One of the legendary Sannin.
A disciple of the Third Hokage. The teacher of the Fourth Hokage.
With such an illustrious background, Jiraiya's sudden appearance stunned the Root ninja.
Even if they only took orders from Danzo, it was impossible for them to attack Jiraiya without an explicit directive from the very top.
Jiraiya's gaze swept over the two figures behind him — Nagato and Yahiko.
Yahiko was already dead.
Nagato, devastated by the death of his closest friend and guiding light, stood lost and dazed.
His eyes reflected the shock and gratitude of reuniting with his old teacher and savior, but there was far more pain — the agony of losing his closest companion and his direction in life.
If Jiraiya hadn't intervened just in time to save Nagato, if he hadn't shown him even the faintest glimmer of hope... then perhaps...
...
"Obito, this..."
White Zetsu, standing beside him, immediately sensed something wrong in his companion's mood. He opened his mouth but quickly fell silent.
Jiraiya — a wild card they hadn't anticipated — had appeared out of nowhere.
They had been so close. Just one step away. Nagato had almost fully awakened to the world's pain!
Why did Jiraiya have to show up now?!
It wasn't just Obito asking that question — even Danzo Shimura wanted to know.
The Root ninja parted, clearing a path as Danzo stepped forward to confront Jiraiya head-on.
Jiraiya's cold gaze locked onto one of the key culprits behind his disciple's death.
"Danzo. Yahiko and Nagato were my students."
"Your students," Danzo echoed flatly.
He already knew that.
Before they made their move, both Danzo and Hanzo had done their homework.
The three leaders of the Akatsuki — originally helpless, powerless war orphans of Amegakure — had only risen to become capable ninja because of Jiraiya's mercy a decade ago.
But Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan were from the Land of Rain. After learning under Jiraiya, they hadn't served Konoha.
There was a "perfectly reasonable" excuse.
Danzo didn't fear Jiraiya. Wearing his ever-rigid expression, he stated coldly,
"Jiraiya, your students endangered Konoha's interests. Killing them was for the sake of the village."
"..."
Jiraiya's eyes flicked once more to Nagato.
He had taught these three children — victims of the endless wars between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain — how to survive in this cruel world.
Yahiko had been very much like him: an idealistic believer in peace.
Or rather, Yahiko's ideals were shaped largely by Jiraiya's own teachings.
Jiraiya didn't bother arguing with Danzo about what was "for the good of Konoha."
"I'm taking Nagato with me."
"Of course," Danzo said easily.
He didn't try to stop him.
The real heart of Akatsuki had been Yahiko.
It was Yahiko who had united those around him. With him dead, Nagato was just a lost, broken shinobi.
And the fact that Jiraiya had shown up now — at this critical juncture — was both suspicious and inconvenient.
But their goal was already accomplished. After weighing the pros and cons, Danzo decided he didn't want to completely alienate Jiraiya over this.
"Do as you please," Danzo said.
Jiraiya didn't waste another second looking at that despicable old face. He turned around.
His large, warm hand grasped Nagato's, and after sparing a mournful glance at Yahiko's closed eyes, he murmured a silent prayer.
"Let's go, Nagato. I'm sorry... I was too late."
Nagato's world had already collapsed. Facing his teacher and savior, he could only nod dully, his eyes dead and hollow.
"…Mm."
Jiraiya reached out and gently took Yahiko's still-warm body from Nagato's arms.
He handed Yahiko over to Gidōmaru.
"Please. Take care of Yahiko."
Gidōmaru accepted Yahiko's body carefully, his hands trembling.
"Y-Yes, sir!"
Jiraiya turned back, his voice seething with restrained fury.
"Danzo, once I'm back in Konoha — we're not finished."
It wasn't just about Yahiko.
If that old bastard Danzo hadn't colluded with Orochimaru... maybe Orochimaru wouldn't have been pushed away by Hiruzen and Minato. Maybe he wouldn't have left Konoha.
Danzo leaned heavily on his cane but said nothing.
Jiraiya held Nagato's hand tightly, guarding the two of them as they left that accursed place behind.
Nagato was in no condition to even speak.
Jiraiya had no choice but to ask Gidōmaru for the location of the Akatsuki hideout.
The three of them made their way to a relatively safe base hidden within Amegakure.
Outside, the rain continued to pour. Otherwise, the world was utterly silent.
"I'm going inside first," Gidōmaru said quietly.
He entered the hideout.
Inside, he laid Yahiko's body carefully on a bed.
Gidōmaru's heart sank even deeper.
None of the other Akatsuki members had returned to the base... All of them must have been ambushed.
...
Outside.
Jiraiya turned toward Nagato. His broad hand fell gently onto the boy's head, trying to offer him a little comfort. He drew a deep breath.
"Nagato. I..."
"Nagato."
Obito appeared, cutting him off.
No matter how unexpected Jiraiya's arrival had been, Obito couldn't allow him to pull Nagato — who already had one foot in the next world — back from the brink.
Nagato's body stiffened.
He remembered the words he had been told before they set out that morning.
Ideals... Pain... Power...
...
Jiraiya immediately yanked Nagato behind him, shielding him, his instincts screaming that this masked man was just as dangerous as Danzo.
