As Konan entered the room, her gaze immediately locked onto the man standing by the window with his back to her. He was dressed entirely in white, which contrasted sharply with her black robe. Without question, this was the renowned Fourth Kazekage.
"Hello," the man turned and revealed a smile.
He had neat short black hair and appeared to be about the same age as her. His smile was gentle and gave off an approachable, friendly impression. He did not carry much of an imposing aura at all. He bore almost no resemblance to the legends she had heard. His presence was not nearly as terrifying as she had imagined it would be.
But then why did she feel this way?
Konan's eyes showed a strange expression. She had the persistent feeling that the person before her carried an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as though they had met somewhere before.
"Please sit," Yuji gestured lightly toward the empty chair across the table.
"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me," Konan said, suppressing the unusual feeling stirring in her chest. She sat down and spoke in a clear, composed tone. She was the one asking for a favor, and the other party held a position of considerable standing, so she used respectful language. The man before her was a genuinely significant figure in the ninja world. Akatsuki had contacted him without any prior warning. Given his status, he could easily have refused the meeting entirely.
"Akatsuki of the Land of Rain. I have heard a little about you. You are the rebel faction of the Land of Rain, operating under the banner of peace to challenge the rule of the Hidden Rain Village and bring reform to the country."
Yuji sat down and spoke directly.
Konan's expression cooled immediately upon hearing this framing.
"Allow me to be straightforward from the start," Yuji continued. "From both a political and a personal standpoint, I as Kazekage should not be meeting with you at all. Regardless of Akatsuki's stance and original intentions within the Land of Rain, Salamander Hanzo remains the de facto authority over the Land of Rain at present. If news of this meeting leaked..."
"It would naturally affect the relationship between the Land of Wind and the Land of Rain," Yuji said with a slight shrug. "Of course, our two villages do not have any meaningful diplomatic relations to speak of to begin with. It is simply that we prefer not to create unnecessary complications for the Sand Village."
"Then why did you agree to see me?" Konan asked calmly.
"Honestly, I was simply a little curious about why you wanted to see me. You came to the Sand Village to acquire a large quantity of medicinal resources, just like the other ninja villages, correct?"
Yuji feigned complete ignorance.
"No," Konan replied.
Yuji looked surprised.
"Then what brings you here?"
However, just as Konan was about to answer, Yuji suddenly raised his hand and stopped her from speaking.
"Wait a moment."
"What?" Konan was startled.
"Did you come alone?"
He chuckled and asked it casually. But as soon as the words left his mouth, his eyes narrowed sharply and a cold glint appeared in them. A terrifying killing intent instantly filled the entire room.
Konan did not fully understand what was happening. Her pupils contracted and she immediately moved into a defensive stance.
But a second later, without any warning, an invisible wave of energy spread outward through the room.
In an instant, a pale, abnormally shaped figure suddenly appeared beside the table, seemingly pulled up from underground. Half of its body retained a vaguely human form while the other half dissolved into long, thorny, vine-like extensions.
White Zetsu.
White Zetsu had only one eye, and its pupil was dilating rapidly. It had not expected the Fourth Kazekage's perception to be this powerful. It had not even heard what the Kazekage and Konan had been about to say before it was mysteriously pulled out from underground and exposed before both of them.
"Is this the space-time jutsu he used against the Third Raikage?!"
White Zetsu exclaimed in shock.
Yuji's eyes shifted. He looked directly at White Zetsu and froze it in place in an instant, rendering it completely unable to move. Immediately, long blood-red threads erupted outward and White Zetsu was torn apart by the Blood Release, its body cut into pieces.
However, its plant-like body managed to regenerate even from that level of injury, splitting into two separate forms.
But very quickly, the White Zetsu that was attempting to escape completely disintegrated.
The reason was straightforward. The fresh blood carried powerful corrosive and toxic properties, and the components and cells within the blood were controllable at a fundamental level. It was not simply a chakra-based technique. It was a method that devoured life force at the cellular level. In the end, this White Zetsu dissolved into a pool of black liquid and was completely eliminated.
"So it really did come," Yuji said coldly to himself with a quiet chuckle.
Because he had returned to the Sand Village ahead of Konan, he had neither escorted her on the journey nor followed her. He had not known the details of the situation before White Zetsu had infiltrated.
From everything that had happened previously, it had seemed that Black Zetsu and Madara had no intention of targeting the Sand Village directly, specifically to avoid exposing themselves. But now, perhaps because Akatsuki's impending upheaval had been sensed, White Zetsu had taken the risk of monitoring the situation to find out what was truly happening between Yuji and Konan.
"Judging from your reaction, you do not appear to be lying," Yuji said, looking at Konan's stunned expression and chuckling lightly. "I do not believe you had the audacity to oppose the Sand Village, let alone come alone to carry out something so foolish."
"The person who appeared was brought here by you, it seems. Your Akatsuki has been targeted."
Konan's mind went completely blank.
"This was clearly not directed at our Sand Village, and I do not need to concern myself with that. Let us talk business. And it is certainly not about medicinal resources. What exactly do you want from me?"
