Chapter 52

Falling Rain

A few hours after the ninja army had left Konoha, Tsunade had sent Jiraiya out on yet another fact finding mission. Originally she would have sent him to investigate the Akatsuki activities in the Land of Rain. However, now there was another factor, the werewolves. Ever since they had arrived there had been silence from the Akatsuki, and no information from the Land of Rain. You would have thought that there would have been some activity, especially considering that several of the evil organization had been killed, the most recent being Hidan and Kakuzu. However, there had been nothing. Plus, more often than not, the werewolves were often seen escaping across the Rain border. This meant that either they were operating in the Land of Rain or somewhere beyond it. With that in mind Jiraiya had gone to the Land of Rain, but not to seek out the Akatsuki, but to discover the truth behind the werewolf threat.

So that is how Jiraiya found himself deep in the Land of Rain. His transparency jutsu, normally used for his all important research, was now being used to sulk at inns and street corners, listening for information. From this Jiraiya had managed to actually gather some interesting intelligence. Apparently the Land of Rain had been entrenched in a civil war for years, a war that had managed to be concealed from the rest of the world. Apparently the faction led by a "Pain", one that was associated with the Akatsuki, had been winning, until the werewolves appeared.

However, it was not until the third day of inn skulking that Jiraiya found a big lead.

"I'm telling you!" Jiraiya eyed the young ninja setting not five feet from him. The kid had no clue he was being watched. "The werewolves deliver of their promises! They said they could turn a ninja into one of them, and they did."

"Yeah, but I don't see em bringing one back." One of the older ninja, whom the younger one had been talking to, grumbled.

"Pah, he was just a sand nin, what use would he be to us?" The younger one said. "That's not the point! The point is that their power works. I've been across the border, and I heard it from sand villagers themselves! Think of what we could do, if their powers were ours. We can finally take our country back from Pain!"

The two older ones grumbled, but they were starting to look slightly convinced.

"I've seen what they can do as well." One of the older men, the one that hadn't objected, said thoughtfully. "It's horrible. They ripped an entire patrol of Pain's followers apart! None of the beasts were even scratched by their jutsus. These things aren't people, they're monsters!"

"Pain is a monster as well. Don't you think we need more monsters to fight a monster?" The younger ninja said. "Just come listen to their leader. She's brilliant. You'll see if you come!"

The men grumbled some more, but in the end they both nodded.

Jiraiya listened as the younger ninja gave the two older ones a date, time and village. Apparently the werewolf leader would be giving a speech there.

Interesting. Jiraiya had to be there to see this.


Jiraiya, still using his transparency jutsu, had found his way to the appointed village, and just in time as well. He had timed it to make sure he would be there about five minutes before the werewolf leader was supposed to arrive. He was not going to be early, because the chances of his being discovered increased the more he stayed in one place. He was going to get in, listen to the wolf, and get out. Easy. Right.

He sought out a good hiding spot underneath an abandoned stall. The village itself was a rather run down place. In fact, Jiraiya would be surprised if the place was actually habited. The place had been ravaged in the civil war. No crops grew on the outskirts, save for weeds. The buildings were falling apart and crumbling. The only place that seemed habited was the square, which was now cautiously being filled.

Ninja, never a trusting people, were even less trusting when their homeland was tearing itself apart at the seams. The ninja coming to hear the werewolf weren't walking in. They would slink, much like Jiraiya himself. Most of them circled the place and cautiously walked to the square, keyed up and alert for danger. Jiraiya would have easily bet that some of them "ninja" were probably water clones sent to listen and learn from their summoners. Still others had chosen to send in summoned animals in there stead. Nin dogs, cats, birds, reptiles and amphibians jumped and hopped around, just as edgy as the ninja. In fact, even if someone was perceptive enough to detect Jiraiya, they probably would assume that he was just another Rain ninja trying to be inconspicuous.

Then, the howling started. All of the ninja in the village square jerked their eyes towards the sound. Some of them looked as if they wanted to run, but no one moved. Jiraiya also looked in the direction of the howls.

