Jiraiya was generally not a man to look a gift horse in the mouth. He had a date with a beautiful young lady who professed to be his biggest fan. There was nothing at all suspicious about this encounter - except for the fact that it never, ever happened to him. While his books did relatively well (he suspected that Kakashi was a good third of his sales), it was more of a hobby and a cover for his constant wandering. His book signings were usually a way for him to establish a short term stay in a village. He didn't necessarily need this excuse in Konoha, but Sarutobi had all but insisted that he keep up the ruse while he was here to deliver one of his infrequent reports.

So when he was approached by Misaki, he was overjoyed and slightly wary. They arrived at the teahouse she had mentioned and were ushered to a table by a serene older woman wearing an exquisite dark blue kimono.

He appreciated the value of her choice in venue and hoped that his hunch was wrong. "So, Misaki-chan. Who is your favorite character in Icha Icha Paradise?"

She laughed softly behind her hand. "Why, Jiraiya-sama, that is such an unfair question! How could I just choose one?" The older woman returned, setting down a tray that carried a ceramic teapot, matcha and two small cups. She politely inquired about their need for anything else and when they demurred, she left them with a smile.

Misaki smiled at him and said, "Well, to be honest, I was always more of a fan of your background kunoichi, Mitsuko. She was always a source of support for Kimiko when she needed it and that sort of relationship is something everyone should have and value."

He was taken aback at her response. While he did not expect her to extol the virtues of his written eroticism , he had never once thought that anyone would consider background characters important to them. Jiraiya considered this as he watched her pour the water into their cups, whisking the matcha into its desired whipped state.

"I don't think I have heard that one before. Most of my more, ah, exuberant fans are taken by the whirlwind romance and ninja intrigues."

"Well, I imagine many of those fans aren't actually shinobi. Or women." Misaki grinned, looking like she was laughing at a private joke as she pushed his finished tea across the table to him.

He looked down at it, but didn't drink. "You're right. In fact, you might be the first woman who has admitted to reading Icha Icha at all. So tell me why you're really here." He watched her eyes narrow and then his gaze was helplessly ensnared as she crossed her arms under that impressive set of breasts. He idly wondered if she was related to Tsunade-hime.

"I'm not sure I understand your meaning, Jiraiya-sama."

"No woman, especially one as beautiful as you are, has ever approached me without an ulterior motive, Misaki-chan. I'm just wondering what yours is."

She huffed, blowing her bangs out of her face with a breath. "Is is so hard to believe that I may actually enjoy your books?"

"Actually … yes. They make good money, but I know they're no great feats of literature. I write them that way for a reason."

She leaned back into her seat and smiled. "I'm glad to see you're not as foolish as your appearance would indicate. I have something for you, Jiraiya-sama. Something you may be more interested in than these." She motioned at her breasts and then started searching through the pouch attached to her leg.

At her admittance, he was tense and slightly disappointed. He knew that this meeting was too good to be true, but it had not stopped him from hoping otherwise. He was expecting an attack, perhaps genjutsu due to their location and was startled when she exclaimed, "Aha! There it is."

Misaki looked triumphant as she extended a scroll toward him, hands placed palm up in a non-threatening manner.

He didn't take it. "What's this?"

"This is a scroll containing all the information I have acquired about the group known as Akatsuki. I'm sure the great Jiraiya-sama has heard of them." She smirked at him, green eyes glowing with humor.

He let his face go blank. How did she-? Who was she?

"Jiraiya-sama, let me be frank. I am an independent contractor. I left my village because I did not want to be party to the political maneuvering that happens to any higher level shinobi. Despite this, I find myself constantly bumping heads with these guys and their motives as just a mercenary force are suspect. The only family I have left live here, within the protection of Konoha. I want to keep them safe."

It was hard to believe she was telling the truth, but when he looked into her eyes as she spoke of her family, he felt the sincerity in her tone. No matter what other hidden agenda she may have, this was a woman would do anything for those she cared about. Apparently "anything" included deceiving a Sage-level shinobi into a tea house on false pretenses.

He took the scroll and unraveled it, scowling as he only uncovered a large seal and blank space. She rolled her eyes as his annoyance and bit her thumb, wiping the blood across the length of the seal. A quick hand motion and the ink on the page began to run together into a more legible format.

"I've never seen this sort of seal before. Who taught you how to do this?"

"I made it. I have had a lot of time on my hands to study my fuinjutsu, Jiraiya-sama. It's a hobby."

The list was extensive, covering names, Hidden Village affiliations, known abilities and-

"Favorite foods? How the hell did you get that?"

"What? Oh, Hidan? Would you believe that he hit on me while I was having dinner at an inn in Hidden Waterfall? He's such a loathsome little cockroach, but he was quite the talker as he tried to get me into bed. It's too bad his creepy partner showed up when he did - I'm sure I could have gotten more out of him."

He stared at her, slightly wide-eyed. "You do know how dangerous these men are, right? Every one of Akatsuki is an S-Class criminal."

She let out an unladylike snort, at odds with her delicate features. "I know that. I have not engaged them physically because I'm actually pretty fond of living. There are other ways to gather information, as I'm sure you well know, Jiraiya-sama." She was teasing him now.

He could get used to this, but- "Why me? Why now?"

Misaki sobered quickly, her face becoming as blank as his. "Because Konoha is home to the strongest bijuu and he needs to be protected. Akatsuki has something planned for all the jinchuriki, something I have not yet been able to discover. You are the best bet I have for getting this information to the right people."

"How can I trust you?"

"I have nothing to offer you but my word. Verify the information I have given you if you can. I want to help." She looked him calmly, knowing that he had little choice but to do just that. If this intel was accurate, it could be a world of difference to the defense of his beloved village.

"What are you going to do now?" He needed to be able to contact her - someone with this level of infiltration skills would be invaluable to his spy network.

"I'll be … around. I will send my summons to you if I find anything else of use. I don't think it's a good idea for us to meet in person again."

"Summons? How will I know it's you?" Misaki just grinned at him and made several hand seals, disappearing in a cloud of smoke. She left behind a swirl of leaves and a very affronted looking Siamese cat.

"Ah, hello."

The cat glanced at him briefly and then began washing its paw. "Tch. Figures she just dumps me here with another creepy old man. I bet she left the bill too."

"What?! I'm not creepy. Or old." The cat gave him a supremely unimpressed look.

"Whatever. I'm Yasutomo. I'll be your point of contact with … Misaki." Jiraiya noticed the pause before the kunoichi's name, but didn't comment. He wasn't surprised that she had given him a false one.

"So, Yasutomo. How do you feel about toads?"