Chapter 486: Obito and Rin's Pokemon Hatch
"What will the Land of Rain become in the future?"
After leaving the Land of Rain daimyo's palace, Hanzo, who had successfully persuaded the daimyo, looked up at the gloomy sky. A faint confusion rose in his chest.
It was almost laughable. He, the revered Demigod Hanzo, was actually unsure about his own choice.
Hanzo had always believed he was a shinobi with unshakable conviction. Whenever he met someone who carried conviction, even if they were an enemy, he would admire that resolve and spare their life.
But now, he could not tell whether his actions were right, or whether they still counted as conviction at all.
To avoid further conflict with the Shinobi Sect, and to stop living with the fear of Sosuke striking at him at any moment, he used his prestige in the Land of Rain and the daimyo's trust to smoothly secure approval for the Shinobi Sect's terms.
While persuading the daimyo, he had also been persuading himself.
He told himself the Shinobi Sect had not killed the Iwagakure shinobi.
He told himself the Shinobi Sect was as peace loving as the rumors claimed.
He told himself that with the Shinobi Sect's strength, the Land of Rain would grow stronger, and the country would become safer and more stable, not more chaotic.
Would it really turn out that way?
In truth, Hanzo did not know. He was simply hypnotizing himself into believing the best possible ending.
Once the cooperation became official, the Shinobi Sect would essentially become another Amegakure. They would have the right to represent the Land of Rain in wars against other countries.
That meant the Shinobi Sect's actions would shape the future of the Land of Rain.
And for Hanzo, the Land of Rain was home.
Today, he had entrusted his home's future to someone else.
"I truly did not uphold my convictions."
Hanzo could not keep lying to himself.
The moment the words I do not know surfaced in his mind, he understood what his decision meant. He just refused to admit it.
After all, he was the Demigod Hanzo. He should not make such a mistake.
He could not even remember when he had started relying on excuses.
When he failed to surround and kill Sosuke and chose to retreat, he told himself it was for Amegakure.
When everything happened with the Shinobi Sect, he blamed Iwagakure's mistake, and Danzo Shimura's mistake.
Now, he had become far too skilled at finding reasons to protect his pride.
"It has come to this. I can only keep moving forward."
Hanzo let out a soft sigh.
Even if he was reflecting now, he could not bring himself to return to the daimyo, explain every risk and consequence, and overturn the order.
Because he was no longer the Demigod with firm conviction.
Now, he was simply the leader of Amegakure who wanted to live long enough to die of old age.
After returning to Amegakure, Hanzo dispatched shinobi to accompany Iwagakure in responding to the Shinobi Sect.
He was willing to meet the Shinobi Sect's demands, but he added one condition of his own.
The cooperation talks had to be held near Amegakure.
To Hanzo, the Shinobi Sect's credibility was even lower than Iwagakure's. Between them, there truly was blood hatred.
Hanzo feared the Shinobi Sect would stage a false cooperation and a real ambush, copying the method he had once used against Sosuke.
Near Amegakure, he had no such fear.
No matter how strong Sosuke was, he could not wipe out all of Amegakure alone. He did not have that kind of stamina or chakra.
The moment Hanzo's request reached the Shinobi Sect, many of their shinobi objected. To them, it sounded exactly like the opening move of another trap.
"Why should it be near Amegakure? It should be neutral ground between us and them."
"With that location choice, Hanzo definitely has ill intentions."
Distrust toward Hanzo surged through the Shinobi Sect.
Yahiko opened his mouth, then closed it again.
Last time, he had carried a heavy responsibility for walking everyone into the ambush. If he fell for another trick because of his own words, he truly would not know how to face his companions.
Kakuzu remained indifferent. This time, he felt Hanzo had no hidden scheme. He was simply frightened of the Shinobi Sect.
It was too easy for them to break any ambush.
If Mugetsu brought only Kakuzu and Nagato, what could Amegakure possibly use to trap them?
If it came to a fight, they could even kill a batch of Rain shinobi and withdraw calmly.
