A Newly Promoted Chunin of the Land of Rain, Blade Light Like a Dragon, Flat Strike Like a Hammer

Konohagakure and the Land of Rain have a long-standing feud; basically, anyone with a modicum of common sense wouldn't assign a mission to Konohagakure. However, Five Great Nations and the Land of Rain have their own grudges.

"So, what's wrong with you guys?"

"The request is real, but we didn't expect it to be you. We thought it would be Kakashi," Nagato said in a hoarse voice, sitting on the iron seat.

"Kakashi? The future Sixth Hokage won't leave the village unless there's a reason, so I'll take over now," Naruto replied readily, even though that wasn't actually the case.

He would never take over Kakashi's job; he works year-round without a break, he'd rather stay home and lie around. But for now, let's use Kakashi's name to intimidate these two simpletons.

"So, what exactly is this mission all about?" He looked at Konan and Nagato.

It's said that whitewashing weakens one's resolve, although these two can hardly be considered whitewashed. After all, Nagato was defeated by Jiraiya had a chance to collect the Tailed Beast, and he didn't even have time to carry rice across the sky above Konohagakure.

The most serious charge is illegally establishing a rogue ninja organization; Naruto has no say in any past crimes. He's not a paragon of justice either; how Nagato and Konan are dealt with is entirely up to Jiraiya.

"There's really no other way, Nagato's body can no longer use the Rinnegan," Konan said. "But recently there have been too many ninjas invading the village, and various forces are constantly harassing us."

"So? You want Kakashi to come and mediate?" Naruto looked strange. Sure enough, the character who was redeemed is three times weaker. The character who could destroy the world when he was evil has now been redeemed and he is so weak.

"Yes, mediation." Konan nodded. "We can use unconventional methods, but that will inevitably drag the Land of Rain into the Uzumaki of war."

"We agree with Jiraiya's ideals and are unwilling to sacrifice the village. We are even less willing to let the enemy behind us succeed. Their goal is to weaken Nagato's body and seize the Rinnegan."

"Did you come here specifically to retrieve the Rinnegan?" Naruto asked.

"Mm." Konan nodded.

Naruto remained silent, carefully examining Konan and Nagato. Nagato appeared weak, but his physical constitution seemed to be slowly improving.

He still prefers people who speak the truth; they're easier to get along with.

Black Sakura always liked to keep things from him at crucial moments, and after he got angry and scolded her once, she became much more restrained. This could be considered a form of discipline, but it was necessary.

Keeping things hidden once or twice is a minor issue, but doing it all the time is a problem. People who are indecisive and wishy-washy are the most annoying; they need to be disciplined and corrected.

"As long as those eyes are still on him, the spying won't stop." He paused after saying that, "And besides, I have no power to mediate."

"Didn't you say you were going to take over Kakashi's job?" Konan was taken aback for a moment.

"Ah, I wanted to answer, but I couldn't."

Konan: "???"

Kakashi's trap failed; a fake Kakashi appeared instead. Now, there's nothing we can do but help investigate and expel the outsider, as we lack the ability to mediate.

"The commission for this mission must be pretty high, right? I heard it's A-rank Mission?" Naruto thought for a moment, "I'm just Chunin, I won't get much commission."

Konan: "."

Nagato: "."

Suddenly, the two finally understood the subtle tone Jiraiya had used when casually mentioning Naruto. He had said he had a disciple whose personality was somewhat...

"Never mind then, we'll have to think of another way." Konan's face was expressionless as she looked at Naruto. "I'll handle repelling the intruders. I'll give you the receipt as proof; go back and report."

"That won't do. Once you're here, you have to finish your mission before you leave." Naruto resolutely refused. "Mediation isn't out of the question, but they won't listen to me."

"What's the difference?" Konan asked.

On the top floor of the tallest building in the Land of Rain.

Nagato sat silently on the Iron Throne, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path behind him already retracted. Konan stood to the side, a white paper rose pinned to her hair.

After the rain, golden light refracted through the windows, illuminating half of the top floor of the palace.

"Although I am of low status and my voice carries little weight, and the powers of the other major nations may not necessarily listen to me, I still have to carry out my mission. Even if I can't mediate, I can still exert my influence."

"Deterrence?" Konan glanced at Naruto from head to toe, seemingly considering the feasibility of the suggestion.

"No, no, it wasn't me." Naruto could tell at a glance that Konan had misunderstood. He thought to himself that he wasn't some overpowered genius who would lose luck by showing off.

During the last mission in Amegakure, he didn't really lift a finger, Jiraiya out to draw fire. He told everyone he met that Jiraiya as sharp as ever, single-handedly defeating Pain.

And that's exactly what happened; he was just a bystander. His only use was probably providing negligible intelligence support and observing from the sidelines.

Such a low profile is not simply motivated by a desire to avoid fame, although that is one consideration, after all, people are afraid of becoming famous, just as pigs are afraid of getting fat.

But the deeper consideration was the fear of exposing the smaller Uchiha.

