In the wilderness of the land of Fire, a massive beast's skeleton marked the entrance to an underground lair. This was the hidden base of the Akatsuki.
Inside, the Gedo Statue sat cross-legged on an altar, its hands bound in chains. In front of it, masked Obito sat on a stone chair.
His Sharingan glowed faintly through the holes in his orange mask. The candlelight in the crypt flickered with the shift in his aura.
Black and White Zetsu arrived with three shocking pieces of news that left the usually calm Obito silent for a long time.
Pain Nagato, once thought invincible, had been defeated.
He had betrayed Obito, using the Rinne Rebirth Technique to revive the people of Konoha.
And Naruto had apparently taken Nagato's body and vanished, raising suspicions of betrayal.
A deep voice came from behind Obito's mask:
"Nagato's betrayal was unexpected... but Naruto's actions are even harder to understand."
White Zetsu asked, "So, what now?"
Obito turned to him and asked, "Did you hear what Naruto and Konan said at the time?"
White Zetsu replied, "No. That kid can sense natural energy. If I got too close, he would've noticed me."
Obito looked away, his voice grim:
"The worst-case scenario... is that Naruto plans to use the Rinnegan."
He paused, then continued, "Also, according to intercepted intel, the Raikage has called for a Five Kage Summit. The goal is to eliminate Sasuke."
Obito's tone hardened:
"I was planning to use this chance to declare war on the Five Great Nations and reveal the Project Tsuki no Me to the world."
He clenched his hands tightly on his knees.
"But our strength lies in the seven tailed beasts Akatsuki has already captured and sealed inside the Gedo Statue."
"And to control that power, we need the Rinnegan."
White Zetsu exclaimed, "That's bad! If Naruto has the Rinnegan, he could summon the Gedo Statue anytime and use its power against us!"
Obito replied calmly, "Don't panic. The Rinnegan's power isn't so easy to master. It took Nagato years before he could summon the Gedo Statue."
He said that aloud, but in his heart, his thoughts were different:
Naruto has the same strong Uzumaki body as Nagato. If he's serious, it's only a matter of time before he learns to control it. Whether he defeated Pain or is hiding his true ambition... he's no longer just a brat.
"Just in case, I'll set up insurance."
Obito slowly stood and raised his hand toward the Gedo Statue.
Whoosh!
The Kamui vortex from his right eye activated and sucked the entire Gedo Statue away.
Bang!
The swirling portal closed, and the statue vanished.
Obito said, ""This way... the risk is eliminated for now."
White Zetsu cheered, "You're amazing! You moved that giant gedo statue in an instant!"
Black Zetsu asked in a low voice, "So, what's the next move?"
Obito thought for a moment, then said, "Send all White Zetsu to search for Uzumaki Naruto. He should still be somewhere in the Land of Fire. If you find anything, report immediately. We need to recover the Rinnegan before things spiral out of control."
White Zetsu nodded, "Got it!"
Obito's gaze shifted to Hoshigaki Kisame, who stood quietly nearby.
Not long ago, after the battle between Itachi and Sasuke, Obito had met with Kisame and revealed his true identity.
Besides White Zetsu, Kisame was the one Obito trusted most in Akatsuki.
"Kisame... I'm leaving the Eight Tails to you."
Kisame nodded. "Understood."
Obito looked ahead with a sharp gaze and said,
"We can't lose our calm over something like this."
"We'll still go forward with the plan—declare war on the Five Great Nations as scheduled. We can use the Five Kage to test the new eyes."
He gave a cold snort.
"Let's pay a visit to our failed partner. We still need to give an explanation about the Eight Tails... right, Sasuke?"
….
In the Land of Fire, the Hawk Squad was resting in a forest as they prepared to head toward Konoha.
Before Pain's attack on the village, Sasuke had led Hawk to Yunlei Gorge, where they captured what they thought was the Eight Tails.
They brought back only a tentacle, however and afterward, Hawk left Akatsuki to focus on Sasuke's revenge against Konoha.
