The tall tower in the west district.
"How's it going?"
"Everything's arranged. Aoki Tsuki is having dinner with that old guy. We'll be heading back to Kyoto first thing tomorrow morning."
"That's good. Now we can proceed with Akatsuki's plan. Give him the things tomorrow. We've received a few orders recently, and Sasori and Kakuzu have already started working on the missions."
A skilled fighter like Aoki Tsuki can't be left idle. The village doesn't need him anymore, so he should be moved to work for Akatsuki as soon as possible.
"Knew."
Konan wholeheartedly agreed; what in the village could escape her notice?
This guy has been living a wild life since he turned 18. In less than six months, he's ruined all the entertainment venues in the village without any restraint.
Some people act all serious during the day, but sneak around various entertainment venues late at night.
It's euphemistically called: stimulating consumption.
The night passed quickly. In the morning, I had breakfast with Eiji Ishida and arranged for a team of guards to accompany us on our journey. This reception was then considered a complete success.
He excitedly ran to report his achievements to his superiors.
"... Eiji repeatedly praised the village under Lord Pain's rule. There shouldn't be any problems with the daimyo. That's all."
Konan watched as Aoki Tsuki recounted the story with a radiant smile, occasionally gesturing with his hands at the most exciting parts.
"You must be exhausted from last night! You must have worked so hard!!"
Unexpectedly, this guy actually thought she was trying to comfort him, and nodded, saying, "That's true, it's been going on until the middle of the night, but since it's for the village..."
It's only right to work a little harder, haha...
"Looks like you really had a lot of fun. You've probably forgotten all about the ' Three Prohibitions of Shinobi ' by now."
"Ah... absolutely not. It's all for work. Otherwise, how could someone as self-disciplined as me be tempted by wine and women? That's just how diplomacy is."
Konan dismissed Aoki Tsuki's clumsy explanation with disdain, reminding him, "I just want to tell you that as a Amegakure, you must always be vigilant. Forgetting the past is tantamount to betrayal."
Too many people in this Shinobi World are still suffering from the trauma of war, and the road to peace remains long.
"Yes, yes, yes, Lord Konan is farsighted. Your words have awakened me from my dream. I was wrong. I shouldn't have given up and become complacent with the comfort I had before me."
"That despicable Konoha! They are the true culprits behind all this chaos."
Aoki Tsuki's face was filled with indignation.
Seeing that this guy outwardly agreed but inwardly didn't care at all, Konan felt sad.
I feel sorrow for this country and this village.
'Perhaps Yahiko felt the same way back then.'
When most people heard that Xiao's goal was to create peace, their first reaction was 'crazy,' leaving them with a mocking look.
Apart from Nagato and her, no one in the entire Amegakure truly believed that Pain could quell the rebellion and unify the Land of Rain, until that day actually arrived.
People only remember the person who once spoke of their dreams when they see the results.
However, when all of this happened at the beginning, everyone just laughed it off, treating it as the ravings of a madman.
I hope that's truly what you think.
Sad as it is, life goes on. After all, this guy is still quite useful, Konan comforted herself with this thought.
"I've always thought this way, and I've long been prepared to fight for peace in the Shinobi World. The village and the Land of Rain are where they are today thanks to Lord Pain."
I not only say this, but I truly believe it from the bottom of my heart.
"Don't try to fool me. Pain is a man of action, not words. If you can't consistently demonstrate your value, you'll face the consequences."
Good grief, they've already figured out how to psychologically exploit their employees.
Verbal intimidation combined with physical force!
Are you scared?
"That's quite a coincidence. Lord Pain and I complement each other perfectly."
Aoki Tsuki hurriedly said, "But I'm just an intern right now, I can't get involved in core missions, and I have no way to serve... I'm extremely anxious... I'm powerless... um..."
Konan handed a ring, symbolizing a core member of Akatsuki, to Aoki Tsuki.
Now you have the opportunity to show yourself.
"This... is it so sudden? I'm not mentally prepared at all!" Aoki Tsuki rubbed his hands, unsure whether to accept it.
Sure enough, after a lecture, it turned out that this was what she was waiting for.
I must say, you truly are worthy of your title, Konan!
"You've passed Akatsuki's test. Pain has acknowledged your strength. From today onwards, you are a core member of Akatsuki, codenamed ' Azure Dragon.' Any questions?"
"No... no, everyone in the village knows of my loyalty to Lord Pain. It is my honor to serve Lord Pain."
Aoki Tsuki reached out and put the ring on the index finger of her right hand.
He then draped the Akatsuki cloak that Konan had prepared over his shoulders and struck a pose.
"It fits quite well, doesn't it? I knew it... I was born to save the Shinobi World, this is my mission."
"What is this? Nail polish! No, no... It looks too effeminate for a man to wear nail polish. As the village's diplomat, I need to be mindful of my image."
Seeing this, Konan Nan frowned, but ultimately didn't insist, not even mentioning the scratches on her Forehead Protector.
He lowered his head, picked up a document, and began reading; his intention to see the guest out was quite clear.
"By the way, Konan, is something missing...?"
