It didn't matter that Hanzo of the Salamander had escaped; Diarmuid couldn't be bothered to pursue him. In fact, Hanzo's flight spared Diarmuid the trouble of having to find a way to let him leave "nonchalantly."
Nagato collapsed onto the fractured, porcelain-like earth, struggling to push himself up. Panic surged through his heart.
What is happening? Where is the Gedo Statue? And this man who suddenly appeared, how can he be this strong? Even stronger than the "Demigod," Hanzo of the Salamander?
When Nagato fought Hanzo, there was at least a back-and-forth; he even felt confident he could eventually overcome the man. But in a single exchange with this masked man, who claimed to be an associate of "Danzo-sama," Nagato had been utterly crushed.
His invincible Almighty Push (Shinra Tensei) hadn't even held its ground!
Why can that man use repulsive forces too?
Nearby, Diarmuid watched the pathetic state of Nagato, feeling a flicker of genuine pity. To him, Nagato was a tragic figure through and through, a pawn used and discarded by everyone. From the moment Madara transplanted the Rinnegan into him, Nagato had been sucked into a vortex of fate from which he had no hope of escaping. He was destined to be a tragic piece on the board, and even in death, he would never truly shed that identity.
This was the nature of the Shinobi World: dark, shameless, and despicable. Whether it was Obito or Nagato, they were both originally kind-hearted, bright-eyed youths who were eventually forged into Great Demon Kings intent on destroying the world. At its core, the world of Ninjas was a "man-eats-man" reality.
The same applied to Diarmuid himself. Though he carried the title of a righteous Marine Admiral, was he not currently acting with a cold, blackened heart? By comparison, the world of Pirates, chaotic as it was, almost seemed charming.
"Sigh..." Diarmuid let out a soft, contemplative breath. The sympathy in his eyes vanished, replaced by a cold, merciless resolve.
"You... Orochimaru... are you people from Konoha?" Nagato asked, his voice heavy with dread.
"No," Diarmuid shook his head. "My name is Rodriguez Diarmuid. Go to the Pure Land and find your peace. This world is far too dark; it wasn't meant for a naive dreamer like you."
"So, it turns out..." Nagato began, his voice trailing off in shock.
Before he could finish his sentence, Diarmuid's silhouette flickered with a flash of lightning. Using a Lightning Body Flicker, he appeared instantly before the boy.
With an iron grip, he seized Nagato by the throat. Diarmuid whispered softly, "Let me set you free."
Power surged in Nagato's eyes, the Almighty Push. But before the technique could manifest its full force, Diarmuid's hand tightened. A sickening crack echoed as he crushed Nagato's neck.
"Cough... ah..." Blood spilled from Nagato's mouth. His throat rattled like a broken bellows as he tried to gasp out a final word, but the strength left him. The light in his Rinnegan slowly faded into dullness.
"You really are cold-blooded," Orochimaru remarked, appearing behind Diarmuid while carrying the unconscious Konan and the corpse of Yahiko.
"Well, villains usually die because they talk too much. I suppose I'm playing the villain now, aren't I?" Diarmuid sighed, shaking his head.
"How do we handle this?" Orochimaru asked.
"Keep the eyes. Send the bodies to Danzo," Diarmuid decided after a moment's thought.
Danzo had made a pact with Hanzo to help eliminate the leaders of the Akatsuki. Nagato was a leader, and Yahiko even more so. Diarmuid still had a use for Konan, but the bodies of Yahiko and Nagato could be handed over to the Root organization to take the fall.
Danzo likely wouldn't refuse. While Hanzo might be a fading asset, there was still value to be squeezed out of him, and the corpses of Nagato and Yahiko would be the perfect leverage for Danzo to manipulate the "Demigod."
By handing these problematic bodies to Danzo, Diarmuid effectively shifted the blame. When the dust settled, the narrative would be solidified: Hanzo and Danzo conspired to assassinate the Akatsuki; with the help of Danzo's subordinates, Hanzo killed Nagato and Yahiko and took their bodies.
As for his explanation to Konan, Diarmuid would frame it as: The Yorozuya took a contract from a mysterious client to kill Hanzo. We happened to witness the ambush and, given the dire situation, couldn't save the others, but I managed to rescue you.
It wasn't a total lie. As a "Demigod," Hanzo had a massive bounty on his head; many wanted him dead. There were indeed active missions in the black market targeting him, and the Yorozuya had technically accepted one before arriving.
This overlap would allow him to use Konan's desire for revenge and his own "mission" as a foundation for cooperation with the Akatsuki. From there, he could proceed to swallow the organization whole.
Perfect.
The plan had holes, of course, but minor flaws didn't matter as long as they were managed carefully. For instance, Konan must not know about the Rinnegan, at least not until Hanzo was dead. Once Hanzo was eliminated, he could claim he "retrieved them from Hanzo." By that stage, Konan wouldn't be as vital anyway.
