"This damn place really has too much rain."
"Toru? Toru? Respond if you hear me!"
On the roof of a residential building near the office building, another shadowy figure lay in wait.
He carefully crouched at the edge of the roof, blending seamlessly into his surroundings.
With his hands forming a strange seal in front of his chest, his lips moved slightly.
To avoid detection, he had draped a black cloth over himself, effectively concealing his presence. Through a gap in the cloth, he kept a close watch on the street below.
"What's going on?"
The figure muttered, his expression became visibly anxious.
A bad feeling began to creep into his heart.
He and Toru had been partners for years. Toru would infiltrate using his stealth skills, while he provided cover with his keen senses. They had never failed before.
But ever since a moment ago, no matter how many messages he sent using the secret technique, there had been no response from Toru.
'I had heard rumors that once you entered the Land of Rain, it was hard to leave. Could something have really gone wrong?'
Just as he was about to abandon his partner in the office building and flee directly-
Tap--
A sound that sent chills down his spine echoed behind him. It was the sound of a Ninja sandal stepping on wooden planks.
Swish!
Without hesitation, the figure turned and hurled a kunai in the direction of the sound.
At the same time, he leaped into the air, ready to make a swift escape.
As a Bounty Ninja who lived on the edge, survival often depended not on strength but on decisiveness and caution.
Unfortunately, the opponent he faced was someone with absolute power.
Before he could land on the roof of another building, he felt as if an invisible hand had grabbed him mid-air.
Konan, unfazed by his sudden attack, blocked the kunai with a sheet of paper.
As the figure tried to escape, a giant paper hand emerged from behind Konan, snatching him out of the air and pulling him back.
After witnessing Naruto's battle with Hashirama and Madara, Konan had realized that such combat methods were quite effective. Her Paper Person of God Technique allowed her to transform into anything, so in theory, as long as she had enough Chakra, she could even create something like a Susanoo… though it would still be made of paper.
The Bounty Ninja was dragged back to Konan, held tightly in the giant paper hand.
"No, please, I beg you, we'll never..."
Crack--
In the midst of his desperate pleas, Konan emotionlessly crushed his neck.
However, his life didn't end immediately. Human Path appeared beside Konan and placed a hand on the man's head, extracting his memories.
Although most of Nagato's puppets had been destroyed in the previous battle, with the power of Naraka Path, they could be quickly repaired.
Below, in a dark alley, a group of people watched the scene above with grim expressions.
When Konan had appeared, none of them had noticed her presence.
Seeing the giant hand suddenly emerge and crush the man only added to their terror.
They slowly retreated, forming a circle as they waited for their leader's orders.
The leader didn't hesitate, immediately signaling for a retreat.
The group quickly understood and turned to leave.
"Gentlemen, since you've come, there's no need to rush off."
Puff--
A series of sharp objects piercing flesh echoed through the alley.
In the dark, silent alley, the sounds of agonized screams filled the air.
However, despite being near residential buildings, the screams didn't attract any attention, as if the alley were cut off from the world.
"No, please, I beg you... Argh!!"
After what felt like an eternity, the last desperate plea and terrified scream faded. At the feet of Deva Path lay several Ninjas, impaled by black rods.
Blood stained the ground, but the rain slowly diluted it, washing it away.
From the faint rise and fall of their chests, it was clear they were still alive.
Konan and Human Path had also noticed the commotion.
Konan, using her Dance of the Shikigami, wrapped the corpse in paper and brought it to the alley.
Repeating the earlier process, Human Path extracted the memories of the Ninjas present.
"Kumogakure, huh?"
"It seems that old fox Onoki is still the craftiest."
Onoki had used bounties to gather intelligence on the Land of Rain, making it difficult to know how many people had taken the mission.
But with Kumogakure's approach, Nagato only needed to extract a few memories to uncover all the information.
Still, it was just a small trick.
From the moment these outsiders entered the Land of Rain, they had been marked.
Deva Path turned to Konan and relayed the locations of some of the intruders.
"After dealing with them, make sure to clean up the scene. Don't let it affect tomorrow's work."
Konan nodded. "Understood."
With that, Konan turned and walked back into the rain, her footsteps blending with the sound of the downpour as she disappeared into the night.
Deva Path, meanwhile, headed in the opposite direction. This was only the beginning.
The Land of Rain was destined to be reborn in blood, but the rain would wash away all impurities.
The spies sent by Kumogakure included Jonin-level Ninja, and there were also many skilled individuals who had taken on the bounties from Iwagakure.
But none of them were overwhelmingly strong.
Against Pain and Konan, these intruders were dealt with swiftly and decisively.
By the late hours of the night, all the spies who had infiltrated the Land of Rain had been eliminated. Over twenty corpses, wrapped in Konan's papers, were piled up in a room.
Nagato looked at the two separate piles of bodies and said to Naruto, "We've confirmed that this group was sent by Kumogakure. The other group is most likely from Iwagakure."
The underground bounty station never disclosed any information about its clients.
The reason why Nagato could guess that it was Iwagakure was mainly because the Akatsuki had cooperated with Onoki a lot before, so he was familiar with the old Tsuchikage's personality and methods.
"No one from Sunagakure?"
Naruto asked curiously. Logically, Sunagakure, which bordered the Land of Rain, should have been involved. Yet, there were no signs of them, while Kumogakure, who is separated by several countries, had sent people.
Nagato shook his head, indicating he wasn't sure either.
Without Black Zetsu, the Akatsuki had essentially lost its primary source of intelligence.
Naruto stroked his chin, pondering briefly before dismissing the matter.
"In that case, let's handle the bodies properly. Hang the Kumogakure Ninjas outside the Raikage's Office. As for the Bounty Ninjas, display them at the border between the two nations."
"This... Leader, wouldn't provoking both great villages like this risk them declaring war on the Land of Rain?"
Konan voiced her concern.
Hearing this, Naruto smiled indifferently.
"Then we'll just have to collect four more Tailed Beasts."