Nagato knew how his story would end. And he didn't care.
The pain in his crippled body was nothing compared to the agony of watching Yahiko die before his eyes. Every day since, he had thought of nothing but how to fulfill Yahiko's final dream. That had become his own purpose.
But Konan was different.
She hadn't borne the same torment. As their lifelong friend, Nagato had always wished for her to live a little more freely, with at least a sliver of happiness. Even if he knew—that was near impossible.
Especially because, before everything went to hell, Yahiko and Konan had clearly loved each other. If not for Hanzo's betrayal, they probably would've been married by now, maybe even raising children.
Nagato used to smile at the thought. He remembered how Yahiko once told him he'd ask Jiraiya-sensei to attend the wedding when the world calmed down. Nagato had looked forward to it.
But everything had been ruined that day. Damn Hanzo.
"He's got potential," Konan replied with a faint smile, glancing toward the book on the table—Make-Out Paradise. Her cheeks flushed slightly. She still couldn't believe their teacher had written that kind of book.
"Cough… Strength is survival in this cruel world… But sadly, he's not one of us," Nagato said hoarsely, also glancing at the lurid novel.
He'd bought it after hearing his old teacher had released a bestseller. Only after opening it did he realize—this wasn't The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi.
No. This was porn.
Konan had nearly torn it apart the moment she read the first few pages.
Ironically, that ridiculous book had become a best-seller across the entire ninja world. Every bookstore had a copy. Meanwhile, The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi had flopped.
Their curiosity had eventually led them to investigate the second author—leading Zetsu to uncover the tangled link between Jiraiya and Nara Kazuki.
Nagato had simply assumed Kazuki was one of Jiraiya's students—another "junior" from the old days. Lately, Konan had been quiet and melancholy. So Nagato had used the opportunity to expand Akatsuki and cheer her up.
And just like that—they ran into Kazuki.
"We will fulfill Yahiko's dream," Konan said, her tone solemn. With Nagato's Rinnegan, they would execute the Plan—transform this world into what it should have been. Yahiko's world.
As for Nara Kazuki? Konan didn't care much. If he didn't get in their way, she might spare him. If he did—
Then he would die.
…
Kazuki, for his part, had no idea Nagato and Konan had unofficially labeled him their "junior." Even if he did, he wouldn't have cared. He did intend to learn Sage Mode from Jiraiya at some point.
But their relationship wasn't teacher-student.
They were more… kindred spirits.
"They really didn't steal the money?" Kazuki frowned slightly. When he first saw Konan, his heart nearly stopped.
Konan alone was strong, but beatable. The problem was, her presence meant Nagato couldn't be far away. If Nagato joined the battle, things would've gone south fast.
Sure, in the manga we'd all seen his techniques—like Chibaku Tensei—get countered. But it's one thing to know a boss fight's mechanics. It's another to beat them.
Reading a walkthrough is not the same as soloing the Abyss Watchers in Dark Souls.
"No. They left," Suzaku said while dressing a wounded shinobi. Despite Kazuki and Suzaku holding the line, a few enemy ninja had broken through and caused injuries.
Kazuki scratched his head. Akatsuki hadn't taken the money? Weren't they supposed to be stockpiling funds for their future plans?
But on second thought, it made sense. Akatsuki operated in shadows, carrying out mercenary work and minimizing hostility. Robbing Konoha of such a massive sum would paint a target on their backs and risk exposing their entire strategy.
Nagato had likely decided it wasn't worth it.
"Has the support squad arrived yet?" Kazuki looked toward the distant treeline. They still had a long way to go, and carrying all that cash by foot wasn't ideal. Without reinforcements, another ambush was almost guaranteed.
Just as Suzaku opened his mouth to say no, a squad of Konoha ninja came rushing out of the woods. Their leader was the one they had sent earlier for backup.
Suzaku sighed in relief.
Kazuki, on the other hand, felt a flicker of disappointment. More allies meant fewer enemies. Fewer enemies meant fewer fights.
Oh well. He had managed to upgrade Heart of Steel again—he could feel a slight improvement in his stamina. That was something, at least.
With the escort team in place, the return to Konoha was much smoother. Kazuki used the downtime to train.
His Shadow Clones kept popping in and out nonstop. He was focusing on refining the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Unlike the standard Shadow Clone Technique, this variant was categorized as a separate jutsu entirely—which Kazuki thought was a bit silly. But grinding was grinding. He kept at it.
Luckily, the system still treated every ten successful attempts as one completion, and since the chakra cost wasn't exorbitant, he made good progress.
By the time Kazuki stepped foot back in the village, he'd maxed it out.
"Deep Blue, upgrade it!" Kazuki said with excitement. He couldn't wait to see what the new perks were.
[Many Hands Make Fire Burn Hotter]: When your multiple shadow clones cast a jutsu together, the jutsu's power scales with the number of clones. No upper limit.
[Split? No, They're My Bros: You can now imprint personalities, memories, and bodies onto your shadow clones. They possess fully realistic physical forms.]
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