We are Pain, we are gods!

Under the moonlight, on a high mountain not far from Kirigakure, two figures stood silently, gazing at the ninja village shrouded in rain and mist.

One figure was slender, wearing simple attire that left her smooth back almost entirely exposed. On her forehead sat a Sand Village headband with a slash through it; she was none other than the former hero of the Sand Village, Scorch Style Pakura.

Beside her stood a presence that seemed to merge with the darkness. The person was entirely concealed within a black robe, wearing a featureless, milky-white mask—it was Lan, having taken on the mantle of The Fool.

"Are you certain someone is planning to target Kirigakure lately? Kirigakure is one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, after all. I've heard the Fourth Mizukage is a perfect Jinchuriki. In an environment like the Land of Water, the Mizukage's strength is significantly amplified; even other Kage would struggle to do anything against him. Besides, with the other powerhouses in Kirigakure, are you sure those people aren't just looking for a death sentence?"

Feeling skeptical of Lan's conjecture, Pakura couldn't help but ask again.

"What of the Mizukage? Even someone as powerful as the Fourth Hokage and his wife from Konoha Village died in such a muddled fashion. In this dangerous world, no one is absolutely safe. I think someone from the Sand Village, like yourself, should understand that better than anyone."

Undoubtedly, Lan was referring to the former Third Kazekage of the Sand Village, who possessed the Magnet Style and could manipulate Iron Sand.

This powerhouse, hailed as the strongest Kazekage in history, had vanished silently within his own village. To stabilize morale, the Sand Village insisted that the Third Kazekage had been assassinated by the strongest village, Konoha, which subsequently became the catalyst for the Third Great Ninja War.

Even though she had defected from the Sand Village, the mere thought of it made Pakura feel ashamed; it was arguably the most disgraceful event in the Sand Village's history. Of course, had she known the fate of the Fourth and Fifth Kazekage later on, she would have realized that being the Kazekage was actually a high-risk profession.

However, beyond that, Pakura sensed from Lan's words that he seemed to hold a different perspective on the deaths of the Third Kazekage and the Fourth Hokage. Could it be that he knew something specific about how these powerhouses had truly died?

Especially Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage; in a sense, the end of the Third Great Ninja War was tied to him. The Fourth Hokage, known as the Yellow Flash, had died on the same night as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. If not for other villages repeatedly sending scouts to confirm it, they would never have believed that such a troublesome threat could be resolved so trivially.

A person's name is like the shadow of a tree; Pakura was naturally interested in the specific cause of the Fourth Hokage's death. She truly couldn't imagine who could have assassinated two such powerful figures.

Unfortunately, Lan was in no mood to share the information he possessed with Pakura.

At this moment, he recalled Uchiha Obito, who had once been so unremarkable in their class. Thinking of how that dead-last student had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan under Madara's machinations, and how he could now stir up chaos across the Ninja World from the shadows with just one eye, Lan felt a deep sense of resentment.

Obito had the Mangekyo Sharingan, while he possessed the even stronger Tenseigan; he could not afford to fare worse than him. One day, he would fool all the living beings of this world and become the god who manipulated everyone's fate from behind the scenes, truly living up to the name of The Fool.

As the night began to fade and the horizon grew dim, a disturbance broke out within Kirigakure during this most unguarded hour.

Squads of Anbu ninjas surrounded the bloodline clans led by the Kaguya Clan. Undoubtedly, the village leadership under the Mizukage had learned in advance that these clans were about to rebel and had opted for a preemptive strike.

The bloodline clans, led by the Kaguya, were not about to surrender without a fight. Soon, the entire village was embroiled in battle. As casualties mounted, the white mist that usually hung over Kirigakure was stained red by the scent of blood, turning into a crimson fog—thus, the "Bloody Mist Rebellion" earned its name.

The strength of bloodline clans like the Kaguya and the Yuki could not ultimately overcome the entire village, and they soon found themselves at a disadvantage. In the end, only the Kaguya Clan Head and the Yuki Clan Head managed to escape the encirclement with a small number of men. However, Kirigakure clearly had no intention of letting them go; a small group went to report to the Mizukage, while the main force began their pursuit.

Trailing behind the pursuit of the Kaguya and Yuki clan heads, two figures in Blood-Red Cloud Robes followed—they were Sasori and Kakuzu of the Akatsuki.

"They actually split up. I'll go after the Kaguya Clan Head; the Yuki Clan Head is yours. Make sure to keep the body intact; I want to turn them into new works of art."

Faced with Sasori's demand, Kakuzu's green pupils widened. "Don't you know the Yuki Clan Head is a master of the Ice Release bloodline limit? To fight such an expert, I must go all out; I can't afford to be careless. I'm afraid your request is hard to fulfill..."

Kakuzu still wanted to trade the man's head for the bounty. One had to know that the bounty for the Yuki Clan Head on the black market was as high as thirty million. For Sasori to demand he let his catch fly away so easily—even a fellow organization member couldn't break his rules.

"If you really want the Yuki Clan Head's body intact, there is only one way..."

"What way?"

"It's going to cost you extra!"

Yagura Karatachi followed three Anbu members out of Kirigakure to pursue the fleeing Kaguya Clan Head. The four moved at a high speed, not stopping until they reached a desolate island by the sea, far from the village.

The place was barren and clearly unsuitable for hiding. Yagura figured that unless the Kaguya Clan Head had lost his mind, he would never have fled to such a place. Sensing something was wrong, Yagura frowned and turned to ask, "Are you sure you didn't lead us the wrong way? This place..."

He saw the faces of the three Anbu-clad figures suddenly shift, quickly transforming into three strange, all-white figures—they were White Zetsu.

"No, who exactly are you?"

Yagura raised his weapon, questioning the White Zetsu before him. Looking at the three creatures, he was surprised by the sophistication of their transformation jutsu, which had prevented him from noticing anything amiss earlier. Fortunately, judging by their chakra signatures, he could tell their strength was nothing special, so despite the unexpected turn of events, he did not panic.

Just as he prepared to finish off the three White Zetsu, they stepped aside to clear a path, and six figures clad in Blood-Red Cloud Robes walked forward.

"So it was you lot pulling the strings. I must admire your courage, daring to set your sights on me. Wait, those eyes of yours...!"

"Who on earth are you?"

As Deva Path Pain and the others drew near, Yagura Karatachi caught sight of their inhuman pupils, and his expression shifted instantly as a realization dawned on him.

How is this possible?

Could those eyes be the legendary Rinnegan of the Sage of Six Paths?

How could there be six pairs? This is impossible!

The appearance of a single pair of Rinnegan would be shocking enough, but seeing six pairs at once made Yagura Karatachi almost doubt if he had fallen under a genjutsu.

Deva Path Pain stepped forward and pointed at Yagura Karatachi, declaring, "We are Pain. We are God."

"I will be taking your power."