"What is missing?"
"It's all about ceremony. I remember when Scorpion joined, everyone was there, and the leader personally received him to show how important he was. Isn't this a bit too hasty?"
Workplace discrimination is unacceptable.
Konan replied, "Scorpion is a genius puppeteer from Sunagakure. We naturally have to give him enough attention when we recruit him, but it's just a formality."
"You're originally from the village, why would you need a ceremony?"
"Oh, I see... never mind then. I don't really care about these things. Well... it's getting late, I'll head back now."
Aoki Tsuki waved his hand and left the office with a leisurely air.
"Well!..."
Konan sighed, tossed the documents onto the table, spun her chair around, and stared blankly at the rain outside the window.
After a moment, I composed myself, turned around, picked up the documents again, and continued working.
She went to great lengths to fulfill Yahiko's last wish and cared deeply for the village.
Unfortunately, some people just can't get up to speed; they want to lie down as soon as they relax a little.
On Aoki Tsuki way back, many people noticed the change in his clothes and were secretly amazed, for this was the Lady Angel's exclusive attire.
Many speculated whether this first advisor of Amegakure had once again gained the favor of Lord Pain.
"Good morning, esteemed advisor!"
"Um..."
Good morning, Lord Yue!
"Mmm..."
"Captain, good morning!"
"Good morning."
Countless people greeted him warmly along the way; he would reply briefly to those he knew, and simply nod to those he didn't.
I went home, rested, and then went to the practice field in the afternoon to start training.
Now that he's a full member of Akatsuki, he'll inevitably have to take on some dangerous missions, and his personal abilities still need further improvement.
In terms of Senjutsu, more than a year has passed since I first absorbed Natural Energy into my body. After repeated torment, my body can now barely withstand it.
It will take more time for assimilation to deepen.
His spiritual energy is the foundation of his strength. After years of continuous refinement and strengthening, along with further physical development, he has achieved a significant leap forward.
He is at least several times stronger than other ninjas of the same rank, and ordinary Genjutsu is completely ineffective against him.
Physical growth slows down after adulthood, no longer as rapid as during the 15-18 age range, but it's still important to maintain physical fitness.
Even ordinary people without Kekkei Genkai can achieve great things if they train their bodies to a certain level and combine it with extraordinary mental abilities.
You basically don't need to worry about Chakra.
Swordsmanship has reached a bottleneck. Unless there is a breakthrough in mental strength or Senjutsu, it will be difficult to make significant progress. At present, the only way to improve strength is through Ninjutsu.
Developing a new Ninjutsu is too difficult; in recent years, we've only developed one Lightning Release Ninjutsu, " Imperial Lightning Snake."
Next, we need to continue to work on this technique, exploring and strengthening it in depth.
Just like the Rasengan, the subsequent Big Ball Rasengan, Spiral Shuriken, Spiral Shuriken of various attributes, and Orochimaru's snake-type Ninjutsu are also similar.
In other words, Ninjutsu doesn't actually need to be too fancy.
By selecting a promising technique and continuously strengthening it, a series of techniques can be developed to deal with various situations.
Imperial Lightning Snake is a mid-range offensive Ninjutsu, and its enhancement can be categorized in two ways:
One is to increase Chakra output, allowing Lightning Snake to advance further and transform into a ' Lightning Dragon ' or ' Thunder God '!
Another method is to combine other attributes, similar to the Lightning Water Dragon Bullet Technique, which utilizes the high plasticity of water to make deformation easier.
I sorted out these thoughts one by one, and then began to devote my energy to verifying them.
Just one month after Aoki became a full member of Aoki Tsuki, Konan couldn't wait to give him a mission, afraid that he would become rusty.
"Moon, get ready, we're going on a mission tomorrow."
"Where to? What's the mission...?"
Konan replied anxiously, " The Land of Artisans... we'll discuss the specifics when we arrive."
"Oh..."
Since Konan didn't want to talk about it, Aoki Tsuki simply didn't bother asking.
The Land of Artisans is a small island nation located south of the Konoha Leaf Village, close to the Kirigakure and the Land of Waves. It focuses on the research and manufacturing of ninja tools and provides standard weapons to various ninja villages.
Starting from the Land of Rain, travel south along the Land of Rivers between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire, and then take a sea ship directly there.
Two weeks later, a blue-haired man and woman wearing black trench coats with red cloud patterns arrived at the docks of the Land of Artisans.
The woman had her hair tied in a bun, had delicate features, and rarely smiled; she appeared quite conservative.
The man's appearance was more exaggerated, with thick, long blue hair cascading down his back and a long sword at his waist, giving him the air of a great samurai.
With his handsome and dashing face, he frequently attracted the attention of passersby.
"Who is this person...? A ninja...?" someone whispered.
His companion shook his head. "Ninjas aren't like that. They're more like samurai from the Land of Iron. They don't look like ordinary people."
"Could it be... a swordsman!"
"They're probably going to Takumi Village to have Master Tesshin forge a sword."
"Possibly. After all, even those ninjas would fight over the weapons he forged."