178 - Pitter-Patter and Yachihoko Marks

The negotiations between Konoha and Suna, which had arrived earlier, proceeded unusually smoothly, accompanied by the rumbling tremors outside Suna.

It took less than an hour.

The treaty drafted in advance by Shikaku and brought by Tsunade was already signed by all the high-ranking officials of Suna.

Upon receiving the news, Tobirama, along with an enraged Izuna, headed deep into the deserts of the Land of Wind.

All related matters were settled.

As Chiyo issued commands and posted official notices, the Suna ninjas also began preparations accordingly.

Using the Flying Thunder God Technique, Kei transported everyone away from the sandstorm-filled village.

After first returning Hashirama, Madara, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and the others to Konoha, he then took Kushina and Jiraiya to Konoha's encampment on the borders of the Land of Fire.

Inside a pale green military tent, a masked ninja dressed in Root attire, Tobi, was patiently answering questions from Yahiko and the others.

"So you're saying... these eyes are fake, and inside them, you personally set up a seal that contains a Super Shinra Tensei?" Nagato clutched his left eye socket, his expression dark and ugly.

He had only wanted to remove the eyes that didn't belong to him and replace them with a pair of ordinary ones.

But now, not only were the eyes fake, but they couldn't even be removed.

If he tried, the Rinnegan would unleash all of its hidden power at once, activating Super Shinra Tensei and indiscriminately attacking everyone around him?

"Ahaha~ You can't blame me for that~ Back then, I was following Black Zetsu~ You know him, right?~ He had control over us, so I had no choice~"

Tobi flailed his hands dramatically, his hyperactive manner completely out of place with his dark ANBU attire.

"So... does that mean we just need to drain all the chakra from the eyes?" Yahiko furrowed his brows, suggesting another solution.

After all, these were just fake Rinnegan. Their power was rootless, so if they were exhausted, the Super Shinra Tensei shouldn't be that dangerous.

"Very smart idea~! But Black Zetsu is a cunning guy~ He set up multiple restrictions. Have you noticed how much heavier the burden is when using them compared to before?"

"If I overuse them, will they drain me completely first?"

"Exactly~" Tobi raised a finger and nodded approvingly at Nagato's insight.

"So, you want to remove these eyes? Are you sure?"

Kei lifted the tent flap and walked inside. He had brought Kushina with him specifically to deal with the transfer seals placed on the three of them.

Tobi had mentioned these seals before.

Nagato's eyes contained a Super Shinra Tensei, and the trigger was attempting to remove them.

Yahiko and Konan had transfer seals set up by Hikari under Black Zetsu's orders, though even Tobi wasn't sure of the exact triggers.

What he did know was that one of them was connected to Tsukuyomi, while the other had a special dōjutsu that could instantly engrave the Yachihoko markings over a vast area of several hundred meters.

Kei didn't know what Black Zetsu's plan was.

But that thing was long gone. No matter what it had schemed, it couldn't crawl out of its grave to stop him now.

So, just break the seals.

With his Yin-Yang Sage Mode fully activated, his resistance to genjutsu, forbidden techniques, and dōjutsu was far beyond that of Susanoo.

Even in the story, Sasuke was able to block Yachihoko with his Susanoo. So how could he possibly fail?

"I've made up my mind. Do you have a way to deal with this?"

Nagato turned to Kei, his expression slightly awkward as he recalled their time on the isolated island.

"Just throw it away before it reacts."

"..."

Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan all showed expressions of utter disbelief.

No matter how fast a person was, there was a limit. How could he possibly move faster than a pre-set technique that could activate instantly?

"It's simple." Kei chuckled lightly and casually threw a kunai marked with the Flying Thunder God mark near Konan's feet. Before Yahiko and Konan even realized what had happened, he was suddenly holding a small purple hair accessory in his hand.

"???"

Konan saw the familiar headpiece and instinctively reached for her hair.

Finding her head empty, her mouth slowly opened in shock.

This... This was much faster than when they had fought before!

"Please, Kei-senpai, help me!"

Nagato, using his Rinnegan's perception, barely caught Kei's movements. He had activated Flying Thunder God twice in an instant.

