After giving Terumi Mei the healing medicine and coaxing her to sleep, Anya put on her mask and headed alone to a hidden location in Konoha.
Seeing the unique marking on the door, she entered directly without hesitation.
A one-armed middle-aged ninja approached with a smile and asked, "Honored Anbu sir, are you here to purchase any ninja tools? Let me introduce them to you."
Anya said indifferently, "No need. I am Anya."
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged ninja trembled slightly. He hurried to close the door, hung up a 'Closed' sign, and bowed respectfully, saying, "Greetings Leader. My name is Senzawa. Red Spider has instructed me that I'm here to serve you with any needs you might have."
Senzawa was a spy planted into Konoha by Sasori. During the Third Battle, he lost an arm and his status as a ninja, and was forced to join the Zero Organization as cannon fodder. However, Sasori noticed his excellent mental resilience and communication skills, which made him well-suited for espionage work, so he was sent back.
Anya got straight to the point, asking, "Has Red Spider passed along any intelligence reports recently?"
"Yes, please take a look."
Senzawa retrieved a report from a secret compartment inside the counter. The intelligence was neatly categorized and dated, easy to read at a glance.
"Not bad," Anya briefly remarked before flipping through it quickly.
It detailed how Sand had signed a ceasefire agreement with Konoha, and Rasa had already been recalled to his village. Shukaku's instability had caused great suffering to the Sand Ninja, prompting them to search for a compatible Jinchuriki.
Meanwhile, the Akatsuki Organization was beginning to rise and expand rapidly, playing a significant role in these developments.
In Hot Springs Country, the organization members under Hanzo's leadership were maintaining order, although Hanzo had taken away many peripheral members and requested to establish a new stronghold in Rain Country, clearly harboring selfish motives.
Sasori was clearly unhappy with Hanzo's moves, but Anya wasn't too bothered. From the start, he never expected much loyalty from Hanzo—so long as the man didn't betray them outright. After all, the Rinnegan remained in Rain Country. Once the Third Battle ended, Anya planned to gather Sasori, Kakuzu, Hanzo, and one... no, rather, two Kazekage puppets together to make a decisive move.
Although he wasn't sure exactly how much of the Rinnegan's power Nagato could currently wield, even when hunting a rabbit, one must go all out. After all, this was the eye capable of controlling life and death cycles; no amount of caution was excessive.
Unfortunately, Anya had no idea just how unpredictable things would get.
After finishing the report, Anya said to Senzawa, "Notify Red Spider. It's time to prepare for Rasa's ascension. Let him assume responsibility for Sand's daily affairs while others focus closely on the situation in Rain Country."
Once the orders were given, Anya vanished from the spot in a flash. That girl was super clingy—she wanted someone by her side 24/7.
Meanwhile, reconstruction in Konoha was in full swing, and Hokage's expression gradually improved day by day. Suddenly, an Anbu appeared behind Third and carefully reported, "Lord Hokage, Danzo has left Konoha accompanied by a large group of Root members. Their destination remains unknown."
"At this moment, choosing to leave the village… truly strange."
"Let it go," Third muttered after a moment. "Given his personality, he's probably off eliminating those he deems a potential threat to the village."
In this war-torn era, Sanshouo Hanzo's area had regained some light. A peace-seeking organization emerged there, led by Yahiko, whose ideals received strong support from numerous ninja who longed for peace. As a result, the Akatsuki Organization grew increasingly powerful. Sanshouo Hanzo's area, previously trapped in a chaotic three-way battle, even temporarily ceased fighting thanks to the organization's mediation. Surprisingly, Sanshouo Hanzo himself—the leader of Sanshouo Hanzo's area—chose to cooperate with the Akatsuki and proactively negotiated with the three great nations, finally ending the internal conflicts.
However, all of this was merely an elaborate trap. When Konan thought the contact person had been replaced, she was instead met by a sudden ambush from many Anbu members. Caught completely off guard, she was quickly captured and knocked unconscious. When she finally came to, the first thing she heard were several familiar, angry shouts!
