The Land of Rain was a country perpetually covered in rain, located at the borders of the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Wind. It was a notorious lawless zone.
It had once produced Salamander Hanzo, who was known as a demigod. He had fought the Konoha Sannin single-handedly without losing ground, and it was from his mouth that the title "Sannin" had first come.
But by now, Salamander Hanzo was a thing of the past. The Akatsuki, led by Pain, now controlled the Land of Rain.
"Those Konoha ninjas are here again."
Inside a completely enclosed tower, a pair of feet with purple-painted toenails first emerged from the shadows. Then Konan walked in from outside.
She looked at Pain's back in the distance and spoke calmly.
"They're tracking down a surviving Uchiha. Ignore them."
Pain spoke without turning around.
"Are you sure that's all right? Aren't you worried this is a show Konoha put on deliberately?"
Konan asked with a frown.
"Don't concern yourself with it. If they have some other purpose... I'll step in and let them feel the majesty of a god."
Pain turned around and looked at Konan with his pale purple Rinnegan, his voice brimming with absolute confidence.
"Okay."
Konan gazed at those familiar yet unfamiliar eyes. After a long silence, she let out a soft sigh, nodded, and turned to leave.
Only after she had gone did Pain turn back to the map.
"The Land of Fire, Konoha... I hope you don't come looking for trouble."
The border of the Land of Rain.
"Have you confirmed it?"
Several Anbu Ninjas hid beneath a large tree. The leader glanced at the team members before him and asked in a low voice.
"We've confirmed it. He's just ahead."
A ninja wearing a cat mask spoke from the left.
"Where exactly?"
"Ten o'clock, five hundred meters. There's a cave there. All the signs point to it!"
"Good. Team Three will lead the attack, and Teams One and Two will provide support. The goal is to capture the target alive. If you really can't take him alive, kill him!"
"Understood."
"Move out!"
At his command, all twelve Anbu vanished into the rain, heading toward their target.
The downpour fell like a curtain of gray across the world. The Anbu Ninjas didn't notice the little girl silently watching them from the treetop above.
"Arashi told me not to rush into the fight... Is Sister Izumi really going to be okay?"
Uchiha Ayatsuki tilted her head, looking a little worried.
Unfortunately, she was still somewhat weak. She hadn't awakened her Sharingan and had only learned a few ninjutsu techniques. The only thing she could rely on right now was the Eye of God. In a one-on-one fight, she might be able to catch an Anbu Ninja off guard and defeat him, but she definitely wouldn't stand a chance against several at once.
So her main task this time was to observe the battlefield and learn from the experience.
After steadying herself and making sure the Anbu had gone far enough, Uchiha Ayatsuki emerged from her hiding place and quietly followed them.
Ahead, the Anbu Ninjas cut through the rain and soon arrived at the target's hiding place.
From a distance, they spotted a wisp of smoke rising through the rain.
"Move!"
The leader barked the order, and the three people beside him instantly sped up, darting to the spot where the smoke rose as if they had teleported.
"Hm?"
The moment they landed, their pupils contracted.
There was no one in sight. All they saw was a campfire that had already gone out, set on the ground outside the cave.
In this heavy rain, placing it there made no sense at all!
"Damn it, it's a trap..."
The quickest of the Anbu tried to signal the others behind him.
At that moment, Izumi unleashed the Mangekyo ability she had prepared for.
"Yomotsu Hirasaka!"
Her ocular power spread rapidly through the air, pulling all twelve Anbu into the technique in an instant.
The surroundings changed abruptly. The rain, the cave, and the forest all disappeared, replaced by the Konoha Village they knew so well.
"How is this place..."
The Anbu Captain stared in shock. Just as he began to survey his surroundings, a gigantic claw came crashing down from above.
Boom—
The buildings on both sides collapsed, and cries and screams rang out everywhere.
"The Nine-Tails!"
The Anbu squad leader's expression changed drastically.
"It's a genjutsu! Get ready..."
He took half a step back and hurriedly issued orders to the others.
He had seen the Nine-Tails before and had even fought it. Back then, he'd only been swept by the wind kicked up by its claw, yet he'd been flung dozens of meters and badly injured.
But that wasn't what he remembered most. What he truly could never forget was the senior who had been turned to mush by a single swipe of the Nine-Tails' claw while saving him.
She had been the senior he respected and loved most—the woman he had wanted to marry and care for all his life.
Though he didn't really understand what was happening, he could tell this was probably a genjutsu. He absolutely couldn't accept the fact that someone had conjured the Nine-Tails in a genjutsu, and had chosen the night of the Nine-Tails' attack, of all things.
He had to break the genjutsu as quickly as possible, then torture the person who had desecrated the dead to death.
Unfortunately, he still reacted a step too late.
Before he could finish giving the order, a streak of lightning shot from the distant horizon and reached him in an instant.
Clang!
A Kunai and a short sword slammed together. The Anbu Ninja's eyes widened as he stared at the red-eyed woman who had suddenly appeared in front of him.
"You're... Wait, no!"
The intelligence was wrong!
The target they were after was supposed to be a male Uchiha, not a woman!
And this sensation, this impact...
She was real!
Not an illusion!
"I finally found you! Die!"
The Anbu Ninja growled. He used both arms to shove Izumi away, then followed up with a slash that struck her squarely in the chest.
The next moment.
Pfft—
A large spray of blood burst from the Anbu Ninja's chest. He looked down in disbelief at the sword wound that had appeared out of nowhere.
Izumi landed after a flip, her right eye glowing red.
"Life Thread!"
This was the ocular ability of her right eye, which worked in tandem with Yomotsu Hirasaka in her left. Once she pulled an enemy into the genjutsu, she could use her right eye's ability to link herself to that enemy.
Any injuries she sustained were transferred directly to her opponent, while all the injuries her opponent sustained appeared on her real body exactly as they were. In other words, if the enemy's mind died inside the genjutsu, his real body would die too, and his injuries would be identical to those suffered by his mental self.
"You... What kind of ninjutsu is this..."
The Anbu Ninja staggered back two steps, clutching his chest as he spoke with difficulty.
Izumi didn't answer. She simply pressed the attack.
The Anbu Ninja was startled and jumped onto a rooftop to evade her.
The next moment, a gigantic beast's claw came crashing down and swatted him from the roof like a fly.
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