Nagato Uzumaki returned to Amegakure with Konan as rain fell from the sky.
The rain in the Land of Rain never stopped. Fine, dense threads of rain fell from above, pattering against the iron-gray buildings, the waterlogged ground, and the two of them. Konan opened a paper umbrella and held it over Nagato. A white flower was painted on its surface.
Nagato sat in a paper chair, silently gazing out the window. He had barely spoken the entire way, and Konan hadn't asked any questions. She knew he was thinking about something—something very important.
They passed through Amegakure's underground passages and along a long corridor before reaching a vast chamber at the very back.
The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path stood there.
It was an enormous wooden statue, taller than any building. Its eyes were shut, and its mouth hung open as if it were silently screaming. Strange patterns covered its surface, resembling both bark and veins. Ten massive pillars extended from its back, their jagged ends looking as if something had been chopped off.
The statue radiated an ancient, oppressive heaviness. Standing before it made people feel small and afraid without realizing it.
Nagato stopped in front of the statue and looked up at it.
"Nagato." Konan watched his silent back and asked softly, with concern, "What have you been thinking about this whole time?"
Nagato was silent for a moment, then said, "I've been thinking about what that Uchiha said."
"The Method of National Fortune?"
"Yes." Nagato nodded. "He said we can use spirits to guard a nation's fortune. The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path... should count as a spirit, too."
Konan looked at him but didn't immediately reply.
"I know what you're thinking." Nagato's voice was calm. "The Ten-Tails' body is sealed inside the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. It's too dangerous. But that's exactly why it's powerful enough. A weak spirit can't guard a nation's fortune."
"Have you really made up your mind?" Konan knew Nagato's nature. He rarely made decisions, but once he did, he seldom changed them.
"I made up my mind along the way." Nagato extended a hand, his gaunt fingers pointing at the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. "After Yahiko died, I thought all I had left in this life was pain and hatred. I used the Rinnegan to control this statue and create the Six Paths of Pain, hoping to make the world feel pain."
He paused.
"But what that Uchiha said made me think for a long time. Maybe... there's another way. Instead of using pain to stop pain, we can use strength to create peace, like the Sage of Six Paths and Senju Hashirama once did."
"Do you believe him?"
"I don't." Nagato shook his head, then nodded. "But the Method of National Fortune he gave me is real. I can feel it."
Konan said nothing more. She watched Nagato lower his hand and gaze at the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. The colossal statue stood silent in the dim light, like a sleeping monster.
"Let it become our nation's guardian spirit." Nagato made his final decision. "Once I've mastered the Method of National Fortune, I'll find a way to bring Yahiko back."
At Yahiko's name, Nagato's voice trembled slightly. Konan's eyes reddened, but she didn't cry. She simply went to his side and gently rested a hand on his shoulder.
"I'll stay with you," she said. "Whatever happens."
Nagato didn't turn around. The corners of his mouth lifted into a faint smile. He closed his eyes and began recalling the contents of the runes Naro had given him—the cultivation method for the Method of National Fortune. He hadn't officially begun cultivating yet, but he needed to put the Akatsuki's affairs in order first so he could focus on secluding himself.
"Konan, how are things with Orochimaru?"
Konan put away her paper umbrella and pulled a scroll from her sleeve. "The people below reported that he returned to the base, took some experimental equipment and research materials, and then left. He didn't tell anyone where he was going or when he'd be back."
"He won't be coming back," Nagato said.
"He won't?"
"Mm." Nagato's voice was calm. "Orochimaru has never been willing to serve under anyone. He joined the Akatsuki because it had things that interested him—the Rinnegan, the Sharingan, forbidden techniques. Now he's obtained the secret of immortality in the Land of Whirlpools. He has no interest in the Akatsuki anymore."
"Then what should we do? Our rules say we have to hunt down deserters."
"We won't." Nagato opened his eyes. "Now isn't the time to make enemies."
Konan looked at him in surprise. The old Nagato would never have let something like this go. The Akatsuki had rules: once you joined, you couldn't leave. Leaving meant desertion, and deserters had to be hunted down. It was for the organization's safety and to protect its secrets.
But now Nagato was saying, "We won't hunt him."
"I still don't know what the Method of National Fortune can really do," Nagato explained. "Making enemies rashly won't help me build up my strength. Orochimaru betrayed the organization, but we aren't his target. He won't come looking for trouble with the Akatsuki, and there's no need for us to provoke him."
