The snow was still falling.
Outside the cave, the snow had piled up to knee-height. A freezing wind whistled through the cavern, swirling around the flickering fire within. The unstable light illuminated the people staying inside the cave: huddled in a corner, gnawing on dry bread, was Zhanyi with his blue-gray bangs, along with five rogue ninja from Amegakure—the Village Hidden in Rain. Strangely, their headbands did not have the cross-out mark typical of rogue ninja.
Sitting silently before the fire, a blue-haired girl named Konan gently folded paper, while beside her sat Nagato, a red-haired youth with his head lowered, completely hidden beneath his hood and black robe, lost in thought.
Counting Yahiko, who was currently out, the current Akatsuki consisted of only nine members.
It was hard to imagine that these individuals were the founding members of Akatsuki.
It was equally hard to imagine that this exact group of people was stirring up a storm in the Land of Rain, becoming such a threat that Hanzō of the Salamander, the current leader of Amegakure, viewed them with profound wariness.
Just as Hyūga Yū was quietly observing the Akatsuki members, these founding members were also stealthily watching the Byakugan youth deep inside the cave, who was acting like an absolute eccentric.
In the dead of winter, with nighttime temperatures plummeting well below freezing, this Byakugan youth from Konoha's Hyūga clan was completely shirtless. His body—covered in scars on the front and wrapped in bandages—boasted terrifyingly defined muscles and was emitting waves of white steam. In the freezing night, he was coughing up mouthfuls of blood while carrying two boulders larger than himself, undergoing a form of "medical treatment" that defied all human comprehension...
He was doing one-handed push-ups.
"1,997..."
"1,998..."
"1,999..."
"Damn it, I've hit my limit. Perfect. As a punishment, I'll switch hands and do another 2,000 weighted push-ups."
Watching this scene, the members of Akatsuki exchanged bewildered glances, completely at a loss for words.
This wasn't a punishment at all. He was clearly just making up excuses to reward himself with the next exercise routine, wasn't he?
Compared to the youth who was "recuperating" with such intense vigor, the raggedly dressed and seemingly starving members of Akatsuki looked far more like the ones in need of rescue.
The two sides were not close, and Hyūga Yū made no effort to strike up a conversation with Konan, Nagato, and the others. When it came to human interactions, talking too deeply with casual acquaintances was a major taboo.
Yū had no interest in playing mentor to an Akatsuki organization that he viewed as incredibly "naive," nor did he care to influence the ideals they so fiercely believed in. He had never been an idealist. For the sake of Konoha and his own interests, he only needed to ensure that the Land of Rain maintained a decent amount of power over the next two months, which would eventually fall under his control and serve as his political capital.
As for whether Hanzō or Akatsuki would ultimately survive, that was exactly what Yū intended to observe next.
At the very beginning, Konan had heard the commotion and come over to ask a few concerned questions. After receiving Yū's assurance that he was fine, both sides left each other alone.
On one side was an "infamous" ninja organization that lived a nomadic existence wandering through the Land of Rain. On the other side was a Konoha ninja they had picked up, who was theoretically an "enemy ninja" at this time. There was little common ground between them. Even when some casual small talk occurred, it was carefully cut short out of caution due to Yū's presence, preventing any deeper discussion.
As a result, Hyūga Yū had no idea what they planned to do next, how this organization founded by "idealists" operated, or what goals they had for the future.
Thus, under a cloud of mutual reservation, time passed quickly. After pushing his body to its absolute limits, Yū found a corner in the cave and slept for three hours. Upon waking up, he scooped up a handful of snowmelt to wash his face and immediately resumed his training of the Eight Inner Gates.
It wasn't until the blizzard outside the cave gradually subsided and the morning light pierced through the snowy mist into the cavern that an orange-haired figure returned. He wore a black robe with a white sash, and his body was covered in snowflakes.
"Everyone, the snow has stopped. Let's get moving!"
Yahiko's bright smile as he walked into the cave instantly dispelled the winter chill. The people inside looked up, their expressions shifting slightly.
