It had been mentioned before: geographically speaking, the Land of Rain lay wedged between three great powers—the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Wind. It was a critical crossroads, and therefore an unavoidable battleground.
On top of that, the Land of Rain possessed a man who was always itching to stir up a major incident in the shinobi world—the undisputed ruler of Amegakure, the so-called Demigod, Hanzō of the Salamander.
As a result, the devastation Rain suffered during the Second and Third Shinobi World Wars was self-evident.
Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato were orphans born from the chaos of the Second Shinobi World War.
In the Land of Rain, orphans like them were countless—but those who survived the prolonged turmoil were few and far between.
From that perspective alone, the three of them were already fortunate.
As children, they had personally witnessed the clash between the young Legendary Sannin of Konoha and Hanzō the Salamander. By a twist of fate, they later became students of Jiraiya himself.
Jiraiya believed deeply that orphans like these were created precisely because of shinobi like him. Out of guilt, he resolved to teach the three until they possessed the ability to protect themselves.
But as time passed—and especially after Jiraiya laid eyes upon Nagato's eyes—his expectations changed.
He began to believe Nagato was the Child of Prophecy foretold by the Great Toad Sage.
Thus, Jiraiya's hope was no longer merely that they survive.
He wished for them to change the shinobi world—to find a path toward peace.
Because of this, Jiraiya disappeared from the raging battlefield of the Second Shinobi World War for a full three years, remaining in the Land of Rain to guide them. Only after he was certain they could survive on their own did he return to Konoha and rejoin the war.
He truly entrusted his dream of peace to these three orphans of Amegakure.
And so far, they had not betrayed that trust.
From the Second Shinobi World War into the Third, Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato grew into adulthood. Determined to bring peace to the Land of Rain, they founded an organization known as Akatsuki, advocating a doctrine of "nonviolent noncooperation."
They aided countless shinobi.
In turn, Akatsuki attracted many who despised war and yearned for peace.
Their creed was clear: to create world peace without relying on extreme force.
As the organization grew, its reputation spread.
Even their former teacher—long separated from them—occasionally heard of their deeds.
Among the three, Nagato was unquestionably the strongest, thanks to both the vitality of the Uzumaki bloodline and the power of the Rinnegan.
But in terms of leadership—
It was Yahiko.
The Akatsuki under Yahiko's guidance was fundamentally different from the Akatsuki that would later be led by Nagato.
Yahiko's Akatsuki were true pacifists.
As for the internal changes and moral turning points that would come later—Hagoromo didn't know them.
With his only superficial knowledge of Naruto's future, all he could see right now was a cluster of future final bosses standing together.
That was why his first instinct had been to arrogantly consider killing them on the spot.
But the unknown depth of the Rinnegan made accurate judgment impossible—and that uncertainty alone was enough to restrain him.
Given the current situation, it was entirely possible that this small four-man team needed to prioritize escape.
Regret getting involved?
Not really.
Hagoromo rarely regretted decisions once made.
Was coming here the right choice?
He believed it was.
The unpredictable nature of accidents was sometimes something he even found… interesting.
Pakura, meanwhile, still believed Akatsuki to be reinforcements from Amegakure. That was why she had cursed them as parasites clinging to bone—weak, persistent nuisances.
What she didn't realize was that the battlefield had already shifted from a three-way melee into a four-faction entanglement.
Nor did she know that the earlier attack had, indirectly, saved her life.
From her perspective, all she sensed was this:
That Konoha brat is troublesome… but he seems to be pulling back.
So Pakura decided to deal with the Rain rabble first—then return her full attention to Hagoromo.
Her misjudgment was understandable.
The combined jutsu used by Konan and Nagato had looked flashy, but its true power wasn't immediately obvious. It was easy to underestimate them.
Thus, Pakura advanced toward Akatsuki just as confidently as she had slaughtered the earlier Rain shinobi.
Before attacking, she even spared a glance in Hagoromo's direction.
And just like that, Hagoromo ceded the initiative—becoming a spectator instead.
He didn't mind at all.
If possible, this was the perfect chance to observe Nagato's strength.
As he watched, he carefully guided the Three-Headed Hound backward, regrouping his team. If anything went wrong, they could flee together without hesitation.
Pakura charged straight toward Yahiko, the apparent leader of Akatsuki.
Without hesitation, she unleashed her jutsu:
Scorch Release: Extremely Steaming Murder.
Akatsuki was still a young organization. They lacked the intelligence network of a major village like Konoha.
Yahiko did not recognize Pakura's identity, and naturally treated Scorch Release as nothing more than an ordinary Fire Release jutsu.
He quickly formed hand seals and responded the way one would against fire:
Water Release: Water Turbulence.
A torrent of water surged from his mouth toward the orange-white flames. Compared to the volume of water, the fire looked insignificant—something that should have been extinguished instantly.
Yet something completely unexpected happened.
Not only did his Water Release fail to suppress the flames—
It was instantly vaporized.
And the fire continued rushing straight toward him.
One jutsu wasn't enough—then he'd use another.
Judging by the distance, Yahiko believed he still had time to cast a second Water Release.
But at that moment—
Nagato moved.
He said nothing.
In an instant, he flashed in front of Yahiko.
Yahiko abandoned his attempt to cast another jutsu. If Nagato was stepping in, there was no reason to worry.
There were no hand seals.
No jutsu.
No visible movement.
There wasn't even a noticeable fluctuation of chakra.
Nagato simply stood there, as if intending to block the attack with his own body.
And Pakura's expression twisted into unmistakable shock.
Because her jutsu vanished.
It didn't strike the enemy—
It disappeared an instant before impact.
As Nagato shifted to shield Yahiko, his red hair swayed slightly across his forehead.
Firelight slipped through the gaps between his bangs—
Illuminating a pair of eerie, inhuman eyes.
Just one glance.
Eyes devoid of emotion.
And for reasons she couldn't explain, Pakura's forward momentum stopped dead in its tracks.
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