Inside the Mise Gama.
Jiraiya looked at the two Amegakure's Ninjas tightly bound by the flesh walls, their faces showing extreme terror. His face held none of its usual playfulness, only the sternness of an elite Ninja.
"Tell me, what exactly happened between Hanzo the Salamander and the Akatsuki a few years ago? Tell me everything you know." His voice echoed within the sealed esophagus, carrying a pressuring aura.
Under the influence of the Mise Gama's mucus, which had hallucinogenic and will-weakening effects, and facing the powerful presence of Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, the two Amegakure's Ninjas' psychological defenses quickly collapsed.
One of the Chunin, who had participated in the operation to suppress the Akatsuki back then, intermittently disclosed the information he knew.
A few years ago, Hanzo the Salamander, joined forces with Konoha's Ninja, set a trap, feigning peace talks to lure the Akatsuki's leader, Yahiko, whose reputation was growing in the Land of Rain, and his core members.
In that ambush, Yahiko died saving his companions... the Akatsuki suffered heavy casualties...
However, just when Hanzo thought victory was assured, the red-haired boy from the Akatsuki suddenly erupted with unimaginable terrifying power, summoning a giant, demon god-like puppet that heavily injured the combined forces of Amegakure and Konoha...
Since then, Hanzo had become a recluse, no longer leaving the central tower, ruling only through his Ninja.
And he became abnormally sensitive to any whispers about Akatsuki, dispatching heavy forces to suppress them immediately upon discovery.
But strangely, after all these years, Amegakure had never found the exact whereabouts of the remaining Akatsuki members. They seemed to have vanished into thin air...
As he listened to the Amegakure's Ninja's confession, Jiraiya's expression grew heavier and heavier.
'Konoha's Ninja... it must be Danzo!'
Jiraiya was almost certain it was that guy Danzo who did it.
He felt Hiruzen might not have known about it, or couldn't stop it by the time he found out.
'Yahiko... that orange-haired boy with clear eyes, full of ideals, determined to change the Land of Rain... actually died in this dirty political conspiracy and betrayal?'
'And Nagato, that child with the legendary Rinnegan, introverted but kind... the power he unleashed... was it the power of the Rinnegan?'
'What had he gone through to become like this now?'
Strong feelings of guilt and anger welled up in Jiraiya's heart.
'If I had paid more attention to the situation of these three disciples, would the outcome have been different?'
He took a deep breath, suppressing his churning emotions, and formed hand seals.
"Ninja Art: Toad Subjugation Shadow Manipulation Technique!"
His body became flat like a shadow, silently merging into the shadow of one of the Amegakure's Ninja, controlling the Amegakure's Ninja's body completely like an affliction clinging to the bone.
Then, Mise Gama opened its mouth and spat out the controlled Amegakure's Ninja and the other corpse.
The Amegakure's Ninja controlled by Jiraiya walked back into the damp, dark alleys of Amegakure like a zombie, his steps somewhat stiff.
The Mise Gama quickly shrank and submerged to the river bottom again, hiding.
The controlled Amegakure's Ninja walked with slightly stiff steps through the dim alleys of Amegakure, trying to blend in and head towards the area of Hanzo's tower to gather more information.
The rain seemed to be falling harder, visibility was low, and only the monotonous sound of rain hitting metal surrounded them.
However, just as he had walked less than fifty meters, a sudden change occurred!
Countless pure white, sharp-edged pieces of paper, as if swept by an invisible whirlwind, fell silently from the sky, instantly covering the Amegakure's Ninja's entire body!
These papers, as if alive, rapidly tightened, entangling, wrapping him up like a white mummy, rendering him immobile.
At the same time, more papers gathered, folded, and took shape not far in front of the Amegakure's Ninja. In an instant, they formed Konan's cool and aloof figure.
She hovered in mid-air, the pure white wings composed of paper sheets behind her flapping slowly. The rain could not wet her in the slightest.
Her face was expressionless, her eyes cold as she looked at the bound Amegakure's Ninja. In her hand, she held a sharp paper spear formed from countless pieces of paper highly compressed and condensed, gleaming with a cold light.
