Chapter 213: The Origin of Akatsuki

War is not the goal but a means, and soldiers are a nation's great affair; they must not be neglected. Whenever troops are to be mobilized, one must think again and again, be cautious repeatedly.

Clarify the objective, discern friend and foe, strike with a single blow, never delay.

Shisui deeply embraces Sima Yi's war philosophy; even when the army is ready, he does not launch an attack without certainty.

As for the Rain Village side, they have always been active in the Three Kingdoms border region, and after learning that the Fire Country's daimyo ordered Konoha to act against the Rain Country, they massed on the Fire Country border, confronting Konoha ninja.

Precisely because of this, Shisui knows a surprise attack is impossible, so he chooses to temporarily gather strength.

At this moment, after Shisui discussed the imminent war with several others in the office, the conflict loomed.

In the office, besides Shisui and Nara Suzaku, there were Danzo, Mito Monen, Mori no Ibis, Uchiha Ming, Kakashi, Sarutobi Nichi, and Uchiha Inabi.

Big matters call for small meetings, small matters call for big meetings; for national military affairs, Shisui certainly cannot consult too many people.

Originally the Medical Department should have been present, but due to the influence of the transferred sleeper Koharu, the Medical Department's structure is still being rebuilt, so they were not notified.

Of course, there is also a guy who doesn't fit in with the others, and that is Kakashi; he also doesn't know why he was summoned to such a meeting, but it's the Hokage's order, so both he and everyone else must remain silent.

"The ultimate goal of this battle is to eliminate the masked man hiding in the Rain Village, to protect the daimyo's safety. Our spies who had been infiltrating the Rain Country gathered some intelligence; currently about two thousand Rain Village ninja are gathered at the border, and scattered units are converging on the border. It is estimated that the Rain Village can mobilize at most three thousand troops."

The Rain Village is a small country, repeatedly battered by the five great nations and has not recovered; three thousand is an overestimate, and everyone present understood this without objection.

"Furthermore, the Rain Village seems to have undergone some incident; after that, there has been no news of Hanzo, replaced by an organization called Akatsuki, one member of which is referred to by Rain Village people as Lord Angel; details are unknown."

"Lord Angel?"

The others were puzzled, having never heard of it, but since it could replace Hanzo, it must not be a simple figure, which weighed heavily on the few elders familiar with Hanzo's strength.

"Someone like Hanzo meeting such an end…"

Mito Monen was somewhat surprised, feeling a surge of emotion, while Danzo's eyes shifted slightly, thoughtful.

"The members of Akatsuki are uncertain, and their strength cannot be gauged; besides the Angel, the only person we know is someone called Pain, this person…"

Nara Suzaku said, looking at Shisui, then softened his tone and continued: "It is said this person possesses the legendary Sage of Six Paths' eye, the Rinnegan."

"Rinnegan? What is that?"

"It is him!"

Some were puzzled, some shocked, Danzo's face changed, leaving him speechless.

This abnormal scene instantly drew everyone's gaze; Shisui's eyes flickered with concern as he asked: "Consultant Danzo, do you know this person Pain?"

Danzo, feeling speechless, realized he couldn't avoid the follow‑up, so he replied: "We may have to ask Jiraiya; if I recall correctly, the one with the Rinnegan should be called Changmen, a student of Jiraiya in the Rain Country."

"What?"

Everyone was stunned; Shisui was also bewildered—could Akatsuki be one of our own? Shisui then looked at Sarutobi Nichi, who wore a blank stare; even the Third Hokage might not know, let alone understand.

"Consultant Danzo, after the meeting, have Root send Pain's intelligence over."

Given Danzo's nature, knowing the Rinnegan would surely pique his interest; perhaps he has already acted behind the Third Hokage, otherwise such a reaction wouldn't occur—he must verify with Orochimaru and Jiraiya.

Danzo's expression was not pleasant; speaking of Changmen was hard to bring up, of course he does not think his actions are problematic, only that a failed operation tarnishes his image.

Nevertheless, Shisui will certainly not allow him to defy the Hokage's order as the Third Hokage did.

"It seems I have to embellish that matter a bit."

Seeing Danzo did not object, Nara Suzaku continued, "Since the eastern front remains undecided, this war with the Rain Village must be swift; three months is the bottom line."

