Chapter 75 - Encounter with Yahiko's Trio
No ruler could tolerate the existence of a powerful organization within their territory—one that did not obey their command yet constantly threatened their authority.
The Akatsuki wasn't just a group of rogue ninjas from various villages. Most of its members were Rain Shinobi, those disillusioned by war and swayed by Yahiko's ideals.
For Hanzo the Salamander, Yahiko was like a thorn in his side, a constant irritation.
He had led numerous missions to eliminate the Akatsuki, but there were always insiders within Rain Village leaking information, preventing him from capturing them.
Then came Danzo's proposal.
Danzo was generous—a year's worth of supplies for the Rain Village in exchange for one kill.
Rain Village, suffering from continuous rainfall and low food production, was on the brink of collapse. The Second Shinobi War had left lasting scars; even now, the nation had yet to recover.
Without a steady food supply, the population stagnated, and the lack of new recruits weakened the village's power.
To make things worse, because of the war, prices of imported goods had skyrocketed, making survival even harder.
At this rate, within five years, Hanzo—the so-called "demi-god"—would be forced to either farm the land or raid neighboring villages just to keep Rain Village afloat.
And now, amidst all this chaos, the Akatsuki had risen.
Hanzo loved his country. If he didn't, he could have joined any of the major villages. His strength alone would have granted him a high-ranking position anywhere.
If the Akatsuki could truly bring peace to the Rain Village, Hanzo wouldn't have hesitated to support them.
But in his eyes, their ideology was laughable.
No military power, yet they dream of peace?
If not for his sacrifices during the Second Shinobi War, the Rain Village would have ceased to exist long ago.
If the Akatsuki gained control, the village would fall within a year.
Thus, to protect his people, Hanzo was determined to eradicate the Akatsuki.
Then Danzo arrived with an offer—a chance to eliminate both Kazane and the Akatsuki.
It was a win-win situation.
As for whether he could defeat Kazane, Hanzo never even considered it.
Even if Kazane had killed Kitsuchi and defeated the Fourth Mizukage, he was still just a junior ninja in Hanzo's eyes.
What could a mere child possibly do?
Hanzo had easily crushed Orochimaru before.
Kazane, as Orochimaru's student, would be no different.
"Kazane, your fate is sealed..."
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Kazane's Arrival in the Land of Rain
After crossing the border, Kazane was met with desolation.
The deeper he ventured, the more he saw the suffering of the Rain Village's people.
The sky over the Land of Rain was perpetually gray, the ceaseless downpour masking the silent suffering of its people. Every step Kazane took through the barren streets of the war-torn villages painted a clearer picture of this country's misery.
Children, their bones visible beneath their rain-soaked skin, huddled beneath crumbling structures, eyes hollow from hunger. Some were too weak to beg, their small bodies lying motionless in the mud. Others simply watched him with tired, resigned expressions, as if they had long given up on the world.
Women held tightly to whatever scraps of cloth they could use as makeshift coverings, while the men—those still able to move—wielded rusted weapons, standing guard over the few provisions they had left. The war had taken everything from them.
Kazane had seen it before in the aftermath of battle, in the broken towns that shinobi left behind. This was the cost of the wars fought by the great nations.
He walked on without stopping. His hands remained still at his sides, resisting the brief impulse to drop food where he passed. Even if he did, it wouldn't change a thing. A single meal couldn't erase years of suffering.
Yet, something nagged at him.
A presence.
No—four of them.
Though subtle, Kazane could feel the movement trailing him.
At first, he ignored it. But when the pattern continued without deviation, he understood.
Someone was following him.
Not an enemy—at least, not yet. But they were certainly watching.
Curious.
Instead of confronting them outright, Kazane took a detour, leading them away from the village. He moved with a natural, unhurried pace, allowing them to believe they had the advantage.
Minutes later, he arrived at a riverside just beyond the settlement, where the ground softened into wet stone and the only sound was the gentle rush of the water.
Kazane exhaled, then turned sharply.
