Konoha, the Hokage Building.
After several days of travel, the Fire Squad reached the village and made its way to the Hokage Building.
Inside his office, the Third Hokage stood by the window with his hands behind his back, gazing at the withered yellow leaves on the ground. He looked like a figure in a world-famous painting, waiting for someone to return.
When the doorbell rang, the Third Hokage turned toward the team of jonin before him and asked impatiently, "Did you complete the mission?"
The members of the Fire Squad exchanged glances. There was no joy on their faces, only solemnity.
The Third Hokage immediately understood something. He sat back in his chair and asked with a complicated expression, "Tell me exactly what happened."
As the captain, Oto promptly handed over the mission report, her gaze flicking toward a corner.
Taking the mission report, the Third Hokage read it carefully for a while before letting out a long breath. "It seems the Akatsuki leader is considerably stronger than we estimated... Still, I'm relieved you all returned safely."
The Third Hokage had already experienced firsthand what the report described about the Akatsuki leader.
Back then, he and Jiraiya had led a large force of ninja in a surprise attack, yet they had failed to breach Amegakure's defenses and had been stopped at its gates. The power of Planetary Devastation had been enough to inspire despair.
For some reason, however, the Pain the Fire Squad encountered had not used that technique.
Was it because that technique had serious side effects?
On reflection, that made some sense. If a technique like that could be used freely, Akatsuki would not have needed to lie low for all these years. It would have overthrown the order of the Five Great Nations long ago.
A