The sky was dim.
Countless Rain Ninja surrounded the stage in the square.
Hanzō stood on the stage, holding his ninja blade.
A Rain Ninja stepped out of the ranks, lowered his head, and knelt on one knee before Hanzō.
"Lord Hanzō, the Akatsuki grows stronger by the day. Their reach has already extended into Amegakure's upper ranks. If this continues, there will be no room left for us to survive."
Hanzō did not respond to his concern. His gaze swept over the ninja below.
"Is everyone here?"
"Everyone is here. At your command, my lord, we will attack the Akatsuki together and prove the glory of Amegakure."
Hanzō's gaze wandered before finally settling on a building behind the square.
The view drew closer. Konan nodded beside the window.
With confirmation received, Hanzō's presence sharpened.
The Rain Ninja looked at Hanzō in delight. Lord Hanzō seemed to have made his decision.
The next instant, the Rain Ninja's eyes bulged with rage. His bloodshot eyes glared at Hanzō as blood poured endlessly from his mouth.
"My lord, why..."
Holding his ninja blade, Hanzō impaled the Rain Ninja before him and lifted him high into the air.
At the same time, four curtains of light appeared around the square, enclosing it.
The Rain Ninja looked around in panic. Four ninja wearing Akatsuki robes stood before the four curtains of light.
"Wh-what is this..."
"The Four Violet Flames Formation! Why is it here?"
"Impossible, Lord Hanzō... impossible!"
Some Rain Ninja refused to believe it and charged toward the light. The instant their bodies passed through, they turned to black ash and scattered.
Unmoved by the scene before him, Hanzō casually tossed aside his ninja blade and the corpse in his hand.
He spread his arms.
"I am Hanzo of the Salamander. Out of admiration and agreement with the Akatsuki's ideals, I have now joined the Akatsuki."
"My name is now Pain!"
"Those who agree with the Akatsuki's ideals, take off your forehead protectors and join the Akatsuki."
Some of the less resolute Rain Ninja looked at Hanzō on the stage, covered in gruesome bloodstains, and were about to take off their forehead protectors.
A piercing voice suddenly rang out among the Rain Ninja.
"Look! Lord Hanzō's eyes are exactly the same as that monster from the Akatsuki! This Hanzō is a fake!"
"They do look alike... this Hanzō is a fake!"
"Monster, give Lord Hanzō back!"
Some Rain Ninja formed hand seals and used ninjutsu, or threw kunai and shuriken, attacking Hanzō.
Amid the chaos, one of the Rain Ninja nodded to Pain Hanzō, formed hand seals, and sank underground, disappearing.
"Stubborn fools. Disappear."
Pain Hanzō then spoke softly, too quietly for anyone around him to hear. "Pero, I'll leave this to you. Remember to put the body back for me."
"Look up!"
"What is that?"
Pero slowly descended with glowing red eyes, firing Heat Vision continuously along the way. The scene resembled a hell of carnage, severed limbs flying amid a chorus of screams.
"Ah! Monster! I don't want to die!" Half a Rain Ninja dragged his body toward the curtain of light, but died after crawling only a few paces.
By the time Pero landed, only a handful remained alive.
Seeing this, Pero clapped his hands.
As though receiving a signal, the curtains of light withdrew.
Holy shit, system, does Heat Vision at its lowest power really look this over the top?
[The host wished to intimidate some people into spreading word of the host. The level recommended by the system provides the optimal visual effect.]
The remaining two or three Rain Ninja collapsed into sitting positions, their legs weak. They trembled as they surveyed the carnage around them.
Seeing the curtains of light disappear, these Rain Ninja had a surge of adrenaline and used life-burning secret techniques to flee the square at lightning speed.
"Ah, they're still stupid. This barrier doesn't cover the underground. They could've escaped with Earth Release."
Pero shook his head, grabbed Hanzō by the neck, and sped away.
At Iwagakure's border.
Inside a stone cave.
Nagato sat cross-legged.
Kakuzu and Sasori stood outside the entrance.
"Why did he suddenly want a rest? What do you think about me taking him down now and turning him into eternal art?"
The enormous puppet spoke in a buzzing voice.
Kakuzu gave Sasori a sidelong glance and drew a kunai, pointing it at him.
