Chapter 335: A Heavy History, the Five-Nation Summit Convenes!
Atop a 600-meter-high wall—
As the originally carved murals of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails crumbled away, what lay behind them was enough to send chills down one's spine.
"What the hell… this is insane."
Uchiha Ci couldn't help but feel a jolt in his heart as he gazed at the headless Buddha statues wailing on their knees, and the murals that, at just a glance, brimmed with overwhelming information.
The history of the Shinobi World, especially before the Warring States Era, was practically a blank slate.
This was something Uchiha Ci had verified himself a year ago, digging through both the Konoha Library and his clan's private archives.
Of course, the great clans definitely held on to some forbidden knowledge passed down orally through generations. But as time passed, just like the 'Izanami' technique that only Uchiha Itachi would come to understand in the future, such inherited truths often became distorted as people's mindsets shifted, warping the stories—turning history itself into a twisted narrative.
Even the origins of jutsu became muddled. There were even tales of the Uchiha progenitor who created 'Izanami' wearing a Konoha forehead protector—utterly absurd.
Izanami and Izanagi clearly belonged to the same era. If these techniques were supposedly invented after Konoha's founding, then what the hell was Madara—who'd defected from the village early on—doing using them as forbidden jutsu?
In short,
There had always been a hidden force manipulating the threads of history—burying, altering, and obscuring it.
That force was none other than—
Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's son, Black Zetsu, who had lurked in the shadows of the Shinobi World for a millennium, secretly shaping its destiny.
Without a doubt, through belief in the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails—or perhaps for some other reason—these murals were reconstructed to conceal a terrifying truth, slipping past Black Zetsu's surveillance.
Allowing this piece of information to survive into the present—
And very likely, this was the only remaining artifact that offered even a glimpse into the world that existed before the age of shinobi!
At this moment—
RUMBLE!
Before Uchiha Ci could begin unraveling the hidden meaning behind the murals,
A loud mechanical sound suddenly echoed throughout the vast, empty underground chamber!
Beside him, a massive door slowly opened.
Unlike the room Naruto and Killer Bee once visited in the original story—filled with white light and dreamlike serenity that reached into the depths of the soul—
Behind this door—
There was only darkness.
It was pitch-black, as if countless tormented souls wandered endlessly before the threshold, casting a heavy, ominous aura that chilled the spine.
And yet—
Thanks to his mutated Sharingan, Uchiha Ci was able to pierce through the black fog and faintly see what lay beyond:
A solitary altar.
And upon the altar sat a single jade pendant.
Coincidentally—
Uchiha Ci had seen this pendant before.
It was the very magatama jade pendant worn around the neck of the Son of Heaven of the Land of Ancestors, countless years ago.
That same pendant, now sealed within the Infinite Tsukuyomi—
A relic of a bygone era, the last person hung upon the Divine Tree, marking the end of an entire age.
Elsewhere—
The Land of Lightning, City of Yunming.
As the days passed one after another—
Five days had gone by since Uchiha Ci's assassination declaration.
The city of Yunming was slowly regaining order after the chaos and riots.
At its center, the towering Tenshukaku—rebuilt through the power of ninja—was nearing completion.
Accompanied by a procession of newly appointed officials, a figure ascended the newly erected high walls and addressed the gathered citizens of the city, issuing proclamations throughout the Land of Lightning:
"Tomorrow, our nation will convene a Five-Nation Summit at the Tenshukaku, and we invite the envoys of all five nations to attend!"
"Uchiha Ci—the traitor who recently caused an uproar in Yunming City and attempted to assassinate our Daimyō—has officially been declared a Konoha S-Class rogue ninja, and will be wanted throughout the Five Great Nations, all minor nations, and the entire Shinobi World!"
"His accomplices include Kakuzu, Mangetsu Hōzuki, Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, Hidan, Sasori of the Red Sand, and this unidentified individual in the portrait!"
"Any who discover the whereabouts of this terrorist group of nine may report them to the Daimyō residences of the respective nations—rewards will be granted!"
What followed—
Was the recitation of the bounties, one after another, drawing shocked gasps from the crowd below.
"S-Class Rogue Ninja from Konoha, of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Ci—bounty: 1 billion ryō!"
"S-Class Rogue Ninja from the Village Hidden by a Waterfall, Kakuzu—terminated all dealings with bounty stations, reward: 80 million ryō!"
Beneath the city walls—
Hooded and cloaked, Oyashiro En chuckled softly upon hearing the bounties. He shot a sidelong glance at Kakuzu.
After giving him a careful once-over, he finally asked curiously,
"Kakuzu-san, I heard you used to be a bounty hunter ninja who made his living killing targets for money."
"And now, even the underground bounty network won't deal with you."
"Also… wasn't that kid one of your former targets?"
"Honestly—"
"I've always had trouble understanding why you made that choice six days ago."
Oyashiro En squinted as he stared at Kakuzu, eyes full of scrutiny.
"And," he continued,
"Why are you still here, even though Uchiha Ci is no longer around?"
Five days ago—
After being persuaded by Mei Terumi and Yahiko, the group that had originally come for Uchiha Ci ended up joining the Akatsuki.
And since the Akatsuki operated in pairs—
Oyashiro En had chosen Kakuzu as his partner. His seemingly casual question now was the very reason he had selected this pairing.
Whether the newly founded organization was worth anything didn't really matter to him. For Oyashiro En, the powerful Uchiha Ci, who had vowed to assassinate the Daimyō, was the best partner he could ask for right now.
He would not allow Uchiha Ci to be sold out for some clichéd reason before he could open the path to that assassination.
So after getting a basic grasp of the current state of the Shinobi World and the strange members of this organization, he had taken it upon himself to keep an eye on the most unreliable-looking person in the group—
Kakuzu.
At this moment—
Standing beside Oyashiro En,
Draped in a black cloak and wearing a half-mask, Kakuzu glanced at him with glowing green eyes. His expression remained blank, seemingly unbothered by the probing tone.
He simply looked straight ahead and said flatly:
"You're right. I was a bounty hunter ninja."
"And money is like a river—block it on one end, and it flows to another."
"So,"
"Of course, I've found a better employer."
"Oh?" Oyashiro En's eyes narrowed.
He listened to the blunt statement.
His gaze toward Kakuzu instantly grew colder, a dangerous red gleam flashing at the corner of his eye—
But just then—
Kakuzu glanced at him with an impatient look.
"Save your killing intent," he said. "I don't have the patience you think I do."
He then slightly raised his hand and pointed at the towering inner walls of the city with a snort:
"And another thing, idiot—"
"Don't tell me you actually bought into that orange-haired brat's naive idea of trying to sneak into that place at the last minute?"
Oyashiro En froze.
Under Kakuzu's gaze—which looked at him as if he were an idiot—it felt like his entire plan had been read clean, leaving him momentarily unsure who between them actually possessed the Blood Dragon Eye.
Their mission, assigned by Yahiko, was indeed to scout this section of the wall and assess possible infiltration routes into the Tenshukaku from this direction.
For Oyashiro En, that wasn't a difficult task—he could simply use his eye technique to hypnotize and interrogate a few ninja.
However—
Kakuzu clearly had his own approach. Without even glancing back, he started walking in the opposite direction—toward Yunming City's densely packed residential district.
He left Oyashiro En with a cold look, as if speaking to a fool:
"If you really want to help that brat, if you want to achieve your goal—"
"Then follow me!"
"Your reckless ideas will only expose yourself and drop us straight into a trap that the Hidden Cloud has already prepared."
"Now, come with me to meet our employer—"
"The Uchiha Clan!"