"Are you saying you want to declare war at the 'Kage Summit'?"
Inside the Akatsuki base, Nagato looked at Obito with a strange expression, and Orochimaru beside him also appeared utterly puzzled.
Konan's expression darkened even further; she simply felt that this Uchiha Obito had gone insane!
"Have you thought about the consequences? Do you know what will happen to us if you do this?!"
"Don't panic. Can you at least listen until I'm done?"
Uchiha Obito looked exceptionally calm. He had already resolved that he could not let the Eye of the Moon Plan fail, and he would certainly think this through carefully.
Besides, after being beaten up by Kitagawa Gen so many times, he also understood that he had to be fully prepared.
"Our goal is to bring peace to the shinobi world, but right now, what is the greatest problem facing it?"
"Ōtsutsuki Genshiki."
Nagato frowned as he spoke, and Orochimaru immediately guessed what was coming.
"You want to use the election to mobilize the entire shinobi world's power to deal with Ōtsutsuki Genshiki?"
"That's right."
Obito nodded and spoke in a low voice.
"And to draw him out, we also need bait, so…"
"The Ten-Tails."
Orochimaru licked his lips and let out a hoarse laugh.
"You intend to use the Ten-Tails to lure out Ōtsutsuki Genshiki, correct?"
"Exactly—the Ten-Tails."
Obito nodded again; there was nothing to hide.
"The One-Tail has already been absorbed, and we already have plans for the Three-Tails. As long as we release the Ten-Tails, it will inevitably attract Ōtsutsuki Genshiki."
"Indeed. Every time something involves a Tailed Beast, he shows up."
Orochimaru had already guessed Obito's idea almost perfectly, but he still couldn't help asking with curiosity.
"You want to rely on the Ten-Tails to lure him out and then use the forces originally gathered to strike him? But isn't that extremely risky? Do Uchiha Madara and the others know about this?"
"They don't. They seem to want to stall."
At this point, Obito felt a hint of disdain. He didn't know what those two were thinking, but he had his guesses.
Those two probably don't want to risk using the Ten-Tails, since this could very well end with losing everything on both fronts.
"They're probably waiting for the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki to emerge and then figuring out a way to mobilize the entire shinobi world."
"That's very safe."
Konan frowned, but Nagato had already understood Obito's implication.
"But by then, would Ōtsutsuki Genshiki even show up?"
"I don't know either."
Obito shook his head and spoke calmly.
"But Ōtsutsuki Genshiki isn't stupid. How could he possibly wait for you to finish gathering your forces and then show up just to be surrounded?"
"But if we keep dragging things out, won't the shinobi world remain peaceful?"
Konan still felt this plan was too risky, but Nagato clenched his fist.
"But that won't change anything. The Sage of Six Paths has already told us that to achieve true peace, we must resolve him!"
Seeing Nagato like this, Obito knew he had come to the right person.
Uchiha Madara and the others were probably hoping to look for some "relic left by the Sage of Six Paths' younger brother" to find a method to deal with the Ōtsutsuki.
Then they would gather the shinobi world's power and attack Ōtsutsuki Genshiki together.
That approach was very stable—yet Obito did not want to wait, nor did he want to see the Eye of the Moon Plan ruined.
"Exactly. So I want to proceed in our own way."
Obito nodded and spoke in a low voice.
"Admittedly, it's risky. But don't forget my Kamui. Once Ōtsutsuki Genshiki appears, neither Kitagawa Gen nor the shinobi of the entire world will stay idle."
"So at that point, it would buy us time, giving us a chance to complete the Ten-Tails' sealing?"
Nagato followed Obito's line of thinking, while Orochimaru began to laugh.
"If at that moment someone from a shinobi village—or even someone disguised as one of them—attacks Ōtsutsuki Genshiki, then…"
"Then we can incite them to attack each other, giving us even more opportunities."
Obito continued with understanding, looking seriously at Orochimaru and Nagato.
"So—shall we give it a try?"
"I'm in."
Nagato answered at once. His conviction was the strongest, and he also longed to confront Ōtsutsuki Genshiki directly.
He was the Sage of Six Paths' representative in the human world—he must walk the Sage's path once more.
"It does sound somewhat interesting. It's worth considering."
Orochimaru understood that Obito had come to him for Impure World Reincarnation, and that this matter was being done behind Uchiha Madara and Black Zetsu's backs.
But after thinking it over, he felt there was no reason to refuse.
