Chapter 52: Th-Then… just call me Pain.

The long sword pierced through the brain, red and white matter gushing from the back of the head. The stunned expression froze directly on the face.

Too fast. It instantly destroyed the central nervous system. Whatever thoughts Akasuna no Sasori had in his mind were all solidified. His hollow eyes still held a look of bewilderment.

Pfft.

The corpse landed, splashing up some dust. The thought of abandoning humanity had just arisen when his brain stopped thinking.

"Finally took him down." Otonashi walked slowly towards the corpse, looking down at the other party, savoring the feeling from just now.

Could this be the so-called monstrous strength?

He thought of his aunt (Tsunade), but felt it was different. Concentrating chakra at one point was indeed correct, but the chakra under the Eight Gates Release was too turbulent, making the difficulty incomparably greater than usual.

"Don't know if Tsunade can do it. Oh, she hasn't practiced the Eight Gates." Otonashi shook his head, discarding the thoughts in his mind. There were more important things to do now.

The heavy rain continued, quickly forming a pool of blood beneath the corpse. Looking at the wide-open eyes, Otonashi slowly pulled out the long sword.

Red and white liquid dripped down the blade. This opponent was unprecedentedly strong. If not for Konan and Nagato's help, his chances of solo killing him were close to zero.

Forget controlling ten puppets simultaneously; just that one suspected to be the Third Kazekage was enough to give him trouble. And this was far from reaching Sasori's potential limit.

"Akasuna no Sasori, if you were allowed to grow, it would be terrifying." Otonashi saw the markings on the scattered puppet wreckage, recognizing this famous rogue ninja from the Hidden Sand Village, but decisively turned and left.

This person was only in his teens; his future held great promise. But whether Akasuna no Sasori or Akasuna no Ryū (Dragon of the Red Sand), his path had already ended.

Right here in this boulder-strewn hill amidst the pouring rain!

Wreckage littered the ground. Including the Third Kazekage, several puppets were all collected by him using summoning scrolls. After finishing all this, he carefully considered his current persona and came to Konan's side.

The girl's clothes were completely soaked by the rain. Beside her feet were her two unconscious companions. Kneeling in the rain, she looked lost and fragile.

She stiffly raised her head, looking at Otonashi who was looking down from above, her purple lips lightly pursed.

"Please, save them."

"You don't need to ask; I will do it anyway." Still in a low voice, Otonashi slowly knelt down and put the last antidote pill into Nagato's mouth.

The heavy breathing immediately calmed down quite a bit. Konan's eyes instantly burst with intense light of hope.

"There were only three; they've all been used." Otonashi succinctly extinguished the hope, causing the purple lips to purse even tighter.

"Thank you."

"Nagato was poisoned for a short time, should be no problem. That boy is a bit more troublesome. I know a little medical ninjutsu; I'll try my best to treat them."

His words immediately made Konan cling to him like a drowning person grabbing a life-saving straw. She performed a deep bow right there in the rain, quickly forming stretchers out of white paper, and sent her two companions into the village, turning back every three steps, afraid that the person standing solemnly in the rain would leave.

"The plan deviated somewhat."

A curtain of rain formed from the edge of the bamboo hat. Watching the figure gradually being swallowed by Earth Release, the corners of the mouth under the mask quietly curled up:

"But Akasuna no Sasori, I really have to thank you."

Truly a great help. Originally, he was still troubled about how to display this powerful, mature, mysterious persona to others.

Now it's good, all solved.

Retracting his gaze, he turned and walked towards the village.

.....

The flames in the fireplace burned fiercely, dispelling the chill of the rain and gloom.

Konan, having hastily eaten some dry rations, stood guard by the door. After all, no one could guarantee the enemy came alone. Perhaps due to fatigue, perhaps due to worry, her eyes staring into the rain curtain drifted slightly.

Who is that person?

A tragic childhood had made Konan extremely strong. Her mind was frantically guessing the identity of the mysterious person.

'Judging from the voice, he should be a middle-aged man. Hmm, his combat experience is indeed rich, definitely much older than us. But why did he intervene in this matter?'

