Konan, and the Matter of Revenge

Alive? Konan's eyelids were heavy, drooping downwards.

Her head was throbbing, and she was no longer able to think clearly. She only felt physically uncomfortable. She really didn't want to die, otherwise she wouldn't have forced herself to return to Kumogakure.

She lost her Rinnegan, and there were still so many things she hadn't done. She couldn't die; if she died now, how would Nagato and Yahiko fulfill their last wishes?

Driven by her survival instinct, she made a simple decision and, almost without hesitation, opened her mouth and made a weak sound.

"Um."

"Then become Evil God follower, that's the only way to save your life." Naruto didn't waste any time and went straight to the point, initiating the contract process.

Konan vaguely sensed a glimmer of hope, but had little ability to resist. Thanks entirely to the life-sustaining medicine that gave her basic vitality, the contract was successfully completed.

The Evil God, being immortal, immediately nourished the dying Konan. Its abundant life force poured into her body like water, almost filling it completely.

This feeling of reverse aging was unpleasant; Konan felt incredibly suffocated. It was as if something was stuck in her throat, and a million ants were crawling inside her.

She quickly regained consciousness, pulling herself out of the near-death state. Panting heavily and covered in sweat, her mind a jumbled mess, she looked up at Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto? You saved me?"

"I guess so. Strictly speaking, you saved yourself." Naruto yawned and said listlessly, "It was your own choice. Don't blame me when you're sober."

"What, a choice?" Her memory hadn't quite caught up yet.

Naruto didn't speak, letting her recall it slowly on her own. Three minutes of silence followed, Konan's expression grew increasingly stiff, clearly realizing what she had done.

He signed Evil God Contract, which allows him to be saved even when he is on the verge of death, but the price is that he will be driven by Naruto.

From the moment she came back to life, her life was no longer entirely her own. At least half of Konan's life belonged to Naruto, and he had the right to use it.

After calming down, Konan accepted reality.

"I lost the Rinnegan," she said.

"So what if I lost them? It's no big deal," Naruto said casually, not worried at all, thinking to himself that the eyes weren't his anyway.

"Those are Nagato's eyes, and I want them back," Konan said.

"I can't get it back." Naruto glanced at her. "Since you've already signed the Evil God Contract, there's no need for me to hide it from you anymore. The Rinnegan didn't Nagato at all."

"What?"

"The Rinnegan belongs to Uchiha Madara. The person you were in contact with before was not Uchiha Madara himself, but a puppet that Uchiha Madara cultivated before his death."

"Uchiha Madara is dead?"

"Of course he died. Even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't escape returning to the Pure Land, and the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju died. What makes Uchiha Madara think he can live forever?"

"Who is that Uchiha Madara?"

"Obito Uchiha, an extreme madman," Naruto said. "Sixth Hokage Kakashi's former teammate and was recruited by Uchiha Madara."

"Obito around and set a trap for you, forcing Yahiko to his death and luring Nagato to awaken the Rinnegan. Those eyes were planted in Nagato by Uchiha Madara, so..."

"This is just a setup; you don't need to worry too much about who owns the Rinnegan."

"But the Rinnegan is dangerous." Konan looked at Naruto. "It's not a good thing to let the Rinnegan roam freely, especially since it has already been obtained by Obito Uchiha."

"You got it, so don't even think about Rinnegan anymore." He walked to the window, looked at the thunder-filled sky over Amegakure, and said to her with his back to her.

"The Rinnegan was never a good thing to begin with; its best fate should be complete destruction."

Konan was taken aback by Konan's words, unsure of his Naruto intentions. But given the current situation, why would he return the favor?

"How do you know so many secrets?" she asked.

"Secret?" Naruto turned to look at her. "You call this information a secret? If you don't want people to know, then don't do it in the first place. There are no secrets that stay hidden forever."

"Just as you were able to investigate Obito Uchiha based on the slightest clues, I can naturally find out even more. It's just that my abilities are only slightly stronger than yours."

Boom!

Thunder and rain fell, and torrential downpours, weighing millions of tons, crashed directly onto Amegakure without any cushioning. Watching the torrential rain, Konan remained silent.

If only she could have found out the truth sooner, if only she could have done it faster... But there are no "ifs" in this world.

