"The architectural style here is more imaginative than the Cassel Manor I went to."
It was almost dusk. Jiraiya and Kai were walking on the streets of Utopia, looking around and casually saying
"What a pity, I have never been to Mr. Angers' hometown."
Kai said a little disappointed
At that time, when Konoha and the hybrid team went to Kassel Manor, he was still on the moon and the first generation tried to save him, so Kai did not catch up with the battle with Constantine.
"It's no pity. Don't you feel the same now?"
Jiraiya breathed out, took a glance, and said, "Let's stay here for today. Let's go investigate the specific situation of the Western Continent in the evening."
"Okay." Kai followed Jiraiya's gaze and found a building that was about a few years old, with the name of the hotel hanging on it, the Iris Hotel.
From the outside, it looks like it has a sense of the vicissitudes of the times, but there is a kind of sad tune faintly coming from it, and the weeping harmonica sound seems to give the world a sad color.
"I don't know why, but I always feel that the door of this hotel looks like a monster's mouth. We are walking into a trap now."
Jiraiya shrugged and suddenly said
"Um..." Kai was stunned and replied, "Is there any? I think it's not bad, and the people in this utopia are also very nice. Can you say that the folk customs are simple?"
"It's because of the simple folk customs...that's why I felt something was wrong..."
Jiraiya sighed.
He has never seen any city in so many years, but this is the first time he has seen a city-state like Utopia where everyone is polite. This cannot be explained by differences in culture or things.
But you can't judge others as having problems just because they are polite, so Jiraiya chose to stay here for one night.
As the saying goes, you can't catch tiger cubs without entering the tiger's den. Only by going deep into the dangerous whirlpool can you get valuable gains.
Jiraiya wanted to see if anything would happen during this night...
Walking into the 'Iris Hotel', the interior decoration has a classic charm. Although it is not too exquisite and luxurious, it gives people a sense of elegance and comfort.
And the source of the tune coming from it is also the proprietress. She is sitting on the counter, stroking the harmonica with both hands, and quietly playing a sad tune with a little resentment.
Jiraiya and Kai did not disturb her, but waited until she finished playing. Sometimes it is a pleasure to hear such music that can cleanse the soul. Jiraiya and Kai are both rough people, but they can also hear the absolute It is a masterpiece, and you can hear a sad story from it.
"It's really rude to keep guests waiting for such a long time."
After a long time, the sound of the harmonica slowly dissipated, and the landlady opened her eyes and saw the two of them. She stood up apologetically.
At this time, Jiraiya realized that she was an extremely beautiful woman, with long pale golden hair caressing her back, and blue eyes that were like delicate gems that were attractive, especially the faint sadness in her expression was even more attractive. There is a feeling that I can't help but want to protect her.
"No, it's nothing..." Because what impressed him most about Utopia was its politeness, Jiraiya didn't show any urgency. He touched the back of his head and pretended to smile casually.
"Being able to hear the master's music means that my trip to Utopia was not in vain."
"Oh?" The landlady was slightly startled, then said, "Are you two guests from outside?"
"Yes, we are from the ninja world, and we were connected to this continent because of an accident."
"I see... I have never seen people from another continent."
She smiled softly, "Do you two want something to eat?"
"That being said, I'm really a little hungry." Kai touched his stomach and said a little embarrassedly.
"You two sit down first, I'll be here later."
Watching her leave, Jiraiya couldn't help but sigh.
"It's so beautiful..."
"Really?" Kai scratched his nose and said casually, "I think people in this city all look the same..."
"This is true..."
Jiraiya recalled it and found that almost all the people in this city were below the passing line, and almost all of them were handsome men and beautiful women.
And if we differentiate it more carefully...
For some reason, Jiraiya suddenly felt that since he came to Utopia, the people he met from the beginning to the present seemed to be the same person!
Jiraiya didn't know why he thought so. He quickly placed all the faces on the same plane in his mind, and then began to compare them carefully...
