With Kakashi's disruption overcome, Kai and Kushina sat down to their task once again. She unfurled the parchment with a frown developing between her brows and her violet orbs still managing to hide the awe she felt. From the sidelines, Kai explained casually the first thing that came to his mind.
"Jinchuriki is the shell. Every seal needs a shell. Sometimes it's a body part, a scroll, a weapon, or even abstract concepts. In your case, not only your flesh but your chakra network, which means, the source of your chakra— Flesh AND Spirit is a shell to contain the Kyubi. Why? Because Kyubi possesses the same attributes, flesh, and spirit, that is. Four Symbol Seals— Sealing flesh with flesh and spirit with spirit. Of course, your Adamantine Sealing Chains increase the potency of the seal by many times which makes you less volatile than a usual Jinchuriki except Hachibi's who managed to form an accord with his tailed beast."
Kushina nodded quietly and looked over to the second passage scribbled on the parchment. Like doctors and medical professionals, it was hard to understand a sealing master's handwriting if you didn't know the profession yourself. So, to others, the parchment may just be a string of unintelligible letters but Kushina still chose to cover it when they were interrupted by Kakashi.
"So? What do we do? Like everything, we first discover our needs. You need to come to an understanding with Kyubi. That is established. Now, we discuss the 'HOW.'" Kai looked thoughtful, almost lost in his own world as his mouth worked on its own, "Given the malice in Kyubi's chakra, we just cannot let it out of the chains, too. It may not want to hurt you but sometimes things aren't based on will. Its chakra may be considered evil to the simple-minded but it's a simple case of it being harmful to others and nothing more."
Not caring that he indirectly insulted Kushina, who promptly pouted and huffed at being called a simple-minded Kunoichi, he droned on, "So, we have now established that to come to an accord with Kyubi, we need to deal with its chakra first. But if siphoning chakra was so easy, everyone would have done it. No. Chakra follows the will of the user. Absorbing and refining chakra, as we share through Mystical Palm Jutsu, can be done because of our will. Kyubi will NOT share its chakra knowingly from the looks of it. What to do?"
He looked at Kushina with a roguish smirk, "We take that chakra anyway. If it will not give us, we will snatch it. So, I believe that we will make some progress... or maybe even risk any hope of coming to terms with Kyubi by finding a way to snatch, store, and possibly 'purify' Kyubi's chakra... but there's a problem..."
"What?" Kushina inquired, "It seems simple, dattebane!"
"For me, yes. I could try this. I may succeed... but... should this come from me?" Kai frowned and wondered, "For better or worse, you're the Jinchuriki. Not me. Just like I would be the one to try and mend my relationship with you guys should we argue and fight, and not send an outside instead... I think that a Jinchuriki must be the one to tame... no, most likely, form a deep, cooperative relationship with the tailed beast. We already know someone did this."
"But..." A little hesitant, Kushina questioned her own abilities this time, "What if I'm not up for the task?"
Kai shook his head, "I don't know. What I do know is that there are several Jinchurikis but none of them managed to achieve what the Jinchuriki of Eight Tails did. Surely, it was anything but just keeping the beast sealed. If this fails, we'll only have to try something else."
He smiled further, "Besides, it's not like you've got much to worry about. Third Hokage may stop you from leaving but I may do otherwise after taking the position... heh, of course, for certain favors once you've all grown up~!"
His wink made Kushina give him a sidelong glance and she scoffed, "You're the first pervert who'd demand sexual favors from his girlfriend..."
His expression froze for a second, "Wait, I'm your boyfriend?"
Kushina looked equally confused, "Are you not? We kiss a lot, sleep and bathe together, and even go on dates..."
Kai traced his chin, "Huh... a fiancee, a girlfriend, and now Sensei... things are looking up, just like my little—"
---
"— War Weapon?" Hiruzen frowned and questioned, looking as stern as ever. There were reasons for this, of course. First, the news. Secondly, the messenger.
Observing the white-haired man with thin and short red stripes marked under his eyes who wore an ensemble of green and red with his chainmail peeking through the neck, Hiruzen couldn't help but frown, "You mean the current B of Kumo that replaced Blue B?"
Jiraiya, adopting to stand instead of taking a seat, nodded and continued with the report, "Well, during my travels... I encountered him. B, I mean. Not directly, of course. A's son who is yet to be given a name brought B to an establishment... and we may have been divided by a thin wall."
Hiruzen's expression darkened somewhat. Jiraiya encountering B and the Raikage's son was less than ideal but the fact that Kumo was even allowing their Jinchuriki into such establishments solidified the fact that they were unconcerned by the notion of B losing control of the Eight-Tails and that, too, with the realization that their seal was of a lower quality than the one drawn and brought up by Mito Uzumaki for the nine tails.
