Any will that stands above humanity as a whole—whether good or evil—is a "bird in a cage."
That was Hyūga Kiyonari's view. And as far as he himself was concerned—
"At most, I'll shatter the cage."
"Because I'm just an ordinary person. I don't have some grand ambition. I've got people I care about right beside me. As long as I can protect them and live without regrets, I'm satisfied."
Konan finally remembered.
If Yahiko were still alive, he would definitely stop them.
Not because Akatsuki wanted to create tailed-beast weapons, but because she and Nagato—right now—were living badly. That, in the end, had been his dream.
"I… I'm taking revenge."
Konan murmured softly, as if afraid he hadn't heard, then raised her voice a little.
"I'm taking revenge."
Hyūga Kiyonari nodded. "Mm. And then?"
Konan looked dazed. "You… you're not going to stop me? Or—tell me not to do it?"
"Why would I do that?" Kiyonari spread his hands. "Is revenge wrong?"
"Isn't it wrong?"
"Then let me ask it differently. Why do you think your revenge is wrong?"
"Because—" The fog in Konan's heart slowly began to lift, and she answered, "Because my—our—revenge… drags innocent people into it."
Kiyonari smiled. "Then do you have any other questions?"
People sometimes ask: Nagato and Uchiha Obito both killed their teacher—so what's the essential difference between them?
Kiyonari would definitely say: when Yahiko died, and after he was gone, Nagato never once blamed Jiraiya for not being there.
Nagato was extreme, yes—but at the core of it, the "tailed-beast weapon" was an answer he arrived at after serious thought, an answer he truly believed could work.
Obito, on the other hand, was manipulated from start to finish. His thinking was forced onto him by Uchiha Madara from the beginning. It wasn't until he lost to Naruto and Sasuke in the Fourth Shinobi World War that he finally woke up to who he really was.
But by then, it was too late.
The people dragged into his revenge—whether inside the story or outside it—would never forgive him.
The one thing Uchiha Obito could say he'd truly done right in this life… was Naruto Mobile.
"I only have one last question," Konan said, gazing into his eyes, then smiling. "When will the next story be written?"
Kiyonari's mouth fell open.
He was getting chased for updates.
Outside, the rain had eased, but the air was still thick and sticky. Kiyonari pulled his gaze back and said, "If you want to read it, then once I'm back in Konoha, I'll write one and mail it to you."
"Mail it to me? You're not going to publish it?"
"Mm…" Kiyonari propped his chin on his hand, looking thoughtful. "I'm planning to follow Jiraiya-sama's example and write a romance story. Not suitable for kids."
"Heh-heh." Konan let out an awkward laugh.
Is that because of what I said earlier?
Petty, aren't you.
Come to think of it—ever since Orochimaru started researching that Earth–Moon passage, the people on the moon had never appeared again.
And Orochimaru's reason for not entering the space-time tunnel was so simple it was impossible to argue with—
he was afraid to die.
Of course, she'd also noticed that as long as the moon people didn't show up on the surface, both Zetsu and the masked man were more than happy. They let Orochimaru study the tunnel—probably because they wanted him to shut it down and sever Earth–Moon contact completely.
And that tacit approval only made Konan more certain: Zetsu and the masked man had to be connected to the "Evil God."
Still… she wanted something from the moon—a way to undo the Caged Bird.
Konan sighed. Her gaze fell on Kiyonari's forehead, and in her eyes was a guilt too deep to put into words.
Seeing the rain was about to stop, she ultimately couldn't hold it back anymore and said, "Kiyonari—Kumogakure has sent the Two-Tails jinchūriki to the front line. That's all I can tell you."
Kiyonari was surprised, then said, "Thank you. Then I'll be going."
In the curtain of rain, countless paper slips swirled and gathered. At the entrance of a tall tower in the Hidden Rain, they condensed into Konan's full form.
She had changed back into Akatsuki's iconic robe. Her glasses were gone, her damp bangs clung to her cheeks. Yet her expression remained calm and indifferent, as if nothing had happened.
"Zetsu."
Konan stopped in front of a White Zetsu clone. "I leaked the news to Konoha that the Two-Tails is on the front line. Let them hold the line up front. That way, the masked man can move when the opportunity comes, reducing the risk of exposure."
"Understood. I'll make sure the message gets where it needs to go."
After White Zetsu left, Konan walked down the dim corridor toward her room, pushed the door open, then gently closed it behind her.
She went to the bed, took off the soaked Akatsuki robe, and draped it over the back of a chair.
Next came the tight suit underneath. Konan lowered her head to look at herself—and Kiyonari's gaze as he'd looked her over suddenly surfaced in her mind.
