I, who just wanted to be lazy, was forced to become the Hokage.

Chapter 527 Catching a Big Fish!

The original three leaders of the Akatsuki organization were watching the battle.

They had been observing the battle ever since the Rain Shadow Force appeared.

They were watching Jiraiya fight Hanzo the Salamander.

Jiraiya was taken down at this moment, and Nara Rinka personally took to the field, while Nagato and the other two were still watching the battle.

There was really no other way.

In the Land of Rain, the Akatsuki organization could barely be considered "strong in soldiers," but they certainly wouldn't qualify as "valiant in generals."

The strength of the Akatsuki's lower-ranking members might be comparable to that of the Amegakure ninja forces.

However, the distance between Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan and Hanzo of the Salamander in Amegakure is far too great.

Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan are at the level of Jonin, perhaps barely reaching the level of Elite Jonin.

But what about Hanzo the salamander?

That's a veteran Kage-level ninja who's been famous in the ninja world since World War II!

When Hanzo the Salamander entered the fray, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan could only watch from the sidelines.

If the original Big Three choose to take the field themselves.

To defeat Hanzo the Salamander, either Yahiko or Konan must die first, or both of them must die.

Yahiko and Konan are dead, Nagato is about to explode.

And then...

Hanzo the Salamander would definitely not—and dare not—directly confront the power of the Rinnegan in its unleashed form!

However, with Nara Rinka and Jiraiya both on the field, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan can only watch.

After all, Nagato, that "tycoon," had already paid for the "ticket"...

When Nagato and his two companions saw Nara Rinkachi, they easily intimidated Hanzo the Salamander with just a few words.

The two then had a disagreement, and within just two or three rounds, Hanzo the Salamander immediately showed signs of defeat.

This discovery shocked Nagato and the other two, who were all deeply impressed by the strength of the Fourth Hokage of Konoha!

In Nara Rinkazu's hands, the infamous Hanzo of the Salamander was practically as bad as a Jonin...

However, when the salamander crawled out of the ground and spewed poisonous mist at Nara Rinka, Nagato and the other two were still worried for the Fourth Hokage.

The land of rain is famous for the terrifying poisonous gas of the salamander.

The giant toad Gamabunta was sent back to Mt. Myoboku in one go by the salamander.

Jiraiya also fell victim to Hanzo's poison gas attack.

This made Nagato and his companions tense.

This tension also made the three of them overlook the movement coming from beneath their feet.

Almost at the same time that the salamander emerged from the ground, drawing the attention of almost everyone present.

A pair of strange hands, one black and one white, suddenly emerged from under the feet of the first three leaders of Akatsuki and grabbed Nagato's feet tightly.

"Um?!"

With her ankle being tightly gripped, Nagato, as the person involved, immediately noticed the sudden change and involuntarily exclaimed in surprise.

What shocked Nagato even more was the strange color of the hands that were gripping his feet!

One black, one white.

Is this the normal body color a person should have?

Or is the ninja at my feet wearing gloves of a special color?

This sudden change affected everyone around Nagato.

Although Yahiko and Konan were concerned about the battlefield, they reacted immediately upon hearing Nagato's exclamation.

But there are people who react faster than Yahiko and Konan!

Nagato felt an extremely powerful gripping force coming from his feet, as if it were pulling him to the ground.

Just then, Nara Rinka, who had been standing to the side, made his move!

The one intercepting and fighting Hanzo over there was merely Nara Rinka's Shadow Clone.

Nara Rinka himself has always been hiding within the Akatsuki organization!

Almost the instant those strangely colored hands emerged from the depths of the earth, Nara Rinkei discovered their presence.

He probably became aware of the other party's presence even before Nagato, the person directly involved.

Not to mention Yahiko and Konan, who only realized what was happening after hearing Nagato's commotion!

Just then, Nagato was about to be pulled down by the hands that emerged from the ground.

Nara Rinka did not hesitate to launch his covert attack—

Shadow Blade!

Even before the battle broke out, Nara Rinka had patted Nagato on the shoulder.

At that time, he secretly planted the mark of [Flying Thunder God: Shadow Blade] on Nagato's body.

That's the good thing about the Flying Thunder God Technique: it's not only easy to activate and powerful, but also easy to release the mark.

With a simple shake, it can be printed.

Nara Rinkazu planted the [Shadow Blade] mark on Nagato because he felt that the Amegakure force had arrived at a very inopportune time.

He has never been fond of "coincidences".

There are just too many old silver coins in the ninja world, in particular.

Black Zetsu, Madara Uchiha, Obito Uchiha... these are all old-timers from the same lineage!

There were just too many old silver coins surrounding Nagato—or more accurately, Nagato's Rinnegan.

Nara cannot afford to be careless in his pursuit of the laurel.

The sudden appearance of the Rain Village troops, regardless of whether it was Black Zetsu's doing or not, has certainly put Nara Rinka on high alert.

He marked Nagato with the [Shadow Blade] for this very reason.

Before obtaining Nagato's Rinnegan, Nara Rinkei felt he could accept any amount of arrangements made against him.

But what if they took Nagato's Rinnegan...

Then Nara Rinka doesn't need to worry about the other party's problems.

And then again...

Didn't his prior arrangements work perfectly?!

Nara Rinka's figure transcended time and space, arriving directly beside Nagato.

His palm pressed down on Nagato's shoulder, and the nimble, clawing shadow transformed into lifelike, jet-black chains that went straight towards the hands that were emerging from the earth below.

[Shadow Binding Technique]!

At the last possible moment, Nara Rinka's Shadow Binding Technique approached those distinctly colored palms.

The instant the shadow chains touched those hands, the power of the cursed seal hidden within them erupted, spreading along those hands into the depths of the earth.

Nagato, who was completely caught off guard, belatedly realized that the dragging force from the ground had vanished into thin air.

Then, Nagato noticed Nara Ranka, who had mysteriously appeared beside him.

"Thank you so much..."

Nagato's words of gratitude had barely left her lips when...

Nara Rinka paid no heed. He suddenly yanked the shadow chain, pulling the mastermind hidden deep in the earth out of the ground and into the rain.

Within its eerie, pitcher plant-like shell lies a body with distinct black and white features.

If it's not Jue, then who is it?

Moreover, it is the complete form of both Black Zetsu and White Zetsu!

Second update.

The third update will probably be around 1 AM...

(End of this chapter)