Chapter 265: Amegakure’s Grand Stage
Early morning.
Tsunade woke up with a hangover headache, sunlight piercing through the window lattice, stinging her eyes.
She rubbed her temples and sat up, seeing Shizune already dressed neatly, standing by the bed with a worried look, holding a letter in her hand.
“Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya… he left this letter and has already departed.” Shizune handed over the letter.
Tsunade took the letter and skimmed it roughly. There were no extra words on it, just reiterating the danger of the Land of Stars and the necessity of the investigation, and instructing them to take care.
She crumpled the letter paper into a ball and tossed it aside.
“Got it.” Her voice was hoarse as she threw off the covers and got out of bed: “Shizune, pack up. We’re preparing to set off too.”
Shizune was stunned: “Set off? Lady Tsunade, where are we going?”
“Land of Stars.” Tsunade walked to the table, picked up the wine gourd she hadn’t finished last night, and took a swig, trying to suppress the headache.
“Land of Stars?!” Shizune nearly jumped up in shock: “But… Lady Tsunade! According to what Lord Jiraiya said, that Shura and his Star Ninja Village are extremely dangerous! Why are we going there?”
Tsunade walked to the washbasin, splashed cold water on her face, trying to make herself more awake: “Nothing much, just overheard some traveling gamblers chatting in the casino, saying the Land of Stars is now filthy rich, very prosperous. Since it’s so prosperous, the casinos must be grand, maybe I can find some fresh games, and my luck might turn around.”
She shook off the water droplets from her hands, her tone casual.
Shizune held Tonton, looking at her helplessly: “Lady Tsunade… do you really believe that reason yourself?”
Tsunade glared at Shizune through the mirror, her tone brooking no argument: “Cut the chatter! Pack up quickly! If you say one more word, I’ll take your allowance this month as gambling money too!”
Shizune immediately shut her mouth and began packing their luggage resignedly.
She knew very well that once Tsunade made a decision, especially when it involved gambling and drinking, almost no one could change it.
Moreover, deep in her heart, she understood that Lady Tsunade’s decision to go to the Land of Stars was absolutely not just for gambling.
Tsunade didn’t look at Shizune, just gazing at the streets outside the window that were gradually becoming lively, her voice lowering a bit: “Some things… you have to see with your own eyes.”
She recalled what Jiraiya had mentioned last night about the Uzumaki Clan.
Grandma Mito’s clan members…
If there were really survivors living in the Land of Stars, she couldn’t ignore it.
After all, she had one-quarter Uzumaki Clan bloodline flowing in her veins.
Moreover, the drastic changes in Konoha, the defection of Uchiha and Hyuga, filled her heart with doubts and an indescribable sense of pull.
…………
The rain in Rain Village seemed endless.
Cold raindrops pounded the towering iron tower and crisscrossing pipes, emitting a monotonous and oppressive hum, enveloping the entire village in a hazy mist.
Pedestrians on the streets hurried along, most wrapped in dark raincoats, heads down, as if wanting to completely blend into this gloomy backdrop.
On the third floor of an old building near the village center, Menma stood behind a slightly open window, his gaze piercing through the rain curtain, falling on a rather modern-looking building across the street.
The building’s glass curtain wall was blurry in the rain, with a metal sign at the entrance reading “Regenerative Medical Technology Company,” and occasionally people in white coats or suits coming in and out, clashing with the surrounding dilapidated environment.
His Kagura Shingan extended like invisible tendrils, meticulously scanning the building.
The internal structure, personnel distribution, chakra fluctuations…
Everything slowly took shape in his perception.
Deep underground, he detected several extremely faint chakra reactions lacking natural vitality, as if artificially cultivated, very similar to Orochimaru’s failed clone experiment products in his memory.
Amid these chaotic fluctuations, one chakra stood out, exceptionally calm and refined, operating with the stability of a precision instrument, carrying an almost coldly rational aura.
“Sanzu Amado…” Menma murmured to himself, almost certain that the owner of this chakra was one of his targets.
This genius scientist’s mental fluctuations were like a bottomless pool of still water, hard to glimpse his true thoughts.
However, what concerned him more was that he hadn’t sensed any chakra that might belong to Jigen, or rather, the Otsutsuki.