By then, the Land of Rain should already be under his control. If she wanted to stay after getting her revenge, she could; if not, Diarmuid had no intention of being heartless. Letting her wander the world would be fine too.
"Then I'll go," Orochimaru said. "I'll deliver these two to Danzo. You take the Rinnegan and the girl."
"Agreed," Diarmuid nodded.
Orochimaru didn't hesitate. He skillfully extracted the Rinnegan from Nagato, placed them carefully into a specialized preservative vial, and handed them to Diarmuid. He then sealed the bodies of Yahiko and Nagato into a scroll, offered a brief farewell, and vanished. Before leaving, he left Diarmuid the antidote for the snake venom he had used on Konan.
Diarmuid didn't use the antidote immediately. Instead, he hoisted the unconscious Konan onto his shoulder and retreated swiftly from the area. Before leaving, he did a final sweep of the battlefield. There were no survivors. Nearly all the fallen had been buried deep beneath the "porcelain earth" created during Hanzo's struggle, making them nearly impossible to exhume.
As it stood, the only ones who knew the truth were himself, Orochimaru, and the escaped Hanzo. But Hanzo was the Akatsuki's enemy; his word carried zero weight. Besides, Hanzo had nothing to say other than blaming the Leaf's Root.
In the short term, Hanzo couldn't possibly uncover Diarmuid's identity, nor would he realize that Orochimaru was now working for the Yorozuya.
That being the case, the narrative was whatever Diarmuid said it was. No one could contradict him.
…
The rain continued to drizzle incessantly.
Inside a hunter's shack nestled in the mountains, Diarmuid was tending a fire. Two skinned and gutted rabbits were roasting over the flames. Surrounded by various jars and seasonings, Diarmuid hummed a jaunty tune as he sprinkled chili powder onto the meat.
On a wooden bed nearby lay a woman, Konan.
Diarmuid hadn't had time to look at her closely before, but now he could observe her properly. She was undeniably beautiful. Even with her brow furrowed in the midst of a nightmare, her elegance was apparent. Her figure was also quite striking; he had already removed her Akatsuki cloak, which usually kept her completely covered.
To be clear, he hadn't done it out of any lewd intent; her clothes had simply been soaked through.
She had a great physique that her usual attire hid well. Amusingly, despite being wrapped up tightly in that heavy cloak, she wore a backless skin-tight suit underneath, a rather flamboyant choice. Diarmuid couldn't help but assume she was the "quiet but bold" type.
Her inner clothes had also been damp, but Diarmuid maintained his moral compass and didn't "help" further, opting instead to let the fire dry them while she slept. He had already injected the antidote, though she had yet to wake.
"Pretty, for sure... but not my type," Diarmuid muttered to himself.
From the moment he killed Nagato, any chance of a "story" between him and Konan had vanished. He could use her now without any psychological burden, but if he were to develop actual feelings, his conscience would trouble him. Diarmuid was always straightforward with those close to him; he didn't enjoy living a lie with them. That path would only lead to a bad end.
So, despite her charm, Diarmuid wasn't the type to lose his head over a woman. He turned his gaze back to the fire and sprinkled some salt on the rabbit meat.
At that moment, Konan jolted awake.
"Yahiko! Nagato!!" she screamed, bolting upright.
She froze, looking around in confusion. Where is this?
She quickly spotted Diarmuid sitting by the fire. Her eyes filled with wariness and suspicion. She recoiled, instinctively reaching for a kunai, only to realize... Where are my clothes?
For a heartbeat, panic flared; had something happened?
But she quickly calmed down. She was fine; only her outer cloak was missing. No "unfortunate" scenario had occurred. This realization helped her settle, and much of her hostility dissipated. Looking at the situation, it was clear she had been rescued.
If he had wanted to kill her or worse, it would have happened long ago.
"Who are you? Have you seen my companions?" Konan asked hesitantly.
"Rodriguez Diarmuid," he replied, turning the roasting rabbit.
"It's you... from the Yorozuya," Konan said, surprised. She then remembered her manners. "Thank you for saving me... but what about my friends?"
"They're likely dead," Diarmuid said bluntly.
Before she could speak, Diarmuid began his scripted performance.
"The Yorozuya took a job recently to eliminate the 'Demigod' Hanzo. But when I arrived, I found..."
He laid out the story: the Leaf's Root organization, the thin red-haired boy, he described it all. He told her how the red-haired kid had been brought down by the combined forces of Hanzo and the Root.
He explained that he wanted to understand what was going happening to gather intel, so he took advantage of the chaos to pull her out of there.
Konan knew Yahiko was gone, but the news of Nagato's death was the breaking point. She sat there in a daze, unable to process it. Tears began to stream down her face in silence. Seeing her like that actually made Diarmuid feel a pang of guilt.
"So, what exactly happened? Why were you fighting Hanzo of the Salamander?" Diarmuid asked, feigning ignorance and pushing aside the sight of her tears to stay in character.