"No... Even though they are somewhat similar, they can't be said to be the same person."
Jiraiya shook his head, thinking that maybe he was thinking too much. After all, who would be so bored and pretend to be ghosts around him and use this method to scare him
It's raining outside...
It was still raining lightly at first, but as time went by it became heavier and louder, as if it was playing a shocking symphony.
In the blink of an eye, it turned into a heavy rain, and the sky became darker and darker. The original golden sunset turned into dark and deep clouds.
In this environment, Jiraiya's mood was also affected and he became a little irritable.
Fortunately, the food arrived not long after. Tender and juicy pork chops and a small bottle of ice-cold drinks were placed in front of him and Kai.
"Are you the only one in this store?"
Jiraiya took a bite of the pork chop and found that it tasted quite good. He said with admiration
"This is what my parents left behind." She sat back in her chair and said, "Because there are very few outsiders coming to Utopia, so it is enough for me to do the work alone."
"Speaking of which, there are very few outsiders coming to Utopia?" Jiraiya didn't ask her parents related questions. It could be judged from his tone that this was by no means a topic that could be easily discussed.
"Well, because it is too remote and there is no valuable area around it, almost no one will come to Utopia except for the ships that have to dock due to heavy rainstorms."
"However, this is good... it can make people feel more peaceful..."
"Yeah..." Jiraiya sighed and said, "Sometimes being too noisy is not a good thing. In a world that is too complicated, it is difficult for you to simply be yourself..."
"This is an interesting statement." The landlady smiled, and the next moment she said meaningfully, "But sometimes in a world that is too quiet, it is not an easy thing to be yourself..."
Jiraiya smiled noncommittally, and then imitated Angers and said like a gentleman, "Thank you, beautiful girl, for allowing me to taste the delicious dinner."
"In the entire Utopia, 'Iris' has the best service. Also, just call me Tracy." Tracy accepted Jiraiya's praise and replied at the same time.
"My name is Jiraiya, and this guy's name is Metkai. Kai, pay the bill!"
Although the currency is different, the gold is the same, so Jiraiya and Kai can't afford dinner and accommodation.
…
The room Tracy arranged for them was room 404. For some reason, Jiraiya always felt that this room number was particularly unlucky.
"Kai, do you feel something?"
Entering the room, after noticing that there was nothing unusual in the room, Jiraiya closed the door, then breathed a sigh of relief and asked
At this time, he wanted to see what problems Kai's beast-like intuition could detect.
"If I have to say something..."
Kai was stunned for a moment, then thought about it and tried to say, "That's why Tracy arranged for us to be on the fourth floor? According to her, there are very few outsiders coming to Utopia, which means there shouldn't be too many people living there. That's right. But she crossed the second and third floors and chose to let us live on the fourth floor... "
"Indeed... this is indeed a problem."
Jiraiya continued, "When I went upstairs, I noticed that there were no footprints in the corridors on the second and third floors, and they didn't look like they were inhabited."
Kai nodded and added, "And one more thing. You said before that this looks like a giant mouth of a monster. I haven't felt it outside yet, but the longer I stay inside, the more depressed I feel."
Jiraiya frowned when he heard this. He didn't feel this way, but after hearing Kai's words, he felt a faint feeling of uneasiness in his heart.
"No matter, let's leave here tomorrow!"
Jiraiya said softly, "No matter whether there is any abnormality here, or what kind of abnormality there is, it is over for now... The most important thing now is to investigate the specific situation of the Western Continent, and if possible, figure out the situation of Hermes and the hungry wolf." As for Utopia…”
Jiraiya hesitated for a moment and said slowly
"I have a feeling that if there is really something abnormal here, then its level must be far beyond the limit of what we can handle!"
Speaking of this, Jiraiya even shed two drops of cold sweat.
This was a feeling he had never felt before, even when he faced the Holy Lord, Aizen, or the White King, he never felt this weird.
