The sun, a tired gold in the late afternoon, threw long, thick shadows from the Hokage monument. Inside the round office, the sun danced across the dust motes that whirled in the stagnant air, a silent, whirling affirmation of the passage of another day, another week, another year in this fragile peace.
Nine years had quickly passed since the Kyubi attack.
Minato stood by thee window, gazing out over the village below with his eyes. He appeared older than his thirty-three years. The raw, young enthusiasm of the Yellow Flash had been worn away by the crushing, grinding weight of the Hokage hat, and the quiet, deep weariness that deepened in the lines about his sharp blue eyes. This was the peace he had fought for, the peace he had almost died for, the peace that, more frequently than not, tasted like a ceasefire.
A glimpse of motion out of the side of his eye, too fast for a civilian, too raw for one of his own ANBU, caught his attention. He did not move.
"You were at the Memorial Stone again, Kakashi."
"It's on my way back from the debriefing," a voice responded, without its usual lazy drawl. Kakashi Hatake stepped out of the darkness, his own ANBU uniform discarded, now dressed in his usual Jonin attire. Almost twenty-four years old, and already a living legend, Copy Ninja, or by his other nickname, Kakashi of the sharingan. But Minato could see past the legend. He saw the permanent tension in the shoulders of his former pupil, the haunted look in his one visible eye that never actually left.
"The Land of Water reports are disturbing."
Minato sighed, running a hand through his blond hair. "Troubling is an understatement. Jiraiya-sensei's informants confirm it. Yagura Karatachi's paranoia has metastasized. The 'Bloody Mist' isn't just a grim moniker anymore… it's a state policy. They're not just purging bloodlines… they're creating an entire generation of traumatized, powerful missing-nin. It's a recruitment pool for our enemies, a factory of broken tools ready to be used against us."
"And Akatsuki is there, sifting through the trash," Kakashi stated matter-of-factly. "The new intel tells us they've established a firm foothold, offering sanctuary and meaning to those who escape Yagura's insanity. We have confirmed reports of Hoshigaki Kisame, a former Swordsman of the Mist, operating under their banner now."
"It's their prime front now," Minato nodded, stepping back from the window. The map on his desk was a scatter of pins and circled points, a geography of his concerns. "With Hiruko neutralized and now a... reluctant asset of our own, his Chimera research has been turned into a counter-measure. A significant blow to their network. Orochimaru is licking his wounds after his own catastrophic failure at the ANBU trials, forced into deeper hiding." He tapped a finger on the Land of Sound. "But that has only made him more aggressive with other things…"
"Obito," Kakashi said, the words a cold hard rock in the quiet room. "He hasn't made a personal appearance in over a year. Not since my last confirmed sighting near the Taki border. The Hiraishin seal restricts him, but he adapts. He operates through proxies. He utilizes Akatsuki."
Minato relaxed his face with a hint of sympathy at the great burden his pupil carried. Nine years he had employed Kakashi as his principal instrument in a conflict that no one in the village actually knew was being fought. A conflict against a shadow, his own team-mate.
"He is mobilizing his forces, Sensei. We don't know his true goal or why he is acting against us… not even after all we've done. His power grows, Sensei, but his purpose remains an enigma…"
Kakashi's voice was laced with a frustration that had become all too familiar over the past nine years. "We've analyzed the attack, the confrontation, a thousand times. There was hatred in him, a profound, personal hatred. But directed at what? The village? Me? The shinobi system itself? There's no cohesive ideology, only a void of nihilism."
Minato stared at Kakashi, contemplating his words for a moment.
"Calm down, Kakashi… I know things are looking glum, especially since we aren't sure what Obito is planning, but we have to be patient. Things will come in due time."
Kakashi remained silent, listening to his teachers words. He understood that he was blaming himself for the situation. Things had never been the same since he found out Obito was alive. He had hoped to bring him back to the village. He had tried so hard.
Yet, Obito would do anything in his power to not meet him. To talk to him.
It was clear that something else was going on, but Kakashi couldn't understand what.
Minato seemed to sense the direction of his student's thoughts and mercifully shifted the subject, moving from the unsolvable problem to the assets he could manage.
