"I think you might have misunderstood something..."
Makiya pinched Konan's chin and lifted her pale, delicate face; two streaks of tears flowed from the corners of her eyes.
This girl's makeup wasn't high quality; her light purple eyeshadow was smudged by tears, leaving two messy tracks down to her chin, making her look like a calico cat.
Makiya felt that Konan took him for some maniacal killer who murdered indiscriminately. That wouldn't do; he was a model youth with a healthy outlook. How could he bear such a slanderous reputation?
'If word got out, how would I ever find a wife!'
Shaking his head to clear the stray thoughts, Makiya grabbed the back of Konan's neck with one hand, lifting her like a kitten. He pulled some tissues from his back pocket and held them out to her. "Here, wipe your eyes. People who don't know any better will think I did something terrible to you. I really just came to chat with Nagato. I only killed those nobles back there because I had a valid reason."
Konan took the tissues, her large eyes fixed on Makiya, waiting for him to continue.
She had indeed been terrified by his slaughter; the panic and fear were real. Especially now that she was under a sealing jutsu, with her chakra pathways blocked, she was as helpless as an ordinary person. This extreme lack of security magnified her fear.
But to say she was crying out of pure fear was impossible. As an orphan born in a time of war, she had struggled through a miserable environment and suffered countless hardships. Her tears had long since dried, and she knew that only strength was the ultimate guarantee of survival.
Women are natural actors, and the prettier they are, the better they play the part. Konan was using her excellent acting skills to win Makiya's sympathy; perhaps if he lowered his guard, she could fish for some information.
Facts developed exactly as she hoped.
Makiya pulled Konan onto his flying sword and turned toward the Land of Rain. Over the course of their casual chat along the way, Konan finally learned about the changes occurring in Konoha—or rather, the Land of Fire.
'This is great. With Makiya Uchiha as a target for the great nations, the Akatsuki can buy more time to develop!' Konan felt excited. Having helped Nagato with administrative affairs for a long time, she knew that certain things had far-reaching consequences. With the Daimyo and the nobles of the Land of Fire slaughtered, the other great nations wouldn't just sit idly by; they would likely order their hidden villages to issue a wanted bounty.
She already understood Makiya's temperament—he was someone who absolutely refused to take a loss. Countless wars would inevitably break out between the powerful Makiya and the great nations, drawing everyone's attention.
'Let them fight; the more chaos, the better.' Watching Makiya in the rushing wind, Konan felt secretly relieved.
The speed of the sword flight was extremely fast. With Konan acting as a guide, Makiya didn't waste any time finding his way and soon arrived at Amegakure within the Land of Rain.
The Land of Rain, Amegakure—both names were preceded by 'Rain.' As the name implied, this country was saturated with moisture, shrouded year-round in rainfall of various intensities.
"Splash..."
A torrential downpour descended. Raindrops the size of beans struck Makiya's flying sword, turning into wisps of steam that drifted into the sky.
"Makiya-sama, if it's not too much trouble, please undo the seal. I'll go inform Nagato to come and meet you." Konan sat on the flying sword in a 'W' position—the classic duck sit—looking up at Makiya with watery, blinking eyes, attempting to act cute to get her way.
Acting cute was one thing, but this sitting posture was also very comfortable.
The surface of the flying sword was at a pleasant temperature. Konan had been busy running around lately, and the long-term exhaustion had caused her cycle to become irregular; her lower abdomen throbbed with pain. Not to mention, Makiya's palm strike when he applied the seal had hurt like crazy. The duck sit allowed her to press more of herself against the sword's surface, letting the heat flow into her body like an invisible hand massaging her.
Makiya didn't respond to her request. He reached out a hand to catch the raindrops falling from the sky, silently sensing the chakra within them. After a long moment, he looked down and teased, "There's no need for you to inform him. If I'm not mistaken, that guy Nagato already knows we've entered the village."
Makiya flicked the rainwater from his hand onto Konan's face, where it slid down her cheek to the corner of her mouth.
"Rain Tiger at Will Jutsu. By infusing chakra into the clouds, every drop of rain that falls is connected to Nagato's perception. Within the range of this rain, no movement escapes his 'eyes.' My information is correct, isn't it?"
"How do you... even know about this jutsu..." Konan's eyes widened. Since meeting Makiya, she had lost count of how many times she had been shocked. Every piece of information Makiya casually revealed sent a shiver down her spine.
"I know a lot. Don't play tricks in front of me." Makiya snorted coldly and steered the flying sword toward the tallest tower.
Most of the buildings in Amegakure were slender, tall towers with smooth, grey walls. Various water pipes were intricately intertwined between the structures, forming a massive maze.
War had brought endless pain to this country and village. Fortunately, Hanzo of the Salamander had used the gap during the Third Shinobi World War to recover. After Nagato killed Hanzo, he didn't change the policy, so the people's livelihoods and the economy were recovering rapidly.
