A horse-drawn carriage rolled along the wet, muddy roads of the Land of Rain. Inside sat a well-dressed merchant named Kentaro.
Kentaro was a merchant from the Land of Fire who dealt in wholesale goods, supplying small shops in Konoha and the surrounding settlements. Recently, he had begun purchasing inexpensive goods from the Land of Rain. He had been among the first merchants in the Land of Fire to recognize the opportunity and had started importing processed food products from Rain.
Initially, he had purchased these goods at considerably lower prices and sold them to retailers in the Land of Fire at the prevailing wholesale rates, earning substantial profits. However, as more merchants entered the market, his profit margins had gradually decreased. Even so, the business remained more profitable than his previous ventures.
Rain had also introduced several new varieties of snacks, which were selling exceptionally well and had quickly gained popularity.
Trade between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain had become increasingly frequent over the past few months. Kentaro usually hired Konoha shinobi to escort his goods as far as the border. Once inside Rain, he preferred hiring shinobi from the Land of Rain itself. They were cheaper, and the arrangement also allowed him to avoid certain tariffs. After all, saving every possible ryo was one of the keys to a successful business.
This time, however, Kentaro had hired Konoha shinobi to escort him all the way to the Hidden Rain Village. They would also accompany him on his return journey to the Land of Fire.
The reason was simple: his escort was no ordinary shinobi.
Sitting opposite Kentaro was Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin.
Kentaro usually commissioned B-rank escort missions, but recently, rumours had spread about a shinobi intercepting merchant caravans and stealing their goods. Consequently, he had decided to spend more money and commission an A-rank mission.
Even then, he had never expected one of his escorts to be Jiraiya, one of the Sannin and a personal student of the Hokage.
Jiraiya wasn't alone, either. Two other shinobi accompanied them, one from the Hyuga clan and the other from the Aburame clan.
Having someone as famous as Jiraiya escorting his goods was certainly something Kentaro could brag about to his fellow merchants.
He glanced at Jiraiya, who was sitting comfortably opposite him, and offered him a packet of snacks.
"Jiraiya-sama, have some. These are among the most expensive snacks produced in the Land of Rain."
Jiraiya accepted the offer without ceremony and began munching on them. After taking a few bites, he turned towards Kentaro.
"By the way, did you enjoy my novel?"
Kentaro's face flushed, and a rather lewd grin appeared on his face.
"It was quite a masterpiece, Jiraiya-sama! Please let me know when you have another one."
Jiraiya chuckled. "It was my first book, but I'll give you a copy of the second one once it's printed."
"Certainly! I'll be waiting for it."
As Jiraiya continued eating, he asked, "Are you taking these snacks back to the Land of Fire to sell them?"
"Partly, Jiraiya-sama."
"Partly? What do you mean?"
Kentaro glanced towards the carriage door. Jiraiya noticed his hesitation and lowered his voice.
"Don't worry. The others are outside. They won't hear our conversation."
Over the past three days, Jiraiya and Kentaro had become fairly familiar with each other. Since Jiraiya wasn't a merchant and had no competing business interests, Kentaro didn't see any particular reason to hide his plans from him.
"You see, Jiraiya-sama, when Rain first started selling processed food products, I made quite a substantial profit. But now there are so many merchants buying from Rain that the profit margins have become considerably thinner."
Jiraiya feigned confusion, prompting Kentaro to continue.
"I've received some insider information that the Land of Rain is preparing to launch its own line of clothing. I'm thinking of purchasing the products before everyone else gets the opportunity."
Jiraiya looked surprised.
"Do you sell clothes as well?"
Kentaro laughed. "I can sell anything that makes me a profit!"
The carriage gradually slowed down. Jiraiya opened the window and looked outside. A Hyuga shinobi wearing a raincoat was running alongside the carriage, with an Aburame shinobi keeping pace beside him.
"We're approaching the town, Jiraiya-sama," the Hyuga shinobi informed him.
Jiraiya nodded before stepping out of the carriage. The carriage continued forward at a walking pace while Jiraiya and the two shinobi walked alongside it.
As they approached the town, Jiraiya noticed numerous merchants and shinobi from different nations. Shinobi from Rain, Grass, and Waterfall were particularly prominent, although there were also shinobi from all four Great Nations.
Among them, he spotted a heavily guarded caravan escorted by a group of Iwa shinobi.
There were approximately twenty shinobi accompanying it, several of whom wore dark uniforms. As the two groups passed each other, Jiraiya exchanged glances with the leading Iwa jōnin. It was Kitsuchi, the son of the Third Tsuchikage.
Neither group stopped, and they continued on their way.
However, Jiraiya couldn't help thinking about the caravan.
Twenty shinobi just to escort a merchant caravan? Whatever they're carrying must be worth a fortune.
Given the recent rumours about a shinobi intercepting merchant shipments, he could make an educated guess.
It certainly isn't snacks. It must be healing tags.
Healing tags were expensive, and a shipment containing thousands of them could easily be worth millions of ryo. It was hardly surprising that Iwa would assign so many shinobi to protect such valuable cargo.
As Jiraiya entered the town, he noticed something unusual. There were no guards inspecting people entering the settlement, nor could he spot any obvious surveillance.
He turned towards the Hyuga shinobi.
"Do you see anyone following us?"
The Hyuga activated his Byakugan and carefully examined their surroundings.
"No one appears to be following us, Jiraiya-sama."
Jiraiya nodded and continued walking.
As they moved towards the inner part of the town, he was met with a view completely different from the Rain he remembered.
The rain was still falling, but that was about the only similarity between the place he remembered and the town before him.
