The ambush set up by Cloud Village naturally yielded no results, as their target was hiding among them.
At dawn, Jiraiya found the Fourth Raikage: "We can't stay here forever, and it's likely the enemy has already sensed something."
"Hm."
The Fourth Raikage nodded.
He might be hot-tempered, but he wasn't foolish. Having suffered major losses at the hands of the Akatsuki, he knew better than anyone present how formidable they were. Since they hadn't caught the Akatsuki's 'A' yesterday, lingering here any longer was pointless.
As the leader of a village, he was too busy to waste time on the Akatsuki's 'A.'
Thus, he personally convinced Yugito to call off the ambush.
Though the ambush was canceled, this location was still a lead. So, both Cloud Village and Hidden Leaf left a four-man team behind to monitor the area long-term, hoping to catch something by chance.
Before parting, Cloud Village's jonin, Cee, approached the Hidden Leaf group and gave a polite bow: "Though we couldn't capture an Akatsuki member, we're grateful for Hidden Leaf's timely assistance! On behalf of Cloud Village, I express our thanks!"
Jiraiya responded, "Facing the Akatsuki's threat, the five great shinobi villages must stand together."
"Indeed!"
Cee bowed again.
At that moment, Yugito approached.
Having been controlled by genjutsu for so long and having her chakra drained by Shinji's 'Wazunagi' the previous night, she looked pale and unwell.
She coldly glanced at Shinji and Sasuke in the crowd: "Damn Uchihas!"
By now, Sasuke had calmed his nerves from the previous night. Hearing Yugito's provocation, his expression darkened: "What did you say?!"
Yugito, who had started to turn away, spun back and marched up to Sasuke, enunciating each word: "I said, damn Uchihas!"
Sasuke activated his Sharingan, his dark eyes instantly turning crimson.
In the same instant, Yugito unleashed her tailed beast chakra.
The sudden confrontation caught both Hidden Leaf and Cloud Village off guard.
Kakashi swiftly flashed between Sasuke and Yugito, shielding Sasuke. The Fourth Raikage placed a hand on Yugito's shoulder, signaling her to stand down.
Tsunade stepped forward, calmly stating, "The Uchihas in the Akatsuki have nothing to do with them!"
The Fourth Raikage gave Sasuke a deep look.
Even now, he suspected Sasuke was the Akatsuki's 'F,' which was one reason he had decisively abandoned the ambush—he believed Sasuke might have already leaked information to the Akatsuki.
But now wasn't the time to clash with Hidden Leaf, so he ordered in a low voice, "Yugito, we're leaving!"
"Hmph!"
Yugito let out a cold snort before turning and following the Fourth Raikage away.
Watching the Cloud Village group depart, Yakumo quietly asked Shinji, "Shinji, why didn't you seem angry at all just now?"
Tsunade and Shizune, nearby, turned their attention to him as well.
Shinji's lips curled slightly: "I heard this Two-Tails Jinchuriki is Cloud Village's pride, a perfect Jinchuriki. Yet, under the Sharingan, she still became a puppet. Her furious provocation is, to me, just the whining of a defeated dog. No, it's more like praise for the Sharingan!"
"Well said!"
Sasuke nodded emphatically, fully agreeing.
Tsunade and Shizune exchanged a glance, both silently thinking, "As expected of the arrogant Uchihas!"
Elsewhere.
As they withdrew, the Fourth Raikage asked Yugito, "Yugito, think carefully. Is there really no clue about the Akatsuki?"
Yugito frowned, "That 'A' guy was always cautious around me. While under genjutsu, my condition fluctuated, and I can't recall everything—where I went or what I did—so I can't provide any useful leads!"
"Damn it!"
The Fourth Raikage sighed in frustration.
Cee spoke up, "Yugito, you must be extra cautious with the Akatsuki from now on. They're even tougher than we imagined!"
Yugito, however, gave a confident smile: "I'll make them pay!"
The Fourth Raikage glanced at her.
Yugito explained, "Being controlled by the Akatsuki's 'A' wasn't without gains. At least Matatabi has agreed to fully cooperate with me now!"
"Oh?"
The Fourth Raikage was surprised.
A Jinchuriki's strength often depended on their bond with their tailed beast. A 'perfect Jinchuriki' was one who could connect with their tailed beast on a deep level, earning its willing support.
The Two-Tails, Matatabi, had already acknowledged Yugito's strength, which was why Cloud Village hailed her as a 'perfect Jinchuriki.'
During the time Yugito was under the Akatsuki's 'A' genjutsu, Matatabi had also been controlled by the same genjutsu. This humiliating experience enraged the temperamental Matatabi, and after breaking free, it vowed to fully support Yugito.
If Yugito could master the use of the Two-Tails' chakra, her strength would undoubtedly skyrocket.
"That's great!"
Cee was visibly excited.
Before this, Yugito, as a 'perfect Jinchuriki,' had been somewhat less impressive compared to the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer Bee.
If, as Yugito claimed, Matatabi had fully accepted her after this ordeal, she could become a perfect Jinchuriki on par with Killer Bee, elevating Cloud Village's strength to a new level!
Hidden Leaf Village.
After returning to the village, Shinji and the others who participated in the mission were granted a special one-day break from the Shinobi Academy.
Thus, Shinji returned to his apartment and used 'Jikibi' to monitor Karin's physical changes again.
As expected, Karin's condition was still evolving. Both the dojutsu power of her Rinnegan and her chakra reserves were slowly growing stronger.
However, after the previous day, this growth had slowed slightly.
This undoubtedly meant the newly awakened Rinnegan was gradually stabilizing.
It was worth noting that neither the Tenseigan nor the Rinnegan maintained a constant state.
In the original timeline, Sasuke, after acquiring the Rinnegan, had once depleted his dojutsu power, causing his Rinnegan to temporarily revert to ordinary pupils.
The Tenseigan was similar.
In the original timeline, after Naruto and Hinata defeated Toneri Otsutsuki and removed his Tenseigan to return it to Hanabi, the Tenseigan, without Otsutsuki chakra to sustain it, degraded back into a Byakugan.
Thus, Shinji had to wait until the Rinnegan in Karin's eye sockets was relatively stable before extracting it.