Dawn's Spiderweb, The Rookie of the Dark Division's First Hunt

On the third day of becoming an Anbu operative codenamed "Rin," Su Ye received a mission personally issued by Gen: to track down a lead related to the Akatsuki.

"Three days ago, residual chakra from the Deva Path of Pain appeared on the border of Takigakure," Gen said, pushing an encrypted scroll toward Su Ye. "You are to infiltrate the outskirts of Takigakure and confirm the source of the residual chakra. If you encounter members of the Akatsuki, do not engage; report back immediately."

Su Ye opened the scroll, his Rinne Sharingan instantly scanning the chakra fluctuation map within—that power carried a intense sense of repulsion, identical to the Shinra Tensei of the Deva Path of Pain. His heart tightened, and he asked in a low voice, "Do I need support?"

"Anbu operations are best kept to as few people as possible." Gen's fox mask glinted coldly. "Your Rinnegan is your greatest trump card. Remember, come back alive."

As night fell, Su Ye was already lurking in the mountain forest outside Takigakure. He activated the Transformation Technique to take the form of an owl, using the night-vision capabilities of his Rinne Sharingan to scan the village below under the cover of darkness. The defenses of Takigakure were much weaker than those of Konoha, but the chakra sensory arrays were laid out with unusual density, clearly guarding against something.

Suddenly, a familiar repulsive chakra erupted from the direction of the water tower in the center of the village! Su Ye's eyes narrowed, and he immediately flew toward the water tower. Upon approaching, he discovered three people standing around it—one of them was wearing the red-cloud black robe of the Akatsuki and a Rinnegan mask, raising his hand to unleash Shinra Tensei, blasting away the surrounding Takigakure ninjas.

It's the Deva Path of Pain! Su Ye was shocked. Just as he prepared to activate Heavenly Hand Power to retreat and report, he saw the two people behind Pain suddenly move—one was small and thin, wearing a black hoodie; the moment their hands finished the seal, countless sharp black tentacles erupted from the ground. The other was a burly man whose giant axe, imbued with wind blades, swung toward Pain's back!

This isn't an internal Akatsuki conflict... are they hunters? Su Ye's pupils shrank as his Rinne Sharingan analyzed their ninjutsu—the black tentacles were a derivative of Earth Grudge Fear, and the giant axe's wind blades carried the aura of a Kekkei Genkai from the Land of Earth.

At that moment, the Deva Path of Pain suddenly turned around, his Rinnegan narrowing sharply: "Ants, you dare provoke a god?" The repulsive force of Shinra Tensei exploded instantly, sending both the black tentacles and the giant axe flying. However, the small ninja eerily merged into the ground, emerged from beneath Pain's feet, and pressed their hands against his shins: "Earth Grudge Fear: Soul Absorption Technique!"

Pain's chakra was being drained frantically, and a crack actually appeared on the Rinnegan mask he wore. The burly man seized the opportunity to leap up, his giant axe whistling through the air as it hacked toward Pain's head!

"Stop!" Su Ye could no longer hold back. He activated Heavenly Hand Power, swapping positions with the giant axe in the burly man's hand. The axe suddenly appeared in Su Ye's grip, while the burly man swung at empty air due to his momentum, revealing the Root tattoo on his chest!

Root operatives? Su Ye was deeply shaken. His Rinne Sharingan locked onto Pain, the Earth Grudge Fear ninja, and the Root operative simultaneously. He suddenly understood that this hunt was a conspiracy by Danzo—to use Root to eliminate Pain while framing Takigakure for the act.

The Deva Path of Pain clearly sensed something was wrong as well. His Rinnegan turned toward Su Ye, his voice icy: "Who are you?"

"Konoha Anbu, codename Rin." Su Ye threw the giant axe to the ground and formed hand seals. "Now, all three sides stop, or I will make your actions public."

The Earth Grudge Fear ninja emerged from the ground and sneered, "A dog of Konoha dares to meddle in Root's business?" He slammed his hands onto the ground, and more black tentacles erupted from beneath Su Ye's feet.

Su Ye's eyes sharpened, the pale purple tomoe of his Rinne Sharingan spinning rapidly: "Banshō Ten'in!" A powerful gravitational force instantly pulled all the black tentacles toward him; he then activated Heavenly Hand Power, swapping positions with a distant rock to slam all the tentacles into it instead.

At the same time, the Root operative's giant axe struck again, and Pain's Shinra Tensei was unleashed simultaneously. Su Ye took a deep breath, pushing the abilities of his Rinne Sharingan to the limit—he first used Kamui to suck the giant axe into his personal dimension, then activated Heavenly Hand Power to swap positions with the body of the Deva Path of Pain!

Pain suddenly appeared within the attack range of the Root operative and was struck squarely in the shoulder by the giant axe. His Rinnegan mask shattered completely, revealing the true body of Nagato Uzumaki beneath! Meanwhile, Su Ye appeared in Pain's original position, narrowly avoiding the repulsive force of the Shinra Tensei.

"You..." Nagato's eyes were filled with shock. He could feel that Su Ye's Rinnegan was of the same origin as his own, yet it possessed the strange characteristics of a Sharingan.

Su Ye did not give him time to think, shouting to all three sides: "Danzo wants you to destroy each other so he can reap the rewards! Join forces now, and you might still have a chance to escape!"

The Root operative looked at the injured Nagato, then at Su Ye's Rinnegan, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. The Earth Grudge Fear ninja sneered, "You're from Konoha; why should I trust you?"

Just then, dense footsteps could be heard in the distance—the Takigakure ninja battalion had arrived. Su Ye knew he couldn't delay any longer. He shouted to Nagato and the Root operative, "Believe it or not, I'm leaving!"

As his voice fell, he activated Kamui, teleporting himself and the giant axe he had sucked into his dimension back to the Konoha Anbu base. He left behind only a shocked Nagato, a hesitant Root member, and the impending arrival of the Takigakure ninja battalion.

Upon returning to the base, Su Ye immediately found Gen and recounted the entire encounter. After listening, the expression beneath Gen's fox mask was exceptionally grave: "Danzo's reach has already extended to the Akatsuki... It seems the waters of Konoha are deeper than we imagined."

Su Ye looked at Gen and asked in a low voice, "What do we do now?"

Gen was silent for a moment, then said slowly, "Your mission isn't over—find the connection between Danzo, the Akatsuki, and Root. This time, you may need to enter the tiger's den yourself."

Su Ye's eyes sharpened. He knew that this storm, sparked by the Akatsuki, had only just begun. And his Rinne Sharingan would play a vital role in this vortex.