Hmm, guess they don't want to spook em anymore then they are already spooked. Not sure if howling is the way to do that. Jiraiya thought.

Jiraiya half expected the werewolves to come running in on all fours, probably slavering and drooling as they went. However, to his shock when they appeared they looked, almost normal. They walked on two legs, like humans, and they were moving slowly and carefully. There was no shyness or edginess, however, in their gait. They strode in like a proper army, two by two, moving in an orderly fashion. Where it not for the wolf heads and furry coats, they would have been humans. They didn't seem to wear clothes that much, save for what was needed to cover the essentials, but then again they were furry. Maybe clothes were uncomfortable against fur? Their colors ranged from brown to black to white; in fact they were colored pretty much how you would expect a wolf to be colored. Behind the line of orderly wolves were three other wolves. The first one Jiraiya noticed was a golden furred beast with long fangs that jutted out of its mouth like daggers, and long claws that looked more like they belonged to bear than a wolf. Flanking the golden one were two others, the only ones with anything to resemble elaborate clothing. The first, a pale grey wolf, wore what looked like a cloak fashioned from the skin of a deer, complete with the skinned head and antlers perched atop the wolf's head. The other, which had a deep red hue, had a normal looking hooded blue cloak, but attached to his side was a lyre, a detail that almost sent Jiraiya into a fit of laughter. A wolf with a taste in music?

The ninja parted from the wolves, all of them looked suspicious and edgy, like they expected the wolves to attack. However, all that the wolves did was to reach the center of the square. One there they fanned out in a circle. Soon there was a circle of wolves standing in the middle of the square.

When it reached the pack the golden one turned to the ninja, and spoke. "Ninja of the Rain, I know you fear. I ask that you have patience with me. I would like for you all to see me, and for that I need to call upon the powers of my people. Please, don't fear." The wolf's voice was distinctly female, and for once Jiraiya didn't feel the need to peek at her. Maybe it was because of the fur. He was not turned on by animals. Only human women for him!

The golden one nodded at the wolf in the deer hat. The deer hat wolf shoved his way into the circle of wolves. For a moment he just stood there with his eyes closed, and then all of a sudden he brought his hands forward and thrust them into the air. The ground split and tangled roots emerged from the ground. Twisting and knotting, the roots formed a vague platform.

Whispers erupted from the gathered Rain ninja.

"What is that?"

"Roots."

"And earth jutsu?"

"Can't be, I couldn't sense any chakra! Could you?"

"Not a thing."

As if to answer these whispers the deer wolf leaped onto the root platform and spoke. "Behold my power. My blessings come not from my own body, but from the Earth itself. I am a Runemaster, a student of the Great Tree that nourishes the world and blesses the land. It is not my power, but the power of the Tree."

More mutterings from the Rain ninja.

"Enough, Runemaster. We are not here to speak of spiritual matters." The golden she wolf leaped onto the root platform. "Rain ninja, thank you for coming here this day. You live in a time of horrors, and I am grateful that you have chosen to me this day. I am Cragga, leader of the werewolves you see here. What you hear today will define your lives forever. Will you continue to live as you have, like rats hiding from a fat contented cat, or will you rise up and prove yourselves as true men? I am an outsider to this place, and as an outsider, let me tell you what I see. I see a land, once great and powerful, reduced to a state of decay. I see a people, good once, now slinking in the shadows like subhuman worms. Look at yourselves!" Cragga bellowed. "Look, and see yourselves as others see you! Amongst the ninja lands who is said to be the strongest? Is it the Rain? No, it is the others! Sand and Leaf! The Rain is a laughingstock! What, I ask, makes them better then you?"

Angry mutters erupted from the crowd.

"Look at this place! Wasn't this very village a prosperous one, years ago? Can you imagine it? The green crops? The bright and clear water? The homes filled with happy families? What is there now? Mud! Is there no one here who can remember it?"

More muttering.

