Nagato agreed, and both Yahiko and Konan breathed a sigh of relief.
As for their own safety…
The two of them didn't worry too much. In their view, as long as they stayed within Amegakure, there wouldn't be any major danger—and besides, Kyoichi was even sending people over.
They were familiar with the Hyūga clan's abilities.
Although this meant part of the village's secrets might be exposed, to be honest…
With Konoha's current strength and standards, Amegakure had no choice but to learn from them. Many so-called "secrets" really didn't mean much when compared to what Konoha already possessed.
Hanzō also agreed after careful consideration.
Right now, Amegakure…
Even though it had drawn close to Sunagakure, he was perfectly clear about who the real boss in this circle was—
The entire shinobi alliance network had been pulled together with Konoha at the center. Wasn't it obvious at a glance who was first and who was second?
Besides…
In this last Shinobi World War, Konoha had accomplished what he once dreamed of doing—
With the strength of a single village, they had defeated every other major village.
Yes, it happened in stages, and not all five villages attacked at once—only three struck simultaneously, and their intensity varied—but overall, Konoha's might now stood unmatched among the Five Great Villages. No one could doubt that.
Following Konoha's lead was the only proper path.
However…
When it came to the Hyūga clan, he still had one question.
"Kyoichi, I've seen firsthand how terrifyingly well these creatures can hide. Let me ask something a bit sensitive—can the Byakugan see them?"
Hanzō asked cautiously.
Kyoichi shook his head. "Their concealment is too strong. Even the Byakugan can't perfectly distinguish them. I believe your intelligence network in Amegakure should already know about certain incidents in Konoha, yes?"
"…You mean the Uchiha matter?"
Yahiko couldn't help blurting it out.
But… that was because he trusted Kyoichi enough to speak frankly.
"Exactly. The Uchiha internal conflict was essentially caused by these things stirring trouble behind the scenes. At the time, the Anbu squad I assigned to surveillance included a Byakugan user."
Kyoichi explained.
He didn't go into much detail, but with Amegakure's intelligence capabilities, Hanzō and Yahiko could easily piece together the meaning.
After a moment's thought, Hanzō said, "So… after those Uchiha were taken, they were moved to the Land of Water?"
"…Yes."
Kyoichi nodded lightly.
Hanzō exhaled slowly.
That meant Madara had secured a substantial batch of Sharingan. The overall quality might not be the highest, but it definitely wasn't low either.
Very troublesome indeed.
But even more critical was this—
If both the Byakugan and the Sharingan were useless against these creatures' concealment, then that in itself was terrifying. It greatly diminished the Byakugan's value.
Still…
"We've already begun studying them. I believe we'll have results soon."
Kyoichi joked with a grin. "You should thank Yahiko and the others—without this relationship, for Amegakure to hire a squad like this would cost at least an S-rank mission's price. After all, at present, we're the only ones in the shinobi world who've mastered this technique."
"Uh…" Paying for people to spy on our own village?
Hanzō almost wanted to choke.
But…
Thinking it over, it wasn't wrong.
A technique monopolized by one village always came at a high price.
An S-rank fee might even be low.
In fact, he suspected when Kyoichi said "S-rank pay," he meant per person, not for an entire squad.
"Alright, business is settled. Hanzō-sama, I'm sure you must be very busy. In that case, we won't trouble you to stay for dinner. Don't you think…"
"As the leader of this village, isn't it reasonable for me to stay for one meal?"
Hanzō snapped.
Damn it—this was Amegakure, not Konoha. Yet this brat acted like he was the local tyrant here.
"…Didn't you just have a poison sac transplanted?"
"…Oh." Right. He'd forgotten that.
Hanzō fell silent, then finally sighed. "Fine, I'll be going. Nagato going to Konoha isn't a problem—but if I ever learn you forced him into something against his will, I do have the means to make Konoha bleed."
"Rest assured. Safe travels—we won't see you out."
Kyoichi waved him off casually.
Yahiko and Nagato stood there, not quite knowing how to chime in.
These two… were really something.
Despite the big age gap, they spoke with each other like old friends, with no barriers at all.
Whereas with Hanzō—the actual leader of Amegakure—they could never converse so naturally. Of course, their own respectful attitude played a role in that.
Speaking to Hanzō so irreverently… they just couldn't do it.
Maybe that's the difference between true big shots?
Yahiko mused silently. By the time he came back to himself, Hanzō had already left.
Only then did he realize—
He'd forgotten to see him off.
"Yahiko, be careful tomorrow. You didn't escort your superior today, so don't be surprised if you're demoted for stepping into the office with your left foot first."
Kyoichi said with a perfectly straight face.
Unfortunately… that joke was probably only funny to himself.
"Ahem… it won't come to that. But Kyoichi, you pushed Hanzō-sama out rather quickly. You must have something else to discuss, right?"
Yahiko knew Kyoichi well.
If it wasn't something important, he wouldn't have acted that bluntly.
"Some things are better said without Hanzō present. After all, this concerns just the few of us… Nagato, your Rinnegan places a burden on your body, doesn't it?"
"…Yes."
Nagato nodded.
After a pause, he added, "I always thought the Rinnegan was simply like this."
"Let me give you an example. Do you know why the Hyūga place a Caged Bird Seal on their branch family?"
Kyoichi asked, looking at Yahiko.
Nagato probably didn't know.
Before Yahiko's death, Nagato had lived in a closed world, only ever doing what Yahiko and Konan wanted. He had no personal ambitions, and no interest in gathering such information.
Yahiko, though, couldn't avoid such knowledge—being a leader meant paying attention.
He gave a sheepish laugh. "Because the transplant threshold is low, right?"
He was sure that was the answer.
Still… studying a friend's clan wasn't exactly proper, so he felt a bit guilty saying it.
"It's no secret. That's right—the threshold is low. The Rinnegan, on the other hand, once belonged only to the Sage of Six Paths. Something that rare obviously comes with a steep price."
"…That makes sense."
Yahiko nodded.
Then his eyes lit up, and he asked eagerly, "Do you perhaps have a way to ease it?"
"Correct. As I've mentioned before, it relates to those creatures' special physiology. Transplanting their cells may reduce the burden to some extent."
"Transplanting cells?"
Nagato thought for a moment, then asked, "Wouldn't there be other complications?"
"The Rinnegan should have far greater powers than just manipulating attraction and repulsion. It's the Sage's legacy—it must hold deeper abilities."
Kyoichi said seriously.
"I don't know yet. But recently, as my control over them has grown, so has the strain. I can faintly sense the possibility of summoning some kind of terrifying entity."
"…Could that be the true reason those eyes were transplanted into Nagato?"
Yahiko quickly looked toward Kyoichi.
Of course, Kyoichi knew it was the Gedo Statue. But he couldn't reveal that just yet.
He paused, then said slowly:
"Perhaps. But if those eyes originally belonged to Madara, and he possessed the First Hokage's cells, then for him the strain would be far less. So… is it possible he's already summoned that entity?"
"Already summoned it?"
Nagato froze.
That… wasn't impossible.
But if so—why would Madara transplant the eyes away in the first place?
Did he have an even deeper plan in mind?
Nagato sank into heavy thought.
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