"Why?! Why would you betray us?! How could you?!"
Yahiko shouted furiously at Hanzo above him, firing questions one after another. Standing beside Hanzo were Danzo and his Root agents.
Undoubtedly, everything had just been a setup; Hanzo had never intended to honor his promise.
Naive Yahiko could never have imagined betrayal. Who would expect that Hanzo, the so-called demigod, would stoop to such dishonorable tactics as taking hostages? Regret, bitterness, and anguish clawed at his insides like worms burrowing into bone. But nothing mattered now—Konan was in their hands, and Yahiko could do absolutely nothing but wait for them to state their demands.
"To me, your organization has become too troublesome."
Hanzo glared coldly at the two youths below him, his expression unchanging. There was no room in Sanshouo Hanzo's area for any other power. Although I admire your talents, if they cannot be used by me, then destruction is your only fate.
"Yahiko, I want you—the leader—to die here. Resist, and this woman dies."
Hanzo pulled out a kunai knife and threatened Konan's neck before tossing it toward Yahiko and Nagato.
"Damn it!"
Yahiko clenched his teeth tightly, his eyes burning with fury, yet he dared not act recklessly.
"That red-haired kid next to him, pick up the kunai and kill Yahiko. If you obey, I'll let both you and this woman live." Hanzo fixed his intimidating gaze on Nagato, who was trembling violently, coaxing and threatening simultaneously.
"Nagato, don't listen to him! Don't worry about me; just escape from here right away!" Konan cried desperately as she struggled under Hanzo's grip. Meanwhile, confusion consumed her: how had it come to this? Where was Master? Wasn't he part of the Anbu? He had promised me once before—and so had the Hokage. So how did everything go so horribly wrong? I clearly completed every mission assigned by Konoha.
Konan hated the enemy's treachery, but more than that, she despised her own helplessness. How could she have been caught so easily, dragging down her friends? Right now, even the thought of escape felt like a futile dream. She had tried to reveal her identity to these Anbu, but it made no difference. In fact, she faintly saw a mocking smirk curling the lips of the man leading the group.
Nagato stood frozen upon hearing Hanzo's words, unsure of what to do next. His whole body trembled violently.
Beside him, Yahiko's eyes flickered with unwillingness, reluctance, and finally resignation.
In the end, Yahiko fixed Nagato with a determined gaze and said, "Nagato, kill me."
Yahiko knew Nagato's personality well—introverted, shy, and never good at expressing himself. When faced with such a situation, he could never make a decision. Then let me decide for you.
Nagato's Rinnegan eyes widened, filled with despair, his body gasping desperately for breath. He just couldn't force himself to do it.
Seeing Nagato hesitating, Yahiko knew that the longer they waited, the more dangerous things became. For the first time, he shouted at Nagato, "Nagato! Come on!"
Her burning tears mixed with the cold rain as Konan cried out in anguish, "No!"
"Hurry up! Don't you care if this woman gets killed by me?"
Nagato, on the brink of emotional collapse, slowly picked up the kunai from the ground. Those few steps felt like they drained every last bit of strength from his body. Still panting heavily, he turned his gaze toward the kidnapped Konan and whispered softly, "Konan."
A rush of memories suddenly flooded his mind—every moment Konan had stood by them—before he turned again toward Yahiko, murmuring, "Ya… hiko."
Before his voice could even fade—
Thud.
The sound of a kunai piercing flesh rang out. In the blink of an eye, before Nagato could react, Yahiko had thrown himself onto the blade.
Leaning against Nagato, blood dripped from Yahiko's lips as he weakly spoke, "Nagato… I truly regret letting Konan leave back then. We wasted years we could have spent together. Otherwise, our bond would surely be even stronger than this. But now… there's no more time. You two must survive, no matter what. I believe in you. You are the savior of this world. If it's you, maybe you really can…"
With a trembling voice full of final affection, Yahiko collapsed. Those brief words carried all of Yahiko's bitterness and ideals.
Rain-soaked mud seeped crimson blood, staining the earth like the cruelty of the world itself.
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