"Who are you?" Jiraiya demanded.
Obito raised a hand and declared calmly, "I am Uchiha Madara."
That single Sharingan eye was real enough. But Jiraiya just sneered.
"Hmph. What nonsense. Some little Uchiha brat dares to parade around using Madara's name? The real Uchiha Madara wouldn't be hiding behind a mask, too ashamed to show his face."
He didn't bother arguing with Jiraiya about the authenticity of his identity.
Neither Jiraiya nor this so-called identity mattered to his true objective.
Sidestepping the White-Haired Sannin, he fixed his lone eye firmly on Nagato.
"Nagato, join me. Walk alongside me. This world is brutally real and cruel... You need strength — and your strength can make this world feel true pain."
——
This Uchiha was after Nagato's Rinnegan!
"Over my dead body!"
Jiraiya immediately caught the true intent hidden in Obito's words. With a swift movement, he formed a Rasengan in his palm and charged toward him.
But his attack, along with his body, passed right through Obito without leaving a scratch.
"Think carefully about what I told you, Nagato."
Obito began to absorb himself into the swirling space-time vortex.
Facing a ninja of Jiraiya's caliber, Obito wasn't ready for a direct confrontation yet. All he needed was to plant the seed in Nagato's heart.
Nagato would come looking for him sooner or later.
Because of Obito's bizarre space-time jutsu and the lack of solid intel, Jiraiya chose not to recklessly pursue him, allowing Obito to safely vanish before their eyes.
Jiraiya shot a questioning glance at Gidōmaru, but the latter shook his head firmly.
"I don't know that guy."
However, judging from the exchange just now, it was obvious that this self-proclaimed "Uchiha Madara" had already sought out Nagato before.
One storm barely passed before another began brewing.
Jiraiya had no choice but to take this new unknown enemy seriously.
The power of Nagato's Rinnegan must not fall into that dangerous man's hands.
Stepping past Gidōmaru, Jiraiya crouched down, grabbing Nagato's shoulders and staring straight into his eyes.
"Nagato, who was that just now?"
Nagato didn't respond. His head hung low, trapped in inner turmoil.
That man... That Uchiha Madara... wasn't wrong.
Yahiko's ideals — they were just ideals after all.
True peace could only be achieved through overwhelming power. And his Rinnegan was that power!
Yahiko had thought the same way once, hadn't he?
"NAGATO!!"
The emotions on Nagato's face were painfully raw.
Confusion, helplessness... slowly giving way to madness and obsession. Jiraiya watched in horror as his disciple's unstable emotions began to settle — but in the wrong direction.
He couldn't let Nagato spiral any further!
Steeling himself, Jiraiya flickered behind Nagato and raised his hand for a swift karate chop.
"Sorry, kid — you need to cool off first!"
He would explain everything once Konan returned.
With Yahiko dead, only Konan had any hope of pulling Nagato back.
But—
A hand shot out from a distance, intercepting Jiraiya's descending blow.
Startled, Gidōmaru cried out as he saw the newcomer, finally feeling a glimmer of hope:
"Kakuzu-san!!"
Jiraiya withdrew his hand.
Kakuzu, meanwhile, sensed that Jiraiya held no killing intent toward Nagato, easing up slightly.
He had been locked in a fierce battle with Hanzo and wasn't aware of what had happened afterward.
After disengaging, he searched in the direction Nagato's group had fled — and found no one — so he returned here.
Gidōmaru, trembling, noticed the three bloody holes in Kakuzu's body.
"Kakuzu-san, y-you're hurt!"
"Just lost three hearts. Nothing I can't replace later," Kakuzu said indifferently.
"Shame I couldn't kill that demigod."
Three hundred million ryo bounty — gone to waste.
After quickly getting up to speed on the situation, Kakuzu locked eyes with the most dangerous person present — Jiraiya.
"What the hell happened here?"
Jiraiya calmly introduced himself:
"I'm Jiraiya, Nagato's mentor."
"Jiraiya…" Kakuzu repeated the name, frowning slightly. Familiar.
"Oh, two hundred million ryo. You're that guy."
"…Excuse me?"
"The bounty on your head, from the underground exchange."
The black tendrils on Kakuzu's body twitched restlessly. A two-hundred-million-ryo target standing right in front of him — it was tempting.
But with three hearts lost, Kakuzu knew better than to pick a fight now. He restrained himself and calmed down.
"Ah, I see..."
It was the first time Jiraiya had been addressed like that. Scratching his head, he asked,
"And you are?"
"I'm Kakuzu. Mercenary and nominal member of Akatsuki."
Kakuzu's gaze swept across the three people in front of him.
The headcount was the same as when he'd separated from them — three people — but one had been swapped out for a white-haired two-hundred-million-ryo figure.
Kakuzu's expression darkened.
"Where's Yahiko?"
Jiraiya's heart sank.
Oh crap. Of all things, he had to bring that up?
No one said anything, but the shifting looks on their faces told Kakuzu everything he needed to know.
"Follow me."
Gidōmaru led them to Yahiko's bedside.
Jiraiya kept a close eye on Nagato.
