Chapter 267: Second Konoha...

Parallel World – Kannabi Bridge

Tap, tap, tap…

Three sets of footsteps landed unevenly. Konan had to steady the half–kneeling Nagato, whose legs, atrophied for so long, still wouldn't support normal walking, even if now healed.

Alert to any sign of danger, Yahiko looked around warily. He then noticed a little kid with Sharingan in the distance, perched on a chair.

Judging by his age, he was probably around Yahiko's own apparent age, which meant… must be another one reanimated by Link, from the Uchiha Clan?

"…?" The duty officer, Uchiha Hachidai, glanced at them, peered down at his list, and asked suspiciously,

"You lot don't look like part of the second wave."

He thumbed through the roster and the file data, locating that woman's name. "Konan. You must be Konan, right?"

At that, he exchanged a look with his fellow guard, Uchiha Inoka, not far away.

So these were the prisoners who were supposed to be transferred over to "World #1"…? Arriving early seemed off. Better let Fugaku–dono and Sasuke handle it.

Konan held out the scroll Link had given her, speaking the words Tobirama had instructed: "These two are last–minute additions."

Uchiha Hachidai understood instantly. "Last–minute additions" basically meant newly captured prisoners.

"What are your names? I'll put you on the log, so we can allocate housing." He opened a small ledger.

"Nagato,"

"Yahiko."

So they're civilians, perhaps?

"You two married?" Uchiha Hachidai asked offhand, noticing how close Konan stood to Nagato.

"No." The pair answered in unison.

In truth, the three of them shared a bond transcending mere romantic or friendly love—it was something closer to family, each ready to die for the other.

Hachidai nodded. "And you're Yahiko, yes? A reanimated soul?"

"…Yes."

"Are all three of you shinobi?"

"Yes," they said in chorus.

He proceeded with a long series of questions. Although Hachidai was curious about that single Rinnegan left in Nagato's face, he didn't pry further—just diligently recorded all that was needed.

Uchiha Sasuke, who had arrived earlier, walked over. With a quick glance at them, he said, "Follow me."

Link had mentioned these three to him in passing. Students of Jiraiya, the founders of the Akatsuki.

[That's the Rinnegan, I suppose.] he thought, studying Nagato secretly.

Nagato attempted a stiff smile. Having been jolted awake by Madara from his dream of "godhood," reunited with a presumed–dead Konan and an actually–dead Yahiko, and missing one of his Rinnegan, he was gradually reverting to that shy boy he used to be.

But with years of bitter hatred and sorrow, he barely remembered how to smile.

Sasuke could sense it and softened his tone a bit. "The living conditions here won't be great for a while. And I'll be watching the three of you constantly. Don't try to run, or else—"

"Got it," the three responded in the same breath.

Yahiko gave a faint grin. "Don't worry. With the curse seals we've got, no way we could run."

Konan managed a slight smile. She was no longer that bewitching "Angel" of god, and her expression now looked bright and warm.

Nagato clenched his hands in his sleeve. Even though he'd lost his freedom, an eye, and ended up locked away in another dimension, it all somehow felt like a dream—

A sweet dream he wasn't ready to leave.

Seeing them, Sasuke's mouth curved in the faintest smirk; then his face returned to its usual calm. He led them onward.

In the forest near Kannabi Bridge, wide–swaths of giant trees had been cut, replaced by large wooden structures raised by the First Hokage's Wood–Style. One slap of his palm, and house after house sprang forth—a bit like a "god–given building technique."

The location was good, near mountains and water. Aside from being too close to Kusagakure, there weren't many downsides. On top of that, the warp point for Funa–tsū no Jutsu was here, so they decided to build the new settlement near Kannabi Bridge.

Even before formalizing their alliance with the "second Konoha," they'd begun planning and construction. By now, a rough shape had emerged. The alliance implicitly recognized this site as the official base.

Of course, that other Konoha had also sent some shinobi here to garrison (and watch) them.

For ninja, once the buildings were set up, altering a stream's path with ninjutsu was trivial, so water was easy to redirect. There was no shortage of food, either, given the Land of Fire's environment.

Right now, it resembled a small town with a somewhat monotonous style of architecture.

What felt a bit off was that nearly everyone out in the open was physically just three or four years old, imparting a vaguely absurd atmosphere.

This base had no official name yet. The center area was reserved for Link and the Hokage. The southwestern section was for the reanimated Konoha shinobi—about two hundred of them.

They definitely weren't ordinary two hundred. In past lives, their skill levels had all been at least jōnin, many of them elites. Once they recovered, they'd form the backbone of an entire hidden village.

The northwestern area, near the forest, housed the reanimated Uchiha, numbering a few dozen—some of them more talented than others, but not all had been top–tier. And it had been hard for Link's Summoning–style Edo Tensei or Tobirama's classic version to retrieve many Uchiha, as many had died with no remains. Even with Tobirama's help, it was difficult.

Overall, the western side—along the river's upper reaches—was the residential zone. After rerouting the water, the river now cut from west to east across the base. Very convenient for water usage.

Toward the east, most buildings were vacant. Only a handful had been turned into labs. Eventually that side would become purely military, off–limits to outsiders. Currently they were consolidating the ground, putting up barriers, so as you walked around you could sense an up–and–coming energy.

By more detailed city design, two intersecting commercial streets would pass through the western residential blocks and meet in the center.

At the center would stand some landmark structure, though that was still under discussion.

Incidentally, though the place had only been set up a few days, it already had a prison. With practically everyone a shinobi, self–discipline mostly kept order; but they still caught quite a few wandering rōnin, bandits, or missing–nin from the war, and put them in a ramshackle facility outside the settlement, waiting to hand them over to "Second Konoha" for final disposition.

In the middle were a few buildings saved for Link. They'd been fully furnished now—

That was Sasuke's special request; he even helped with the décor. After living next door to Link so long, he knew the guy's routines well.

He and his parents' home lay next door.

He arranged a spot for Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato fairly close to the center, not treating them like criminals. After all, they were Jiraiya's students.

"All right, that covers it," Sasuke said, concluding the list of do's and don'ts. "If you need anything, come find me."

With that, he vanished in a Body Flicker, still busy as ever.

~~~

Patreon(.)com/Bleam

— Currently You can Read 100 Chapters Ahead of Others!