Disclaimer: Refer to chapter 1.
AN: Chapter title: Half Truths and Honored Arrivals
"She'll need some time." Jiraiya rose from where he had knelt on the floor, where he had painstakingly drawn the necessary seals. "I've done what tests I could on this seal but all of them weren't as severe as her case." Anko was still on the ground, seals carefully inked across her tenketsu themselves it seemed.
Each and every line had gradually taken on a greater and greater violet glow, a heavy pressure seemed to fill the air despite whatever precautions Jiraiya had put in place to prevent such a thing. Along the edges of the circle, he had driven stone needles into the floor and each took on the same violet glow as they seemed to counteract whatever was emerging from Anko's still body.
He didn't need to look towards Kakashi to see the question in his eyes.
"She's in a false death state." Jiraiya crossed his arms, closed his eyes. He was taking in the state of his Chakra reserves, what he had just done was no simple thing nor was it something most could accomplish. "At least as well as I can manage on such short notice like this." He sighed. "This isn't like the others I've dealt with. Mitarashi's is unique."
'My reserves are lower than I thought they would be. She really is a special case.' He didn't look at Kakashi. 'Without his Sharingan, he shouldn't be able to tell I'm running closer to empty than I would like. And with what I've got planned for later, it may be best to get Kakashi out of here for a while.'
"So this really was Orochimaru's doing?" Kakashi had heard the rumors, knew of the accusations leveled against Anko ever since the defection of her teacher so many years ago. They had come pouring against her ever since the village had uncovered the true depths of his depravity.
Most still did not know how far Orochimaru had truly sunk, such information restricted to the ANBU Black Ops or those trusted by the Hokage himself. Most would be unable to endure the knowledge, the near unending horrors that Orochimaru had wrought in his labs.
"I would almost hesitate to say that. I've spent years cleaning up after him, trying to undo the damage done by his reckless experimentation, but I've never seen something like hers. I don't even know if Orochimaru himself understands what exactly he did when it comes to her." Jiraiya spoke as he thought on a plan.
'I can't handle this mess by myself anymore. Not with the Chakra I've already spent just containing her and I can't risk leaving this kind of job half finished because I pass out from Chakra exhaustion. I'm going to need help.'
"What do you mean? I've read the mission reports, I've even read yours. All the information lines up. This is one of his Cursed Seals, Anko was just his first victim. From the medical reports, she was lucky to be found alive."
"That's the issue." Jiraiya focused on her still form, on the energy engulfing the room despite his precautions. "I don't include everything I know in my reports. I save most of the critical information for my debriefings with the old man himself. If this was one of Orochimaru's Cursed Seals, at least the ones I'm familiar with, then she should have been able to return to normal without my intervention. Acquiring the transformation from one of his Cursed Seal implies mastery of it, complete control of the First and Second Stages."
His mind was in the past as he spoke. It was a habit of his when in the village, usually helped him recount information accurately.
'Of all the mistakes of yours I've had to be the one to fix over the years Orochimaru, this is going to be the hardest one. Your intelligence was always on another level when it came to me, some days I still fear you're even smarter than the old man and those are the type of thoughts that terrify me. This isn't like your other Cursed Seals, nowhere close to the walking disasters those are in comparison. You tailored this towards Mitarashi. It's almost as if you cared for her when you did it.'
"After I first heard about her, when the old man asked me to help him save her life, I theorized that Mitarashi had one of Orochimaru's more powerful seals, the Cursed Seal of Heaven. All the information I knew pointed to that being the case, even the information I've uncovered in the years since would have made me still consider that the case. The Cursed Seal itself even matches, three tomoe at the injection site. In her case, they're on the back of her neck. Until fairly recently, I thought I was right."
"I was clearly wrong."
"What happened to Mitarashi wasn't done by the Cursed Seal of Heaven or even the equally as powerful Cursed Seal of Earth. With everything I've seen now, I'm certain that Mitarashi has neither of them."
"Then what did he do to her?" Kakashi asked the only question on his mind.
