"Alright, Rin-senpai, don't worry about Minato- senpai. With his strength, he'll definitely be fine. You should focus on getting used to the thing inside you. The battle with Kirigakure isn't over yet. If you don't want a repeat of what happened before, improving your strength is the key." Kōki heard the worry in Rin's voice and comforted her.
However, his way of comforting her was somewhat unusual. After hearing Kōki's words of comfort, Lin's expression instantly changed from worry to shame.
She felt as if Kōki's words were directed at her. She was indeed weak, and if she didn't improve, she might hold Kakashi back again. If they encountered danger on the battlefield next time, there might not be anyone to save them in time.
Kōki had no idea what Rin was thinking. After comforting Rin, Kōki turned to Kakashi and lectured him, " Kakashi- senpai, you're a genius ninja too, yet you were defeated by Uchiha ninja. I think you need to improve your Kakashi skills as well. If this continues, White Fang -senpai's reputation will be ruined."
Kōki's words instantly froze Kakashi's grateful expression, leaving him completely speechless.
Because Kōki was absolutely right. In this battle with Shisui Uchiha, aside from the initial back-and-forth fighting, he was completely dominated from the start. The crucial point was that the person dominating him was younger than him. If this hadn't been a duel, but a brutal battle on a battlefield, he would have had no chance of survival. This was truly a disgrace for him, the son of the White Fang.
After being lectured by Kōki, Rin and Kakashi lost the desire to continue the conversation and went back to prepare for their training.
Kōki returned to his residence, preparing for the upcoming battle.
Thus, after Uchiha Fugaku's speech, the relationship between the Konoha Ninja and Uchiha ninjas on the battlefield of Kirigakure improved considerably. When Konoha Ninja were in danger, Uchiha ninjas would come to their aid. And when Uchiha ninjas were injured, Konoha Ninja would risk their lives to save them.
It can be said that Uchiha Fugaku's long-held wish to integrate the Uchiha Clan into Konoha is slowly coming true.
While the battle raged fiercely on the Kirigakure battlefield, on the other side in Amegakure, the Akatsuki, which would later dominate the world, encountered a minor problem.
" Yusuke, what do we do now?" Yahiko, with his orange-yellow hair, frowned and asked the refined young man beside him with a grim expression. Their Akatsuki was facing the biggest trouble since its founding: a message from Amegakure, the " Hanzō."
Hanzō stated that Akatsuki was forbidden from using the name of Amegakure, nor could they interfere in the struggles of other countries under the name of Amegakure. In other words, Akatsuki had been expelled from Amegakure.
It's important to understand that the Akatsuki was able to grow so smoothly in the Land of Rain and be accepted by Land of Rain people not only because of their ideals, but also because of their identity as Amegakure (Hidden Amegakure Village). It was the credibility that Amegakure brought that made most of the Amegakure people obey the Akatsuki's orders. Now, being expelled from Amegakure means that they are missing-nin and people who are not trusted.
This dealt a huge blow to their peace plan. He never imagined that his wholehearted efforts for Amegakure would be betrayed from within.
This caused Yahiko's adoration for Hanzō to crumble.
It's important to understand that he had always greatly admired Hanzō. The emergence of the Akatsuki, besides being influenced by Jiraiya in his childhood, was also related to Hanzō. Yahiko hoped that the Akatsuki could contribute to the future of Amegakure, just like the Amegakure. Therefore, the Akatsuki has always been wholeheartedly working for the peace and prosperity of Amegakure, and has gathered many like-minded people with this goal. Thanks to the Akatsuki 'Akatsuki efforts, many villages have escaped their original poverty and begun to prosper.
Unfortunately, with this announcement, that situation will disappear. Amegakure, which had begun to change, will revert to its original state, much to Yahiko's disappointment.
"Don't rush. Think carefully. Besides telling us not to use Amegakure's name, did they say anything else? Like asking us to join Amegakure, or disbanding Akatsuki?" The gentle- Yusuke said soothingly after hearing Yahiko's anxious tone.
"Nothing was provided. They just gave us a location and said that if we had any objections, we could discuss them there."
This was precisely what puzzled Yahiko. Amegakure's unpredictable attitude left him wondering what Hanzō was up to.
