Rain Tiger at Will Technique and the Rinnegan

"Senior Mikio, you had a hard journey. You didn't attract Konoha's attention, did you?"

After Kuniyoshi and the Karin mother-daughter pair left the secret chamber, Feng looked at Uchiha Mikio and asked with concern.

Naturally, his attitude toward one of his own was different from how he treated ordinary people.

To get from Tea Country to Kusagakure in the Land of Grass, one had to pass through the vast Land of Fire, where Konoha was located.

On the way there, Uchiha Mikio and Kuniyoshi, as Impure World Reincarnation beings who did not need to eat, drink, relieve themselves, or sleep, naturally encountered no problems.

But on the way back, they had to bring along the sickly and young Karin Uzumaki and her mother. As two Uzumaki with extremely distinctive features, they could easily be exposed.

"Don't worry. Kusagakure didn't keep a close watch on the mother and daughter, and Kusagakure's strength was terrible to begin with.

When Kuniyoshi and I took them out, we didn't cause much of a disturbance.

I didn't go through the Land of Fire on the way back, either.

After leaving the Land of Grass, I traveled through the Land of Rain, the Land of Rivers, Valley Country, the Land of That, and finally took a ship from the Land of This back to Tea Country.

I stuck to sparsely populated paths the entire way. Neither Kusagakure nor Konoha could have noticed anything."

With only the two of them present, Uchiha Mikio became more casual. He naturally sat beside Feng and explained.

"Didn't cause a disturbance... didn't go through the Land of Fire...

Then there shouldn't be any problem!!

Hm!!!???"

Feng replied offhandedly, but then he suddenly froze as he realized something was wrong.

"Senior, you said you went through the Land of Rain?"

"Of course. If I didn't go through the Land of Fire, then I naturally had to go through the Land of Rain. What's the problem??"

Uchiha Mikio was utterly puzzled.

"Uh, Senior, when you passed through the Land of Rain, did you go through Amegakure? And while you were in Amegakure, did you run into rain?"

Feng did not answer and continued pressing him.

"Rain? It did rain. Isn't rain in the Land of Rain perfectly normal?"

Uchiha Mikio was even more confused.

"Damn it, the important part is Amegakure! Did you pass through Amegakure or not?

Senior, please tell me. This is very important."

Feng grew more anxious. Passing through the Land of Rain was fine, but if they had gone through Amegakure and gotten rained on, damn it, then Senior Mikio would have been exposed right in front of Nagato...

"Amegakure... We passed through it. And it really was raining then!"

Seeing how anxious Feng was, Uchiha Mikio seriously thought it over. After a moment, he gave a serious answer.

"Really?!"

Feng unwillingly pressed further. They had passed through Nagato's territory with two Uzumaki, yet Nagato had shown no reaction whatsoever. That was very wrong.

"Really! Feng, just say it already. What problem is there with getting rained on in Amegakure?"

Uchiha Mikio was tired of being questioned and said bluntly.

Hearing that, Feng thought about it. It seemed there was no problem telling Senior Mikio certain things.

After all, before long, once he became a Jinchūriki, he could send Senior Mikio back to the Pure Land. He would not need to worry that anything Senior Mikio learned would affect the future.

"Senior Mikio, don't ask whether what I'm about to say is true, and don't ask where I learned it."

"Fine. Go ahead."

"Mm, where should I start...

Right, Senior Mikio, you know Hanzo of the Salamander, the Demigod of the Shinobi World, right?"

"Obviously. I had just become a ninja during the Second Shinobi World War, and I happened to be on the Land of Rain battlefield. I saw that guy with my own eyes."

Uchiha Mikio had intended to roll his eyes at Feng, but in his Impure World Reincarnation state, his eye sockets were completely black. He failed to roll his eyes and instead looked as though his eyeballs were broken and spinning around blindly.

"Is that so? Then it'll be easier to explain.

