Charlie had even sent out shinobis, teaching them new jutsu to help with the farming. It was necessary, after years of war and destruction, much of the land had been left fallow.
He sighed deeply, muttering to himself, "Looks like preparations for spring plowing are finally moving smoothly. We'll have another meeting soon to make sure nothing's been missed."
Just then, a soft knock came at the door. "Come in!" Charlie called out. When Kado, the Head of Security, stepped inside, Charlie was a little surprised. For the Head of Security to show up at this moment meant something serious was going on.
"You're here too? Must be something big," Charlie said with a tired shake of his head. "Alright, spit it out. What now? Is that troublemaker Mujie causing problems again? Or did Konoha send someone to scold us?"
Kado hesitated. "Uh... neither, Chief."
"Neither? Then what is it?" Charlie raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Could it be someone from Iwagakure?"
"No visitors from Iwa either. It's just that..." Kado trailed off, clearly unsure how to explain. That only made Charlie more curious. He straightened up, urging, "Come on, just say it!"
"Well..." Kado gave a strange look and said, "We just got a report from the public, someone's actually blocking the spring plowing preparations."
"Who? Who dares interfere with the spring plowing?" Charlie's eyes narrowed, anger flickering across his face. "Don't they know this is the Land of Grass's top priority right now?"
He slammed his fist on the table. "Why haven't you arrested them yet? You're Head of Security, and you're hesitating!
Are you afraid? Tell me! Who is it? Remnant evil forces? Bandits? Rebels?"
Kado swallowed nervously. "Uh... it's one of Konoha's Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya."
At those words, Charlie was stunned, blinking and rubbing his ear as if to make sure he'd heard right. "Jiraiya?" he repeated uncertainly.
***
"You're staying right here!" a stern voice ordered.
"Hey, Kusa shinobi! I'm a shinobi from Konoha, one of the Legendary Sannin! Konoha and the Land of Grass are allies, so believe me, what happened just now wasn't on purpose!" Jiraiya insisted.
"I get that, but you disrupted the spring plowing!" the shinobi replied sharply. "Let me tell you, that's the most important task for the Land of Grass right now. Until the lord makes a final call, you have to stay put.
This place has just been rebuilt, and we're still figuring things out. But after investigation, I know you didn't do it intentionally. So you won't be held here too long. Just don't bring shame on Konoha!"
Jiraiya fell silent. He'd only come here willingly because he didn't want to cause trouble between their two countries. Still, this incident could be seen as serious, or not so serious.
Either way, it interrupted the most important task in the Land of Grass and interfered with another village's affairs. Representing Konoha shinobi, if charges were pressed against him, the village would hesitate.
Given his status, they probably wouldn't execute him, but it would definitely cause complications. Especially now that the Land of Grass was an ally of Konoha. And honestly, this was his fault. Peace is hard-won, and he didn't want his mistake to make things harder.
Looking around at the familiar surroundings, Jiraiya couldn't help but feel a bittersweet wave of emotion. He'd only left here not long ago, and now he was back again.
Just then, a voice called out nearby. "Hey there, little bro... what are you doing back in here? Don't tell me the lord locked you up too!"
Mujie stared at Jiraiya in shock. Both he and the lord knew exactly who this was, a disciple of the Third Hokage, one of the Legendary Sannin, famed across the shinobi world.
What kind of trouble had he gotten into that the lord actually locked him up? And he wasn't even resisting?
"Don't mention it!" Jiraiya sighed as he caught sight of his familiar companion, his mind flashing to the angry scowl of the old farmer. "I just can't understand how the Land of Grass runs its shinobi affairs!"
"Wait, shinobis really do stuff like this?!" Mujie exclaimed. "Whatever, you probably won't be locked up long either, maybe you'll get out before I do!"
Mujie thought about how his own curiosity had landed him in this cell for days. He knew the lord was definitely giving him a hard time. But had he said anything wrong that night? No!
He was just trying to bring Mr.Inevitable here to write a hundred thousand words and draw ten chapters every day, for the prosperity and growth of the Land of Grass! So why was he locked up? But what else could he do now except accept it?
Then, suddenly remembering something, Mujie looked over at Jiraiya in the neighboring cell and walked up to the bars, lowering his voice. "Books! Still want some?"
At those words, Jiraiya's gloomy expression brightened instantly. Spending a few days here suddenly didn't seem so bad after all!
Now his plan could finally move forward. He glanced quickly at the Kusa shinobi guarding the door, then leaned in and whispered, "Yes! Yes, I want some!"
"You know how it is," Mujie winked, rubbing his fingers together with a knowing smile. "They've been cracking down lately, so prices have gone up."
"Got it! Got it!"
And so, the two of them quietly began plotting a small but necessary smuggling operation inside the Land of Grass's prison.
Meanwhile, After hearing Kado's report, Charlie fell silent for a moment. Finally, he sighed and shook his head.
The "Icha Icha Paradise" hadn't even been released yet. Right now, Jiraiya was just a broke traveling toad with barely any money. What use was he? No value at all!
"Since it wasn't intentional, just release him…"
Before he could finish, he suddenly paused, his eyes narrowing. "This is a serious matter!"
"???" Kado blinked, confused by the sudden change in the lord's tone.`What did he mean? Was he planning to declare war on Konoha?`
"Listen, spring plowing and preparing the fields is the most important task in the Land of Grass right now. No one is allowed to interfere for any reason!
What if something goes wrong? That could seriously mess up the spring planting!"
Charlie slammed his fist on the table, his voice tense. "Do you realize what kind of problems that would cause? It would ruin the autumn harvest! The harvest, that's our food!
Without it, millions of people in the Land of Grass would starve. Starvation means death. And death... could mean the end of the Land of Grass!
This guy almost destroyed our entire country! Do you understand how serious and terrifying that is?"
There was a heavy silence.
`Was it really that bad?` Kado fell quiet, his eyes clouded with complicated thoughts and unspoken worries. Finally, he spoke, his voice low but determined: "lord... you're right. So, what should we do now?"