"What if he leaks information about the Akatsuki?"
"He won't." Nagato dismissed Konan's concern. "Orochimaru is a clever man. He knows that leaking the Akatsuki's information won't benefit him at all. He isn't the type to blab."
Konan nodded, then asked another question. "What if someone asks about him? Kakuzu, Uchiha Madara, and the others?"
"Stall them." Nagato answered directly. "Tell them Orochimaru is conducting research elsewhere and won't be back for a while. If they press for more, say that his whereabouts are classified and that it's an organizational decision. When we can't stall any longer, we'll think of something else."
"I understand." This was the first time Konan had heard Nagato use this kind of approach, and she found it a little hard to get used to. She asked anxiously, "Nagato, you've changed a little. Is there something in that Method of National Fortune...?"
"There's nothing wrong with Uchiha Naro's Method of National Fortune. It's just..." Nagato knew what worried Konan. She was afraid he'd been affected by some kind of genjutsu. "It doesn't only contain a cultivation method. There's other knowledge in it, things we've never encountered before."
"What kind of knowledge? Senjutsu?"
"Methods of governing a country and managing people. Compared to those methods, the way we used to do things was far too crude. For our future, we need to make some changes." Nagato considered it, then continued, "The first thing is this: organize the channels the organization has with the Bounty Exchange. I need our members to take on more missions."
"Bounty Exchange missions?" Konan asked, puzzled. "The rewards aren't much, and they're dangerous."
"The amount doesn't matter. What matters is having a source of income," Nagato said. "We need money to buy supplies."
"Supplies? What kind of supplies?"
"Food, medicine, clothes, building materials... anything," Nagato said. "Think about how the common people in the Land of Rain live. There's fighting every day, people dying every day, and they can't even get a decent meal. If we want to change the Land of Rain, the power of shinobi alone won't be enough. We'll need money, food, and the people's support."
Konan was taken aback again. She'd never heard Nagato say anything like that before. In the past, Nagato had cared about just one thing: using the Tailed Beasts to create a massive jutsu that would make the whole world feel pain and thus bring about peace. What ordinary people ate and wore wasn't something he would have considered.
But now...
"Nagato, you really have changed," Konan said softly.
"I haven't changed." Nagato turned his head. His Rinnegan glowed faintly in the dim light. "I've finally understood. When Yahiko was alive, he wanted to change the Land of Rain peacefully. He took in orphans and helped ordinary people. He wanted everyone to be able to live. I spent more than ten years becoming the very person Yahiko least wanted me to become."
He paused. "Now I want to try Yahiko's way."
Konan's tears finally fell. She turned her head, wiped them away with her sleeve, and took a deep breath. "All right. I'll make the arrangements."
"Also, call the members of the organization. I want a meeting." Nagato looked back at the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
"When?"
"Tomorrow."
The next day, the atmosphere at the Akatsuki base was more serious than usual.
The base's main hall wasn't very large, but it could hold dozens of people. Several oil lamps hung on the walls, their flames flickering in the wind and stretching everyone's shadows long and short. A rectangular stone table stood in the middle of the hall, with several people sitting or standing around it. Each wore a cloak embroidered with a red cloud.
Kakuzu leaned against a corner, counting money without even looking up. Hidan sat beside him, idly fiddling with his red Triple-Bladed Scythe and muttering something about his religion.
Sasori sat at one end of the stone table, with Hiruko beside him. His face was hidden behind the puppet's mask, making his expression impossible to see. Deidara stood behind him with his hands in his pockets, chewing on something and occasionally saying, "Yeah."
Kisame Hoshigaki leaned against the doorframe, Samehada strapped to his back like a sleeping fish. He narrowed his eyes and watched the rain pattering outside the hall.
A few of the Akatsuki's outer members stood farther away, not daring to approach the stone table.
Konan stood at the other end of it, her expressionless face turned toward the others.
Nagato wasn't there—or rather, his Pain Deva Path was. The orange-haired man, black receivers embedded in his face, stood behind the seat at the head of the table with his arms folded and eyes shut, as if deep in thought.
He was Nagato's "spokesperson."
"Everyone's here." The Deva Path opened his eyes, his voice devoid of emotion. "Let's begin."