The streets were filled with people, many of whom appeared to be merchants. There were hardly any torn-down houses or damaged shops, and he couldn't see the starving people who had once been a common sight throughout the Land of Rain.
The roadside shops looked prosperous, with plenty of customers coming and going. Even children could be seen playing in the rain.
Jiraiya also noticed that Rain shinobi weren't the only ones available in the town. Shinobi from the Hidden Grass and Hidden Waterfall villages were present in considerable numbers. It appeared that merchants could hire shinobi from these allied villages through the Hidden Rain's commercial network.
Things have certainly changed.
After some time, they reached a hotel.
Kentaro stepped down from the carriage and looked around.
"We'll be staying here."
Jiraiya nodded. "You should get some rest. I'll take a look around the town."
Kentaro was exhausted from the journey and didn't think much of it. He simply nodded and headed inside.
The Aburame shinobi remained behind to accompany Kentaro, while the Hyuga went with Jiraiya towards the Hidden Rain Village.
Amegakure wasn't far from the merchant district, and they reached its gates after a short journey.
Unlike the commercial town, the village's entrance was heavily guarded. Although the guards weren't searching every person who entered or left, they carefully recorded everyone passing through the gates.
The Hyuga shinobi looked towards Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya-sama, should we inform them that we're here to meet Hanzō?"
Jiraiya shook his head.
"Not yet. Let's enter the village first."
As they approached the gates, someone suddenly descended from a nearby rooftop and landed directly in their path with a heavy thump.
The sudden arrival brought them to a halt.
The shinobi guarding the entrance immediately dropped to one knee and bowed deeply.
Jiraiya looked at the newcomer.
Although he had already read the intelligence reports, seeing the person himself still surprised him. Despite nine years having passed, the young man looked almost exactly as he had back then.
It was Ren.
Unlike the shinobi around him, Ren wasn't wearing any traditional shinobi equipment. He wore an ordinary shirt and trousers, and Jiraiya couldn't see even a single weapon on him.
"What brings a Sannin to Amegakure?" Ren asked, placing particular emphasis on the word Sannin. His tone was openly sarcastic.
Jiraiya didn't seem particularly bothered by the remark.
"We have no obligation to explain our purpose to you. You're neither the Daimyō of the Land of Rain nor the leader of Amegakure."
Jiraiya was deliberately making his position clear. Whatever influence Ren might possess over Hanzō and the Land of Rain, he held no official authority to question a Konoha representative.
Before Ren could respond, a blue-haired kunoichi wearing Rain's forehead protector appeared beside them using the Body Flicker Technique. She looked to be around eighteen or nineteen years old.
Before she could speak, Ren turned towards her.
"I can't question you," Ren said, "but she can."
Jiraiya recognized her. This was the Konan from Orochimaru's report, the woman who held power second only to Hanzō in Rain.
Konan ignored Ren's antics and turned towards Jiraiya.
"State your purpose."
This time Jiraiya had no technicality to hide behind. "We request an audience with Hanzō-sama."
Konan looked at him with an expression that revealed little.
"What for?" Ren cut in. "To thank him for sparing you three losers and giving you the title of Sannin?"
Jiraiya didn't respond to the provocation. Instead, he continued looking at her.
"Hanzō-sama doesn't meet visitors," Konan said. "You may state your business to me."
"I'm afraid that's not possible."
"Then you can leave."
Jiraiya considered her response for a moment before taking out a sealed scroll.
"If a personal audience isn't possible, could you at least deliver this invitation to Hanzō-sama and return his written response?"
Konan saw no immediate reason to refuse. It was an official invitation, and there was little harm in ensuring that it reached Hanzō. If its contents were reasonable and offered some benefit to the Land of Rain, a response could certainly be arranged.
She signalled to one of the guards, who approached Jiraiya and accepted the scroll. After checking it, he handed it to Konan.
Konan examined the scroll before looking back at Jiraiya.
"You may wait here or return to the town. You'll be informed once Hanzō-sama has decided how to respond."
and she disappeared with a body flicker.
That left Ren and Jiraiya standing opposite each other.
Jiraiya glanced towards Ren.
"So you won't even allow a Konoha diplomat into the village?"
Ren looked at him for a moment before repeating his earlier words.
"I'm neither the Daimyō of the Land of Rain nor the leader of Amegakure. This matter has nothing to do with me."
Then he stared at Jiraiya. "If I were in control of Rain, you'd already be dead."
Jiraiya didn't flinch at the threat.
He knew that Ren was stronger than him, but he didn't believe the difference was insurmountable. If the situation turned violent, Jiraiya expected Ren to have the advantage, though he believed he could still hold his own and escape if necessary.
Besides, Ren couldn't openly attack a Konoha representative without damaging Rain's reputation and its relationship with the other members of the Alliance. Jiraiya believed that political considerations would prevent Ren from making such a move.
Ren, however, wasn't particularly interested in explaining himself.
He signalled to one of the nearby shinobi and pointed towards Jiraiya and the Hyuga.
"These are old acquaintances of mine. They're not very good at finding their way around, so accompany them. Otherwise, they'll end up somewhere they shouldn't be."
The shinobi immediately bowed and approached the two visitors.
Ren then turned towards Jiraiya. He extended his hand, revealing a small insect sitting on his palm.
Before Jiraiya could examine it properly, black flames suddenly engulfed the insect, consuming it in an instant.
Ren looked directly at him.
"Don't try to pull any tricks. I may not be in control of this country, but that won't stop me from killing you."
Ren left, letting the last sentence sink in.