They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 267 Battle, awesome!

"exchange?"

When Konan heard this word, her expression changed but not her tone; she still questioned Hozuki Shingetsu in an icy tone.

"Don't you understand your situation? With the slightest movement of my finger, you'll be beheaded. Are you sure you still want to discuss an exchange with me?"

After saying that, Konan pointed her paper kunai at Hozuki Shingetsu, who was covered in paper scraps, and defiantly stretched it out.

"Decapitated?"

A wrinkle appeared on Hozuki Shingetsu's face, which was tightly wrapped in scraps of paper, and then a voice that sounded like a cold laugh or a mocking laugh came from behind Konan: "Would you like to take another look at who's decapitated now?"

"you……"

Konan suddenly turned around, and then, as if rehearsing a script, her neck "just so happened" to collide with Hozuki Shingetsu's hand.

In this position, Hozuki Shingetsu could lift Konan's entire body upwards with a little effort, forcing Konan to stand on tiptoe and struggle to maintain her balance.

Although he now only possesses the strength of a Jonin, he is still far superior to the inexperienced Konan.

Moreover, among the members of Akatsuki, Konan was not known for her formidable fighting prowess.

Regardless of anything else, Hozuki Shingetsu could easily overpower Konan simply by using his physical abilities.

"Nagato Uzumaki is indeed in my hands now, but he's caused us so much trouble. You think you can just let him go like that? Don't I have any dignity?"

Hozuki Shingetsu's eyes roamed freely over Konan's body, feeling the smooth skin in his hands, and the perverse thrill in his heart grew stronger.

Having transmigrated to the ninja world for over twenty years, is it finally my turn, Hozuki Mengde, to make my appearance?

Such a classic scene, such a smooth dialogue—Hozuki Shingetsu had seen this kind of plot far too often in his previous life.

However, according to the standard formula of most novels, the villain would usually be defeated by the righteous protagonist at this point... Oh, so the protagonist has already been killed by him, then everything is fine.

"What...what do you want?"

Konan gripped Hozuki Shingetsu's hands tightly, struggling to create a space for her neck to breathe.

What do you think?

The words were practically leaping out of Hozuki Shingetsu's eyes. This natural acting, from righteous indignation to lustful rage, fully demonstrated his profound acting skills as a young ninja of the new era.

"You're dreaming!"

Although the vast difference in strength between the two was evident from their brief exchange, upon hearing this, Konan's beautiful eyes showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, her gaze was filled with disdain and contempt as she stared intently at Hozuki Shingetsu.

"Yes, that's the taste!"

Looking at Minami's disgusted face, Hozuki Shingetsu felt even more strongly that his memories of the computer had returned.

Previously, he was an outsider to the film, but now he is an actor in the film.

Then, based on his extensive reading and knowledge, and with his "little" elaboration, he made what could be described as an evil statement.

"If you agree now, it's just a matter between the two of us. But if you refuse now, it won't just be a matter between the two of us anymore."

Seeing Konan's puzzled expression, Hozuki Shingetsu said meaningfully, "Nagato Uzumaki is blind now. If I suddenly feel like it, I can use a sealing technique to shut down his five senses. If you agree then, it won't be a play between the two of us anymore..."

"Imagine the three of us in a cramped room..."

"You bastard!"

Before Hozuki Shingetsu could finish speaking, Konan interrupted him, her face flushed.

Clearly, Hozuki Shingetsu's overly pointed words involuntarily conjured up images in Konan's mind.

"It doesn't matter... Anyway, although Nagato Uzumaki is now blind and has lost his Rinnegan, his physical attributes as a member of the Uzumaki clan still exist. If we just let him out like this, he might actually pose a threat to me."

"If you refuse to comply, it doesn't matter to me. Although it's insignificant, it will eliminate a potential crisis."

As Hozuki Shingetsu spoke, he put Konan down and turned around to start tidying up his belongings, as if he really had no interest in Konan at this moment.

Seeing Hozuki Shingetsu so completely unguarded, Konan had a fleeting thought of rushing forward again. Although she couldn't beat him, dying together with him would be better than being taken advantage of by him.

