Half an hour later, in the open desert, Sasori was waiting. His puppet was motionless while seated on the sands. Behind him was his army.
Gradually, a figure was seen approaching. A Rain shinobi thought it might be an entire force. But as the figure drew nearer, the shock registered on their faces because it was only one person.
"They're not serious, are they?" one asked with incredulity.
Sasori remained still. The wind tugged at his cloak, but he didn't move. He simply watched, waiting for the challenger.
When Kaito arrived, he kept several yards away from Sasori. Then he announced, "I heard you were looking for me."
Sasori grunted, revealing a mechanical arm. "So you got my letter? Good. I wanted the satisfaction of taking you down personally, traitor."
The tone was straightforward, but the word 'traitor' was no casual insult. It was a serious charge, and Sasori's stance reflected that; he was prepared for a fight.
Kaito, however, remained calm, almost detached.
"You don't want to do this," he said.
"What?"
"There was a reason I abandoned the Akatsuki… The organization's leadership is flawed, and you don't even know who's really running it." Sasori remained silent. "There's an Uchiha in your midst that's manipulating it from the inside."
"You don't mean—"
"No, I don't mean Itachi Uchiha…"
The others behind Sasori looked at one another in confusion. They didn't understand what those two were talking about. But the truth was the mention of the organization's name was a provocation, and Kaito's tone suggested he was offering something more than just words.
"Why not join us instead?" he finished.
The group behind murmured among themselves.
"You think you're fooling anyone?" Sasori coldly spat. "Those who betray the Akatsuki will be punished with death. Done deal."
No sooner had he spoken than the ground beneath Kaito's feet shifted. Five pillars erupted from the sand around him, each one riddled with holes. They formed a perfect circle, trapping him inside. Then suddenly, the pillars shot out needles that flew.
For a moment, the watching shinobi cheered, believing their trap had worked. But then their cheers faltered as they saw something strange: the needles were passing harmlessly through Kaito, leaving behind puffs of smoke and distortions where he stood.
"I see you want to do it the hard way," Kaito said.
He then slowly stepped out of the trap's radius, unaffected by the assault, as Sasori said, "Wouldn't have it any other way."
Without hesitation, he then activated his puppet's metal tail. It shot out like a spear, but Kaito smacked the tail away before running toward Sasori. The puppet's cloak rippled as he spun, revealing spikes that protruded from the fabric.
Kaito executed a flip and slowly hovered just inches from Sasori's ear. Then he managed to whisper, "His name is Obito Uchiha…"
Sasori stopped and turned to look where Kaito was meant to be. But when he did, the enemy had vanished.
"Where did he go?!" a spectator wondered aloud.
Sasori's eyes flicked around. His puppet remained ready, but he sensed that this fight was far from over. Kaito's words about Obito Uchiha weren't just random—there was a message there, a warning or perhaps an identity.
"What should we do now, sir?" a shinobi asked.
It took a moment for Sasori to answer. He believed Kaito would perform a sneak attack or make an ambush, but it soon became clear that one wasn't coming.
"Regroup for now…"
Elsewhere on the south border.
A battle here had already begun on a mountain. The landscape was littered with the bodies of medical ninja, and the sounds were unmistakable: metal clanged against metal, and water hissed as it met flames.
Kisame slid along one edge of the mountain. In his grip was his Samehada. On the other side, Fugaku and Shisui stood strong. The former's Sharingan locked on to his opponent.
"I'm impressed," Kisame said with an evil grin. "Itachi never mentioned his best friend and father were this skilled."
Kisame's confidence was not misplaced; he not only knew who these two were, but he also heard about their powers.
Still, facing them outright was different. These two were formidable.
"Enough!" Fugaku snapped. "If I have to get through you to see my son, I won't be holding back!"
"Oh…" Kisame drawled.
Clearly he was amused by Fugaku's declaration.
"Shisui..." Fugaku commanded.
The tone left no room for disobedience. With a slow motion, Shisui removed his blindfold. This quickly made Kisame raise his Samehada in front of him just as a laser beam shot from Shisui's eyes.
Chew!
The beam clashed against the shark sword with a burst of chakra. But because it was made of chakra, the blade gradually began absorbing it.
"Ho-ho," Kisame chuckled as the last remnants of the laser dissipated. His sword then let out a faint gulp, as if swallowing something spicy. "It seems like Samehada likes your chakra a lot."
Yet this was only a distraction. Fugaku took his chance and tried to strike from behind with a sword. But in an instant, an invisible force stopped Fugaku's blade midair.
