Disclaimer:
Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto.
I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 110: The Beautiful Capital
"So she's a gambler?" Naruto asked, deciding to inquire about the person they were searching for as they neared the city.
"A massive one. But she rarely wins," Jiraiya explained.
"She must be rich then..." Naruto concluded. "What does she look like?"
"That's the tricky part. She can change her appearance, even her age. Sometimes, to avoid debt collectors, she'll look anywhere between ten to forty. But never older than that," Jiraiya said with certainty.
"That's going to make things difficult…" Naruto remarked. How were they supposed to find someone if they didn't even know what she looked like?. He did not know any technique to detect if someone was altering their appearance.
If his cultivation was higher, he could at least notice if someone had an unusual energy around them, but at the moment, he is lacking in resources.
"Don't worry about that, leave it to me. I've found her countless times already," Jiraiya reassured.
"That's good to know, but...how can you be sure she's even in the city?" Naruto pressed.
"The last report I got said she was heading in this direction. And she's never been able to resist the Fire Country Capital. This place has the best gambling houses in the nation," Jiraiya explained.
Naruto's face twisted with mild disappointment. "So you're addicted to women, and Tsunade's addicted to gambling. What about Orochimaru?, what is he addicted to?." he asked.
"You don't wanna know…" Jiraiya muttered.
"The Three Legendary Sannin…" Naruto scoffed.
"Hey! Don't be so quick to judge. You don't get to our age without developing a few vices," Jiraiya said in his defense.
'If only you knew…' Naruto thought. As a cultivator in his previous life, he had lived for several centuries and still considered himself in his middle age by those standards. Yet, he had never developed harmful vices.
His life had been dedicated to self-improvement and meditation. Aside from training, he engaged in little else.
He never indulged in alcohol, women, or other worldly pleasures. Even during his dual cultivation sessions with those fairies, his focus was more on cultivation rather than seeking personal enjoyment.
'Maybe I should have done more…' he reflected.
Had his previous life been too dull?. He never really thought about it. But seeing Jiraya now... maybe he had missed something important.
While Naruto was lost in thought, Jiraiya watched him. He had grown used to Naruto drifting into deep contemplation occasionally. Jiraiya often wondered how someone so young could have so much on his mind, but he never interrupted his meditation sessions.
In fact, Jiraiya had never seen Naruto sleep like a normal person. Yet, he couldn't argue with the results.
Naruto learned new jutsus at an incredible pace. In just three days, he had mastered two fire jutsus and achieved a high degree of proficiency with them.
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An hour later, the country's capital came into view.
"Nice, huh?" Jiraiya smiled. He was sure Naruto would be impressed, even if he didn't show it. After all, the boy had barely left Konoha since birth, and the capital was far larger and more impressive than the ninja village.
Before them stood a massive stone wall that encircled the city, and at its center was a colossal iron gate, heavily guarded by armed men.
From the outside, the tallest buildings were visible, including the Imperial Palace's peaks.
To enter, people had to line up for a quick inspection at the gates.
Naruto and Jiraiya, being recognized as ninjas from the country, entered without any issues. Jiraiya was clearly well known among the guards.
"Well, where do we go from here?" Naruto couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. After hearing about the country's capital, he had expected something grander. Compared to the last Imperial Capital he had visited, this city seemed small. Even the royal palace looked more like a wealthy person's mansion than a true palace.
"Now…" Jiraiya's expression shifted. "It's research time!" he said with a lewd grin.
"Don't tell me you're planning on going to another brothel…" Naruto huffed.
"Not just any brothel! The biggest one on the entire continent! It's got hundreds of girls to choose from! Can you believe it?" Jiraiya said excitedly.
"No, I can't believe we're going to accomplish anything by doing that," Naruto raised an eyebrow.
Jiraiya looked at him seriously. "You're still a brat, so you wouldn't know, but brothels are one of the best places for gathering information. You'd be surprised at the confidential things people share while being… entertained."
Naruto wasn't sure how to respond. It wasn't like he was an expert in espionage or intel gathering. "Fine… as long as it works, I won't complain."
Despite Jiraiya's strange habits and perverted behavior, Naruto had grown to respect his skills. He was, after all, the Legendary Sannin.
"That's the spirit! Let's go!" Jiraiya shouted, grabbing Naruto's shoulder.
When they arrived, Naruto had to admit Jiraiya's claims weren't exaggerated. The brothel was almost as big as the Imperial Palace itself.
'I wonder what their ruler thinks about that,' Naruto mused.
"Let's go inside," Jiraiya was practically bouncing with excitement. "Whoa! Look at this place!" he exclaimed, like he hadn't been here a dozen times before.
It was still the middle of the day, but inside, you wouldn't know it. The atmosphere was dim, illuminated by colorful lamps.
The place was packed. People sat at tables, laughing and talking with beautiful women clinging to their arms.
At the end of the room was a stage where musicians played, and to the right was a large door covered with blue fabric, guarded by a desk in front.
'That must be the private area,' Naruto realized. He was learning a lot about brothels on this trip.
Jiraiya caught Naruto eyeing the private section.
"Hehe, what do you say, Naruto? Want to give it a try?"
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