After the investigation squad completed their assembly at the Konoha village gates, they set off in the direction of the Land of Rain.
Shisui, Kakashi, and Might Guy naturally didn't know that Hyūga Shinichi had no intention of infiltrating the Land of Rain. They were focused on crossing the border quickly to begin their investigation.
However, Shinichi knew clearly that the Land of Rain was likely already Akatsuki's territory. Relying only on a few of them, even if they successfully infiltrated, would just be serving themselves up to the enemy. Forget gathering intelligence about Akatsuki; whether they could even leave the Land of Rain safely would be a huge problem.
Although Shinichi didn't share his internal thoughts with the other team members, he used his actions to slow the pace of the team's advance deliberately. Not using the Flying Thunder God to rush was one aspect; another was that Shinichi frequently paused in the villages and towns they passed through on their way to the Land of Rain.
Of course, their stops were not idle. The group consistently visited places like black markets and underground gambling dens to collect intelligence.
After nearly a month of covert investigation and scouting, they hadn't uncovered any intelligence related to Akatsuki, but they had picked up a lot of miscellaneous gossip. This included, but was not limited to: a certain famous "Fat Sheep" squandering millions in an underground casino and losing everything overnight;
a certain famous author being blacklisted in the red-light district for failing to pay for services; and a mysterious wealthy merchant placing a high bounty on the heads of the Guardian Shinobi Twelve, dead or alive.
Kakashi and Shisui gathered this various intelligence and subsequently relayed it to Hyūga Shinichi.
Rock Town Interlude
Rocktown was a large settlement located on the northwestern border of the Land of Fire. Although labeled a "town," Rock town was, in fact, the largest logistics and supply base for the northwestern theater of war. Not only was there a constant flow of merchants and travelers, but the town also maintained a self-recruited defense force organized by the local lord.
During wartime, these forces helped ninja transport supplies, guard the rear, and transmit intelligence. In peacetime, they were responsible for internal security. Due to the town's unique nature, its underground forces were quite complex. Black industries such as Bounty Stations, black markets, and slave markets flourished throughout every corner of the town.
The political system of the ninja world was far from modern. The series of stories revolving around Konoha Village didn't fully expose the dark side of this world. In reality, outside of the ninja village system, the lives of the populace under the Daimyō's rule were far from comfortable.
The chaotic situation caused many ordinary people to lose their land and become refugees. Some of the lucky ones, who still could work, might survive by selling their labor in a new city or village. However, if a family lacked a working backbone, after losing their land, the populace could only resort to selling their children.
Simultaneously, brutal wars often gave rise to many missing-nin. These non-productive missing-nin lived by raiding, and after seizing the "means of production" from the populace, they created even more refugees.
The Daimyō were lofty and high, and the nobles of the Land of Fire only cared about their own comfort. They did not spare any attention for the struggling refugees. To their class, citizens who had lost their ability to produce had no value in living. At that point, these people could hardly even be considered citizens.
Given this general environment, if a major power like the Land of Fire were in such a state, the situation in the smaller countries with weaker economies could only be more difficult.
The mix of people in Rock Town also made Shinichi's group completely unremarkable. Even with Shisui and Kakashi frequently disguising themselves to visit the underground establishments to gather intelligence, their presence went unnoticed.
Rock Town was a place where intelligence circulated most densely, so Shinichi was not in a hurry to leave. He planned to stay for a while. If they still had no discoveries during this time, Shinichi would have no choice but to take them to the Land of Sand first.
This was something Shinichi had anticipated and had already requested from Minato. Minato had already contacted the Suna high command on their behalf, allowing them to gather intelligence about Sasori upon arrival. In short, he was not going to let Shisui and Kakashi foolishly rush into the Land of Rain.
However... their investigation during this time was not entirely without merit.
Although they hadn't obtained any firsthand sightings of Akatsuki, one piece of aggregated intelligence did catch Shinichi's attention.
Inside the inn, Hyūga Shinichi sat at a square table by the second-floor window, enjoying the afternoon sun. He pulled out one slip of information and placed it in front of the others:
"Kakashi, Shisui, do you have any more specific information about this piece of intelligence?"
