That morning, Satō Ichirō finished breakfast and prepared to leave. As he watched the rain dripping steadily outside, he felt uneasy for some reason.
He had been worried ever since Hanzō promoted him to a core guard.
"It seems like it's been raining longer and longer lately."
Dressed in her loungewear, Kikuno Momo picked up the cloak and handed it to Satō Ichirō. "Yes. It used to stop for a couple of days now and then, but I don't know what's happened lately. Even business at the shop has suffered."
"If business is bad, why not close the shop? We don't need the extra income."
The low-key Satō Ichirō had never wanted to open a grilled fish shop, but he couldn't argue his beloved wife out of it.
Kikuno Momo's frequent appearances in public had drawn plenty of unwanted attention. Luckily, he was a Jonin and could protect her.
Otherwise, someone would have taken her away long ago.
"I can't do that. I'd be too bored at home alone. I have to find something to do." Kikuno Momo shook her head.
Although there was a considerable age gap between them, they got along surprisingly well and were highly compatible.
"Ah, suit yourself." Satō Ichirō sighed.
"What's wrong? You haven't seemed yourself lately. Are you going through menopause? Haha..."
"It's nothing. Maybe I'm overthinking things. I'm off."
Satō Ichirō shook his head, turned, and plunged into the curtain of rain.
"Could something really be about to happen?" Kikuno Momo murmured.
Many people came to eat at the Silver Fish Pavilion every day, and they talked about all the village's affairs, big and small. There had been nothing out of the ordinary.
What could have her husband so worried?
When Satō Ichirō arrived at the changing room, he found Aoki Tsuki waiting for him at the entrance.
"You just got back from a mission and came straight in for guard duty? Do you have to work so hard?"
"I'm just relying on my youth and energy. Speaking of which, captain, if I had a wife as beautiful as yours, I'd probably have worn myself out by now. Haha..."
"You... now you're teasing me too." Satō Ichirō sounded helpless.
Aoki Tsuki was the sort of person who could strike up a conversation with anyone. You couldn't bring yourself to dislike someone like that.
"You're old enough to find a wife yourself, aren't you? Take it from someone who's been there: don't find one who's too beautiful. You'll have a more peaceful life that way."
"Mm-hmm, that's what I think too. The important thing is that she has a good figure."
"All right, enough of that. If you have something to say, say it. It's almost time to go on duty," Satō Ichirō urged.
Waiting here for him so early in the morning, Aoki Tsuki had to have something to discuss.
Aoki Tsuki feigned casualness. "It's nothing, really. I just suddenly remembered what you told me half a year ago, captain, when you'd just become a core guard."
"Half a year ago?..." Satō Ichirō's heart sank.
Back then, Hanzō had led men to surround and kill the Akatsuki. He and the other outer guard captains had stayed behind to guard the village and hadn't taken part in the operation, thus escaping disaster.
Not one of the dozen-plus Jonin who went had returned.
For the past half year, he had been worried that the other party would come for revenge one day, and today Aoki Tsuki had brought it up deliberately.
...Has it finally come to this?
"Captain, if... I mean, if that person really comes to take revenge on Lord Hanzō, what should we do?
"There's no way we could win a fight.
"If even Lord Hanzō, Danzo, and dozens of elite Konoha Anbu couldn't deal with him, what chance would small fry like us have?"
Satō Ichirō had actually considered Aoki Tsuki's question many times.
Put another way, it was a choice: either betray Lord Hanzō and ruin his reputation, or go to the Pure Land with Lord Hanzō.
Satō Ichirō was silent for a moment. Then he shook his head and said, "I don't know either. Maybe when the time comes, my heart will tell me the real answer."
"Uh... all right, then."
Aoki Tsuki had thought Satō Ichirō, like him, was loyal only in words. He hadn't expected him to stand firm when it mattered.
To the Six Paths of Pain, killing an ordinary Jonin was as easy as swatting a fly. Resistance was meaningless.
But everyone had their own beliefs, and some valued those beliefs more than life itself. In that case, there was nothing much to be done.
Afterward, Aoki Tsuki found an excuse to leave. Around the corner, he spotted a plump figure.
Jonin Tsunodahara had been standing outside for who knew how long. It seemed he'd been there a while.
The two exchanged a smile, found a corner, and began smoking and chatting.
This guy regularly resold the village's supplies outside for profit. He had no principles to speak of.
Since they had worked together many times before, the two quickly came to an agreement.
Everything inside and out had been taken care of. As for the others, such as Mino and Tanioka, who were also outer guard captains, they were merely ordinary colleagues.
He didn't dare go to them about something like this. If they reported him, he would be the one to die.
Fortunately, the Mino Squad was responsible for the second floor, the Tanioka Squad for the top floor, and Aoki Tsuki's squad for the first floor, guarding the main entrance and exit.
At around three in the morning, when everyone was at their sleepiest.
Aoki Tsuki sat on the steps by the entrance, gazing blankly at the light rain drizzling outside. On any other day, he would have been hiding in a corner somewhere, asleep.
These past few days, he had needed to stay alert at all times. It turned out his caution had been justified.
A paper butterfly flew out of the pitch-black curtain of rain, fluttered its wings twice in front of him, then rose into the air and flew upstairs.