After impersonating Sasuke Uchiha and doing so many inhuman things, I sometimes felt a chill run down my spine. Fortunately, I would then think that the merit wouldn't be deducted from my own, and I would immediately feel relieved.

It was precisely because she wanted to sever all ties to avoid getting involved in any major karmic consequences and causing a butterfly effect that would ruin her pure love plan.

"What I mean is just to cure Nagato," he said.

This time, neither Konan Nagato uttered a sound, but both turned and stared at Naruto for a few seconds. A hint of surprise flashed in their eyes, as if they found the words somewhat absurd.

The Land of Rain is rainy all year round; it rains for almost 300 out of 365 days. The number of days with clear skies is very limited; for example, it was sunny for less than half a day before the rain started again.

In this nation forged of steel, the High Tower possesses absolute majesty.

Night falls.

The invading enemy looked up at the blurry, dilapidated buildings in the rain, and could easily spot the towering, brightly lit steel High Tower in the distance.

A dilapidated street in the village, where few people walk even during the day, is one of the only roads leading into Amegakure.

At this moment, the doors and windows of the street were tightly closed, and there was no one on the road. Apart from the sound of rain, nothing could be heard.

A chilling atmosphere enveloped the street, so much so that any intruder who stepped inside felt their hair stand on end and stopped almost immediately.

Those eyes hidden in the night peeked out from the rain, and a dozen ninjas appeared in a flash of lightning. Suddenly, a white figure appeared in the rain, with a pair of huge wings on its back.

Chunin, wearing a Land of Rain Forehead Protector, was mixed in with a group of Naruto from the Land of Rain. He was completely covered by a raincoat, and his face was not visible under the cover of night.

He was Chunin to begin with, so there was no need for him to pretend; his Chunin aura was completely natural.

Konan remained expressionless, not wanting to look at Naruto even once, her eyelids twitching. She thought to Jiraiya- sensei was right after all; no one knows a disciple better than their master.

This guy really has no shame; he just put on the Land of Rain Forehead Protector without a second thought. He even hid among Chunin, secretly plotting something, waiting to ambush the other side.

Once the opposing side determined that there were only about ten people on the other side, and looking at Konan hovering in mid-air, they finalized their battle plan in just a few seconds.

Accompanied by the sound of more than a dozen tactical boots Water Walking, the ten invaders drew their swords and pulled out their kunai.

"Those people are carrying long swords; they're probably from the Land of Grass. They're always dishonest. Someone paid them a lot of money to come here; these people are probably all being paid to risk their lives."

Konan didn't call out names; she seemed to be explaining to the dozen or so Chunin, or perhaps speaking to someone within them. She slightly raised her finger, pointing towards the group of intruders.

"After that period, almost every day there were invaders trying to enter Amegakure from all directions. This is the true face of great powers; they only want their own selfish desires and never want peace in the Land of Rain."

The men being pointed at were on high alert, their apprehension towards Konan, who was hovering in the rainy night, growing even stronger. This apprehension even made them want to take action prematurely, rather than continue the confrontation.

They were indeed ninjas from the Land of Grass. The Land of Grass has always been unprincipled; they just do things for money.

No one responded to Konan, but Konan didn't mind.

"Kill them, and another wave will come in a few days. It's endless. They have plenty of people, even sending out some nobody."

"But the Land of Rain has limited manpower, and the border still needs to be guarded. So even when dealing with these rats, we have to get involved ourselves."

"Rat? We're not rats, just ninjas who took the money to be killed," the leader of the invading group roared. "Kill them, take their Forehead Protector, and go back for the other money!"

"Look. They are always greedy, even rats are disgusting." Konan laughed self-deprecatingly, her body slowly turning into paper.

"Those rats from the Land of Grass are really asking for death."

Naruto, mingling among Chunin Land of Rain, let out a slow sigh and silently drew an ordinary Uchigatana from his Sealing Space. With a hum, the Uchigatana emitted a buzzing sound, shaking off the raindrops that had fallen onto it.

The chilling atmosphere reached its peak in that instant, as countless pieces of paper scattered across the sky, piercing through the wind and rain towards the invaders from the Land of Grass. The Uchigatana hummed, their flashes like thunder.

An even stronger killing intent erupted the moment the invaders clashed Chunin longswords with the leading Chunin from the Land of Rain. The other invaders seemed to sense something and instinctively retreated.

But at such close range, even a god would find it difficult to avoid.

The sound of a blade slicing through flesh shattered the silence of the street, startling the approaching Chunin the Land of Rain. They watched Chunin the unfamiliar Land of Rain, his blade flashing like a dragon, swept through the seven or eight intruders with unrestrained power.

The pattering rain was completely shut out; the blade flashed, severing heads without stopping the rain. Large drops of rain were slapped away by the blade, mingling with the splattering blood.

With a snap, they saw the Chunin a raincoat brutally slam the blade of his sword into the chest of the last intruder, the effect as heavy as a hammer blow.

I still owe one chapter from yesterday.