At that moment, the ever‑silent Mori no Ibis stood up and said: "The intelligence units have reached the border and are extracting more detailed data from Rain Village ninja captured on the front line. Additionally, the map of the Rain Country has been updated; once we breach the Rain Village defenses, the main army at full speed can reach Rain Village within half a day."

Then Uchiha Ming spoke, "The ANBU has compiled the Rain Village intelligence gathered during this period, and furthermore, all trade routes between the Fire Country and the Rain Country have been identified and cut off, including the trade with the River Country and the Grass Country, which have also been completely halted."

Finally, Uchiha Inabi rose and said, "The Police Department has selected personnel to accompany the army; major disciplinary matters along the route will be recorded on the move."

Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned; the Police Department does not stay in the village, so why suddenly go outside, and with such a strange role?

"It was my idea."

Shisui spoke, drawing everyone's attention, then explained, "This war is to protect the daimyo, to eliminate the ninja world's villains; it is an unavoidable act, also a just one.

This is our struggle against the Rain Village; no Leaf ninja may, during the war, violate military discipline and endanger civilians. Once discovered, severe punishment without mercy will follow.

The reputation of Konoha is at stake; you have been repeatedly reminded that no one may slack off!"

"Yes!"

The others responded immediately; war among ninja should never affect civilians—this is an unwritten rule, yet with hundreds of people, myriad oddities arise, and some rats inevitably hide among them.

Obstinate~ Danzo snorted lightly; he recalled that Akatsuki members cared about those civilians, and if those civilians were used as leverage, perhaps many matters could be saved.

"To achieve greatness, one should not care about these; Shisui, Shisui, you still can't!"

Shisui did not know Danzo's thoughts; after making the personnel assignments he ended the meeting.

After everyone left, Shisui immediately arranged for contact with Orochimaru and Jiraiya, and after a while Danzo, fearing Shisui might investigate on his own, sent the intelligence.

Shisui returned home with the intelligence and discussed it with Sima Yi; the two of them, after reviewing, wore different expressions.

In Danzo's account, he had engineered for Hanzo to kill Akatsuki's first leader Miyan, successfully sowing discord between Akatsuki and Hanzo, causing them to slaughter each other; Hanzo perhaps died because of this.

The details were not explained by Danzo, but he still gave some intelligence about Akatsuki.

"Danzo, why do you always…"

Reading the intelligence, the two guessed that the Akatsuki's hatred toward Konoha might stem from Danzo, but neither could accuse Danzo on this point.

Hanzo is the enemy, and if the Akatsuki seeks to ally with Hanzo, then Akatsuki is Konoha's enemy.

Danzo's only mistake was failing to fully eradicate the Akatsuki and not informing the Third Hokage afterward, allowing him to be unprepared, thus raising a tiger.

"If he succeeded in everything, Konoha would not be as it is now."

"Grandfather also said that."

"However, turning back, Jiraiya has taken three students; one was killed by Hanzo, the remaining two—one possesses the Rinnegan, the other is perhaps the so‑called Lord Angel. The matter concerns Jiraiya; it seems the Rain Village is more complex than we thought. Continue gathering intelligence, and after Jiraiya and Orochimaru reply, we will speak further." Intelligence is the first stage of war; its quantity directly affects the ensuing conflict.

Now it seems Jiraiya and Orochimaru undoubtedly hold crucial information; waiting a bit longer for them is worthwhile.

Shisui nodded and then said, "Senior Jiraiya's other student is the Fourth Hokage, whose strength is evident to all; several comrades from the Fourth's same generation are also formidable, and with the hidden Obito, the Rain Village's power is unimaginable.

Grandfather, I plan to seal the Two‑Tails within my body, then call Hui, Shiliuye, and Uncle Fugaku to act together, and ensure the battle is decided in one strike."

Grandfather, I intend to seal the second tail into my body, then summon Hui, and have Shiliuye and Uncle Fugaku act together, ensuring it ends with a single decisive battle.

Even Shisui cannot be confident when facing the legendary Wheel of Reincarnation eye alone.

Since that's the case, then swap my eyes onto you. Don't be quick to refuse; it's merely an exchange. I still possess a pair of youthful eyes, and the importance of this battle far exceeds your imagination.

"Grandfather, please speak!"

"We must not only win this battle, but win swiftly and effortlessly. This is not just for the present, but also for the future."

You must let the ninja world see Leaf Village's strength, so that in the upcoming internal turmoil we can deter the nations and buy time for our reforms.

Shisui vaguely guessed Yan Shifan's purpose in the capital, and after a moment of silence he nodded heavily.

