The last ripple of the spatial vortex faded into the air, taking every trace of that man with it.
In the dead-silent canyon, only the cold rain remained, along with three young people wearing brand-new black robes and a strange plant, half black and half white, that had grown out of the ground.
"Ah, he finally left. Lord Madara was so intimidating when he was here!"
White Zetsu spoke in an innocent, carefree voice. He twisted his pitcher-plant-like body and curiously leaned toward Yahiko, poking him with a leaf-shaped hand.
"Hey, hey, why are you still kneeling? You'll get your new clothes dirty."
Yahiko said nothing. He was like a soulless stone statue.
"Leave him alone. He's a failure." Black Zetsu's hoarse voice rang out, undisguised disdain in his tone. "All he can do is cry over his nose and cling to his false dreams."
"Eh? But I think his dream is nice, too. World peace, everyone playing together—how wonderful!" White Zetsu protested.
"Foolish. Only absolute power can bring order." Black Zetsu scoffed.
The two consciousnesses began arguing inside the same body, making the already oppressive atmosphere even stranger.
Konan walked over to Nagato and asked softly, "Nagato, we..."
"Let's go."
Nagato didn't look at her or at Yahiko, who was kneeling on the ground. He simply raised his head and gazed beyond the canyon, toward the world shrouded in eternal rain.
His voice was as cold as the look in his eyes.
Konan bit her lip, but in the end, she went to Yahiko and held out a hand. "Yahiko, get up. We need to go."
Yahiko slowly raised his head. The anger had disappeared from his eyes, leaving only a lifeless emptiness.
He looked at Konan, then at Nagato, who had already put on his black robe and turned his back on him.
In the end, he said nothing. He silently rose from the muddy water.
The spirited young man who had once believed he could change the world with conversation and smiles seemed to have died along with that spectacular fireworks display.
"That's more like it!" White Zetsu clapped his hands and grinned. "Come on, let's go! I know a shortcut that'll get us to Kakuzu in no time! That old guy's a real money-grubber!"
Black Zetsu said nothing. His body sank, and he was the first to merge into the shadows beneath the ground.
Nagato and Konan followed.
Yahiko stood there for a few seconds, then finally began to walk.
Three figures in Black Red-Cloud Robes followed the strange plant, disappearing into the depths of the rain.
In a secluded cave a hundred miles from Amegakure.
Lin Feng stumbled out of the spatial vortex and plopped down on the ground.
"Phew... I'm exhausted."
He let out a long breath, feeling as if his body had been hollowed out.
He'd used Shinra Tensei, Banshō Ten'in, and a miniature version of Devastating Planetary Destruction. Then he'd even put on a "fireworks show" by manipulating a Sealing Jutsu. His entrance had been epic, but the Chakra cost had been very real.
The worst part was the mental strain.
Playing "Madara" in front of so many people—especially Nagato, the true Rinnegan wielder—had felt like walking a tightrope every second.
He could even tell that when he crushed that Sharingan, Nagato's gaze had held not only shock, but also a trace of scrutiny.
Thankfully, he'd managed to pull it off in the end.
Lin Feng focused, and the system panel appeared.
[Host: Lin Feng (Persona: Uchiha Madara)] [Persona Stability: S (Extremely low risk of breaking character in current state)] [Rinnegan Mastery: 35%] [Unlocked Abilities: ...Demonic Statue of the Outer Path (Basic Link)...] [Item: "Epic Entrance BGM" (Single-use)]
Seeing that his mastery had increased by 20%, Lin Feng finally felt a little more secure.
It meant he had better control over the Rinnegan's abilities. At least he wouldn't nearly launch himself backward again when using Shinra Tensei.
His attention settled on the new ability, "Demonic Statue of the Outer Path (Basic Link)."
"Link?"
Lin Feng closed his eyes and followed the system's instructions, trying to extend his consciousness along the Rinnegan's power.
In an instant, his mind went BOOM!
He saw it.
In some distant, unknowable place, a withered husk of the Ten-Tails, so enormous it defied imagination, lay sleeping, bound by countless massive chains.
It was like a dormant volcano. Though its exterior showed no sign of life, within it lurked enough terrifying power to destroy the world.
Lin Feng's consciousness was like a slender thread, connected to one of the colossal being's "fingers."
He could vaguely sense its condition—hunger, weakness, and a primitive craving for Chakra.
He could even try to make that "finger" move ever so slightly.
"Holy crap..."