But when she thought of the time she wandered the Land of Rain with Yahiko and Nagato, and then trained together under Jiraiya, she couldn't help but hesitate.

For her, who lost her parents and relatives at a young age, Yahiko and Nagato were like brothers. But now that Yahiko is dead, Nagato is her only living brother.

Faced with this bond, and the possibility that Nagato was the only survivor, she truly couldn't let go easily.

She knew how troublesome Hozuki Shingetsu was, which was why she secretly came here behind her teacher Jiraiya's back. But she never expected that the condition for bringing back Nagato Uzumaki would be this, and if she didn't agree now, this beast even wanted to…

"If I agree now, you won't tell anyone else, right?"

Under Hozuki Shingetsu's mocking gaze, Konan finally spoke, her tone still icy and her eyes still full of disdain. Her words seemed completely out of place, yet in the current situation, they were all the more fitting.

"Of course, who in the entire ninja world doesn't know that I, Hozuki Shingetsu, am famous for my integrity?"

Hozuki Shingetsu chuckled softly, then sat down in his seat with an air of nonchalance, nodding towards Konan.

"Oh, right, I forgot to remind you, even if we release Nagato, for the sake of our future relationship, Nagato cannot leave the Land of Water."

Seeing Konan's frozen body, Hozuki Shingetsu laughed and said, "Don't worry, as long as he doesn't do anything reckless, I guarantee he'll live a peaceful life in the Land of Water... If he's willing, it's not impossible for him to return to the Uzumaki clan."

"Well then, I've laid out my terms. Now it's up to you to put on a good show."

Watching Hozuki Shingetsu gently unbutton her coat, Konan bit her lip, and then, in a moment, finally made up her mind and slowly walked forward.

Before long, the paper flower stuck in Xiao Nan's hair came off her body amidst the violent shaking and gently fell to the ground.

-

"Nagato, we can leave now!"

Clang!

In the dark and damp makeshift underground prison, Nagato Uzumaki heard Konan's familiar words echoing in his ears.

"Xiao Nan? What are you doing here?"

Nagato struggled to his feet and reached out his hand towards the direction from which Konan's voice came.

During his time in captivity, he gained a basic understanding of his situation and learned the fact that he had lost his Rinnegan.

Now, after a period of calm, although he has accepted the fact, he still cannot accept that his companion has also been imprisoned.

Just as there is a deep bond between Konan and him, there is also a deep bond between Nagato and her.

"Nagato..."

Konan looked at Nagato Uzumaki, noticing how haggard he looked in such a short time, and then, thinking of everything she had gone through, she couldn't help but feel a surge of sorrow.

Wanting to confide in someone but feeling there's no one to talk to, after much internal struggle, all that can be uttered is a single, soft sentence:

"It's alright, it's all over, let's go out!"

"Get out? Why would Hozuki Shingetsu let us out for no reason?... And how did you get in? You came in all by yourself?"

Despite being blind, Nagato's intelligence remained intact, and he realized something was wrong the moment Konan uttered those words.

The thought of Hozuki Shingetsu's request for her to act as Nagato Uzumaki's guardian and to frequently report to Kirigakure made Konan want to tear him to pieces.

However, faced with the life of Nagato Uzumaki, Konan ultimately chose to endure.

"...Nagato, Shimura Danzo is dead, Konoha is bound to lose... I made a promise on your behalf to Hozuki Shingetsu, promising never to be his enemy again and never to leave the Land of Water for the rest of my life. That's why he agreed to let you leave."

-

Just as a deeply moving emotional drama was unfolding in the makeshift dungeon, Hozuki Shingetsu's tent was once again visited by an uninvited guest.

"This is really strange. Is my tent leaking air? Anyone can just come and go as they please."

Looking at Tsunade standing in front of her, Hozuki Shingetsu gently put down the information in her hand about the assassination attempt on the daimyo of the Land of Water and raised her head.

Having traversed the ninja world for over twenty years, he finally experienced the interrogation of enemy ninjas that he had longed for, and the subject of his interrogation was someone he had always admired before his transmigration. This dual pleasure of mind and body plunged his mind into a deep state of ecstasy.

