While the Naruto franchise is renowned for its lineup of cunning villains, one recurring antagonist has set a precedent with a track record of some of the most heinous crimes in the series. While his intentions were mostly to protect the Hidden Leaf, Danzo Shimura’s actions throughout the series have been quite questionable, as they have led to some of the most disturbing events in the Naruto universe. One such event, that Danzo inadvertently caused, is the creation of Pain.
The link between Danzo and the creation of Pain isn’t far-fetched, as his manipulative actions were a direct cause that led to the events that forced a drastic shift in not just the Akatsuki but Nagato’s beliefs as well. While Danzo’s intentions were simply to prolong the Third Great Shinobi War and avoid an alliance between the Hidden Rain and Hidden Stone Villages, his meddling created an even bigger mess, and not just for the Hidden Leaf but the entire shinobi world. Delving deeper into the events that Danzo interfered in reveals how his actions caused such a massive ripple effect.
The Akatsuki's Initial Plan
While many remember the Akatsuki, a group of rogue shinobi, to be a villainous organization, in reality, it started off as a group of peacekeepers who sought to reunite the Hidden Rain Village through dialogue. Led by Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan, the Akatsuki fulfilled its agenda, and was successfully able to unite a considerable portion of the Hidden Rain through peace negotiations.
Even Hanzo, the Hidden Rain's de facto leader, approved of the Akatsuki's actions and hoped that their ideals would spread throughout the shinobi world. However, not everyone was satisfied with this turn of events, as peace in this war-torn village would cause the other nations to shift their fighting elsewhere. Danzo was one such individual who felt threatened by the agenda of peace, which is why he began plotting against the Akatsuki.
Danzo reasoned that peace and neutrality in the Hidden Rain would divert the Hidden Stone's attention directly towards the Hidden Leaf Village, along with the probability that the two villages might even form an alliance against the Land of Fire. To avoid such an event from happening, Danzo took it upon himself to put an end to the Akatsuki's quickly-spreading ideology.
Danzo's Ambush
To force out the Akatsuki members and get rid of the leader, Danzo came up with an elaborate plan that would paint the Akatsuki as a power-hungry organization. The setup was simple, Danzo ordered his Anbu Blackops to use Transformation Jutsu to disguise themselves as Hidden Stone shinobi, and then attack a Hidden Rain settlement on the outskirts. Upon learning of the events that took place, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan took off for peace negotiations with the Hidden Stone.
While on their way, the trio was ambushed by Hidden Stone shinobi, forcing Yahiko and Nagato to kill a few of them before retreating. In reality, however, the shinobi were Danzo's Anbu under the guise of the Transformation Jutsu. Danzo then presented the fallen shinobi in front of Hanzo as victims of the Akatsuki's power-hungry advances against the Hidden Leaf, manipulating him into thinking their eventual plans were to take over the entire Hidden Rain by force.
Creation of Pain
Hanzo, upon being manipulated by Danzo, took it upon himself to put an end to the Akatsuki by killing the group's leader. By luring out Nagato and Yahiko under the pretext of a meeting with Hanzo, and kidnapping Konan as hostage, the stage was set for the Akatsuki to be trampled upon. Yahiko was given two options - either let Konan die or give up his own life, and being the compassionate shinobi that he was, Yahiko chose the latter.
With Yahiko's untimely death, Nagato went into a frenzy, losing control and summoning the Gedo statue. With his uncontrollable power, Nagato wiped out all of Hanzo's men except for him, and saved Konan from their clutches. Yahiko, however, could not be saved as he succumbed to his wounds, leaving behind a changed Nagato who could never go back to his ideals of peace, prompting the birth of Pain.
The events that transpired are a direct result of Danzo's interference in the Hidden Rain's internal affairs, giving way to a ripple effect that almost directly caused the creation of Pain through Yahiko's death. Although his intentions were simply to protect the Hidden Leaf, his meddling ironically created even bigger problems for the village, which was seen in the form of Pain's invasion of the Hidden Leaf, and the subsequent events that followed.