"Come out. Your stealth skills are terrible. Save yourselves the embarrassment."
His voice cut through the still air like a blade.
For a brief moment, there was no response.
Then—
Three figures emerged from the shadows.
A tall young man with spiky orange hair and piercing gray eyes stepped forward first, his stance composed but cautious. To his right, a blue-haired woman with an intense gaze studied him warily. The last of them, a red-haired boy with a more subdued presence, lingered slightly behind the other two.
Kazane recognized them instantly.
Yahiko. Konan. Nagato.
The leaders of the future Akatsuki.
He almost laughed.
"The King of Rice Carriers is here… Who in this world hasn't tested his strength?"
Kazane mused, unable to resist poking fun.
The three Rain shinobi stiffened, clearly caught off guard by his strange remark.
"…???" ×3
A flicker of confusion passed over their faces.
The tense atmosphere faltered for a split second.
Yahiko, regaining composure first, straightened his posture. His sharp eyes locked onto Kazane, analyzing him carefully.
"You must be the feared 'Demon Swordsman of Konoha,' Kazane Hatake," he said.
"What brings you to the Land of Rain?"
There was no hostility in his voice—only caution.
Kazane found it amusing.
At this stage, Yahiko was still idealistic, still playing the leader, though his eyes hadn't yet seen true despair.
Nagato, for now, was merely a silent observer.
And Konan?
She was exactly as he remembered—calm, calculating, her mind already working through multiple possibilities.
But in the end, they were still children.
Nothing like the Akatsuki that would one day challenge the world.
"Sightseeing."
Kazane answered simply.
"I've heard that the Land of Rain is breathtaking. Now that I'm here, I can confirm its beauty."
A blatant lie, but he delivered it without hesitation.
He didn't owe them an explanation.
And honestly?
The Akatsuki at this stage weren't worth the conversation.
If this were the future, if they had already become the ruthless force that would shake the shinobi world, maybe then he would indulge them.
But now?
They were nothing more than misguided dreamers.
Besides, Jiraiya would be disappointed if he killed them too early.
Yahiko frowned.
"You think we're fools?"
His voice hardened.
"Konoha is still at war, yet one of its strongest warriors comes here 'for sightseeing'? Whatever your mission is, I will stop you."
Kazane sighed.
How tiresome.
He stepped forward, and in that instant, the air changed.
His presence—already overwhelming—became suffocating.
Kazane's eyes darkened, a subtle crimson gleam flickering across them.
"I'm only tolerating you because of Jiraiya."
"Not because I can't kill you."
A pulse of pure, unrestrained bloodlust erupted from him.
It crashed down upon Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan like an unseen wave, forcing their bodies into rigid paralysis.
Their breath caught in their throats.
The pressure—unlike anything they had ever felt before—pressed against them from all directions, as if the world itself had turned against them.
Konan's knees nearly buckled.
Nagato clenched his fists, struggling against the invisible force weighing him down.
And Yahiko?
Though shaken, he refused to kneel.
His legs trembled, but he stood tall.
Kazane watched with mild interest.
Still too weak.
Then, without warning—
He moved.
The moment his hand reached for his blade, the world slowed.
With a single, casual swing, a crescent arc of energy tore through the air.
A blur of blue light flashed past Yahiko's face—so close he could feel the heat.
The attack didn't touch him.
But behind him—
A muffled scream.
A Rain ninja, previously hidden beneath the ground, was struck. His body collapsed with a sickening thud, cut clean through.
Yahiko's breath hitched.
He hadn't even known someone else was there.
But Kazane had sensed it.
That realization only deepened the growing fear within him.
The sheer difference in ability.
If Kazane had wanted to kill them—truly kill them—none of them would have stood a chance.
But despite that…
Yahiko straightened his back.
He swallowed the terror bubbling in his throat and met Kazane's gaze head-on.
"The Land of Rain is my home," he declared.
"If you seek to harm it, you will have to step over our corpses."
His voice did not waver.
Even as his body trembled from the residual pressure, his conviction remained unbroken.