Nagato stared fixedly in the direction the people from Iwagakure and Kumogakure had gone.
Just then, he felt a gentle tug on the hem of his clothes.
He looked down and saw a little girl sitting on the ground, filthy from head to toe.
Tears covered her face. Her eyes were wide with fright, her pupils trembling.
Nagato looked at her, his expression barely changing. "You're the child Yahiko saved, aren't you?"
Only when he said Yahiko's name did his voice soften a little.
Otherwise, he seemed cold as ice. Yet the girl did not appear afraid of him. She called softly, "Nagato!"
Nagato was a little surprised to hear her say his name. "Why did you call me that?" He was certain he had never met her.
The girl replied timidly, "Yahiko said that if he couldn't move, I should wait quietly. The first person to come to him would be Nagato!"
Hearing her words, Nagato could almost picture Yahiko smiling as he said them.
That only made the pain worse.
But he showed none of it, hiding it beneath a numb expression.
"Did Yahiko say anything else?"
Nagato desperately wanted to know what else Yahiko had said, but he still looked perfectly composed.
The numbness on his face concealed the feeling that his heart was being cut to pieces.
The girl said softly, "Yahiko told me to stay by your side from now on and take good care of you!"
Though the words came from a girl of only twelve or thirteen, Nagato did not doubt her for a moment.
He knew Yahiko well. That was exactly the sort of thing he would say.
Worried that Nagato would lose his last source of strength after he was gone, Yahiko had gone out of his way to give him