After leaving the shrine, the four walked east for two full days, following the directions marked on the map.
After leaving the familiar forest, the terrain became strange and rugged, with low hills, rain-soaked grasslands, and occasional knee-deep streams to wade through.
The sky remained gray, and the rain, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, never truly stopped.
On the evening of the second day, they stopped by a river about three or four meters wide.
The river wasn’t deep, but the current was swifter than it looked, with muddy water carrying silt and gravel rushing downstream.
On the opposite bank was a relatively open gentle slope, sparsely covered with bushes and weeds, and further in the distance was a low mixed forest.
Yahiko squatted by the river, cupped some water in his hands, took a sip, and then spat it out.
“The water’s too murky. It needs to settle before we can drink it.”
“Let’s camp here tonight.” Konan looked at the sky.
“If we go any further, it’ll be dark, and we won’t find a dry place to rest.”
No one objected.
The four found a relatively flat patch of grass by the river and put down their luggage.
Yahiko went to collect dry firewood nearby, Nagato was responsible for clearing a spot suitable for a fire, and Konan and Luna squatted by the river, preparing to fill their canteens and wait for the sediment to settle.
Luna pressed her canteen into the water, watching the murky river water fill the opening.
Her reflection shattered into a blurry outline on the rippling surface, vaguely revealing a face almost identical to Konan’s, and that exceptionally vivid red hair on the water’s surface.
She looked at her reflection, lost in thought.
It had been several months since she came to this world.
From the initial fear, resistance, and bewilderment, to now…
she couldn’t quite describe the feeling.
She had gotten used to this body, this voice, and the long red hair she saw every morning when she woke up.
But sometimes, especially in quiet moments like these, she would still wonder if Rin, who used to stay up late playing games in her rented apartment in her previous life, and this red-haired girl squatting by the river washing her hands, were truly the same person?
She shook her head, casting aside those distracting thoughts, and was about to stand up.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw another reflection on the river surface.
It was the reflection of an adult man, with long white hair, strikingly conspicuous under the dim sky.
Luna’s body instantly froze.
She didn’t turn around immediately, but her hand instinctively pressed against the Kunai tucked behind her waist.
Then she heard a voice, a deep, casual, and slightly lazy adult male voice:
“That river’s water is too murky. There’s a tributary half a mile ahead; the water there is much cleaner.”
Luna sharply turned her head.
On the opposite bank, about a dozen steps away, stood an adult man.
He was tall, taller than Luna had imagined, with long white hair scattered over his shoulders, and a forehead protector with the character ‘Oil’ (Oil) on it.
His face held a lazy expression, with two red lines extending from the sides of his nose to his chin.
He wore a red outer garment and Wooden Clogs, making him seem completely out of place with the gloomy hues of the Land of Rain.
He carried a huge scroll on his shoulder and a coil of rope at his waist, looking like a weary traveler who had just passed through.
White hair.
Red outer garment.
Oil character forehead protector.
He actually came.
At this moment, when she was completely unprepared, when she was squatting by the river, her hands covered in mud, and her hair damply clinging to her face, he just appeared.
Konan also noticed the man; her body tensed slightly, but her expression remained calm.
Yahiko had already put down the dry firewood in his hands, his hand subtly moving towards the short sword at his waist.
Nagato silently stood up, positioning himself in the middle of the other three.
The four children, each in their own way, were wary of this suddenly appearing stranger.
Jiraiya…
he clearly noticed their tension.
He didn’t move forward or make any threatening gestures, just stood there, looking down at the four children camping by the river.
His gaze first swept over Yahiko…
hmm, orange hair, alert eyes, holding dry firewood, but his posture was ready to switch to combat at any moment.
Then Nagato, red hair, taciturn, standing in the middle of the three, a protective stance.
This child is interesting.
Then Konan…
short blue hair, purple eyes, clutching a piece of paper, her expression calmer than a child her age should have.
Finally, his gaze fell on Luna.
He looked at Luna, then at Konan.
Then a subtle expression appeared on his face, his eyebrows slightly raised, and a playful curve at the corner of his mouth.
“Hoh.”
He spoke, his tone filled with interest:
“Twins?”
Jiraiya looked at them, then at Yahiko and Nagato, his gaze circling among the four children, and then, as if having reached a conclusion, he nodded to himself:
“Four war orphans, camping in the wilderness of the Land of Rain, carrying Ninja tools, having refined Chakra… you brats have a lot of guts.”
There was no malice in his tone, but rather a hint of curiosity.
Yahiko didn’t relax his guard; his hand remained on his short sword.
“Who are you?”
Jiraiya looked down at him, then grinned, that characteristic, somewhat roguish yet bold smile:
“My name is Jiraiya.”
He said it casually.
But Luna knew what that name meant in the Ninja World.
One of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha.
A legendary Ninja.
The future teacher of the Fourth Hokage.
And also the future teacher of these three children before her.
She stood rooted to the spot, her palms drenched in sweat.
Jiraiya’s gaze returned to her and Konan, his sharp eyes carrying a scrutinizing look, not malicious, but more like the gaze of an experienced Ninja assessing something. Follow the newest chapters on novelping . com.
“You guys…” He paused.
“How about you treat me to a meal? I’ll treat you to a bath.”
The question came so suddenly that Yahiko was stunned for a moment.
“…Huh?”
“I said, I’ll treat you to a bath.” Jiraiya repeated, pointing in a distant direction.
“There’s a small hot spring ahead. Although it’s not big, soaking in it in this terrible weather is better than anything. In exchange, you treat me to a meal.”
He looked at the pitifully thin vegetable soup in the pot, then at the children’s slender figures, and shrugged:
“Of course, if you don’t have anything to eat, I can treat you to a meal too.”
Luna stood still, looking at the white-haired man on the opposite bank.
Rain fell on his shoulders, on his red outer garment, but he seemed completely unfazed.
Her heart was pounding.
The gears of fate had finally begun to turn.
Yahiko hesitated for a moment, then looked back at Luna.
Luna didn’t hesitate for too long.
She took a deep breath and spoke, her voice calmer than she expected:
“…Okay.”
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised that it was the seemingly most silent red-haired girl who responded.
Luna looked at him and added:
“But you have to answer one question for us first.”
“Go ahead.”
“Why are you here?”
Jiraiya was momentarily stunned, then laughed, not a perfunctory or casual laugh, but genuinely amused:
“You brat, you’re quite cautious.”
After he finished laughing, he answered Luna’s question:
“I’m looking for someone. A student who is very important to me.”
His gaze drifted to the distant rain curtain, as if looking at a very far-off place.
“I just happened to pass by here and saw a few wet kittens, wondering if I should give them a hand.”
He lowered his head, looking into Luna’s purple eyes, a faint, unreadable smile playing on his lips:
“Are you satisfied with this answer?”
Luna didn’t speak.
Rain fell on the four children, on the river, and on the white-haired man standing on the opposite bank.
He came for them.
Luna withdrew her gaze, lowered her head, and softly said something only she could hear:
“…Satisfied.”