"My Rinnegan awakened after I witnessed my parents' deaths. I fainted shortly afterward. When I woke up, the Rinnegan was already there—but at the time, I couldn't use it at all. It wasn't until my teacher began instructing us in ninjutsu that I slowly learned how to control its power."
Nagato frowned after speaking.
Thinking back on the awakening of his Rinnegan, the memories felt strangely blurred. At the time, he hadn't questioned it—but now that he reconsidered it, the details truly were vague.
"Ash, why are you asking this?"
Konan looked at him closely. "Is there something wrong with Nagato's Rinnegan?"
"Actually," Ash said calmly, "the first time I met Nagato, I noticed something was off. His Rinnegan doesn't feel like it awakened naturally. To be precise… it feels transplanted."
Konan's expression stiffened.
"In normal dōjutsu awakenings," Ash continued, "even if the user hasn't fully mastered their eyes, they can still open and close them freely. But Nagato's Rinnegan has always been active. You likely never noticed because of your enormous chakra reserves."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"More importantly, the connection between your optic nerves and the Rinnegan shows clear signs of interruption. If my Sharingan didn't allow me to observe chakra flow at the cellular level, I probably wouldn't have noticed either."
Silence fell.
Nagato and Konan stared at Ash in shock.
"What?!"
They had no reason to doubt him. Leaving aside Konan's trust in Ash, even Nagato himself knew that Ash had never once tried to manipulate or deceive him. If Ash had wanted the Rinnegan, he could have taken it long ago—there would have been no need to help Nagato recover his body.
That alone proved his sincerity.
"As things stand, the Rinnegan is still yours," Ash said evenly. "As for who transplanted it into you, I don't know. But you should be careful. Someone has been using you to accomplish something."
"…That man."
Nagato's expression darkened as memories surfaced—specifically, the words spoken by the masked man when they had first met.
The more he thought about it, the more everything lined up.
In the end, the three of them chose to keep the matter secret for the time being. After all, the Rinnegan was currently Nagato's power. Whoever it originally belonged to no longer mattered—at least not yet.
"Masked man…"
Ash narrowed his eyes inwardly. "This is getting more and more interesting. I'll tear that mask off sooner or later."
In truth, Ash was confident he could already confront him. Although he didn't know how many trump cards the masked man still possessed, Ash was certain he himself wasn't inferior.
Still, acting rashly would be unwise.
Until the masked man's true purpose and contingencies were exposed, Ash couldn't move openly. If things escalated too quickly, Akatsuki's existence would be fully exposed to the Five Great Nations.
At present, although many villages were aware of Akatsuki, they merely viewed it as a mercenary organization. In the ninja world, such groups were common, and Akatsuki didn't stand out—yet.
No one realized that among the countless organizations hidden in the shadows, Akatsuki would one day ignite the Fourth Great Ninja War.
Three Months Later
Near Kusagakure (Hidden Grass Village)
"Everyone, stay alert. We must escort the princess safely back to the Land of Grass."
Within the territory influenced by Iwagakure, Kusagakure had recently accepted a mission. Such assignments were common among small ninja villages.
Outside of the Five Great Nations, countless minor countries existed. Merchants and nobles from these lands often hired ninjas from smaller villages to save costs.
"Captain, relax," a chūnin from Kusagakure said casually. "We haven't even left the village yet. There's no need to be this tense."
"Enough talk. Stay sharp," the squad leader replied coldly. "The girl in that palanquin is the princess of the Land of Grass—the same royal family that supports Kusagakure financially. If anything happens to her, none of us will escape responsibility."
The chūnin fell silent.
This mission didn't offer a high monetary reward—but successfully escorting the princess would earn tremendous political favor.
And in the ninja world, that kind of merit was priceless.
"Heh… a princess of the Land of Grass. Let you witness my art."
Not far from the escort squad, a blond young man with a high ponytail watched with arrogant excitement. He was none other than Deidara, the missing-nin of Iwagakure—and once a disciple of the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki.
"Explode!"
"BOOM——!!!"
The instant Deidara's voice fell, a terrifying explosion erupted within the escort team protecting the princess. Flames and debris shot skyward, thick smoke swallowing the area whole.
When the smoke finally dissipated, not a single person was left standing.
As for the princess—whether she was alive or dead was impossible to tell.
"Hahahaha! As expected—only explosions are true art!"
Deidara laughed maniacally, clearly intoxicated by the destructive beauty of his own jutsu.
"…Is that idiot supposed to be my teammate?"
Not far away, Sasori of the Red Sand spoke coldly, his tone laced with impatience.
"He looks like the type who won't live very long."
Three months after the Uchiha clan's annihilation, Nagato had detected Deidara's existence. Judging his strength to be acceptable, he had dispatched members to observe him—and, if possible, recruit him into Akatsuki.
The group watching from the shadows consisted of Ash, Uchiha Itachi, Sasori, and Kisame Hoshigaki.
Having witnessed Deidara's actions firsthand, Ash couldn't help but feel that this man's mentality was… somewhat warped.
"Let's wait at that brat's hideout first," Ash said calmly, narrowing his eyes.
"He's causing too much of a disturbance. This area is still under Iwagakure's sphere of influence. Try not to draw unnecessary attention to Akatsuki."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
As they withdrew, Ash glanced back once more, a hint of interest flashing through his eyes.
"…That ability is far more convenient than ordinary explosives," he muttered.
"Much better than the time bombs from my previous life."
...
TN:
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