After listening to Sasori's explanation and realizing the flow of time differed between worlds, Aoyama silently made a note to himself: I can't just casually go on 'vacations' to other worlds anymore.
But if he wanted to find the way home, he would still need to search world by world.
Who wouldn't prefer lounging around with a watermelon under an air conditioner instead?
Before long, Aoyama was summoned again by the Akatsuki. He sensed the pulse from the ring on his finger, formed hand seals, and used the secret technique that projected his thought-body into the meeting place. After so long, he once again stood atop one of the great fingers of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
This time, only Kakuzu and Pain were present; the others seemed to be away on missions, not summoned.
Pain spoke:
"Aoyama, since you've returned at just the right time, I have a mission for you and Kakuzu. You'll be going to Iwagakure."
Kakuzu asked immediately:
"How much are they paying?"
Money was always his first concern—typical Kakuzu. As long as there was money, he was satisfied.
Pain paused briefly, then answered:
"I'm not sure of the exact amount. You can negotiate for more yourself. The mission details will be delivered to you by Zetsu."
Within Akatsuki, White Zetsu was essentially the sole intelligence and courier department. With his countless clones, all errands and message deliveries usually fell to him.
Hearing this, Kakuzu didn't ask further questions. Instead, he cast a long, complicated, meaningful glance at Aoyama.
Puzzled, Aoyama withdrew from the thought-body state, opened his eyes, and wondered: What's with Kakuzu? Half a year without seeing me, and now he suddenly has "words" for me?
When he finally regrouped with Kakuzu near Iwagakure, the first thing Kakuzu said left Aoyama dumbstruck.
"I asked Zetsu about you. For half a year, there hasn't been a single trace of you in the shinobi world. You left the world entirely, didn't you?"
Honestly, Aoyama had never imagined that Kakuzu, of all people, would pay him any attention.
Everyone in the shinobi world knew Kakuzu only cared about money. Nothing else mattered to him. But for him to notice Aoyama's absence—and keep it in mind for six months—was unsettling.
Especially given Kakuzu's image: a cold-blooded old man far past his years. Having him show "concern" felt more nauseating than reassuring.
Calm down. Don't panic.
After a moment of thought, Aoyama smoothly pulled out an excuse:
"Have you ever heard of the Ōtsutsuki clan?"
He invoked the name of the originators of chakra as his cover.
As expected, Kakuzu frowned and shook his head.
"I've lived since the Warring States era. I've seen dozens, maybe hundreds of shinobi clans, but I've never heard of any Ōtsutsuki. What kind of clan are they?"
"You were curious where I disappeared for half a year, right? Truth is, I went as a guest to the Ōtsutsuki clan. They're the family of the Sage of Six Paths. And don't you dare doubt me! A thousand years ago, the only true Goddess of the Shinobi World gave birth to two sons. One of them became the Sage of Six Paths—Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo."
"Elder brother Hagoromo, as the Sage, founded Ninshū and spread chakra to ordinary humans. Thanks to him, shinobi came into existence. Most bloodline-limit clans today are descended in some way from the Ōtsutsuki."
"As for his younger brother, Ōtsutsuki Hamura, he led part of the clan to ascend to the moon. Not only to avoid conflict with his brother, but also to monitor the shinobi world. Anyway, the point is—there's an Ōtsutsuki clan living on the moon. Believe it or not."
Kakuzu fell silent, suspicion lingering in his eyes. It wasn't that he lacked questions—he simply couldn't help but believe, at least partially.
He had thought Aoyama might claim to have stayed in some secret summoning-beast holy land. But instead, he spoke of the Sage of Six Paths and an Ōtsutsuki clan, in a way that made it almost convincing.
When they reached Iwagakure, White Zetsu appeared, handed them a mission scroll, and vanished without another word.
The mission was straightforward: eliminate a hidden Konoha intelligence outpost within Iwagakure. The year was Year 53 of the shinobi calendar, during one of the small-scale wars between Iwa and Konoha. Danzo Shimura, head of Root, had been striking relentlessly, leaving Iwa suffering constant losses in intelligence.
Say what you will about Danzo's combat ability, but his leadership was undeniable. Coupled with his status as the Second Hokage's student, he had the authority and influence to operate freely—just below the Hokage himself.
Iwagakure, meanwhile, had to guard against possible surprise attacks from Kumo, while keeping strength in reserve against both Kiri and Suna. They couldn't pull back troops from the front against Konoha, so their only option was to hire the Akatsuki.
In canon, it was mentioned that during Onoki's tenure as the Third Tsuchikage, he frequently relied on the Akatsuki and other mercenary groups in secret to preserve Iwa's strength.
The price satisfied Kakuzu, so he accepted immediately. Handing the scroll to Aoyama, he said:
"Our mission is to work with a brat and wipe out everyone in Konoha's hidden outpost here in Iwa."
Aoyama glanced at the scroll, tucked it away, and nodded.
"Fine. Let's get it done quickly."
Their contact turned out to be a blond brat—the disciple of the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki.
Seeing Deidara for the first time under these circumstances was a surprise, though not entirely shocking. Since he hadn't yet been exiled, Deidara was still a loyal Iwa shinobi. With Onoki as his teacher, it was only natural that he'd be assigned to strike at Konoha's hidden outpost.
Deidara lifted his chin and scoffed:
"So you're the helpers the old man found? Are you even up to the task?"
Kakuzu didn't answer. Instead, he shot Aoyama a look that meant: You're the younger one—show him what you can do.
Aoyama shrugged. In the blink of an eye, he used the Body Flicker to appear behind Deidara, pressing a hand to the boy's head.
"Kid, didn't your family teach you to respect others?"
"Fast, I'll give you that. But respect? That's something I'll never learn. Careful, or my art will blow you to pieces!"
A thin, crooked clay snake had already wrapped itself around Aoyama's ankle—so small it was almost unnoticeable, no thicker than a finger, half a meter long, and without much strength.
Deidara specialized in Explosion Release, shaping clay with chakra to create detonations, whose power depended on his chakra and the amount of clay used.
Amused by the threat, Aoyama burst out laughing. This is way more fun than the Hunter World. So many strange and creative ways to fight—much more entertaining than Nen abilities.
Confused why Aoyama was still laughing, Deidara pulled out a freshly molded clay flea, tossed it to the ground, and raised two fingers.
"Drink it in—my art! Explode!"
BOOM!
The explosion shook the ground.
Deidara smirked proudly, lifting his chin.
"See the power of my art? Let's see you laugh now!"
But Aoyama's grin didn't fade. If anything, his laughter only grew louder.