In the sky.
A wooden dragon flew towards the lake.
The massive wooden dragon arrived at the lake in despair.
As Konan and Fukasaku fled with Nagato, and Orochimaru set up an exploding tag trap, a shadow appeared above Orochimaru.
Orochimaru looked up at the sky.
The wooden dragon slowly lowered its head, revealing Akihara Kagura standing on top.
"Where is Jiraiya?"
Orochimaru looked up at Akihara Kagura, smiled, and said, "Kagura-kun, have you finally killed your teacher too?"
"Something like that."
Akihara Kagura seemed indifferent to Jiraiya's fate and casually said, "However, it might not be good, right?"
On the distant battlefield.
Jiraiya's body was still drifting along the river.
In the battle between the master and the apprentice, Jiraiya had no power to fight back. He was knocked into the river by the wooden dragon controlled by Akihara Kagura, and his fate was uncertain.
However...
Jiraiya's body was drifting rapidly down the river.
A figure wearing a gas mask quietly emerged from the river.
It was Hanzo of the Salamander, the leader of Rain Village. He seemed to have been hiding nearby, secretly observing the battle.
Hanzo of the Salamander pulled Jiraiya's body to a safe place, carefully bandaging his wounds.
"Cough, cough, cough…"
Jiraiya spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Rain Village's medical ninja techniques are inadequate."
After bandaging him, Hanzo of the Salamander spoke in a muffled voice, "I heard that the new Hokage of Konoha is Tsunade. I will immediately send someone to take you back to Konoha. She should be able to heal your injuries…"
"Thank you."
Jiraiya opened his eyes. Hearing the somewhat familiar voice and seeing the person in front of him, he inexplicably felt a sense of relief.
"Lord Hanzo of the Salamander?"
"This is, after all, the territory of the Land of Rain."
Hanzo of the Salamander helped him sit up and said softly, "I just sensed chakra fluctuations from the Akatsuki base. I thought Nagato was in trouble and wanted to come and see what was happening here, only to see you almost get killed…"
"Phew…"
Jiraiya showed a hint of shame and sighed, "I didn't expect that obedient child to harbor such dark thoughts…"
This matter could not remain a secret.
Because the ninja world was about to face a catastrophe.
Jiraiya was very clear about the weight Hanzo of the Salamander carried. As the leader of Rain Village, he would inevitably face the impending disaster in the ninja world.
"That…"
Hanzo of the Salamander looked up, seemingly recalling the past, "In the past, he seemed to have come to the Land of Rain with you. He was the one with the Wood Release…"
"Yes…"
Jiraiya quickly nodded.
"I've heard his name."
Hanzo of the Salamander also nodded and continued, "Many people in the ninja world now know him and the reputation of Root. He is much stronger than Danzo…"
"Indeed…"
Jiraiya could only agree with a bitter smile.
It was true.
Akihara Kagura was far stronger than Danzo.
His ability to cause trouble was beyond Danzo's reach.
"What exactly is going on?"
Hanzo of the Salamander seemed completely unaware and asked, "Where is Nagato? Why haven't I seen Nagato?"
"I just saw Nagato's Gedo Statue over there. The statue that almost killed me before had its limbs directly torn off…"
"Yes… Nagato!"
Jiraiya immediately remembered another extremely important disciple. He looked at Hanzo of the Salamander and earnestly pleaded, "Lord Hanzo, please take me to find Nagato quickly. We must not let Kagura find him first!"
"I understand."
Hanzō of the Salamander nodded and directly agreed, "I had initially considered entrusting Rain Village to Nagato, so naturally, I won't stand by and do nothing about his predicament…"
"But…"
"What exactly is going on?"
Hanzō of the Salamander looked at Jiraiya and asked in a deep voice, "Why would the Wood Release prodigy of Konoha attack his own teacher?"
"If he were fighting Nagato, I could understand because Nagato's capture of tailed beasts brings more trouble than starting a war with the three major nations…"
"Lord Hanzō… you know Nagato is capturing tailed beasts?"
Jiraiya looked at Hanzō of the Salamander with some surprise and instinctively asked, "Does Lord Hanzō not realize that this would bring disaster to the Land of Rain?"
"I know."
Hanzō of the Salamander lowered his head and continued in a deep voice, "For the Land of Rain to survive, we need to use some unimaginable means…"
"When I fought against Konoha, Rock, and Sand Village to stop the slaughter in the Land of Rain, didn't you think the same? But for the sake of the civilians of the Land of Rain, I had no other choice…"
"Regarding Nagato's intentions…"
"Perhaps I can also guess a little…"
Hanzō of the Salamander sighed and shook his head, saying, "But for the Land of Rain, what could be worse than this country always being a battlefield?"
"…"
Jiraiya fell silent.
"Konoha kid…"
Hanzō of the Salamander patted Jiraiya on the shoulder. With his age and status, he could treat Jiraiya this way. He continued softly, "Although I still don't know what happened, it seems that your Wood Release prodigy from Konoha is about to cause more troublesome consequences than Nagato's extreme ideas…"
"Huff…"
Jiraiya rubbed his chest and sighed, "Nagato just wants to use the tailed beasts to create war weapons to maintain peace in the ninja world. However, Kagura wants to use these war weapons to destroy the entire ninja world…"
"!!!"
