Location: Hokage's Office – Hidden Leaf VillagePresent: Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Jin-Woo.
Atmosphere: Tense silence, broken only by the distant sound of medical activity in the hospital. The morning sun enters through the windows, but the atmosphere is still heavy with the shadow of the Akatsuki.
TSUNADE (arms crossed, staring fixedly at Jin-Woo):
— You faced two members of the Akatsuki… and brought Gaara back alive. But… you're not from here. What exactly do you want?
JIN-WOO (looking at the ground for a moment, then calmly meets everyone's gaze):
— To return to my world.
KAKASHI (surprised):
— Return? What do you mean… your world?
JIN-WOO (crosses his arms, voice firm):
— I don't belong here. I was pulled into this place by a dimensional anomaly inside a dungeon. Since then, I've been hunting for answers.
— Through my shadows, I tracked members of the Akatsuki. One of them… the masked one…
(pause, his eyes shimmer slightly at the memory)
— He moves through space-time. It's not ordinary teleportation. He enters and exits another dimension. It's my only chance to return.
JIRAIYA (narrowing his eyes):
— You think he can… send you back?
JIN-WOO:
— Maybe. I saw it with my own eyes. He disappears like he's not even in this plane. But I lost the trail.
He closes his eyes. A moment of silence. His shadow stirs subtly, like a dark sigh.
JIN-WOO (cold voice):
— I had left shadows on two members… they were following her. But it wasn't her. It was paper. A clone.— The trail broke. Everything was erased.
TSUNADE (muttering through clenched teeth):
— Damn…
KAKASHI (tense):
— So you're blind now?
JIN-WOO (looks directly at all of them):
— Not for long.
— If this group… the Akatsuki… wants the jinchūriki, that means they'll attack again. And every attack is an opportunity to track, capture… and extract information.
JIRAIYA:
— So your plan is… to hunt them?
JIN-WOO:
— One by one.
— I need information. Locations. Names. Everything you have.
Silence. The tension is palpable.
TSUNADE (after a few seconds, with a grave voice):
— You'll have it. Konoha will cooperate. But know this: if your hunt puts the shinobi world at risk…
(pause)
— I'll stop you myself.
JIN-WOO (a slight, dark smile):
— Fair.
Kakashi and Jiraiya exchange glances. The game has changed. A new hunter is on the loose. And now, the Akatsuki will feel it firsthand.
HIDDEN STONE VILLAGE – TSUCHIKAGE'S OFFICE
Onoki holds a report. Smoke from his pipe rises slowly as he reads with narrowed eyes. A jōnin waits, bowed, sweating.
ONOKI (hoarse, cold voice):
— A lone man invaded the Rain Village…
— Defeated the Six Paths of Pain…
— And still walked away unharmed?
JŌNIN:
— Our informants say he's now in the Leaf. Arrived at dawn… with the Kazekage in his arms.
ONOKI:
— Hmph... the Akatsuki is losing pieces.
— And the Leaf is gaining monsters.
HIDDEN MIST VILLAGE – MIZUKAGE'S OFFICE
Mei Terumi walks between open windows, holding a dossier. In the background, the sea touches the village's rocks. Beside her, Ao watches in silence.
MEI (frowning):
— Is this real?
AO:
— Confirmed. He's not a shinobi. Not even a summoner.
— Witnesses speak of shadowy creatures… obeying orders without hand seals, without chakra.
MEI (murmurs):
— And he faced the Akatsuki…
— And won?
Pause.
She looks out the window, tense.
MEI:
— The Leaf has more than luck on their side.
— They have something that could break the world's balance.
HIDDEN CLOUD VILLAGE – RAIKAGE'S OFFICE
A's (Raikage's) fist smashes the wooden table. Splinters fly through the air, the report paper torn by the impact. Cee and Darui beside him.
RAIKAGE A (angry):
— Who the hell is this man?!
DARUI:
— The Akatsuki suffered a defeat.
— Deidara and Sasori returned injured, without capturing anything.
— And the stranger is now… in Konoha.
CEE:
— If what they say is true… he's capable of reanimating corpses… controlling the dead… without seals.
— Like a private army.
RAIKAGE A:
— That's not a man.
— That's a living weapon.
— And it's in the hands of the Leaf.
AKATSUKI'S SECRET BASE
Location: Central chamber, dark and cavernous. The classic formation of red holograms illuminates the space. In the center, the new figure of Nagato is projected as the absolute leader. His silhouette has changed: taller, more stable, wrapped in dense chakra. The Rinnegan shines with an almost divine focus.
The members appear one by one: Konan, Kisame, Itachi, Kakuzu, Hidan, Deidara (still bandaged), Sasori, and Tobi (as always, more distant). Zetsu emerges from the wall, splitting beside Tobi.
All fall silent when Nagato speaks. His voice now echoes with real authority — not just as a speaker… but as someone who has seen death and returned stronger.
NAGATO (deep voice, without hesitation):
— There's been a disruption in the balance.
— An outsider to the shinobi world has crossed our path.
— He used my creations… against you.
Uneasy looks. Deidara and Sasori avoid eye contact. Konan remains still. Tobi simply observes, silent.
NAGATO:
— This isn't just about losing.
— It's about losing control.
— The Akatsuki was born to reshape the world to its will…
— Not to bow before a foreigner with shadow tricks.
KISAME (smiling, eyes half-closed):
— Heh… Then let's hunt this intruder.
— If he bleeds, he can die.
HIDAN (laughing):
— I wanna see if his god survives a Jashin ritual!
ITACHI (calm but alert):
— Don't underestimate him.
— If he defeated the Six Paths… there's more than strength involved.
— Strategy. Instinct. And something we still don't understand.
NAGATO:
— That's why I lead now, not just as the Voice of Pain…
— But as the blade that cuts through the unknown.
— From today on, no one acts without my direct orders.
— Every step will be calculated. Every strike, fatal.
SASORI (cold):
— And if the plan fails again?
Nagato steps forward. His chakra's shadow covers half the chamber. Even Kisame goes quiet. The Rinnegan shines as if piercing everyone's soul.
NAGATO (eyes on Sasori):
— There will be no Plan B.— Only execution.
TOBI (finally, in a disguised voice):
— And what if he's not the only one?
— What if more like him come?
Nagato stares at him. For a moment, the tension between them is palpable. But he doesn't respond directly.
NAGATO (to everyone):
— Then we'll destroy each of them… until none dares even dream of stepping into this world.
KONAN (stepping forward):
— What's the next move?
NAGATO:
— Let's start where he grew strongest:
— Konoha.
The holograms begin to fade one by one. But Nagato's eyes remain lit.