'That's impossible.'
When Yahiko spoke, those were the first words that crossed Senmei Asahi's mind.
It wasn't arrogance. Asahi had always been careful — perhaps even paranoid. Every step he took in the shinobi world was calculated. Every breath, every movement, measured. His greatest strength wasn't raw power, but precision — the ability to conceal himself completely.
He had watched the Akatsuki for days, slipping between rain and shadow, confident that not even a sensor-nin could pinpoint him.
So how had they found him?
'Could it be the power of the Rinnegan?'
Asahi's eyes flicked toward the red-haired boy standing behind Yahiko — Uzumaki Nagato. The faint violet rings of the Rinnegan pulsed faintly beneath his hairline.
The Rinnegan's sensory range was immense, and Nagato was an Uzumaki — just like Karin, whose perception could stretch for miles. 'Had he sensed me that easily?'
Yahiko noticed the glance instantly.
He followed Asahi's line of sight, then looked at Nagato — and came to his own conclusion. If this Konoha ninja was staring at Nagato, it could only mean one thing: Nagato's power had been discovered.
His eyes sharpened. 'If Konoha learns about Nagato's eyes, they'll come for us.'
In an instant, Yahiko made his decision. His muscles tightened, his body lowering slightly.
Nagato and Konan mirrored him instinctively — stepping back two paces, hands poised, surrounding Asahi within the mouth of the cave.
The rain outside poured harder, the echo of it filling the silence between them.
"The Land of Rain…" Asahi said calmly, voice level, almost conversational. "It probably can't handle another war, can it?"
He smiled faintly, amusement curling in his tone. "Are you sure you want to fight me?"
Yahiko's expression darkened.
It wasn't just a threat — it was truth.
The Land of Rain had always been a casualty of the great nations' ambitions. During the Second Great Ninja War, Hanzo of the Salamander had defeated and named the Sannin and earned his fame. Yet even he had bowed before Konoha's overwhelming might.
Konoha had just emerged victorious from the Third War. The balance of the world tilted beneath its banner. If a Konoha shinobi died here — even one — it could give Konoha the perfect excuse to "intervene".
And if that happened, the Land of Rain would vanish from the map.
Yahiko clenched his fists.
"State your purpose!" he demanded. "Why are you here?"
He could sense the danger in the boy's calm demeanor. The younger the opponent who exuded composure, the more lethal they usually were.
"My purpose?" Asahi smiled lightly. "It has nothing to do with your Akatsuki. You can completely ignore me. I'm just… sightseeing."
He waved a hand casually. "Although, I doubt you'll believe that."
"Do you think we're fools?" Yahiko snapped. "You've been following us for days! If you don't tell us the truth, we'll have no choice but to capture you!"
"I don't want to fight you," Asahi replied evenly, "and besides…" his eyes glinted, "you're no match for me."
Yahiko's jaw tensed. "We'll see about that. Water Style ∙ Wild Water Wave!"
Whoosh!!
A torrent of water erupted from Yahiko's mouth, surging through the cave like a collapsing waterfall.
Earth Style ∙ Mud Wall.
Asahi slammed his hand onto the ground, and a thick earthen wall burst upward, splitting the water apart. Steam hissed as the torrent broke against the stone.
Without hesitation, Asahi leaped high, forming seals in midair.
Yin Seal ∙ Release!
A surge of chakra spread from the seal on his forehead, flooding through his body. Natural energy coursed into his network — calm, dense, absolute.
His eyes sharpened, a violet shadow forming around them. A single curved horn jutted from his forehead. Translucent white chakra shimmered around his body, coalescing into serpentine shapes that slithered and hissed through the air.
Sage Mode.
The white serpentine chakra moved like extensions of his will — tangible, fluid, capable of attacking, defending, or carrying weapons.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Dozens of white paper sheets spun in the air, folding midflight into sharp shuriken.
Paper Ninjutsu ∙ Dance of the Shikigami!
Konan's papers whistled through the rain, slicing toward him.
Asahi twitched his wrist; the snake-shaped chakra swept outward in a single motion, thwap! thwap! thwap!, batting the shuriken aside with casual ease.
Then, without hesitation, he pulled a marked kunai from his pouch.
Fwish!
He hurled it straight at Nagato.
The boy's Rinnegan glimmered — he tilted his head instinctively, letting the kunai pass by.
But the moment it crossed his shoulder—
Zing!
A flash of light.
Asahi vanished.
In the same breath, he reappeared behind Nagato, one hand gripping the airborne kunai, the other pressing a blade to Nagato's throat.
"Don't move." Asahi said coldly, his tone slicing sharper than the kunai itself. "Or I'll kill him."
The sudden reversal froze the cave.
Yahiko's eyes widened. Konan's hand paused midseal.
Nagato didn't move — his chakra trembled faintly, uncertain, unrefined.
In that instant, Yahiko understood. The boy's strength was on an entirely different level.
"What do you want?" Yahiko demanded, voice low and dangerous.
Asahi's chakra flared once, then faded. He released Nagato, sheathing the kunai and giving the redhead a small push toward Yahiko.
"I don't want to fight you." he said simply. "Go."
For a moment, no one spoke.
Yahiko's gaze flicked from Nagato's shaken expression to the faint ripple of chakra still curling around Asahi's shoulders. The difference in power was too obvious to ignore.
If Asahi had wanted them dead, none of them would be standing.
Nagato's breathing steadied, his eyes still locked on the horned figure before him. Konan's paper wings twitched, folding back into her cloak.
Asahi could have annihilated them — and he hadn't.
In truth, he had only used the encounter to test the flow of Sage Mode in combat. The Akatsuki trio, still inexperienced and untrained, were beneath his concern. Yet Nagato's presence was a variable — one that could change everything.
'He hasn't awakened the Rinnegan's full power yet.' Asahi thought, glancing at the boy. 'But when he does… this world will shake.'
The real Uchiha Madara was long dead by now, but Asahi had no intention of taking Nagato's eyes. To resurrect Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, Madara's body and chakra were still the key. Nagato alive — and angry — was more useful.
Truthfully, Asahi could kill Nagato now. Destroying the Rinnegan would erase the Fourth Great Ninja War before it ever began.
But that would also erase his chance to meet Kaguya — the progenitor of chakra. The one who might hold the true secrets of this world.
'If she can be revived,' he mused, 'perhaps she'll show me what this world really is.'
"You…" Yahiko's voice cut through the silence, low and tight.
He glared at Asahi, but there was resignation behind his eyes. He had seen enough to understand the gulf between them.
Finally, Yahiko straightened. His voice steadied — proud, but heavy.
"The people of the Land of Rain are already suffering. I hope Konoha doesn't plan to make things worse."
"I can't speak for Konoha's elders." Asahi said quietly, lowering his hand. "But I'm not interested in your Land of Rain. Believe me — if I meant harm, we wouldn't be talking."
*****
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✓ Killed For 100 Years in Hueco Mundo, Aizen Invited Me To Soul Society!
✓ Naruto: Senmei Asahi
✓ Naruto: Uchiha's Intelligence Dealer
✓ Naruto: The Fifth Hokage Is Naruto's Uncle
✓ Naruto: Who Made Him a Ninja?
✓ Bleach: In My Second Reincarnation, I Became The Ninth Kenpachi
✓ To Love-Ru: Spoiler Route [R-18]
✓ Naruto: The Accidental Incubus [R-18]