Konan had been captured by the Konoha Rogue Ninja Danzo, but Yahiko knew nothing of it. He went to Amegakure alone, planning to negotiate an agreement with Hanzo of the Salamander.
Unfortunately, Yahiko had forgotten what Qingyun had once told them: peace was never won through words, but through strength.
Why had the Shinobi World been at peace while Konoha's First was alive, with no one daring to invade Konoha?
Because no one in the Four Great Ninja Villages could match the First.
Why had the Third Shinobi World War ended so quickly?
Because Qingyun had single-handedly defeated Sunagakure first, laying the foundation for victory, then single-handedly beaten Kirigakure into submission. Otherwise, the Third Shinobi World War would have continued for some time.
Yet Yahiko naively believed he could obtain the peace he wanted through negotiation. When the final outcome lay before him, his regret would come too late.
Meanwhile, at Akatsuki's base, Nagato discovered that Konan was missing. An uneasy feeling had risen in his heart after Yahiko left, and now he remembered what Qingyun had once told them. He immediately gathered Akatsuki's ninja and rushed toward Amegakure.
Amegakure was perpetually shrouded in drizzling rain. Its houses were built atop networks of pipes, the only way to keep the villagers' homes from being flooded.
Inside Amegakure's tallest building, which also served as the village chief's office, Hanzo of the Salamander wore an enormous cloak that covered his entire body and an airtight mask over his face.
Only this prevented the poisonous gas produced by Hanzo of the Salamander's breathing from poisoning the Rain Ninja under his command.
Reading the letter Yahiko had sent him, Hanzo of the Salamander sneered. "This Yahiko really is naive. He actually imagines he can persuade me through negotiation to coexist peacefully with them. What