Chapter 26

Here @riojiyo131, your trusted writer.

Chapter 27 will be the reason many of you abandon the story.

But don't blame me for not paying attention to the clues in the previous chapters.

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[Yahiko: So... can you repeat the part where you said Akatsuki is a criminal organization?]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Uh, oh... buddy, I had completely forgotten you existed.]

[Yahiko: ...]

[Dan Katō: Yahiko? Where have I heard that name before?]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Maybe from Tsunade or Jiraiya. Yahiko was one of the three orphans from the Land of Rain whom Jiraiya took care of and trained for a while.]

[Dan Katō: What were the names of the other two...? I think I remember... Konan? Nagato? Were those their names?]

[Yahiko: Why do you say Akatsuki is a criminal organization?]

Naruto frowned at Yahiko's insistence.

He didn't want to be rude, but...

[Naruto Uzumaki: Honestly, you have nothing to trade for that information.]

[Yahiko has granted the group leader all his Kenjutsu experience!]

[Naruto Uzumaki: I told you, you can't buy this information.]

With Sakumo's Kenjutsu experience, Yahiko's Kenjutsu skills were useless.

[Yahiko has granted the group leader the C-Rank Technique – Furious Waves!]

[Naruto Uzumaki: I...]

Naruto noticed Yahiko's desperation. He didn't just want to know what had happened to Akatsuki, the organization he had founded to end tyranny and oppression, but he also needed to know if his friends were okay.

[Yahiko has granted the group leader the B-Rank Technique – Pillar Rotation!]

[Yahiko has granted the group leader all his Chakra!]

[Yahiko: Please! I have nothing else to offer! Do me this favor!]

[Minato Namikaze: Naruto...]

Even his father, Minato, felt sorry for Yahiko and tried to intercede.

[Madara Uchiha: Ha! Give it up! That brat won't spill anything for such useless techniques.]

Seeing Madara speaking in the group, Naruto had an idea.

[Naruto Uzumaki: Actually, Madara, you're the one who will pay for this information.]

[Madara Uchiha: Have you lost your mind? Why would I do such a thing?!]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Because only then can I omit certain parts that would implicate you.]

[Madara Uchiha: Just saying that already implies I'm involved in this matter!]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Would you rather I tell everything?]

[Madara Uchiha: You...!]

[Madara Uchiha has granted the group leader the Three-Tomoe Sharingan!]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Do you really think I'd stay quiet about such important information for just that?]

Naruto smiled internally. Madara had fallen right into his trap without even realizing it.

As long as Madara paid a fair price, he would avoid mentioning Obito pulling the strings from the shadows, the true origin of Nagato's Rinnegan, and Akatsuki's real purpose—something even Nagato wasn't aware of.

[Hashirama Senju: I don't understand anything. How could Madara be involved with this organization called Akatsuki?]

[Tobirama Senju: Madara died in the Valley of the End, long before the Second Great Ninja War, when Akatsuki didn't even exist yet.]

[Madara Uchiha: ...]

[Hashirama Senju: Madara, you... died, right? You didn't deceive me... did you...?]

[Madara Uchiha: Shut up! You killed me with your own hands! Do you remember, or do I need to draw you a picture?!]

[Hashirama Senju: Ha! You finally admit it! Yes, I killed you with my own hands. Wow, what memories...]

[Madara Uchiha: YOU...! Why do you keep repeating the same thing?! It wasn't funny the first time!]

In the end, seeing that Hashirama and Tobirama were now fully focused on the topic, Madara had no choice but to give up in frustration.

[Madara Uchiha has granted the group leader the Mangekyō Sharingan!]

Lying on his bed, Naruto smiled in satisfaction.

"Now that is a good payment, Madara..." he thought.

[Naruto Uzumaki: Yahiko, listen carefully. I'll tell you the truth about what happened to Akatsuki after your death... But first, you need to know why you died.]