Yuji deliberately shifted the subject, pulling Konan back to the present moment.
"Our organization has information confirming the possibility of a coordinated effort between Konoha and the Hidden Rain Village specifically targeting us," Konan said, forcing herself to calm down and respond despite the shock that still lingered from watching White Zetsu be destroyed before her eyes. "I hope the Hidden Sand Village can help us understand how to respond to the variables that are approaching."
Yuji looked at her for a moment.
"Impossible," he said.
"You understand that Akatsuki is not yet an official organization of the Land of Rain. We have no standing to assist a private armed group with no formal connection to the Sand Village.
Helping you would mean starting another war. Even if everything you have told me is true, we have already ceased hostilities with Konoha and have no intention of initiating conflict with the Hidden Rain Village. The price would be enormous."
He paused.
"What benefit would we gain from this? There is no such thing as a free arrangement."
He chuckled lightly.
Konan remained silent.
She had already anticipated this response. Yoru's prediction of how the negotiation would unfold had been almost word for word accurate from the very beginning. She had entered this meeting with no equal bargaining power whatsoever.
"What kind of reward can you offer the Sand Village?"
Konan closed her eyes for a moment, recalling what Yoru had told her before she had set out. Then she opened them.
"If we succeed in overthrowing the Hidden Rain Village and taking control of the Land of Rain, you can name your price afterward."
Her eyes showed a brief flicker of internal conflict before she finally spoke the words. This was also what Senior Yoru had told her beforehand. It was their only real trump card when negotiating with the Sand Village, and she had known it from the beginning.
"However, the prerequisite is that we receive genuine assistance from the Sand Village. Not empty words."
She added this immediately. The intent behind it was clear. She needed to prevent a situation where Yahiko was not actually in danger, or where the Hidden Rain Village had not truly allied with Konoha, leaving Akatsuki with nothing to show for having given up so much.
In short, saving Yahiko might require Konan to act against his beliefs without his knowledge. But if Yahiko never faced genuine mortal danger, she would absolutely not continue the cooperation with the Sand Village.
Yuji tapped the table lightly with one finger, looking at her steadily.
"I find that answer genuinely interesting. But you should understand that once cooperation begins, everything is no longer entirely in your hands."
He continued.
"Of course, I am a person of my word. If we fail to provide the help we commit to, the agreement naturally becomes void. But once the Sand Village commits to something, there is no turning back. The cost of war is not something simple. You understand that."
He shifted slightly.
"You are referring to the person named Yahiko, I take it. I have heard of him. Can you negotiate on his behalf with full authority?"
Konan's expression tightened.
"Perhaps," she said quietly.
"Very good."
He snapped his fingers.
"But before cooperation can begin, there is a prerequisite."
He looked at her directly.
"If you want our village's involvement, we need to ensure that the investment of troops and resources we commit to is protected. We need a guarantee against future betrayal or a change of heart. Therefore, you must first accept a measure of control from our village. It is the only way to establish the binding nature of this agreement."
He pressed the point slightly.
Konan said nothing.
"We want to place a curse mark on you. Otherwise, there is nothing further to discuss. This is the price of proactively seeking our village's help and asking us to extend our trust to you."
The room fell silent after Yuji finished speaking.
After a long moment, Konan calmly nodded and replied with a single word.
"I Agree."
As long as Yahiko did not die, she would accept anything. Sacrificing herself would ensure that Akatsuki would not collapse. She understood this clearly. To preserve both Yahiko's life and the dream he and Nagato had carried for so long, this was a price she was willing to pay without hesitation.
But the fact that she had accepted a curse mark could absolutely never be revealed to Yahiko or Nagato.
"What is your name?" Yuji asked, looking at Konan, whose eyes showed not a single ripple of emotion despite what she had just agreed to. He felt a genuine and growing admiration for her. She was truly risking everything, placing her life in another's hands without flinching.
He asked the question as though he did not already know the answer.
"Konan," she replied.
"Konan. Let us set the matter of cooperation aside for a moment. There is something else we need to discuss first."
He leaned forward slightly.
"There is an internal problem within your organization, or perhaps someone is deliberately targeting you from the outside. This is something that must be addressed. Since we are already partners, before any operation begins, the Sand Village needs to ensure that everything within Akatsuki is functioning normally and that there are no hidden complications we have not accounted for."
"The strange figure that appeared just now, judging from its physical characteristics, had clearly fused with the cells of Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage. Theoretically, your intelligence network should have detected a threat of this nature. It did not."
"Konoha has definitely been keeping an eye on your organization," Yuji said.
Konan's expression tensed visibly upon hearing this.
"Of course, possessing Senju Hashirama's cells does not necessarily mean the party responsible is Konoha. But whoever is behind this clearly understands your organization deeply and has been studying you for some time. If any further signs appear..."
He paused.
"You must all be vigilant and act without hesitation the moment the enemy shows itself again. The enemy has been monitoring Akatsuki for a very long time, and none of you noticed. If needed, the Sand Village can handle this matter on your behalf."
...
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