Konan immediately stood up and approached him, brushing the snow off his outer robe. "You stayed out all night again," she asked with a tinge of worry. "What exactly requires you to work yourself to the bone like this?"
"It's good news!" Yahiko laughed. "I caught word that the war between Konoha and Iwagakure has finally entered the negotiation phase."
"Whether the three great nations—Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure—can put an end to the war will be decided once and for all at a peace negotiation between Iwagakure and Konoha in two months."
"Really?"
Hearing this, Nagato looked up slightly, his eyes sparkling a bit. "If that's the case, then the Land of Rain can finally enjoy some peace, right?"
"Exactly!" Yahiko nodded solemnly and continued.
"However, I also found out..."
"...that after the failure of the first negotiation, Konoha will be sending the Foundation, led by Elder Danzō Shimura, to handle the second round of talks."
"On Iwagakure's side, their representatives are Kitsuchi, the son of the Third Tsuchikage, along with Rōshi, the Jinchūriki of the Five-Tails, and Han, the Jinchūriki of the Four-Tails."
"Wait," Konan furrowed her brows slightly and asked, "Danzō Shimura... isn't he a hawk from Konoha?"
"By sending him, doesn't it mean Konoha has no intention of stopping the war at all?"
"No, quite the contrary." Yahiko shook his head with conviction. "This proves that Konoha genuinely wants peace. Otherwise, they wouldn't have a veteran hawk like Danzō Shimura step forward; they would just keep fighting the war."
"Konoha needs Danzō Shimura to secure the rights and benefits they deserve from this war during the negotiations. Compared to Jiraiya-sensei... his deterrent power against Iwagakure is clearly much greater."
"After all, not long ago... Kirigakure, one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, collapsed precisely due to this man's schemes..."
Hearing this, Nagato, who had been listening silently on the side, let out a somewhat helpless sigh. "What a strange world we live in..."
"Good people like Jiraiya-sensei can't bring about peace, yet the notoriously sinister Danzō Shimura has become a key figure in establishing it."
"Haha!" Yahiko laughed, clapping Nagato on the shoulder reassuringly. "The world is just weird like that."
"In any case,"
Yahiko's expression turned incredibly serious. "We must find a way to ensure the success of these peace talks!"
"Under the current circumstances, the stance of the Land of Rain—wedged right between the Lands of Wind, Earth, and Fire—will become a critical factor influencing these peace talks!"
"The very first step to putting our ideals into practice is to restore peace to our nation!"
"And to bring peace to the Land of Rain, we must mobilize our strength and influence the will of this country!"
Upon hearing his words, the expressions of everyone from Akatsuki stiffened. Nagato, Konan, and the six Amegakure ninja led by Zhanyi all looked toward Yahiko. Even Hyūga Yū, in the corner of the cave, set down his massive boulder and glanced at Yahiko with a trace of surprise.
Nagato raised his head slightly, revealing a glimpse of his unique eye, and asked solemnly, "Yahiko, what should we do?"
Yahiko took a deep breath and said, "Contact the Rain ninja everywhere who recognize our ideals. We must make our voices heard in this event and make Hanzō realize that—"
"—the Land of Rain can no longer bear the trauma of war. We... need peace!"
Yahiko looked at Zhanyi, the fourth-in-command of the organization standing behind Konan and Nagato. Zhanyi was the first Amegakure ninja Yahiko had ever won over. He had once violently attacked Yahiko's group, but later came to respect and accept his ideals under the influence of Yahiko's sincere words—and fists.
At this time, including Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan, every member of Akatsuki wore an Amegakure forehead protector. This signified that they were still ninja of the Land of Rain and had not defected; all their actions up until now were carried out for the sake of their nation's future.
"I'll leave this task to you, Zhanyi. Secretly lead the other comrades to the various towns across the Land of Rain, and have the local garrisoned ninja send letters to Amegakure to declare our intent."
"But remember, you must prioritize your safety. After all, Hanzō can no longer afford to ignore our existence."
"Understood!" Zhanyi nodded heavily.
Next, Yahiko turned his gaze to Nagato and Konan. "As for us—"
"Wait a minute!"
