Was Itachi Jiraiya's source in Akatsuki?

Question

Jiraiya always knew what the Akatsuki was up to. He was always saying that he had a "reliable source in Akatsuki."

So my question is if it could be Itachi. Because who else could it be? Tobi said "Itachi joined the Akatsuki as a spy" "He joined an organization that threatened his village." These quotes indicate that he might be the source in the Akatsuki after all, because no other had better access to information than Itachi. But I doubt that Jiraiya knew who the source is, and also he didn't knew truth about Itachi, so why would believe him? But what if he was anonymous? Someone could argue that he obtained information by himself, but let's be clear even Jiraiya, who is really good at gaining info and spying and infiltration. I doubt he could spy/infiltrate/gain information from Akatsuki by himself. In the Akatsuki, there are S-class criminals and Pain - so they would find out really soon about someone.

Answer 1

This is a really good question and its very possible, but you also severely underestimate jiraiya's abilities. As the Toad Sage he could literally have toads all around the 5 Great Nations listening for information for him, and the reason i have for this is he can summon almost any toad from Mt. Myuboku. And use normal toads to aid him in infiltration tactics. I mean look at the way he infiltrated the Hidden Rain Village right before his confrontation with Pain. He used a normal frog, not even a ninja frog, a normal frog. So despite the doubts you have he could have toads around the 5 great nations listening for information on the Akasuki. Like i said it is very possible for Itachi to have been the spy for Jiraiya, but at the same time i do feel you underestimate Jiraiya.