On the Sky Screen, the group photo of black robes with red clouds slowly faded, replaced by a yellowed, aged image.
Amegakure, with its endless, ceaseless rain.
Three young children stood on the ruins, clad in rags, flames of unyielding defiance burning in their eyes.
A boy with orange hair stood at the front. A purple-haired girl stood by his side. And a red-haired boy stood slightly behind them, thin yet stubborn.
[The original Akatsuki was merely a small organization in the Land of Rain, founded by Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato. Their original goal was the pursuit of peace, naming it "Akatsuki" to signify bringing light to the world.]
---
[Konoha, Year 60]
Jiraiya, who had been lounging leisurely while watching the Sky Screen, suddenly shot to his feet. His eyes locked onto the three young figures on the screen, his pupils constricting violently. The color drained from his face at a visible speed. His voice came out hoarse, barely audible.
"Yahiko… Konan… Nagato…"
He had never imagined that the Akatsuki mentioned by the Sky Screen was founded by Yahiko and the other two!
But hadn't the three of them died in the war?
Yet those three children on the Sky Screen were unmistakably Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato.
Jiraiya carefully replayed the Sky Screen's content in his mind. The face of the young Yahiko on the screen did indeed bear a strong resemblance to the man in the Akatsuki group photo who wore lip and nose piercings.
And the purple-haired woman… was indeed what Konan would look like as an adult.
But… what about Nagato?
And also, Yahiko's eyes—the Rinnegan!
Those were Nagato's eyes!
Jiraiya's breathing grew rapid.
A terrible thought surged into his mind:
Could it be… that Yahiko and Konan had killed Nagato for power?
"No… that's impossible…"
Jiraiya muttered to himself, his face as pale as paper.
"That child… he would never…"
He remembered that young boy who had vowed to change the Land of Rain—the flames burning in his eyes, that stubbornness of "rather die than abandon a companion."
How could a child like that have killed Nagato?
But if not, then why was Nagato not in Akatsuki?
Countless possibilities flashed through Jiraiya's mind, each one cutting him like a knife.
"Jiraiya."
Hiruzen's voice pulled him back to reality.
"Calm down. The Sky Screen hasn't finished speaking yet."
Hiruzen sat looking at Jiraiya, who had abruptly stood up, a thoughtful glint flashing through his eyes.
He of course remembered that during the Second Great Ninja War, Jiraiya had taken on three disciples in the Land of Rain—it seemed they were exactly these three children on the screen.
Back then, Jiraiya had written a letter to the village, excitedly saying he had encountered three children with the potential to change the world.
And then?
Later, Jiraiya had returned to the village alone, never mentioning those three children again.
Hiruzen had assumed that they had died in the war. After all, in those times, it was all too common for children to die.
But now…
Hiruzen looked at Jiraiya and sighed softly.
This disciple of his had lived his entire life free and unrestrained, yet he had never forgotten those three children.
Now, learning that they might still be alive, yet might have committed mutual slaughter—it must be agonizing.
[They intended to persuade the various nations to abandon war in order to achieve peace in the world. But to the nations, this idea was nothing short of pure fantasy. Setting aside the endless cycle of hatred—even if one side laid down its weapons, who could guarantee the enemy would do the same?]
[So, predictably, they failed. Just like Senju Hashirama, who had held the same ideals before them. But rather than saying Hashirama persuaded the nations to abandon war, it's more accurate to say that under his military might, the nations dared not start a war. And his death had marked the beginning of the First Great Ninja War.]
[It's just that the original Akatsuki lacked Hashirama's strength and prestige. Their failure was quiet, and unnoticed. The world merely gained a few more lost souls… and a single, darkened BOSS.]
---
[Konoha, Year One]
Hashirama looked at the Sky Screen and couldn't help muttering.
"Aren't they supposed to be talking about Akatsuki?"
"How did this end up dragging me into it?"
Madara leaned against a nearby tree, a gloating smile on his lips.
"Because you're also a failure who held the same ideals, Hashirama."
"Madara!"
Hashirama glared at him.
"Can't you stop talking for a moment?"
"No."
Madara's smile widened.
"Seeing you get called out by the Sky Screen like this—of course I have to watch for a while longer."
Hashirama sighed helplessly and turned his gaze back to the Sky Screen.
For some time now, he had been constantly thinking about the problem of peace.
The wars, the deaths, the tragedies of the future—each one stabbed at his heart like a knife. The Tailed Beast distribution mechanism he had established, the one-village-one-nation system he had believed would bring peace—they had all failed.
Wars were still continuing, and hatred was still spreading.
Still, Hashirama thought to himself, failure was just failure. At worst, he could start over. Anyway, he was still alive and could continue to think and try.
---
[Amegakure, Original Akatsuki Base]
The Sky Screen's voice was like a dull blade, cutting into Yahiko's heart.
"So…"
Yahiko's voice was soft, his fists slowly clenching, a hint of bewilderment in his expression.
"We failed."
"So that's how it is…"
"Peace… can't be achieved through persuasion alone."
He recalled the history of the world that the Sky Screen had shown earlier while evaluating the Third Hokage—the First Great Ninja War, the Second, the Third… every time it was a river of blood, each one fields of corpses.
If even Senju Hashirama could only maintain peace through military suppression, then who was he, Yahiko?
An orphan from the Land of Rain—what made him think he could persuade the Five Great Nations to abandon war?
"A darkened BOSS…"
Yahiko muttered the term repeatedly. He didn't fully understand what "BOSS" meant, but from the Sky Screen's tone, it was clearly nothing good.
He thought of the cold, indifferent version of himself in that group photo. He thought of the Rinnegan that should have belonged to Nagato—
If Nagato was gone in the future, chances were that he would become like that.
Then Yahiko turned. He walked over to Nagato and pulled him into a one-armed embrace around his thin shoulders.
"Nagato, listen to me."
Nagato raised his head, his light purple Rinnegan reflecting Yahiko's determined face.
"No matter what happens in the future, no matter what the Sky Screen says—"
Yahiko's voice was low but strong.
"You have to live. Together with Konan. Live."
Nagato was stunned. "Yahiko…"
"I'm serious."
Yahiko gripped his shoulder tightly.
"If the future me becomes that person to protect the two of you—that's my choice. But if you sacrifice yourselves to protect me—"
He paused, a light flickering in his eyes, one that had never been there before.
"I will never forgive myself."
Konan walked over and gently placed her hand on Yahiko's shoulder, her voice low.
"We'll live together."
"Change Amegakure together, achieve our dream together, and no one will die."
Yahiko looked up at her, a smile appearing on his lips.
"Yeah. Together."
---
Somewhere in the Shinobi World, a dark underground cavern.
A white-haired old man sat on a stone chair. His face was covered with wrinkles, but his eyes remained sharp.
"Hashirama… your plan really didn't work, did it."
His voice was hoarse and low, echoing through the empty cavern.
"Infinite Tsukuyomi—that is the only answer."
*****
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