Shisui and Kakashi looked at the slip Shinichi held, recognizing it as the one concerning a certain author not paying for services rendered. The two looked at Shinichi with confused expressions.
"Hmm? Don't look at me like that, this is serious business!"
"I just want to know if this deadbeat author is Jiraiya-sama." Shinichi lightly tapped the table and said with a solemn expression. Hearing this, Shisui and Kakashi withdrew their strange looks, though a degree of doubt entered their eyes.
"Shinichi, are you looking for Jiraiya-sama? What does this have to do with our mission?" Kakashi was puzzled. Moreover, having spent over a month together, Kakashi could sense that Shinichi was "going through the motions" somewhat. Though he kept this suspicion to himself, the idea of finding Jiraiya piqued his interest.
Given Shinichi's relationship with the Fourth Hokage, would finding Jiraiya-sama really be difficult? He could use the Flying Thunder God to contact the Fourth Hokage, and through the toad summoning of Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya's location could easily be determined, couldn't it?
Shisui also shared this confusion. He knew clearly that Shinichi, like Jiraiya-sama, had a summoning contract with the toads of Mount Myōboku. If Shinichi wanted to find Jiraiya, wouldn't it take just minutes? Furthermore, Shisui didn't understand how Jiraiya was connected to their mission.
"Whether there is a connection... It's still hard to say."
"It's just a shot in the dark."
"Do you know what Jiraiya-sama left the village to do?" Shinichi posed a rhetorical question. Orochimaru's defection was not a glorious affair.
The Third and Fourth Hokage had tried to conceal the news, so few people knew about it. However, Shisui was one of the guards who protected Kushina during her training and had heard rumors, and Kakashi, as the Hokage's disciple, knew even more.
Hearing Shinichi bring it up, Shisui spoke up at the right moment: "Wasn't it to bring back Lord Orochimaru?"
"And he...?"
Shisui was about to say that Jiraiya had no connection to the matter they were investigating, but in the brief space of a few breaths, Shisui thought of many things, swallowing the rest of his sentence.
"Lord Orochimaru is a Konoha missing-nin. Are you suggesting..."
Shisui was enlightened. Kakashi's eyes also flashed with understanding, but his rational mind told him that such a coincidence shouldn't be possible.
"Surely not?"
"Are you suggesting that Lord Orochimaru joined that organization after becoming a missing-nin?" Kakashi voiced his thought, but Shisui, beside him, stroked his chin without concluding.
Shinichi glanced at Kakashi and asked skeptically:
"Why not?"
"The information we've been able to gather so far about that organization indicates that its members are highly likely to be missing-nin from various ninja villages."
"Furthermore, judging by their two-person team formation, this organization is pursuing an elite path."
"The Sasori and Kakuzu I fought were both top-tier powerhouses, and Sasori even succeeded in assassinating the Kazekage."
"Why wouldn't such an organization recruit Orochimaru?"
"He is one of the Legendary Sannin, an exceptionally strong individual, and a missing-nin harboring great ambition."
"From every angle, isn't Orochimaru a perfect fit for that organization?"
Shinichi's reasoning caused Kakashi to wisely shut his mouth. Although he didn't believe the situation was that coincidental, after hearing Shinichi's argument, Kakashi realized that such a preposterous possibility was indeed plausible. As Shinichi said, Orochimaru was a perfect fit for that organization.
"Jiraiya-sama has been tracking Orochimaru for years. If we can find Jiraiya-sama, we can find out where Orochimaru is."
"Maybe finding Orochimaru will lead us to Akatsuki, who knows?"
Was Shinichi analyzing based on current intelligence? No, he was using his "divine vision" [meta-knowledge]. Having the predetermined answer, he crafted the analysis. While his analytical logic was stretched, it was still passable, and putting out this intelligence wouldn't arouse suspicion.
"Leave it to me. I'll find Jiraiya-sama right away!"
Shisui reacted quickly and was highly motivated. It wasn't entirely because Shisui had absolute faith in Shinichi's leadership. Rather, out of a desire to look out for his "younger brother," Shisui actively upheld Shinichi's authority as captain in all situations.