"It can be closer to Amegakure," Mugetsu said, not accepting Hanzo's demand, "but the exact location and time will be decided by us, the Shinobi Sect. You Rain shinobi can bring as many people as you want to the discussion."
Mugetsu was not worried Hanzo would repeat the same stunt as before. As long as Mugetsu's main body was present, retreating with the Shinobi Sect would not be difficult.
More importantly, Mugetsu wanted Hanzo to understand something.
The Shinobi Sect would not accept unreasonable demands. Hanzo could not simply add the word must and expect obedience.
Hanzo could hear the confidence in Mugetsu's reply, and the faint mockery hidden inside it.
Bring as many as you want was practically saying, I have no intention of killing you. If you are afraid, bring more.
Hanzo felt annoyed, but his heart eased at the same time.
If Mugetsu was willing to speak like this, then these talks were very unlikely to be a scheme aimed at him.
Of course, very unlikely was not the same as impossible.
So Hanzo still brought eighty percent of Amegakure's shinobi with him.
At noon on Sunday, Hanzo led a vast Rain force. Mugetsu led eight Shinobi Sect shinobi. Kitsuchi brought a portion of elite Iwagakure shinobi.
The three sides held cooperation talks near a flat village in the open.
Mugetsu had chosen the timing carefully.
First, it was Sunday, so he did not have to train ANBU.
Second, holding it at noon meant he could still return in time to cook dinner at Tsunade's house.
Hanzo looked at the Shinobi Sect shinobi across from him, faces that felt uncomfortably familiar, and his emotions twisted into a complicated knot.
If he had truly cooperated with them back then, instead of ambushing them, what would this moment look like now?
"Let's start by exchanging our positions," Mugetsu said calmly as he sat across from Hanzo.
Hanzo had expected Sosuke to be cold and mocking when they met again, driven by hatred.
Instead, Mugetsu did not target him at all, and moved straight into business.
"After cooperation, Shinobi Sect and Amegakure must not harm one another. Both sides will jointly protect the peace of the Land of Rain. If foreign enemies invade, we resist together…"
Hanzo had a subordinate present the prepared documents to Mugetsu.
Mugetsu also had Nagato hand over the Shinobi Sect's prepared materials to the Rain side.
Perhaps Hanzo truly no longer wanted to be enemies. Mugetsu found him surprisingly straightforward this time.
There were no word traps, no clever loopholes. The content largely matched the Shinobi Sect's intent.
"This cooperation will last only five years," Mugetsu said. "After five years, the Shinobi Sect will decide whether to continue based on Amegakure's performance."
Hanzo was surprised, but he agreed.
To him, this was better than an open ended alliance. If the Shinobi Sect truly made the Land of Rain worse, he would still have a chance to correct it.
"The spring of the Land of Rain is finally coming," Yahiko said, practically glowing.
He had not expected the talks to move this smoothly.
Just days ago, they had been mortal enemies. Now, they reached an agreement without endless bargaining.
Yahiko was already eager to eliminate every source of chaos in the Land of Rain and restore peace.
Nagato also wore a sincere smile. He could not bring his parents back, but his actions could prevent more people from losing theirs.
Konan handed Mugetsu a paper flower she had folded.
"Sosuke sensei is really making the Land of Rain better."
Ever since they founded Akatsuki, they had fought for peace, but their strength had only been enough to protect a few villages.
Mugetsu was different.
With charisma and strength, he rallied the Shinobi Sect and moved through the Land of Rain, helping people across many places solve real problems.
And because Mugetsu was so strong, even Amegakure did not dare provoke the Shinobi Sect after their failed ambush. They treated the Shinobi Sect as equals, and that gave the Land of Rain hope.
"We're all working together to make the Land of Rain better," Mugetsu replied.
The cooperation between the Shinobi Sect and Amegakure concluded cleanly, leaving all three parties satisfied.
Hanzo and Amegakure no longer had to fear Sosuke's unmatched Fire Release.