Normally calm and composed, Nagato now completely lost control. Faced with the death of someone dearest to him, he howled in anguish.
Jiraiya realized with a heavy heart that, after being apart from his students for so long, his words might not have the same weight they once did.
Their only hope lay in Konan's return to help anchor Nagato's collapsing world.
Kakuzu narrowed his eyes.
"Heart injury?"
"Yeah."
A fatal blow straight to the heart.
A twisted smile appeared on Kakuzu's face.
"Hasn't been dead long. Looks like today's my lucky day."
A mere fatal wound? Kakuzu had survived death four times over.
Without another word, Kakuzu stretched out his hand.
Black threads sprouted from his arms, extending into Yahiko's chest wound.
None of them truly understood Kakuzu's abilities, so no one could tell what he was doing.
...
Still, in that moment, hope flickered in the dark, hollow hearts of the three onlookers.
Could Yahiko... still be saved?
In the battle against Hanzo, Kakuzu's fire, wind, and lightning hearts had been destroyed. Hanzo hadn't gotten off easy either, falling prey to Kakuzu's fake death and suffering serious injuries.
Kakuzu now had only two hearts left.
He reserved the earth heart for himself.
The water heart, however, detached from his body, traveled through the black threads and into Yahiko's body.
The pain of losing another heart made Kakuzu frown.
"Good thing you're lucky too, kid."
Fortunately, Yahiko's primary chakra attribute matched the heart Kakuzu still had.
Replacing Yahiko's ruined heart, Kakuzu used his black threads to reconnect the new heart with the body's blood vessels.
The dead heart was removed.
Kakuzu stitched up the surgical incision with his black threads.
Slowly, bodily functions — deprived of energy and blood flow — began stirring again under the vigorous beating of a new heart.
Yahiko's deathly pale face gradually regained color.
It worked?!
Jiraiya stared at Kakuzu in astonishment.
A jutsu that could bring someone back from death?!
Though he'd lost one heart, Kakuzu considered it a fair trade.
"Heh, five hundred million ryo saved. Seventy-plus years of living, and this is the first time I've ever given away one of my own hearts. Unbelievable."
Back at the Akatsuki hideout, for the first time in a long while, Nagato finally spoke up:
"Kakuzu-san—"
Gidōmaru crawled to the bedside, practically in tears.
"Yahiko! Y-Yahiko!"
"Mm?"
From the haze of confusion, Yahiko slowly opened his eyes.
Who am I? Where am I?
Wasn't I dead?
Above him was a familiar ceiling.
Turning his head toward the voices, he saw two tear-streaked, familiar-yet-unfamiliar faces.
'Nagato?'
Yahiko tried to call out, but all that came out was a croaky, broken sound:
"Ee... yah…"
His vocal cords hadn't fully healed yet.
Seeing Yahiko awake and uttering a sound, Nagato trembled and gently pounced on him.
"Yahiko! Thank goodness!"
Kakuzu winced, feeling secondhand pain.
"Oi, red-haired brat, be gentle!"
...
Through Nagato's retelling, Yahiko slowly pieced together what had happened after his death - why Jiraiya-sensei had appeared — and how Kakuzu had saved his life.
Unable to speak yet, Yahiko directed a grateful look at Jiraiya first.
Had it not been for Jiraiya, Nagato and Konan might have been lost as well.
Then he turned to Kakuzu, gratitude written all over his face.
"My mission from Kirigakure," Kakuzu said blandly, "was to ensure the survival of you three - Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan."
His gaze drifted upwards, as if imagining himself swimming in a sea of money.
"Though I lost three hundred million and two hundred million ryo... the five hundred million ryo mission is still intact."
Jiraiya was dumbstruck.
"Five hundred million?!"
What kind of absurd world was this where his three students were worth more than him combined?!
Yahiko, Nagato, and Gidōmaru were equally floored.
Gidōmaru stammered,
"K-Kakuzu-san... b-but didn't you say... fifty million?"
They had seen bounties in the tens of millions for powerful jonin before.
But over a hundred million? Five hundred million?
That was astronomical! Way above even Jiraiya's bounty!
"Fifty million? That was Kirigakure paying me to protect their economic interests against Amegakure's interference," Kakuzu scoffed.
"That Mizukage sure knows how to waste money, tossing so much onto your heads."
He cast a skeptical look at Yahiko and Nagato.
"Are you even worth that much?"
...It sounded suspiciously like he was insulting them.
Yahiko and the others scratched their heads awkwardly, chuckling sheepishly.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya glanced at Nagato's Rinnegan, mind racing.
Could it be that elusive Mizukage knew about the Rinnegan? Was that why he placed such a heavy bounty on these kids?
Kakuzu had no intention of lingering in the spotlight.
He retreated to his private room in Akatsuki's base, citing the loss of four hearts as a solid excuse no one could refute.
Akatsuki had always kept a personal room reserved for Kakuzu.
His clothes were riddled with holes.
He pulled a new set from the closet and changed.
In the mirror, his battered body reflected back at him.
On the nightstand, a delicate paper flower stood proudly in a vase Kakuzu had bought for nine hundred ninety-nine ryo.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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