Konan's vision went black.
When she opened her eyes again, she had returned to reality, met with the handsome face before her.
She was somewhat at a loss.
Her heart was filled with profound sorrow and agony.
To think she had been cooperating with the very person who murdered Yahiko and her comrades all this time.
How could she possibly accept this?
"Are the scenes you showed me actually real?"
*How could this guy possibly know about such things?*
*She had absolutely no idea about this information.*
*If she had known even a fraction of it, she would never have cooperated with that Swirl-Masked Man.*
Ryōsuke looked at Konan.
"As for whether it's true or not, I think you should know that yourself."
Konan carefully recalled the scenes she had just witnessed.
Kyūsuke's expression and tone, as well as his anxious demeanor.
Kyūsuke had feelings for her, which was why he had been so frantic.
The abilities of Kyūsuke and Daibutsu were also ones she was intimately familiar with.
Then there was the ability used by that Swirl-Masked Man—the power to turn his body intangible.
*And yet, the man before her actually knew all of this.*
She sighed inwardly. *It's actually true.*
*She and Nagato were actually being played for fools.*
*For this guy to know such things... is it because of those Rinnegan?*
*Otherwise, there's no explaining how he could know about something like this.*
At the same time, a spark of anger flared within her.
"Since you knew about this, why didn't you save them?"
*This guy isn't like Danzō, a dark shadow of the shinobi world who specializes in sinister deeds.*
*On the contrary, she didn't sense that kind of ruthless, evil aura from him at all.*
Ryōsuke spoke helplessly.
"These are merely scenes that I saw."
"If I had been there at the time, I would have saved them too."
"After all, they were the true break of dawn, the original Akatsuki. They could be considered one of the rare righteous organizations in the shinobi world."
"They held noble ideals, hoping for communication and mutual understanding between nations and people to achieve peace in the shinobi world."
"It's a pity that the Akatsuki has now been reduced to nothing more than someone else's tool. It's quite unfortunate."
Konan reminisced about the Akatsuki of the past. Under Yahiko's leadership, despite the harsh conditions, the organization had been full of vitality, and everyone harbored the dream of peace in the shinobi world.
*Now, it truly has been reduced to someone else's tool.*
She let out a deep sigh. The Akatsuki's current objectives had long since changed.
Attempting to force peace upon the entire shinobi world through the deterrence of military might—from another perspective, they were simply a terrorist organization.
Looking back now, it was all that Swirl-Masked Man manipulating Nagato, spouting nonsense about how true peace didn't exist.
However, deep down, Konan truly no longer believed that genuine peace existed in the world.
The idea of achieving peace through communication was nothing but a delusion.
Not only had Hanzo, the hero of the Land of Rain, deceived the Akatsuki, but he had even tried to annihilate them.
And now, even the Orange-Masked Man they had cooperated with for so long was actually scheming against them.
She looked at Ryōsuke coldly and said,
"I admit that what you've said holds great value. But since you know our Akatsuki's goal..."
"...you should also know that our Akatsuki has the power to achieve peace in the shinobi world. Nagato possesses the Rinnegan, the same eyes as the Sage of Six Paths. He is the chosen one."
"As long as we collect the Tailed Beasts and revive the Gedo Statue, we can deter the entire shinobi world. No one will dare to start a war."
At this point, Konan didn't feel the need to hide the matter of the Gedo Statue from him anymore.
After all, since he even knew about the deaths of Kyūsuke and Daibutsu, he likely knew about the Gedo Statue as well.
Ryōsuke, however, chuckled.
No wonder Nagato and Konan still chose to cooperate with Obito, even knowing full well that the man who joined the Akatsuki posing as Uchiha Madara harbored ulterior motives.
It turned out they were relying on the Rinnegan.
Ryōsuke, of course, knew the true origins of both the Rinnegan and the Gedo Statue.
He spoke up,
"It's a pity, but even so, you still won't be able to realize that dream."
"Although, if you did achieve it, it would equate to an alternative form of peace for the shinobi world."
"The truth is, the Rinnegan were transplanted into Nagato by the Swirl-Masked Man. Naturally, he has a way to take them back. In the end, both of you will die in the future, serving as nothing more than stepping stones."
Konan was completely stunned by this.
She had always believed that Nagato's Rinnegan were innate; even their teacher, Jiraiya, had never considered such a possibility.
*To think they were transplanted by someone else.*
Now, she was starting to believe his words.
Because he had no reason to deceive her, and he had just revealed other truths to her.
It was simply too unexpected.
To think that she, Yahiko, and Nagato had been schemed against since they were children.
A sudden wave of heartache washed over her. *This false shinobi world.*
Given the sinister nature of that Swirl-Masked Man, she and Nagato would likely die by his hands in the future.
She had actually realized long ago that he didn't treat her and Nagato as comrades, but merely as tools.
*I originally thought we were just using each other. I was overthinking it.*
Ryōsuke looked at Konan, a smile playing on his lips.
"Well? Can the intelligence I've shared directly exchange for your body and your heart?"
"My information is quite valuable, isn't it? By telling you these things, you can completely change the course of the future."
"I believe you must care deeply about your comrade Nagato's life. And of course, you won't have to die either."
Konan's expression became somewhat complicated. *This guy has saved me, as well as Nagato.*
Although she didn't care about dying, and Nagato didn't care about dying either.
But Konan still hoped that Nagato could live well. At the same time, she felt a burning rage toward that Swirl-Masked Man; he was her true enemy.
It was because of him that their Akatsuki had suffered such a tragic fate.
*I must pass this information on to Nagato.*
*I cannot let Nagato cooperate with that man any longer.*
*If I don't give my body to the man before me, I probably won't be able to escape. He won't just let this go.*
"Your intelligence is worth the price. I will give my body to you."
"As for wanting my heart, you'll have to take that yourself."
A heart wasn't something she could just give away simply because she wanted to.
Ryōsuke looked at Konan as she closed her eyes.
He directly dispelled the Rinnegan genjutsu. After all, she had already agreed.
Looking like this, she definitely wouldn't resist, which suited his intentions perfectly.
As for Konan's heart, he was naturally confident he could win it.
Next, through her body, he would shake the very depths of Konan's soul.
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