Minato's voice slowly echoed throughout Ichiraku Ran.
Konan watched Minato and Aoba closely, curious to see what reaction would co from their conversation. This was sothing that intrigued her.
"Jiraiya-sensei took three disciples in the Land of Rain. One of those disciples is her," Minato began, his explanation brief and straightforward. "Today, all three of them ca to the gates of Konoha, asking to live here. I felt their arrival was too sudden, so I refused them. That's the premise."
Minato explained the situation clearly, without hiding anything from Aoba, including his reasons for refusal. They did not need secrecy since they had already discussed sensitive matters related to the Third Hokage back in the ANBU dormitory.
In their earlier conversation, they concluded that the Third Hokage might have set up a trap, luring Minato into a political ss. Minato was worried that during the upcoming Hokage succession ceremony, the Third might launch a counterattack and sar his reputation, jeopardizing his chance to beco the Fourth Hokage.
Given this, Minato was especially cautious about the arrival of the Akatsuki trio in Konoha. He couldn't let them enter the village.
As he thought about this, Minato glanced back at Aoba.
"I had already sent them away," Minato continued, "but after walking around, I got hungry and ca here for a bowl of ran. That's when I ran into Konan. But I don't see the other two anywhere, and I think there's sothing suspicious about all of this."
Minato cast another glance at Konan. He couldn't believe she had gone through all this trouble just to eat ran. The excuse seed too absurd, almost insulting his intelligence.
Minato was no fool. He was very smart. However, even smart people can get tangled in their thoughts, and Minato needed Aoba to help him see the situation.
"How do you want to help?" Aoba asked, carefully guiding Minato toward a conclusion. Aoba knew he couldn't offer any definitive judgnt imdiately, whether good or bad. Doing so could make Minato suspicious, especially during this sensitive ti, just days before his inauguration as the Fourth Hokage.
If Aoba had rushed to a conclusion now, Minato might have started doubting him, which could jeopardize everything.
So, Aoba's strategy was to lead Minato step by step, allowing him to reach his conclusions.
"I want you to use your mind-reading jutsu to check her mories," Minato said. He believed that mories wouldn't lie and that accessing them would provide clear answers.
"No!"
Before Aoba could respond, Konan imdiately rejected the idea, shaking her head firmly.
Konan hadn't expected this man, Aoba, to be capable of mind-reading. The last ti she encountered such a technique was with Otsutsuki Shiren, and that experience left her feeling utterly exposed. The thought of going through that again filled her with dread.
After that encounter, Konan developed a deep aversion to mind-reading techniques. Moreover, her mories contained critical information about Otsutsuki Shiren, which she couldn't afford to reveal, especially here in Konoha.
If her mories were exposed, it could cause enormous trouble for Otsutsuki Shiren. Konan knew she couldn't let that happen—she couldn't allow herself to be the one to ruin everything.
"No way! Absolutely not!" Konan's stance was clear. She was willing to compromise on many things, but letting soone read her mories wasn't one of them.
"You're definitely hiding sothing!" Minato's face darkened, his suspicion deepening. He knew that soone with nothing to hide wouldn't react so strongly to a request like this.
"But what choice do you have?" Minato pressed. "You're on Konoha's turf now. I wouldn't force this on you if you weren't here, but you've crossed the line by entering the village."
Minato's tone grew more serious as he was convinced Konan's intentions weren't innocent. Her refusal to have her mind read only strengthened his belief that sothing was amiss.
Konan tensed up, readying herself for a fight. Her fists clenched, and her body language showed she was prepared to defend herself.
"Wait," Aoba interjected, his voice breaking the tension. He hadn't expected the situation to escalate so quickly. Both Konan and Minato were about to take drastic steps without giving him a chance to diate.
"I don't think it needs to go that far," Aoba said, waving his hands to get their attention. He positioned himself between them, trying to calm things down.
"Let's take a step back," Aoba continued. "Whatever's going on between you two, there's one undeniable fact here: you're both Jiraiya-sensei's disciples."
Aoba's words seed to have an effect. He turned to Minato with a sowhat apologetic smile.
"Minato, I can't bring myself to read the mind of soone Jiraiya-sensei trained," Aoba explained. "Even if you wanted to, I couldn't do it without first being certain she's guilty of sothing. We can't convict soone based on suspicion alone."
Aoba wasn't refusing to help Minato; he simply wanted to avoid using mind-reading as a tool to solve this problem. He already knew most of the details from the gatekeeper ninja's mories and did not intend to push the situation in a direction that could harm Konan and Minato.
"Are you following , Minato?" Aoba added. "We can't use this thod unless we're sure she's guilty. Otherwise, it's not right."
Minato fell silent, taking in Aoba's words. What Aoba said made sense—Konan was Jiraiya's student, and forcing her into a mind-reading situation without solid proof would be ethically questionable, especially given Minato's current political position.
"What should we do, then?" Minato asked, feeling stuck. "Are we just going to let her go?"
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