Chapter 10: Naive Ideals
After Danzo officially announced their departure, all the shinobi swiftly moved in the direction of Amegakure (the Village Hidden in the Rain). Their pace was incredibly fast—within just half a day, the delegation had already covered several dozen miles.
"Lord Danzo, it's noon. Shall we rest here for a while?" one of Danzo's close subordinates asked. This shinobi was Yamanaka Rei, a member of the Yamanaka clan. Having joined the Root organization from a young age, she was one of Danzo's most trusted aides.
"Hmm. Very well, we'll rest here," Danzo replied with a raspy voice that gave listeners an unsettling feeling.
The shinobi quickly received the order to halt. On a flat clearing, they stopped to rest. Aside from a few tasked with scouting and setting up temporary traps, the rest began recovering their strength.
Yusuke leaned against a tree, resting while keeping an eye on his surroundings.
Just then, he saw Danzo slowly approaching him, followed closely by several Root shinobi.
"Uchiha Yusuke," Danzo said in a low voice once he was in front of him, "do you know the real reason the Third Hokage sent you along on this mission?"
"A shinobi doesn't question the reasons behind their missions," Yusuke replied calmly—an official and textbook answer. Although he had some idea of the Third's intentions, he had no plans to discuss them with Danzo.
"Hmph. At least you have the mindset of a proper shinobi," Danzo said, though a cold gleam flashed in his eyes. He clearly wasn't pleased with the evasive answer but chose not to press further. Instead, he continued, "The Root is in need of someone like you. Unlike the soft, complacent institutions in the village, only Root truly upholds the shinobi way."
Though Danzo despised the Uchiha clan, he was a pragmatic man. He recognized Yusuke's potential and wanted to see if he could recruit him into Root. Whether or not Yusuke joined willingly didn't matter—Danzo was confident he could find a way to control him once he was in.
Yusuke was momentarily surprised by the offer. He had expected Danzo might try to eliminate him—but to be recruited?
Still, Yusuke knew all too well that he and Danzo walked vastly different paths. Danzo believed that scheming from the shadows and amassing power in secret would lead him to the Hokage seat.
But in Yusuke's eyes, Danzo was nothing more than a ghost clinging to the darkness—someone who had adapted so thoroughly to shadow that he could no longer survive in the light. Just like in the original story, once he claimed the Hokage title, his downfall was already written.
"Sorry, but I have no interest in joining Root," Yusuke replied with a shake of his head.
"I see. A shame," Danzo said simply, then turned to leave. But what Yusuke couldn't see was the flicker of murderous intent in Danzo's eyes. With a subtle hand signal, he gave an order to his subordinates.
Suddenly, two Root shinobi appeared at Yusuke's sides, each grabbing one of his shoulders to restrain him.
At the same time, Rei began forming hand seals—preparing to use her clan's signature jutsu on Yusuke.
"Mind Body Switch Technique!" she called out, her expression brightening as she saw Yusuke seemingly immobilized by her teammates.
But Yusuke's body jolted, and the two restraining him felt a sudden surge of strength before they were thrown off.
With a quick movement, Yusuke drove his left foot into the shinobi on his left, sending him flying. In the same motion, he grabbed the ninja on his right and pulled him forward—just in time to use him as a shield against Rei's jutsu.
Rei's smile vanished instantly as she felt a sharp, intense pain in her abdomen. After possessing the body of the shinobi Yusuke held up as a shield, Yusuke landed a heavy punch to the gut—dealing damage to both the possessed body and Rei herself.
Without pause, Yusuke hurled the unconscious shinobi into two other attackers charging at him. The two could barely react in time and had to catch their comrade while stumbling backward.
Just then, two hands suddenly reached up from the ground beneath Yusuke—grabbing onto his ankles.
It was a surprise attack, likely the start of the "Inner Decapitation Technique", aiming to drag him underground.
The Headhunter Jutsu was a common technique among Earth Release users, typically used to immobilize enemies. By suddenly burrowing underground and emerging beneath the target's feet, the user could pull the enemy into the earth, leaving only their head exposed and rendering them helpless.
"Fire Release: Scorched Square." Yusuke sneered as he swiftly formed hand seals. A seal pattern lit up beneath his feet, and the area it covered instantly transformed—the soil dried and cracked like land scorched by months of relentless sun. Heat rose from the fissures in the earth, indicating the intense temperature below.
"Ahhh!" A pained scream erupted as a ninja, now charred black and radiating the scent of grilled meat, burst from the ground beneath Yusuke. Without a shred of sympathy, Yusuke gave him one more kick, sending him flying into the distance.
