When he heard the words "lend a hand," both Yahiko and Nagato couldn't help but shiver slightly.
Was this really help? Especially Yahiko—he looked at the shoe print on his body and the faint pain radiating from that small bruise and felt like he really didn't need any help at all.
Right after, Gekko Chizan smiled faintly and continued his speech.
"But looking at your situation, it doesn't seem that great either. Not only are your numbers small, but you also got beaten up."
"What's this? Does Amegakure have such a glorious tradition?"
"Some sort of confrontation training? To improve the village's ninja combat ability?"
At these words, Yahiko frowned. He knew Gekko Chizan was joking; otherwise, he wouldn't have just taken down all their enemies in one move earlier.
That Water Dragon Bullet Technique was simply shocking. To summon such a massive water dragon… this man's strength was clearly beyond anything he could compare to.
"Don't joke around. We will never follow Hanzo-sama."
"His policies are unacceptable. At least, not to us."
Facing Gekko Chizan, Yahiko responded seriously, his tone filled with a solemn determination.
"Peace doesn't need extreme war. We will create a world of peace, a world without war."
"That's the reason we exist. Even against the mighty Hanzo-sama, we will never back down."
Nagato and Konan stood solemnly beside him as well.
They shared the same experiences, the same goal.
That was what kept them moving forward.
Unfortunately for them, the person sitting across from them was someone who knew the future.
Gekko Chizan curled his lip disdainfully. It wasn't that he thought Yahiko's ideals were wrong—what he opposed was Yahiko's mindset.
How did he die in the original story? He went to his death on his own.
Wasn't that foolish? Saying things like "we will never back down," but in the end, it was just because he had been driven to a desperate corner. And then? Sigh… a pitiful, laughable man.
But that was in the original.
Now, Gekko Chizan was here.
If Nagato, with the Rinnegan, was a chess piece prepared by Uchiha Madara, then Yahiko and Konan were the people Gekko Chizan intended to pull into his own camp.
And don't think he hadn't noticed the discontent brewing in Nagato's heart.
With Chōmei's emotion-sensing ability, he had already learned all of Nagato's feelings toward him during this short encounter.
First surprise, then fear, then irritation—and by the time he said those last words, Nagato had even developed a trace of dissatisfaction toward him.
Meanwhile, Yahiko and Konan only felt a bit stirred emotionally, nothing more.
"Heh. I don't know why Jiraiya saved you all, but from your little fight earlier, I sure didn't see much talent."
"Oh, no, let me correct myself—I didn't see any talent from you two. Konan's Paper Release, though—I did see that. A truly marvelous ninjutsu."
"Orange hair. Red hair. What about you two? Got any skills?"
That nearly taunting tone made Yahiko spring to his feet, pointing straight at Gekko Chizan, his face full of fighting spirit.
"Hmph! Questioning our strength, are you? I'll tell you right now—my strength is plenty strong!"
"And another thing, I'm not orange hair! My name's Yahiko! His name's Nagato!"
Nagato slowly stood up as well, Rinnegan eyes staring straight at Gekko Chizan.
He didn't speak, but his attitude was clear enough.
"Oh? Is that so? I couldn't tell…"
"Orange hair…"
Orange hair… orange hair… Yahiko was about to explode with rage. His hair looked this good—how was it "orange hair"?!
Konan, on the other hand, found this scene rather amusing, watching Gekko Chizan drive Yahiko mad like this. She quickly stood and grabbed Yahiko's arm.
After all, Gekko Chizan had helped them, even if things had been… bumpy.
"Hmph! I'm so mad right now!"
"You really are the worst!"
Pulled back by Konan, Yahiko finally sat back down awkwardly.
The three of them settled again, while Gekko Chizan looked them over with a faint smile.
"You're out here openly winning people over in the Land of Rain. Aren't you afraid Hanzo-sama will target you?"
"Remember, the older a man gets, the craftier he becomes. Sure, they call him the Demigod, but he's still human. And humans… have human flaws."
At the mention of Hanzo-sama, all three of them fell silent.
Because they knew very well that as long as they were in the Land of Rain, in Amegakure, they would always be under Hanzo-sama's shadow.
After all, without Hanzo-sama, there would be no Land of Rain.
In the Second Great Ninja War, even though the Land of Rain became a battlefield, Hanzo-sama's overwhelming strength allowed him to face the great nations head-on, fearless, making his name resound across the world and forcing the five great nations to take both the Land of Rain and Amegakure seriously.
Now, they had barely started recruiting and were already targeted by Amegakure's ninjas. If they kept growing, it was only a matter of time before Hanzo-sama found out.
"So what? To realize our dream, one day, we'll face him."
"If we're scared already, how will we ever achieve our ideals?"
Yahiko's tone was firm. He would not give up on his dream.
Nagato and Konan felt the same.
"Besides, why does a Konoha ninja care so much anyway? Whatever we want to do—what's it got to do with you?"
Gekko Chizan nodded. Yahiko was right. As a Konoha ninja, he technically had no business interfering.
Unfortunately for them… he would interfere.
Not for any other reason, but for his own safety.
The Akatsuki. Either he would stop it from ever forming… or make it his own.
The only question was—had Yahiko founded it yet?
"Who says outsiders can't get involved?"
"Jiraiya's a Konoha ninja too, isn't he? Yet he took in all three of you."
At the mention of Jiraiya, Yahiko immediately fell silent. After all, that was his teacher. What could he say?
The room fell into silence until Gekko Chizan broke it again.
"Orange hair, you're basically a little captain now. Does your team have a name?"
"Or are you planning to form an organization? One to help achieve your ideals?"
The main event was finally here.
Gekko Chizan hadn't forgotten that system reward he got for naming the daimyo earlier.
If he hijacked this moment, maybe he could earn another wave of rewards.
"An organization? A name?"
"No, we only have nine people in total right now."
Yahiko looked puzzled, but at the mention of the word "organization," his eyes suddenly lit up.
This was a good idea. If they wanted to accomplish something big, why not form an organization?
Good idea. Very good idea.
When he heard they hadn't founded the Akatsuki yet, Gekko Chizan smiled.
It was a very happy smile.
So happy, in fact, that Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan all felt puzzled.
They had no idea what was going through Gekko Chizan's mind.
No organization yet, and he was this happy?
Not normal.
Definitely not normal!
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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