During the Second Shinobi World War, Hanzo was unquestionably the Demigod of the Shinobi World. Leading Amegakure alone against Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure, he did not fall behind.

But although Hanzo himself was powerful enough to win localized battles, he could not conceal Amegakure's overall weakness. In the end, Amegakure was still defeated.

After the war, Hanzo barely continued protecting Amegakure with his personal strength and prestige.

But a demigod was not truly a god. He was still human, and humans grew old.

And aging meant declining bodily functions and weakening strength.

For ordinary people, that was simply the natural cycle of life, aging, sickness, and death. It was nothing extraordinary.

But to Hanzo, it was unacceptable.

After all, only a demigod at his peak had barely managed to protect Amegakure. Could a weakening demigod still protect it?

Hanzo did not dare think about it, nor did he dare gamble on it.

So, to conceal the physical decline brought on by aging, the man who had once been unquestionably the Demigod of the Shinobi World in both strength and bearing became a coward.

He began to fear.

He began imposing high-pressure policies throughout Amegakure. Anyone who showed even the slightest disobedience to his orders would be executed.

Hanzo used bloody slaughter to conceal his fear of his own weakening strength."

"...Get to the point. This has nothing to do with whether I got rained on in Amegakure."

Uchiha Mikio was growing impatient and interrupted Feng's storytelling.

"Senior, isn't the important part coming right up?

Anyway, while Amegakure was drowning in bloody slaughter, an organization called Akatsuki was born.

Its founders were three young people determined to create a peaceful future through understanding and love rather than extreme violence.

To the slaughter-filled Amegakure of that time, they were like white lotuses blooming from filth.

As a result, Akatsuki gained the support of many people and gradually rose to prominence and expanded.

Then Hanzo, who had already become a coward, naturally would not allow anyone to challenge his authority in Amegakure.

So Hanzo began seeking a way to deal with Akatsuki. As it happened, Danzo was causing trouble in Amegakure and also wanted to deal with Akatsuki.

The two naturally colluded and used a conspiracy to ambush Akatsuki's three founders.

The process unfolded as Hanzo and Danzo expected. Akatsuki suffered heavy losses, but the result was unexpected.

After one of Akatsuki's three founders died on the spot, another founder erupted.

After erupting, he defeated Hanzo and Danzo by himself, scaring the two into fleeing in panic."

At that point, Feng paused and took a sip of water, intending to continue, when Uchiha Mikio said:

"No, what does any of this have to do with anything? Get to the point, Feng. If you don't, I'm not listening anymore."

"Uh, Senior, the important part comes next."

"Then hurry up..."

"...Fine.

I just said that after another of Akatsuki's founders erupted, he defeated Hanzo and Danzo alone.

And the reason he could unleash such astonishing power was because he possessed the Rinnegan."

"The Rinnegan!!! The legendary eyes of the Sage of Six Paths!?

That's impossible! How could that be possible?!"

Uchiha Mikio, who had been impatient just moments ago, instantly cried out.

"Yes, the Rinnegan possessed by the legendary Sage of Six Paths.

Otherwise, how could he possibly defeat Hanzo and Danzo's combined ambush alone?

Afterward, he even directly killed Hanzo and took control of Amegakure."

"This... When did that happen? Before I died in the Third Shinobi World War, wasn't Amegakure still under Hanzo's control?"

"Probably not long after the Third Shinobi World War ended, around two years ago now."

"So when I passed through Amegakure, it was already ruled by the guy who killed Hanzo?

He's the one you're worried about, right?

But the Uchiha Clan shouldn't have any grudge against him, should we? Or do you have a grudge against him, Feng?"

Uchiha Mikio somewhat understood, but he was still confused.

"No. Neither the Uchiha Clan nor I personally have any grudge against him.

Konoha does, though."

"Then what are you worried about???"

"That guy with the Rinnegan is from the Uzumaki. The same clan as that mother and daughter from earlier."

"The Uzumaki??

So that's what you were worried about. Don't worry, I was very careful along the way. I definitely wasn't exposed."