Once people have enough to eat and wear, they seek mental entertainment. Amegakure didn't have extra resources for entertainment, so building various strange roof shapes became one of the few outlets.
The tops of the towers in the Land of Rain were oddly shaped—some were animal heads, others were exaggerated human sculptures. The tallest tower where Nagato resided was no exception. The grey exterior wall was carved into an exaggerated human face with a wide mouth and a long, slender tongue sticking out.
The tongue, painted red, served as a landing pad. Makiya landed the sword on the tongue and led Konan into the mouth of the face.
Two figures appeared inside the statue's mouth, blocking Makiya's path.
It was two of Nagato's Six Paths of Pain: the Deva Path and the Animal Path!
"Makiya Uchiha, Amegakure does not welcome you. Release Konan, and I will act as if nothing happened." The Deva Path's voice was cold and emotionless, but its eyes were fixed on Konan from the moment it appeared, clearly concerned about her condition.
Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan had wandered together since childhood; the bond between the three was unparalleled. The entire Akatsuki was just a tool to Nagato, but only Konan was family.
Yahiko was the family who had died.
Konan looked into the Deva Path's eyes and shook her head desperately, signaling Nagato to improve his attitude. This man was a demon who killed without blinking; if he kept putting on the airs of a god, not only would the two of them be finished, but Amegakure might cease to exist.
Nagato understood Konan's gaze, but his expression became even more solemn and his tone unfriendly: "Makiya Uchiha, did you threaten Konan?!"
Makiya chuckled: "A defeated opponent, it seems you still haven't grasped the situation."
The blue mark on his forehead flashed briefly, and Makiya instantly entered Sage Mode, blue flames of chakra erupting around him.
The Rinnegan of the Deva and Animal Paths glowed with purple light. They could see the afterimages of Makiya's movements, but their bodies couldn't react in time.
'So fast, he's even faster!' Nagato was shocked. He desperately poured chakra into the black receivers, attempting to control the Deva Path to release a repulsive force to blow Makiya away.
But it was too late.
Makiya suddenly appeared between the Deva and Animal Paths, pressing a hand onto each puppet's shoulder. "Not learning anything good at your age, just mimicking people getting ear and lip piercings... Let me give you some plastic surgery."
Sage chakra exploded instantly, forced into the two puppets' bodies. It clashed with Nagato's chakra, causing the two corpses to lose control and start twitching violently.
To better control the puppets, Nagato had fashioned the black receivers into various ornaments and embedded them all over the corpses. The lip rings, earrings, and other signal receivers made of black receivers were popped out one by one by Makiya's sage chakra, striking the interior of the tower and throwing off sparks.
The puppets went limp at a visible rate. Hidden in a secret room, Nagato's face paled in alarm as he hurriedly mobilized the puppets stationed elsewhere.
The other Six Paths puppets could be lost, but Yahiko's body was special; it absolutely could not fall into the hands of the enemy.
Makiya turned into a blue flash, crashing through everything. Inside the tower, pipes ran in every direction; even someone with a strong sense of direction would get lost without a map.
But soul perception ignored terrain. Aside from Konan and himself, there was only one person left at the top—Nagato, sitting there alone like a beacon.
Makiya smashed through one pipe after another, finally stopping before a bare wall. He pulled back his right fist and punched with all his might. The wall was instantly smashed, creating a huge crater as spider-web-like cracks spread in all directions, followed by a violent collapse.
When the dust settled, the scene inside was finally revealed to Makiya.
Nagato, the actual ruler of Amegakure and the vessel for the Rinnegan, looked haggard. His thin frame sat within a wooden, coffin-like mechanical device, unable to move.
A massive number of black receivers were arrayed in a rectangular pattern, piercing deep into Nagato's body and merging with his flesh. It looked agonizing.
This was the side effect of combining with the Gedo Statue to release the Chakra Dragon. It was also the key to Nagato's near-zero latency control over the puppets; the black receivers in his body acted like antennas, amplifying his chakra signals several times over.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
The other four puppets arrived, surrounding Makiya from four corners, but none of them made a move.
Now that his main body had been discovered, Nagato was hesitant to act, fearing for his own safety.
"Nagato, stop!" Konan ran over from behind Makiya. Because her chakra was sealed, the trek had exhausted her; she panted for a few breaths before recovering. "Makiya didn't do anything to me. He's here to... negotiate with you."
"That's right. If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it already. Try to be a bit smarter next time."
There were no lights in Nagato's hiding place; the vast hall was very dim. Makiya flicked his finger, releasing a fireball that illuminated their figures.
"We have nothing to talk about. Since you don't plan on starting a war, then please leave Amegakure. *Cough, cough, cough...*" Nagato spat out several mouthfuls of blood. "And give me back the Deva Path's body."
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