Lin Feng abruptly severed the link, a sheen of cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
For a moment, he'd felt as if that overwhelming presence had nearly drained his mind dry.
This basic link really was basic.
Still, it put his mind completely at ease.
As long as the link remained, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path on Nagato's end would always be under his control.
Nagato thought he was a god?
No. He was just an employee holding the nuclear launch button, unaware that the real launch codes were in Lin Feng's hands.
"Now let's see how those kids do."
After resting for a while, Lin Feng had recovered some of his energy.
He closed his eyes again. This time, the Rinnegan's power spread like an invisible radar, scanning in the direction of Black and White Zetsu.
A clear image soon appeared in his mind.
The Underground Bounty Station, in the Land of Hot Water.
This was one of the most chaotic and filthy places in the entire Ninja World.
The air reeked of cheap liquor, sweat, and blood.
Countless vicious-looking rogue ninja and bounty hunters gathered there, loudly cursing and gambling as they traded money and information soaked in blood.
In a corner at the very back of the bounty station.
A man wearing a Takigakure Forehead Protector and a mask sat before a pile of banknotes stacked like a small mountain. Only his eyes were visible, gleaming with an eerie green light.
He was Kakuzu.
A monster who had lived for nearly a century, and a bounty hunter who worshiped money as his only faith.
With a tenderness usually reserved for a lover, he counted the bounty he'd just collected, one bill at a time, muttering to himself.
"Three million ryō for a C-rank rogue ninja... Not bad."
"This Kirigakure one was worth five million... Looks like his head was tougher than I thought."
Just then, three unwelcome visitors appeared at the entrance to the bounty station.
Their matching Black Red-Cloud Robes looked completely out of place among the motley garb of the outlaws around them.
The noise in the entire station died down at once.
Countless hostile gazes fell upon them.
"Well, well, new faces?"
"From the way you're dressed, are you some new organization looking to make a name for yourselves?"
A hulking man, drunk out of his mind and carrying an enormous spiked club, staggered over and blocked their way.
"Listen, brats. If you want to make it around here, you've gotta pay your respects. Hand over everything valuable!"
Konan furrowed her brows slightly and instinctively took half a step back.
Yahiko's hand was already on the hilt of the blade at his waist, his gaze hostile.
Nagato, however, calmly walked past the hulking man without even sparing him a glance.
It was pure, bone-deep indifference.
The hulking man froze for a moment, then flew into a rage. "You fucking ignoring me?!"
Roaring, he raised his spiked club and brought it crashing down toward the back of Nagato's head!
"Watch out!" Konan cried.
"Shinra Tensei."
Nagato didn't even turn around. He simply uttered four words.
Whoosh!
An invisible force of repulsion erupted from him.
The hulking man, who stood over two meters tall, and the several-hundred-pound spiked club in his hands were blasted away like a swatted fly. He shot backward several times faster than he'd come, smashed through the wall of the bounty station with a crash, and vanished into the street outside, his fate unknown.
The entire station gasped.
Everyone had been stunned by that single move.
Those three kids were no pushovers!
Nagato walked through the crowd to the corner piled high with money and stopped in front of Kakuzu.
Kakuzu finally looked up from his money, his green eyes sizing up Nagato with interest.
"That's an interesting ocular jutsu," he rasped. "What do you want with me, kid? I don't remember seeing your name on any of my wanted posters."
"We want to invite you to join our organization," Nagato said bluntly.
"Join you?" Kakuzu laughed as if he'd heard the funniest joke in the world. "Hahahaha! Why should I?"
He pointed at the banknotes around him with a bandage-wrapped finger.
"This is the only thing I believe in. What can you offer me? Ideals? Peace?"
"We can offer you protection from the strong, and... more money than you could ever spend," Nagato replied calmly.
Kakuzu stopped laughing. His green eyes narrowed. "Oh? That's a bold claim. No one in the Ninja World has ever dared say that to me."
He slowly rose from the pile of money, a cold and powerful wave of Chakra spreading from his body.
"If you want me to join, fine. The rules of the ninja world are simple."
Kakuzu raised one finger.
"Beat me."
His strange green eyes swept over Nagato, then over Konan and Yahiko behind him. Finally, as if he'd seen through something, they shifted toward the empty space behind them.
"Or call out the guy hiding behind you."
"A coward who hides behind the scenes and sends a few kids to do his dirty work doesn't deserve to be my boss."
"Tell him to come out himself and fight me!"
Before you continue