Dark clouds gathered. The sky was dim.
Black torrential rain continuously washed everything away.
Beating against the mountains, and also against the iron buildings of Amegakure, producing a dull pattering sound.
Jiraiya stood under a large tree, gazing solemnly into the distance.
The next moment,
He pulled out a dark yellow raincoat from behind, put it on, and then stepped forward.
His gaze flickered slightly, feeling emotional inside.
He hadn't visited this place for many years.
Back then,
During the Second Shinobi World War, it was in this country that he, together with Tsunade and Orochimaru, earned the title of "Konoha's Legendary Sannin".
And also...
It was during this war that he met three disciples.
And among them was a genius who was very likely the "Child of Prophecy",
That was Nagato, who possessed the Sage's Eyes.
Originally,
Jiraiya had placed the heavy responsibility and expectations of saving the Shinobi World on Nagato.
But unfortunately,
Just a few years after parting with his disciples,
Bad news arrived.
It was said,
All three of his disciples had died in the civil war within Amegakure...
For this very reason,
Jiraiya regarded this place as a place of grief.
Even after years of traveling outside, he had never truly returned here.
But,
This time,
He couldn't avoid it.
He wasn't returning here to mourn.
But to investigate.
That's right.
His mission here was precisely to investigate the number one terrorist organization in the Shinobi World, "Akatsuki".
And that mysterious Golden-Eyed Shinobi, "Kyo", who had appeared in Konoha back then and left behind many mysteries.
This investigation plan,
In fact, had been proposed by Jiraiya right after the Chunin Exams incident ended.
But at that time,
He was stopped by Konoha's senior advisor, Utatane Koharu.
After all, Konoha was at a low point then, with no one to take charge.
So Jiraiya had no choice but to abandon the idea,
And then chose to take Naruto to find Tsunade, who was away, to return and take up the position of Fifth Hokage.
But unexpectedly,
Before that, he encountered enemies who had infiltrated Konoha… Itachi and Kisame.
In that battle,
He unexpectedly learned from Itachi that Akatsuki's goal... was precisely the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki of the various villages!
Therefore,
Jiraiya had to delay his plan again, instead focusing on training Naruto.
Until now,
All the miscellaneous matters had finally settled.
Tsunade had successfully taken over as the Fifth Hokage, leading Konoha to recover and thrive.
And Naruto back then had gradually grown and now possessed strong enough power to protect himself.
Coupled with Sunagakure coming to seek help,
Jiraiya knew the time had come.
Now was the best opportunity to conduct the investigation.
"Amegakure... I'm here."
After muttering softly to himself,
Jiraiya pulled down the brim of his raincoat and walked forward.
Under the torrential rain,
His figure gradually faded into the distance.
And at this moment, inside Amegakure.
In an elegant residence,
Inside the tea room, a faint wisp of blue smoke was rising.
Kyo sat on a cushion, facing a small table, bored, brewing tea.
He naturally didn't understand much about proper tea ceremony.
So he was just passing the time.
And just then,
Two figures suddenly walked in through the door of the tea room.
They were Nagato and Konan.
Seeing this,
Kyo raised an eyebrow, revealing a pleased smile, and said:
"Oh, you're here?"
"Please sit."
In this rainy weather, he was just bored, so having company just right to avoid being too bored.
Nagato and Konan opposite him saw this and weren't too formal.
They honestly walked over.
And sat down on the cushion directly opposite Kyo.
Just after sitting down, Nagato let out a light breath, then squeezed out a somewhat forced smile and said:
"Kyo-san, sorry to bother you..."
"However,"
"Something strange happened last night."
"The three Tailed Beast Jinchuriki in the basement have all disappeared."
Nagato didn't beat around the bush, but got straight to the point.
Clearly,
After spending so many years with Kyo,
Their speech and mannerisms had also been influenced a bit.
"?"
And at this moment,
Hearing Nagato's words,
Kyo's eyes suddenly lit up, instead revealing a smile, and said leisurely:
"Oh?"
"I didn't expect them to move so fast..."
"So they've already started making a move on the Jinchuriki?"
"It seems they are quite impatient."
"?"
"Hmm?"
As the words fell, Nagato and Konan were both momentarily stunned.
"Impatient...?"
"This... could the Jinchuriki actually be useful to them...?"
Konan subconsciously asked.
Kyo looked up and chuckled lightly:
"Remember what I told you before?"
"It's precisely because Uchiha Sasuke joined the camp of Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Madara that the antagonistic deterrent force was truly established..."
"And Sasuke's special characteristic is that —"
"He possesses eyes exactly the same as yours, Nagato..."
"The Rinnegan."
"!???"
As Kyo's words fell,
Nagato and Konan's pupils suddenly contracted sharply, completely frozen.
...?!
Uchiha Itachi's younger brother... also possesses the Sage's Eyes!?
No wonder...
No wonder after he joined Obito's camp, they immediately came to take the Jinchuriki...!
So their goal... was also the power of the Tailed Beasts?!
"This... doesn't this mean,"
"They will also try... to seize the Outer Path Statue...?!"
Nagato gazed at Kyo, asking solemnly.
He naturally knew,
To forge the strongest Tailed Beast Weapon, the Outer Path Statue was absolutely indispensable.
And so far,
Only the Rinnegan could truly control the Outer Path Statue.
That is to say,
If the other side seized the Jinchuriki, their next step... would very likely be to seize the Outer Path Statue!
Hearing Nagato's words,
Kyo's smile remained unchanged, he just shifted his gaze, calmly raised the cup in his hand, took a sip of tea, and then chuckled lightly:
"Don't worry about it."
"After all, our future plan completely doesn't require using this Outer Path Statue."
"If they want it, just give it to them."
"...???"
"Ah..."
Hearing this,
Nagato and Konan were slightly stunned again.
Unexpectedly...
Even the immensely powerful Outer Path Statue, in Kyo's words, was like some ordinary object...
It didn't receive any attention whatsoever.
However,
Thinking about it carefully, it was true...
Back in the battle with the Kitsune Ogre of Las Noches,
Even facing the Kitsune Ogre's so-called ultimate technique, Ayon,
Kyo had almost effortlessly suppressed and annihilated it with the immensely powerful "Goryutenmetsu"...
He indeed had the confidence to say such things.
After a moment of silence,
Konan was about to speak again,
Suddenly,
Nagato beside her suddenly changed his expression, his gaze flickering.
"?"
Seeing this,
Konan and Kyo naturally sensed something was wrong.
"What's wrong?"
As the words fell,
Nagato looked up, his expression already becoming very serious, solemnly said:
"An outsider has appeared... blocking my rain."
"And,"
"The feeling of this Chakra is quite powerful!"
Nagato's tone was deep,
Clearly, he wasn't joking.
And he wasn't one to joke either.