In a certain valley within the Land of Rain, a group of people was currently advancing through the terrain. They were mostly clad in long black coats, effectively raincoats, a staple of the Land of Rain's attire. Each wore a Hidden Rain headband, identifying them as Rain Shinobi.
By their headbands, they were indeed Rain Shinobi, but in truth, they were not the "orthodox" forces of the land. They were members of the Akatsuki. The legitimate Rain Shinobi were mostly subordinates of Hanzo of the Salamander, the true ruler of the Hidden Rain Village.
Leading this group were Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
"Yahiko, I have a bad feeling about this," Konan said uneasily as they walked.
Yahiko's expression shifted slightly before he nodded. "To be honest, so do I."
"What's wrong?" Nagato asked, sounding somewhat oblivious and confused.
Konan spoke plainly: "Hanzo of the Salamander was at odds with us just a few days ago. Now, out of nowhere, he wants to cooperate. I can't shake this feeling of dread... Could it be a trap?"
Nagato was startled. "Then why are we even going to this meeting? Should we just call it off? It's not too late to turn back..."
Before he could finish, Yahiko interjected, "Our Akatsuki works for the sake of peace. Now that Hanzo is willing to open peaceful negotiations and even wants to use our strength to deal with the Five Great Nations, it's a momentous start. We cannot reject peace simply because we are worried... If we do, what was the point of founding the Akatsuki in the first place?"
Indeed, while Yahiko felt something was off, he couldn't simply refuse. A rejection would carry heavy consequences. Hanzo could easily use it as an excuse to destroy the Akatsuki's reputation, spreading rumors that they were a fraudulent organization that didn't actually care about peace, claiming he had shown sincerity, yet they refused to negotiate.
That would go against everything the Akatsuki stood for. Yahiko knew that the organization's cohesion was built entirely on this shared spirit. Once that pursuit of peace was shattered, the Akatsuki would be finished.
So, he had to go!
"But..." Nagato still wanted to say something. In this period, his personality was indeed somewhat indecisive and timid.
Seeing this, Yahiko smiled again. "If we're careful, we should be fine. Besides... Hanzo of the Salamander is the leader of the Land of Rain. We grew up hearing stories of his exploits. Jiraiya-sensei even said he was a man of great caliber. Perhaps we're just overthinking it."
It must be said that Hanzo's reputation carried immense weight within the Land of Rain. It was because of his past prestige that so many still followed him. His legendary status as a man who cherished talent served as a perfect "camouflage" in this moment. To those not in constant contact with him, it was difficult to sense how much he had changed.
Hearing this, Nagato felt there was some truth to it; maybe they really were being paranoid. He breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, maybe we are just overthinking it."
Just then, an Akatsuki member caught up to Konan's side. "Konan-sama..."
"What is it?" Konan asked immediately.
"The village to the east..." the member said quickly.
Moments later, Konan caught up to Yahiko and Nagato. "Yahiko, Nagato, there's a problem with the village to the east. They don't trust the Akatsuki and won't let us help... I'm going to go handle it."
This was a common occurrence. In a war-torn country, trust between people was incredibly fragile. The Akatsuki frequently ran into such issues. Because Konan was a girl and had a likable, pleasant appearance, she acted as the Akatsuki's "Ambassador." Usually, she was the one to handle these negotiations.
In any other organization, a leader would never be allowed to leave for a trivial village matter right before a major summit. But the Akatsuki was different; they were still pure. Yahiko treated these "small" matters as top priorities.
Thus, Yahiko immediately replied, "Fine. Go and come back quickly. We'll wait for you at the meeting site."
No one noticed that the shinobi who had reported to Konan had a shifting, vacant look in his eyes, as if his mind wasn't entirely his own.
With that, Konan broke off from the team and headed east.
…
A few days later, in a valley near the secret meeting spot between Hanzo and the Akatsuki.
Diarmuid walked through the heavy downpour, holding his exquisite ivory-and-jade pipe. Though he carried no umbrella and wore no waterproof clothing, the rain failed to wet even a thread of his garments. It was as if an invisible membrane surrounded him, shielding him from the storm.
There truly was. Anti-Gravity. When the rain came within five centimeters of his body, the repulsive force of gravity physically pushed it away.
"Phew..." Diarmuid exhaled a cloud of smoke with style. "Wasn't it supposed to be today? Why is there no movement? Did Danzo give us the wrong intel?"
The reason Diarmuid was able to appear so precisely near the meeting point was, of course, because Danzo was constantly funneling him vital information. What a great teammate!