"Thank you, Grandfather!"

Sima Yi's constant reminders made Shisui feel great pressure.

Now Leaf Village is like walking on thin ice; foreign enemies surround it, the Mist Village restrains Leaf with tens of thousands of troops, Rain Village harbors a powerful, unknown foe linked to the legend of the Sage of Six Paths, and there is also an Uchiha Obito who possesses a kaleidoscope.

Other nations have not acted yet, but they all keep their eyes on Leaf Village, hoping Leaf falls into a war quagmire to buy them time to recover, then waiting to launch the Fourth Ninja World War and redraw the territories.

Meanwhile, nobles across the country are training more and more ninja; although the time has been short, some ominous signs have already emerged.

Within the village, some secret‑technique families remain resentful of Shisui's free distribution of ninja techniques, and secretly hide a Shimura Danzo who constantly harbors ulterior motives; Shisui must keep a constant watch on these.

Now all of this will be linked to the upcoming war; if Leaf Village is repelled on the Rain battlefield, all problems will erupt one after another.

Contemplating this, Shisui's breathing became slightly rapid, but he soon calmed down.

This war is already inevitable; for Leaf Village, for the Uchiha, every enemy, whether overt or covert, must be eliminated!

The two quickly completed the eye‑swap procedure; Shisui clearly felt Sima Yi's pupil power merging with his.

"It must be the work of the first‑generation cells; the fusion speed is faster than I expected. Half a month should be enough for complete fusion!"

"Not bad, it seems a power is gestating within. Rest well during this period, prepare yourself, and after full fusion we'll discuss sealing the tailed beast."

"Alright, Grandfather."

Their procedure did not alarm anyone, and the various divisions of Leaf Village operated orderly under Shisui's arrangement.

At the border zone, ninja army deployments, supply transports—everything made everyone understand that the war with Rain Village is near.

Meanwhile, Rain Village.

Xiao Nan stood on a drainage pipe, rain sliding down her cheek; below were scattered villagers, and today's Rain Village felt more oppressive than before.

The war that once brought them endless suffering has returned.

Xiao Nan looked at the villagers, unsure what she was thinking about.

Suddenly, as if sensing something, she raised both hands without hesitation; countless sheets of paper coalesced and spun like a high‑speed cutting machine, then she hurled them backward forcefully.

Space warped briefly, and the masked Obito stepped out, calmly watching the paper disc fly toward him, allowing it to pass through his body.

"Girl, is this your way of hosting guests?"

"Are you also a guest of the Rain Country? Why did you unilaterally start a war!"

No one in the Akatsuki likes war, and Xiao Nan suffers the most.

Obito stared at Xiao Nan; he wanted to tell her that he indeed had that thought, but this really wasn't his doing.

But wearing a mask, possessing the Copy Wheel Eye, being immune to physical attacks, and having a past of controlling the Mizukage, he knows no one will believe he is innocent.

"For peace."

Obito said in a deep voice, since it cannot be explained, he might as well admit it.

"Peace?"

Xiao Nan, angry, did not expect the person before her to be so shameless, starting a war yet calling it peace.

"Hehe, what can you say?"

Only war brings peace; only by making the world understand war's suffering will they uphold peace. That is the purpose of the Akatsuki's existence!

Xiao Nan might not agree with this, but Changmen deeply believes it.

Sure enough, the next moment, Pain appeared beside the two.

"Pain!"

"I already know what's happening, Xiao Nan. Ban is right: gather all the tailed beasts, make the world feel the pain of war, thereby deterring the ninja world and forging peace. That's the Akatsuki's purpose; it's just being done early. Anyway, I will make Leaf Village feel pain and abandon the idea of war!"

Pain's expression remained calm, his tone even more indifferent.

In front of Obito, Xiao Nan naturally obeyed Pain's wishes.

Obito, seeing this, breathed a sigh of relief, then his body twisted, and a figure appeared behind him.

This person had green hair, purple eyes, a scar resembling a suture under his left eye, wielded a staff‑like weapon with a hooked tip adorned with green flowers, but his eyes revealed emptiness and bewilderment—it was the Fourth Mizukage under control.

"This is the Three‑tails; use it to strengthen the Akatsuki's power."

Obito said that and left.

"Changmen."

"No need to worry; once Jiaodu and Orochimaru return, we'll begin. I'll make a rainbow appear over the Rain Country!" (End of chapter)