"It turned out to be… Mr. Shinigami."
Seeing the two figures walking slowly from the opposite side, Suigetsu instinctively loosened his grip on the handle of the decapitating blade.
Even though the last time he faced him it was only a clone created by the Heavenly Shift Technique(Xiang Zhuan no Jutsu)—barely thirty percent of the real body's power—Suigetsu knew perfectly well that he wasn't a match for Kenya. Resistance would be pointless.
"But… you came faster than expected," Suigetsu muttered under his breath.
He hadn't even considered the possibility that someone might intercept their movements. The reason Sasuke had ordered him to stay here was precisely to prevent such a risk. Yet the fact that Uchiha Kenya had appeared in person was surprising enough.
How had he arrived so quickly?
Could he have planted a tracking seal on Sasuke?
As Kenya and Jin'narō approached at a calm, unhurried pace, Karin's face went pale with cold sweat. Panic surged in her chest, and she blurted out, trembling,
"W–well, that's it, right? The mission you gave me is over! Can I go now? You said I'd be free!"
"Karin?!" Suigetsu turned to her, startled.
He, too, was shocked at how swiftly Kenya had locked onto Sasuke's location—but he hadn't expected Karin to be the leak.
"As expected of Lord Kenya… every step is calculated," Suigetsu muttered bitterly.
He couldn't help feeling a trace of sympathy for Sasuke. The very teammate he'd recruited had been a spy all along.
Jin'narō, standing quietly behind Kenya, gave Karin a cold, detached glance. Then, without warning, he stepped forward, reached out his right hand, and clamped it around her throat, lifting her effortlessly off the ground.
"Ugh—!"
Karin let out a strangled cry, clutching desperately at his arm. Her hands struck at his wrist again and again, but with her limited strength, her attacks didn't even make him flinch.
"You've outlived your usefulness. Die."
"Stop, Jin'narō."
Kenya's calm voice cut through the tension before Jin'narō could snap her neck.
Jin'narō froze, then released his grip.
"Pfft—!"
Karin fell hard to the ground, coughing violently, one hand wrapped around her aching neck.
Kenya crouched slightly beside her, his tone soft and almost gentle. "Apologies for frightening you, Karin. You've performed admirably. From now on, you're free to do as you please."
Still trembling, Karin gasped for air, slowly regaining her composure. By the time she dared look up again, Kenya and Jin'narō were already walking away toward the ruins where Sasuke and Itachi were about to clash.
"Now things are getting troublesome…" Suigetsu murmured, watching their figures disappear into the distance.
----
Meanwhile, high above the Rain Village, atop the iron tower where the current leader Pain resided, three figures had gathered—Obito, Konan, and the Deva Path of Pain.
Black Zetsu was absent; only a white clone emerged slowly from the metallic floor to deliver a report.
"Uchiha Kenya has made his move. He's already arrived at the old Uchiha compound in the southern Fire Country. Sasuke's battle hasn't begun yet."
"So fast?" Obito muttered, glancing sideways.
"It puzzles us too," White Zetsu replied. "The way he travels—it feels almost like your Kamui, teleporting in an instant."
Obito dismissed the thought for now, turning to Pain and Konan. "In any case, this is our chance. Kenya's no longer in Konoha. It's the perfect time to capture the Nine-Tails."
Konan crossed her arms. "There's no need for concern. Pain has never failed a mission."
"Let's hope it stays that way," Obito said gravely. "This will be our only opportunity—don't waste it."
He had already made his choice: Sasuke or Naruto. He couldn't have both.
Sasuke was interesting, yes—but merely a curiosity. What mattered was Naruto, the key to the Eye of the Moon Plan.
As Kenya devoted his strength to Sasuke's side, Obito would seize the chance to take Naruto. He had envisioned this strategy ever since their encounter in the Land of Grass.
Pain smiled faintly, eyes closing. "Then it's decided. The time for peace is near."
As he turned and left, Konan rose silently to follow—but instead of walking behind him, she ascended to the tower's upper level. When Pain's Six Paths acted, Nagato needed to remain hidden and close enough to control them without weakening his power.
Once both had departed, White Zetsu glanced at Obito. "You really think Nagato can handle it? Kenya's forces include those strange, blood-soaked ninja he created. They're no joke."
Obito's Sharingan glowed faintly from beneath the mask. "I don't expect him to succeed. This will be his final mission anyway."
White Zetsu tilted his head. "So you've prepared a backup plan too, huh?"
Obito gave a quiet, humorless chuckle. "Always."
And with that, he activated Kamui—and vanished.
----
At that same moment, deep within the Uchiha ruins in the southern Fire Country, the storm was brewing.
The hall that once served as the clan's ancestral meeting place now echoed with the hum of chakra and the crackle of lightning.
Sasuke faced his brother across the broken floor. The scarlet glow of their Sharingan clashed, three tomoe spinning like twin whirlpools.
"So," Itachi said quietly, "you've awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan… but not the Mangekyō. It seems you couldn't kill someone you loved."
"Heh," Sasuke sneered. "Eyes gained through that kind of sacrifice? I don't need them. Mine are enough to destroy you."
In the same breath, lightning flared around his arm. The Chidori Sharp Spear extended with a hiss—
—but the moment it pierced through Itachi's chest, the body shattered into a storm of black feathers.
A murder of crows burst outward, swirling across the ruined hall.
And from within the shadow of their wings, Itachi's form reappeared—calm, silent, and waiting.