"It's starting already?!"
Aoki Tsuki knew that not one of the two guard squads on the second and third floors would survive. As for the squad of hidden sentries around the tower, they had probably already been dealt with.
He breathed out softly, turned, and beckoned to his squad members inside.
At the time, Shioame, Ryōta, and Shinichi were dozing at separate intersections along the corridors.
Ryōta was the first to react. Seeing Aoki Tsuki gesture, he hurried over quietly. "Captain, what is it?"
"Bring Shioame and Shinichi over. It's important."
The squad members gathered around, and only then did Aoki Tsuki speak. "Listen. What I'm about to tell you concerns your lives and livelihoods, so don't breathe a word."
Their expressions immediately grew grave. Aoki Tsuki had given them a heads-up a couple of days earlier, so they were mentally prepared.
They were just curious what it was about.
"Your shift ends here today. Go home for now. When the shift changes at daybreak, bring Kurokawa and the other two to the village mission hall. We'll meet there."
Ryōta and Shinichi were baffled by the request. Only Shioame cast a discreet glance upstairs and around them, his heart pounding.
The Chakra fluctuations of their colleagues all around them had vanished.
He seemed to have guessed something, but could scarcely believe it. He could only force himself to remain calm.
Since Aoki Tsuki had said so, if anything happened, he would bear the responsibility as captain. Besides, Aoki Tsuki was forcibly removing them from this, which might not be a bad thing.
"Don't ask anything. Just go home like you're told, and I'll make sure you're safe."
"I'll do whatever you say, captain," Ryōta answered immediately.
"Same here," Shinichi agreed.
Hearing Aoki Tsuki speak that way, even the slowest among them knew something big was about to happen. They just had to do as they were told; the captain had no reason to harm them.
"I understand," Shioame replied as well.
The three hurried out of the tower. With that, all of its outer defenses were gone.
Not long after the three left, six figures in black cloaks patterned with red clouds emerged from the rain. Six pairs of purple, ripple-patterned eyes shone coldly, like Yamas come to claim lives.
Their presence was overwhelmingly oppressive.
It made Aoki Tsuki deeply uncomfortable.
Rustle...
A flurry of paper butterflies flew down from upstairs and gathered into Konan's form. She nodded to Pain.
She had already dealt with the two squads upstairs.
Pain's gaze passed over Aoki Tsuki at the entrance and settled on the deepest part of the tower, where Hanzō was.
That powerful Chakra shone in his eyes like an open flame in the darkness.
"Follow me."
Aoki Tsuki turned and headed deep into the corridor, with the Six Paths of Pain and Konan close behind.
A Jonin stood guard at each of the four corners of Hanzō's room. The two guards at the front were Satō Ichirō and Tsunodahara.
He had spoken to both of them that morning, so although they were somewhat shocked to see Aoki Tsuki suddenly bring people in, they did not raise the alarm or call for the others.
Tsunodahara got straight to his feet and bowed to Pain, signaling his submission. Then he stood to one side with his hands at his sides, saying nothing.
He had done business with the Akatsuki when he secretly sold supplies in the past, so they were something of an acquaintance.
Satō Ichirō did the exact opposite. He took a Kunai from his ninja tool pouch and assumed a fighting stance.
"Captain!!"
Aoki Tsuki called out softly, hoping to make one last attempt to change his mind.
Satō Ichirō glanced at Aoki Tsuki, his expression resolute. Without a word, he charged at Pain.
As Hanzō's guard, he had enjoyed the status, glory, and dignity the position brought him for more than a decade.
He would not allow himself to betray him.
"Hmph, you overestimate yourself," Deva Path Pain said with disdain.
He suddenly extended his left hand and used Banshō Ten'in on Satō Ichirō. The latter was abruptly thrown off balance and pulled helplessly toward him.
At the same time, a short black iron rod emerged from Deva Path Pain's right palm.
Puchi...
The iron rod pierced straight through Satō Ichirō's heart, draining him of all strength in an instant. His body went limp, all signs of life gone.
He had not said a word throughout the entire exchange, dying silently just like that.
At the sight of Satō Ichirō, whose strength was comparable to his own, killed instantly in a single exchange, Tsunodahara felt an involuntary jolt in his heart. Cold sweat poured down his forehead.
Aoki Tsuki fell silent as he looked at Satō Ichirō's body.
"Who...?"
At that moment, the two Jonin at the back realized something was wrong and hurried over to investigate.
But the moment they appeared, Deva Path Pain reached out with both hands and pulled them through the air toward him, then snapped their necks like they were chicks.
Three Jonin, all dead in less than ten seconds.
It did, however, alert Hanzō inside the room. A deep voice came from within, still hazy with sleep.
"What's going on out there, Tsunoda?"
"Lord Hanzō."
Tsunodahara answered instinctively, then cautiously glanced at Deva Path Pain before saying, "A guest wishes to see you."
"A guest?"
Hanzō seemed to realize something then. Who would come visiting in the middle of the night?
He quickly climbed out of bed and was about to grab his weapon when a headache struck. He had been drinking the night before, and his body still hadn't fully woken up.
Bang...
The Six Paths of Pain immediately burst through the door. With Hanzō completely unprepared, the battle began right there in his bedchamber.