Arrangements

Land of Rain.

Amegakure.

It still rained here all year round.

Actually, Feng Yao knew that Amegakure merely had a lot of rain. That did not mean it rained nonstop.

The real reason for the constant rain was Nagato's ninjutsu, the Rain Tiger at Will Technique.

It was a large-scale reconnaissance ninjutsu of sorts.

Anyone who entered the range of the Rain Tiger at Will Technique could be detected by Nagato as long as the rain touched them.

That was also why Feng Yao had used Kamui to travel straight to Orochimaru's laboratory when he went looking for him earlier.

Behind Feng Yao, space distorted, and members of the Uchiha Clan stepped out one after another.

He looked around at his surroundings in amazement.

Pain led Feng Yao into Amegakure.

"From now on, your Uchiha Clan will be part of Amegakure. I'll have Konan notify the other ninja villages in Hanzo of the Salamander's name later."

Feng Yao nodded.

Hanzō had died long ago. News of his death simply had not spread.

In name, Hanzō was still the leader of Amegakure.

By now, news of the Uchiha's departure from Konoha had probably reached the other ninja villages.

The Uchiha were a powerful clan in the Shinobi World.

They possessed the formidable kekkei genkai, the Sharingan.

They were top-class in genjutsu, copying, and reconnaissance.

An Uchiha with three tomoe had at least the strength of a Jonin.

Faced with such a formidable lineup, the other ninja villages would find it hard to tolerate.

Feng Yao understood that, and naturally, so did Nagato.

But neither was afraid. One possessed the eternal Mangekyō Sharingan with Double Kamui, while the other possessed the Rinnegan. Both were practically at Super Kage Level.

With the powerful members of the Akatsuki and the Uchiha added in, they had at least five or six Kage Level fighters among them.

Such a lineup was fully on par with the Five Great Nations.

They only fell short in lower-end fighting strength. After all, the Land of Rain was a small nation.

But to Feng Yao and Nagato, that was a minor issue. Large-scale, high-powered ninjutsu-those who knew, knew.

What about the tailed beasts, then? Wouldn't a single Tailed Beast Bomb finish them off?

Heh. As far as Feng Yao was concerned, that was thinking too small.

When the time came, he would show them what it meant to be the tailed beasts' eternal stern father!

"Konan, go get the Uchiha settled in."

Pain left the task to Konan and departed.

The other members of the Akatsuki left with him.

Konan had always managed Amegakure.

Clearly, Konan had learned something too. Feng Yao thought Nagato must have told her.

"Let's go..."

Konan spoke softly, carefully observing the Uchiha clan members.

Feng Yao nodded and followed Konan into Amegakure.

The rest of the Uchiha followed closely behind.

The surrounding architecture had a distinctly metallic feel, consisting of buildings of varying sizes.

The surroundings were damp and chilly.

Seeing architecture and surroundings like these for the first time, all the Uchiha clan members found them novel.

"Th-then who's that...?"

"Why is Lady Angel bringing in so many strangers?"

"They must be new arrivals joining us..."

"No, those are Uchiha!" A ninja who had been on the battlefield recognized the fans on the Uchiha's backs.

They were the Uchiha's distinctive emblem.

"Huh? The Uchiha? Aren't they from Konoha? Why have they come to our Amegakure?"

"Isn't it obvious? It must be Lord Divine Messenger's doing. With the Uchiha joining our village, we'll definitely become even stronger!"

"Look at the Uchiha. They really are a prestigious ninja clan. There are so many of them."

Amegakure's villagers and ninja all noticed the Uchiha, their faces curious as they discussed them.

Among the crowd, several seven- or eight-year-old children also stared curiously at the Uchiha.

Feng Yao recognized one of the children. She was Ajisai, who would become one of the Six Paths of Pain in the future...

Walking at the front, Konan saw the villagers gathering to watch. "From now on, the Uchiha will be part of Amegakure!"

At her words, cheers rang out endlessly from Amegakure's villagers.

The villagers celebrated the Uchiha's arrival.

Hearing the discussions around them, all the Uchiha clan members looked excited.

The Uchiha clan members held their heads high and puffed out their chests, trying hard to maintain their aloof demeanor, but the upturned corners of their mouths betrayed what they felt inside.

That was how the Uchiha were: aloof and proud, hiding their true feelings.

Compared with Konoha's villagers, the Uchiha felt Amegakure's warmth, giving them a slight sense of belonging after setting foot on unfamiliar land.

The unease they had felt about the future vanished at that moment.

The Uchiha were already beginning to look forward to life in Amegakure.

"Haha, our Uchiha Clan still has so many good qualities in other people's eyes."

Both Fugaku and Setsuna were rather overwhelmed by the favor.

When had they ever received such a welcome in Konoha? They would have been lucky not to be cursed at.

Though Itachi showed no reaction, inwardly, he was deeply shaken as well.

Afterward, Konan assigned the Uchiha Clan Compound a location in the center of Amegakure as a gesture of welcome.

The Uchiha Clan had now settled down peacefully in Amegakure.

Soon, news that the Uchiha Clan had joined Amegakure spread throughout the Five Great Nations.

Land of Fire.

Konoha.

Bang!

"Hiruzen, the entire Uchiha Clan has defected from the village! What are you still hesitating for? Give me some Anbu and funding, and I'll go hunt them down right now!"

Danzo came straight to the point as he glared aggressively at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Danzo.

Do you think I can't see what you're after?

Hunt down the Uchiha? Why weren't you this brave last night?

Under Hiruzen Sarutobi's stare, Shimura Danzō's embarrassment turned to anger.

Of course he knew what Hiruzen Sarutobi meant.

Of the two billion in funds meant to hire the Akatsuki, half had served as a deposit, while the other half had served as startup funding for Root.

As for paying the full amount, that was impossible.

Danzo had originally planned to eliminate the Akatsuki along with them when the time came. Instead, to his surprise, he had been stabbed in the back.

Root's laboratory had also been infiltrated, and all two billion ryō had gone down the drain.

Danzo was furious.

"Hmph, Hiruzen, are we just going to let the Uchiha join Amegakure like this?"

Danzo spoke unwillingly.

To think that after all those twists and turns, Hanzō had ended up reaping the benefits.

Danzo even somewhat suspected that Hanzō was controlling the Akatsuki from behind the scenes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep draw on his pipe, his gaze brooding. "Then what do you want to do?"

"Are you going to throw your life away against Uchiha Fengyao's Susanoo?"

Remembering the Susanoo that had stood hundreds of meters tall last night, Danzo felt a chill of fear.

But his greed for the Sharingan overcame the fear in his heart.

"Hiruzen, a technique with such a large range must consume a great deal of chakra. Perhaps Uchiha Fengyao was already running short of chakra then. Otherwise, why didn't he kill us outright?"

"Why did he retreat with the others instead?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned. That was indeed possible, but he did not dare gamble on it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi thought for a moment. "Even if Feng Yao's chakra had run out then, there were still Setsuna, Fugaku, Itachi, and the Akatsuki. If we fought them head-on, Konoha would be the one suffering losses!"

Seeing that he had failed to achieve his goal, Supreme Teamfight gritted his teeth. "Hiruzen, you're too indecisive!"

"Enough, Danzo! I am the Hokage!"

"Hiruzen, you'll regret this!"

Bang!

With a loud crash, Shimura Danzō slammed the office door shut.