Hidan stopped fiddling with his scythe and looked up. "Well, this is a rare sight. You're all so serious. With all this time, I could've offered Lord Jashin plenty of sacrifices."
"Cut the crap. Say what you have to say." Kakuzu kept counting money without looking up.
"I called everyone here today because there are some things we need to arrange." The Deva Path glanced at him, pulled a scroll from his sleeve, and placed it on the stone table. "Starting today, the organization's mission priorities will change. We need to raise funds."
Deidara said, "Yeah," then asked, "Raise funds? What for? Didn't we used to just take on bounty missions?"
"That was then. This is now." The Deva Path's tone was cold. "The organization's plans are moving forward, and we need a great deal of money and supplies. I can't disclose the exact purpose for now, but you only need to know this: the more money, the better."
Sasori's voice came from behind the puppet's mask, hoarse and low. "So you're telling us to work more?"
"You could put it that way. Take on more Bounty Exchange missions. The difficulty doesn't matter; the higher the reward, the better. After completing a mission, you'll hand over seventy percent of the reward to the organization. Konan will manage it."
Several of them frowned at once.
"Seventy percent?" Hidan's voice rose an octave. "Why? We used to split it fifty-fifty. The organization took half, and we kept half."
"That was then," the Deva Path repeated. "From now on, you'll hand over seventy percent."
Kakuzu finally stopped counting and looked up at the Deva Path. "What about our expenses?"
"The organization will allocate part of the funds to you," the Deva Path said. "If you need anything, ask Konan, and she'll arrange it."
The corner of Kakuzu's mouth twitched. Money was what he cared about most in the world. Having to hand over so much of what he earned was almost worse than being killed, but he didn't blow up. He merely snorted.
Hidan looked as if he wanted to say more, but Kakuzu tugged at his sleeve, and he fell silent.
Deidara shrugged. "Fine. I don't have much to spend money on anyway."
Sasori said nothing, but the look behind the puppet's mask was unpleasant.
"Don't worry. I'm not just going to make you work this hard without compensation. I'll find opportunities to make it up to each of you individually later." The Deva Path looked around. Seeing that no one else spoke, he placated them, then put away the scroll. "There's one more thing. Orochimaru is conducting research elsewhere and won't be back for a while. Don't wait for him. Arrange your own missions."
He said it casually, but everyone heard the unspoken meaning: Orochimaru wouldn't be around for some time, and no one knew when he would return.
Hidan muttered under his breath, "Did that guy run off?"
Kakuzu shot him a glance but said nothing.
The Deva Path ignored Hidan's muttering and continued, "Konan will notify you of the specific mission assignments. That's all. Meeting adjourned."
He turned around, closed his eyes, and said no more.
The others began leaving the hall.
Kakuzu and Hidan walked ahead. As they went, Kakuzu said quietly, "Orochimaru ran off."
Hidan was taken aback. "How do you know?"
"I'm guessing." Kakuzu's voice was cold. "Nagato didn't sound like he was 'conducting research elsewhere.' He sounded like Orochimaru 'won't be coming back.'"
"Then why aren't we hunting him down?"
"It's none of our business." Kakuzu pushed open the base's main door. Raindrops drifted inside and landed on his shoulder. "We earn our money. Don't ask about anything else."
The two of them disappeared into the rain.
Sasori and Deidara walked behind them. Deidara held a hand over his head to shield himself from the rain and complained about the lousy weather in the Land of Rain.
"Big brother Sasori, do you think Orochimaru really ran off?"
"He did." Sasori's voice came from behind the mask. "He's not the type to stay in one place."
"Then why didn't Nagato issue an order to hunt him down?"
Sasori was silent for a moment, then said, "Maybe he doesn't have time to deal with him."
Deidara said, "Yeah," and didn't ask anything else.
Kisame walked behind Uchiha Itachi. Samehada shifted slightly on his back. Watching the dark sky outside, he murmured to himself, "Interesting."
Only the Deva Path and Konan remained in the hall. The Deva Path opened his eyes, the ripples in his Rinnegan slowly turning.
"Nagato, Kakuzu may have already guessed what happened to Orochimaru."
"I know." The Deva Path said, "Kakuzu's a clever man. Let him guess. As long as we don't admit anything, he won't make trouble over it."
Konan nodded to show she understood.
The Deva Path turned and walked toward the back of the hall. He moved slowly, every step steady. When he reached an iron door at the end of the corridor, he stopped. Konan followed behind him and pushed it open.