"And who, I ask you, is responsible for this? Who has made the Rain a joke? Who has destroyed your homes? Who killed your rightful leader?"

To Jiraiya's amusement and horror, the same young ninja who had been in the inn recruiting jumped up and hollered "Pain!" In his loudest voice.

The cry was taken up by other ninja in the crowd, some of them might have been ligament, but Jiraiya had a feeling that this was staged.

"Indeed!" Cragga bellowed "Pain is to blame! Pain the murder! Pain the tyrant! Pain, whose rule is marked by his own name! A dictator who allies himself with renegades and murderers! Is this the leader the Rain needs?"

Cries of no erupted, and Jiraiya was now convinced that most of the voices were stages. In addition, what was with the music loving wolf, and why was it gently strumming that lyre?

"But how can you fight Pain? All that set themselves against them have died, have they not?" Cragga said, in a sad tone.

One of the ninja spoke up "Haven't your kind been killing ninja left and right?"

Cragga laughed. "We have killed Pain's men, your enemies. We have killed Sand and Leaf, who are no friends of yours. What have they done to stop Pain? In fact, I have learned that Pain was trained by Leaf ninja!" Cragga grinned as cries of horror and outrage sprang up among the Rain ninja.

"But, how can you kill so many, without a scratch?" Another ninja spoke up.

Cragga smiled "My people are meant to fight magic. It is what we were made for. Even if it is the magic that comes from within, or the magic from without, we werewolves can stand whatever magic used against us. Even if the magic is called jutsu."

"Then you can destroy the Akatsuki!"

"They can kill Pain!"

"Wait, then what do you need from us? You must want something!"

"My people have no home. We need a home. If, we were to take care of Pain of you, would there not be…a vacuum. After all, there are so many dead Rain ninja. Even if you were to get rid of Pain, what happens when the Leaf and the Sand move against you? After all, how will the Leaf react when their figurehead is dead?"

The Rain ninja began to scream. Cries went up to Cragga, begging her to help them, to defeat Pain, to stay, and to keep them safe from the imagined Leaf threat. Jiraiya felt sick to his stomach.

Cragga's grin was positively feral. "Of course! If you need us so much, and we need you, why shouldn't we help you? I promise you, Rain ninja; once I am done with him Pain shall be nothing more than a pile of wet bones! None shall attack this place, not while I am here!

Jiraiya began to move. He had to get out of there and warn Tsunade of this. At least now they had a face and name for their lupine enemy.

On the root platform the Runemaster's ears pricked "Cragga," He muttered in his true language. "That spy I scented is leaving. Should I-"

"I told you, what he hears today is of no consequence." Cragga replied in their tongue. "But at least go and find out where he is from. Confront him."

The Runemaster nodded. Folding his arms he seemed to sink into the roots.


Jiraiya was about five miles away and heading towards the Land of Fire, jumping from tree to tree, when he noticed something darting at him from the corner of his eye. He turned in midair and ducked, and a large grey blur shot past him, missing his head by a good ten inches.

Jiraiya landed on a tree branch and focused on his attacker. It was the grey wolf with the deer hat, the one that called itself a Runemaster.

Jiraiya had no clue how the creature had managed to follow him without jutsu, in fact it was odd that the creature could use any type of, what had they called it, magic, at all. He had just heard their leader say they were resistant to it, but if that were so then how did this thing summon roots out of the ground, and somehow follow him all the way here?

Maybe he should perform a few tests before he left?

Jiraiya struck a pose and declared "Foolish puppy! How dare you strike at the great Toad Sage!" As Jiraiya went into his act the wolf pricked his ears forwards, but otherwise did nothing.

Jiraiya petered out, and was trying to think up something else to declare at the wolf, when it finally spoke. "Are you finished?"

Jiraiya screamed "How dare you interrupt me!"

"Oh, sorry, thought you were done." The wolf sat down on the branch he was on, ears still forwards and attentive.

Jiraiya, pleased that he finally had found a captive audience, just about ran through every single impressive and outlandish claim he think of.