The Shinobi Sect could finally develop in peace and deal with the Land of Rain's internal issues.
Kitsuchi completed the mission Onoki had given him.
"Next is provoking conflict between Konoha and the Land of Rain."
Kitsuchi read the mission scroll, his gaze steady.
Iwagakure had not invested effort to develop the Land of Rain. Their real goal was to disgust Konoha.
Onoki, an old hand at stirring trouble, knew better than to rush. If you rushed, you left flaws. The provocation did not need to happen immediately. It only needed to be prepared.
When Kitsuchi finished reading the entire plan, he could not help feeling impressed by his father. It was a truly shinobi kind of scheme.
To push conflict between the Shinobi Sect and Konoha, Onoki even intended to exploit the existing hatred between Hanzo and the Shinobi Sect.
He planned to start from those old grudges, then cooperate with Hanzo to set the Shinobi Sect up.
"Sosuke… in this chaotic world, having no one to rely on is a tragedy."
Kitsuchi shook his head, feeling a trace of pity.
He genuinely liked Sosuke's character. If not for Iwagakure's needs, Kitsuchi believed they could have become real friends.
But before Kitsuchi was just a person, he was a shinobi of Iwagakure.
After personally visiting the Shinobi Sect's station to say farewell to Sosuke, Kitsuchi headed to the Land of Grass to continue his mission.
He had not originally been assigned there.
But the Grass shinobi insisted the Iwagakure shinobi speaking with them could not represent Iwagakure's true will. So they demanded Kitsuchi himself make the trip, the Tsuchikage's son and a famous Iwagakure powerhouse.
Once Kitsuchi arrived in the Land of Grass, the Iwagakure shinobi already on mission quickly reported their progress and intelligence.
"The newly appointed leader of Grass Village is the head of Grass Core, a typical radical shinobi. His desire to cooperate with Iwagakure is strong, but he's afraid we will use him as cannon fodder."
"Any movement from Grass Flower?" Kitsuchi asked.
Grass Core and Grass Flower were the two major factions of Grass Village. Grass Core was radical, Grass Flower conservative.
"We've been careful. Grass Flower does not know the village leader intends to cooperate with Iwagakure to eliminate the Konoha force in the Land of Grass," the Iwagakure shinobi replied.
Kitsuchi nodded slightly.
If the cautious Grass Flower learned the truth, they would sabotage the cooperation at all costs, and then it would be difficult to make the village leader commit.
…
Konoha.
South Border Forest.
Today, Kakashi did not rush into his own training. Instead, he tried teaching Rockruff Earth Release ninjutsu.
[Starting now, i'll change Kakashi's Pokemon name to it's original name]
In Kakashi's view, since Rockruff had mastered Earth Release chakra nature transformation without a teacher, its talent for Earth Release had to be exceptional. That made Earth Release ninjutsu the most suitable path for it.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
Kakashi formed seals quickly. Chakra flowed, and an earthen wall rose from the ground. In the center of the wall, a dog's head was carved, remarkably similar to Rockruff.
"Woof!"
Rockruff barked excitedly, leapt onto the wall, stood proudly on the giant dog head, then jumped down onto Kakashi.
"Stop playing. Try it the way I told you," Kakashi said, lifting Rockruff and placing it back on the ground.
Rockruff scratched its head with a paw and tried to imitate Kakashi's movements.
But its paws could not form hand seals, and after a chaotic struggle, the ground still did not rise at all.
Kakashi grew thoughtful. Teaching ninjutsu this way might be difficult for Rockruff.
After a few more attempts, Kakashi's eyes shifted to the hard stones around Rockruff's neck.
"Forget copying my method," Kakashi said. "See if you can use chakra to control those stones and move them."
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!!
The moment Kakashi finished speaking, the stones around Rockruff's neck shot out like shuriken and embedded into the large tree in front of it.
"So those stones really are not ordinary," Kakashi murmured, surprised Rockruff succeeded on the first try.
