A Sage's Pursuit of Power

Rain Tiger at Will, a sensory jutsu that even Aoba coveted. It covered the entire Amegakure, detecting anyone who entered the village.

This technique appeared to be exclusive to the Rinnegan, as no one other than Nagato had ever demonstrated it in the original storyline.

When Aoba and his team entered Amegakure, it wasn't raining, which was clear evidence of Nagato's weakened state. After his intense battle with Madara and the subsequent ambush by Black Zetsu, the poor guy was likely struggling just to breathe.

Although Konan had followed formal channels to request aid, the movements of Aoba's team were kept secret. Led by a few Rain ninja, they entered Amegakure's hidden base.

There, Aoba met Konan, who appeared visibly anxious. The moment she saw him, she quickly approached.

"Aoba-san, can we speak privately?" she asked.

Understanding her intent, Aoba nodded and gestured for her to lead the way.

Konan led him to her office.

"Aoba-san, I need the life-restoring medicine, the one that replenishes Nagato's vitality," she said bluntly.

Aoba didn't beat around the bush either.

"I can give it to you, but what can you offer in return?" he asked.

"The Akatsuki's promise. Aoba-san, if you give me the medicine, the Akatsuki will work for you," Konan offered without hesitation.

In the original trio, Yahiko was the idealist and optimist, dreaming of a world where peace could be achieved through understanding. Nagato was the extremist, determined to make the world feel pain to bring about peace.

Konan, however, was different. She wasn't an idealist or an extremist. She followed Yahiko when he led, and she supported Nagato when he took over. Her ultimate goal was simply to protect the two people she cared about most.

Unlike Yahiko and Nagato, Konan didn't care about saving or destroying the world. Her concerns were more personal: her friends and the Land of Rain.

This was evident now as she immediately sought Aoba's help for Nagato's sake.

"Alright," Aoba agreed without hesitation. He didn't want Nagato to die either. As one of the last remaining members of the Uzumaki clan, Nagato was someone Aoba genuinely wanted to save.

He casually tossed her a pre-prepared vial of medicine.

"Now, let's focus on the main task. Those two are incredibly dangerous, and the sooner we deal with them, the better."

"Understood. But I noticed you didn't bring many people," Konan observed.

"Trust me, we brought enough."

Though Konoha's team was small, it consisted of top-tier fighters. There was no need to elaborate on the presence of the Third and Fourth Hokage. Without the burden of the Sharingan, Kakashi had now fully mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, putting him firmly at Kage level.

Combined with Aoba, they had four Kage-level combatants. The two Anbu sealing experts were specially selected by Aoba, making the team well-prepared for any scenario unless they encountered a fully revived Madara, in which case things might get tricky.

Black Zetsu was currently sealed within a massive paper cocoon created by Konan's Paper Style techniques.

"It seems to have some ability to disrupt seals. No matter how much I reinforce them, the seals loosen after a while. I've had to constantly reapply them, which is exhausting," Konan explained.

"That's normal. Black Zetsu isn't an ordinary being. It's bound to have some unusual abilities. Let's begin."

To seal Black Zetsu, they had prepared extensively. Aoba planned to use the Eight Trigrams Seal, the pinnacle of known remaining Uzumaki sealing techniques.

Aoba had even collaborated with Tobirama Senju to make modifications, creating a formation of four interconnected Eight Trigrams Seals that would intertwine into a super seal.

Even the Nine-Tails hadn't received such treatment, this was Aoba's special care for Black Zetsu.

While preparations were underway, Nagato received the vial from Konan. Without hesitation, he drank the medicine.

Within seconds, a surge of vitality coursed through his body. The sensation was so overwhelming that Nagato almost moaned from relief.

After about a minute, Nagato felt his body had recovered significantly. He rose and dressed himself.

The recent battle had severely depleted his life force. Without Aoba's medicine, he wouldn't have even been able to stand.

Though Nagato was driven by lofty ideals of peace for the ninja world, he had to admit that being confined to a life-support chair was a miserable experience. The simple ability to stand and move freely brought him an unexpected sense of joy, even softening some of his inner bitterness.

Fully dressed, he exited the chamber and headed toward where Aoba and the others were working.

Though he controlled the Deva Path remotely alongside Konan, Nagato could observe her actions through their shared sensory link.

In the chamber, Aoba and the team had completed their preparations.

"This technique has been thoroughly tested and is fully functional. However, the process requires time. Konan, stay vigilant. Let's begin," Aoba instructed.

Konan nodded. For this mission, no other Akatsuki members were allowed in the room except for Kakuzu and Shin.

Kakuzu was one of Konan's most trusted members, while Shin was effectively Aoba's agent. It was the best arrangement.

Even Itachi wasn't trusted for this operation. As devoted as he was to his ideals, Itachi's unpredictable nature warranted caution.

As Konan deactivated her Paper Style cocoon, a mass of black sludge-like material emerged.

"Now! Eight Trigrams Seal!" Aoba commanded.

The four shinobi worked together, and Black Zetsu let out a shrill scream but surprisingly wasn't immediately subdued. Just as Konan had said, it seemed to have some ability to break seals, which made the sealing process take more time.

However, the outcome was inevitable. With four Kage-level opponents working in unison, Black Zetsu had no chance of resisting.

At that moment, the door opened, startling Konan. She nearly attacked instinctively but sighed in relief when she turned and saw that it was Nagato.

No one else could enter this room, but Nagato was, of course, an exception. After all, Nagato was the true leader of both the Akatsuki and the Land of Rain. Konan was merely his second-in-command.

Moreover, both Kakuzu and Shin were aware of Nagato's existence, so they wouldn't stop him. Not that they could; with Nagato temporarily restored to health, neither Kakuzu nor Shin would be capable of standing in his way.

"How's the situation?" Nagato asked, stepping closer.

"It's under control. Just a few more minutes, and it should be over," Aoba replied.

"That's good," Nagato said as he stepped forward, stopping about ten paces behind Aoba.

Then, a brief look of confusion appeared in Nagato's eyes. In the next instant, he suddenly attacked.

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Currently on Chapter 262 - Black Zetsu's Decision