Great, it was just a false alarm..."
Though close by, the aloe plant had concealed itself to an undetectable degree and silently watched everything unfold before it.
Long ago, Haseo had met Zetsu face-to-face once. Back then, however, Zetsu's sole purpose had been to observe Mito Uzumaki's condition. At that time, Mito Uzumaki had struck them so hard that Black Zetsu and White Zetsu's original bodies were flattened into shapeless remnants like facial masks. By that point, Haseo had already started to stand out, but because the old masters were still around, he wasn't someone worth special attention from Zetsu.
Over time, the older generation of powerful figures gradually faded away, while Haseo himself continued growing stronger. Naturally, all those scattered White Zetsus would begin paying attention to shinobi like him.
Such a person could potentially interfere with their "plan."
Of course, Zetsu didn't want Haseo and Nagato to meet—but they did anyway. He couldn't stop things like that from happening.
The proud Madara Uchiha likely looked down on junior ninja. Believing he had grasped the nature of the world, he focused only on his own plan.
Madara Uchiha held onto the pride of his clan, but in truth, he'd long since abandoned even the Uchiha who once betrayed him. Though he would use certain "tools" in his "future plans," aside from that, what else truly mattered?
As for Black Zetsu and White Zetsu, even though their current disguise was as Madara's subordinates, their goals were entirely different. Zetsu thought further ahead and planned more meticulously. Without question, Madara was merely a puppet manipulated by these two ancient beings.
"Hmm, well, we can relax a bit. That ninja always acts unpredictably—things others worry about might not concern him at all... He's an anomaly among ninjas. Maybe he didn't even notice that gaze. Ha, after all, even if someone saw the Rinnegan, they'd never recognize its true nature."
"Let's watch and see what he does next. Chances are that kid came here because of his connection to the Uzumaki. He has especially strong ties to them, especially after Mito Uzumaki's death... Let's just wait and see what he intends to do. Hopefully, he doesn't try to take Nagato back to Konoha."
"Nagato won't go to Konoha. He belongs to Amegakure. His own willpower, plus Jiraiya's presence, will prevent that from happening."
"But we mustn't grow careless either. If not for how strict the Rinnegan is regarding its 'vessel,' we should have abandoned Nagato and found a new one when that ninja showed up."
"Yes... After all, that pair of eyes comes from..."
"Should we approach that ninja? Try extracting his chakra or even directly possess him?"
"No, don't! That guy spends all day with the Uzumakis. His body likely contains numerous unpredictable Sealing Formulas. If we act recklessly, we risk being discovered... Don't forget how Mito Uzumaki detected us before."
"Just stay calm and keep your head. Be careful but don't hold back—only do something reckless if there's no other choice."
"Understood. Some parts of the plan can be adjusted, however... our hope lies in those eyes."
"Yes, our hope lies there too."
The merged White and Black fell silent, their mood darkening. Hidden within the green forest, they decided to remain completely vigilant until Haseo left this place.
...
"So I was just taking advantage of your absence to secretly test your disciples' strength—it was nothing serious. As for that slight 'loss of control' in the middle, that was force majeure. Fortunately, I still had things under control the entire time... In short, no real significant damage was done here."
Jiraiya: "..."
Later, after the three kids woke up, Haseo explained to them the 'truth' behind what happened and re-introduced his identity.
But what exactly did he mean by 'no major damage'? Jiraiya looked around at the rubble, the lowered lake level, the overturned earth, and those big craters—where was his house? Even real estate could just up and disappear without a trace?
Yet according to Haseo, all this was merely a trivial matter... Well, technically speaking, it really wasn't that big of a deal. Although Jiraiya felt annoyed, he couldn't really blame Haseo over just one house. Therefore, he simply asked along with a sigh, "So you came here specifically for Nagato then? How did you get that information?"
"Jiraiya, do I really have to explain where my intelligence comes from?" Haseo actually had no source whatsoever, so how could he possibly explain it to others? "Your understanding isn't quite right. I didn't come here for this child called Nagato—I came here for the Uzumaki clan."
As long as it involved descendants of the Uzumaki, Haseo had every reason to appear here. Whether this descendant was Nagato or another individual labeled '1096' made no difference.
This explanation held firm ground with both Black and White Zetsu, not to mention Jiraiya, who could only nod reluctantly.
While Haseo conversed with Jiraiya, the three awakened children began whispering among themselves.
At this moment, Yahiko and Konan were perfectly fine, but Nagato appeared particularly weak and listless.
"That ninja's name... I feel like I've heard it before," Konan whispered softly.
In the Land of Rain, almost everyone had heard of Haseo. In fact, his name had already become widely known long ago... Certain individuals had been actively spreading the story that "the previous Amegakure leader was assassinated and beheaded by the Konoha ninja Haseo" in order to escape blame for acts of defiance against authority.
"Funny, I've heard this name too. Just never expected that such a ninja would actually..." Yahiko hesitated, eventually choosing not to voice the exact word on his mind—"shady."