Because it was too fast, it gave the illusion that he hadn't moved at all! Instantly ripping out the eyes might cause nerve damage that even medical ninjutsu couldn't heal, but he would rather be blind than continue using these cursed eyes!

"No problem. Shall we begin?"

Seeing Nagato nod, Kei stepped forward.

First, he had Kushina check Nagato's transfer seal to ensure there were no hidden dangers or complications.

Once everything was confirmed safe, he clapped his hands together, activating medical ninjutsu to carefully examine the structure of Nagato's eyes.

A few minutes later… From his arsenal, Kei retrieved a vial of anesthetic he had taken from Konoha's hospital.

After estimating Nagato's physique and chakra reserves, he administered a precise dosage for full anesthesia.

Pssh—

Blood splattered from Nagato's eye sockets.

Kei's figure flickered for an instant.

The next moment, a deafening shockwave erupted a hundred miles away, shattering white clouds across the sky. Under the now cloudless sky, the already brilliant sunlight shone even more brightly than before.

"Tell me—what your friend has lost... is it these 'ordinary' eyes, these three-tomoe Sharingan, or these genuine Rinnegan?" Kei flipped his hand, retrieving three small glass vials from his Infinite Arsenal.

Though he was speaking to the unconscious Nagato, his gaze was fixed on Konan and Yahiko.

The two of them were momentarily stunned by the sight of the Rinnegan inside the vial. But after regaining their senses, they exchanged glances and simultaneously pointed to the ordinary eyes.

As friends who had grown up together, they understood Nagato's feelings better than anyone.

"Kei, stop messing around." Kushina chuckled and patted his arm.

This guy had obviously already decided to give Nagato the "ordinary" eyes that Orochimaru had cultivated.

"Alright, alright." Kei put away the three-tomoe Sharingan and the Rinnegan, then took out the seemingly ordinary eyes from the glass vial.

These eyes originally came from White Zetsu.

At one point, Orochimaru had a wild idea—he injected Uchiha and Hyūga bloodlines into a White Zetsu's body.

At first, there were no issues. But after a week, the ordinary White Zetsu was completely drained of chakra and died, leaving behind these half-developed eyes.

According to Orochimaru's estimates, activating their special abilities would be as difficult as an Uchiha without a sibling awakening the Eternal Mangekyō.

But even in their current, most basic form, their visual perception and reaction speed already far surpassed single and double-tomoe Sharingan.

And this was still just a prototype.

"The transfer seals on the other two are fine as well. Where should we remove them?"

Kushina smiled reassuringly as she placed the purple hair ornament—previously taken by Kei—back onto Konan's head.

"Outside the camp."

After finishing with Nagato's eyes, Kei called over two Konoha ninjas to watch over him. Then, the group left the Konoha encampment.

Tsukuyomi was a single-target dōjutsu, so it wasn't a big deal.

But Yachihoko, which covered a radius of several hundred meters, could easily harm allies if not handled properly.

---

Ten minutes later, in an open field two kilometers away from the camp, hen Kei sensed Tsukuyomi being released from Yahiko's transfer seal, he furrowed his brows slightly.

The way this Mangekyō Sharingan power circulated… why did it remind him of the String Light Formation?

Layering a seal over genjutsu to make it harder to break was a technique he had only begun studying after encountering the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique.

How did Hikari know about this...?

Well, Tsukuyomi lasted only three days, and it wouldn't kill anyone. If something felt off, he could forcibly break free.

With that in mind, Kei deliberately lowered his guard and allowed himself to be struck by the special dōjutsu.

Moments later, he grinned and turned to Kushina.

Looks like I'll need to take a trip to the Land of Wind. Not sure how long it'll take, but I'll be back before negotiations with Iwa.

---

On the rooftop of the Mizukage Building, Hikari swung her legs playfully, humming a lighthearted yet strange tune as she gazed at the mist-covered village.

"Raindrops outside my window go pitter-patter for three days and nights straight~ Just like my love for you~ You won't answer me for three days and nights~ I guess this relationship—"

Behind her, dozens of elite Kiri jonin knelt on one knee, their right hands bearing the engraved markings of Yachihoko.

Their eyes, filled with devotion and fanaticism, were locked onto her.

This was their Fifth Mizukage—Hikari!