"They didn't revive?"
Orochimaru's expression froze in shock.
The most terrifying aspect of the Reanimation Jutsu was that those resurrected by it, even if destroyed, would quickly revive again.
That was the very reason he had been confident enough to face Uchiha Fugaku.
Yet unbelievably, after Fugaku killed them, the so-called immortal Edo Tensei bodies… did not revive.
Staring at Fugaku with doubt and alarm, Orochimaru asked,"How did you do it?"
"Reanimation may seem invincible, but it isn't without a counter," Fugaku replied with a faint smile.
Without the Rinnegan and Truth-Seeking Orbs, his only option would have been the crude method: crippling Edo Tensei bodies and sealing them before they recovered.
But with the Truth-Seeking Orbs, there was no need for such hassle.
If any technique could truly restrain the Reanimation Jutsu, it was without question the Truth-Seeking Orbs. In fact, they restrained many jutsu—Reanimation was merely one of them.
"You… actually wield such a technique?" Orochimaru's face twisted with frustration.
He had believed mastering Edo Tensei meant he could stand against Fugaku. Instead, Fugaku possessed the very power that neutralized his trump card. Against him, resistance was meaningless.
"So… do you still want to continue?" Fugaku asked mockingly, eyes locked onto Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's face shifted several times before he finally conceded."I do know of several hidden Akatsuki bases, but they won't be hiding in those. If my guess is right, their current refuge is the White Zetsu Base."
"You know where it is?" Fugaku's eyes lit up in surprise.
He had long sought the White Zetsu Base, never expecting Akatsuki might actually be concealed there. If he could confirm its location, he could not only eliminate Nagato to prevent future threats but also harvest countless White Zetsu bodies—refining Hashirama's cells and advancing toward the Rinnegan.
But Orochimaru shook his head."No. Its location is kept in absolute secrecy. Even within Akatsuki, few know. Since the moment I joined, they never stopped monitoring me."
Seeing Fugaku's disappointment, Orochimaru quickly added,"However, I once tailed Zetsu himself. I couldn't pinpoint the exact site, but I narrowed down the general region."
"Where?" Fugaku pressed eagerly.
"The Land of Grass. The White Zetsu Base should be there—though where exactly, I don't know."
Orochimaru knew if he gave nothing useful, Fugaku wouldn't let him go. Revealing this was his only way out.
"The Land of Grass…" A smile crept into Fugaku's eyes.
Even if he didn't yet have the precise location, narrowing the scope to a single country made the search infinitely easier.
"For your sake, I hope you're not lying. You know the consequences."
After that warning, Fugaku blurred away with Body Flicker, vanishing from the Sound Village in an instant.
Once he was gone, Kimimaro and the Sound ninja were left stunned. The Orochimaru they revered as invincible had been forced to bow his head before Uchiha Fugaku.
They knew Fugaku was powerful, famed across the ninja world, but to see their pillar of strength crushed so easily filled them with shock—and no small measure of disappointment.
Fugaku did not return to Konoha. Instead, he used roots and underground waterways to contact his spore clones, ordering them to begin searching the Land of Grass for Akatsuki's trail.
He intentionally kept Konoha's intelligence unit uninformed. Unlike the stealthy spores, who could evade even Kage-level detection, Konoha operatives might easily alert Akatsuki, forcing them to relocate.
With orders given, Fugaku transformed his appearance with disguise techniques and headed for the Land of Grass himself. He would lie in wait—ready to strike the moment a spore clone found the White Zetsu Base.
A few days later.
In a modest house within the Land of Grass, a man dressed as an ordinary villager sat quietly. This was Fugaku, perfectly disguised, having replaced a Konoha spy's cover identity.
Buzz—
A figure emerged from the earth inside the closed room. To all appearances, he was a wandering shinobi, but in truth, he was one of Fugaku's spore clones.
"The White Zetsu Base has been located!"
"Found it?!" Fugaku, who had been leaning against a chair, leapt to his feet, excitement flashing in his eyes.
Orochimaru's intel had proven true—the base was indeed in the Land of Grass. Whether Akatsuki themselves were hiding there remained to be seen.
"Have you alerted Clone One, Clone Two, Kakashi, and Jiraiya?" Fugaku asked.
After arriving in Grass, he had ordered them to secretly infiltrate as backup, ready to ambush Akatsuki when the time came.
"They've been informed. Under the lead of the other clones, they're already on the move toward the base," the spore clone replied.
"Excellent. Lead the way!" Fugaku ordered, satisfied.
Inside the White Zetsu Base.
Buzz—
A black vortex spiraled open, and from it stepped Uchiha Obito.
"Did you bring back the boy carrying the Nine-Tails' chakra?" Nagato, Konan, and Zetsu immediately asked upon his return.
"I did," Obito answered.
Another vortex swirled before him, and from it appeared a bound boy—Utakata's replacement, the vessel known as Sora, inside whom the Nine-Tails' chakra was sealed.
"He doesn't hold the full beast, but with the chakra inside him, reviving the Ten-Tails will be enough," Zetsu said, his voice trembling with suppressed excitement.
Though Fugaku's unexpected interference had caused massive upheavals, the plan was finally back on track. Soon the Ten-Tails would be revived, and with its power channeled into a Jinchūriki, the ultimate goal—reviving Kaguya Ōtsutsuki—could proceed.
"Let's begin."
Nagato directed the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to open its maw, then lifted Sora with Universal Pull, dragging the boy toward the statue's gaping mouth.
The Ten-Tails possessed Six Paths-level might. Once Nagato became its Jinchūriki, he too would wield power on that level.
With such strength, even Uchiha Fugaku would no longer be an obstacle. Nagato would sweep across the shinobi world and bring about everlasting peace.