In the Land of Rain, Haseo was known as a notorious threat.
But he actually dressed up just to scare three kids, so how could he be reliable?
"It looks like he came here just for you, Nagato. What do you think?" Yahiko then asked Nagato directly.
"I... I only trust Jiraiya-sensei. I don't like the way that ninja carries himself—he feels like someone with something to hide." Usually quiet and reserved, Nagato rarely spoke such a lengthy sentence.
He certainly couldn't have any good feelings toward Haseo—an individual who pushed him to his breaking point without hesitation, forcing him to unleash his power—how could such a person ever be a good person?
Yahiko silently nodded.
Haseo exchanged opinions with Jiraiya and finally said, "At any rate, teaching ninjutsu to children from an enemy country is completely inappropriate. If possible, it would be better to bring them back to Konoha; I can guarantee their innocence."
Although he was still acting, Haseo genuinely could guarantee exactly that—not necessarily that the three posed no malice toward Konoha, but that their malice could be removed at any time.
Yes, along with their lives.
"I think this is a solid suggestion. Living in Konoha is better than living in the Land of Rain."
Jiraiya naturally saw no reason to oppose this proposal. But he wasn't authorized to make such decisions alone, so he turned his gaze to Nagato and his companions.
Haseo continued addressing Nagato, "As I explained earlier, the Uzumaki clan hopes its scattered members like yourself will return home. If you're willing, Konoha will naturally accept you… along with your two companions."
Nagato remained silent and simply looked at Yahiko.
Then Yahiko nodded and spoke, "Even though the war in the Land of Rain has taken away much from us, we have always been and will remain people of the Land of Rain… There's no reason for us to go to Konoha, no matter how peaceful life there might be—it isn't our homeland."
Though young, this child seemed already determined to change the Land of Rain.
"That was… quite well said. It really sounds like the old Amegakure (Rain Village) spirit."
It sounded like praise, but Haseo shook his head… What did he mean by "the old Amegakure style"?
As unbending as iron, "preferring death over surrender."
"Well then, let's leave it at that. I hope you can protect the strength of the Uzumaki… For example, the power you displayed when fighting me just now—don't misuse it, and preferably keep it hidden from others too. The kind of trouble it would bring is far beyond anything you could manage."
Haseo appeared completely uninterested in forcing them otherwise.
Moreover, he delicately hinted that he had misinterpreted the Rinnegan's power as a unique Uzumaki trait… Jiraiya seemingly intended to conceal the existence of the Rinnegan from Haseo, yet Haseo was more than happy to pretend ignorance.
"Haseo, you're agreeing like this? That doesn't seem like your usual style."
Even Jiraiya, standing beside him, felt surprised at Haseo's decision.
"What's unusual about it? After all, this isn't something one can force upon others," Haseo replied naturally.
While that was true, Jiraiya still couldn't shake off a lingering sense of unease.
He didn't know that at this moment, a "U" mark had already been branded onto Nagato's body—not figuratively, but in reality.
That was the Flying Thunder God mark, hidden on Nagato's body. This special marking was nearly impossible to detect.
Although Haseo couldn't use this mark for long-distance travel just yet… well, he believed there would come a time when he could.
At the very least, Haseo—who had already mastered the Flying Thunder God technique—could sense the presence of this mark and use it as a locator.
"What about next, Haseo? Are you going straight back to Konoha?"
"No, I'll stay in the Land of Rain for a while. First off, my home… Anyway, I need to rest on the battlefield for a bit and recover my energy."
Jiraiya didn't immediately grasp how resting on a battlefield could be seen as "resting one's spirit," but he soon caught on—Haseo's words weren't meant for regular people to overhear.
"Secondly, Nawaki is on this battlefield right now, and I still need to keep an eye on him so he doesn't get killed by someone."
Although Haseo personally felt indifferent toward such a task, he couldn't simply ignore promises made to Tsunade… And then there was still the matter of his "debt obligations."
"I see. Go ahead and do what you need to do," Jiraiya said.
Haseo noticed this person seemed rather eager for him to leave, so he enthusiastically asked, "Your house got destroyed. Should I help rebuild it? Two people are faster than one."
"No, no, no! That won't be necessary; we can't delay your important work."
Jiraiya and the three kids behind him synchronously shook their heads at Haseo.
"Well then." It was a shame—just trying to do a good deed and getting turned down. Shrugging his shoulders, Haseo began preparing to leave.
Yet after walking a few steps forward, he stopped again.
"Jiraiya…"
"Yeah?"
He seemed like he wanted to say something else, but eventually just shook his head. "Never mind, it's nothing."
Then he really did leave.
His words trailed off, leaving Jiraiya puzzled.
Jiraiya shrugged it off instead of overcomplicating things—it wasn't rare for Haseo to act this way sometimes. He patted Nagato's head, crimson hair as vivid red as blood staining his arm.
"Alright, we've got to build a new house now."
"Yes, Jiraiya-sensei!"
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>