If a fight broke out, it would benefit Kimimaro!
And besides, he also wanted to see what Ōtsutsuki Genshiki would be like when faced with the entire shinobi world.
"Good."
Obito finally let out a breath of relief. Convincing them was greatly to his advantage.
"Then when the 'Kage Summit' begins, I'll go there myself to declare war."
"I'll go with you."
Nagato thought briefly, then spoke directly. This immediately made Konan worried.
But Nagato shook his head, and in the end Konan could only sigh and remain silent.
"Also, have Kimimaro go as well. He's not ordinary anymore…"
Orochimaru added, but halfway through his words he suddenly sensed something.
His expression immediately turned strange. He began forming hand seals, and in the next moment, a coffin appeared before them.
Then the coffin was smashed apart with a single punch, and Sasori's face—twisted with extreme fury—showed itself before them.
"Chiyo! You depraved old hag!"
"Konohagakure! White Fang! All of you should die!"
"…"
...
"So in the end, Sasori was taken away by a Summoning Technique?"
"That's right. We're sorry we failed to complete the mission."
Konohagakure, inside the Hokage Building.
Hatake Sakumo was giving the mission report. This should have been Kakashi's duty, but in the end he voluntarily took it upon himself.
Besides, the mission hadn't gone smoothly. It was only fitting for a dead man like him to shoulder the responsibility.
However, the Third Hokage didn't show much of a reaction while listening. After all, Kitagawa Gen hadn't taken part in this mission.
The target was another Impure World Reincarnation, one that had even begun moving earlier than they had. Failing to stop it wasn't a big deal.
"How's that Chiyo?"
Kitagawa Gen, on the other hand, spoke with interest from the side.
"And Sasori—how did he react when he saw you?"
"…"
The Third, Kakashi, and the others were all speechless.
Why was this guy's sense of humor so twisted?
Sasuke and Naruto both swallowed hard. They knew Kitagawa Gen held grudges, but this level of holding a grudge was a bit much.
"Chiyo attacked us the moment she saw us."
Speaking of this, Hatake Sakumo felt somewhat embarrassed.
Especially when recalling what the fight with Sasori looked like—those hysterical screams, those crazed curses—
He couldn't help shaking his head.
"And that Sasori—he just cursed the entire time, didn't he?"
"Who was he cursing?"
"…Everyone."
"What a petty guy. He's already dead, and he still hasn't let go of past grudges?"
"…"
"And that Chiyo too. She actually dared to attack our people—has she completely forgotten her place?"
"…"
Hatake Sakumo now finally understood why, whenever his son talked about Kitagawa Gen…
Aside from mentioning how exceptionally good he was in certain respects, he always couldn't help adding, "but sometimes his personality is rather vicious."
He truly felt that since he died, Konohagakure's educational standards had taken a severe downturn.
But he couldn't say much. As long as Kitagawa Gen treated his own people well, that was enough.
"Lord Fifth, aside from Sasori escaping, the Tailed Beast of the Fifth Kazekage has also been extracted."
"Extracted?"
The Third Hokage couldn't help letting out a sigh. Naruto even muttered a quiet curse.
"Those damned bastards—they're absolutely vile…"
In this world, Naruto and Gaara didn't share as deep a bond.
After all, Naruto's life hadn't been that bad.
At most, he envied Gaara for becoming Kazekage, but they were both jinchūriki.
Seeing Gaara's Tailed Beast torn out from his body gave him a heavy, unsettled feeling.
"However, Sunagakure seems to have some sort of very special technique."
Hatake Sakumo's voice suddenly lowered. He spoke softly.
"Maybe Chiyo was scolded too harshly by Sasori. After that bastard was taken away, she made a decision—to revive the Fifth Kazekage."
"Oh?"
Hiruzen was slightly taken aback. The extraction of the One-Tail was supposed to guarantee Gaara's death.
But what Hatake Sakumo said… was resurrection.
"Sunagakure has mastered a technique like that?"
"Perhaps it's Chiyo. She's anything but simple."
Kitagawa Gen naturally understood what they were talking about. He smiled and said, "Is it something that interesting? It seems we'll need to properly look into Sunagakure as well."
"Indeed."
Hiruzen secretly nodded, then spoke seriously.
"Do not spread this matter. This will be our most important secret. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Kakashi, Sasuke, and Naruto instantly straightened their expressions, and Hatake Sakumo also nodded.
His professionalism was never in question.