She wasn't blind; she could certainly tell that Otonashi's strength wasn't much greater than theirs. This posed a problem: why risk his own life to jump out and help?

Does he have a grudge against the puppeteer? Does he have a sense of justice? Or is he interested in us?

Konan didn't know the reason. Fortunately, she was clear on one point: the mysterious person was a friend, not an enemy, who had saved Yahiko's, Nagato's, and even her own life!

This favor was too great, so great it was difficult to repay. Anyone with a bit of humanity couldn't possibly repay kindness with enmity.

Creak—

Just as Konan was lost in thought, the door behind her was pushed open. The girl immediately stood up.

"How is it?"

"Their lives are saved for now. That Nagato should wake up soon." Otonashi said lightly. His medical ninjutsu was passable; he relied more on the medicine left by Tsunade.

"What about Yahiko?" Konan asked anxiously.

"He's a bit more troublesome. Poisoned for too long, the toxins have already spread. Even if he wakes up, there might be lasting sequelae."

What!?

Konan's body swayed, but after taking two steps back, she stood firm, forcing a smile: "Thank you very much. Uhm, may I ask how to address you?"

Otonashi didn't speak, looking up at the fine curtain of rain, only then replying lightly:

"Just call me Pain."

Pain?

This name sounded like a codename. But Konan had high emotional intelligence. Seeing the other party wearing a raincoat, a pure white mask and bamboo hat, completely covered up, clearly didn't want to reveal his identity.

She quickly nodded and smiled: "Pain-senpai, I really don't know how to repay you."

Senpai?

Looking at the girl who was several years older than him, Otonashi almost snorted with laughter inwardly. He had actually planned this early on; even his voice was processed.

Voice Changing Technique—this was another bizarre ninjutsu created by the genius Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama. Old man voice, young boy voice, even loli voice and onee-san voice were possible. Paired with the Transformation Technique, it was simply perfect for infiltration.

Incidentally, his current voice was imitating Senju Tobirama, but Konan couldn't tell.

"No need for repayment. I have long heard about the affairs of you three in the Land of Rain."

"So you came specifically looking for us!" Konan became somewhat vigilant inwardly, asking without showing it: "And then?"

"I am very disappointed." Otonashi looked over coldly, his red eyes (likely Sharingan/Rinnegan implication via Pain persona) filled with regret. "Seeking peace through dialogue sounds novel, but you must distinguish the target! Otherwise, it's just wasting your own lives and talents!"

His tone was extremely heavy, rendering Konan speechless. If not for her holding back in that strike, the enemy would have been severely injured from the start.

There was no way to refute, nor room for refutation. The ideology of the trio was dominated by Yahiko; she and Nagato mostly just followed.

In this Pain, Konan even felt a sense of familiarity, similar to the feeling of Jiraiya-sensei.

"Are you leaving?" she looked up, reluctance clear in her eyes.

"I will stay for a period of time, until Nagato wakes up." Otonashi shook his head, maintaining that sense of mystery, completely unlike his persona in Konoha.

"Go change clothes and rest."

"But you are also very tired." Konan was unwilling to leave; she knew that at this stage, this Pain was the pillar for the three of them.

"Go. Since I saved you, I will see things through."

Seeing his firm attitude, the girl, already dizzy with fatigue, gritted her teeth and nodded: "Okay, thank you for your hard work."

The door closed. Otonashi immediately leaned against the door, feeling his legs trembling with exhaustion, yet he hadn't shown it at all just now.

At full power, he could trade blows with Kage-level opponents, but not for long. If not for the elemental matchup (likely referring to lightning vs puppets/sand, or his versatility vs Sasori's focus), he simply couldn't have beaten Akasuna no Sasori.

He watched the continuous heavy rain, just shaking his head lightly.

Things are impermanent. Otonashi originally only planned to use the reconnaissance opportunity to get acquainted with Nagato and the others, to lay the groundwork for future plans.

But how did things get so muddled that he himself became the pillar for the trio?