As expected, it was about Jiraiya. Hyuga Yuto's mind raced, but his face remained calm.
"Which one might that be?" he asked.
"The Toad Sage."
"Oh... Lord Jiraiya, then." Hyuga Yuto said softly, "I'm a Konoha ninja. I must know, what is your purpose in seeking Lord Jiraiya?"
His words were impeccable. If Yahiko and the others had submitted the letter officially, it would have reached Jiraiya. Entrusting it to a Konoha ninja privately clearly meant they didn't want outsiders to know. As a Konoha ninja, Hyuga Yuto was obligated to ask.
Yahiko nodded and spoke the words he had prepared:
"The three of us spent some time with Lord Jiraiya. We are old friends."
"How can you prove that? I can't just deliver a letter of unknown origin to Lord Jiraiya."
"It's alright, we won't make things difficult for you." Yahiko chuckled, "Just help us deliver a message. I believe you have a jutsu to communicate quickly with Konoha. Once we have Lord Jiraiya's reply, you can deliver the letter with confidence."
"Tell me."
"The message is, '[The frog board has been flipped over]'." Yahiko's smile held warmth and nostalgia. "Don't worry, we are Lord Jiraiya's friends."
"The frog board" was a code only known to Jiraiya and the three Amegakure orphans.
"Alright, I will use the Summoning Jutsu to send this message back to Konoha."
"Thank you. This is very important."
"It's nothing, I'm on vacation anyway."
"As a reward, Hyuga-kun, we won't let you work for nothing." Yahiko, having built the Akatsuki organization over the years, now possessed the demeanor and skill of a leader. He stepped forward, facing Hyuga Yuto, and said earnestly, "What do you want, Hyuga-kun? We will do our best within our capabilities."
"Hmm..." Hyuga Yuto turned his head, glancing at the indifferent Konan, then at Nagato standing with his head bowed. "Money, do you have any?"
Konan's beautiful eyes narrowed. As the person in charge of intelligence and finances in the Akatsuki organization, she was now a thorough miser, preferring to risk her life rather than spend money.
"For a Hyuga prodigy, money is not important. Offering money as a reward is disrespectful to you." Konan's voice was cold, but her words were eloquent. It seemed she had weathered many storms over the years.
Well, it seems I still have to painstakingly save up to build my base, Hyuga Yuto thought with a sigh. He changed his request: "Do you have anyone who is proficient in chakra nature transformation? I have a jutsu that I haven't been able to complete."
Yahiko's eyes lit up. "Good! That's no problem, Nagato."
Standing at the back, Uzumaki Nagato spoke in a gentle voice, "I understand, Hyuga-kun. I will guide you."
"You?" Although Hyuga Yuto knew that Uzumaki Nagato was an unparalleled genius, possessing the Rinnegan like the Sage of Six Paths and mastering the six chakra nature transformations that were impossible for one person to have, he still had to play dumb and pretend he didn't know this information. "You don't look much older than me... Are you sure you can?"
"Trust him, Hyuga-kun." Yahiko's tone was filled with unconcealed pride. "My brother, Nagato, is the most talented ninja I have ever met."
"Alright, I suppose the leader of the renowned Akatsuki wouldn't lie to me." Hyuga Yuto yawned. "While waiting for Lord Jiraiya's reply, I..."
"Just stay here, Hyuga-kun. We'll find you a room, and it will be convenient for Nagato to guide you."
...
A few minutes later, Hyuga Yuto was led away by Asano Kaoru, while the three Amegakure orphans remained where they were, showing no intention of leaving.
"Hyuga Yuto... Tsunade-hime's disciple..." Yahiko savored the conversation they just had and sighed, "If everyone were so willing to communicate, the world wouldn't have so many tragedies and conflicts."
"But Yahiko," Konan said, "Isn't he a little too trusting of us? He followed Seigen in directly. Would a Hyuga genius be so unguarded? He..."
"Tsunade-hime's disciple, it's normal for him to know about us. His teacher has met us and might have mentioned us someday." Yahiko turned around, touched Konan's cheek, and pinched it slightly, teasing, "Don't overthink it. We're too tired. Relationships between people shouldn't be so complicated."
"Hmph..." Konan spat at him, her cheeks flushed, but not angry.
Nagato smiled with his arms crossed, watching the two of them, enjoying the sweet interaction without saying a word. He was a professional at enjoying such moments.
"Alright, you..." Konan coughed lightly and sighed, "Do we really need to find Jiraiya-sensei? Will it cause him trouble..."
"We're just asking for his advice. The current situation is something we've never encountered before. We need an experienced elder to tell us how to break the deadlock." Yahiko thought of something and snorted coldly, "Akatsuki is getting bigger and bigger, and its composition is becoming more and more complex... Several small teams might all be spies sent by other countries! This is very detrimental to us."
Konan and Nagato also sighed, helpless against the current predicament.
The Land of Rain was located in a strategic location, and chaos and riots were the norm. As the Akatsuki organization grew stronger, Yahiko and the others were shocked to discover that many of their actions were known to the outside world in advance, not only by Amegakure's own Hanzo of the Salamander, but also by the Five Great Ninja Villages.
The serious leakage of their own intelligence was a fatal blow to an organization that aspired to restore peace to the ninja world.
No one wanted to be stabbed in the back by their own people during an operation. Although Yahiko had a dream, he could also distinguish priorities. However, after several thorough investigations and purges, although a few spies were caught, the overall effect was not very good.
Like today, the organization's fourth-in-command, Takeda Seigen, was ambushed in the street by more than a dozen bounty hunters. The high-level's movement route was completely grasped. Who could believe there was no foul play?
External enemies were certainly hateful, but the vipers lurking within were the real threat to the Akatsuki organization!
...
Akatsuki's steel underground base.
After settling Hyuga Yuto in, Asano Kaoru hurried back to her room.
She was the most valued subordinate of Takeda Seigen, the fourth-in-command of the Akatsuki organization, serving as his assistant, bodyguard, and secretary. Today, Takeda Seigen was assassinated, and the top-secret route of the high-level's movement was known to the enemy. Tomorrow morning, Asano Kaoru had to report to Yahiko and the others with her analysis and make a judgment on who was the most likely leaker.
Of course, this was only a small part of her heavy workload.
Asano Kaoru made herself a cup of hot tea, drank it all in one gulp, then took out a scroll and wrote on it with special ink.
"To Lord Danzo, the operation to leak Takeda Seigen's intelligence was successful. However, today, Hyuga Yuto appeared in Amegakure Village, suspected to be dispatched by Senju Tsunade..."