[Yahiko: Before anything else... Are Konan and Nagato okay?]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Yes. Konan got married and had three children with beautiful red hair...]

[Yahiko: Oh...]

[Naruto Uzumaki: I'd love to see your face right now. Just kidding, calm down. Konan would never replace you, she secretly loved you, just like you did her.]

[Kushina Uzumaki: Naruto, I don't think this is the time for jokes...]

Naruto sighed at his mother's message. He couldn't help it. It was a shame the chat group didn't let him see others' expressions in real time.

No doubt, Yahiko's expression would have been perfect to capture in a portrait.

Finally, Naruto began to recount what had happened.

[Naruto Uzumaki: Danzō Shimura considered Akatsuki a threat, so he tricked Hanzō of the Salamander into believing that Akatsuki had abused its power and killed ninjas from Amegakure. He convinced Hanzō that they planned to overthrow his government. That's why Hanzō set a trap for you: he arranged a meeting and, once there, forced Nagato to kill you, or else Konan would die.]

[Yahiko: I didn't know about Danzō, but I lived through the rest. I took my own life with Nagato's kunai. Nothing was more important to me than Konan's life.]

[Tobirama Senju: It seems my student, Danzō, is involved in far too many shady affairs...]

Naruto rolled his eyes at Tobirama's comment.

If only he knew everything about Danzō...

[Naruto Uzumaki: After your death, Nagato took leadership of Akatsuki. But his vision changed completely. Akatsuki went from being a pacifist organization to a criminal one with warlike objectives, recruiting S-Class rogue ninjas. Some joined to further their own goals, but they all shared one purpose: for Akatsuki to dominate the world.]

[Hashirama Senju: Dominate the world? That sounds familiar...]

[Tobirama Senju: That was Madara's goal. He wanted to unify the nations and rule them to establish peace.]

[Madara Uchiha: Unlike them, I have the power to do it. Don't compare me to those fools.]

[Naruto Uzumaki: Nagato seeks to capture all the Bijū. He plans to use them to create a Kinjutsu technique capable of wiping out an entire nation in an instant. His idea is that, through fear, wars will end, and the world will know peace... until people forget the fear. And then, the cycle will repeat. An endless chain of hatred, with brief periods of peace.]

[Yahiko: That's not what we wanted... Nagato has lost his way...]

[Tobirama Senju: What was Akatsuki's true goal?]

[Minato Namikaze: During my time as the Fourth Hokage, I heard of Akatsuki and its good deeds, but I never knew its real purpose...]

[Yahiko: Our goal was to stop the wars in Amegakure and achieve peace. As a child, I hated the endless rain in the Land of Rain... it made me feel like the entire country was crying because of war. I believed Nagato was the only one who could bring peace to the world. Akatsuki was supposed to support him in that.]

[Naruto Uzumaki: You were completely wrong...]

[Yahiko: Naruto... I need to talk to them...]

[Naruto Uzumaki: You won't be able to approach Konan or Nagato. You'd be killed by an Akatsuki member before you could reach them. I'll stop them when the time comes. And when I do, I'll bring you back. You're the only one who could make them see reason.]

[Yahiko: ...Alright.]

Yahiko didn't insist further. He knew Naruto was hiding information... but if he stayed in the group, maybe he would learn more over time.

Naruto, exhausted from so many revelations, finally lay down.

Though, before sleeping, he accepted everything Haku, Zabuza, Minato, Kushina, Madara, and even Yahiko had granted him.

A wave of power coursed through his body.

For a second, he almost let himself be consumed by the feeling of invincibility.

But he quickly remembered how many ninjas could still stand against him.

Then, his eyes began spinning rapidly...

His Two-Tomoe Sharingan evolved into a Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

And then, the tomoe fused together.

The same pattern as Madara's Mangekyō Sharingan appeared in his eyes.

[Naruto Uzumaki: What is this ridiculously overpowered ability you have?!]

[Madara Uchiha: ...]