A few hours after the encounter at the border, rain once again fell over Amegakure — constant, cold, and unending.
None of the three spoke during the return.
Not because there was nothing to say…but because all of them knew that the meeting had changed something that could no longer be ignored.
The narrow streets of the Rain Village reflected distorted lights in the scattered puddles on the ground. The sound of water striking metal rooftops was almost deafening, yet it still failed to drown out the weight of their thoughts.
It was Yahiko who broke the silence.
— That guy… — he began, then stopped. — That wasn't a bluff.
He tried to smile, as he usually did, but the expression faded halfway.
— He spoke like someone who had already seen everything happen.
Konan walked just behind him, her gaze fixed forward.
— What bothered me the most — she said quietly — is that he didn't try to convince us.
Yahiko frowned.
— What do you mean?
— He didn't ask for our trust. He didn't offer hope. — Konan clenched her fists beneath her soaked cloak. — He simply stated things. As if the future were already written.
The third of them remained silent.
Nagato watched the puddles beneath his feet, his reflection breaking apart with every step. His fingers trembled slightly — not from fear, but from something deeper.
Recognition.
— He was right — Nagato said at last.
The other two stopped at the same time.
— Right about what? — Yahiko asked.
Nagato lifted his gaze. His eyes carried a weight that did not fit his age.
— About me.
The rain seemed to grow heavier.
— I felt his power — Nagato continued. — It wasn't chakra. It wasn't ninjutsu. It was as if… the environment itself obeyed him in a different way.
Konan took a slow breath.
— He knew too much — she said. — He knew where to be. He knew when to speak. And he knew exactly what to say to make us doubt.
Yahiko ran a hand through his wet hair.
— Akatsuki isn't about power — he said, trying to steady himself. — It's about changing this broken world.
Nagato answered without hesitation.
— And what if we're trying to do that the wrong way?
The question hung in the air, heavy as Amegakure's sky.
Later that night, Konan stood alone near one of the windows of the building where they usually gathered. Thin threads of rain slipped inside, brushing against her face — cold and persistent.
She couldn't stop thinking about that man's posture.
There was no arrogance.No desperation.
Only certainty.
"The next time we meet… you will have made your choice."
Konan slowly closed the window.
— Maybe… — she murmured to herself — ideals aren't enough.
Maybe the world needed something more solid.Something that wouldn't break under pressure.
On the other side of the village, Nagato couldn't sleep.
Whenever he closed his eyes, he remembered the sensation — that strange, dense presence that couldn't be measured or understood by the normal rules of the ninja world.
Shadows.
Not as fear…but as order.
— If he's right… — he whispered.
Then the path they were walking led only to destruction.
And for the first time since Akatsuki's creation, Nagato considered something he had never allowed himself to think:
Maybe they shouldn't carry everything alone.
Yahiko stood on a rooftop, watching the rain fall over the village.
He still believed.He still wanted to change the world.
But now, there was a crack.
— If that guy is lying… — he said quietly — I'll go after him myself.
He clenched his fist.
— But if he's telling the truth…
The smile that formed on his face carried no lightness.
— Then ignoring him would be the greatest mistake of our lives.
Akatsuki had not changed yet.
But that night, it began to think differently.
And somewhere far away, a shadow shifted silently —as if it already knew that the next choice was coming.