"Lord Kazama, while you were gone, our Oto ninja village has completely transformed!"
Orochimaru and the others couldn't wait to tell Kazama about the changes in Oto.
"Before, hardly anyone wanted to join us. But ever since you built the Fallen Heart Flame Tower and the Green Lotus Core Flame Tower, people have been flocking here in droves!"
"And with how beautiful our village is, even civilians from other countries have started settling here. It's like a bustling marketplace now!"
Kazama had expected these changes.
After all, his Oto ninja village had the Fallen Heart Flame Tower, which could speed up training.
And the Green Lotus Core Flame Tower, which prevented cultivators from losing control.
These were things no other ninja village had.
So, naturally, people came in endless waves.
Seeing that his Oto village was starting to take shape like one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, Kazama felt his hard work hadn't been in vain.
Then, he used the Flying Thunder God Technique again to head back to the cave.
He brought the bandit leader to the Fire Country's royal palace.
"What a young hero! Kazama, my friend, you've impressed me beyond words!"
Not only had Kazama protected the princess and wiped out the bandits, but he'd also captured their leader alive.
The Fire Country's daimyo couldn't stop praising him and immediately rewarded Kazama with a million ryo in gold.
With the mission complete, the Fire Country princess learned Kazama's true identity.
The Konoha genin who'd protected her was none other than Sanada Kazama, the genius ninja she'd dreamed of meeting.
Overjoyed, the princess rushed to the daimyo's chambers, but Kazama had already left.
"Is this really fate without a chance? I didn't even get to say thank you!"
Staring at the place where Kazama had gone, the princess sighed softly.
On his way back to Konoha, a flock of crows suddenly appeared in the sky.
Kazama recognized this as the signal he and Itachi had agreed on.
If this signal appeared, it meant Itachi had intel on Akatsuki's plans to capture the Tailed Beasts.
Thrilled, Kazama hurried to the signaled location.
As Kazama's Strange Fire rankings grew higher, he needed to absorb more ninjutsu.
Absorbing enemy attacks bit by bit was just too slow now.
So, Kazama urgently needed to absorb Tailed Beast power to fuel his Strange Fires.
After all, absorbing one Tailed Beast's attack could grant him several Strange Fires at once.
Plus, he'd gain access to even stronger Tailed Beast power.
In Kazama's eyes, Tailed Beasts were like elixirs for boosting his strength.
"You're something else, stealing all of Akatsuki's funds like that!"
As soon as Kazama arrived at the meeting spot, he heard Itachi's praise.
"Haha! I bet your Akatsuki leader is furious, right?"
Kazama burst out laughing.
"Now you're on Akatsuki's must-kill list. You'd better watch your back!"
"No worries. I'll handle whatever comes my way. If I'm bold enough to take on Akatsuki, I'm not scared of their trouble!"
With Kazama's current strength, Akatsuki was no match for him.
"Did you call me here because Akatsuki's about to start capturing Tailed Beasts?"
"Exactly. Akatsuki's assigned the task of capturing the One-Tail, Shukaku, to Deidara and Scorpion. They'll scout in the next few days, then make their move."
"I've already absorbed the chakra of the One-Tail and Two-Tail. What I need now is the Three-Tail!"
With that in mind, Kazama quickly asked Itachi, "Is there only news about the One-Tail? Any info on the Three-Tail or beyond?"
"Akatsuki's tracked down all the Tailed Beasts, but they're capturing them in order, starting with the One-Tail. Until they've got the One-Tail and Two-Tail, the leader won't share details about the Three-Tail. So, I don't know much either."
"If that's the case, I'll make sure they get the One-Tail and Two-Tail quickly. Then they'll move on to capturing the Three-Tail, and you should be able to find out where it is, right?"
"That's how it should work, but how are you going to make Akatsuki capture both the One-Tail and Two-Tail at the same time?"
"Simple!"
Kazama transformed into the One-Tail, Shukaku, and then into the Two-Tail, Matatabi.
"What?! You actually have Tailed Beast powers?!"
Even the usually composed Uchiha Itachi couldn't help but gasp in shock at Kazama's transformation.