"The intelligence reports from our network regarding Akatsuki's other movements are more… tangible. With Hiruko's network and research now ours to dissect, and Orochimaru's primary operation in Otogakure dismantled by your teams, we have them on the back foot."
His tone became more focused, the strategist overriding the weary man. "But they are adapting. Recruiting. They see Kiri's self-destruction as a resource."
"We must also adapt," Minato continued, his gaze becoming sharp and clear, the look of the Fourth Hokage in full command. "And our greatest assets in that regard are not new weapons or broader alliances, but people. The next generation." He looked directly at Kakashi. "Kakashi, your assessment on Itachi."
Kakashi straightened, his ANBU training clicking into place. "Prodigious, Hokage-sama. His Mangekyō Sharingan is… stabilized. He has mastered the base form of Susanoo and has demonstrated a refined control over Amaterasu, though its use still exacts a significant physical toll. As a team leader, he is demanding, precise, and possesses an analytical mind that rivals your own. He has earned the loyalty of his squad, and more importantly, the cautious respect of the Uchiha elders. The influence he and Shisui wield within their clan has been instrumental in mending the rift."
"Good," Minato said, a note of genuine relief in his voice. "And… Crane?"
The codename still felt odd on Minato's tongue when referring to the pale, quiet boy who was now so firmly at the center of so many of his strategic concerns.
Kakashi's visible eye held a complex light. "Yuki Ryuu is… an anomaly, Sensei. At thirteen, his physical Taijutsu is only now catching up to his peers, but it's a moot point. His use of the Kage Bunshin for accelerated training is… aggressive. He's practiced decades in the last two years." He paused, gathering his thoughts. "The information he synthesized from Hiruko's research and the Kaguya scroll is already bearing fruit. His understanding of cellular biology and chakra interaction on a genetic level is beyond anyone in our R&D, save for perhaps Hiruko himself. He has, on his own, developed countermeasures that are slowing the degenerative effects of his own Shikotsumyaku."
Pausing slightly, Kakashi sighed.
"He's a frightening child," Kakashi concluded, his voice low and serious.
Minato nodded slowly. "He is what this world creates, Kakashi. A monster of intellect and power forged in the fires of fear and survival. Kasumi-san has placed complete trust on us to nurture him."
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[POV Shift: Akatsuki Hideout – The Central Spire of Amegakure]
Rain, endless and grey, slicked the dark steel of the city below. Inside the tallest tower, in a chamber where shadows clung like mould, the only light came from the dim, ethereal glow of nine holographic figures, their forms flickering with the instability of a long-distance connection.
"Konoha grows stronger, more unified." The distorted voice of "Tobi" echoed in the chamber. He paced before the ten real thrones, his single Sharingan burning with cold frustration. "Minato's continued presence has stabilized their leadership. The Danzo affair, which should have crippled the Uchiha and plunged the village into civil war, was instead co-opted. Minato used it as a tool to consolidate his power, purge the old guard, and forge a new, detestable loyalty with the Uchiha clan. It's… inefficient."
Pain, his Deva Path body seated impassively, regarded him with Rinnegan eyes that betrayed no emotion. "Minato Namikaze is a Hokage of a different breed than Hiruzen Sarutobi. He does not allow wounds to fester. He cuts them out. He has learned from the past. Our plans to exploit Konoha's internal decay are now… obsolete."
"So we create new wounds," Obito snapped back, the childish lilt of 'Tobi' gone, replaced by the hard edge of the strategist. "From the outside. Hiruko was a failure. Orochimaru is a fool whose arrogance and obsessions have made him a liability. His schemes have only served to alert Konoha to our capabilities. We will no longer rely on such flawed pawns."
He turned, his gaze sweeping across the holographic figures and the handful of real, cloaked individuals present in the chamber.
One figure, monstrously large with green skin and stitched features, chuckled, a dry, rattling sound. "So the real hunt begins. Excellent. Time is money, and our patience has its limits." Kakuzu sat beside his partner, Hidan, who was idly polishing his triple-bladed scythe, looking utterly bored.
Obito sneered, dismissing Kakuzu with a wave of his hand. "Your… compensation… will be more than adequate, Kakuzu, provided you remain useful. Hidan, try to maintain a semblance of focus. Your bloodlust is tedious."
