Chapter 10

"Finally encountering such a spiritually sensitive creature, how can I let it get away?" Ye Wujì thought to himself. In his previous life, although Ye Wujì had wanted to keep a pet, a dog or a cat, to keep him company, he never succeeded. First, the orphanage did not allow keeping such animals, fearing infectious diseases and the potential harm to the orphans. Additionally, when Ye Wujì was very young, he would often collect scraps and did not have the time to take care of a pet.

"This time, I absolutely cannot let it go." Ye Wujì thought to himself. After a quick look, he knew which direction the puppy had gone.

Learning from his previous experience of getting lost, Ye Wujì chased the puppy while marking the path at intervals. After about ten minutes, Ye Wujì saw the puppy's shadow.

At this moment, the puppy was running in one direction without turning, running straight ahead. Even with its freshly bandaged wound starting to bleed again, it did not stop.

"Strange, despite the pain, where is it going?" Ye Wujì watched the puppy run wildly and became curious. He thought that since he had marked the path, he might as well see what the puppy was up to.

Following the puppy for nearly three hours, the puppy's speed had slowed down. Being small and injured, it couldn't run fast. Despite this, the puppy continued to move forward. By the end, Ye Wujì was gritting his teeth, determined to see how long the puppy could run. Eventually, Ye Wujì had to rest before continuing the chase.

Seeing the puppy about to disappear from sight, Ye Wujì slowly stood up from the tree, ready to follow again. Just as he was about to move, a "ding ding dang dang" sound came intermittently. Hearing this sound, Ye Wujì quickly hid again. This sound was very familiar to him; it was the sound of weapons clashing. A while ago, when Ye Wujì was with Waterfall, they had practiced with real weapons for two days.

A pleasant female voice then called out, "Xiaohua!" This was followed by two "be careful" warnings, then a "pu" sound, which sounded like something piercing flesh, and then an "ouch" from the girl, indicating she had been hit by something.

After a moment of silence, the "ding ding dang dang" sound resumed. Ye Wujì thought for a moment and then slowly moved towards the source of the sound.

Along the way, Ye Wujì saw many ninja in ninja clothing lying on the ground. From the bloodstains around them, they had been dead for some time. The headbands with the four curved lines indicated they were from the Hidden Mist Village. All the bodies on the ground were Mist ninjas.

Ye Wujì did not touch the bodies, although he was tempted to search them. If he was lucky, he might find some Mist ninja techniques. However, the sound of battle continued, and it was unclear who was winning. If the Mist ninjas won, they would not leave the bodies behind. If Ye Wujì disturbed the bodies, the Mist ninjas would notice. In the Naruto world, all countries had the habit of recovering ninja bodies to prevent others from studying their techniques, training methods, communication codes, and even bloodline limits.

After walking a bit further, Ye Wujì could vaguely see several figures ahead.

Seeing the figures, Ye Wujì became even more cautious. This was not a practice session with Waterfall; one mistake could cost him his life.

Initially, after seeing the bodies of the Mist ninjas, Ye Wujì wanted to retreat, but he was genuinely curious about what had happened to cause their deaths.

So, Ye Wujì decided to move forward and take a look. As long as he was careful, he should not be discovered. If the situation became too dangerous, he would leave immediately.

Ye Wujì carefully hid himself in a tree. In front of him was a battlefield, with trees lying on the ground and some still burning, likely the result of fire jutsu. "I didn't expect Mist ninjas to use fire jutsu," Ye Wujì thought to himself.

Then, Ye Wujì focused on the two people fighting. It was an adult and a child about the same age as Waterfall. When Ye Wujì saw the child's face clearly, his mind went "boom" as if struck by lightning.

Ye Wujì's eyes were fixed on the boy's eyes, which had concentric circles like spirals. "Rinnegan!" Ye Wujì exclaimed in his mind, the strongest dōjutsu in the Naruto world, something he had only imagined.

The distinctive eyes and the fiery red hair left no doubt. It was Nagato, one of the founders of Akatsuki, the Six Paths of Pain, and a user of all elemental chakra.

Ye Wujì looked to the side and saw a yellow-haired boy protecting a light purple-haired girl. The girl was mostly covered in blood; it was Konan. She was sitting on the ground, holding the puppy Ye Wujì had seen earlier. Indeed, it was these three: Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.

These three would later form the Akatsuki, initially a mercenary group to achieve peace in the ninja world and end wars. Unfortunately, they were later manipulated by Madara. Perhaps Madara had influenced them from the beginning, starting when he gave Nagato the Rinnegan.

At this moment, Konan seemed severely injured and could only sit there. Yahiko, from his wobbly state, was also near death. As for Nagato, who was fighting, he was being suppressed by the Mist ninja, and the situation was dire. The Mist ninja seemed to have some reservations, only engaging in a drawn-out battle, restraining Nagato. Several times, Ye Wujì saw opportunities to kill or severely injure Nagato, but the Mist ninja let them pass. Ye Wujì could not understand why.

At this moment, the Mist ninja feinted and retreated to his side, and Nagato also retreated to Konan and Yahiko.

"Mr. Wada, are you alright?" one of the other ninjas asked as the Mist ninja retreated.

"I'm fine," the Mist ninja said, keeping his eyes on Nagato. He then asked, "How are Kusabe and Jōhon?"

"Mr. Jōhon is beyond saving, and Mr. Kusabe's life is barely hanging on. He needs immediate treatment. If we delay, it might be too late," the ninja said, though he did not finish the sentence, Wada understood the implications.

"Who would have thought that a simple mission to hunt down a rogue ninja would lead us to the legendary Rinnegan. This luck, tch," Wada said, stopping there.

"What, Mr. Wada, that's the legendary Rinnegan? Such eyes really exist?" The other ninjas exclaimed in surprise upon hearing about the Rinnegan.

"Yes, sir, I'm not doubting you, but those are the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths. Is it really possible for someone to have such eyes in reality?" one ninja asked.

Wada glared at him and said, "The eyes look exactly like the ones in the records. Besides, if it weren't for those eyes, do you think a child, with the strength of at most an elite chunin, could have reduced our three teams to this state? Damn, those are truly legendary eyes. Our three jōnin-led teams almost all died here. If they hadn't been protecting the puppy, giving us a chance, we would all be dead now."

"What do you think, sir? If we leave now, they don't seem to be able to stop us," a subordinate suggested.

"Sir, I think we should eliminate them. This is the Rinnegan. If we can bring it back to the village, it will be a great achievement. Besides, they are almost finished. Only the Rinnegan kid is left. Even if the Rinnegan is powerful, he doesn't seem to be able to use it anymore. This is our chance, sir," another subordinate said.

"Damn, do you think I can't see that he's almost done? But from the beginning, he was almost done, yet he still took down Kusabe and Jōhon. Are you asking me to take that risk? And don't forget, if I fail, you're finished too. What will happen if we don't complete our mission and return to the village? You know the consequences," Wada scolded.

"Exactly, are you asking our captain to risk his life, like Captain Jōhon?" another ninja chimed in.

"But sir, you said we still have a mission. Look at the situation now; can we complete it? What punishment will we face in the Hidden Mist Village for failing? If we can bring back the Rinnegan, it will at least be a way to make up for it. Or do you want to become a rogue ninja? Your family is still in the village," the first ninja said.

"You have a point," Wada said, considering the words.