Shikamaru immediately challenged: "Asuma, didn't you and Teacher Kai say you were responsible for the escort?
Why were you guys missing just now?"
Asuma lit a cigarette and didn't speak.
It was Kai who spoke: "We encountered a strange enemy and were held up."
A strange enemy?
What kind of strange enemy could hold up two Elite Jonin at once?
"It was a Spiral Mask Man!"
Asuma exhaled smoke, "His body could become intangible; we couldn't hit him at all.
And he seemed to be toying with Kai and me, not letting us leave.
Later, he seemed to get tired of playing, so he didn't bother us anymore, and we were able to rush over."
Spiral mask?
Intangibility?
Natsuki raised an eyebrow, not expecting Uchiha Obito to appear at this time.
It seemed that the deaths of Kakuzu and Hidan had caused a shortage of personnel in the Akatsuki, and the Akatsuki also seemed to have become anxious, unexpectedly advancing the plan to capture the tailed beasts.
Oh, it wasn't exactly advanced; in the original story, Fu, the Seven-Tails, was captured during this period.
As for Naruto, the Naruto in the original story had already been taken away by Jiraiya and didn't participate in this Chunin Exams at all.
Clearly, this time, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki leaving the village made the Akatsuki think it was a good opportunity, so they sent people over.
However, there was a slight miscalculation; they should have sent Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki here, otherwise Tenten and the others wouldn't have been able to block them at all.
As for Uchiha Obito, perhaps he wanted to take the opportunity to kill Asuma and Kai.
But he couldn't do it.
Even if he couldn't be hit by Kai after becoming intangible, it would be absolutely impossible for him to kill Kai!
At this point, Kai added: "What's even more surprising is that the masked man actually had a Sharingan!"
Swish!
Everyone subconsciously looked at Sasuke.
Sasuke clenched the hilt of his sword and said in disbelief, "Sharingan? Impossible! At that time, Itachi Uchiha was fighting with Natsuki. That person wasn't Itachi Uchiha. Is there another Uchiha clan member I don't know about?"
Asuma Sarutobi extinguished his cigarette butt and affirmed, "You're right. In fact, there is another mysterious Uchiha clan member. When the Nine-Tails attack broke out in the Village back then, it is said that a Spiral Mask Man appeared. He used his Sharingan to control the Nine-Tails, causing the Nine-Tails attack and even leading to the Fourth Hokage's sacrifice..."
Recalling the past, Asuma couldn't help but sigh.
He was still a Guardian Ninja at the time and wasn't actually in the Village. He only heard about it after returning from his own father.
However, Might Guy had experienced it firsthand: "This is true. It was also because many people saw the Sharingan in the Nine-Tails' eyes that they kept questioning whether it was the work of the Uchiha. The situation at the time was quite complex, and I didn't understand it very well, but now it seems that the mysterious Uchiha who was secretly causing trouble back then should be this person. I didn't expect him to be from the Akatsuki!"
Akatsuki...
Thinking of this group of rogue Ninja, everyone's expression became solemn for a moment.
Naruto and Sasuke, however, were stunned. One didn't expect it to be related to the Nine-Tails attack, and the other didn't expect there to be other Uchihas. Neither of them could recover for a while.
Fortunately, Natsuki spoke up and ended the conversation: "Alright, we need to report this to Tsunade-sama as soon as possible. She will make the decision. Let's escort everyone back to the Village first. It will be safe once we are back in the Village."
The crowd didn't object and began to gather everyone to return to the Village together.
If it weren't for the large number of people, Natsuki would have wanted to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to fly back.
As for Kakashi Hatake, he could only be a guest in Taki Hidden Village for now. Natsuki still needed to discuss this matter with Tsunade before going to find him.
Fortunately, the return to the Village was uneventful. Everyone quickly went to Konoha Hospital. Tsunade was just coming out of the hospital, with Megumi and Sakura following behind her.
"Tsunade-sama, how is everyone doing?" Tenten asked anxiously.
"Don't worry, they are all fine. Fortunately, they were brought back in time, and the poison had not spread deeply, so it was easy to cure."
Tsunade reassured everyone with a smile, but her eyes secretly glanced at Sakura.
Sakura hadn't been studying Medical Ninjutsu for long, and she didn't have a skilled medical Ninja to guide her, but her foundation was solid, making her a promising talent.
Although Tsunade didn't mind taking on another disciple, she wouldn't proactively suggest it. Instead, she would see if Sakura had the determination in this regard.
Tenten, Shino Aburame, and the others all breathed a collective sigh of relief upon hearing this.
Afterward, Tsunade gathered everyone in the Hokage Office. After fully understanding the situation, the lines between her eyebrows never smoothed out, indicating that the situation was worse than she had imagined.
Even though Natsuki and Kakashi Hatake had gone, they only protected Fu, the Seven-Tails, but couldn't attend to the Nine-Tails side.
She didn't expect the Akatsuki to have such capable people, and that the Spiral Mask Man was actually the true culprit behind the Nine-Tails attack. Things were becoming more and more confusing...
Tsunade pondered for a long time before finally saying, "Natsuki, go to Taki Hidden Village first and see how Kakashi Hatake is doing. Tenten, stay here on standby and communicate with Natsuki in real time whenever needed. As for the others, go back and rest first. The promotion list will be announced after the higher-ups have discussed it."
Everyone dispersed as instructed.
Natsuki patted Tenten's little head and then disappeared alone.
When he came to his senses again, he was already in an unfamiliar place. Kakashi Hatake was sitting nearby, reading his book.
Kakashi Hatake raised his eyelids: "Natsuki, you're finally here. How is everyone over there?"
"Well, it's a bit complicated..."
Natsuki explained the situation. Kakashi Hatake had already put away his book and become extremely serious. After all, it was related to the culprit behind the Nine-Tails attack, so it had to be taken seriously.
However, it wasn't convenient to discuss it here, and the identity of the Masked Man was still unclear, only that he was from the Akatsuki.
It seems the Akatsuki still had hidden talents and shouldn't be underestimated!
"What about you? What does the Leader of Taki Hidden Village think?" Natsuki asked again.
"Leader Shibuki is very grateful for our help this time, but they have decided to protect Fu themselves and will not choose to send her to a large Village for protection," Kakashi Hatake said with some helplessness.
Actually, based on the current situation, Taki Hidden Village should send Fu to the Hidden Sand Village or Konoha.
After all, Taki Hidden Village's strength is simply not enough to protect Fu, and they might even face annihilation. The Akatsuki's strength is not ordinary. Even if Fu, as a Jinchuriki, undergoes Tailed Beasts transformation, she wouldn't be able to defeat them, let alone others.
But Shibuki refused. He treated Fu like his sister, and perhaps he felt that his family should be protected by himself.
Kakashi Hatake couldn't force the issue and could only let it be.
"Since that's the case, there's no need for us to stay here any longer."
Natsuki didn't hesitate. After all, good advice is hard to give to those who are determined to die. Since they were willing to keep Fu in the Village regardless of the danger, how could people from other Villages interfere?
Moreover, Natsuki understood Shibuki's thoughts. A Jinchuriki is, after all, the utmost priority of a Village, equivalent to a country's nuclear weapon. How could they be easily handed over to others? Furthermore, Shibuki truly treated Fu as his sister. It was only natural for a brother to protect his sister and not need to ask for help from others.