Chapter 26 – Jiraiya: You did that on purpose, didn’t you?

After finishing their bowls of ramen, the group set out in the afternoon. Matsuyama Ichirō led the convoy.

On the road, he made casual conversation with Jiraiya.

Their objective remained unchanged—to strike a deal with Gato. But based on what Ichirō had heard, Gato had been propping up several gangs in the Land of Waves and had a reputation for playing dirty.

He was worried about getting double-crossed.

Matsuyama Kōji had already mentioned this concern earlier.

Jiraiya hadn’t taken this mission just for money or even because it was an S-rank-level escort in disguise—he was genuinely curious about Gato and the Land of Waves.

“You know anything about this Gato guy?” he asked.

“Not much,” Ichirō replied, sighing. “He’s been on the rise these past few years and has squeezed out quite a few of our long-standing partners.”

He glanced at Jiraiya and asked tentatively, “Lord Jiraiya, with so many parties fighting over control of the Land of Waves, hasn’t Konoha considered getting involved?”

“The Land of Waves…”

Jiraiya actually didn’t know much about the situation there.

Matters like that were usually under Danzō’s jurisdiction.

He paused in thought.

“Is it that bad over there?”

“It’s a mess,” Ichirō replied, face turning serious. He began describing the current chaos plaguing the Land of Waves.

“It might look like a turf war among local gangs, but in truth, the Land of Water and the Land of Lightning are pulling strings behind the scenes. That’s why it’s all so chaotic.”

“The Land of Water and the Land of Lightning…” Jiraiya frowned.

The Land of Waves held a key geographic position—close to the Land of Fire, yet nestled between the Land of Water and the Land of Lightning, effectively acting as a maritime crossroads among the three nations.

Jiraiya opened his mouth, then fell silent.

Sending people into the Land of Waves…
It made strategic sense, especially given its proximity to the Land of Fire.
But as someone who aspired toward peace, the idea didn’t sit right with him.

Kyōen said nothing.

Securing influence over the Land of Waves would undoubtedly benefit both the Land of Fire and Konoha—and as the “Hokage,” he’d stand to gain a cut too.

But…

Theoretically, he was only seven years old. There was no reason he should know anything about the political situation in the Land of Waves.

He decided to go there first and get a feel for the place.

Once he’d scouted things out, he could always claim to have had a “revelation” afterward.

Genius, after all.

Once you establish that persona, anything you do makes sense!

All that groundwork he’d laid earlier wasn’t for nothing.

Kyōen thought to himself, quietly pleased.

After a long pause, Jiraiya sighed and said, “Let’s wait and see. Some decisions aren’t mine to make.”

Matsuyama Ichirō got the message—Jiraiya didn’t want to talk further—so he bowed respectfully and went to the back of the convoy to handle some business matters.

Jiraiya glanced over at Kakashi.

“You’ve got nothing better to do. Why not play with this for a bit?”

He tossed Kyōen a balloon. “Do me a small favor—fill this with water. Doesn’t have to be full.”

“Sure.”

Kyōen didn’t even form a hand seal. With ease, he infused the balloon with water.

“Here.”

No seals and he can already manipulate water release chakra this easily…?

How long’s he even been reading those scrolls?
And he’s improved again?!

Jiraiya froze momentarily, but quickly passed the water balloon to Kakashi.

“Using only chakra, try to burst this balloon.”

“Alright,” Kakashi said, taking it.

As they walked, he concentrated, channeling chakra.

He tried directing it sharply, letting it crash around like a blade inside the balloon—but no matter what he did, he couldn’t get the chakra and the water to work together to rupture it.

This…
Wasn’t as simple as it looked.

He frowned.

Jiraiya chuckled, then turned to Kyōen. “Wanna give it a shot?”

“Can I?”

“Of course.”

Kyōen took the balloon.

Moments later, the water inside began to swirl violently, colliding in all directions. The balloon’s surface started to bulge and tremble—until—

POP!
Water sprayed everywhere.

It exploded.

Kakashi blinked.

Kurenai blinked too.

