Naruto: IHCS Ch. 150

"Ah! What's wrong?"

The geisha cried out in fright, flustered as they hurried to wipe the water off the man's body.

The man didn't care at all that his clothes were soaked. He stared fixedly at Nagato, the drunkenness on his face vanishing instantly without a trace. His face was full of shock.

That reaction was too suspicious.

Shiratori narrowed his eyes, his doubts reaching their peak. He stared at the flustered man, and a vague suspicion began to take shape in his mind.

From the man's behavior, he clearly recognized both him and Nagato. But he was certain that neither he nor Nagato had ever met this man before. The man's face was completely unfamiliar.

That could only mean one thing, he had used a transformation technique.

And that "seeing a ghost" expression of his looked way too familiar.

The corner of his eye twitched. A name surfaced in his mind.

Although he had already guessed who this person was, he didn't show it. He maintained his cautious, guarded demeanor as if facing a stranger. His sharp gaze tested him.

"Do you know us?"

As soon as Shiratori's voice reached his ears, the man's entire body trembled. He looked at Shiratori, then at Nagato, his expression flickering, his eyes full of complicated emotion.

"Ahem, I just thought you two looked a bit familiar! Hahaha!"

He cleared his throat and forced a hearty smile back onto his face, though it was stiff beyond words.

Shiratori smiled brightly, his tone light but his words sharp. "Really? What a coincidence! I also think you look familiar. Even though I've never seen you before, I can't help feeling like I've met you somewhere in the past."

The man's smile grew even stiffer. To cover it up, he gulped down his drink and, almost unconsciously, glanced sidelong at the two young men.

At such a young age, coming to a place like this?

He adjusted his expression, trying hard to look like a nosy middle-aged man. He picked up his cup, swaying as he stood, and walked over to Shiratori and Nagato's table.

Nagato's wariness never faded. He kept his eyes fixed on the uninvited guest before them. This person was far too suspicious. He had been acting strange ever since Shiratori and he entered the place.

"Yo! You two lads!"

The man plopped himself down heavily into the empty seat between them, making the empty glasses on the table bounce slightly.

"You're both so young, what are you doing in a place like this, looking for fun like the old guys? The ladies here aren't exactly harmless, you know. If you're not careful, you'll be swallowed whole, bones and all. Hehehe."

He let out a lewd laugh, even winking suggestively at Shiratori and Nagato.

Shiratori remained silent. That laugh. That sleazy face. No doubt about it. The last trace of uncertainty vanished. Who else could it be, other than Jiraiya? Whose facial muscles were that expressive? Nobody.

Nagato frowned slightly and glanced toward Shiratori beside him. "Let's go. This guy's acting too weird."

Shiratori gave Nagato a calming look. Nagato took a quiet breath, his eyes still alert as he looked at the strange man.

"We just wanted to find a place to rest," he explained.

Shiratori and Nagato were still pure-hearted kids, completely different from Jiraiya.

He studied the man before him, thinking about why Jiraiya would show up here of all places. It was wartime now, Konoha was fighting against Suna, Iwa, and Kumo all at once. The pressure was immense, and the front lines stretched thin.

As one of Konoha's top combat forces, he should, without a doubt, be on the battlefield. According to the intel he'd gathered earlier through his messenger crows, his area of activity was supposed to be the front with Kumo. So why was he suddenly in a region near Iwa's line instead?

Could it be that Konoha's strategy had changed? Not impossible.

Shiratori nodded thoughtfully.

The man leaned closer, closing the distance with a conspiratorial air, lowering his voice as if saying "I understand you kids."

"Ahh, I was just like you two when I was young, curious about places like this. But still, of all the good spots out there, why'd you have to pick this one? Don't say I didn't warn you, this place isn't exactly safe. Something bothering you two? Come on, tell me about it. I've seen a lot in my day, maybe I can help you figure things out, huh?"

The man gave a bright, easy smile. Shiratori saw straight through the probing hidden behind Jiraiya's grin.

"We don't have any troubles," he said lightly. "We've just never been to a place like this before, so we wanted to take a look inside."

Before Jiraiya could respond, he turned the question back on him. "Then what about you? This place is full of all sorts of people, and it's close to the battlefield. Don't tell me you're a ninja?"

He looked at him with innocent curiosity.

"Ah?"

The man gave a helpless smile and explained, "Actually, I am a travel writer. Travel journals sell better when they're written near war zones, you see! Gotta make a living somehow. But you two, what brings you here? Most folks stay far away from this kind of place. At your age, you can't be here for money, right?"

Jiraiya's eyes flicked back and forth between Nagato and Shiratori. What are these kids from Ame doing here in such a dangerous place instead of staying home?

Under the table, Nagato tugged at Shiratori's sleeve. This person's way too suspicious. Shiratori, stop talking to him.

"Jiraiya-sensei, you wouldn't come to a war zone for money," Shiratori said suddenly, seeing Nagato's patience about to run out, he looked ready to blast the man with a Shinra Tensei any second now. "So obviously, we didn't come here for money either."

He exposed Jiraiya's identity in one clean strike.

Jiraiya's eyes went wide. When? How? How could he have seen through my perfect Transformation Technique?

Nagato froze for a moment, then looked again at the unfamiliar man. "Jiraiya-sensei?"

After Shiratori's reveal, he suddenly could see Jiraiya's familiar presence behind that completely different face.

The next instant, Jiraiya grabbed both his students, one under each arm, and dashed out of the building at top speed. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from the geisha's sight.

The geisha were all left dumbfounded. When they finally came back to their senses, the first thing they remembered was the fact that he hadn't paid.

