At the outskirts of the Hidden Cloud Village, just beyond the border barrier
Two flashes of cold steel cut through the night. Poisoned senbon needles pierced the hearts of two Cloud shinobi on guard. They collapsed silently before they could even raise the alarm.
A bird descended from the sky.
Sasori leapt off its back and examined the barrier's jutsu. After a moment, he gave a slight nod.
"This is the place. Once it's cleared, we'll march straight in. By the time the Cloud realizes they've been infiltrated, we'll be deep within their core."
"Signal the others. It's time to move."
Deidara grumbled impatiently. "This is such a hassle. If it were up to me, I'd just ride in on my clay bird and blast the front gates wide open. Now that would make a statement."
Sasori calmly replied, "Don't give the enemy time to strategize."
It was still one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, after all. Sasori wasn't about to underestimate them.
Deidara clicked his tongue in annoyance but begrudgingly followed instructions and sent the signal.
From the darkness, cloaked figures emerged black robes adorned with red clouds.
At the front stood the Deva Path of Pain, with Konan beside him.
Trailing a few steps behind was the Immortal Duo.
Pain's Rinnegan reflected the distant lights of the Hidden Cloud Village. His voice was cold and resolute.
"Remember. The Eight-Tails must be captured alive."
The members of Akatsuki gave slight nods in acknowledgment.
Pain began issuing orders. "Sasori, you'll lead the southern assault. Kakuzu and Hidan, strike from the north. We'll form a pincer attack."
"Deidara, you'll provide aerial bombardment. Cover your allies and disrupt any countermeasures."
As for Pain himself, he would enter through the front.
Deidara's eyes lit up. This was the first full-scale operation of the Akatsuki, and it was shaping up to be a spectacle. Best of all, that annoying Uchiha Itachi wasn't around.
He mounted his clay bird, shouting to Sasori below, "I'm heading out! This one's going to be an artistic masterpiece!"
Sasori didn't respond. He simply turned and walked south.
Kakuzu led Hidan toward the north, reminding him to prioritize bounties.
Now, only Konan remained by Pain's side.
Pain turned to her. "I'll leave it to you, Konan."
She nodded silently and dissolved into a flurry of paper, vanishing into the night. Her task was to protect Nagato's true body.
Pain pressed his palms together. A flash of chakra his Six Paths appeared.
"Let the world know pain."
…
At the borders of the Hidden Leaf Village, the last rays of the sun painted the landscape in hues of crimson.
"Obito, hey, Obito. Looks like Konoha changed its security codes," Black Zetsu muttered as he tested the barrier. "Your intel's been thoroughly compromised, huh."
Obito's disfigured face was bathed in sunset light, the mask gone, scars laid bare.
"It doesn't matter," he replied coldly.
His body shimmered and phased through the barrier. A second later, he reappeared within Konoha's walls.
"Wait up!" Black Zetsu shouted, but Obito ignored him and vanished again.
Black Zetsu was exasperated. Ever since their last encounter, Obito had changed.
If one had to describe it, he now exuded a kind of silent ruthlessness.
But Black Zetsu, of all people, knew Obito's heart better than anyone. All this brooding was just drama. Deep down, he was planning a showdown with that silver-haired Leaf jonin, Kakashi.
And where else would he go for such a thing, if not the Memorial Stone?
Zetsu burrowed underground and sped toward the graveyard.
Before long, he surfaced just enough to peek out. There he was Obito stood alone before the stone monument.
Offerings lay at its base: a bouquet of white chrysanthemums and a still-warm serving of red bean cake. Dew glistened on the petals someone had clearly just been here.
Suddenly, Obito reached down and grabbed the flowers.
"If I can't protect those who matter to me... then what is the point of this power?" he muttered, voice low and cold.
With a sharp sweep of his arm, he flung the bouquet through the air. Petals scattered like snow in the evening light.
Black Zetsu said nothing. He'd seen this act more than once. Hopefully, this would be the last time.
If Obito could retrieve his other Sharingan, his combat ability would increase drastically. The difference between one eye and two was considerable.
Click.
A soft sound broke the silence.
There it is, thought Black Zetsu, as he turned toward the stone.
A kunai was now pressed against Obito's back. The wielder silver-haired, calm, lethal.
"You're late, Kakashi," Obito said quietly, tilting his head slightly. "Let's settle this."
Kakashi's kunai plunged forward. The Mangekyō Sharingan in his eye began to spin wildly.
"Obito."
The moment their eyes met, space itself twisted into a spiral.
In an instant, both figures vanished from the real world.
Hey! You didn't take me with you! Black Zetsu wanted to shout as he stared at the spot where they disappeared.
The eternal bystander Black Zetsu was now forced to miss the show.
…
Back in the Hokage's Office, night was falling.
Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe as he worked through the last few documents of the day.
The first letter was from Onoki, the Tsuchikage, formally condemning Konoha for increasing its shinobi recruitment. Accusing them of escalating an arms race.
What a joke. Sarutobi promptly marked it as toilet paper.
The second letter, also from Onoki, demanded Konoha share information about the Akatsuki and cooperate in investigating the disappearance of the Jinchuriki.
In other words he was asking for help without saying the words.
Sarutobi smirked. Two Jinchuriki gone in one sweep no wonder the old man was desperate.
The third letter, again from Onoki, expressed willingness to form a partnership with Konoha. He even proposed a Five Kage Summit to discuss a united front against the Akatsuki.
The timing of all three documents was suspiciously close, as if they were sent one after another, the moment the previous one was received.
Sarutobi stamped the third letter with the Hokage seal and moved on.
Next was a memo concerning an upcoming diplomatic visit from the Hidden Cloud. The envoy would be led by Mabui, the Raikage's secretary.
She was one of Cloud's key political figures comparable to Nara Shikaku, Konoha's brilliant strategist.
To be fair, the Cloud was showing sincerity this time.
They had already proposed generous terms for peace. A large share of the Land of Lightning's mineral resources would be transferred to Konoha, along with reparations for the war.
Seeing the sincerity, Sarutobi scribbled a note on the document: "Increase reception tier."
Stamp.
Which meant the talks would no longer be handled by minor officials. Instead, Nara Shikaku would lead negotiations personally.
Night had fallen. The Hokage's work was done.
Sarutobi's consciousness drifted into the subspace.
The private chat group now showed 99 messages, and the group name had been changed to: "Subspace – Moby Dick Division."
Don't these two have anything better to do?
Sarutobi skimmed through the messages. Yoriichi Tsugikuni's situation seemed different from his own and Ace's.
Yoriichi was dead.
He could only linger as a wandering soul, a spectator of the living world.
No wonder the group was so quiet. One was imprisoned, the other a ghost. Of course it was dead in there.
Sarutobi mused it was like being in a chat with the Sage of Six Paths. Except the Sage could still interact with the living world when necessary. Yoriichi apparently could not.
Also, his vibe was... off. He didn't play games, watch videos, or even read fanfiction. He just quietly read classic literature in subspace. Not the most chatty guy.
The rest of the chat was just them discussing changes in the Naruto and One Piece worlds.
Ace was even suggesting that if Yoriichi couldn't stand the state of his own world, he should just hire Konoha.
Honestly... not a bad idea.
Sarutobi then uploaded the freshly prepared Konoha pricing sheet to the chat.
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