"Nagato and the others are all dead. I..." Konan's eyes dimmed. "Since I can't get back the Rinnegan, what's the point of me coming back to life?"

"It's not too late now. Don't you want revenge?" Naruto looked at Konan, his eyes gleaming coldly. The look in his eyes when he looked up contained both restraint and ruthlessness.

"Revenge?"

"The culprits are Obito Uchiha and the people behind him. You've already died once, why don't you take revenge on them?" he said.

"How exactly do I do it?" she asked.

"I have a plan. All you have to do is cooperate with me," Naruto said.

Konohagakure.

Konan walked out from the other side of the Gate of Hades, stepping into the living room. She looked around and realized that it didn't seem to be Amegakure outside the window.

Where is this?

"My home."

"Konohagakure?" Konan's face showed a look of surprise. "We were just in Amegakure, right?"

"Hmm, just a minor Ninjutsu." Naruto went into the kitchen to get some water.

Konohagakure and Amegakure are thousands of miles apart, yet they were able to travel between them in an instant using just a door? That's too unfair! You call that Ninjutsu?

"Have some tea, pour yourself." Naruto placed the hot tea on the table.

Konan poured herself a cup of tea and then poured one for Naruto. Holding the hot tea, she seemed lost in thought. Fate is always so unpredictable; one second she was on the verge of death, and the next she was...

She couldn't define her relationship with Naruto; she wasn't exactly a slave, but rather subordinate, though not free. Rules bound her, preventing her from doing anything detrimental to Naruto.

"What should I do?" she asked, looking up.

"Wait."

"Wait for what?"

"You'll stay here until Obito Uchiha," Naruto said, standing up and pointing towards the bathroom. "This house is usually quiet and no one comes here."

"That's the bathroom over there, you've seen it before. The kitchen is over there, and the balcony is over there too."

"Oh, by the way, I also have a dog, which is a little different from ordinary dogs. It's not here right now, but I'll introduce it to you when it gets back."

It seemed she really was going to have to stay here. But what about Amegakure? She felt a little uneasy, but it was just a fleeting thought. She thought to herself that she was already dead.

If he hadn't saved me, I'd be a corpse by now. There's no need to worry so much about the dead; if things aren't done well here, there's no chance of returning to Amegakure.

As she expected, Naruto needed her to help him set up a trap for Obito. After that, he wouldn't restrict Konan's freedom.

Whether she wants to stay in Amegakure or somewhere else, he will not interfere.

Night falls.

Nine-Tails climbed back from the balcony and, as usual, tiptoed to open the balcony's French doors. Just as it opened, it suddenly heard a noise from the bathroom.

It wondered to itself why the brat was taking a bath so late. Isn't it normal for people to take a bath and lie down right after eating? Where did he go again, taking a bath now?

With a splash, a graceful figure emerged from the bathroom. Konan, expressionless, happened to see Nine-Tails) walking towards the living room and was momentarily stunned.

Does this dog walk standing up?

For a moment, she almost doubted her eyes; it was the first time she had ever seen a dog walking upright. Summoning Beast? Even Ninja Hound didn't do that.

The Nine-Tails was also stunned, standing there staring blankly at Konan. The next second, it felt a surge of contempt for Naruto. That damned scum, yet another one?

For some reason, Konan was taken aback as she read a complex and unspoken meaning in Nine-Tails's eyes.

Nine-Tails, unsure of Konan's identity, hesitated whether to speak. Suddenly, they heard the door to Naruto's room click open, and the three of them stared at each other in disbelief.

"Kurama, what are you doing?" he asked.

Upon hearing this, Nine-Tails immediately realized that there was no need to pretend to be deaf and dumb, so it spoke directly.

"Just got back, kid, what's going on with you this time?"

"Friend," Naruto introduced, "This is Konan. You don't need to worry about her; she won't affect you. Just go about your business. She'll be staying at home for a while."

"Oh." Nine-Tails replied indifferently.

Then, Naruto looked at Konan and introduced the Nine-Tails to her.

"This is the Kurama. It's not usually home, only coming back to sleep at night. It's normal for it to not come back for a few days at a time. You don't need to lock the French doors on the balcony; it comes home from there."

"Okay." Konan was a little stunned; the amount of information was overwhelming.

Nine-Tails glanced at Konan, nodded listlessly, and without even taking the wine, swaggered back to her room with the Talking Tom Cat gait.