Before he could even savor the moment, he received bad news from his subordinates—the daimyo of the Land of Water, Mizuto Fumi, along with several elite guards from the Blood Pond clan, had all been assassinated by Minato Namikaze.

This instantly ruined his good mood.

All the royal male members of the Land of Water were massacred by Mizuto Fu during the civil war six years ago. Now, Mizuto Fu has not had a male heir under Hozuki Shingetsu's control, which means that the Land of Water currently has no legitimate heir to the daimyo position.

You don't even need to go there; Hozuki Shingetsu knows what the capital city is like right now.

Hozuki Shingetsu's original plan was to use the empty shell of the Land of Water to continuously cultivate his own people, and then replace Peach Blossom with someone else when they were fully grown.

Minato Namikaze's plan has disrupted his schedule, and he will have to make a trip to the capital soon.

Moreover, not only that, the sealing of the demons in the Land of Demons, the Paradise Box in the Land of Grass, the assassinations of dignitaries from various major countries, and other such events, coupled with the previous conflicts between the four ninja villages, led Hozuki Shingetsu to conclude that the current plan to encircle and annihilate Konoha was doomed to failure.

Whether it's to return to the country as soon as possible to deal with the current situation, or to balance the strong development potential of Kirigakure, Konoha cannot be destroyed.

However, even so, the war has already reached this point, and they will definitely have to demand some war reparations from Konoha. After all, the various ninja villages have spent so much time and energy fighting their way here, and have lost so many ninjas. They can't even dream of getting a piece of Konoha's flesh without taking a few bites out of them.

The next key point is how to take as much as possible from the division of Konoha, in order to pave the way for the upcoming Fourth Shinobi World War.

But just as Hozuki Shingetsu was pondering this matter, Tsunade suddenly appeared in Hozuki Shingetsu's tent without any prior notice.

"I am here on behalf of Konoha to sue for peace."

Tsunade's first words caused a strange expression to appear on Hozuki Shingetsu's face.

Defeat, peace negotiations, ninjas, enemy camp, princess...

This series of labels involuntarily drew Hozuki Shingetsu into the world of Raihoken.

He never expected that Tsunade and Konan would be so in sync, arriving at his tent one after the other.

Fortunately, the two of them didn't clash in terms of timing... No, thinking about it that way, isn't it even more of a pity?

Looking at the complex expression on Hozuki Shingetsu's face, Tsunade was filled with emotion.

The last time she came to see Hozuki Shingetsu was also to negotiate for the sake of saving Konoha. She never expected that after so many years, when the two met again, it would be the same scene.

Despite her previous words that she had nothing to do with Konoha after saving it once, Tsunade could not bear to watch Konoha be destroyed, as it was the village where she was born and raised, as her grandfather's legacy, and as the last evidence of the Senju clan's existence.

Konoha is currently leaderless. Danzo Shimura has just died suddenly, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is dead, and among the other candidates who are qualified to become Hokage, the supporters of Minato Namikaze, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya are all holding their own opinions, making it impossible to effectively unify Konoha.

Dissatisfied with the current situation in Konoha, she decided to first contact the Allied Forces to test whether they could accept Konoha's surrender, even if it came at a price, she believed it would be worthwhile.

Through previous battles and several encounters, she had also gained a deep understanding of Hozuki Shingetsu's current terrifying combat power and his status within the Alliance.

She knew that as long as she got Hozuki Shingetsu on her side, the others wouldn't be a big problem. Conversely, even if she could handle the others, if Hozuki Shingetsu wasn't satisfied, the matter would continue to drag on.

This is why she didn't approach anyone else, but instead went directly to Hozuki Shingetsu.

"I won't lie to you, given Konoha's current situation, it seems there's no other way but to admit defeat... So the purpose of my trip here is to discuss with you the conditions for Konoha's surrender."

"condition?"

Hozuki Shingetsu raised his eyelids slightly, looking at Tsunade, who was still wearing loose green sleeves.

"Lady Tsunade doesn't seem to know the rules very well... If you're going to apologize for something you did wrong, you should at least know the minimum requirements."

Hozuki Shingetsu looked at Tsunade's true form, his gaze carrying a hidden meaning.

(End of this chapter)