Then she subtly glanced at her teammate—

Thankfully…

With the mask on, it was hard to tell what Kakashi was feeling. But Kyōen had really done it—burst the balloon on his first try.

Jiraiya was stunned internally, but as a seasoned jōnin used to life on the streets, he kept a straight face like a pro.

“If you get the hang of the trick, it’s not that hard,” Kyōen said, clapping the water and balloon bits off his hands.

Jiraiya handed him another balloon, acting calm. “Nice job. No need to try again—make one for Kakashi.”

Kurenai barely held back a laugh.

Too bad—

Pfft!

She failed.

Feeling the eyes of Jiraiya and Kakashi on her, she flushed slightly and hurried to explain, “I wasn’t laughing on purpose—I just thought of something funny from before.”

Kyōen bit the inside of his cheek to stifle his own laughter.

Clearly—

Neither Jiraiya nor Kakashi bought her explanation.

Kakashi was thin-skinned, but thanks to his mask, you couldn’t see his face. Still, his eyes turned dark—definitely not sunny.

Kyōen pulled it off effortlessly, while he couldn’t—
The blow to his pride wasn’t small.

Jiraiya, ever the veteran, wasn’t bothered by being watched.

He kept his cool.
“Alright, you move on to the next stage. You take this, and Kakashi keeps working on the balloon.”

Kyōen filled a new water balloon and handed it to Kakashi. Then Jiraiya passed him a rubber ball.

“And as for Kurenai… heh heh heh…”

Jiraiya let out a mischievous chuckle.

Kurenai looked uneasy at first, but then resigned herself—
She’d already laughed, no way to take that back now.

Whatever punishment was coming, she’d deal with it!

But to her surprise, instead of a training item, Jiraiya tossed her a large pack.

“You’re carrying this. Think of it as weighted training.”

Kurenai slung it over her shoulders quickly.

Meanwhile, Kakashi stared daggers at his balloon.

All his life, people had called him a genius—quick to learn, always ahead, seemingly effortless.

Only he knew how hard he’d worked behind the scenes.

But ever since his team assignment…
First dismissed by the chūnin, then lumped together with Kyōen…
He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was now one of the faceless crowd watching someone else shine.

Kakashi clenched his fists.

It’s fine!
I’ll get it soon!

…

A good while later—

POP!

Kakashi calmly brushed the remnants from his hands, glancing at Jiraiya and Kyōen. But remembering they’d finished this stage long ago… there wasn’t much to be proud of.

He slumped his shoulders.

“Sensei, I’m done.”

“Good. Move on to the rubber ball. Same deal—use only chakra to burst it. But this time, its toughness is about a hundred times that of a balloon. This’ll keep you busy.”

Jiraiya tossed him a ball.

Kakashi caught it and gave it a go. The ball warped and bent under pressure—but didn’t break. He tried for ages—

Pft!

A strange noise.

A tiny hole formed, air slowly hissing out until the whole ball deflated.

He failed.

Kakashi was frustrated, but he knew this stage was harder.

He started brainstorming alternate approaches—

Like…
Shadow clones.

But…

He didn’t have the chakra reserves to pull it off effectively. Plus, half-baked methods wouldn’t help him achieve true mastery.

Jiraiya tossed him another ball.

Kakashi didn’t rush this time—he paused to think.

Just then—
BOOM!

The ball in Kyōen’s hands exploded.

Kakashi froze, hand stiffening mid-air. He stared at the shredded remains in Kyōen’s palm.

Even the mask couldn’t hide his reaction.

He was stunned.

How…?

Jiraiya couldn’t hold back anymore.

This kid—

He’s doing it on purpose!

Every time I finish explaining, he immediately completes the task. Couldn’t he at least pretend to struggle for a while?

Looking down, he saw that Kyōen’s ball had exploded—completely shredded, not just a small tear.

He really pulled it off.

Jiraiya was floored.

“How’d you do it?” he asked.

Compared to Jiraiya’s shock, Kakashi’s reaction was simpler and more direct.

If you don’t understand something—

You ask.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t sleep tonight.

Everyone had just started this training—
So why could Kyōen already pull it off so easily?