Was what Jiraiya-sensei said really true?
Can people truly understand each other?
No, the question should be, even if they understand each other, will it really resolve conflicts?
Looking at the hideous and bloodthirsty Hidden Sand Ninja, Nagato fell into such confusion.
He thought of the people of the Land of Rain, forced to be separated from their families, the homeless wanderers, the villages turned into ruins.
But now is not the time to think about these matters; the air was tense with killing intent from the Hidden Sand Ninja, who might attack again at any moment.
This time, it's not just Hanzou, but they as members of Akatsuki would also be targets for the Hidden Sand to hunt down.
"Don't try to awaken the enemy's conscience with your own weakness. As the citizens of a weak nation, we have nothing left but resistance and battle."
The voice was not loud, but in the ears of the Akatsuki members, it was extremely persuasive.
Especially for Nagato, he always felt that Hanzou was speaking directly to him.
Though standing very close, Hanzou seemed to Nagato to be in another world.
"Go, find your future. As the leader of the Hidden Rain, I cannot avoid battle, but you all must leave here. As long as you're alive, there is hope. If you die, nothing will be left."
Hanzou slowly took steps forward, murmuring softly.
It was as if he was speaking to the members of Akatsuki, or perhaps to himself.
The Hidden Sand Ninja hesitated to advance because they sensed an unprecedented danger emanating from Hanzou.
A beast at the brink of death is the most dangerous.
In their eyes, Hanzou undoubtedly reached such a level of dangerous presence.
Hanzou expressionlessly pulled out the blade lodged in his side, letting the blood flow.
He calmly gazed directly at the thousands of Hidden Sand Ninja, these self-proclaimed ninja of a great nation, who still harbored arrogance.
Indeed, this world is inherently survival of the fittest.
Corrupted by the title of "demigod" and so-called power, he had forgotten what he once trusted most—strength.
"Now, I have no regrets or hesitations."
Yes, no regrets, and no more hesitations.
So, it is truly fortunate to see you one last time, Nagato, thought Hanzou in his heart.
Utilizing this battle, along with Yahiko's cowardly compromise, to open the Rinnegan and truly see the real world.
This was why he did not stop Yahiko from kneeling to the Hidden Sand earlier.
From now on, Akatsuki's dream is shattered.
It's time to wake up from the naive dream and face this bloody, survival of the fittest world.
He reached for his collar and tore it off.
The upper part of his ninja suit was carried away by the wind.
It was a body that had been tempered through countless battles.
Numerous knife and sword wounds, like medals, were honorably inscribed on his body.
These were symbols of the 'history' of fighting against countless strong enemies in the past.
The rain was falling, the atmosphere oppressively heavy and dreary.
Hanzou's aura grew increasingly dangerous, rising to a critical point.
"This is the final celebration."
Hanzou began forming seals, and a torrent-like chakra burst forth, overwhelming everyone's breath.
"Water Style: Prison Dragon Torrent!"
"Whoa! What is this?"
"You can't be serious, right? Why does this power exist?"
"Damn it!"
The panicked voices of the Hidden Sand Ninja echoed.
The earth trembled.
More accurately, the earth was engulfed by waves like a tsunami.
Then the water began swirling upwards, the world seeming to invert, creating a dreamlike sense of disorientation.
Beneath this dreamlike facade lay hidden lethal intent.
The water tornado spiraling upwards towards the sky glowed with scarlet bloodlight, tearing open its giant maw and roaring.
It was a water dragon tens of meters long.
Unlike the water dragon created by the Water Dragon Bomb Jutsu, this dragon was larger, and its color wasn't colorless and transparent. Inside, a large amount of black substance spread, turning the dragon's body black.
Odd and inexplicable black bubbles also rose from the surface of the water dragon.
A black dragon? The Hidden Sand Ninja instinctively felt that something was off about this black water dragon.
The black substance tainting the water dragon carried a rich scent of death.
However, their hesitation didn't last long; their eyes hardened with determination as they launched an attack against Hanzou.
That black dragon seemed ominous, so focusing on attacking Hanzou himself should suffice, right?
As long as they killed the caster, the ninjutsu would be automatically dispelled; this was common knowledge about ninja techniques in the Ninja Realm.
"Let's go quickly!"
Perceiving Hanzou's resolve to die, Nagato knew staying here any longer was very dangerous.
Because the Hidden Sand Ninja, besides targeting Hanzou, were also focused on them.
Negotiations had undoubtedly failed.
Yahiko's path was untenable.
Coming here was undoubtedly a mistake.
"Almighty Push!"
The faces of the dozen or so Hidden Sand Ninja charging from the front immediately changed dramatically. Before they could react, their heads buzzed, and their bodies were repelled by a tremendous force, rolling on the ground in a mess, feeling as if their internal organs were rearranged.
"Yahiko, stop thinking and let's go!"
Konan and others also realized how dangerous their situation was, grabbing Yahiko, who kept questioning 'why did it become like this,' and began their retreat.
The strengths of the Akatsuki members were uneven, and undoubtedly Nagato was the strongest, but aside from Nagato, only Konan and Yahiko possessed Jonin-level strength.