Naruto: With Favorabiltity System

Chapter 378: Haneda and Pain's Portraits

When Haneda activated his Kagura's Mind Eye, his mind conjured a vivid 3D model, with the positions of White Zetsu appearing as bright red dots.

"There are four White Zetsu nearby. It seems they're unaware I've locked onto them."

"What's your plan, Kakashi?" Haneda turned the question to Kakashi.

"Let's look around first. It's been a while since I've visited the Rain Country," Kakashi replied, hesitating.

Initially intending to head straight for the White Zetsu, Kakashi suddenly felt reluctant. He wasn't sure how to face his father and instinctively wanted to delay, even though he knew he'd have to confront it eventually.

"Alright."

Haneda didn't mind. He had already marked the locations of the White Zetsu in his mind.

Their every movement was under his surveillance, and capturing them was just a matter of time.

The reason Haneda suggested taking a look around first was to give Kakashi a chance to clear his mind.

The thought of reviving the dead brought complex emotions—acceptance tinged with hesitation, but ultimately a willingness to embrace it.

Moreover, Haneda himself wanted to see how the Rain Country had changed under Nagato and Konan's leadership.

The two walked along the paved roads of the Rain Country, occasionally hearing the rumble of trains in the distance.

The roads were standard concrete, treated with special materials to make them more waterproof.

Walking on mud and walking on concrete felt entirely different.

On the roads, Haneda occasionally saw travelers passing by, sometimes in groups of ten or so, sometimes in smaller clusters, and often alone.

A lone traveler on a desolate road meant one of two things: either they were exceptionally strong, or the area had excellent security.

Clearly, the Rain Country was the latter.

Most of the people Haneda saw were elderly.

Under the guise of asking for directions, Haneda and Kakashi struck up conversations with some of the older travelers, gaining a general understanding of the Rain Country's current state.

It wasn't too different from rural areas in his previous life. Elderly villagers often stayed behind to care for children, cultivate local crops like ox-leg mushrooms, or fish by the river. Occasionally, they dried the mushrooms and sold them in the city.

Most of the younger generation had left for jobs in city factories, where the pay and living conditions were better.

Compared to rural areas, city life offered fresh milk and bread daily, along with better security.

Notably, criminal organizations had no foothold in the cities. Anyone daring to commit crimes faced execution or imprisonment.

Only in remote rural areas did a few local bullies still exist.

Pain, the leader of Amegakure and the Rain Country's de facto ruler, had a zero-tolerance policy for crime. In earlier years, he had carried out several large-scale crackdowns on criminal activity.

The people of the Rain Country respected and revered Pain deeply.

This reverence was akin to the respect Haneda enjoyed in Konoha and the Fire Country—both were leaders who brought hope and development to their people.

Cough, cough…

Of course, Haneda mostly set the broad direction, while Shikaku handled the majority of the work.

In contrast, Pain—Nagato—was the real workhorse.

Continuing down the road, Haneda and Kakashi eventually entered a town.

Though the sky remained gloomy and rain continued to fall, the area bustled with life.

The closer they got to the commercial district, the denser the crowds became.

They even spotted several ninja wearing Amegakure forehead protectors patrolling the streets to maintain order.

The two of them checked the prices of basic goods, including rice and flour.

Based on the prices, the cost of living here was about 1.5 times higher than in Konoha.

This was likely because the area wasn't directly connected to the train routes between Amegakure and Konoha. Transportation of goods required a detour through Amegakure itself.

After wandering around, they stopped at a local restaurant for a meal.

To Haneda's surprise, he was recognized almost immediately, resulting in a scene similar to what he experienced in Konoha and the Fire Country.

Crowds of admirers gathered at the entrance, shouting his name with excitement.

The restaurant owner even took down a portrait of Haneda hanging on the wall and asked for an autograph.

It was only then that Haneda noticed the restaurant also had a portrait of Pain—right next to his own!

What the heck?!

No wonder he was recognized the moment he removed his hat!

Before Haneda could process what was happening, a waiter brought out a copy of My Struggle and a pen, asking for his signature as well.

Not to be outdone, the other diners pulled out books and merchandise related to Haneda, clamoring for autographs.

Kakashi glanced outside the restaurant and saw a growing crowd—at least two or three hundred people.

As the head of the Anbu, Kakashi finally remembered his responsibilities. He quickly shut the door, braced it, and turned back, saying,

"This is no different from being in the Fire Country… What do you think, Haneda?"

After signing autographs for the restaurant owner, staff, and diners, Haneda hurriedly said,

"Forget it. Let's go, Kakashi. If we don't leave now, the crowd will just keep growing!"

Having dealt with this kind of situation before, Haneda didn't waste any time. He grabbed Kakashi and used the Flying Thunder God technique to escape, returning to the outskirts of the Rain Country.

Both of them let out a sigh of relief.

"Haneda, what's going on in the Rain Country? Why is your portrait hanging next to Pain's?"

"How should I know?" Haneda instinctively snapped back but quickly thought of a plausible explanation: unification.

Nagato must have endorsed him, presenting him as an equal to facilitate future unification.

This way, when leadership transitioned from Pain to Haneda, the people wouldn't object as much.

Kakashi quickly realized this as well. The two exchanged a glance, and Kakashi said,

"Enough sightseeing. Let's take care of business. My father would be thrilled to hear about this—if even citizens of neighboring countries admire you, how much more so Konoha."

The incident left Haneda with no mood for further exploration. Kakashi's comment, however, left him thoughtful.

He couldn't help but wonder what Uncle Sakumo would say after hearing his story.

Would he support the upcoming war Haneda was about to unleash, or oppose it?

To be honest, the Fourth Ninja World War that Haneda was about to start was a mixture of personal ambition and altruistic goals.

"Let's go, Kakashi."

Haneda shook his head, clearing his thoughts and the rainwater.

Activating his Blaze Release Chakra Mode and Susanoo, he took Kakashi with him and shot into the sky as a crimson streak.

The Susanoo was necessary because the speed of Blaze Release was too great, and he didn't want Kakashi's ears to suffer from the wind.

After two and a half minutes of high-speed travel, Haneda and Kakashi descended, landing near two White Zetsu who were chatting on the ground.

One White Zetsu pointed at the crimson lightning in the sky and laughed,

"Look, red lightning! I've never seen that before!"

"Idiot! It looks like it's heading toward us!"

"Huh?"

Realizing the danger, the two White Zetsu tried to burrow underground, but Haneda was too fast.

In the blink of an eye, he landed right in front of them.

"Uchiha Haneda!!"

The White Zetsu barely had time to scream before disappearing, along with its companion.

"Impressive!" Kakashi praised Haneda's swift action with a single word.

...…

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