...
"I truly didn't expect something like this."
After Kakashi and the others left, Hiruzen pulled back Kitagawa Gen—who had also been about to leave—and spoke with a hint of emotion.
"However, we need to think carefully about this. Even if we obtain it, we cannot just…"
"I know."
Kitagawa Gen nodded. Some taboos simply cannot be opened lightly.
"Good."
Hiruzen smiled. When Kitagawa Gen was serious, he was utterly reliable.
"Enough about that. The 'Kage Summit' will begin soon. Who are you planning to bring as your Shadow Guard?"
Time always passed quickly. Before they knew it, there was less than half a month left before the opening of the Kage Summit.
The venue had already been decided, and as for preparations, the daimyō of the Land of Fire had obediently opened his purse.
Otherwise, Tobirama might go have a little chat with him.
As Konohagakure's 'Kage Representative' this time—and especially with it being home territory—Kitagawa Gen naturally had to handle things with proper formality.
"The Shadow Guard…"
Kitagawa Gen thought for a moment, then simply said, "Sasuke and Naruto will do. The two of them can handle plenty on their own."
"Not bad. But let me give you a suggestion."
Hiruzen wasn't surprised and then spoke with a smile.
"Bring the Ino–Shika–Chō as well. They might not help much in battle, but in other areas they can do quite a lot."
"Ino and the others? Sure."
Kitagawa Gen laughed. After thinking further, he continued, "And have Teacher Kakashi bring his former teammate, Nohara Rin. That'll help her adapt better to the present."
The Third probably had the three clans behind them in mind, but Kitagawa Gen didn't need to think that far.
As for Nohara Rin, that was simply to let her relax.
And to see whether she might happen to run into Obito…
"Are you still playing ninja games here? If you really wanted to resurrect someone, isn't there nothing you can't do?"
But while he was preparing matters for the Kage Summit, Kaguya inside him sounded displeased.
"And you said more Ōtsutsuki had arrived. Why haven't they shown themselves yet? And why aren't you making any preparations?"
"They may not have appeared because of my previous battles with Isshiki and Urashiki."
After leaving the Hokage's office, Kitagawa Gen finally spoke unhurriedly.
"Besides, how do you know I haven't made preparations?"
"Then what exactly are you planning to do?"
Kaguya frowned and spoke coldly.
"This isn't just one person coming. Both Isshiki and Urashiki's Kāma are present."
"Don't worry. I have my arrangements."
Kitagawa Gen shook his head. He already knew the ones coming this time were Momoshiki and Kinshiki.
And he basically understood the situation of those two.
'Besides, I can 'see' their every move. There won't be a problem.'
Kitagawa Gen smiled, and there even seemed to be a faint trace of anticipation in his eyes.
"Speaking of which, I really do hope those two show up. After all—"
"That's the only way to better verify my 'Ascending God Staircase'!"
"?"
...
"Tch, you really don't know anything."
Casually tossing aside the corpse of a ninja in his hand, Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki flicked his fingers with some disgust.
As if, to him, touching such an inferior species was an insult.
Ōtsutsuki Kinshiki stood silently to the side, also analyzing the information in his mind.
"My lord, there is no information on Lord Isshiki or Kaguya, and there is none on that mysterious Ōtsutsuki either. However, there are some stories about the Sage of Six Paths."
"Just a boring fellow."
Momoshiki let out a light snort, not taking it to heart at all.
After all, they had destroyed who knows how many planets and killed who knows how many creatures who claimed to be gods or sages.
In the end, they were merely low–class beings who could at best wield the power of nature.
"The only interesting part is that the Ten-Tails has been split apart, and this world also has chakra."
"Indeed. I truly didn't expect these lower beings to be capable of using chakra."
Kinshiki nodded. After thinking for a moment, he continued, "My lord, those Tailed Beasts are in the hands of this world's 'shinobi villages,' and to obtain more information, we may need to go through those villages."
"True."
Momoshiki nodded and only spoke after thinking for a moment.
"It seems the leaders of those shinobi villages are called 'Kage,' and they are about to hold some sort of conference."
"My lord, you mean…"
Kinshiki seemed to understand Momoshiki's idea, but he still asked dutifully.
"Rather than going to those shinobi villages to look for them—"
Momoshiki spoke directly with a smile, his gaze turning toward the distance.
"Why not simply go to that conference and capture their leaders? That would save us quite a bit of trouble."
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---