Stop! Let Go of Konan!

The air on the outskirts of the Hidden Rain Village was damp and cold.

Kamizuki Yu moved through the curtain of rain, the suppressed grief and fury in his senses growing ever more intense.

Several of the chakra signatures were abnormally powerful, and one of them carried the obscure, ominous presence unique to the Rinnegan.

He quickened his pace.

Atop a high cliff, the scene was horrific.

Hanzo of the Salamander, the pinnacle of the Hidden Rain Village, had brought his most elite troops and driven a group of young people into a desperate corner.

Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and the members of their newly founded Akatsuki were all wounded, their faces filled with despair.

"Nagato, kill him." Hanzo's voice was as cold as the rain. Holding Konan hostage, he pressed a kunai to her throat. "Kill Yahiko, and the others can live. Otherwise, you will all die."

Konan's tears burst forth, but she could not make a sound, only sob silently.

Yahiko gave a bleak smile and looked at Nagato. "Nagato, do it. For everyone, for our dream..."

A flash of resolve passed through his eyes.

Nagato's entire body trembled. The purple ripples in his Rinnegan spread wildly, and the enormous chakra within him was nearly out of control.

He looked at Yahiko, then at the captive Konan, agony tearing at his soul.

Kill Yahiko? He could not do it.

But if he did not, Konan and their companions...

Despair engulfed him completely, like freezing rain.

"Do it, Nagato!" Yahiko roared, suddenly throwing himself toward the kunai in Nagato's hand.

Driven by Nagato's rampaging chakra, the kunai flew uncontrollably toward Yahiko's heart.

At the critical instant.

"Stop!"

A sharp shout exploded beside everyone's ears like thunder breaking across the ground.

A figure appeared out of nowhere, blocking the space between Yahiko and Nagato's kunai.

[Clang!]

Metal rang sharply.

Kamizuki Yu extended one hand and calmly caught the tip of the chakra-infused kunai between two fingers, utterly unmoving.

The kunai was less than an inch from Yahiko's chest.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment.

An indescribably terrifying pressure erupted from Kamizuki Yu and swept across the battlefield.

Hanzo's elite troops all changed expression. Under that pressure, even breathing became difficult.

The Akatsuki members were also stunned by the sudden turn of events.

Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan all looked up at once.

What entered their eyes was a figure far too young.

Yet his back seemed as dependable as a mountain.

It was him!

At their most desperate moment, he had descended like a miracle.

"How could..." Yahiko murmured, the force driving him toward the kunai abruptly vanishing.

Nagato's rampaging chakra seemed to have found an outlet, only to be forcibly suppressed by an even greater power. His kunai was trapped between the other man's two fingers and could not advance another inch.

Looking at that calm face, he momentarily forgot all his pain.

Konan's tears blurred her vision, but she could feel that the deadly threat had disappeared.

Hanzo of the Salamander's pupils suddenly contracted.

When had this person appeared?

He had not sensed him at all!

The aura radiating from him was far more terrifying than any powerful warrior Hanzo had ever encountered, perhaps even... greater than his own!

"Who are you?" Hanzo demanded harshly, trying to conceal the shock in his heart with his voice. "How dare you interfere in the affairs of my Hidden Rain Village!"

Kamizuki Yu did not answer him immediately.

He released his fingers, and Nagato's kunai fell onto the slick rock with a [clatter].

"It's all right now." Kamizuki Yu turned back and gave Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan a gentle smile. "As long as I'm here, no one will lay a hand on you today."

That smile dispelled every shadow in their hearts.

Yahiko opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found his throat dry.

Nagato only stared blankly at him. The madness in his Rinnegan gradually faded, replaced by the dazed confusion of someone who had survived disaster.

Konan's sobs finally broke free, but they were no longer cries of despair.

Kamizuki Yu turned around. That gentleness vanished in an instant, replaced by utter indifference.

He looked at Hanzo of the Salamander and spoke calmly. "Hanzo of the Salamander, your era is over."

"Arrogant!" Hanzo laughed in rage as chakra surged around him. "You think you can do it alone?"

He had fought all his life. When had anyone ever looked down on him like this?

Even if the other man possessed a powerful aura, this was Hanzo's territory. He had absolute confidence.

"Lord Kamizuki Yu..." Yahiko finally found his voice, filled with uncertainty and deep gratitude.

He was the mysterious powerhouse who had saved them on the battlefield and given them hope.

Kamizuki Yu nodded slightly in response.

"So, you know each other?" Hanzo narrowed his eyes, the unease in his heart growing stronger.

This young man who had appeared out of nowhere was connected to Akatsuki?

That made things even more troublesome.

His original plan had been to use Yahiko's death to completely crush Nagato's will, then seize control of those Rinnegan for himself.

Now, it had all been thrown into disarray.

"Hanzo, you seem not to understand the situation." Kamizuki Yu's tone was flat, but it carried an authority that could not be defied. "This is not the time for you to question me."

His gaze swept over the Hidden Rain shinobi behind Hanzo.

"Or do you want them all to die here?"

A threat.

A naked, undisguised threat.

Hanzo had endured countless battles. How could he be frightened by a few words?

He snorted coldly. "Young man, you certainly talk big. Let's see what you're capable of!"

Before his words had even faded, Hanzo rapidly formed hand seals.

Fire Release: Explosive Flame Formation!

A great number of explosive tags flew from his sleeves, spreading like a massive net over Kamizuki Yu.

At the same time, he ordered his subordinates, "Kill them! Leave no one alive!"

Having received the command, the Hidden Rain elites suppressed the unease in their hearts and charged at the surviving Akatsuki members with savage roars.

Yahiko and the others immediately took up defensive stances, preparing to meet the assault.

Though they had been saved, the crisis was not over.

Faced with the explosive tags filling the sky, Kamizuki Yu did not even raise an eyelid.

"Too noisy."

He merely spoke those two words.

The next instant, an invisible force spread outward from him.

The explosive tags flying toward him abruptly stopped in midair. Then, as if kneaded by an invisible hand, they twisted and warped before finally turning into scraps of waste paper with a series of [puffs], drifting to the ground.

At the same time, the Hidden Rain shinobi charging at Yahiko and the others seemed to slam into an invisible wall. They cried out and were sent flying backward, tumbling in every direction.

In a single instant.

The situation had reversed.

Hanzo's pupils shrank to pinpoints.

What kind of power was this?

He had not even seen the other man form hand seals!

"Now, we can have a proper talk." Kamizuki Yu took a step forward.

That step seemed to land on everyone's heart.

Cold sweat beaded on Hanzo's forehead. He had never felt such overwhelming pressure.

The other man's strength was unfathomable.

"You... who exactly are you?" Hanzo's voice was dry.

Kamizuki Yu did not answer. He merely raised one hand, palm upward.

A highly condensed sphere of chakra appeared in his palm, radiating a pulse that made hearts tremble.

"Submit, or die."

His voice was not loud, yet it reached every person's ears with perfect clarity.