Jiraiya's report, however, also made Hiruzen question the obvious, "What were you doing in the brothel frequented by A's son?"
"Missionary," Jiraiya responded with a straight expression, making Hiruzen's expression even bleaker. Chuckling at his own joke, Jiraiya added, "I'm kidding Sensei! I'm the man whose Make Out Tactics will make big waves in the literary community after the spectacular failure of the Tales of the Gutsy Shinobi! Of course, she was cowgirling my—"
"I've heard enough," Hiruzen scoffed in ill-temper, making Jiraiya casually step closer to the table while feeling the gazes of the hidden anbu members sharpen. Uncaring, the man sat on the edge of the Kage's table and grinned with a hint of joyous sarcasm, "Sensei, Biwako-san acting cold again, eh? Want me to help you? My tactics have helped plenty!"
{A/N: Kai would agree to that.}
Yet, not minding Jiraiya's words, Hiruzen uttered a groan and rubbed his wrinkled forehead, "It's not my family but irresponsible shinobi like you!"
The Hokage would argue that he hadn't been on better terms with his family than now but that was a conversation lost on Jiraiya and instead, the man berated, "You cannot imagine how much I had to persuade Sakumo so that he finally accepts a team with your 'chosen' one. With you vouching for Minato, I expected you to take him under your wing... sigh, thank the sennin that Kai keeps busy with Minato and they make daily progress."
Jiraiya sighed but remained silent until Hiruzen waved his hand and all the Anbu members left.
"Taking Minato... under my wing would do him worse. I don't want—"
"He's already a man," Hiruzen cut his student off, "A distant Uzumaki civilian working in one of the brothels saw to that. Not to mention, he created an A-ranked Jutsu that is the peak symbol of shape transformation but I assume Minato kept in enough contact with you to share the news. I don't want your excuses. Team Sakumo is free for the next three weeks. If you have any travel plans, delay them. For the next three weeks... you will see to Minato's training and maybe assist Kai, too, in anything he may need to return the favor he did to your apprentice."
Groaning, Jiraiya found no way to resist the order but he did question, "Sensei... am I imagining it, or are you being even more generous to Kai? What if he asks me to teach him Sage Mode? I—"
"Then teach him," Hiruzen shocked Jiraiya, "He's the Dragon Sennin... the reason why you returned and yes, he's that strong. Sakumo confirmed him. Without your sage mode, Sakumo can take the three of you Sannin alone and he admits that Kai isn't worse... so Kai's claim to be a rival to the three of your abilities is not an exaggeration."
Jiraiya's lips parted in surprise.
As if this wasn't enough, Hiruzen continued calmly, "And you have another mission aside from teaching Minato, and Kai should he ask of you. During their mission, Team Sakumo discovered two extraordinary specimens... But the village's major research team is incapable of fully operating on them. I want you to meet with the two individuals who can actually make a breakthrough about these specimens since..."
"Since you disappointed Tsunade gravely and Orochimaru prioritizes his own work before your needs?" Jiraiya completed Hiruzen's sentence with a smirk, "Damn, Sensei. Only I turned out just fine, huh."
"Leaving the apprentice you chose yourself for your own selfish whoring... I wouldn't consider you of all people to have considered growing out just fine." Hiruzen retorted and made Jiraiya huff, "You forget that I'm the only one after Senju-sama to have mastered Sage Mode!"
"From your reports... I wouldn't consider it being mastered, right? Sensei's Brother could achieve and control it without any help..." Hiruzen pointed out.
Grumbling, Jiraiya stood up from the desk and walked towards the exit in a large and loud stride as Hiruzen smirked from behind and called out, "Remember to keep in contact with Tsunade and Orochimaru."
"Yeah, yeah... I'll ask them out for a couple of drinks. Oh..." Jiraiya suddenly turned and looked back, "Nono wrote to me that Kai finally got into an agreement with the Uchiha... does that mean I can try and build me Harem, too—"
"Sure," Hiruzen shrugged, "As long as you can wipe off the blemishes to your reputation, make the women you wish with agree with your needs and aim to achieve a position of nobility, I don't see why not. Of course, as you would understand more than most, it is hard to... make two Kunoichi, especially experienced, give up the control in the power dynamics."
Jiraiya deflated and then caught something, "Kai... is aiming for nobility? Aside from the position of clan heads... there is only one position known to be considered a nobility."
"Good for the village then," Hiruzen remarked and turned his face to view over the village outside of the window, "If your report is true... then Kumo will really be the one to start the war this time around. None of us knows the might of the Perfect Jinchuriki and we need stronger and smarter individuals on the chair of power."
Jiraiya nodded and left soon after.
***
Alternate Title: The Return of Gutsy Shinobi
***
Shoutout to Caleb Zimmerman, Yatatata, Keagan Brown, Alec H, and Dang Tran!!
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