Tonight is extraordinarily quiet. Dark clouds veil the moonlight, and the faint glow of the stars casts dim shadows of the trees, reflected in the pupil of a crow.
Then, the dark clouds slowly begin to retreat, gradually revealing the moon. The moonlight is red—a deep, blood-like red.
After seeing off Namikaze Minato, Uzumaki Raiden stepped outside to get some fresh air. As he looked up and saw the eerie moonlight, he couldn't help but freeze in place. A sudden, inexplicable sense of unease gripped his heart.
"Why do I have this ominous premonition?"
Raiden's expression grew solemn as he activated Kagura's Eyes, scanning all of Konoha. His ability to perceive good and evil allowed him to quickly locate any hostility directed at him. Yet, after carefully surveying the area, he found nothing out of the ordinary. His family and friends' chakras were stable—there were no signs of disturbance.
Even after checking thoroughly, the unsettling feeling in his chest remained.
"Is this just my imagination? Or is something wrong with my body?"
Raiden muttered under his breath before his figure flickered and vanished, reappearing at the Longevity Laboratory. The night was still young, and the laboratory was brightly lit, bustling with researchers. His sudden arrival drew everyone's attention.
"Oh? Why has the esteemed Fourth Hokage-sama graced us with his presence?"
"Are you here to inspect our progress?"
In the center of the lab, lying on a massive operating table and connected to various instruments, Orochimaru noticed Raiden's arrival. He raised his head with a smirk and quipped.
Since obtaining the body of an Ōtsutsuki, Orochimaru had been in an excellent mood. He had even assisted Raiden in fully completing his body's spiritualization, making great strides in his experiments. Seeing Raiden arrive unexpectedly, Orochimaru couldn't help but tease him.
"Brother Orochimaru, enough with the jokes. Something seems off with my body."
"Check me over."
Raiden wasn't in the mood to banter, and his serious tone made Orochimaru's smirk fade. His pupils shrank slightly as he straightened up.
"Something's wrong? Impossible."
"Your body is my proudest research achievement! There's no way anything could be wrong!"
Orochimaru swiftly tore off the instruments attached to him and appeared beside Raiden in an instant. After giving him a careful once-over, he asked with uncertainty:
"I don't see anything unusual. What exactly are you feeling?"
Raiden pointed to his chest and replied, "Palpitations. A feeling of unease without an apparent cause."
Orochimaru stroked his chin thoughtfully before leading Raiden to the operating table. He attached an instrument to Raiden's wrist and fiddled with the controls before examining the monitor.
"Are you just trying to give me extra work?" Orochimaru grumbled impatiently.
"There's nothing wrong with your body."
He unfastened the clip from Raiden's wrist and then, as if recalling something, grinned and said, "Your body is perfectly fine, but for someone as powerful as you to suddenly feel heart palpitations… it seems like something bad is about to happen."
"Boy, keep an eye on the people around you."
Despite being a scientist, Orochimaru still put some faith in intuition. If someone like Raiden had such inexplicable anxiety, it likely signaled impending disaster.
"That's precisely why I came here. If my body is fine, then whatever is causing this feeling must be something serious."
Raiden spoke softly, his brows furrowing deeply.
The night grew darker.
"Shukaku is here. Well then, let's begin."
Deep in a dense forest within the Land of Fire, two shadowy figures leaped from the trees.
Meanwhile, the Sand Ninja who had left Konoha were resting in a nearby grove after a night of travel. Gaara was on night watch, perched on a thick tree branch as he gazed up at the hauntingly beautiful moonlight.
"Hmm?"
Gaara sensed something amiss. The lid of his sand gourd flew open as chakra-infused sand surged out, forming a protective armor around him while the remaining sand swirled in the air.
"Oh? You noticed? As expected of a Jinchūriki."
A masked figure slowly emerged from the tree trunk beside Gaara. His face was hidden, but beneath the mask, a pair of scarlet Sharingan eyes gleamed.
"Uchiha?" Gaara's expression darkened as the sand around him quickly formed countless bullets, launching them at the intruder.
However, the sand bullets passed right through the man's body, striking the tree behind him instead, shattering it instantly.
The commotion jolted the others awake. Kankuro flipped upright, his puppet already unwrapping its bandages, ready for combat. Temari swiftly grabbed her three-star fan and assumed a defensive stance, while Chiyo instinctively glanced at the black-robed figure nearby.
The young man in the black cloak was none other than Sasori, whom the Sand Ninja intended to extradite back to Sunagakure. Seeing him sit up, Chiyo sighed in relief before shifting her attention back to the masked man.
Dressed in a black cloak adorned with red clouds, the intruder's entire body was concealed except for his piercing red Sharingan, which glowed through his mask.
"That outfit… Akatsuki?"
"Who are you?" Chiyo demanded.
"Heh, I am Uchiha Madara."
"And I've come to borrow something from the Sand Ninja."
The masked man completely ignored Gaara and addressed Chiyo and the others instead. His gaze then landed on Sasori, his tone playful.
"I didn't expect to see you here. I thought you were killed by Uzumaki Raiden, Sasori!"
His words held familiarity, but instead of reacting emotionally, Sasori merely cast an indifferent glance at Chiyo and explained:
"This man is one of Akatsuki's leaders. A formidable individual who can use space-time ninjutsu."
"Akatsuki's goal is to seize all the Tailed Beasts to achieve 'true peace' in the shinobi world. This time, their target must be Shukaku."
"Be careful. I won't be helping you."