A clear, sharp voice suddenly interrupted Yahiko's words. Turning his head in confusion, Yahiko saw that the speaker was actually Hyūga Yū, whom they had brought back just yesterday.
"Uh..."
Yahiko scratched his head. "Ah, Yu-kun. What's wrong?"
A somewhat bizarre expression appeared on Hyūga Yū's face. He looked at Yahiko, his mouth twitching slightly. "Is this really something I should be listening to?"
"Shouldn't you guys... exercise a bit of caution? Lest you forget, I'm still a Konoha ninja."
"Hahaha!" Hearing this, Yahiko burst into laughter. Walking over to Hyūga Yū, he pulled a few medicine boxes from his shirt. Looking at Yū with absolute sincerity, he said, "My bad, my bad, Yu-kun! I just got a bit too excited."
"This is the medicine I managed to find in a nearby town last night. It's not much, but it should last you a few days."
"Our actions aren't some top-secret conspiracy, and they don't pose any threat to Konoha either. So please rest assured, this won't put you in a difficult position."
Hyūga Yū frowned and didn't take the medicine boxes. He merely stared at Yahiko before finally offering a warning, "It's not a matter of you deciding whether it causes trouble or not."
"You say you want to contact the Rain ninja all over the country? But how many people do you actually have, and how many of them can be trusted? Will they really defy Hanzō just because of your words?"
"And you... how can you be so certain of Hanzō's current attitude?"
From Yahiko's words, Hyūga Yū could tell that the current Akatsuki wasn't as simple as it appeared. Even though there were only nine people around Yahiko here, his ideals had already spread throughout the Land of Rain through his actions, effectively influencing a significant number of people who were willing to help him speak out. However, that was precisely the problem—
Exposing this unstable influence prematurely wouldn't make Hanzō feel Akatsuki's sincerity. Instead, it would make him acutely perceive Akatsuki as a threat, sowing the seeds of disaster for what was to come.
The internal situation of the Land of Rain was like an impending coup. Even if Yahiko himself had no intention of staging a coup, once he demonstrated that he possessed the power and capability to do so, he couldn't blame others for harboring dangerous thoughts about him.
Hearing Hyūga Yū's response, Yahiko was also quite surprised by how precisely this fourteen- or fifteen-year-old Hyūga youth could read the situation in the Land of Rain. His words were as sharp as a scalpel, cutting straight to the heart of the matter.
Nevertheless, he did not avoid the questions raised by Yū. Looking at him, Yahiko replied in a deep voice, "I am absolutely certain—"
"—Hanzō is no longer the 'Demi-God of Shinobi' from the Second Great Ninja War. Since the outbreak of the Third Great Ninja War, he has cooped himself up inside Amegakure, turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to the suffering of the Land of Rain!"
"And according to the intelligence we gathered—"
"—Hanzō has absolutely no desire to end the Third Great Ninja War. He has been playing both sides in this conflict, contacting Iwagakure on one hand and Konoha on the other. He has even provided conveniences for Sunagakure in the direction of the Land of Rivers."
At this point, Yahiko knit his brows deeply, a look of profound worry spreading across his face. He said in a heavy tone, "If we let him continue down this path, then the Land of Rain... will very likely face—"
"—the destruction of our nation!"
"The destruction of the nation?" Hyūga Yū was stunned, completely bewildered. He thought to himself, Where on earth is this supposed national destruction coming from?
Who would be crazy enough to pick a fight with Hanzō, the Demi-God?
Just then, Yahiko took a deep breath and said grimly, "I received intelligence—"
"—that among the negotiators Konoha sent this time, aside from Elder Danzō Shimura, there is Orochimaru of the Sannin, and... the 'Heavenly Ninja,' who just executed the 'Kirigakure Collapse Plan' a few days ago!"
"Elder Danzō has already leaked word within Konoha that the 'Heavenly Ninja' of the Foundation will have full authority over these negotiations with Iwagakure!"
