Jiraiya performed the Summoning Jutsu, calling forth a small yellowish-brown toad, no bigger than the palm of his hand.
"Get me close to that fortress," Jiraiya whispered.
The toad nodded, releasing a wave of chakra that enveloped Jiraiya before pulling him into its body.
Inside the toad, Jiraiya found himself in a dark, soundless space. Yet, he could still sense everything happening outside with perfect clarity.
This toad, named Toad Sky, was similar to the Gourd Toad, as both had internal spaces in their abdomens. However, Toad Sky's space wasn't solid enough for sealing or offensive purposes. Instead, it excelled at masking chakra signatures.
(T/N: These are common names, there's a wiki here: This technique summons a small, gourd-shaped toad, called a "Gourd Toad", a unique species of toad indigenous to Mount Myōboku.)
Now hidden inside Toad Sky, Jiraiya was carried toward Tetsuishi Town. Thanks to its small size and the rainy, water-filled terrain of the Land of Rain, a lone toad wouldn't draw any suspicion from the local shinobi.
As they got closer, Jiraiya studied the fortress carefully. Capturing it wouldn't be easy. The entire structure was made of black ore, with walls over six meters tall, inscribed with numerous runes linked together to form defensive barriers.
These barriers were designed to weaken various ninjutsu attacks. Even Konoha used similar formations to protect key buildings, though only sealing experts could create such intricate defenses.
Every section of the fortress walls bore these barriers, a clear indication of how much the Land of Rain valued the Tetsuishi Town.
Furthermore, the fortress walls were equipped with mechanical chakra-powered weapons resembling cannons. Although the world of shinobi didn't have advanced technology, they could still build large siege and defensive weapons powered by chakra with varying degrees of destructive power.
For example, the Land of Lightning developed a powerful chakra cannon capable of piercing the moon, and the Land of Snow created chakra armor to enhance their shinobi's abilities.
However, the chakra cannons stationed at Tetsuishi Town were far less powerful than those of the Land of Lightning. If they had been that strong, Konoha's outposts would've been destroyed long ago.
Among the major shinobi villages, the Land of Wind excelled the most in creating mechanical devices due to their mastery of puppetry, far surpassing the other nations in mechanical engineering.
Konoha also had some large mechanical ninja tools, though in limited numbers. These devices were mainly used for large-scale sieges or defense, not in small skirmishes. Their lack of mobility made them ineffective against the swift movements of shinobi, preventing precise strikes.
Because the world of shinobi had limited technology, there was no way to create tracking weapons. Large mechanical tools were only useful for attacking stationary targets.
Konoha, being the strongest of the Five Great Nations, often grew overconfident, believing no other ninja forces could breach the Land of Fire's borders. As a result, they showed little interest in developing large-scale mechanical weaponry.
In contrast, smaller nations, with fewer and weaker shinobi, sought alternative ways to bolster their strength by developing such devices.
One of the most famous examples was the Land of Snow, a small, remote nation with few shinobi but advanced heavy industry that produced various shinobi-enhancing equipment.
...
"Captain, we've cleared the surrounding hills and trees. If any shinobi approach, we'll spot them easily. Honestly, I don't think our patrols are even necessary."
"You fool. Our enemies now are the Lands of Wind, Earth, and Fire—powerful nations with deadly secret techniques. We can't afford to be careless. If they get close to Tetsuishi Town, we're doomed."
"Tetsuishi Town is critical to the Land of Rain. If it falls, our entire defensive line will collapse, and the enemy will penetrate deep into our territory. Patrols are essential to prevent enemy shinobi from slipping in unnoticed."
"Understood, Captain."
A patrol squad passed by Toad Sky, but they didn't notice anything unusual. After all, Toad Sky looked no different from a common toad.
Toad Sky continued to carry Jiraiya closer to the fortress. Three patrol squads had passed them so far, yet not a single shinobi paid attention to the small toad.
"It looks like sneaking into the fortress to gather intelligence is out of the question," Jiraiya thought, eyeing the towering walls.
Toad Sky could jump onto the wall, but that would be far too conspicuous—no ordinary toad could leap that high. The shinobi on the wall would undoubtedly target them. Jiraiya wasn't about to take such a foolish risk.
Instead, he activated his Eye of Insight, peering through the walls to observe the interior of Tetsuishi Town.
Despite the numerous barriers inscribed on the walls, Eye of Insight allowed him to penetrate them. Though he couldn't use offensive ninjutsu from within Toad Sky, sensory and illusion techniques were still effective.
Through Eye of Insight, Jiraiya saw nearly 800 shinobi stationed inside the fortress—not counting jonin. This was far more than the intelligence Konoha had gathered.
One building, in particular, stood out, surrounded by multiple layers of barriers. Even Eye of Insight couldn't fully pierce through them.
Elite chunin guarded the building's perimeter, and ordinary chunin weren't allowed near it. Jiraiya only saw three jonin in the city, meaning the other jonin and elite jonin listed in Konoha's intel were likely inside that heavily fortified building.
Jiraiya couldn't be sure how many were inside or what they were guarding. But the barriers and guards clearly indicated that something important was being hidden there.
Whatever it was, it had to be significant for the Land of Rain to go to such lengths.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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