In the living room, Konan blinked and walked over to Naruto, asking him in a low voice.

"Is that the Nine-Tails?"

"Yes." He yawned; he had just fallen asleep in his room.

Konan was stunned; her mind went completely blank, and her face turned deathly pale. She stared intently at Naruto, seemingly trying to determine if he was joking.

"Nine-Tails?"

"What's wrong?"

"The Nine-Tails isn't... how could it have turned into this?" Konan was utterly shocked. In her memory, Tailed Beast didn't look like this.

Is that the Nine-Tails?

With its round head and round belly, she'd believe it if you told her it was Pigsy. Is this some kind of Nine-Tails fox? Are you kidding me? It has a Tom Holland vibe, like a...

"I've said it before, the Nine-Tails is no longer inside me." Naruto shrugged helplessly. "Unfortunately, no one believes me, even though it's the truth."

"???" Konan was dumbfounded. "This is indeed hard to believe, after all, there has never been Jinchuriki actively and successfully separated from the Tailed Beast."

"Under normal circumstances, once Jinchuriki is separated from the Tailed Beast, he will die immediately."

"Forget it, let's not talk about that. After all, it doesn't matter whether anyone believes it or not now." Naruto waved his hand, his gaze sweeping over Konan before he noticed that she had just finished taking a shower.

She was loosely wrapped in a white bath towel, her purple eyeshadow had been washed off, and her wet purple hair hung down her back. Her eyes were somewhat indifferent, and she had a lip piercing on her lower lip.

The bath towel clearly outlined her figure, revealing her beautiful curves. Konan seemed to have no guard against Naruto at all; if she loosened her grip any further, the towel would almost fall off.

"You should rest first, we can talk another day." He waved his hand. "The hairdryer is in the corner of the sofa, find it yourself, call me if you need anything."

After saying that, Naruto went straight back to his room to rest.

The bedroom door clicked shut, leaving only the bathroom light in the living room. Konan stood in the light emanating from the bathroom, looking somewhat lost.

A few strands of hair fell and clung to her face, the purple ends still damp with water droplets.

Naruto's casual attitude relieved her; she had been prepared to be a slave. Having lived through a time of war, she naturally knew the role of slaves.

But now, she's more like a friend from afar.

Konan glanced down at her hands and suddenly realized she was being far too tense. There was no need to keep struggling; the plans had already failed.

At first, she didn't expect Naruto to refuse the Rinnegan, after all, it was a powerful force that almost no one could easily refuse.

But Naruto refused, his attitude very casual, as if he were rejecting an advertising flyer.

When she was beaten to a pulp and on the verge of death by Obito Uchiha, he miraculously appeared in front of her and pulled her back from the brink of death.

She signed some kind of contract, and now she's alive but also lost. After a series of failures, Konan herself doesn't know what she can do.

He then extended an olive branch of revenge to her, telling her that she should take revenge.

But when she raised her head again, he told her to wait. She, a person from Amegakure, was being asked to wait in Konohagakure? Wait for what? Obito Uchiha to deliver himself to her doorstep?

She wanted to go home, but it was too late.

Konan clenched her fist tightly, then suddenly released it, and after a moment of silence, let out a silent sigh.

The only sound in the living room was the ticking of the clock. Outside the window, all was quiet; the night was as dark as ink and as still as water, and there seemed to be no neighbors around.

The next day.

"Aren't you going out for a walk?" he suddenly turned to look at Konan, who was sitting blankly in the living room, and asked before leaving.

"I don't have Konohagakure identity, and showing my face in public will only cause trouble," Konan shook her head.

"Wandering around shouldn't be a problem, there aren't any Anbu around here." He thought for a few seconds, "Fine, you can do whatever you want, go out if you want."

Konan was completely bewildered by Naruto's irresponsible, hands-off approach to arrangements.

What do you mean by "do it your own way"? Does not having legal status mean you can go out or not? Aren't you afraid of causing trouble for him? Are you that careless?

Naruto had already left; he hadn't really thought that much about it. After all, it was just Konan; going out for a stroll wouldn't hurt. Nagato was dead; Amegakure was his now.

In the village, Kakashi can give him special privileges; in the Anbu, Uzuki Yugao can give him preferential treatment. What's the point of being Konoha's crown prince? What's there to be afraid of?