Uchiha Mikio patted his chest in assurance. The jonin forehead protector he had worn in life had not been bought; he had earned it step by step through missions.

He was exceptionally skilled at the basic ninja arts of hiding, covering his tracks, and stealth.

"...The problem is that you got rained on in Amegakure..."

Feng sighed helplessly.

"???So getting rained on in Amegakure means being exposed??

That... can't be right, can it? I remember that rain covered all of Amegakure, and it rained for a long time.

Even if he had the Rinnegan, he couldn't possibly sustain a ninjutsu over such a vast area for so long."

Uchiha Mikio finally understood, but he still refused to give up.

"Sigh, Senior, you underestimate the Rinnegan too much.

That ninjutsu is called the Rain Tiger at Will Technique. The caster mixes his chakra into the rain, turning every raindrop into a medium for his senses.

Combined with the Land of Rain's year-round rainfall, theoretically, however long the rain lasts and however far it covers, the caster's perception extends for just as long and just as far.

So, Senior, you..."

"So I was exposed??"

"Uh, I don't know..."

"You don't know??"

"Yes, I don't know. It rains year-round in the Land of Rain, so no one knows which rainfall contains his ninjutsu and which does not.

But judging from the fact that you passed through Amegakure with that Uzumaki mother and daughter without being intercepted, you were most likely not exposed.

However, the guy with the Rinnegan is not in a very stable mental state right now, so it is also possible that he noticed us but simply was not in the mood to bother with us for the time being.

As for which possibility it is, I can't be sure either. So all I can tell you, Senior, is that I don't know."

Feng pondered for a moment before answering.

Obito had gone dark after Rin Nohara died during the Battle of Kannabi Bridge in Konoha Year 50.

Then, after darkened Obito and Black Zetsu secretly lent a hand in the operation that led to Yahiko's death, he began guiding Nagato down the path of darkness step by step.

And now it was the autumn of Konoha Year 52. Timewise, Nagato should have only recently avenged his friend Yahiko's death.

Although he had already begun going dark, he was not yet that "god" who ran around shouting about carrying rice.

But Nagato at this time was also the most unpredictable. Even as a Naruto fan, Feng had no idea what state Nagato was currently in.

"...Since nothing is certain, why worry blindly?

If soldiers come, we'll block them; if water comes, we'll dam it.

Even if he has the Rinnegan, in my current Impure World Reincarnation state, I may not necessarily fear him."

Hearing that, Uchiha Mikio rolled his nonexistent eyes and spoke disdainfully.

"..." Feng did not want to speak.

Uchiha, Uchiha. They truly treated their own clansmen well, and they truly were arrogant.

Not afraid of the Rinnegan, either...

"Senior, you underestimate the Rinnegan.

Forget one Impure World Reincarnation version of you. Even if the entire Uchiha Clan attacked together, all in Impure World Reincarnation states, he would still hang you all up and beat you senseless."

To keep Senior Mikio from doing something foolish, Feng thought it over and decided to tell the truth.

"...Is it really that powerful? Then isn't it even stronger than the Mangekyō Sharingan?"

After hearing Feng's words, Uchiha Mikio froze for a moment and unwillingly pressed on.

Hearing that, Feng thought it over. Revealing a little information should not be a problem, so he answered:

"Senior Mikio, let me put it this way.

The Three-Tomoe Sharingan evolves into the Mangekyō Sharingan;

The Mangekyō Sharingan evolves further into the Eternal Mangekyo;

And only after the Eternal Mangekyo evolves does it become the Rinnegan.

Now tell me, how can the Mangekyō Sharingan compare to the Rinnegan?"

"!!!The Rinnegan evolves from the Mangekyō Sharingan??!

Really? Fake?"

But after hearing that, Uchiha Mikio did not focus on which was stronger. Instead, he noticed the connection between the Mangekyō Sharingan and the Rinnegan.

"Yes, the Rinnegan evolves from the Mangekyō Sharingan."