With that, Sasori stood up, glanced at the masked man, and walked away, making it clear he had no intention of participating in the battle.
"Shukaku? Their target is Gaara?!"
"A space-time user… this will be troublesome."
"Temari, come closer."
After listening to Sasori's explanation, Chiyo quickly devised a strategy and whispered something to Temari, whose expression immediately shifted. She nodded silently.
The masked man seemed surprised by Sasori's nonchalant attitude and lack of cooperation. His brows furrowed beneath the mask.
"Sasori, are you really not returning to the organization?"
Sasori raised an eyebrow before replying, "I'd love to, but I've been marked with a curse seal. I'm waiting for you to save me."
The masked man found this explanation reasonable and nodded. "Heh, don't worry. I'll free you soon."
However, at that moment, yellow sand had silently coiled around his feet. By the time he noticed, it was too late.
Gaara smirked coldly. "You won't get the chance."
"Sand Binding Coffin!"
Gaara clenched his right fist, and the yellow sand restraining the masked man instantly swallowed him before tightening rapidly. A large amount of blood splattered from the gaps in the sand, but Gaara's sand wall rose in time to block the spray. Then, with a calm expression, he released the sand.
However, as the sand receded, a shocking sight awaited them—there was no corpse.
Everyone who witnessed this remained on high alert, scanning their surroundings. Yet, no trace of the enemy could be found. Just as they prepared to expand their search, a cold voice rang out from the dense forest.
"Banshō Ten'in!"
The moment the words fell, Gaara's body was forcefully pulled into the forest. Chiyo and the others could only watch as he disappeared from sight.
"Boom!!!!"
Not long after, a deafening explosion shook the forest. A violent shockwave erupted, sending broken trees, decayed leaves, yellow sand, and dirt hurtling through the air.
Gaara's body was among the debris. After being flung over a hundred meters, he crashed into a massive tree, his momentum finally halted. The sand armor protecting his body had fractured, revealing his skin beneath.
"What kind of jutsu is this?!"
Gaara struggled to push himself up, stunned. A moment ago, an unseen force had yanked him into the woods. Just as he erected a sand wall for defense, an overwhelming repulsive force suddenly exploded from the depths of the forest. Even with his sand armor, the sheer impact left him reeling.
Though he had no visible wounds, pain coursed through his entire body.
The ambush had unfolded so quickly that Chiyo and the others barely had time to react before Gaara was struck down.
After a long pause, a figure slowly emerged from the forest and stepped toward them.
The man wore a black cloak adorned with red clouds. As soon as Chiyo caught sight of him, recognition flashed in her eyes.
"The rogue ninja from Takigakure… Kakuzu?!"
"Wasn't he killed by Uzumaki Raiden? Why is he suddenly here?!"
"And those eyes… the Rinnegan?!"
Konoha had shared some intelligence on Akatsuki with Sunagakure, but the information had been limited. Though Chiyo had long stepped away from leadership, she still paid attention to Akatsuki due to Sasori. The fact that she could recognize Kakuzu showed how well she had retained her knowledge.
As for the Rinnegan, Chiyo was well-versed in ancient legends. Having lived for so many years, she had encountered enough lore to identify those fabled eyes.
"No, my name is Pain."
"I am the god who will rule this world!"
Such an absurd declaration came from the middle-aged man standing before them. Yet, despite the ridiculousness of his words, his tone was unwavering and filled with conviction.
No one found his claim amusing. Instead, a chill crept into their hearts.
"He actually dares to call himself a god ruling the world?!"
"What kind of lunatic is this?!"
Chiyo, fully alert, lightly patted Temari's shoulder before stepping forward. Taking out a scroll from her robe, she swiftly unfurled it.
"White Secret Technique: The Chikamatsu Collection of Ten Puppets!"
Ten shadowy figures burst forth from the scroll. Chiyo extended her hands, sending out ten chakra threads that connected to the puppets.
Originally lifeless constructs, the puppets instantly sprang to life under Chiyo's control. Moving with surprising agility, they encircled Pain, cutting off all possible escape routes.
Sasori, who had been silently watching, raised an eyebrow slightly. It had been years since he had seen his grandmother's full abilities. The sight of her summoning the legendary puppets brought a fleeting wave of nostalgia.
As Chiyo activated her technique, Temari discreetly closed her three-star fan and leaped into the dense forest, retreating from the battlefield.
Pain, however, remained indifferent. He scanned the puppets encircling him with a cold, emotionless gaze.
"Puppet techniques? These are nothing more than playthings for children."
"Using them in battle is laughable."
Without any change in expression, Pain spread his arms wide.
In an instant, an overwhelming repulsive force exploded from his body.
The first to bear the impact were Chiyo's puppets. Despite her expert control, the force shattered them like brittle twigs, sending them flying like broken kites.
The repulsion didn't stop there—it extended toward Chiyo and Kankuro as well. Caught off guard, both were blasted backward by the immense force.
Gaara, reacting swiftly, manipulated his sand mid-air, forming two ropes to catch them before they could crash. He pulled them safely behind a protective sand wall.
Because Gaara had been positioned further away, he suffered the least impact from the attack.
As the dust settled, the sand wall slowly crumbled, revealing the aftermath.
Pain stood alone at the center of a massive clearing. The once-dense forest had been completely obliterated. Within tens of meters of him, not a single tree or blade of grass remained—only barren earth stretched before them.
"Shukaku, stop resisting. Come to me!"
"Banshō Ten'in!"
(End of Chapter)