Just as Yusuke dealt with that wave of attackers, another group of Root operatives lunged toward him, a flurry of kunai flying at his location.
But to the astonishment of the Root members, not a single kunai hit its mark. Instead, they passed straight through Yusuke's body, which wavered like flame in the air. Then, flaming crows began to emerge from his form, fluttering through the sky before converging again on a tree branch behind Danzō and his men—where Yusuke reappeared, calm and unharmed.
"Lord Danzō, shall we continue this farce?" Yusuke stood with arms crossed, leaning casually against the tree trunk, his gaze steady and unreadable.
Danzō's attempt to capture Yusuke by surprise had clearly failed. Any further action would force Yusuke to retaliate without mercy. While he might not be able to defeat Danzō and his entire squad, taking out a few of them before escaping wouldn't be a problem.
Danzō turned, his cold eyes locking onto Yusuke.
He had heard of Yusuke's exploits during the Third Great Ninja War—how he rivaled the famed prodigy Kakashi Hatake and earned the moniker Blazing Blade. But witnessing Yusuke's prowess firsthand during the ambush had elevated Danzō's evaluation: in terms of taijutsu, reflexes, and seal speed, Yusuke surpassed even Kakashi.
"You truly live up to your Uchiha blood. Impressive." Danzō spoke icily and motioned for his men to stand down.
The failed ambush was over. Danzō said nothing more, retreating with his subordinates. But inwardly, he had already added Yusuke to his kill list. He would never tolerate defiance—especially from a member of the Uchiha clan.
Once Danzō withdrew, Yusuke resumed his relaxed pose beneath the tree. Though he appeared calm, his senses were sharp and alert, watching every movement from Danzō and his Root operatives in case they tried anything else.
"This mission is turning out to be a real pain. The Third sure handed me a tough one…" he muttered to himself, glancing in the direction Danzō had gone.
After a short rest, the Konoha delegation resumed their journey toward the Hidden Rain Village. The skirmish with Root had merely been a brief interlude—both Danzō and Yusuke pretended as though nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, within Amegakure's sphere of influence, a group known as Akatsuki was quietly carrying out a variety of secret operations, gradually drawing the attention of the village's true ruler.
In a hidden base, the true founders of Akatsuki—Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan—were deep in discussion. At this stage, the Akatsuki wore plain black cloaks, devoid of the infamous red clouds.
"This is great! More and more ninja are joining our cause. I truly believe that one day, our ideals will end all wars," Yahiko said enthusiastically, his orange hair faintly shimmering under the dim candlelight.
Back then, Akatsuki wasn't a terrorist organization. It had no plans for capturing Tailed Beasts or carrying out the Eye of the Moon project. It had been born from the pure aspirations of three idealistic youths who dreamed of achieving peace without resorting to violence.
Based in the Hidden Rain Village—sandwiched between the major powers of Konoha, Iwa, and Suna—they moved among the nations, gathering like-minded rogue ninja and spreading their message of peace.
At that time, Yahiko was the true leader. Charismatic and full of conviction, he inspired many wandering shinobi to join the organization and willingly follow his lead.
"You're right, Yahiko. As long as enough people acknowledge our vision, even the great nations will have no choice but to end their wars," said Nagato with a rare smile. His Rinnegan eyes glowed faintly. Though far stronger than Yahiko in battle, Nagato believed in Yahiko's leadership and dedicated his strength to making their shared dream of peace a reality.
"I recently received word that a diplomatic mission from Konoha will arrive in the Rain Village to negotiate post-war reparations with Hanzō. The delegation is led by someone named Danzō—a high-ranking official in Konoha. We don't know much about him yet," Nagato added.
Yahiko's eyes lit up. "Could this be an opportunity? If we can convey our ideals to the Konoha delegation, perhaps they'll take our message back to the Land of Fire! It's the strongest of all the great nations—if our ideals spread there, gaining support across the ninja world might not be far off!"
Nagato nodded. "It's possible. Recently, Hanzō sent us word expressing interest in working with us—possibly using Akatsuki as a neutral mediator to pursue peace with the surrounding countries. This might be our chance to reach both Konoha and the Rain Village leadership."
"Even the 'Demi-God of the Shinobi' can't ignore us now," Yahiko said with pride. His eyes gleamed with confidence and hope for the future, convinced they were on the verge of a major breakthrough.
Konan remained quietly seated nearby, her gaze soft and filled with warmth as she watched the two. A simple, contented smile played on her lips. For her, Yahiko and Nagato were everything. As long as the three of them were together, she would gladly give everything she had to support their dream—no matter how difficult the road ahead.
But none of them knew that a tragedy was looming—one that would soon shatter their ideals and change their fates forever.