The Peach Replaces the Plum

Returning once again to this rain-soaked country, Mizuki no longer needed the same cautious attitude he had when sneaking in before. Nagato, who had once made him wary, was already dead.

Although this small country was somewhat far from Konoha, before Mizuki's space-time ninjutsu, it was merely a "neighbor" that consumed a little more chakra.

Mizuki had come here before, but he had never ventured this deep inside.

Back then, the ever-present threat of the Rain Tiger at Will Technique had made him stop at shallow infiltration every time he came.

For that very reason, none of his investigations had yielded useful information. After several attempts, he had stopped wasting effort on it.

The ceaseless rain still fell, but the raindrops no longer carried that faint trace of chakra fluctuations.

Moreover, because the weather was so cold, one or two tiny ice crystals occasionally drifted down amid the rain.

With weather like this, along with the occasional chilling wind, it was unbearably miserable. Though it was not snowing, it was far colder than the snow-filled Land of Fire—perhaps even harsher than the more northern Land of Earth and Land of Waterfalls.

This country did not have a large population to begin with, and under such harsh conditions, even fewer people went outside.

Not a single one of the scattered ninja organizations he had expected to encounter was anywhere to be seen.

The anticipated chaos was nowhere near as widespread as expected. Perhaps the Land of Rain's extreme climate was this country's final gift.

In this country, which still possessed quite a modern feel and an unexpectedly large number of skyscrapers and massive structures, Mizuki was surprised to find many decorations resembling angels with wings on their backs throughout the streets and alleys.

"Konan's angel disguise still has believers?"

At first,