"And Konoha deploying the 'Heavenly Ninja' only signifies one thing—"
"—they can no longer tolerate Hanzō's double-dealing behavior. Sending the 'Heavenly Ninja'—a person capable of destroying an entire nation single-handedly—is to ensure that Hanzō forces the Land of Rain to surrender to Konoha before the negotiations even begin!"
"Otherwise, given the track record of Elder Danzō Shimura, the leader of Konoha's hawks, he will inevitably replicate the Kirigakure collapse. He will order the 'Heavenly Ninja' to launch the 'Land of Rain Collapse Plan'!"
"To eliminate Hanzō and tear down the Land of Rain!"
"He will enter the Iwagakure negotiations carrying the terrifying momentum of having annihilated a country!"
"If Iwagakure still refuses the peace talks, then with Konoha's 'Heavenly Ninja' and the 'Yellow Flash' joining forces, Konoha will drag this Third Great Ninja War out to its absolute, bitter end!"
"This is the clear stance Konoha is signaling by sending Danzō Shimura!"
At this point, whether it was Yahiko, Nagato, or Konan, their faces were all drawn with extreme seriousness, beneath which lurked a deeply buried trace of fear.
Nagato spoke up directly, "The 'Heavenly Ninja' managed to execute the Kirigakure Collapse Plan alone, throwing the Hidden Mist into total devastation. Based on the fragments of intel we've gathered..."
"...he must possess the terrifying combat strength to wipe out a small country all by himself! He is a powerful ninja on the exact same level as the 'Yellow Flash'!"
"Therefore," Nagato looked at Yahiko and nodded, "we absolutely cannot allow the 'Heavenly Ninja' to make a move against the Land of Rain!"
"We must never let the 'Heavenly Ninja' destroy our country!"
Hearing this, goosebumps erupted all over Hyūga Yū's body, and his scalp went slightly numb.
At the same time, an absurd, exasperated thought welled up from the bottom of his heart:
What? Since when did I plan to destroy the Land of Rain???
Wait, is this 'Heavenly Ninja' you guys are talking about even me?
Am I seriously that amazing?
Evidently, the always-humble Hyūga Yū, who was used to downplaying himself while overestimating his opponents, still didn't understand just what kind of demonic figure he cut in the eyes of ninja from other nations—especially small ones. To them, a terrifying achievement like single-handedly bringing down Kirigakure, turning the tide of a ninja war by oneself, and completely silencing one of the Great Shinobi Nations made him nothing short of a monster!
At this moment, Yahiko looked at Hyūga Yū, exhaled heavily, and said solemnly, "Faced with this situation, we can no longer let Hanzō do whatever he wants. No matter what he thinks, to bring an end to the war, we must push the Land of Rain to align with Konoha—even if it incurs his suspicion!"
"The three of us are entirely willing to serve as the bridge to peace!"
He looked at Hyūga Yū with deep earnestness, placing his hands heavily on Yū's shoulders, his eyes filled with absolute sincerity. "So—"
Yū was thoroughly amused and exasperated inside, but his face remained a mask of calm. He merely knit his brows slightly, glancing at Yahiko, and said coldly, "So, is this why you deliberately kept me here?"
An apologetic look surfaced on Yahiko's face. "I'm sorry! But Hyūga Yū, I hope you can understand. We truly want to bring... peace to this country!"
"You are a ninja of Konoha's Hyūga clan, so you must have a certain level of status and connections within Konoha."
"If possible,"
"...we hope you can act as an intermediary to build a bridge between us and Konoha! We want to meet one of Konoha's Sannin, Jiraiya."
"He used to be our teacher!"
Yū frowned, looking at him. "Why are you looking for Lord Jiraiya?"
Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan exchanged a glance. Then, all three turned to look at Hyūga Yū with resolute eyes. Yahiko stated in a deep voice, "We need to find that 'Heavenly Ninja' through Jiraiya-sensei. Only by changing the 'Heavenly Ninja's' mind can we ensure true peace for the Land of Rain!"
Hearing this bizarre request to lead them to find himself, Hyūga Yū fell silent.
In the end, after hesitating for a long time, he forced a single line out from between his teeth.
"Fine then..."
————
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