At a quiet riverbank, Jūgo was alone, filling water. A bird perched on his shoulder, chirping softly. A rare, peaceful smile appeared on his face.
"Chichichi..."
Suddenly, the bird flinched and flew away!
Jūgo turned toward the woods behind him and saw a blond young man approaching, his left eye covered with a bandage.
"Hm? It's you..." Jūgo said, recognizing Naruto.
Back before Sasuke's battle with Itachi, Konoha had launched a major search for Sasuke.
During that time, one of Naruto's shadow clones had encountered Team Hawk directly.
Jūgo hadn't forgotten his face.
To Naruto, who had returned from the future, Jūgo was also an old friend.
With a warm smile, he greeted him,
"Long time no see, Jūgo. You still have a thing for animals, huh?"
Jūgo gave a short reply, not wanting to talk too much.
"It's fine. Are you looking for Sasuke?"
Naruto smiled meaningfully.
"No. I'm looking for you or more precisely, for someone I can only find with you."
Jūgo's expression darkened.
"I'm afraid that won't happen…"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, two figures burst out from the side, each wielding a Rasengan!
Jūgo's eyes widened.
"Shadow Clones...? When did he—?!"
BOOM!!
After the blast, Jūgo was thrown back. He skidded across the river's surface before stopping midstream, his shoulders deeply injured, with wounds like craters carved into him.
"He's using senjutsu... and it's stronger than mine!"
Naruto calmly walked across the water toward him.
"This little injury won't matter to you. As long as you come quietly, I won't have to hurt you more."
Jūgo's thoughts raced.
Sasuke is about ten kilometers away... If I release my cursed energy, Karin should be able to sense me
Sizzle!!
The cursed seal began to activate, spreading power through his body.
But Naruto's eyes narrowed and in the next instant, he vanished.
With speed rivaling Shisui's Body Flicker, he appeared right in front of Jūgo and pressed his palm against Jūgo's chest.
In his past life, after Sasuke lost his Rinnegan, space-time travel became impossible. To compensate, Naruto had trained in the Flying Thunder God Technique.
And now thanks to the soul retaining the memory and abilities of his future self Naruto could use those skills in the past.
As for the space mark required by the Flying Thunder God Technique
"That clone just now left the mark…"
Smack!
Naruto's left hand pressed firmly against Jūgo's chest.
Coo coo coo…
Jūgo's cursed sage energy began pouring into Naruto's palm nonstop.
Jūgo gasped, "You're absorbing my chakra?!"
As the cursed energy drained away, Jūgo's body shrank rapidly until he turned into a child and collapsed unconscious.
Naruto looked at him with curiosity.
"What a strange body... So this is the one Sasuke chose to keep by his side…"
With a quiet sigh, Naruto hoisted Jūgo over his shoulder and walked back toward the shore.
Swish!
Sheets of paper gathered in the air, forming Konan's body.
Konan spoke, "That went smoother than expected."
Naruto nodded.
"He's strong. I had to strike by surprise to avoid more trouble. If Sasuke and the others had arrived mid-fight... the outcome wouldn't be so sure."
His time in the apocalyptic future had made Naruto extremely cautious. He never acted without a backup plan and even when confident, he chose the safest route.
Gently, he lowered Jūgo to the ground, removed the boy's soaked robe, then covered him with his own dry cloak to keep him from catching a cold.
Konan glanced over and asked, "Aren't you taking him with us?"
Naruto looked down at the faint curse seal now etched into his palm and replied,
"I've already absorbed enough cursed energy. There's no need to take him."
Konan looked deeply at the bandage on Naruto's left eye, and sighed in her heart: the optic nerve of the left eye has not yet been fully connected, but he can already use the primary power of Rinnegan.
It seemed this eye might suit him even better than Nagato's did.
Wow! Naruto took off the wet black robe from Jugo and put it on himself. When he turned around, he raised his cape and said,
"Let's go to the next place..."
.
.
TO BE CONTINUED