As the four individuals ventured deeper into the Land of Rain, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan furrowed their brows further. What kind of hellish place was this?
The villages they passed through were nearly deserted, littered with broken bricks and rubble.
Tattered houses, bridge underpasses—anyplace that offered shelter from the rain—were crowded with ragged people.
There wasn't a single spark of vitality on their faces; their hollow eyes overflowed only with despair.
Even worse, small armed factions drove them away like cattle, without treating these refugees as human beings at all.
This devastation far surpassed even the tragedy they had witnessed when leaving the country back then.
Konan had attempted several times to offer help but was stopped each time.
Yahiko felt sympathy for them too, but he knew saving them temporarily wouldn't solve the problem permanently.
Needlessly exposing themselves here was absolutely forbidden.
"What? Never seen anything like it before?" Kakuzu mocked them with a scornful glance. Still too young.
He had walked through countless nations and witnessed too much suffering.
These scenes couldn't touch him in the slightest.
"Don't you have any compassion at all?" Konan immediately shot back.
"Flowers grown in a greenhouse—this isn't Konoha."
"Put away your ridiculous pity."
"War is the true rhythm of the Ninja World."
Kakuzu sneered coldly. Compassion was worthless in the face of war.
"You…" Konan grew furious but didn't know how to counter his words.
Without having endured as many hardships as depicted in the original plot, she still retained some naivety.
"You're right about one thing, but we're definitely not flowers grown in a greenhouse."
"You wanted to know why we came to the Land of Rain, right?"
"Now we can tell you."
"We want to personally end the chaos and warfare here and allow the people to live peaceful lives."
Yahiko halted in his tracks and faced Kakuzu head-on.
"You Leaf ninja really think big, don't you?"
Kakuzu didn't think this was any great ideal—it was simply another tactic by Konoha.
Those in power never cared whether ordinary people lived or died; all they saw was personal gain.
"Big ambitions or small ones—who cares?"
"Isn't ending this war a good thing?"
If before his only goal was to complete Kawaki's mission, Yahiko now had his own reasons.
After all, this was their homeland—the place where their parents were buried.
"Do what you want. I'm only interested in making money."
"There should be plenty of high-value bounties around here."
Kakuzu avoided meeting Yahiko's determined gaze and walked past him.
Hadn't he once looked at the world the same way when he was young?
"We can do it."
Nagato patted Yahiko's shoulder; both understood each other's feelings.
"Come on, or else we'll lose our piggy bank."
Konan pouted slightly—Kakuzu had already walked quite far ahead.
The three exchanged glances, smiled, and hurried forward.
Truthfully, they weren't worried about Kakuzu running off—it wouldn't have been a smart move.
At least currently, Kakuzu's strength remained far from its former peak.
As night fell, the four still couldn't find an inn to rest at.
And a comfortable hot spring bathhouse was nothing but a luxury.
The current state of the Land of Rain made normal commerce impossible.
They still had quite a distance to go before reaching the secret intelligence point.
"Just here should be fine."
"Let's head to the intelligence point tomorrow."
Chosen found a small, relatively hidden valley. After forming a few hand seals, Nagato quickly created a small earthen house that shot up from the ground.
"I'll go find some firewood."
Kakuzu stepped outside with a half-teasing tone in his voice.
"Gather a lot."
Surprisingly, no one tried to stop him. Yahiko even reminded him to gather more.
"Aren't you afraid I'll just run off with the money?"
Kakuzu paused mid-step and couldn't help but ask aloud.
Are they really that naive—or am I just too suspicious?
"You can test me if you want."
Nagato gave an innocent-looking smile, making Kakuzu feel completely uneasy.
This kid was by far the most difficult to deal with.
"Just kidding. I'll be back soon."
Kakuzu hurried into the rain and disappeared.
"Really not worried he might run away?"
Konan truly felt uneasy about their hidden stash.
If it were her, would it really matter if Kakuzu ran off?
"Don't worry, he wouldn't dare gamble on it."
After only a few days together, Yahiko had already mostly figured out Kakuzu's personality.
That's also why he was suited to be a commander.
"Don't worry, I'm here."
Nagato quickly built a stove using mud. His sensor ability wasn't just for show.
"I knew Nagato was the best."
Compared to betting on human nature, Konan preferred to trust Nagato's strength.
The trio got busy preparing ingredients and pots, waiting for Kakuzu to return with firewood.
Not long after, Kakuzu returned inside carrying a large bundle of soaked firewood.
Their *first encounter* ended with victory for the three kids.
Without anything notable happening during the night, the rain gradually lessened the next day. The four of them resumed moving at high speed.
Before sunset, they finally arrived at the intelligence point.
Following a specific hidden marker, Nagato successfully located the message scroll hidden within a tree hollow.
As he opened the scroll, his hands involuntarily trembled.
"You're this excited?"
"If you actually met her, you'd probably pass out."
Yahiko gave Nagato a playful pat on the head, joking lightly.
They all knew who left the message. Only the sender remained unaware.
Nagato ignored him until he saw her familiar handwriting, then his hands steadied.
After reading it, he tucked the scroll into his clothes and pulled out a map to locate the position.
Oh...
*[Naruto: Starting from Pursuing Tsunade]*
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"Not far?"
Konan asked as she spoke up.
"Not really. It should take about fifteen minutes."
Though Nagato tried his best to restrain himself, his delight was obvious in his tone.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Yahiko took the lead, rushing toward the direction Nagato pointed.
He wanted to get there fast—to meet whoever Nagato was excited about.
"It seems like someone familiar."
It was so obvious now; even Kakuzu couldn't miss it.
"What does it have to do with you?"
Konan still insisted on bickering with whoever handled the money—it made her feel more comfortable.
"When did I talk to you?"
Kakuzu gradually realized teasing this little girl was somewhat amusing.
She was becoming good entertainment for the boring journey.
"Agh!!! I'm so mad!"
Konan was still a bit too naïve and got worked up by Kakuzu's provocation.
"Alright, both of you, say less."
"She is someone very important."
Nagato's last sentence had been directed at Kakuzu.
"I figured. She must be a woman, huh?"
Love wasn't in Kakuzu's vocabulary, but that didn't mean he'd never felt it.
"Mm."
Nagato softly replied while Konan angrily stomped her foot.
Dammit, Nagato, not even taking my side!
"The idea itself is fine—it's just the location that's no good."
The current environment in the Land of Rain truly was unbearable, so Kakuzu's disdain was understandable.
"As long as I can see her, it's a good place."
Nagato gazed forward, his eyes shining brighter.
...
In less than fifteen minutes, the four reached their destination.
It was a rundown village where scattered pedestrians could be seen.
Perhaps because of its proximity to a major faction's territory, this place was slightly better off.
At the very least, there were signs of life, and no armed forces running wild.
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