About five minutes later Jiraiya had run out of things to say. As his finale he struck his last pose and declared "At least you are somewhat wise. Wise enough to recognize true genius when you see it!" Jiraiya said with a proud tone.

The wolf stood up "Old one, don't mistake my natural respect for my elders for personal respect towards you. Half of what you say makes no sense to me, nor do I practically care. Are we going to fight now, or do you have anything else to say?"

Jiraiya grinned, time for the test! He leaped for the wolf and blew a few flame bullets at the beast. The Runemaster growled and raised his paws and then quickly closed them into fists. To Jiraiya's irritation the constant rain in the air started to swirl at high speeds around the wolf. By the time Jiraiya's fireballs reached him the wolf was incased in a water barrier. The fireballs struck it and dissipated.

Jiraiya landed behind the werewolf, who whirled around to face him. The wolf made a sweeping gesture with his arm, and to Jiraiya's shock the branch he was standing on wiggled. Jiraiya looked down as the branches wrapped themselves around his ankles. Jiraiya looked up as the werewolf gathered odd energy in its hand, not the familiar blue chakra, but a strange black void filled with little points of light, like the night sky. The werewolf grinned and launched it at Jiraiya.

The werewolf yipped in surprise when the void energy struck Jiraiya, and instead of doing whatever it was supposed to do the shadow clone disappeared in a puff of smoke. The werewolf sniffed deeply and looked up. At first he only saw more rain, but his nose told him a different story. He leaped forwards just in time to avoid the spikes of white hair raining down where he used to be.

"I never thought that their magic would be so versatile." The Runemaster commented to himself.

"Oh, does that mean yours is not?" Jiraiya seemed to appear right beside him, utterly flabbergasting the werewolf. Jiraiya's hair lengthened and he swung it at the werewolf. To the werewolf's embarrassment and shock it actually hurt! It was like being smacked by the wrong end of a porcupine. He had just been beaten by someone's bad hairstyle!

The Runemaster flew back, and Jiraiya thought that he was going to smack right into a nearby tree trunk. However, a black aura surrounded the beast, and in an instant the Runemaster was translucent. He went through the tree truck like a ghost and landed on the other side. Once he was there he became tangible again.

"Interesting stuff, this chakra." The Runemaster commented calmly. "Trying to use your own power in place of Aether?"

"Aether?" Jiraiya asked.

"This." The Runemaster grinned and formed another void energy in his hand.

Jiraiya grinned and began to form a Rasengan "You've shown me yours; now take a look at mine!"

The Runemaster chuckled. "You really think that the feeble energy in your old body is a match for a piece of the very universe?"

Jiraiya grinned and drew his arm back, as if to throw the Rasengan. The Runemaster was faster and launched his Aether energy at Jiraiya. He expected the two energies to collide, but to the Runemaster's shock Jiraiya, with Rasengan still in hand, leapt over the Aether and shot towards him. This time the Runemaster couldn't dodge, and the Rasengan connected with his chest. This time the Runemaster did end up slamming into a tree and falling to the ground.

"You know, pup, if you don't know how to use your power what is the point of having it?" Jiraiya chuckled as walked over to the fallen wolf. He noted the spiral shaped cuts on the wolf's chest, not as deep as it would have been under normal circumstances, but hardly the same kind of total chakra resistance as demonstrated by Kankuro.

The werewolf grinned at him "You think I am powerful? You should see a human Runemaster."

"Now, why don't we take a little trip to the Leaf village, I got a nice ANBU cell with your name on it."

The Runemaster grinned "Think I will pass on that, old man." The fallen werewolf placed his hands on the ground, and roots shot out, enveloping him. Within seconds the Runemaster had sunken into the ground, and vanished.

For a moment Jiraiya looked at the place where the wolf had vanished. "Well," He finally said "There's a few questions answered."

With that, Jiraiya turned and headed back to the Leaf village. Even without brining a prisoner he had a lot to tell Tsunade.