have talent in another subskill, one even rarer than metalbending," Jin continued. "In fact, I don't think anyone else in the city has the same gift as you."
Jin wasn't lying—he wasn't officially a city resident. And Bolin really was the only lavabender around.
As for lacking metalbending talent—that was true. Bolin's chi simply wasn't suited for it; his lineage clearly had something to do with that.
"Yes!" Bolin raised his fists and looked skyward. "I knew I had something special!"
"Well, boy, it's getting late, and I must go." Jin patted him twice on the shoulder. "Remember—don't open that envelope until you're home."
"Don't worry." Bolin pounded his chest. "Oh, I didn't ask your name."
"You can call me Jin," he said. "Keep working hard—I think you've got real talent for pro-bending."
Bolin held back tears. It was the first time someone other than his brother had said that to him!