“Hiding really deep…” Menma frowned slightly. Among the people he had seen, only Otsutsuki Hamura’s soul-contained chakra was closest to the Otsutsuki Clan, so he had been searching in that direction.
But Jigen had lurked for a millennium, his concealment ability undoubtedly beyond imagination. Perhaps he wasn’t in the Land of Rain right now, or he had used some extremely special method to completely shield his existence.
At that moment, a light but hesitant knock interrupted his thoughts.
Knock knock knock!
Menma’s perception instantly retracted, focusing on the door.
It was Konan.
She carried a waterproof oiled paper package, standing alone in the corridor, her heartbeat quick, tinged with nervousness and a touch of inexplicable expectation.
Her chakra was like a small grass struggling to grow in the rain.
Menma was somewhat surprised.
After yesterday at the ramen shop, this kind yet stubborn little ninja had finally revealed the name of this “regenerative medical” company.
It was the largest in the Land of Rain, the only one possibly connected to advanced biotech, with many cooperations with the ninjas under Hanzo of the Salamander in Rain Village.
After getting the information, Menma had rented this temporary outpost across from it, leaving a shadow clone for long-term surveillance.
He hadn’t made things difficult for Konan then, letting her leave directly.
He hadn’t expected her to come knocking today.
Menma walked over and opened the door.
Konan stood outside, rain wetting her purple short hair, a few strands sticking to her smooth forehead.
Her distinctive Chinese-style training clothes were also damp, making her figure seem even more slender.
Seeing Menma, she instinctively shrank her shoulders a bit, but still raised the oiled paper package in her hand, her voice a bit timid yet trying to stay composed: “Um… for the ramen yesterday, thanks for treating. This is… a return gift. Bought from my favorite shop.”
Menma leaned against the doorframe, one hand on his hip, a playful smile on his face: “Oh? Just a return gift? Not under someone’s orders to monitor a suspicious character like me?”
Konan’s cheeks flushed slightly, whether from anger or embarrassment.
She puffed out her small chest, trying to make her voice sound stronger: “It… it is to monitor you! To prevent you from doing bad things to the village!”
Menma chuckled lightly and shook his head: “With you? A little genin? If it really came to a fight, you probably wouldn’t even have the qualification to stand on the battlefield, little guy.”
His tone carried some teasing, but also stated a cruel fact.
Konan’s eyes dimmed for a moment, but immediately ignited with stubborn flames, clenching her fists: “Even… even so! I’ll do my utmost to stop you!”
Grrrrumble—
At that moment, a clear stomach growl suddenly came from Menma’s belly, sounding especially loud in the quiet corridor.
Instantly, the tense standoff atmosphere shattered completely.
Konan was stunned for a second, then couldn’t help but burst out laughing with a “pfft,” quickly covering her mouth, her eyes curving into crescents.
Menma’s expression stiffened awkwardly for a rare moment, rubbing his nose.
This body’s desire for food always came at such inopportune times.
He sighed and stepped aside: “Forget it… at this point, let’s eat first.”
Konan, as if granted amnesty, quickly slipped into the room.
The room was simple, with only a table and two old chairs.
They sat facing each other, opened the still-steaming oiled paper package, and two buckets of ramen emitted a rich aroma, immediately dispelling the chill of the rainy day.
Menma picked up the chopsticks and ate heartily without reservation.
Konan ate her noodles in small bites, secretly sizing up this mysterious boy across from her.
The way he ate was very focused, even with a pure enjoyment, completely different from the powerful aura he occasionally exuded that seemed to control everything.
She found it hard to classify him as a “bad person,” but everything he did was clearly full of danger and unknowns.
This contradiction bewildered her immensely, so she could only try to convince herself it was to monitor him and prevent danger to the village!
“You… why do you have to find that person named Amado?” Konan finally couldn’t hold back and asked softly.
Menma didn’t look up: “Does finding someone need a reason? Maybe he just owes me money?”
He made it up casually.
Konan clearly didn’t believe it, mumbling: “Liar…”
Menma smiled, not explaining.
Some truths, for this girl living at the bottom of Rain Village with a still pure heart, the less she knew, the better.
……
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Rain Village, in a river turned turbid and rapid by rainwater.
Puhah—
A palm-sized, entirely emerald green toad poked its head out of the water surface, its mouth opening in an extremely unnatural way.