At this moment, Tracey, the road on the street, the guard at the door... the figures of everyone he had seen since he entered Utopia appeared in front of him, accompanied by the harmonica sound played by Tracey at the beginning. , in that empty mournful sound that lasted for a long time, they looked at themselves with the same eyes...
There was nothing unusual about it, but these perfectly normal scenes and perfectly normal individuals felt an indescribable numbness.
"It's a pity. If it hadn't rained outside, I would have wanted to go outside and take a look."
There were two beds in the room. Kai sat on the bed by the window, looking at the heavy rain outside, and said with some pity.
"Having this rain isn't necessarily a bad thing."
Jiraiya shook his head, put his slippers on the bed, put his hands on the pillow, and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling.
Then he fell into sleep...
In the deep darkness, Jiraiya heard something faintly...
Pulled by some force, Jiraiya sat up from the bed, then got out of bed. Looking at the sleeping Kai, he gently opened the door.
It was late at night, and it was still raining heavily outside. Amidst the crackling rain, what was visible was darkness.
In this rich darkness, Jiraiya tiptoed along the corridor, and he came to the stairs.
Third floor…
On the floor that Tracy crossed over, Jiraiya came to this floor.
On the third floor of the Iris Hotel, which Tracy said was not doing well, there were more than a dozen people standing...
None of them spoke, and even if they saw Jiraiya, they didn't do anything unusual, and neither did the latter.
Then, they began to go downstairs, and Jiraiya followed silently to the second floor.
The same was true on the second floor, with more than a dozen people standing. After seeing the people above coming down, they also started taking action.
Go downstairs…
First floor…
Jiraiya stood where he was dining not long ago, watching Tracy appear in front of everyone.
Looking at this scene, being watched silently by nearly forty people, Tracy took out a monocle from her pocket without haste.
She exhaled, wiped it lightly, and then put it on her right eye...
This action was like opening Pandora's box, triggering a chain reaction in which everyone took out their monocles from their pockets.
Including Jiraiya…
He mechanically put his hand into his pocket like everyone else, and when he came out, he already had a monocle in his hand.
He had never been in the habit of wearing glasses, let alone a monocle, but this lens just appeared.
Jiraiya followed Trish's example, blew on it, wiped it and put it on his right eye.
However, at this moment, he suddenly heard someone calling his name...
own name…
That man is calling 'Jiraiya'...
Jiraiya... my name...
He slowed down his movements when putting on the lenses, which made his movements completely lag behind those of others who were neatly dressed.
At this moment, everyone wearing monocles turned their heads to look at Jiraiya at an extremely exaggerated angle. The monocles on their right eyes seemed to exude some magic, making them look unified.
There were no expressions, no words, no movements. Everyone moved in unison and looked at Jiraiya with the same face.
This was an extremely heavy pressure. Dozens of people were wearing monocles and looking at him at an exaggerated angle, which gave Jiraiya a creepy feeling at this moment!
He woke up at this moment, and then heard the shouts from the outside world. It was Kai's voice, and he was shouting 'Jiraiya'! ! ! !
The next moment the world began to distort, and everyone's outline began to swell and distort, like illusory light and shadow.
They twist and change, but what remains unchanged is the monocle worn on the right eye, like a magic spell.
Jiraiya was horrified and slammed the monocle in his hand to the ground. The next moment, the twisted world began to collapse in an illogical way.
"Jiraiya-sama!"
At Kai's anxious voice, Jiraiya suddenly woke up from the bed.
Rumble…
The sound of thunder came from the outside world, and Jiraiya threw the sheets to the ground in an instant. He gasped loudly, and his back was completely soaked in cold sweat...
He was about to speak when he suddenly felt like he was holding something in his right hand...
Jiraiya lowered his head little by little, and slowly, slowly, let go of his right hand little by little.
Opening his tightly clenched right hand, Jiraiya widened his eyes and looked at it in disbelief...
in his right hand…
With a lens...
The lens of a monocle…