They say that longing for home makes the journey feel short, and Saitama almost experienced that illusion.
It had taken the four—Pain, Maki, Motoi, and Saitama—a day and a half to reach Konoha, but they returned in less than a day.
As night began to fall, Saitama and his companions already stood at the gate of Amegakure Village.
Following the procedure to verify their identities, the group entered the village directly.
From this point onward, Saitama's interactions with those three Genin ended. Perhaps for the rest of their lives, they would never meet again.
Removing his Amegakure forehead protector, Saitama's face continuously changed until he finally reverted back to his original appearance.
There's nothing quite like seeing your own face again...
Rubbing his face slightly with his fingers, Saitama let his tense muscles gradually relax.
[White Zetsu's Transformation Jutsu] not only imitates chakra fluctuations but also changes physical appearance, naturally affecting muscle tissues and even bone structures.
While gently kneading his face, Saitama made his way toward the Akatsuki Tower.
Today was Sunday, and although it didn't rain in Amegakure Village, the air smelled fresh—the scent of damp soil lingering after rainfall spread throughout.
Saitama wasn't slow in his pace and soon returned to the secret base.
Within his perception, almost all members of the organization had returned. Most likely, Pain didn't want anyone wandering about recklessly due to the abnormal situation currently spreading across the Shinobi World.
This storm stirred by the Akatsuki capturing Jinchuriki and gathering Tailed Beasts truly swept through the ninja world after these Chunin Exams, leaving no village untouched.
After returning, Saitama no longer concerned himself with the details of this mission; next came the clean-up tasks handled by others.
As for him, he once again became Suzume of the Akatsuki, Saitama Uchiha.
Firstly, he went to inform Pain briefly. Although Saitama knew Pain had already sensed his return upon entering the village, formalities still needed to be observed.
Then, he returned alone to his room.
An uneventful night passed quietly.
Morning came, gentle breezes blew, and raindrops began tapping against Saitama's windowpane, disturbing his peaceful dream.
A full night's sleep refreshed both his spirit and his body.
Without checking the time, Saitama got up, bare-chested, and walked straight to the refrigerator, grabbed a can of milk, then went to the balcony and sat down on the chair there.
Another brand new day had arrived, a future awaiting them!
Hiss!
He twisted open the lid of the can and gulped down half of it in one go.
Only now did he have the chance to look outside.
It was Monday again—Pain's raining day. Outside appeared pale and hazy. The drizzle wasn't heavy or dense, just scattered lightly.
Though Saitama had an excellent physique, the thick fog and chilly air made him feel a slight chill.
He took a few more gulps from the can, set it aside, grabbed a dark-colored top, slipped it on, and stepped back out onto the balcony. Picking up his milk can again, he stood there gazing into the distance.
According to Pain's orders, unless they were Jinchuriki leaving the village, no one was to initiate new capture missions for now.
The remaining tailed beasts belonged to villages far stronger than Takigakure and Sunagakure. If they were to be captured by aggressively invading their villages as before, it would become a major problem.
Saitama's thoughts aligned with Pain's—this wasn't the best time to actively collect tailed beasts unless their jinchuriki willingly left their villages and ventured beyond protective perimeters.
"So what should we do next?"
Saitama frowned slightly, pondering for a moment.
After a long silence, an idea he'd been considering for some time suddenly clicked, brightening his expression.
[Impure World Reincarnation], improved by Orochimaru, had already neared perfection. Most of its original issues had gradually been resolved.
Only one minor issue remained—the control aspect.
Because reincarnated shinobi varied greatly in strength, the caster's ability to maintain full control became problematic. When the reincarnated ninja were too powerful, there was even a risk they might break free and turn on the caster.
When mastered completely, [Impure World Reincarnation] could be considered a technique that bordered on being overpowered.
Tobirama Senju had originally researched this forbidden technique partly due to his desire to resurrect his deceased older brother, Hashirama Senju. It was an ultimate ninja art that manipulated the souls of the dead—an absolute taboo.
Moreover, the reincarnated shinobi from this technique could be temporarily stored inside the [Impure World Reincarnation]'s summoning space, then later used as summoned entities when needed.
Realizing this, Saitama quickly got to work.
He finished all the milk in just a few gulps, casually tossed the empty can into a nearby trash bin, then walked back to his room and began dressing.
He decided it was time to summon several chosen combatants he had previously prepared using [Impure World Reincarnation], in preparation for any emergencies.
From the beginning of their alliance with Akatsuki, Saitama and Nagato operated as partners—though generally, Saitama played the inferior role.
After all, Nagato's power truly exceeded his own. Until Saitama reached an unrivaled level within the entire shinobi world, he saw no harm in having someone else take point.
Despite being the weaker party within his collaboration with Nagato, that didn't mean Saitama lived under many restrictions.
Thus, if Saitama wished to leave the village, he could do so freely.
Moreover, the fewer people who knew about his use of [Impure World Reincarnation], the better—especially since White Zetsu and Black Zetsu were ones he needed to be most cautious of.
With minimal preparations complete, Saitama gathered his supplies and set off.
Outside the village, he had previously placed [Flying Thunder God Technique] markings—enabling unrestricted movement while preventing tracking by unpredictable individuals like White Zetsu.
Looking around carefully, Saitama confirmed that he had left nothing behind. He immediately activated the marking and abruptly vanished from the room, as if he had never existed there at all.
His first teleportation mark remained not far outside the village, but the second teleportation mark was today's true destination.
It was a basic secret base known only to Saitama—an essential measure he had taken to protect himself from Zetsu.
Knowing full well how events would unfold, there was absolutely no way he'd let his guard down completely around those two suspicious characters. He always kept certain safeguards ready.
...
Psssst!
Hiss! Hiss!
Not long after Saitama left, a section of the wall sprouted grass-like growths before a pitch-black Zetsu-like form emerged.
It was naturally Zetsu!
"Heh... heh!"
"How fascinating indeed! Aren't you curious about what Saitama is hiding from us?"
White Zetsu gazed at where Saitama had vanished, a faint smirk curling his lips.
"There's no need to interfere with him right now. At the moment, we need him to keep things moving forward. Let him play around as much as he wants for now!"
"No matter what he does, he won't slip through our fingers!"
Black Zetsu's single eye gleamed with a gloomy look, his voice deep and echoing like it came from a sewer, slightly stifling and sinister.
"Do whatever you want. After all, Saitama's power is already beyond my control anyway—as long as everything still ends up under your control in the end."
White Zetsu appeared indifferent; he didn't care much about anything, always wavering in stance. He'd jump in whenever something caught his interest.
"Hmph!"
Black Zetsu slowly closed his eyes, paying no mind to where Saitama had gone. Confident in his control over Saitama, he wasn't afraid of any tricks Saitama might try.
The stronger Saitama grew, the more pleased Black Zetsu became—because it meant their plan to gather the Tailed Beasts would progress faster, bringing them ever closer to the revival of his mother.
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