Shisui's approach was also very useful for the team. After being out of the village for so many days, no matter how much Shinichi slowed the team's advance, the group remained cohesive around Shinichi, with no conflicts or disagreements erupting.
Shisui, who was responsible for intelligence gathering, returned quickly, and the information he brought back greatly lifted everyone's spirits.
The "deadbeat" patron was indeed Jiraiya. For reasons unknown, the Sannin Jiraiya, who had completed countless S-rank missions, had run out of cash. Although "not paying" was a "trivial" matter, the person involved was one of the Sannin, causing the information to circulate quickly on the black market.
Jiraiya's last known location was the Land of Hot Water (Yugakure). Others might assume Jiraiya was there for research and pleasure, but Shinichi knew that the Land of Hot Water bordered the Land of Grass (Kusagakure), and across the sea from it was the Land of Water (Kirigakure)... One of Orochimaru's secret bases had once been built near the Land of Water.
Orochimaru was likely returning from the Land of Water to his main base around this time. Speaking of which... Orochimaru should have successfully taken in the boy named Kimimaro by now.
"Change of direction. Let's head to the Land of Hot Water."
"We might as well help the village deal with a missing-nin while we're at it."
Upon receiving the intelligence, Shinichi changed their marching direction, a decision that drew a challenge from Kakashi.
"We are already in Rock Town, only two days away from the Land of Rain."
"Orochimaru joining Akatsuki is only a guess and hasn't been confirmed. We can fully investigate the Land of Rain first, then rendezvous with Jiraiya-sama to track Orochimaru."
Hearing this, Shinichi shook his head and vetoed:
"The Land of Rain is different from the Land of Hot Water. It is a place ruled by the Demigod Hanzō the Salamander. It's not a place Konoha ninja can enter and leave at will."
"The Land of Hot Water is a neutral country and has a higher safety rating."
"It's not too late to head to the more dangerous Land of Rain after confirming the intelligence regarding Orochimaru, and if we have no further success."
"Since both are speculation, let's head to the less dangerous location first."
Shinichi's excuse was only moderately persuasive, but Kakashi did not continue to argue. In this era, the name of Hanzō the Salamander was indeed very resonant. No one knew that Hanzō had already been killed by Pain.
People's perception of the closed country was still stuck in the era of the Great Ninja Wars; after all, the Sannin title itself was granted by the "Demigod." That title, which was the title of the defeated, had now become an "honorable label" for the Sannin, highlighting Hanzō's great renown. Even a young genius like Kakashi was wary.
The squad spent another night in Iwashitown. The next morning, the group changed direction and set off for the Land of Hot Water.
While traveling, Shinichi did not neglect gathering intelligence or training. The group traveled in stops and starts, spending nearly half a month traversing the entire Land of Fire and approaching the border of the Land of Hot Water.
As a neutral nation, it had little military strength. The confrontation between Konoha and the Cloud Village had long since ended, and the Land of Hot Water had begun to recover civilian life.
It was a country whose main industry was hot spring tourism, and even in this chaotic ninja world, the Land of Hot Water could be considered a peaceful haven. With a developed tourism industry, the pleasure industry was also extremely developed, making it one of Jiraiya's favorite "research locations."
However, Jiraiya was lingering in the Land of Hot Water this time not for research, but to recuperate from injuries.
The Encounter
Inside a certain hot spring inn, Jiraiya lay back in the bath with his eyes comfortably closed.
He was completely unaware that several other travelers had entered the hot spring pool. Floating near Jiraiya's hand was a wooden tray. With his eyes closed, Jiraiya casually grabbed a sake cup, took a sip of liquor, and let out a sigh of contentment.
Not far away, Hyūga Shinichi, who had just entered the pool, stretched and glanced at the wound on Jiraiya's upper body. He suddenly spoke up:
"Whew, that's a deep sword wound, isn't it!?"
"Looks like Jiraiya-sama took quite a beating!"
If you want to read more, join my Patreon/kazama677
I will drop 1 bonus chapter for every 50 Power Stones