This caused Fugaku to quickly retreat. As his eyes narrowed to assess the situation, he saw the source of the interference become visible. It was a creature composed of black and white, shifting and undulating like a shadow.
"Zetsu?" Kisame asked, turning around. Zetsu's presence was disturbing, a reminder of how strange and dangerous this battlefield truly was. "So you were tailing me after all."
"Pain ordered us to come after hearing that these two were here," Black Zetsu explained.
"You sure did a number here," White Zetsu added, gesturing to the fallen bodies scattered across the mountain's summit.
Fugaku returned to Shisui's side, who was slipping his blindfold back into place. Fugaku's eyes flicked toward Zetsu, then back to Kisame.
"Have any idea who that is?" he asked.
"That's Zetsu. I believe lord Hoshikaze warned us to stay away if we ever encountered it."
"I can see why," Fugaku commented. "I barely sensed him until the last second, even with my Sharingan."
It was then that Shisui stiffened. His body tensed as if sensing something nearby. Fugaku opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, but Kisame overheard their exchange and cut in.
"Don't tell us you're more frightened of Zetsu than me," he said with a smirk.
"We're flattered," White Zetsu joked.
Fugaku then raised his weapon as if readying to depart before declaring, "Tell my son that we're not as eager to see him as he thinks we are."
Just as he said this, a voice suddenly echoed from high above, "You can tell me yourself."
All eyes looked up just as the figure landed amidst them. It was him—Itachi Uchiha—and his Sharingan was active. He is who caused Shisui to stiffen.
Shisui himself remained calm at the sight of him. "Itachi…"
"It's been a long time, my friend," Itachi said with a calm voice, carrying a weight of their unspoken past.
"Maybe to you," Shisui replied.
Itachi's eyes then turned to Fugaku. The son who killed his father have now finally met. Not a single character present here could understand what was going on in either of their heads.
Before either could say a word, Black Zetsu interrupted, "What are you doing here?"
"Didn't Pain order you not to engage with any Uchiha?" White Zetsu chuckled, enjoying the rebellious act.
Ignoring the chatter behind him, Itachi's Sharingan eyes seemingly grew brighter as he stared at the two Uchihas. Even Samehada could sense this dramatic tension.
"My son…" Fugaku finally said. "You've changed."
Itachi remained silent as he regarded his father. What more could he say? He had not just killed the head of his clan, but he almost caused said clan to go extinct.
Such memories weighed heavily on him, yet he stood unmoved, focused on the confrontation ahead.
This made Fugaku's blood boil as he roared, "I see I neglected to teach you respect!"
Then, without notice, he charged forward alongside Shisui.
The two moved in tandem, closing the distance toward their target. Fugaku's sword aimed to strike at Itachi's chest, but Itachi sidestepped the slash. His hand shot out to grab his father by the neck, but Fugaku smacked it away.
Shisui, already above his friend, used his technique: "Fire style: fire ball jutsu!"
Itachi managed to dodge as the fireball scorched the ground behind him. But when Itachi landed, there was Shisui, already in motion, and his blindfold was off.
Chew!
Itachi responded by quickly pulling out a kunai to deflect the beam. Yet the laser cut through and struck Itachi's forearm, burning a piece of his cloak off.
"Urgh," he grunted.
When he looked, there was blood gushing from his arm.
Shisui was fast. Much faster than Itachi remembered.
Fugaku wasn't going easy either. He pressed forward and swung his katana in a wide arc. But Itachi used the little fragments of his kunai to parry the attack. He then countered with a kick that left Fugaku momentarily off balance.
Leaping back before Shisui could follow through, Itachi threw one shuriken and quickly performed hand signs. The shuriken multiplied into several dozens that all launched toward Fugaku.
Using his sword, Fugaku began deflecting them with precise swings.
After putting back on his blindfold, Shisui charged again. But his attempts were stopped by a missed swing from Kisame's Samehada.
"Out of my way!" Shisui challenged.
He responded with a quick punch to Kisame's wrist, forcing him to release his sword. Yet the hilt snaked right back to Kisame's arm, forcing Shisui to fall back.
He kept his eyes on Itachi, but the latter was having a strange father-and-son bonding moment.
A clone of Itachi ran forward toward the defending Fugaku. When it neared, the real Itachi put up a hand sign.
"Water style: super explosion!"
A watery burst filled the spot. But as it cleared, a log was in its place—Fugaku had substituted. Itachi looked around for his father, only to see a katana about to slice his head off.