Without any warning, without the slightest hesitation, Konan swung her arm. The paper spear shot forth like white lightning, carrying a piercing sound as it tore through the air, straight towards the heart of the wrapped Amegakure's Ninja!
At this critical moment-
Jiraiya's main body emerged from the Amegakure's Ninja's shadow, formed hand seals, and spat out a blazing fireball.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
Boom!
The scorching fireball violently collided with the oncoming paper spear, instantly erupting with a huge roar and a powerful shockwave!
Flames and scattered, burning paper scraps flew everywhere, scorching the surrounding damp air until it twisted slightly.
The paper spear was destroyed in the flames, and the residual force of the Flame Bullet forced Konan to manipulate her paper wings, floating backward a distance before stabilizing herself.
The Amegakure's Ninja, whose control Jiraiya had abandoned, had his throat slit by subsequent flying, sharp-edged paper pieces the moment the paper spear was blocked. Blood gushed out. Without even a scream, he limply collapsed onto the muddy ground, lifeless.
Jiraiya's figure separated from the shadow and landed steadily.
Looking at Konan hovering in the air, he forced a complex smile tinged with emotion onto his face.
"Yo, Konan, long time no see." He tried to lighten the heavy atmosphere with a relaxed tone. "I heard from the Amegakure's Ninja that Hanzo ambushed the Akatsuki, that Yahiko died. I was quite worried about you. I didn't expect to meet so soon... You've grown up, become more womanly."
Konan looked at him silently. Those light purple eyes were unperturbed, showing neither the joy of reunion nor the bitter hatred reserved for enemies. There was only a deep, bottomless coldness and indifference.
Papers danced around her like loyal guards.
Seeing she didn't respond, Jiraiya continued on his own, his tone gradually becoming more serious. "Your technique has become more sharp than before. Looking at it this way, the news of Yahiko's death is false, right? Is he hiding in the shadows like you, manipulating everything?"
He stared intently into Konan's eyes, trying to find a flaw.
Konan finally spoke, her voice as cold as the unceasing chill rain. "This has nothing to do with you anymore, Sensei."
She deliberately emphasized the word 'Sensei'.
"Nothing to do?" Jiraiya shook his head. "I've heard that the current Akatsuki has recruited a large number of S-Rank Missing-Nin, hired by various countries, stirring up trouble everywhere, even participating in actions to destroy countries."
"Even Konoha's S-Rank Missing-Nin, Uchiha Itachi, who slaughtered his own clan, has joined you. Konan, is this really what you wanted? I remember Yahiko's original ambition was to eliminate war, to bring peace to the Land of Rain, not to harbor these dangerous individuals, bringing chaos and fear to the entire Ninja World!"
His voice was filled with pain and confusion. He couldn't imagine why those three pure and kind children from back then would walk such a completely different path.
Konan's expression remained utterly unchanged, as if Jiraiya's words were merely a breeze passing by her.
She looked at Jiraiya, her eyes empty, and said slowly, "At this point, you appear here and ask these questions... what's the point?"
Her tone carried a resolute determination to sever the past completely, and a hint of indescribable weariness.
…
While Konan and Jiraiya faced off in the alley.
At the top of the highest iron tower in the center of Amegakure, one that overlooked the entire village.
The Deva Path stood quietly in the cold rain, his Rinnegan gazing indifferently in the direction of the distant alley where the conflict occurred, as if he could see through the heavy rain curtain and buildings, taking in everything there.
The ground beside him writhed, and Zetsu's half-black, half-white figure emerged like a plant.
"Leader, Jiraiya and Konan have already engaged," The white half reported in a flippant tone. "Judging by the looks of it, the commotion won't be small later. Do you need to take action personally? Or... should we call 'Tobi' back?"
The black half remained silent, waiting for Pain's decision.
The Deva Path was silent for a moment, his Rinnegan showing no emotional fluctuation.
He slowly turned his head, his gaze falling upon the other end of the village, the central tower with the strictest security, symbolizing Hanzo's authority.