If he felt the Akatsuki posed a threat to his rule, then he should have taken action against them. After all, the overall strength of Amegakure far surpassed that of the Akatsuki, making it relatively easy to eliminate Akatsuki. But if not, then why force the Akatsuki to stop using the Amegakure name?
At this moment, Nagato speculated, " Yusuke, could it be that Hanzō is feeling pressured by our recent excessive interference in other ninja villages? Perhaps he's forced to abandon us due to pressure from those villages."
Nagato's statement wasn't without reason. The process of bringing peace and prosperity to the people of the Land of Rain wouldn't be smooth sailing; there would inevitably be ninjas from other villages arriving in the Land of Rain due to the Third Shinobi World War.
These ninjas who came to the Land of Rain were not kind-hearted people; they would generally bully and humiliate the people of the Land of Rain.
As a result, the Akatsuki, an organization dedicated to protecting the people, would inevitably have to clash with ninjas who were destroying villages in the Land of Rain.
Once a fight breaks out, aside from those who heed their advice and leave the Land of Rain, the rest of the ninjas, perhaps because they come from a powerful country and are extremely arrogant, look down on ninjas from a small country like themselves and simply won't listen to their advice.
Therefore, the Akatsuki had no choice but to expel them, but in the process, they often used excessive force, resulting in the deaths of those ninjas.
Over time, this offended many major powers.
"Hmm, Nagato makes a good point, but these are all just guesses for now. We'll find out the specifics when we go there together tomorrow. As long as we ensure the organization's safety, we can achieve our ideals even if we Land of Rain and go to other countries."
Yahiko, Nagato, and the others nodded, understanding the principle that as long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn.
Moreover, after being taught by Yusuke Yahiko's own ideal was to achieve peace in the Shinobi World. Although he was somewhat reluctant to leave the Land of Rain and go to other countries, it was not unacceptable.
"Don't worry, Yusuke. We'll go together tomorrow and see what Hanzō's attitude is. But if possible, I'd like to try to persuade him first, after all, the Land of Rain is our foundation."
Yahiko understood from Yusuke's words that they wanted to evacuate the Land of Rain, but he still hoped to hold on a little longer. Maybe he could persuade Hanzō.
Yusuke understood the sentiment of being reluctant to leave one's homeland, so he didn't object. After discussing the arrangements for tomorrow, Yusuke returned to his residence.
After sitting down in the room, Yusuke, or rather Aizen, began to recall what had happened that day.
He recalled the contents of Hanzō's letter that Yahiko had received. On the surface, it was a request for the Akatsuki to leave the Land of Rain Land of Rain, but it also implied that if they didn't want to leave, they should come and discuss it in person. This gave Aizen a strange sense of familiarity.
There is a similar scene in the original work, except that in that scene, Hanzō sent a cooperation invitation to Yahiko.
This time, however, it's a threat.
Although the details provided differed, they all involved discussing the matter in one place.
This inevitably led Aizen to suspect that Hanzō might be planning to take action against the Akatsuki.
However, Aizen was puzzled. Logically speaking, given the Akatsuki's current prestige in the Land of Rain, if Hanzō were to eliminate the Akatsuki, it would definitely cause turmoil in the Land of Rain.
A mishap could shatter the current atmosphere of rest and recuperation in the Land of Rain Land of Rain, plunging it back into chaos and poverty.
If Hanzō truly cared for the Land of Rain, he wouldn't have taken action now.
In truth, Aizen was unaware that Hanzō chose this moment to act because he was instigated by a certain Pot Kage.
It can only be said that the Pot Kage, who had been quiet for a short time, could no longer bear the loneliness and was preparing to stir up trouble in the Shinobi World again.
The next day, at dawn, the air was slightly damp, and thick clouds blocked the bright sunlight, making the earth appear gloomy, as if foreshadowing something.
On a plain in Amegakure, more than a dozen ninjas wearing breathing masks and traditional gray Amegakure attire were quietly waiting.
Suddenly, a slight noise came from the horizon. Looking over, they saw a young man with blond hair walking slowly towards them, followed by a dozen or so ninjas. Before long, the two groups met.
