Naruto: I'm in Konoha, my name is Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 90 Xiao Nan's First Encounter with Hydrangeas

Orochimaru has been eyeing Kirigakure for a long time.

Since the end of the Third Shinobi World War, after Yagura Karatachi succeeded as the Fourth Mizukage, he implemented a policy of oppression against clans with bloodline limits, as well as various inexplicable policies, which made the entire village very chaotic and caused many excellent ninjas to be lost.

Several members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist have defected, including Juzo Biwa and Raiga Kurosuki.

"Do you have any intelligence?" Menma had reason to suspect that Orochimaru had spies operating in Kirigakure.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible to find Kaguya Kimimaro so accurately and capture Hozuki Suigetsu.

"Tsk tsk, I do have some information." Orochimaru snorted lightly, a subtle hint of smugness in his voice.

Even a powerful ninja like Shura, who came from the future, couldn't grasp the information about the Blood Mist Village.

"When should we go?" Menma also figured out that now was the perfect time to kidnap people from the Blood Mist Village. They couldn't let Orochimaru kidnap everyone.

Even setting aside Kimimaro, we should at least try to bring Shiro over.

"Then let's do it in three days." Orochimaru's face was full of smiles.

The Blood Mist Village is very dangerous now. Even a strong person like Orochimaru would have to run away if he were discovered after infiltrating there.

That's why he tried to get Shura involved.

After all, Shura's battle record is verifiable throughout the entire ninja world, and Konoha and Kumogakure still maintain a warrant for his arrest.

Orochimaru even had some rumors that the bombing of Kusagakure was also the work of this Asura.

"Alright, I'll be waiting for you in the Land of Waves in three days." Menma nodded and turned to leave.

The Land of Water is a country composed of many islands. Although Kirigakure has adopted a policy of isolation, the Land of Water has not closed itself off. Therefore, there are many ways to get there. The simplest way is to take a boat directly from the coastal port to the port of the Land of Water.

Then infiltrate Kirigakure Village by land or sea.

------

Rain Village was shrouded in a misty rain.

Disguised by a transformation spell, Konan, holding an oil-paper umbrella, walked through the dimly lit market, stepping through the still-damp alleyways.

The damp air was filled with the smells of mildew and decay, much like the war-ravaged country.

"Hey! Get out of here, you brat!" A man's gruff shout pierced the sound of rain, catching Xiao Nan's attention.

She looked in the direction of the sound and saw a butcher viciously driving away several ragged orphans.

Such scenes are common in the Land of Rain, or rather, orphans are common in the Land of Rain.

Sandwiched between the three great nations of the Land of Wind, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Fire, the Land of Rain has been subject to interference and influence from foreign ninjas for many years. It was one of the main battlegrounds in the three Shinobi World Wars, and it can be said that the people of the Land of Rain have become accustomed to the pain of losing loved ones.

The scene was so familiar, reminding Konan of ten years ago when she, Yahiko, and Nagato huddled together in the ruins.

Carrying a basket, she inexplicably followed the group of children. After the little devils turned into an alley, she deliberately dropped a bag of food on the ground.

Raindrops pattered on the oil paper package, making a soft, rustling sound.

But before she could get far, a clear voice called out from behind: "Big sister!"

Xiao Nan turned around in surprise.

"You dropped your things!" A purple-haired girl stood barefoot in the muddy rain, her tattered umbrella offering no protection from the torrential downpour.

The girl was shockingly thin; her ribs were clearly visible under her thin clothes, and her stomach even growled involuntarily because of the aroma of food.

But her innocent eyes reminded Xiao Nan of a former companion.

She turned around and said indifferently, "It's dirty, I don't want it anymore." Then Xiao Nan disappeared in an instant.

As it disappeared, the water droplets it left behind traced sparkling arcs in the air.

As the older sister in front of her suddenly disappeared, the little hydrangea showed a longing expression.

Clutching the bag of food, I walked towards my friends.

"Wow! I knew that guy wouldn't want it!"

"Quickly open it and see what it is! It smells so good!"

"Don't grab any! Leave some for me!"

"I want it too! I want it too!"

Xiao Nan stood on a high floor of a building not far away, watching the little girl with purple hair go back to share the food with her friends, and a warm feeling seemed to flow through her heart.

Back at the secret base, Konan began preparing meals for Nagato.

Now that Nagato's legs are both broken and he has to provide chakra nourishment for the Six Paths Demon Statue, Konan has to take care of his daily life.

"That Madara guy hasn't been back for a long time, has he?" Nagato's weak voice came from behind Konan after the meal.

"It's been almost half a month." Xiao Nan collected the food scraps.

"It seems that Shura from last time left him with quite a shadow." Nagato's weak voice was laced with sarcasm as he recalled the injured return of the guy who called himself 'Uchiha Madara' last year.

That guy who calls himself 'Uchiha Madara,' and that guy who exclaimed 'Amazing,' they're clearly not good people.

When Madara Uchiha approached the Akatsuki seeking cooperation, Yahiko refused outright, saying he didn't seem like a good person.

After Yahiko's death, Nagato chose to cooperate with them, but while he was trying to get something out of them, he was also constantly on guard against these two.

"Zetsu said that Shura is a Uchiha clansman who had been living away from home and is very strong. But he didn't provide any other information." Konan didn't know much about 'Uchiha Madara's' strength, but since he called himself 'Uchiha Madara' and had gone to Konoha to cause the Nine-Tails' attack, even Nagato was somewhat wary of his intangibility ability.

Therefore, the "Shura" who was able to injure "Uchiha Madara" naturally became the focus of Nagato and Konan's attention.

"Furthermore, because the other side has ninjas with very strong sensory abilities, Zetsu has indicated that he will no longer send White Zetsu to approach Hoshigakure," Konan added.

"Heh, I know." Nagato chuckled coldly. "That guy is urging me to take care of Shura."

Although Nagato's Six Paths of Pain was not yet fully completed, it was still quite easy to deal with some Kage-level powerhouses when combined with the Rinnegan.

However, he did not intend to follow the ideas of 'Uchiha Madara' and Zetsu and go to the Land of Bears to fight a 'Shura' who was equally strong.

"It seems they are indeed very wary of Shura's power." Konan thought this was a good thing; having a powerful external enemy would allow 'Uchiha Madara' and Zetsu to better serve the Akatsuki organization.

As Konan finished dealing with these miscellaneous tasks and continued helping Nagato create the Six Paths of Pain, a pitcher plant sprouted from the ground.

"Yo, Chief, it's Xiao Nan." The person in white greeted the two.

"Where did Ban go?" Xiao Nan asked first.

"They should have gone to Kirigakure. You know, I have to go there every month to strengthen my control over Yagura's genjutsu," Zetsu replied.

The last time they went to Kirigakure to find suitable members to join the organization, they happened to run into Yagura, who was preparing to return to the village from outside.

After defeating Yagura, Madara used genjutsu to control Yagura and the Three-Tails inside him, which gave Nagato and Konan some initial understanding of Madara's strength.

"The Hidden Mist Village?" Konan murmured.

The current tyranny in the Village of Blood Mist is the work of that guy 'Madara'. I don't know how much hatred he has for Kirigakure, but he's been plotting against Kirigakure for so many years.

(End of this chapter)