Jiraiya turned his tired eyes to Kakashi.
"The answer to that question isn't something easy to say and not something I can just tell you despite your history."
"With the exception of you, I don't think the Hokage trusts many Shinobi with the information I know. We're both fully aware of the situation with Naruto Uzumaki, both the current and the past."
'He's too involved to leave out of the loop by too much. If my guess is right and what the toads saw were accurate, Naruto will want to see Mitarashi. He'll come to Kakashi first so regardless of what I think right now, he needs to know. Better for him to know most of the story when he makes that decision. If I let him draw his own conclusions, he'll spiral into something that winds up with Mitarashi dead.'
"Listen closely Hatake. What I'm about to say doesn't leave this room. What I'm about to tell you is something placed above most S-Rank secrets of the Hidden Leaf. Without the direct permission from myself, Hiruzen Sarutobi, or Danzo Shimura, this information should follow you to the grave, shouldn't be revealed no matter the cost to yourself or others. Am I understood Hatake?"
"I have no problem keeping secrets."
"We'll see. Part of my research revealed that Cursed Seals are a byproduct of Orochimaru's study of Natural Energy and Senjutsu at the Ryuchi Cave. That much is obvious. I spoke with Gamabunta and other Toads to confirm my suspicions. They revealed it was much worse than I originally thought. Orochimaru has weaponized Natural Energy, created a corrupted, if powerful, variation to normal Senjutsu Chakra. I'm still not precisely clear how he managed such a thing but he did. His other Cursed Seals are designed to replace the host's Chakra with his variation to normal Senjutsu Chakra, provide Chakra of close to ten times the strength. Such Chakra will also inevitably corrupt the host of any Cursed Seal, gradually make them dependent on such power and, in pursuit of greater strength, lead them directly to Orochimaru and his experiments."
"As I stated before, Mitarashi does not possess either of Orochimaru's strongest seals, the Cursed Seal of Heaven nor the Cursed Seal of Earth. Her Cursed Seal is entirely unique. Her corrupted Senjutsu Chakra is far more potent than either of those two can create, has given her enhanced abilities I've never seen before. I would consider her on an entirely different level to any of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal recipients. I almost hesitate to call them the same thing. I've never had to take these steps to undo Orochimaru's transformations before, could rely on the Evil Sealing Method for most cases. After a prolonged period of disuse, most Cursed Seal enter an inactive state until the host actively draws on such power again. Mitarashi's Cursed Seal was dormant until she awakened it during the invasion and her battle with Chiyo and Ebizo. Since then, her body has actively gathered Natural Energy, combined it with her Chakra, and continued to produce Senjutsu Chakra."
'There. That should do it. Not the full truth but enough to keep him from going any further. It's hard enough to believe already but not too far.'
"That's impossible." Kakashi's disbelief drew an eye from Jiraiya. "I'm familiar enough with Senjutsu Chakra to understand just how taxing it is to gather, how difficult it is to combine Natural Energy with your Chakra. To manage to do all of that subconsciously? It shouldn't be possible."
"Orochimaru always tended to find a way to make the impossible possible." Jiraiya laid a hand on Kakashi's shoulder. "Like I said, this information is not something to share. If I'm correct, Mitarashi will return to normal over the next few days and I'll be able to provide her a more permanent solution from there. Once that's done, I'll be happy to tell you both anything I can to help her keep it under control."
"This will only be temporary?"
"For now, a temporary solution is the best I can manage. She'll return to normal at least." Jiraiya squeezed his shoulder. "Head out for now. I'll keep an eye on her and let you know how it all turns out. She'll be safe here while the seals do their work."
"Yes. Of course." Kakashi sounded distant as he spoke but moved to the door. "I'll be back later tonight."
'I need to find Gai.' It was the only thought on Kakashi Hatake's mind.
Jiraiya waited for Kakashi to leave before he sat on the ground, once more cut along the faded scars marking his thumbs with his teeth to draw out drops of his blood. With speed born from countless repetitions over the years since he had learned it, he drew a blood contract on his face. It was a prerequisite for those he intended to summon.
