All Schemes

To scheme for Karin's mother, they first had to go to the Land of Grass.

Fortunately, the excuse was ready-made—

After the hoarding merchant Ando died, his secret warehouse was naturally taken over by the Akatsuki Organization.

Kind-hearted Yahiko, as always, first thought of using these supplies for charity to recruit new members.

But there was simply too much supplies; even with Yahiko's overflowing saintly compassion, they couldn't use it all at once.

So Shiba Seika took the opportunity to propose selling some of the supplies to neighboring regions to recoup some funds.

The neighboring Land of Grass, in his view, seemed like a good choice.

Most Akatsuki members agreed with this plan.

A few even joked, saying Shiba Seika had finally come up with a good suggestion that wasn't so heinous.

Shiba Seika smiled and said nothing.

Inwardly, he thought: You might be speaking a little too soon...

In this wartime era, taking large quantities of valuable goods abroad wasn't safe. Shiba Seika further proposed that Nagato accompany him.

Yahiko thought it over. Though a vague unease stirred in his heart, he couldn't find a reason to refuse, so he had to agree.

"Alright, I'll leave this to you then, Seika-kun."

But then an unexpected twist occurred that no one had foreseen.

Konan stepped forward on her own initiative. "I'll go this time too. I've just made another batch of Exploding Tags, and I can take them to the Land of Grass to exchange for money."

Yahiko looked at Konan in surprise. "Konan, who'll handle the base's logistics if you leave?"

Konan's tone was firm. "I'll arrange everything before I go."

For a moment, Yahiko was speechless.

He had a faint feeling that somewhere beyond his knowledge, some important change was quietly taking place!

But he couldn't grasp the thread of that change!

It had only been three days since his last conversation with Konan!

What had happened in those three days?

Unfortunately, no one here could step forward to answer Yahiko's doubts.

After a few days of rest, Shiba Seika sealed about one-fifth of the high-value goods from Ando's warehouse into scrolls.

Then, shouldering these scrolls, he set out on the road to the Land of Grass.

The Land of Grass, like the Land of Rain, was a pitiful small country surviving in the cracks between great nations.

Its strategic position wasn't as important as the Land of Rain's, but its plight was no better.

Because they lacked a powerhouse like Hanzo the Salamander, who had once earned the respect of the great ninja villages.

So much so that Kusagakure dared only to hide its village in a very remote place to avoid the chaos of war.

Ironically, the most prosperous town in the Land of Grass sat right on a major trade route not far from Kusagakure, yet they didn't dare to place their village near the town, let alone build it to be equally thriving.

For fear that one day, when Konoha or Iwagakure came to the town for supplies, they might casually beat them up.

It perfectly embodied the abject humility of a small ninja village.

Shiba Seika, Konan, and Nagato traveled for half a day. With a ninja's pace, they reached this prosperous town in the Land of Grass before nightfall.

While selling the goods, Shiba Seika secretly summoned the Akatsuki ninjas accompanying them on this trip.

Most of them were former members of his squad, including Kenjiro, whom he had tricked a few days earlier.

By now, Kenjiro had developed a "what's done is done" attitude. He bluntly asked Shiba Seika, "Captain, what are you planning this time? Where are we going? Who are we killing?"

Over these days, he had figured it out: Leader Yahiko couldn't control the captain at all!

Even if he tried to "resist," he'd end up "falling" anyway, so he might as well just go with the flow from the start and enjoy it.

Shiba Seika waved his hand. "Don't dwell on fighting and killing all day. Our organization's ideal is mutual understanding between people."

Kenjiro squinted, his expression clearly saying: I don't believe a word of that!

Sure enough, the next moment, Shiba Seika changed his tone. "But some people just refuse to understand each other, so we have to give them a little dignity."

With that, he spread a map on the table.

"This is a rough map of Kusagakure. I need you to scout it first, focusing on whether they've recently taken in an outsider in the village.

The target is a woman, around twenty years old, not necessarily a ninja. Her distinguishing feature is red hair, and she might be rather thin.

Once you find the target, confirm how she's being treated in Kusagakure. Don't act yet—come back and wait for my next instructions."

Kenjiro was a bit surprised. This time, the captain hadn't ordered them to kill anyone.

"Is this woman the one we're giving dignity to?" he asked, following Shiba Seika's train of thought.

But Shiba Seika just smiled meaningfully.

"No, no, no, how could it be? She hasn't done anything wrong. On the contrary, she's exactly the kind of person who desperately needs someone to understand her.

It's just a pity that the leader's ideal is so fragile and idealistic. I think you'll soon see with your own eyes during reconnaissance what truly happens to those who need and crave understanding."

Kenjiro was somewhat taken aback. "So who exactly is this woman?"

Shiba Seika wasn't in a hurry to give the answer. Instead, he guided him step by step. "The target's most notable feature is her red hair. Have you seen anyone else with such vivid red hair before?"

Kenjiro instantly thought of someone, and his expression shifted sharply.

Just then, Shiba Seika deliberately added, "Don't tell him yet. That woman might be a very important relative of his. Let's confirm it first before we say anything."

Shiba Seika intentionally blurred "clan member" into "relative," further agitating the restless string in Kenjiro's heart.

Yet Kenjiro still didn't know: all of this was actually a scheme aimed at him!

Shiba Seika was well aware that Kenjiro wasn't fully loyal to him.

The other man still believed more in the leader, Yahiko.

Last time, when Shiba Seika tricked him into killing those rogue ninja, he had exploited his sister as a weakness.

Although Kenjiro had carried out the task that time, he had never truly accepted him in his heart.

Now, faced with such important intelligence, the more Shiba Seika told him not to speak, the more he would take the initiative to leak the information to Nagato.

Because in the hearts of these veteran Akatsuki members, the weight of Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan ultimately outweighed that of Shiba Seika.

Shiba Seika wasn't angry about this.

On the contrary, he was glad that someone like Kenjiro was in the team this time.

Because this way, the news would reach Nagato's ears through an unassailable reason!

It was clearly a truth that Shiba Seika deliberately revealed to Nagato, yet afterward, no one would ever suspect his motives!

Everything would happen naturally.

Now it was up to Kusagakure to cooperate.

On this point, Shiba Seika had no worries at all.

Because from the original story, the crimes that village had committed against Karin and her mother were truly too numerous to record!

There was no need to worry that Nagato would stay calm after seeing them!