Pain★

The rain fell silently over the village, as if the sky carried the same sadness that existed in Pain's heart. The streets were empty, illuminated only by the faint lights reflected in the puddles. He walked slowly, the black cloak of the Akatsuki billowing in the cold wind.

It had been years since I last saw her.

Deep down, Pain believed he would never see her again. After so many wars, losses, and wrong choices, he had learned to live only with pain. After all, that's what he claimed to understand better than anyone else.

But that night, everything changed.

As he crossed a small wooden bridge, he saw a figure standing on the other side. Her hair swayed in the light rain, and those eyes… those eyes were impossible to forget.

For a moment, the world seemed to stop.

— Nagato… — she whispered, using the name that almost no one else dared to call.

Pain stood motionless. It had been a long time since someone had looked at him that way, without fear, without hatred.

She approached slowly, as if she were afraid he would disappear.

I thought he was dead.

He looked away.

Perhaps a part of me is.

The silence between them was heavy, yet comforting. She reminded him of who he was before the pain consumed everything. Before the Akatsuki. Before he became "Pain".

"Are you still carrying all this sadness alone?" she asked.

Pain closed his eyes for a few seconds.

Some pains never go away.

She then held his hand, which was cold from the rain.

But that doesn't mean you have to face them alone.

For the first time in many years, Nagato felt something other than pain. Something calm. Almost forgotten.

Hope.

(Continue reading the rest and have fun, kisses★l)