"Hey! You haven't paid yet!"

"Wait!"

"The money's on the table."

"Oh, good! You scared me!"

The cold wind slapped wildly against Shiratori's face. Jiraiya held Shiratori under his arm as he sped across the rooftops. For a moment, Shiratori was reminded of the time he rode the high-speed train. It felt so similar. Jiraiya was just like that speeding train.

And sitting beside him was Nagato. He, too, was a mess in the rushing wind.

Shiratori completely failed to understand what Jiraiya was doing right now. Still, he was grateful that even on a busy battlefield, Jiraiya hadn't forgotten to keep himself clean, otherwise, Shiratori would've had to endure something far worse.

"Haah, haah, ya, haah, haah, Sensei..."

"Could we, haah, haah, please stop, haah, haah, stop for a bit?"

The fierce wind poured into Shiratori's mouth, cutting his voice into broken gasps.

Finally, Jiraiya stopped. Shiratori's feet at last touched the ground again.

Jiraiya set Shiratori and Nagato down on a rooftop. Shiratori looked around. He couldn't tell whose rooftop this was, but it seemed to have become a secret meeting spot for ninja at night.

The building was fairly tall, surrounded by residential houses, and the whole area was unusually quiet.

"Alright, talk. What are you two doing here?"

Jiraiya had already reverted to his normal appearance. He crossed his arms, his gaze shifting between Shiratori and Nagato.

Before Shiratori could answer, he added another question. "And what about Yahiko and Konan?"

He knew how close the four children were, almost inseparable. They never separated if they could help it.

Now, seeing only Shiratori and Nagato without Yahiko and Konan, he immediately sensed something was wrong. Thinking that Yahiko and Konan might be in danger, Jiraiya's expression grew serious.

"The reason we ended up here, it's a long story."

Seeing Jiraiya's sudden sternness, Shiratori knew he was worried about Yahiko and Konan's safety, so he answered his last question first.

"We left them in the Land of Rain. It's safer there than here."

Hearing that, Jiraiya let out a breath of relief. As long as Yahiko and Konan weren't in danger, that was enough.

Still, he was curious. "They agreed to let you two leave them?"

Jiraiya looked at Shiratori and Nagato in surprise.

Shiratori remained silent. He knew Jiraiya, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan well, and Jiraiya knew the three of them just as well.

"We snuck out."

He had no choice but to tell the truth.

Jiraiya said nothing. He had figured as much.

Both Shiratori and Nagato suddenly found a large hand pressing down on their heads.

Shiratori's head tilted downward, pressed down by Jiraiya's hand. He rubbed the two students' heads roughly before releasing them.

"Alright then, now answer my first question. Why are you two here?"

"It's a long story, so I'll make it short."

Jiraiya shot Shiratori a sideways glance, snorting lightly through his nose. "Don't act all grown up, kid. Don't use adult talk to brush me off."

Shiratori glanced at himself, then at Nagato, before reminding Jiraiya, "Nagato and I have already grown up."

Jiraiya looked as if he were about to speak, but Shiratori quickly added, "Yahiko and Konan have grown up too."

Nagato nodded in agreement, echoing Shiratori's words. "We've grown up."

Jiraiya's expression turned complicated. He had to admit, Shiratori was right. Not only had Shiratori and Nagato grown up, they'd gotten taller too. He really couldn't treat them like little kids anymore.

He let out a deep sigh. "So, why did you come here?"

He steered the topic back to the main point.

Shiratori and Nagato exchanged a look. Then Shiratori began to explain.

"We came here because we want to help the people who are suffering in the war."

Jiraiya froze for a moment, his heart softening. If Tsunade were here, she'd probably scold the two of them for being naive, for treating war like a game. But he wasn't like that. He respected anyone who had the courage to follow their convictions.

[Affection detected: Jiraiya +3000 points]
[Curse Growth - Love: 54.6%]

"I know that Nagato and I don't have much power," Shiratori continued, "but even the smallest power is still a power, isn't it? So no matter what happens, Nagato and I won't give up."

Shiratori looked toward Nagato, his eyes shining. Nagato's pupils reflected that determination. He nodded deeply.

[Faith detected: Nagato +5000 points]
[Energy transferred to Suguru]
[Development progress: 77.5%]

Jiraiya sighed helplessly. He already knew what kind of person Shiratori was. So, seeing him act this way didn't surprise him at all, it only made him think, as expected.

"Then," Shiratori asked in return, "why are you here?"

Jiraiya paused and rubbed his nose, unsure how to answer. The war wasn't something he wanted, but he couldn't stop the tide. He was here to continue the chain of war, whether he liked it or not.

Faced with such sincere eyes, he found himself speechless.

Before he could speak, Shiratori lowered his head and said gently, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. No matter what you came here for, I believe that your desire for peace has never once changed."

Jiraiya froze. A sudden ache welled up in his chest. He exhaled slowly, his heart growing heavy.

"It's getting late," Shiratori said after glancing at the night sky. "If we don't head back soon, Aoki will probably start worrying."

"Aoki?" Jiraiya asked curiously.

Shiratori nodded. "Aoki is a ninja we saved on the battlefield. He despises war, so he travels with us, trying to do what he can to stop the fighting and help others."

Jiraiya's expression softened. "I see, I understand."

He gazed deeply at Shiratori and Nagato, eyes full of pride. "Congratulations, you've found companions who share your ideals."

Shiratori smiled. "We met even more companions in Ame. Now, we've already started to form something real."

Nagato pressed his lips together and smiled faintly.

"Really? That's amazing!" Jiraiya exclaimed, raising his thumb toward them without hesitation.