"Why…? Why?! Why did it turn out like this?!"
After what felt like an eternity, Yahiko finally came back to himself—just barely. He stared at Konan's lifeless body, his voice cracking as he roared into the night.
"Because this is reality."
The masked man's voice carried a strange, coaxing rhythm.
"To protect Konan, you would have had to betray Nagato. Refuse to betray Nagato, and Konan would be hurt."
"You refused to choose. You hesitated. You avoided the truth."
"So she chose for you. She sacrificed herself to protect you."
"This world has never allowed perfect outcomes. If you try to protect love, hatred will inevitably be born."
He kept talking, weaving his words like a net.
But something in Yahiko's expression changed.
"You!"
Yahiko's head snapped up. His eyes blazed.
"You're not Konoha ANBU. You're that masked man who tried to manipulate Nagato!"
Rage and shock twisted together in his chest.
He had expected an attack on the Akatsuki camp during the chaos.
He had never imagined the masked man would intercept them halfway.
The masked shinobi neither confirmed nor denied it.
"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is that you've seen reality."
He tilted his head slightly.
"Well? After everything that's happened… do you still believe your naïve ideals are correct? Do you still think people can understand one another? That conflicts can be solved through dialogue?"
"Or can you now understand me? Can you talk your way out of this with me?"
"How could I?!" Yahiko roared.
"You killed Konan!"
"Exactly."
The masked man's tone turned almost delighted.
"The shinobi of Konoha and Iwagakure—many of them lost comrades to each other. They feel exactly as you do right now."
"Now that you understand them… why demand of them something you yourself cannot do?"
"Admit it, Yahiko."
"Your path is wrong."
"This world is beyond saving. Only by creating a new one can true peace exist."
Even he didn't quite understand why he had changed his mind.
Moments ago, he had planned to kill Yahiko.
Now—
He wanted to break him.
To pull him to his side.
Yahiko's eyes burned.
"Konan is dead. I have no heart left to debate right or wrong."
"I only want to kill you."
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
He formed seals in fury and spat out surging streams of water.
The masked man simply phased—his body turning intangible as the attack passed harmlessly through.
He stood there, shaking his head faintly.
"You're blinded by hatred. Is that truly the extent of your resolve?"
"I'm disappointed."
Yahiko said nothing.
He pulled a kunai from his pouch and charged.
His attacks were wild. Desperate. Reckless.
The difference in power was overwhelming.
The masked man didn't even bother to phase again.
He moved with casual precision, sidestepping each strike effortlessly.
Then, seizing an opening—
He pivoted and drove a kick into Yahiko's abdomen.
Yahiko flew backward more than ten meters, crashing into the ground.
"—gh!"
Blood trickled from his lips.
He tried to rise.
His body refused.
The pain twisting through his stomach stole his strength.
The masked man approached slowly.
"You've lost your reason."
"If you were still thinking clearly, you would understand that I did not kill Konan."
"It was this world that killed her."
"This world ruled by hatred. Endless retaliation. Endless war."
"Your Akatsuki seeks peace—but such ideals threaten those who profit from chaos."
"Like Danzō's ambush."
"Even if she hadn't died today, she would have died tomorrow. Or the next day. For the same reason."
"To protect peace invites war. That is the law of causality in this world."
"My plan—the world of only victors, only love—exists to sever that causality."
He extended a hand.
"Join me, Yahiko."
"Let's create a world where Konan never has to die."
For a moment, the rain seemed to pause.
"Are you insane?!"
Yahiko forced himself upright, trembling.
"You killed her. You! What does that have to do with the world?!"
"This world isn't perfect—but it's not worthless either!"
"There are flowers. There's sunlight."
"There are people like Konan. Like Nagato."
"People like Jiraiya-sensei!"
"Just because you've suffered doesn't give you the right to blame the entire world!"
His voice shook—but not with fear.
With conviction.
Unlike the masked man—
Yahiko had always lived in hardship.
A war orphan. A wanderer.
He had known hunger. Cold. Indifference.
But he had also known warmth.
Meeting Konan and Nagato.
Meeting Jiraiya.
Meeting Yahiko's comrades who believed in him.
Those fragile fragments of light—
Were precisely why he refused to give up on this world.
His heart burned bright.
It would not be swallowed by darkness.
"Stubborn fool."
The masked man's voice faltered.
For the first time—
He felt something unsettling.
Yahiko met his gaze directly.
"In the book Jin-nii gave me," Yahiko said quietly, "there's a line."
'A true warrior dares to face a bleak life, dares to confront blood-soaked reality.'
"You talk about cutting causality. About escaping into illusions."
"But in the end, you're just a coward who can't face reality."
"Go hide in your fantasy."
"Even if I die—I will never bow to this world. And I will never accept your weak, escapist ideology."
His eyes shone fiercely.
For a split second—
The masked man couldn't meet his gaze.
Something in his chest tightened.
"Damn it!"
Humiliation flared into fury.
"Then die!"
He lunged forward, hand outstretched toward Yahiko's throat.
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