Then, a man’s hand emerged from it, gripping the toad’s mouth corner.
Subsequently, Jiraiya’s tall figure emerged as if from another dimension, landing wetly on the water surface and standing steadily.
He wore a red haori, his white long hair wet from the rain.
Wiping the water from his face, Jiraiya looked up at the village ahead, shrouded in massive pipes and steel towers, appearing gloomy and cold in the rain curtain.
“Rain Village… how many years since I came.” Jiraiya murmured the name, his eyes complex, filled with nostalgia, heaviness, and a trace of imperceptible pain.
His thoughts involuntarily drifted back many years to that war-torn era, when he met three destitute war orphans in the Land of Rain.
Yahiko’s ideal-filled eyes and orange hair, Konan’s quiet gentleness folding paper flowers, Nagato’s introverted red hair possessing the legendary Rinnegan…
Their faces clearly appeared before his eyes.
“Yahiko…” Jiraiya murmured, then sighed heavily.
He had taught them ninjutsu, hoping they could gain the power to protect themselves, and firmly believed Yahiko could bring change.
However, later news was heartbreaking.
Akatsuki seemed to have deviated from its original ideal, becoming dangerous and mysterious.
He shook his head, casting aside the distractions.
Although his primary task was to go to the Land of Stars for intelligence, since he was passing through the Land of Rain, and Rain Village’s Akatsuki had recruited many S-rank rogue ninjas, even accepting defectors like Itachi Uchiha who massacred his own clan, he really wanted to ask Yahiko and the others what exactly had happened.
Jiraiya took a deep breath of the damp cold air, his figure silently blending into the rain curtain, stealthily heading toward the village interior like a ghost.
His stealth skills were superb; after changing into ordinary rain gear, he walked through the village, avoiding several patrol teams of Rain ninjas, carefully sensing and memorizing the chakra distribution and defense vulnerabilities inside the village.
The rain continued endlessly, as if trying to wash away all traces of the world, yet futilely adding new haze.
…………
“Burp! So full!”
Inside Rain Village, in the simple temporary outpost, Menma and Konan had finished the ramen.
The rain outside seemed lighter, but the sky remained overcast.
Menma stood up and walked to the window, looking again at the “Regenerative Medical Technology Company” across the way.
His Kagura Shingan was still monitoring continuously, but so far, no signs of Amado leaving or anyone contacting him showing abnormalities.
Konan quietly packed the bowl and chopsticks, also walked to the window, followed Menma’s gaze, and couldn’t help asking: “You… really going to go in there? The guards are very strict, and… it’s said some areas inside, even our village’s ninjas aren’t allowed to enter.”
Menma didn’t turn back, just said flatly: “In this world, there are few places I can’t go.”
His tone was calm, yet carried confidence.
Konan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately just lowered her head.
At that moment, Menma’s gaze suddenly sharpened slightly.
Within his Kagura Shingan perception range, a powerful chakra reaction was stealthily infiltrating Rain Village in an extremely concealed manner, moving in this direction.
This chakra was wild yet carried a trace of righteousness, with extremely high recognizability.
“This level of chakra amount is already Kage level…” A hint of surprise flashed in Menma’s eyes.
But it was coming from outside the village, and seemed to be avoiding the patrolling Rain ninjas.
Menma immediately suppressed all his own chakra fluctuations.
At the same time, he said lowly to Konan behind him: “Stay in the room, don’t make a sound, and don’t use chakra.”
Though Konan didn’t understand, seeing Menma’s suddenly serious expression, she nodded instinctively, holding her breath tensely.
Menma’s perception firmly locked onto this chakra fluctuation.
The mysterious infiltrator moved like an experienced assassin, cleverly using the rain sounds and building shadows to avoid all patrol teams, heading straight toward the village center, that is, the tower where Hanzo of the Salamander was.
His target seemed very clear, not aimlessly investigating.
“Target is Hanzo?” Menma wondered inwardly: “But this chakra doesn’t feel like Pain controlled by Nagato either…”
Menma pondered: ‘Nagato, Konan, Obito, Zetsu, Amado, Jigen, and now another mysterious Kage-level ninja sneaks in. Hanzo, your little Rain Village is really full of talents!’