Those eyes had practically scanned her from head to toe. If the first time had been a careful, assessing look—normal caution, eliminating risk—then the times after that…
Surely he wasn't still looking for something on her?
And… was she really that nice to look at?
The thought popped up out of nowhere, surprising even her.
Without thinking, she walked to the full-length mirror in the corner, wiped the dust from its surface, then stood before it—her eyes settling on her own body with a seriousness she'd never had before.
The woman in the mirror had nearly perfect proportions.
A long neck. Delicate collarbones. A full, lifted chest—every part placed just right, neither exaggerated nor flat or plain.
Her skin was very fair, perhaps because the Land of Rain rarely saw sunlight. But it didn't look sickly. Years of shinobi training kept her body in excellent condition—smooth, elegant lines that carried strength without losing feminine softness.
"No wonder you wanted to read Jiraiya-sensei's novels," she murmured to herself, her voice carrying a rare hint of teasing. "So you're the type who likes chasing skirts too… otherwise how would the future you end up hiding from love debts like that?"
In this tiny space, Konan quietly peeled away layer after layer of armor, shedding the identity of Akatsuki's White Tiger.
Kiyonari said he only wanted to protect the people close to him—and Konan was the same. Now that she knew Zetsu and the masked man's true nature, there was no way she could keep letting Nagato walk down that road.
She'd found what she truly wanted to do, and her heart loosened with it.
Konan stood before the mirror for a while, changed into dry clothes, then picked up the journal and sat down by the bed.
"Any updates?"
[I'm very curious: if Kiyonari came to the Land of Rain to avoid "debts," then now that the "creditor" has already come knocking, why is he still staying in the Land of Rain?]
[I don't dare ask. I'm afraid that if I ask, he'll leave. The Land of Rain needs him even more than I do.]
[Kiyonari seems to have seen through my thoughts. Over lunch one day, he said bluntly: "I like the Land of Rain."]
[I asked: "Why? Even Amegakure people want to escape this place. Why would you, a foreigner, like it?"]
[He continued: "Because of its special geography, the Land of Rain has always lived under the threat of war. As a result, it never produced daimyō and nobles—trash like that. More often than not, the leader of the Hidden Rain is also the leader of the Land of Rain."]
[I thought I understood: "So this place lets you fulfill your ambitions? In the Land of Fire you're neither Hokage nor noble. You have talent, but nowhere to use it—right?"]
[He shook his head. "No. Honestly, I can't be bothered to be Hokage. A big reason I truly like the Land of Rain is because of you… or rather—from 'Angel Konan' onward, every Hidden Rain leader like you, across the generations."]
[I was deeply shaken, and I couldn't understand.]
[So he explained: "Even if the Hidden Rain today is a shell in all but name, in name you're still the village head, which makes you the nominal ruler of the Land of Rain. In other countries, that's equivalent to a daimyō."]
["When the people of the Land of Rain can't eat their fill, you as their leader… can't eat your fill either."]
Kiyonari… you said you like the Land of Rain… because of me?
A strange, unfamiliar flutter seized Konan's heart without warning.
No—that boy might be a little too affectionate, but… he wasn't that shallow.
She stared again at the line:
"When the people of the Land of Rain can't eat their fill, you as their leader… can't eat your fill either."
Konan closed her eyes and tilted her face upward.
"Daimyō and nobles… trash…"
So that's what they were to him.
In that moment, she finally understood why Kiyonari would like her—why he would like the Land of Rain.
Because she had been hungry before.
Because after Akatsuki failed, every leader of the Land of Rain had been hungry too—together with everyone in the country.
So she knew what the people of the Land of Rain truly needed.
She let out a long breath, opened her eyes, and flipped to the other side of the journal.
[I said with emotion: "If I also had the Rinnegan power like Nagato-sama, maybe… we wouldn't have to go hungry."]
[But Kiyonari's answer shocked me.]
[He said: "If you really want it, I can give it to you. Nagato's Rinnegan—more precisely, Uchiha Madara's Rinnegan—was removed by Konoha after the Fourth Shinobi World War and has been kept in my possession ever since. But you wouldn't last more than a few months. Those eyes would drain you dry."]
["Even so… do you still want it?"]
"Thud!"
The journal slipped from Konan's hand and fell to the floor.
She froze in place, her mind completely blank.
Rinnegan… Nagato's eyes… Madara's eyes—
"The journal… the journal… I have to keep it safe…"
She bent down to pick it up, but her fingers were shaking so badly she could barely hold the thin booklet.
In the end, she set it on the table, then collapsed back into the chair, powerless. Her chest heaved violently—every breath heavy, almost tearing.
"If… those weren't Nagato's eyes… then Yahiko… and all our companions in Akatsuki… we were all…"
"Heh—hahah! Hahahaha!"
~~~
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