Since he had already decided to reveal some information, Feng naturally did not hide anything.

"Then where did that Uzumaki guy in Amegakure get his Rinnegan?!"

Uchiha Mikio once again seized upon the key issue.

"Naturally, one of our Uchiha Clan predecessors gave it to him..."

Feng pursed his lips, somewhat helpless.

He actually had strong objections to Madara Uchiha giving the Rinnegan to Nagato. But considering that he could not defeat Madara, nor could he defeat the current Nagato, all he could do was feel frustrated and helpless inside.

But it did not matter. He already had a plan. Sooner or later, he would get Nagato's Rinnegan for himself.

As for Madara, he should just stay peacefully in the Pure Land and continue being lovey-dovey with Hashirama. He should stop messing around with that damned Eye of the Moon Plan.

"Hm?!

One of our Uchiha Clan predecessors?!

Who?!"

Uchiha Mikio looked at Feng in disbelief and cried out.

As an elder of the clan and a jonin, he had never heard of such a senior within the family.

"...I don't know. I only know that the Rinnegan evolved from the Mangekyō Sharingan.

"So that guy from Amegakure must have received his Rinnegan from one of our clan's seniors.

"As for who exactly it was, I don't know."

In the end, Feng still did not reveal everything and held some information back.

After all, Senior Mikio would soon return to the Pure Land. What if he started talking nonsense there?

Then, if some ghost who happened to hear Senior Mikio's words got brought back through Impure World Reincarnation by Orochimaru, everything would be exposed.

Feng would probably end up being targeted by that "shameless snake," and that would be a huge problem.

"...You really don't know which senior it was?"

Having spent more than half a year with Feng, Uchiha Mikio noticed that Feng was holding something back and unwillingly pressed him further.

"No, Senior. You don't even know about it. How could I, a genin who only awakened my eyes not long ago, possibly know?"

Feng felt a little guilty, but his expression remained unchanged as he spoke.

"Fine, if you don't know, you don't know. Why are you getting so worked up?

"Then how should we deal with Amegakure?"

Knowing that anything Feng refused to say could not be pried out of him no matter what, Uchiha Mikio noncommittally changed the subject.

"Amegakure... should be fine!

"Senior, you'll be returning to the Pure Land before long, and so will Kuniyoshi.

"As for that Uzumaki mother and daughter, the mother will die soon as well.

"Of the four who passed through Amegakure, three will be gone, leaving only an infant who understands nothing.

"Even if that guy with the Rinnegan has some plans, seeing that situation will probably make him give up.

"Of course, it's more likely that he's busy with something else right now and simply never noticed your group back then."

After pondering for a moment, Feng analyzed the situation.

As for Nagato, he was currently the most overpowered monster in the Ninja World. Other than the even more deeply hidden Otsutsuki, he was absolutely number one.

Though Feng was very cautious, it was not as if he had no way to deal with him.

I have the Flying Thunder God. If I can't beat him, can't I just run? Heh.

Feng rubbed the last unused Copy Card, visible only to him, and thought to himself.

"That makes sense. By what you said, if he truly wanted to cause us trouble, we would have been no match for him at all.

"Since nothing has happened so far, he most likely either didn't notice us or couldn't be bothered with us."

Uchiha Mikio considered Feng's words and accepted his reasoning.

"Senior Mikio, thank you for your help during this time.

"Once Uzumaki Ayaka finishes sealing the tailed beast for me, there will be nothing left for me to do here. Then I'll release you from the Impure World Reincarnation."

Feng nodded and did not dwell on Nagato or the Rinnegan.

Instead, he bowed deeply to Uchiha Mikio and seriously brought up something else.

"Yes. In the blink of an eye, I've lingered in the human world for so long in this state.

"It really is time to return to the Pure Land early. Then I can tell everyone that the clan produced a genius like you."

Uchiha Mikio raised his gaze. After hearing Feng's words, he sank into a certain kind of contemplation.