'Ma and Pa were both pretty interested in seeing her for themselves. Hopefully they know more since we last talked about what exactly Orochimaru has managed.'
In identical small clouds of smoke, two toads appeared on his shoulders.
"So, this is her?" The toad on his left shoulder spoke first as he leaned forward. "This has the Ryuchi Cave's wild teachings all over it. Those snakes were always picking the troublesome ones."
"Now don't blame them for this mess Pa. This is Orochimaru's doing alone." The toad on his right shoulder shook her head. "That boy…so much potential wasted with the ideas of a child."
"I take it you know what's going on with her?" Jiraiya was used to the two. "Mind telling me what you know?"
"Ma was the one who cracked that seal you handed us. An insidious but masterful piece of work it was."
"Oh don't start now. But, Jiraiya, that seal was something else. It used Senjutsu to create the explosion you saw, began charging itself the moment it was placed down. Neither of us have ever seen someone manage a thing like that."
"I was afraid I was going to be right about that. And if Orochimaru left it for us to find, then he wants us to know about what he can do." Jiraiya sighed. He found himself doing a lot of that today. "And if he's being obvious about that seal of his, he has something much worse planned for us in the future."
"Not necessarily." Shima spoke up from his shoulder. "Once we knew he learned at the Ryuchi Cave, I met with the White Snake Sage. She informed me of something rather important about the boy who did this. His body was placed under too much strain during training. She predicted he would never gain the ability to enter Sage Mode despite his powerful Chakra."
"What?" Jiraiya could not hide his disbelief at such a thing. "That's insane." He thought back to every battle he had fought with his once friend, every battle he had fought against him since learning of what he had done and the lengths he had taken in pursuit of his impossible goal. "He's no less durable than me and I took to the teachings. Tsunade kicked both our asses when we were younger and he wasn't ever any worse off than I was. It doesn't make any sense at all…" He was speaking to himself more than speaking to the toads on his shoulders. "I know he's modified his body but…did he really weaken himself the more unnatural he became?"
He winced when a small hand struck the back of his head.
"Quit overthinking things Jiraiya." Shima admonished him. "A strong body is nothing if a pupil can't balance all three aspects of becoming a Sage. Body, spirit, and the natural energy around oneself. An imbalance of any will prevent anyone, no matter how talented they are, from gaining such strength."
"Ma's right. Passion can just as easily become a poison to a Shinobi's mind if its left unrestrained, allowed to drive someone to do the things he's done. That's likely what caused that boy to fail. His body and Chakra could be unequalled but with his spirit in such a state, there was nothing to be done." Fukasaku shook his head. "But enough about that boy, we've got work to do now. This solution of yours won't last for longer than a few days."
"A few days?" Jiraiya shook his head. "I expected things I didn't quite grasp could cut down on my time but by that much? And here I thought I had a few weeks to set something new up."
"A few days with your focus only on stopping the flow of Natural Energy into her body. We can change that to a month or more if we work quickly enough." Shima brought her webbed hands together, Fukasaku mirroring her on Jiraiya's other shoulder.
"If you had bothered to master our teachings in these past years you've spent lazing about in hot springs we could get this done much quicker. Maybe even in time for me and Ma to invite you back for dinner." Fukasaku's words earned a chuckle from Jiraiya.
"Now don't be too hard on him Pa. He hasn't completely slacked off on his training since we last had him around. I'm sure he could take on little Gamakichi or Gamatatsu if he put his all into it." Shima couldn't help but smile as she spoke such taunting words.
"Such harsh words for the Gallant Toad Sage." Jiraiya laughed with them. "But it wouldn't hurt to brush up on my old training back at Mount Myoboku once I get some free time."
"Really?" Fukasaku and Shima both looked to him with something approaching shock before both smiled. "Well Ma and I will be holding you to that promise."
"Of course. I can't get very far without my excellent teachers, can I?"