With that kind of speed and force, a careless genin could be killed instantly.
But Rockruff's next performance made Kakashi realize it still could not participate in real combat.
Rockruff could not control direction at all. It only threw the stones randomly, relying on luck. After a few throws, it looked exhausted.
Kakashi sat down, stroking Rockruff's head to comfort it.
At that moment, a voice filled with youth and passion rang out nearby.
"If you do not cross the finish line in time, you'll run a hundred more!"
Guy was having a timed race with Riolu, his whole body blazing with enthusiasm.
Guy led the run. Riolu gritted its teeth and chased behind him.
Whoosh!
Just as the distance widened, Riolu suddenly burst forward in a short, explosive acceleration, then returned to normal speed.
"Body Flicker Technique?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Maybe Guy's nin beast talent is focused on taijutsu."
Riolu's stamina was clearly strong. Its perseverance was even stronger.
Now it had mastered a movement similar to Body Flicker. It was naturally suited for taijutsu training.
"Rin, you do not need to envy them," Obito said when he noticed Rin walking over and repeatedly glancing at Rockruff and Riolu. "In novels, the ones who appear later are always stronger. Our nin beast, hatching later, will definitely be stronger than theirs."
"Rin" gave Obito a strange look.
"Obito, I'm not envious, and I'm right here," Rin said, holding a Pokemon Egg as she chuckled.
Obito froze and looked around again.
Rin was gone.
In her place stood a red furred fox with sly eyes.
"How rude! My name isn't Rin!" Zorua puffed out its chest, looking offended.
Obito's fist tightened.
This naturally evil red furred fox dared to make him look stupid in front of Rin. It was asking to die.
"I told you to train your genjutsu, not prank people," Shisui said helplessly as he grabbed Zorua by the scruff and lifted it, forcing it to meet his gaze.
"Is this a prank? Zorua doesn't know," Zorua said, batting its big light blue eyes innocently.
It was just a baby, only a little over ten days old. How could it know complicated things?
Shisui stared at Zorua for a full half minute, then finally set it down.
Expecting a half month old child to behave was asking too much.
"You're faking it," Obito said, refusing to believe. "Foxes in shinobi novels are never good. They're all ridiculously deceptive."
A dark red light flashed, and Rin appeared again, hands on her hips, looking displeased.
"You're not a good thing!"
Obito stared, stunned.
So even when Rin got angry, she could be this cute?
If Rin herself said it, Obito felt those words were not unacceptable at all.
Obito forced the distracting thoughts down and dispelled the genjutsu.
This red furred fox truly could not be underestimated.
"Let's focus on training your physique first," Shisui said in the end, grabbing Zorua by the scruff again and moving it a little farther from Obito.
He did not know who taught it, but Zorua inexplicably loved pranks and tricking people.
Not only people either.
Zorua had even tried to trick Rockruff and Riolu.
But it failed every time. Rockruff sniffed out Zorua's scent immediately. Riolu sensed it even faster, though Shisui could not figure out how.
"When will you hatch?" Obito sighed inwardly as he held his Pokemon Egg close.
Seeing Kakashi's and Guy's nin beasts already training, already showing real combat potential, Obito was anxious.
He had always been slow to start. For a long time, he could not hold his head up in front of Kakashi.
He did not want his nin beast to follow the same path.
As if hearing Obito's thoughts, the Pokemon Egg in his arms suddenly burst into dazzling white light, completely enveloping him.
Obito's disappointment vanished instantly.
His egg had finally hatched.
"May Mugetsu the Sage protect me," Obito prayed silently. "Please let it be a strong and handsome nin beast."
At that same moment, the Pokemon Egg in Rin's hands also erupted with dazzling white light.
Two sudden bursts of white light drew everyone's attention.
"Rin's egg hatched so quickly?" Kakashi looked genuinely surprised.
Obito's egg hatching now was normal. It had been quite a while.
But Rin had only received her egg recently, making it the fastest hatch among all of them.
.....
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