The principles contained within, upon careful consideration, made Shisui have to admit that this was a very effective interrogation technique.
If both parties can absolutely trust each other and won't betray one another, the method would fail, but clearly, these two ordinary bandits weren't capable of such trust.
Under Mokgetsu's interrogation, the two bandits blurted out everything they knew.
Just as Mokgetsu suspected, the main force of the bandits had left a week ago, leaving behind only these two to watch the place.
Additionally, Shisui's suspicion was confirmed: the leader of this bandit group was simply a wandering ninja from the Land of Rain.
"Move faster, and don't try any tricks."
At this moment, Shisui, who had been searching the bandit's lair, suddenly heard a commotion outside.
Shisui went outside to check and found that there were a few more people there.
Whoosh!
As soon as Shisui stepped out, a shuriken flew swiftly towards him.
However, Shisui didn't come out unprepared. He slightly tilted his body to dodge the incoming ninja tool and then pulled out a kunai from his ninja pouch.
Since the newcomers didn't seem like bandits, he didn't attack immediately, but since they struck first, they were clearly enemies.
"Namiki, don't engage, these bandits are too small-time." Yahiko shook his head at Namiki.
Namiki looked at the bandit leader, whose hands were tied, at the front of the group.
"Kid, don't underestimate people. A ten-year-old's knife can still kill." The bandit leader grinned and hinted.
Although he didn't know Shisui, it didn't stop him from hoping Shisui would cause trouble for Yahiko and his team.
They were peacefully robbing a village when these meddling ninjas wiped them out, making the bandit leader resent Yahiko deeply.
"Yahiko, their skills aren't simple, maybe they're being specially groomed as successors." The bandit leader hinted, causing Namiki to feel that Shisui, appearing at the bandit lair, wasn't simple.
At this time, Shizune and Anko quickly arrived at Shisui's side after sensing the commotion.
"So they're Konoha ninjas." Seeing the headband on Shizune's forehead, Yahiko appeared to have a sudden realization.
Shisui was an intern ninja; he didn't have a Konoha ninja headband. As soon as Shizune arrived, his identity became clear—they were Konoha ninjas on a mission.
Hearing the words 'Konoha ninja', Nagato, who had been following Yahiko, instinctively twitched his fingers before calming down quickly.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Shisui gripped the kunai and asked in a deep voice.
Though the newcomers looked older and like more experienced ninjas, Shisui was not at all flustered. After all, they were with Mokgetsu.
"My name is Yahiko, leader of the Akatsuki organization in the Land of Rain. Sorry about earlier, my companion mistook you for a bandit." Yahiko briefly introduced himself and explained apologetically.
"We encountered a group of bandits plundering villagers in a village in the Land of Rain. After eliminating them, we were worried about any remnants seeking revenge on the villagers, so we came here."
"A ninja organization's leader?" Shisui found it somewhat strange.
Shisui knew about the existence of such ninja organizations in the Ninja World, but Yahiko looked too young, seemingly only about thirteen or fourteen, not much older than them.
"You must have taken on a task related to these bandits, right? Consider us helping you save some effort, so don't mind what happened earlier." Yahiko said with a cheerful smile.
Shisui remained silent, waiting for Mokgetsu's decision.
Although Mokgetsu hadn't shown up yet, he knew she had already arrived, as it was impossible for her not to be aware of the commotion that both Anko and Shisui noticed.
As Shisui thought, Mokgetsu had indeed arrived and had noticed Yahiko and the others' arrival even earlier because she had activated her Byakugan while searching for the bandits.
[Name: Yahiko]
[Chakra: 7300]
[Potential: S-]
[Skills: Water Attribute Chakra Nature Changes (Master: 100/15000), Water Release: Water Turbulence (Proficient), Water Release: Water Dragon Bomb (Proficient)...]
For Yahiko's age, this status could be considered that of a genius ninja. Mokgetsu estimated that if Yahiko didn't die early, he could probably reach Kage Level through his own training.
[Name: Konan]
[Chakra: 8000]
[Potential: S]
[Skills: Paper Secret Technique (Proficient: 2000/3000), Paper Shuriken (Proficient)...]
Konan's potential was slightly higher than Yahiko's, but at this stage, their strengths were about the same.
Mokgetsu finally looked at Nagato; he had a premonition that Nagato's potential might surpass anyone he had ever seen, given the Rinnegan and the Uzumaki Clan lineage.
[Name: Nagato]
[Chakra: 605000]
[Potential: SS+ (Six Paths Bloodline + Rinnegan + Basic Talent)]
[Skills: Fire Attribute Chakra Nature Changes (Master: 1000/15000), Wind Attribute Chakra Nature Changes (Master: 750/15000), Yang Attribute Chakra Nature Changes (Master), Water Attribute Chakra Nature Changes (Master)...]
Nagato's status could only be described as astonishing by Mokgetsu. His potential even surpassed SS, reaching SS+. Except for Yin Attribute Chakra, all other Chakra Nature Changes were at Master Level. Although his mastery wasn't very high, mastering six natures was terrifying, and Nagato also possessed hundreds of ninjutsu at proficiency level, indicating a substantial reserve of skills.
Of course, what caught Mokgetsu's attention was the terrifying amount of Chakra that Nagato had.
Mokgetsu was genuinely tempted; given Nagato's age, he still had substantial room for growth. If Mokgetsu could mentor him, the Chakra gained would be multiple times more than all other disciples combined.
However, Mokgetsu knew this wasn't a simple matter, as there were many difficulties.
Firstly, becoming Nagato's teacher was inherently challenging because, after Jiraiya's three years of guidance, Nagato already had an excellent teacher in his heart, and given his mastery of six Chakra attributes and numerous ninjutsu, strength-wise, he didn't have a great need for a teacher.
Another issue was that Nagato might not be too fond of Konoha ninjas, given that his parents were killed by them.
If Mokgetsu wanted to be Nagato's teacher, aside from Nagato himself, there were two others worth noting—Black Zetsu and Uchiha Madara.
The Rinnegan in Nagato was transplanted by Uchiha Madara, and Madara wouldn't just leave it unmonitored. It was certain he would supervise it in secret, not to mention Black Zetsu, who had been plotting for thousands of years for the Rinnegan, considering it an essential condition for Kaguya's resurrection.
"They indeed aren't malicious." Mokgetsu quickly appeared by Shisui's side and said.
To become Nagato's teacher required a thorough and meticulous plan, but Mokgetsu wasn't particularly rushed.
In the original storyline, Nagato's dark turn was the result of multiple factors, with one of the instigators, Obito, not even ten years old yet. Mokgetsu still had plenty of time.
"So fast!" Yahiko was somewhat surprised. He hadn't noticed when Mokgetsu arrived.
Although young, he had the strength to become a leader of a ninja organization; otherwise, how could he command followers?
Knowing Mokgetsu was strong, Yahiko even more so didn't want to clash with this team of Konoha ninjas and potentially cause trouble for the Land of Rain.
With Mokgetsu's intervention, the two sides quickly reached a consensus—this was a misunderstanding.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, how was the strength of those people just now?" Shisui asked as he watched Yahiko and others' departing figures.
"Strong. There are two you might not be able to handle, and one who could probably defeat you instantly." Mokgetsu thought for a moment and responded.
PS: Nagato isn't the same age as Minato. Nagato died at thirty-five when Naruto was sixteen, and Minato died at twenty-four giving birth to Naruto, so Minato was much older than Nagato.
Also, Nagato's mastery of six Chakra attributes and usage of many ninjutsu were stated by Jiraiya in the manga; it's not something I made up.