In the shadows of Amegakure, Uchiha Yowan, dressed in a trench coat and wearing a mask, watched everything before him with cold, indifferent eyes.
"That red-haired guy is Nagato."
Black and White Zetsu emerged halfway from underground, signaling to Yowan to look at the red-haired man on the rooftop.
"The host of the Rinnegan, huh?"
Narrowing his eyes as he studied Nagato and the woman beside him, Konan, Yowan nodded, indicating he understood.
"Are you going to make contact with him?"
Seeing that Yowan made no move, Black and White Zetsu grew curious about his purpose in coming here.
Casting a sidelong glance at Black and White Zetsu, Yowan had little affection for this incarnation of Madara's will. He replied coldly, "Mindless things shouldn't try to guess my intentions. Just do what I tell you."
"Ara ara, no need to get so worked up."
This time, it was White Zetsu speaking, while Black Zetsu remained silent.
They'd thought that after Madara's death, they wouldn't be scolded so much, but the successor Madara had chosen was just as harsh. This made the proud Black Zetsu want to explode on the spot.
Damn it, Madara berated me for being brainless while alive, and even after he's dead, he left someone else to do the same. Was Madara's death pointless, then?!
Black Zetsu wanted to unleash every curse word it knew at Yowan, but in the end, its longing for "mother" overcame its anger, and it decided to stay silent.
"Go now. I'll call you when I need you."
Withdrawing his gaze, Yowan ignored Black and White Zetsu and stepped toward the street ahead.
"Well, since he said so."
White Zetsu chuckled and prepared to leave as instructed.
"Let's go."
Though unsure what Yowan intended, they couldn't press him further and could only watch as Yowan gradually disappeared from view.
Yowan walked on his own, soon arriving at a small food stall.
Because the Land of Rain was so rainy, all the stalls here had canopies to let customers eat inside.
Yowan ordered a few dishes at random, declined the owner's invitation to eat indoors, and insisted on sitting at the edge of the canopy, scanning the surroundings.
He had walked here from Hanzo's territory. Compared to the worried faces of commoners and low-ranking shinobi in Hanzo's area, the region controlled by Akatsuki was clearly much more lively.
Although they still paid taxes to the higher-ups, the owner told Yowan that both the tax rate and the frequency of collection were much better than Hanzo's side.
Moreover, Akatsuki really did care about the safety of the common people.
From the way the civilians looked at passing Akatsuki members, it was clear their relationship was fairly harmonious.
Yowan tasted some unfamiliar snacks and nodded in approval—the flavor was much better than he'd expected.
Not bad at all, Akatsuki.
With a drink brought by the owner, Yowan's gaze grew deep and contemplative.
"Hey, Uncle Tsuyoshi!"
A squad of Akatsuki patrol members passed by the stall, spotting the owner lounging at the entrance, and greeted him warmly.
"Isn't that Daibutsu? Come sit, I'll whip up something for you."
Recognizing the man who greeted him, the owner stood up enthusiastically and invited him inside.
"No thanks, I'm on patrol. With Iwagakure and Konoha stopping their war, I've got to watch out for stray shinobi from both sides sneaking in."
The man called Daibutsu grinned and asked, "Uncle Tsuyoshi, have you seen any strangers lately?"
"Strangers? No, it's all regulars these days—I know everyone by name. But I heard some relatives of Saburō's family might be coming over from Hanzo's territory soon, so there'll probably be some unfamiliar faces dining here then."
Scratching his head, the owner reported the situation honestly.
"Good to hear."
Daibutsu nodded and said no more.
"I'm done eating. Thank you for your hospitality."
Just then, Yowan finished his last bite, stood up, and interrupted their conversation.
"The food was excellent, thank you. I'll leave a little extra as my thanks."
He took out some money, placed it on the table, and nodded to the owner and Daibutsu before walking slowly into the rain.
"That won't do... Ah, my memory's failing, I can't believe I forgot my customer's name."
Grabbing the money Yowan left, the owner wanted to chase after him, but Yowan had already vanished from sight.
He thought he'd return the extra money to Yowan at closing time, since they all lived nearby anyway.
But he just couldn't remember Yowan's name.
"Uncle Tsuyoshi, your memory is shot. Wasn't that guy... Wait, I forgot his name too."
Daibutsu teased the owner, but when he tried to recall Yowan's name, he realized he couldn't.
"It's on the tip of my tongue, but I just can't remember. Do any of you remember?"
He tapped his head, feeling that Yowan's face was familiar, but the name wouldn't come, so he turned to his companions.
"Wasn't that—wait, I forgot too..."
"Yeah, he looks familiar, but I really can't recall his name..."
As the group chattered in confusion, Yowan was already nearing the area where Akatsuki members gathered.
In his eyes, a triangular pattern spun ceaselessly, indicating he was using his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Akatsuki shinobi he passed greeted him loudly or nodded, and Yowan responded to each one.
Suddenly, Yowan whipped his head around, fixing his gaze on the top of a tall building unique to Amegakure.
There, Uchiha Setsuna—dressed exactly like Yowan—was staring back coldly, his own Mangekyō Sharingan activated.
"What a troublesome guy."
Seeing Setsuna arrive, Yowan stopped walking and headed in another direction.
"Interesting ability, but it has a range limit, huh..."
Observing Yowan's Mangekyō Sharingan powers, Setsuna was quite pleased.
A battle between shinobi was a battle of information—the more intel he had on Yowan, the greater his chances of victory.
Now he had a rough idea of one of Yowan's abilities; all that was left was to keep watching and figure out the rest.
With that thought, having planned his next move, Setsuna vanished from sight in an instant.
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