Itachi backflipped, just barely dodging it. In the air, he hurled another dozen or so shuriken. Only this time, he performed another technique alongside it.
"Fire style: phoenix flower jutsu!"
Fugaku slashed at the fire-covered shuriken, disarming some but taking a few hits himself. Itachi's expression remained cool with an unbroken focus after landing.
Not giving his father a chance, he launched a quick series of punches and kicks that kept Fugaku on his toes. Forced to drop his weapon, Fugaku managed to block a kick aimed at his head. He then tightened his grip and thrust a direct punch in Itachi's stomach.
"Caw-caw!"
Itachi's body had turned into a multitude of crows, revealing that this was merely a clone.
Unperturbed, Fugaku twisted and managed to block a knee aimed at his ribs from the real Itachi.
When Itachi fell back, he heard a sizzling noise coming from his knee. Looking down, he was surprised to see a paper bomb.
Ka-boom!
A blast of fire mixed with smoke covered the spot just as Itachi skidded away. His cloak was now completely marred from the impact.
"Had he not managed to remove the tag in time," Black Zetsu commented.
"The fight might have ended right there," White Zetsu finished.
Meanwhile, Shisui parried Samehada with a single kunai, then countered with a quick spin, aiming a palm strike at Kisame's chest. Kisame blocked as their blows sent bursts of chakra to fly around.
The battlefield was nothing short of intense, but all four remained calm.
Itachi's breathing was steady despite the setback. Meanwhile, Fugaku's movements were precise. Clearly the latter had not neglected his training after being revived.
"You're tiring already, my son?" Fugaku berated.
The mockery earned little to no response from Itachi.
They pressed again. This time, Itachi's strikes became more aggressive and more direct.
In the midst of their fight, Shisui stepped back a little.
"I see I've misjudged you," he said to Kisame.
His opponent was going to make a sly remark, but he instead widened his eyes upon feeling the air shift. Emerald streaks of flames quickly covered Shisui's body before a colossal skeletal avatar sprang onto the battlefield.
"Now this is getting interesting," Kisame commented, not at all shaken by the green Susanoo.
Itachi was visibly struck that his friend would go to the lengths of using the Susanoo.
"Your fight's with me!" he heard his father say.
A booming noise echoed in the area after he blocked a punch from Fugaku. Thinking Itachi would counter, Fugaku was surprised to see that his son fell back to Kisame's side instead.
Normally, Kisame would not want any help in a fight. But for Itachi to willingly come to his aid only meant that this was more serious than he thought.
Fugaku slowly began walking toward Shisui. And as he did, Kisame could see Fugaku's Sharingan swirling into shape. Itachi himself began seeing yellow chakra rising in his father's form. That could only mean one thing: Fugaku was going to activate his Susanoo as well!
"Let's put an end to this," he said, stopping by Shisui. "Itachi…!"
Before the jutsu could activate, a figure materialized between the four. It was Hoshikaze.
"Isn't this a surprise?" White Zetsu chuckled.
For one of the four lords to personally come onto the battlefield only meant how grave this, or some, matter was. Because of that, Shisui deactivated his Susanoo.
"You two," Hoshikaze coldly demanded, "fall back to the western borders…"
Fugaku seemed visibly frustrated; he didn't want to abandon this fight so soon. Not when his son deserved retribution for his actions after so long.
"My lord," he began, "give me a moment to—"
"No…"
The two Uchiha knew better than to go against Hoshiakze's order. And as much as Fugaku didn't want to leave, he reluctantly yielded.
"Itachi," he said, "don't think you've seen the last of us."
Itachi's gaze remained fixed on his enemies as the two, Fugaku and Shisui, began falling back.
"Who said we'd let you leave?" White Zetsu laughed as Kisame raised his Samehada.
"Me…" Hoshikaze said, slowly turning around.
Without another word, a massive amount of chakra surged in his fist. He then struck the ground, creating a small fissure to carve through the mountain's top.
The blow was so intense that the very ground everyone stood on began collapsing, forcing everyone to begin leaping from rubble to rubble.
This also allowed the Uchihas to flee from the battlefield without being followed.
By the time the destruction ceased, Itachi, Kisame, and Zetsu managed to regroup. They were unscathed from the sudden attack, but they each knew why Hoshikaze demanded the Uchihas go to the western borders instead.
"What now?" Kisame wondered.
"I suggest you two return back to the village," White Zetsu chirped.
"I'm sure Pain would love to know why you came here," Black Zetsu added. "Itachi…"