Hidan merely grinned, a wide, manic expression. "Jashin-sama cares not for focus, only for offerings. And it sounds like we're about to have a buffet."
Obito ignored him, his gaze falling on another pair, seated slightly apart from the rest. "And what of our Mist contingent?"
One of the figures, wrapped in bandages up to his eyes, his brow adorned with a scratched Kirigakure forehead protector, merely grunted. Jūzō Biwa, the wielder of the Kubikiribōchō, was a man of few words and much violence.
His partner, however, was a different entity entirely. Slender, almost delicate, wearing a standard Kiri hunter-nin mask.
"The intelligence confirms Konoha's renewed focus on external threats," Haku stated, in a melodic tone. At twelve years old, they were the youngest member of Akatsuki, a prodigy of Ice Release found by Pain during his earliest expansions of influence. This Haku had never met Zabuza, they knew only the cold logic of their god and the absolute perfection of a world remade through pain.
"Konoha's strength is a factor, but their sentimentality, their focus on 'saving' their assets, is an exploitable weakness."
"Troublesome." Obito muttered, his Sharingan narrowing. He looked towards the last two members seated at the long, dark stone table. "Kisame. Rei. Your reports from the northern borders."
Hoshigaki Kisame, his shark-like features pulled into a predatory grin, leaned forward. "The samurai of the Land of Iron are… resilient. But their numbers dwindle with each skirmish we provoke. The Daimyo grows nervous. Their supply lines are stretched thin." Beside him, Samehada, seemed to wriggle in its bandages with anticipation.
The man beside him, Rei, remained impassive. He was a young man of seventeen, with startlingly messy dirt-blonde hair that fell into his violet eyes, and a gaze that was far too old for his years. His face was pale, almost aristocratic, and his demeanor was one of utter, unconcerned detachment.
He was a survivor of the Chinoike clan, a bloodline thought to be wiped out decades ago, and the wielder of the Ketsuryūgan.
He had approached Akatsuki himself, offering his unique skills in exchange for resources, claiming a desire for revenge against the Uchiha who had wronged his clan.
"The northern territories are a stalemate, designed to drain Konoha's attention and resources," Rei stated, his voice low and monotone. "I have confirmed the deployment of several of their elite Jonin to the border, including Sarutobi Asuma. They are reacting predictably. It is… adequate for now."
Obito nodded, the pieces aligning in his mind. "Then we move to the next phase. Our roster is complete. The hunt for the Jinchuriki begins now. We cannot allow Minato the time to consolidate his power further."
"It has already begun," Pain's amplified voice cut through the room. A holographic image flickered to life, showing a detailed map of the Land of Waterfalls. "The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Fū of Takigakure is isolated. Powerful, but lacking the support of a major village. An ideal first target to signal our intent."
Hidan licked his lips. "Ah, a new sacrifice! Excellent!"
Pain's Rinnegan eyes swept over the assembled members. "Jūzō. Haku. The Two-Tails, Yugito Nii of Kumogakure. Kumo's pride is their downfall. Her capture will sow discord and fear."
Jūzō gave a single, curt nod, the hilt of his massive blade visible over his shoulder. Haku simply bowed silently.
"Kisame. Rei," Pain continued, his gaze falling upon the duo. "You will capture the Four-Tails, Rōshi."
Rei simply offered a faint, almost mocking, bow of his head, while Kisame grinned.
"And you, Kakuzu, Hidan," Pain's impassive voice continued, turning to the last remaining pair. "You will hunt the Six-Tails. Utakata."
A cackle escaped Hidan's lips. "Another one from Kiri! Their Jinchuriki are as common as their bloodline runaways! Jashin will be pleased!"
Kakuzu merely adjusted the covering over his mouth, his deep voice a low rumble. "A missing-nin is an easy target. Minimal political fallout. Financially… inefficient. But a necessary step. We will complete the objective."
Pain looked towards the holographic projection of a tall man with a strange, plant-like growth covering half his body. "Zetsu. Your role is unchanged. Monitor all teams. Report any deviation. Log all encounters. You are the eyes of this operation."