A look of shock appeared in Hanzō of the Salamander's eyes.
"We must find Nagato now."
Jiraiya struggled to stand up and spoke about what they needed to do, "Only Nagato can save the ninja world. Let's go first…"
"Your injuries…"
"It's nothing serious."
Jiraiya shook his head, not caring about his injuries.
"Alright."
Hanzō of the Salamander agreed and then asked, "By the way, it seems the chakra of the other rogue Sannin is still present. I heard that the Sannin kid had already died long ago. How did he come back to life? When I was secretly rescuing you, I sensed he seemed to be fighting with your Wood Release prodigy…"
"Orochimaru?"
A look of astonishment flashed across Jiraiya's face upon hearing Hanzō of the Salamander's words.
Because in his impression, Orochimaru was not the type to stay behind to cover the retreat. Why would he stay behind for Nagato?
"Right now, Orochimaru is with us…"
Jiraiya stroked his chin, pondering the survival tactics of his old friend, "Kagura may not be able to kill him… but is that guy staying behind alone for some ulterior motive?"
Forget it.
This doesn't matter.
Finding Nagato is the most important thing now.
Forget it.
Orochimaru is somewhat important too.
Jiraiya glanced at Hanzō of the Salamander beside him and seemed a bit embarrassed, "Lord Hanzō, can you sense Orochimaru's situation now?"
"No."
Hanzō of the Salamander shook his head and continued in a solemn voice, "The Wood Release prodigy from Konoha has strong sensory abilities. When I rescued you, I didn't dare to use chakra..."
"Forget it..."
Jiraiya felt somewhat helpless. After all, he had to consider the bigger picture and could only set aside his worries about Orochimaru for now. "Let's find Nagato first, then we can come back and see what's going on with Orochimaru..."
"Which direction would Nagato and Konan escape to?"
Jiraiya raised his head to look at the overcast sky.
"I'll send people to search..."
Hanzō of the Salamander remained unconcerned. As the leader of Rain Village for many years, he was very familiar with the terrain and locations in the Land of Rain. He led Jiraiya to the nearest Rain Village outpost to order all the Rain Village ninja to immediately deploy and help search for Nagato's whereabouts.
Meanwhile.
On the surface of the lake at the Akatsuki's base.
Akihara Kagura pressed the head of the wooden dragon lower and lower, but he still looked down at Orochimaru: "Lord Orochimaru, are you blocking me here to cover their escape because you want to betray our alliance?"
"Kagura-kun."
Orochimaru looked at Akihara Kagura, a smile on his lips: "All along, hasn't it been you, Kagura-kun, who has been constantly betraying our alliance?"
"You tricked me into coming here. I have no idea about your plan to destroy the ninja world. I want to ask, in your plan to destroy the ninja world, am I also on the list of those you intend to kill?"
"..."
Akihara Kagura brushed his hair aside, thought for less than a second, and gave an answer: "Lord Orochimaru, you are the one who raised me. I have always respected you as I respect Lord Danzō..."
"Kagura-kun!"
Orochimaru interrupted Akihara Kagura, reminding him: "You have always claimed to respect Danzō in front of others. Have you lied so much that you've forgotten I saw with my own eyes how you turned Danzō into a sacrifice for the Edo Tensei?"
"Well, there have been many things recently..."
Akihara Kagura rubbed his brow and proactively promised, "Rest assured, at least I won't let you end up like Lord Danzō..."
"..."
A shadow passed through Orochimaru's eyes.
This damn kid!
Didn't Danzō's fate already end in the worst possible way?
"The Rinnegan is hidden at the bottom of the lake."
Orochimaru pointed to the lake below, speaking coldly: "Before Nagato and Konan escaped, they took out the Rinnegan and hid it at the bottom of the lake..."
"What lake?"
Akihara Kagura looked down at the lake's surface, as if lying through his teeth: "Isn't it all paper and explosive tags down there? Where's the lake?"
"..."
A cold look appeared on Orochimaru's face!
The trap Konan set on this lake was seen through by this kid!
"You really saw through it..."
The cold look on Orochimaru's face vanished, replaced by a smile: "They used the Rinnegan as bait, trying to lure you into the trap here..."
"And then destroy me and the Rinnegan together?"
Akihara Kagura manipulated the wooden dragon to descend again, almost touching the lake's surface. A hint of amusement appeared in his eyes: "If it's so dangerous, let's just destroy the Rinnegan here. Anyway, I already have another way to obtain the Rinnegan..."
"What way?"
Orochimaru couldn't help but look up.
Is there another way to obtain the Rinnegan in this ninja world?
"The Rinnegan is the ultimate evolution of the Sharingan..."
Akihara Kagura looked at Orochimaru, carelessly revealing this secret: "Now I've arranged for Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Itachi to duel elsewhere. Their battle is not just to attract others' attention..."
"The most important goal is to get a pair of Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan from the victor, which can evolve into the Rinnegan..."
"Interesting..."
Akihara Kagura sneered, his voice filled with disdainful laughter: "Did Nagato think that if I couldn't get the Rinnegan, I wouldn't have other alternatives?"
~~~
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— Ending + Extra Chapters!
Read upto Chapter 348: End! + Extra Chapters of Sasuke's Rebirth where the world Akihara Kagura is not around.
Thank you!