Looking at the Amegakure group before him, Yahiko frowned slightly and asked, "Where is Hanzō? We came here at your invitation."
Indeed, the reason Yahiko frowned was because he discovered that the leader of Amegakure was not the pillar of Amegakure, the " Hanzō " Hanzo, but someone he did not recognize. This gave him a sense of foreboding.
It wasn't that he was being overly sensitive, but he remembered that it was Hanzō who had initially sent the message to discuss things, and now that they had come at the invitation but hadn't seen their master, something just didn't seem right.
"Watch your tone. Hanzō is extremely busy with the affairs of Amegakure and works tirelessly every day. It's already a great privilege that he can spare some time to summon you. So, just wait patiently." The temporary leader of Amegakure immediately replied condescendingly after hearing Yahiko's question.
That condescending attitude showed that he looked down on the ninjas from small organizations like Yahiko's.
This made Yahiko and his group, who were already annoyed by Hanzō's lateness, even angrier.
They were all from the Land of Rain, and had grown up listening to the legends of Hanzō, always admiring Hanzō. Hanzō's dedication to maintaining the status of Amegakure and his struggle for the peace of Amegakure inspired them.
But his meeting with his subordinates today left them deeply disappointed.
The image of Hanzō as a wise and mighty figure in their minds also collapsed, transforming him into an arrogant and rude arrogance.
If Yahiko hadn't brought them here today, they wouldn't have known that the real Hanzō was like this, which was very disappointing.
At this moment, Yahiko asked Yusuke beside him with a serious expression, " Yusuke, I feel like something's not right. Have you noticed anything?"
"Yes, I've been observing the expressions of the Amegakure across from me since the beginning. I noticed that the leader of the Amegakure has a shifty look in his eyes, glancing to the side every now and then, which means he's waiting for something. He's also been wiping the sweat from his forehead several times."
"You see, although the weather is rather humid, it's not exactly sweltering. So the Amegakure member's behavior is quite abnormal, as if he's afraid we'll discover something, and he's very nervous," Yusuke analyzed slowly, based on the Amegakure leader's behavior.
Yahiko, Nagato, and the others nodded in agreement. They looked at the leader of Amegakure and found that what Yusuke said was absolutely correct. This made their unease grow.
After waiting for almost an hour, Yahiko finally couldn't contain his impatience and asked again, "Isn't Lord Hanzō here yet? If not, let's come back another time to discuss it."
After saying that, he prepared to leave with his men, because even if he was stupid, he could see that the people from Amegakure were deliberately stalling him.
As for the purpose of stalling him, Yahiko was unclear.
But he knew it was definitely not a good thing, so in order to avoid any accidents, he decided to take his men back to the base first and then make a more careful plan.
But just as he turned to leave with his men, a slightly aged voice came from behind the Amegakure troops opposite him.
"You're leaving now? What about your companion?" Suddenly, a girl wearing a breathing mask, holding a scythe in her right hand and carrying a blue-haired girl in her left, appeared in front of Yahiko and the others.
Upon seeing this figure, Yahiko couldn't help but exclaim, " Konan!!!"
Yahiko never imagined that his childhood friend would be captured by Hanzō.
You should know that he specifically arranged for Konan to stay at the base.
Wait, the base! Could it be...?
Yahiko saw the blood on Konan's face, a wave of pain and despair washed over him. He realized that Hanzō must have attacked their base.
Anger, pain, and sorrow overwhelmed him. He hadn't expected that after waiting for almost an hour, this would be the result.
He was furious that Hanzō had broken the rules by raiding their base and capturing Konan, but he also hated his own naive belief that the Akatsuki could coexist peacefully with Amegakure and fight for the future of the Land of Rain.
He should have listened to Yusuke's advice and left the Land of Rain decisively; it's too late now.
Moreover, at some unknown time, hundreds of Amegakure suddenly appeared all around them, completely surrounding them.
Clearly, Hanzō intended to annihilate all members of the Akatsuki here. What made him even more desperate was that Konoha's Anbu had inexplicably appeared beside him, seemingly intending to join forces with Hanzō to wipe out the Akatsuki Hanzō.