"The border of the Fire Nation... I understand," Pain said lightly, his voice calm yet carrying an unmistakable weight.
Konan's eyes narrowed slightly with curiosity. "So, what are your plans now, Obito?" she asked, her tone gentle but probing.
Obito hesitated for a moment, the shadow of his past flickering across his expression. "I want to atone for the mistakes I made before," he said quietly.
Neither Pain nor Konan expected those words from him. Was this really the same arrogant "Madara" who once sought to control the world through fear and power? His declaration felt almost like a different man speaking.
It seemed that after his visit to that mysterious store, something inside Obito had changed. Whatever the owner of that shop said or showed him had shifted his heart drastically.
Pain's interest piqued instantly. What could the proprietor of that place have told "Madara" to bring about such a profound transformation?
"I'm going to start by atoning for my sins. See you all..." Obito's body began to blur, folding into space itself as he activated his space-time ninjutsu.
Everyone was stunned. None of them expected that Obito had mastered such a forbidden technique—an ability to disappear and reappear across great distances in the blink of an eye.
As Obito vanished, Konan glanced at Pain with concern. "What should we do now, Pain?"
Pain folded his arms, his pale eyes reflecting deep thought. "Since he said that store can help us realize our ideals, it's only right we go and see it for ourselves," he replied firmly.
Without another word, Pain stood and walked out of the base. Konan nodded and followed closely behind.
As the two left, the atmosphere inside the Akatsuki base shifted.
Scorpion of the Red Sand carefully placed his puppet back into its scroll, stretched his limbs, and muttered, "It's time to get moving."
With that, he disappeared from the room, leaving the organization.
Nearby, Biwa Juzo gave Orochimaru a quick glance while the latter meditated quietly. Then, clutching his stomach, Biwa mumbled, "Um... my stomach feels a little uncomfortable. I'll be back soon..." and hurried away, covering his midsection.
Only Kakuzu and Orochimaru remained.
Kakuzu stopped counting his money and looked at Orochimaru with curiosity. "Why aren't you going out?"
Orochimaru slowly opened one eye and replied dryly, "I don't have any money."
Kakuzu's lips twitched into a smirk. "You're holding more than 18 million in cash right now," he said mockingly.
Orochimaru's expression was unreadable, but inside, he was frustrated. He felt utterly cheated by the Akatsuki leader, who promised much but delivered little. It had been two days since joining, and he had yet to see a single penny for himself.
"Why don't we go out and make some money ourselves?" Kakuzu suggested tentatively.
Orochimaru nodded in agreement. "That's exactly what I was thinking."
The promised benefits from Pain sounded good, but the reality was clear—everything Peter sold was outrageously expensive. Orochimaru's patience was wearing thin.
So, the two schemers agreed to leave the base and hunt for their own fortune.
---
Fire Country, Konoha Village
Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, walked briskly into the Hokage building, a pipe clenched between his teeth and a wide grin on his face.
"Today is a good day," he muttered happily.
Today was payday for the Anbu Black Ops, and as Hokage, Hiruzen had to collect the funds from the village treasury. Secretly, he always pocketed a little extra for himself.
After all, the Hokage's official salary was meager. He couldn't exactly go to the mission hall like any other ninja to pick up work and earn money.
Thus, besides his official salary, his income came from two sources: the occasional gifts from the powerful families in the village, and the small amount of money he discreetly embezzled every time he entered the vault.
What annoyed Hiruzen the most was that among all the influential families in Konoha, only the Uchiha clan refused to give him any gifts.
The Hyuga clan, masters of another legendary eye technique, had been quite generous over the years.
Despite his long tenure as Hokage, the heads of the Uchiha clan never showed any respect or gratitude. Worse still, they acted haughty and superior, especially during the Nine Tails Rebellion, when the Sharingan's role in controlling the Nine Tails' power was undeniable—but the Uchiha always denied responsibility.
This infuriated Hiruzen. But for the sake of peace in the village, he swallowed his pride and bottled up his anger.
Following his close ally Danzo's advice, he had recently moved the Uchiha clan's territory to the outskirts of Konoha.
---
"Hehehe, little money, here I come..." Hiruzen chuckled as he opened the heavy iron door of the vault.
The vault was the most secure room in the entire Hokage building, with complex seals and defenses.
But when the door creaked open, Hiruzen's confident smile instantly faded.
He blinked, confused. The mountain of money he counted yesterday was gone—completely vanished overnight.
"No!!!" Hiruzen's voice echoed through the Hokage office in despair.
The surrounding Anbu operatives rushed in immediately, alarmed by the commotion.
They found their leader kneeling on the floor, shaking his head and shouting, "Where's my money? Where did all the money go?!"
Anbu exchanged worried glances.
The vault's security was top-notch. No one but Hiruzen himself should have been able to open it.
Even a forced entry would have been impossible to conceal; it would have triggered alarms or left evidence.
Only space-time ninjutsu could allow such a silent and invisible theft—and all known masters of that forbidden art were dead.
"No matter who you are, if I catch you, I swear I'll make you pay!" Hiruzen growled fiercely.
---
News of the theft quickly reached Shimura Danzō's ears in the Root headquarters.
Danzō smiled darkly. "Hiruzen is really foolish. He couldn't even protect his own vault."
He was already plotting, thinking about how Hiruzen would explain this fiasco to the Daimyo.
Danzō had no intention of helping Hiruzen. If the Daimyo found out about this embarrassing theft, it would likely cost Hiruzen his position as Hokage—and then the door would open for Danzō himself to take the throne as the village's shadow ruler.
Eager, Danzō opened the secret safe within the Root organization to count his amassed wealth.
But his grin froze as he opened the vault to reveal an empty chamber—no cash, no documents, not even a scrap of paper.
His blood boiled. "Who did this?! That bastard!" he cursed furiously.
"Search everywhere! Even if you have to dig to the very depths of the earth, find my money!" he ordered his subordinates.
"Yes, sir!"
Danzō was beside himself, now fully understanding Hiruzen's fury and despair.
He couldn't fathom who would be so brazen as to come to Konoha and steal from the most powerful and secretive factions within the village.
"No matter who you are, if I catch you, I'll make you regret it!" he growled.
Those who received this order exchanged bewildered looks—Danzō's words echoed Hiruzen's almost exactly.
---
Outside Konoha Village
In a dark, secluded cave, a shadowy figure counted piles of money with a grin.
"Tens, hundreds, thousands, millions..." he murmured as he tallied the stacks.
One billion taels—he had "earned" it all in a single night.
"As expected of Konoha Village, they're rich," Black Zetsu muttered with satisfaction, counting the spoils taken from two insurance companies.
If he hadn't painstakingly moved the money one bundle at a time, he would have made even more.
His mind turned dark. "I need to trick that stupid boy Obito," Black Zetsu muttered under his breath.
---
The world of ninjas was as treacherous as ever.
From secret thefts in the vaults of Konoha to the shifting allegiances within the Akatsuki, the tides of power were rising.
And in the shadows, hidden players were making their moves.
---