"You'd better show our patron some respect."
Listening to the argument outside the cave, Nagato opened his eyes.
He got up and walked out.
"Thank you so much for guarding me." Nagato glared at Sasori.
Somewhat embarrassed, Sasori turned aside to look at the scenery.
"Have you still not found the Jinchūriki?"
Sasori glanced up at the mechanical bird circling overhead.
"We've already found-found his trail."
"Son, why do you think the Third acted like that?"
"I clearly didn't do anything wrong."
Sitting on a rock, Roshi was speaking with Son Goku, the Four-Tails inside him.
Outside his field of vision, hundreds of black needles shot down from the sky.
Sensing killing intent, Roshi turned around and discovered hidden weapons filling the sky. Instinctively, he opened his mouth and spat out dozens of lava bombs to block them.
Lava Release: Scorching River Rock Technique
The black needles burst into green smoke upon contact with the lava balls. Roshi glanced sideways at the black needles embedded in the ground, gleaming with an eerie green light.
Poison!
He immediately covered his nose and leaped backward several times, trying to leave the area.
Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld
Kakuzu suddenly appeared behind Roshi and clapped his hands together. The earth before him turned into a swamp, leaving Roshi, who was tumbling through the air, unable to adjust where he would land.
Kakuzu rose, grabbed Roshi's feet in midair, and dragged him into the swamp.
Several pitch-black chains suddenly shot out from beyond the swamp and coiled around Roshi's limbs.
This is bad, Roshi thought. There were two enemies.
He looked toward the direction the chains had come from.
Countless threads gleaming white extended from an enormous puppet, connecting it to the surrounding rocks.
"Sasori of the Red Sands? A trap... when!"
The moment he finished speaking.
Sasori's body turned into a vast tide of puppets. Hundreds of puppets simultaneously fired poison needles at Roshi, who was chained in the swamp. The eerily green needles formed an impenetrable net of death.
Kakuzu hurriedly sank underground at the sight. This teammate seemed intent on killing him too.
Roshi roared, his body suddenly swelling. A gradually darkening red Tailed Beast Cloak appeared over him. His body shuddered as he entered Lava Release Chakra Mode.
The poison needles vaporized immediately upon touching the Tailed Beast Cloak, turning into clouds of poisonous mist.
He twisted his body, using its intense heat to melt through all the chains.
The swamp beneath him baked solid into rock under the intense heat.
After landing, Roshi pressed his palms together.
He unleashed Lava Release: Scorching River Rock Technique once more.
With the Tailed Beast's power, everything within a hundred-meter radius became a lava hell. Seeing this, Kakuzu manifested a black mask behind him.
Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall.
Kakuzu summoned an earth-style wall to serve as a platform in the lava, where it burned red-hot. Sasori's puppets gradually melted into molten iron in the heat.
Whoosh, whoosh.
Sasori rapidly reeled in the threads connected to his puppets, but still could not prevent many of them from melting.
Nagato descended from the sky, landed on the lava, and slowly walked forward.
Nagato raised his right hand and clenched it hard into a fist.
Shinra Tensei.
The lava on the ground was instantly driven back by repulsive force.
"Roshi, that guy... those are the Rinnegan! Run!" Alarm bells rang in Son Goku's mind inside Roshi.
At those words, Roshi's Tailed Beast Cloak swelled dramatically again. Pressing his palms together, he unleashed a ninjutsu he could only use in his Tailed Beast state.
Lava Release: Flower-Fruit Mountain.
The remaining sea of lava around them instantly erupted in a spray.
With the erupting lava blocking the view.
Roshi wanted to turn and run.
Suddenly, he felt an invisible gravitational force pulling at him.
The voice in Roshi's head shouted, "This is bad!"
Gritting his teeth, Roshi turned and saw a large hole in the falling curtain of lava. Behind it stood a red-haired man with his right hand raised.
Banshō Ten'in.
The invisible pull abruptly tightened, and his body flew uncontrollably toward Nagato.
Roshi hung suspended before Nagato.
Wave after wave of heat made Nagato frown.
"Who exactly... are you? What... do you want..."
"We'd like to borrow your Tailed Beast."
"Join the Akatsuki, or die."
Before you continue