"Unnecessary." He spoke coldly, his voice devoid of fluctuation. "Send the new 'Animal Path'."
A cold calculation seemed to flash in Pain's Rinnegan. "The commotion... the bigger, the better. That old turtle Hanzo, hiding for so many years, definitely won't remain indifferent."
"Understood." Zetsu responded and slowly sank into the ground, disappearing.
Deep within the Akatsuki's secret base underground in Amegakure, in a dimly lit room lined with several cylindrical incubation pods.
The door of one of the pods slid open with a hiss of depressurization. Light green nutrient fluid flowed out from inside.
A figure slowly stepped out from the pod.
His eyes were hollow and vacant, but soon, a strange purple light with rippling patterns lit up from the depths of his pupils.
It was the light of the Rinnegan.
This brand new Animal Path Pain, exuding an aura of death, stiffly turned his neck, adapting to the new body, then stepped forward, walking towards the base exit.
…
Meanwhile, in Hanzo's residence within Amegakure's central tower.
In stark contrast to the cold, hard steel forest outside, the interior of the tower was decorated in a traditional, typical Japanese style.
The wooden floors were polished to a shine, the sliding doors painted with ukiyo-e, and the air carried a faint scent of incense.
Over ten elite Amegakure's Anbu with sharp eyes stood guard at various key positions and shadowy corners like statues, ensuring absolute security.
Hanzo, this once-renowned [Demigod] of the Ninja World, now appeared aged and gloomy.
He still wore his gas mask, but the eyes revealed no longer held their former sharpness. Instead, they were filled with weariness, paranoia, and a deep-seated apprehension.
He was kneeling before a low table, listening to his subordinate's report on the previous small-scale rebellion and its suppression.
"...Just a few incompetent Chunin. They were executed on the spot by the Anbu." The subordinate knelt and reported.
He was already numb to 'troubles' of this level and simply waved his hand.
What truly unsettled him was that organization that had vanished like ghosts for years but always hung over his head like a Sword of Damocles… the Akatsuki!
And those eyes... belonging to the legendary Sage of Six Paths!
"Regarding the Akatsuki... still no clues?" Hanzo's voice, filtered through the mask, sounded somewhat muffled and hoarse.
"We are incompetent! After years of continuous searching, we still haven't found traces of their core members..." The subordinate bowed his head in fear.
Just then!
Boom-!!!
A deep, thunderous, yet unusually clear massive explosion sound suddenly came from the northern part of the village, near the coastal area!
Even from such a great distance, deep within the tower, Hanzo could still feel a slight tremor through the floor!
The water in the teacup on the table rippled.
Hanzo's muddy eyes snapped open, a flash of sharpness fleeting through them!
He frowned deeply. The scale and impact of this explosion were absolutely not comparable to the previous small-scale rebellions!
"What's going on?!" He barked, his voice carrying a trace of anger at being disturbed.
The Amegakure's Ninja and Anbu attending in the room immediately dropped to one knee, trembling.
Soon, an Anbu wearing an animal mask flickered to the room's entrance, kneeling on one knee and reporting rapidly, "Hanzo-sama! A violent explosion has occurred in the northern coastal district! Preliminary assessment indicates the explosion scale is extremely large, with a destruction radius exceeding two blocks! The cause is unknown, but it absolutely does not resemble the work of ordinary Missing-Nin!"
Hanzo's fingers unconsciously tapped on the tabletop, making a tok tok sound.
His eyes shifted unsteadily, and finally, a ruthless glint flashed across them.
"Send people to investigate immediately!" Hanzo ordered urgently.
His voice even carried a barely perceptible tremble as he said sharply, "Find out who is behind this! I want to know every detail!"
"Yes!" The Anbu acknowledged the order and quickly disappeared.
Soon, twelve black shadows shot out silently from different directions of the central tower, like hounds catching the scent of blood, racing towards the northern area where the explosion occurred.
At the top of the tower, the Deva Path took all of this in. In his cold Rinnegan, a faint ripple finally appeared.
The rain continued to fall.