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The Raikage's brow shot up, a disdainful sneer curling his lip. "Are you suggesting I'm no match for someone?"
"The man who orchestrated Kirigakure's downfall calls himself Uchiha Madara. I wonder if you've heard the name."
"Uchiha Madara?" The Raikage rolled the name around in his mind. It sounded vaguely familiar. After more than ten seconds of silence, recognition dawned. His brow immediately furrowed in anger. "I know Uchiha Madara. But he died long ago. How dare you try to deceive me!"
"I know what you're thinking. Madara died at the Valley of the End, correct? But that's what this man claims, and he possesses the Mangekyō Sharingan. He controlled the Mizukage and brought Kirigakure to ruin. Are you so certain you could resist his genjutsu?" Midorima countered without flinching.
"Continue." The Raikage's contemptuous expression vanished, replaced by grim seriousness.
"On the night the Mizukage was attacked, I witnessed everything. Unfortunately, they discovered me as well. I had no choice but to flee Kirigakure and become a missing-nin. In the years since, I've been investigating Uchiha Madara and the organization he belongs to. Fortunately, I've finally made some progress. Madara's true identity remains unknown, but his organization is called Akatsuki. Its leader is Pain, who possesses the Rinnegan. Their goal is the tailed beasts—they aim to collect all nine and fuse them into the Ten-Tails."
Midorima had anticipated the Raikage would greet this revelation with scorn, and he'd prepared himself for ridicule. To his surprise, while the Raikage's expression showed initial contempt, his face grew increasingly serious with each passing revelation. After Midorima finished, the Raikage sank into deep contemplation. Finally, he spoke. "Should I doubt you, or should I believe you?"
"What do you mean?"
"If Akatsuki's goal truly is the tailed beasts, then why, after Yugito Nii's death, did the Two-Tails remain in Kumogakure? It wasn't taken by Akatsuki. From that perspective, I have every reason to disbelieve you. However..."
The Raikage drew a deep breath. "Recently, it seems jinchūriki have been meeting with misfortune."
"Meeting with misfortune?" Midorima blinked in surprise. "Kirigakure lost its Three-Tails and Six-Tails jinchūriki. Kumogakure lost its Two-Tails jinchūriki... Has someone else been affected?"
"The One-Tails jinchūriki has also encountered trouble. You didn't know?" The Raikage raised an eyebrow.
Midorima shook his head. "Kirigakure just endured a disaster that nearly destroyed the village. We're focused on rebuilding and haven't been able to pay attention to outside affairs. What happened with the One-Tails?"
The Raikage shook his head. "I don't know the specifics either. We're preoccupied with Iwagakure and can't afford distractions, but our sources have provided some unverified intelligence. Apparently, the One-Tails jinchūriki lost control and attacked Sunagakure. At the time, the Kazekage wasn't in the village—he was in Konoha for the Chūnin Exams. Suna's elders managed to forcibly suppress the rampaging jinchūriki. Upon learning this, the Kazekage prepared to return home. But just after leaving Konoha, he was killed. They say an Uchiha ninja cut off his head."
Midorima found himself momentarily speechless.
There were far too many elements to this story! First the One-Tails jinchūriki going on a rampage, then the Kazekage being killed—it felt like he was reading the manga all over again. But more critically, an Uchiha ninja had murdered the Kazekage. That was an unsolvable complication.
The Uchiha clan already harbored resentment toward Konoha. Now, with the Kazekage dead on Konoha's doorstep, Sunagakure would never let the matter rest.
What could Konoha possibly do? Follow the precedent set with the Hyūga clan and hand over Fugaku Uchiha?
Absolutely impossible.
First, the Hyūga incident was nowhere near this scale. When Kumo ninja attempted to kidnap Hinata Hyūga and died in the attempt, Konoha averted war by sacrificing Hizashi Hyūga. But this time, a Kage had been killed. Konoha had no credible explanation to offer. Handing over just Fugaku Uchiha would never resolve the crisis.
More importantly, would the Uchiha clan even agree to such a demand?
Almost certainly not.
Konoha's relationship with the Uchiha was already strained to breaking point. Now it had exploded entirely. Simultaneously, Konoha and Suna were now locked in conflict. Halting that war wouldn't be simple.
"The situation between Konoha and Sunagakure seems even worse than between Kumogakure and Iwagakure," Midorima observed grimly.
"Indeed. But our battle with Iwa has also intensified. They've deployed their jinchūriki. As for ours... the Two-Tails jinchūriki is dead. The Eight-Tails jinchūriki... unless absolutely necessary, we'd prefer not to send him out."
"Then I've come at an inconvenient time." Midorima clicked his tongue in frustration.
He could clearly sense that events had spiraled beyond control. The ninja who killed the Kazekage likely wasn't some random Uchiha from Konoha—it was probably Itachi Uchiha. But what difference did that make? It wouldn't stop the three-way suspicion and blame.
Iwagakure and Kumogakure were similarly trapped. If they were already deploying jinchūriki, full-scale war might be imminent. If Akatsuki had orchestrated all of this, Midorima had severely underestimated them. The current situation was even more complex than the original timeline.
"Not necessarily." The Raikage shook his head. "We're not planning to deploy the Eight-Tails for now. Once he enters the fray, this war will have no turning back. We don't want to trigger the Fourth Shinobi World War like this."
The Raikage was no mere brawler driven by fists alone. He could discern the underlying patterns.
"I'll minimize the time needed to communicate with the Six-Tails," Midorima explained.
"Fine. But I have one condition." The Raikage fixed him with a serious gaze. "Once you've fully mastered control of the Six-Tails, I want you to go to Iwagakure and tell that old geezer everything you've just told me. We're not afraid to fight, but if we're being manipulated, I refuse to swallow my pride and accept it."
"Agreed." Midorima nodded.
The five great villages were entangled in a chaotic mess. If they couldn't unravel it before Akatsuki seized the opportunity to collect all nine tailed beasts, it would be too late for everything.
"Good. I'll have Samui take you to find Killer B." The Raikage gestured toward Samui.
Midorima nodded and was about to express his gratitude when suddenly Omoi burst frantically into the Raikage's office.
"Raikage-sama! Something terrible has happened!" Omoi's voice was almost a shriek.
"What is it?" The Raikage demanded urgently.
"Master... Killer B is gone! He ran away..." Omoi looked on the verge of tears.
Midorima's eyelid twitched several times as he stared at the Raikage in disbelief.
Just that the hell happened to his luck??
...
A gray-haired young man with dark skin and black sunglasses crept stealthily out of the village. When he confirmed no one was following, he straightened his posture, a grin spreading across his face.
"Finally made it out."