Beyond the door was a small secret room. It had no windows, only an oil lamp that cast a yellow light over the walls. In the center of the room, a thin red-haired man sat in a wheelchair, his eyes closed and his breathing steady.
The Deva Path stepped aside, closed his eyes, and said nothing more. He was one of the Six Paths of Pain controlled by Nagato, only a corpse without a will of his own. But his presence let Nagato control the entire organization without having to appear in person.
Konan went to Nagato's side and crouched down to look at his face. "Are you really going to seclude yourself and cultivate that Method of National Fortune?"
"Mm." Nagato knew Konan was still worried, but much of the Method of National Fortune could only be understood intuitively and couldn't be explained clearly to her. All he could do was reassure her. "I need time to absorb the Method of National Fortune Naro gave me. I'll leave the organization's affairs to you for now."
"I will." Concern and worry filled Konan's voice. "But while you're secluded, if Uchiha Madara comes looking for you..."
"He'll definitely come." Nagato confirmed her suspicion. "He'll come and ask why I suddenly changed the plan."
"What should I tell him?"
Nagato thought for a moment, then said, "Tell him we're preparing to collect the Tailed Beasts. Raising funds and buying supplies will make capturing the Tailed Beasts easier in the future. That reason should be enough to fool him."
"What if he presses you?"
"He won't." Nagato shook his head. "Uchiha Madara is a man with a deep mind. He won't confront me directly. He'll just watch from the shadows."
Konan was silent for a moment, then stood up. "Then focus on your cultivation. I'll handle things outside."
Nagato looked at her. A soft light shone in his Rinnegan. "Konan, thank you for all your hard work."
Konan shook her head without saying anything. She left the secret room and gently shut the iron door behind her.
Nagato sat alone in the secret room and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and began recalling the contents of the runes Naro had given him—the cultivation method for the Method of National Fortune. The knowledge in the runes seemed engraved in his mind, every line and every symbol clear as day.
"...The way of fortune lies in gathering and dispersing. Gather, and life is born; disperse, and all perishes. A nation's fortune lies in the hearts of its people. Where their hearts turn, fortune follows..."
Nagato silently recited the words over and over.
He needed to understand the contents before he could officially begin cultivating. It wouldn't happen in a day or two. It might take months, or even longer.
But he wasn't in a hurry. He had plenty of time. The secret room was quiet, with only the oil lamp's flame occasionally crackling. Nagato sat in his wheelchair, his gaunt fingers resting on the armrests. His breathing gradually grew steady and deep.
He entered a meditative state.
Outside the secret room, Uchiha Obito stood in the shadows of the corridor. He wore a spiral-patterned mask that revealed only his right eye. In the darkness, that eye glowed red as the three tomoe of his Sharingan slowly spun.
He looked toward the secret room and remained silent for a long time.
He hadn't attended the meeting earlier. As the Akatsuki's "mastermind," he rarely appeared in public. Most of the time, he relied on White Zetsu to gather information.
But today's meeting had been far too strange.
Nagato had suddenly called a meeting, suddenly announced a change in the organization's mission priorities, and suddenly said they needed to raise money and supplies... It had all happened too abruptly.
Obito stepped out of the shadows and approached the iron door. He thought about going inside, but halfway through reaching for it, he stopped.
Nagato was in seclusion. He wouldn't see him.
Obito withdrew his hand and turned to leave. He walked down the corridor, and White Zetsu emerged from the wall to follow him.
"Obito, Nagato seems to have changed." White Zetsu's voice was soft, tinged with curiosity.
"I know."
"Aren't you going to ask him why?"
"He wouldn't tell me even if I asked." Obito walked out of the base. Raindrops fell on him, but it was as though something kept them away; not a single drop touched his clothes. He raised his head and gazed at the gray sky.
"Nagato..." he murmured. "You'd better not get in my way."
Then his body began to warp, twisting and shrinking like a vortex until he vanished into thin air. White Zetsu disappeared with him.
"Nagato, your reaction was unexpected." Inside his secret room, Orochimaru read the information that had emerged from a snake's mouth. "In the past, if I'd dared to betray him, he would've sent people to hunt me down immediately. But this time, he didn't act. Interesting."
"Immortality..." Orochimaru murmured to himself. "Compared to playing some game of peace with Nagato, this is much more interesting."
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