As soon as he finished speaking, Orochimaru chuckled. "While Danzo isn't exactly to my taste, I must admit that with his abilities, he wouldn't make a mistake on something like this..."
Orochimaru wasn't nearly as stylish as Diarmuid; he was soaked to the bone. Yet, he made no effort to seek shelter or use an umbrella. Diarmuid had offered to "arrange" something for him earlier, but Orochimaru refused. He seemed to enjoy the sensation of being drenched by the rain...
Perhaps it was a snake trait?
Only Diarmuid and Orochimaru had come. Sasori's "shut-in" nature had flared up again; once he confirmed that Diarmuid could handle things without him, he opted to stay home and continue researching the Sharingan. Diarmuid didn't push it; it was just as well to have him look after Rin. Otherwise, Diarmuid wouldn't have felt fully at ease.
"True enough," Diarmuid replied softly. Danzo might be a bastard, but he was capable, especially when it came to these underhanded, dirty schemes.
After a brief silence, Orochimaru spoke again. "The Rinnegan... will we truly get to witness its power today?"
"Certainly." Diarmuid smiled. "If the plan goes smoothly, perhaps the Rinnegan will even fall into our hands."
"The Rinnegan... do you plan to use it yourself?" Orochimaru asked.
Diarmuid shook his head immediately. "No need. But we can study it briefly. Just don't break it on me. This thing is more useful as a bargaining chip..."
"A bargaining chip..." Orochimaru murmured, deciding not to pry further.
Diarmuid truly had no intention of using the Rinnegan. On one hand, it was crucial for Madara's resurrection and Kaguya's freedom. On the other hand, the Rinnegan clearly couldn't be fully mastered by an outsider.
When Madara had the Rinnegan, he could switch freely between its stages and the Sharingan. But with Nagato, it was permanently active. It was clear Nagato could use its power, but he hadn't fully mastered it.
Diarmuid wasn't interested. He much preferred letting Orochimaru tackle the high-difficulty challenge of fusing a Sharingan for him. Thinking deeper, he found the Mangekyō far more interesting, or rather, cooler.
He had no obsession with the Rinnegan. If he awakened it naturally later, so be it; if not, he wouldn't force it. Strength is temporary, but looking cool is forever!
The rain pattered against Orochimaru. After a long silence, he suddenly said, "They're here."
Diarmuid slowly exhaled a plume of smoke, a grin tugging at his lips. "Finally..."
The Akatsuki members appeared, as did the forces of the Hidden Rain. In that valley, the two groups converged. "Converged" wasn't quite the right word; they remained starkly divided, and the atmosphere was anything but the friendly vibe of a peace talk. Both sides were on high alert.
"Yahiko... something is definitely wrong," Nagato whispered at Yahiko's side. This didn't feel like a peace negotiation at all. The Rain Shinobi were faintly beginning to encircle them.
Yahiko nodded, his expression turning serious. Without wasting time, he called out, "Where is Hanzo of the Salamander? We had an agreement to discuss a peace treaty..."
If the Hidden Rain made any further aggressive moves, they might still have time to retreat.
As soon as Yahiko finished, the figure of Hanzo appeared atop a high ridge, looking fairly imposing. A massive kusarigama was strapped to his back, he wore a respirator, and his eyes were cold and dark as he stared down at Yahiko and Nagato.
The moment he appeared, Nagato and Yahiko realized something was wrong. His position was purely tactical! No one conducts a peace talk with such theatrical aggression.
"Prepare to retreat!" Yahiko ordered instantly.
"Right!" Nagato agreed.
But just as they prepared to lead their people away, two Rain Shinobi appeared beside Hanzo, forcing a captive figure to her knees.
"Are you going to abandon your comrade and flee?" Hanzo sneered.
Yahiko and Nagato's faces went pale as they cried out in unison: "Konan!!!"
Indeed, Konan, who was supposed to be handling a village matter, had been captured and brought before Hanzo.
"Hanzo of the Salamander!!! You despicable coward!!!" Yahiko roared.
"Let her go!!!" Nagato screamed.
"Despicable? As expected... you are all naive fools. How do you think the Land of Rain has avoided total destruction by the Great Nations all these years?" Hanzo sneered.
Nearby, Orochimaru watched the figure holding the hostage, a trace of melancholy in his eyes. He spoke softly: "He is no longer a Demigod..."
Diarmuid exhaled a cloud of smoke and smiled. "Indeed. Even gods can fall."